But the man who touches them must be armed with iron and the staff of a spear. They will be utterly burned with fire in their place.”
Parallel translations
- KJV But the man that shall touch them must be fenced with iron and the staff of a spear; and they shall be utterly burned with fire in the same place.
- BSB The man who touches them must be armed with iron or with the shaft of a spear. The fire burns them to ashes in the place where they lie.”
- NKJV But the man who touches them Must be armed with iron and the shaft of a spear, And they shall be utterly burned with fire in their place.”
- NASB Instead, the man who touches them Must be armed with iron and the shaft of a spear, And they will be completely burned with fire in their place.”
- NLT One must use iron tools to chop them down; they will be totally consumed by fire.”
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
The wicked, like thorns, will be gathered with tools and utterly burned, picturing certain judgment.
Overview
Completing the thorn metaphor, the verse describes the ungodly being thrust away and burned in their place. This sober conclusion to David's last words affirms God's righteous judgment against evil, a theme Jesus echoes in His parables of fire and final reckoning (Matthew 13:30, 40).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Heb 6:8but if it bears thorns and thistles, it is rejected and near being cursed, whose end is to be burned.
- 2 Th 2:8Then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will kill with the breath of his mouth, and destroy by the manifestation of his coming;
- Matt 13:42and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be weeping and the gnashing of teeth.
- Matt 3:10–12“Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down, and cast into the fire.
- 2 Sam 22:8–10Then the earth shook and trembled. The foundations of heaven quaked and were shaken, because he was angry.
- 2 Th 1:8giving vengeance to those who don’t know God, and to those who don’t obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus,
- Luke 19:27But bring those enemies of mine who didn’t want me to reign over them here, and kill them before me.’”
- Luke 19:14But his citizens hated him, and sent an envoy after him, saying, ‘We don’t want this man to reign over us.’
- John 15:6If a man doesn’t remain in me, he is thrown out as a branch, and is withered; and they gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned.
- Isa 27:4Wrath is not in me, but if I should find briers and thorns, I would do battle! I would march on them and I would burn them together.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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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 23:7 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.