Limitless Word
So David became even more famous when he returned from destroying 18,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
2 Samuel 8:13 · New Living Translation
Parallel translations
  • WEB David earned a reputation when he returned from striking down eighteen thousand men of the Syrians in the Valley of Salt.
  • KJV And David gat him a name when he returned from smiting of the Syrians in the valley of salt, being eighteen thousand men.
  • BSB And David made a name for himself when he returned from striking down eighteen thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
  • NKJV And David made himself a name when he returned from killing eighteen thousand Syrians in the Valley of Salt.
  • NASB So David made a name for himself when he returned from killing eighteen thousand Arameans in the Valley of Salt.

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 gained renown after striking down eighteen thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt. His decisive victories enhanced his fame.

Overview

This great victory, associated with the campaign against Edom in the Valley of Salt, added to David's reputation. The numbers reflect a sweeping triumph that secured Israel's southern flank. Again the narrative shows God exalting David's name through military success, as He had promised.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 5

  • 2 Kgs 14:7He killed ten thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt, and took Sela by war, and called its name Joktheel, to this day.
  • 2 Sam 7:9I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you. I will make you a great name, like the name of the great ones who are in the earth.
  • 1 Chr 18:12Moreover Abishai the son of Zeruiah struck eighteen thousand of the Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
  • 2 Chr 25:11Amaziah took courage, and led his people out, and went to the Valley of Salt, and struck ten thousand of the children of Seir.
  • Ps 60:1For the Chief Musician. To the tune of “The Lily of the Covenant.” A teaching poem by David, when he fought with Aram Naharaim and with Aram Zobah, and Joab returned, and killed twelve thousand of Edom in the Valley of Salt. God, you have rejected us. You have broken us down. You have been angry. Restore us, again.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — 2 Samuel videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on 2 Samuel 8:13YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on 2 SamuelMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 8:13 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.