Now the king and his men marched to Jerusalem against the Jebusites who inhabited the land. The Jebusites said to David: “You will never get in here. Even the blind and lame can repel you.” For they thought, “David cannot get in here.”
Parallel translations
- WEB The king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who spoke to David, saying, “The blind and the lame will keep you out of here”; thinking, “David can’t come in here.”
- KJV And the king and his men went to Jerusalem unto the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land: which spake unto David, saying, Except thou take away the blind and the lame, thou shalt not come in hither: thinking, David cannot come in hither.
- NKJV And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who spoke to David, saying, “You shall not come in here; but the blind and the lame will repel you,” thinking, “David cannot come in here.”
- NASB Now the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land; and they said to David, “You shall not come in here, but even those who are blind and those who limp will turn you away,” thinking, “David cannot enter here.”
- NLT David then led his men to Jerusalem to fight against the Jebusites, the original inhabitants of the land who were living there. The Jebusites taunted David, saying, “You’ll never get in here! Even the blind and lame could keep you out!” For the Jebusites thought they were safe.
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 marches on Jerusalem, but the Jebusites taunt that even the blind and lame could hold him off. Their boast in the city's defenses sets up David's victory.
Overview
David moves against the Jebusite stronghold of Jerusalem, whose inhabitants mock his approach, so confident in their fortress that they claim the blind and lame could repel him. Their proud taunt highlights the apparent impregnability of the city David will nonetheless capture. The episode shows that no human stronghold can withstand the king the Lord is establishing.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Judg 1:8Then the men of Judah fought against Jerusalem and captured it. They put the city to the sword and set it on fire.
- Josh 18:28Zelah, Haeleph, Jebus (that is, Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath-jearim—fourteen cities, along with their villages. This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Benjamin.
- Judg 1:21The Benjamites, however, failed to drive out the Jebusites living in Jerusalem. So to this day the Jebusites live there among the Benjamites.
- Jer 37:10Indeed, if you were to strike down the entire army of the Chaldeans that is fighting against you, and only wounded men remained in their tents, they would still get up and burn this city down.”
- 1 Chr 11:4–9Then David and all the Israelites marched to Jerusalem (that is, Jebus), where the Jebusites inhabited the land.
- Josh 15:63But the descendants of Judah could not drive out the Jebusites living in Jerusalem. So to this day the Jebusites live there among the descendants of Judah.
- Judg 19:10–12But the man was unwilling to spend the night. He got up and departed, and arrived opposite Jebus (that is, Jerusalem), with his two saddled donkeys and his concubine.
- Heb 7:1This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,
- Gen 14:18Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine—since he was priest of God Most High—
- Josh 10:3Therefore Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent word to Hoham king of Hebron, Piram king of Jarmuth, Japhia king of Lachish, and Debir king of Eglon, saying,
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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 5:6 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
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