Then the king said to Amasa, “Call me the men of Judah together within three days, and be here present.”
Parallel translations
- KJV Then said the king to Amasa, Assemble me the men of Judah within three days, and be thou here present.
- BSB Then the king said to Amasa, “Summon the men of Judah to come to me within three days, and be here yourself.”
- NKJV And the king said to Amasa, “Assemble the men of Judah for me within three days, and be present here yourself.”
- NASB Now the king said to Amasa, “Summon the men of Judah for me within three days, and be present here yourself.”
- NLT Then the king told Amasa, “Mobilize the army of Judah within three days, and report back at that time.”
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
David ordered Amasa to muster the men of Judah within three days. It matters because the king moved swiftly to crush Sheba's dangerous rebellion.
Overview
David commissioned Amasa, his new commander, to gather Judah's forces quickly against Sheba. The urgent command reflects David's awareness that delay could allow the revolt to spread. The verse sets in motion events that would expose Amasa's failure and Joab's deadly ambition.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- 2 Sam 17:25Absalom set Amasa over the army instead of Joab. Now Amasa was the son of a man whose name was Ithra the Israelite, who went in to Abigail the daughter of Nahash, sister to Zeruiah, Joab’s mother.
- 2 Sam 19:13Say to Amasa, ‘Aren’t you my bone and my flesh? God do so to me, and more also, if you aren’t captain of the army before me continually instead of Joab.’”
- 1 Chr 2:17Abigail bore Amasa; and the father of Amasa was Jether the Ishmaelite.
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 20:4 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.