“We have ten shares in the king,” answered the men of Israel, “so we have more claim to David than you. Why then do you despise us? Were we not the first to speak of restoring our king?” But the men of Judah pressed even harder than the men of Israel.
Parallel translations
- WEB The men of Israel answered the men of Judah, and said, “We have ten parts in the king, and we have also more claim to David than you. Why then did you despise us, that our advice should not be first had in bringing back our king?” The words of the men of Judah were fiercer than the words of the men of Israel.
- KJV And the men of Israel answered the men of Judah, and said, We have ten parts in the king, and we have also more right in David than ye: why then did ye despise us, that our advice should not be first had in bringing back our king? And the words of the men of Judah were fiercer than the words of the men of Israel.
- NKJV And the men of Israel answered the men of Judah, and said, “We have ten shares in the king; therefore we also have more right to David than you. Why then do you despise us—were we not the first to advise bringing back our king?” Yet the words of the men of Judah were fiercer than the words of the men of Israel.
- NASB But the men of Israel answered the men of Judah and said, “We have ten parts in the king, therefore we also have more claim on David than you. Why then did you treat us with contempt? Was it not our advice first to bring back our king?” Yet the words of the men of Judah were harsher than the words of the men of Israel.
- NLT “But there are ten tribes in Israel,” the others replied. “So we have ten times as much right to the king as you do. What right do you have to treat us with such contempt? Weren’t we the first to speak of bringing him back to be our king again?” The argument continued back and forth, and the men of Judah spoke even more harshly than the men of Israel.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Israel claimed a greater share in David, and the quarrel grew fierce, with Judah's words harshest. It matters because this bitter dispute set the stage for Sheba's revolt.
Overview
Israel argued they had ten tribes' worth of claim to David, yet Judah answered more fiercely. The heated exchange over who most deserved the king exposed deep tribal pride and division. This unresolved bitterness directly provoked the rebellion of Sheba in the next chapter, showing how strife breeds further strife.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 23
- Gal 5:20idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions,
- 2 Sam 5:1Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and said, “Here we are, your own flesh and blood.
- 1 Kgs 11:30–31And Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing, tore it into twelve pieces,
- Jas 4:1–5What causes conflicts and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from the passions at war within you?
- Jas 3:14–16But if you harbor bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast in it or deny the truth.
- Jas 3:2–10We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to control his whole body.
- Prov 13:10Arrogance leads only to strife, but wisdom is with the well-advised.
- Prov 17:14To start a quarrel is to release a flood; so abandon the dispute before it breaks out.
- Rom 12:21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
- 2 Sam 19:14So he swayed the hearts of all the men of Judah as though they were one man, and they sent word to the king: “Return, you and all your servants.”
- 2 Sam 20:1Now a worthless man named Sheba son of Bichri, a Benjamite, happened to be there, and he blew the ram’s horn and shouted: “We have no share in David, no inheritance in Jesse’s son. Every man to his tent, O Israel!”
- Phil 2:3Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves.
- 1 Kgs 12:16When all Israel saw that the king had refused to listen to them, they answered the king: “What portion do we have in David, and what inheritance in the son of Jesse? To your tents, O Israel! Look now to your own house, O David!” So the Israelites went home,
- Prov 15:1A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
- Gal 5:15But if you keep on biting and devouring one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another.
- Judg 9:23God sent a spirit of animosity between Abimelech and the leaders of Shechem and caused them to treat Abimelech deceitfully,
- 2 Sam 19:9And all the people throughout the tribes of Israel were arguing, “The king rescued us from the hand of our enemies and delivered us from the hand of the Philistines, but now he has fled the land because of Absalom.
- Judg 8:1Then the men of Ephraim said to Gideon, “Why have you done this to us? Why did you fail to call us when you went to fight against Midian?” And they contended with him violently.
- Jas 1:20for man’s anger does not bring about the righteousness that God desires.
- Prov 18:19An offended brother is harder to win than a fortified city, and disputes are like the bars of a castle.
- 2 Sam 20:6And David said to Abishai, “Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom. Take your lord’s servants and pursue him, or he will find fortified cities and elude us.”
- Gal 5:26Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying one another.
- Judg 12:1–6Then the men of Ephraim assembled and crossed the Jordan to Zaphon. They said to Jephthah, “Why have you crossed over to fight the Ammonites without calling us to go with you? We will burn your house down with you inside!”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
God's covenant with David — a son whose throne and kingdom would last forever (7:12–16) — finds its yes in Jesus, the Son of David who reigns without end.
How 2 Samuel 19:43 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.