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.
Parallel translations
- WEB 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.”
- 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 that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.
- 2 Th 2:8And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
- Matt 13:42And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
- Matt 3:10–12And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
- 2 Sam 22:8–10Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations of heaven moved and shook, because he was wroth.
- 2 Th 1:8In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
- Luke 19:27But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.
- Luke 19:14But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.
- John 15:6If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
- Isa 27:4Fury is not in me: who would set the briers and thorns against me in battle? I would go through them, I would burn them together.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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.