Summary: Everyone came to Israel (v.1), affirming David’s kingship (v.2). He reigned as king from age 30 to 70 years old (v.4). The Jebusites believed that David couldn’t defeat their fortress (v.6). Yet, David conquered Jerusalem, and he made it his personal fortress (v.9). David had eleven more children after this (vv.14-16). The Philistines try to depose David (v.17). David gets confirmation from God to defeat the Philistines (v.19), and he defeats them. This happened twice (v.22).
The picking of Jerusalem was on the border between Judah and Benjamin—two really big tribes that represented David and Saul. This is similar to picking Washington D.C. as the capital of the United States—namely, it wasn’t anyone’s state, it wasn’t developed as property, and it was neither in the north or the south.
(5:1) All the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and said, “We are your own flesh and blood.”
Abner set up David to be the king by gathering support in the northern tribes. He told the elders of Israel, “For some time you have wanted to make David your king. 18 Now do it! For the LORD promised David, ‘By my servant David I will rescue my people Israel from the hand of the Philistines and from the hand of all their enemies’” (2 Sam. 3:17-18). Consequently, during this time, the monarchy was finally united under David’s leadership.
“We are your own flesh and blood.” The first reason that they give for David’s right to rule is that he was an Israelite, which was a requirement in the law (cf. Deut. 17:15).
(5:2) “In the past, while Saul was king over us, you were the one who led Israel on their military campaigns. And the Lord said to you, ‘You will shepherd my people Israel, and you will become their ruler.’”
“You were the one who led Israel on their military campaigns.” The second reason they give is David’s history of service. He was the one who actually did the fighting against the Philistines. David wasn’t simply a named leader; he was already acting like a leader.
“You will shepherd my people Israel, and you will become their ruler.” The third reason that David should lead is that God had anointed him. God called David their “shepherd” and “ruler.” God himself was the shepherd of his people (Gen. 48:15) and he was the king as well (Gen. 49:24). Likewise, David was also a literal shepherd before he received his calling as king (1 Sam. 16:11). David becomes the archetype for a “shepherd-king” (Ps. 78:70-72; Ezek. 34:23; 37:24), which is ultimately fulfilled in David’s distant descendant: Jesus (Jn. 10:11; Heb. 13:20; 1 Pet. 5:4). Nathan would later use this metaphor to charge David with sin against his flock (2 Sam. 12:1-4).
(5:3) When all the elders of Israel had come to King David at Hebron, the king made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord, and they anointed David king over Israel.
Hebron had been the current capital for David for about seven years (v.5). But he had his eyes set on Jerusalem.
David didn’t just make this covenant with the people but “before the Lord.” David wasn’t seizing tyrannical control. This was all under the authority of God.
(5:4-5) David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned forty years. 5 In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah thirty-three years.
David is an archetype for Jesus who also began his ministry around the age of 30 (Lk. 3:23). Also, David was anointed as the king 15 years before he was publicly anointed. Similarly, Jesus came to the world as a Suffering Servant, but he will return as a Conquering King.
Previous generations weren’t able to take Jerusalem (Josh. 15:63; Judg. 1:8, 21). But David did. This shows that God had his hand uniquely on David.
(5:6) The king and his men marched to Jerusalem to attack the Jebusites, who lived there. The Jebusites said to David, “You will not get in here; even the blind and the lame can ward you off.” They thought, “David cannot get in here.”
The Jebusites were taunting David’s ability—even the blind and lame can beat David. These words come back to bite them (v.8).
(5:7) Nevertheless, David captured the fortress of Zion—which is the City of David.
This is such a brief treatment of this battle that it implies that David powerfully (and perhaps easily) conquered the city of Jerusalem.
(5:8) On that day David had said, “Anyone who conquers the Jebusites will have to use the water shaft to reach those ‘lame and blind’ who are David’s enemies.” That is why they say, “The ‘blind and lame’ will not enter the palace.”
“Lame and blind who are David’s enemies.” David didn’t hate physically disabled people. In a few chapters, he spares Mephibosheth, who was physically disabled (2 Sam. 9:3-13). David is firing back with the sarcasm that the Jebusites used against him.
“Water shaft” (ṣinnôr) can mean “water shaft” (NIV), “grappling-iron” (NEB), or “dagger” (LXX). This refers to the “Warren’s Tunnel” which was “a narrow vertical shaft forty-nine feet long dug through rock, providing residents of the Zion fortress access to waters from the Gihon spring during times of siege.”[] Captain Charles Warren discovered this vertical water shaft in 1867. Kathleen Kenyon writes, “The position of the head of the shaft would be inside the town, while the spring would be outside the walls.”[] Inside the city, people could take steps down to draw water during a siege.
This was very hard to climb, but not impossible. Baldwin writes, “This shaft, about forty-nine feet (15 m) deep, is the rock-climb that David’s men would have had to scale to enter the city by the tunnel and steps above. Though extremely difficult, it was the kind of exploit that would appeal to David’s mighty men, and, like commando troops today, they needed to have opportunity to achieve the ‘impossible’.”[] Geisler and Holden write, “The particular piece of land that interested David, known today as the City of David, was occupied by the Jebusites. Fresh water was supplied by the Gihon Spring on the east side of the Jebusite-occupied territory, though by David’s time the Jebusites had carved a tunnel to channel water into the city itself. It appears from the biblical text (2 Samuel 5:8) that Joab conquered the city by going into the tunnel and up a shaft (known as Warren’s Shaft) and into the city (1 Chronicles 11:6).”[]
(5:9) David then took up residence in the fortress and called it the City of David. He built up the area around it, from the terraces inward.
“Terraces” is a translation of the Hebrew word “Millo” (NASB).
The original territory was only 12 acres. So, David built it out farther. Price and House write, “Israeli archaeologists Ronny Reich and Eli Shukron have uncovered walls and fortifications associated with the ancient city of David that were built upon and that utilized the remains of earlier Canaanite and Jebusite fortifications and water systems. Previous excavations under Yigael Shiloh revealed a massive twelve-story high stepped-stone structure from the thirteenth century BC upon which David began to build his city (2 Sam 5:9).”[]
(5:10) And he became more and more powerful, because the Lord God Almighty was with him.
David didn’t grow stronger through his own power, but because God was with him.
(5:11) Now Hiram king of Tyre sent envoys to David, along with cedar logs and carpenters and stonemasons, and they built a palace for David.
These events may be a summary of what happened years later, because Hiram doesn’t become king for another 20 years (980 BC).[] The mention of Tyre shows that David “was beginning to win respect beyond Israel’s borders.”[]
(5:12) Then David knew that the Lord had established him as king over Israel and had exalted his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel.
David recognizes that God was the one to put him in power (v.10). He realized that God did this for his people—not just for David. True servant leadership is focused on the needs of the people—not the leader’s self-aggrandizement.
(5:13) After he left Hebron, David took more concubines and wives in Jerusalem, and more sons and daughters were born to him.
The law explicitly stated that kings should not take “many wives” (Deut. 17:17). Youngblood writes, “By placing the word ‘concubines’ in emphatic position, the narrator is perhaps deploring David’s proclivity for the trappings of a typical Oriental monarch, including a harem.”[]
(5:14-16) These are the names of the children born to him there: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, 15 Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, 16 Elishama, Eliada and Eliphelet.
This is not an exhaustive list (1 Chron. 3:5-8; 14:4-7). The first four sons were born by Bathsheba (1 Chron. 3:5), whom we will meet in chapter 11.
These events are parallel with 1 Chronicles 14:8-16. The Philistines may have still thought David was an ally—especially since he had fought Ish-Bosheth.[]
(5:17) When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over Israel, they went up in full force to search for him, but David heard about it and went down to the stronghold.
There is some debate as to when this event occurs. If this event happened after David’s conquering of Jerusalem, there would be no need to search for David via military intelligence. We’re unsure.
With a change of power, the Philistines viewed this as a time of weakness. They attacked before David got his defenses together. Baldwin writes, “They were still thinking of David as a lone fighter, with a small bodyguard, whom they could locate and kill.”[]
(5:18) Now the Philistines had come and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim.
The valley of Rephaim was between Judah and Benjamin.[] It was a “steep-walled canyon less than a mile southwest of David’s new home.”[]
(5:19) So, David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I go and attack the Philistines? Will you deliver them into my hands?”
The Lord answered him, “Go, for I will surely deliver the Philistines into your hands.”
David seeks God’s counsel before entering into battle.
(5:20) So David went to Baal Perazim, and there he defeated them. He said, “As waters break out, the Lord has broken out against my enemies before me.” So that place was called Baal Perazim.
Baal Perazim means “the master of break through.”
(5:21) The Philistines abandoned their idols there, and David and his men carried them off.
The Philistines probably brought their idols as “protective talismans” onto the battlefield.[] The battle was so intense that they left these behind. This shows just how powerfully they were rebuffed by David’s army.
Furthermore, the mention of idols shows that the gods of the Philistines were worthless and weak. Baldwin comments, “Far from having power, these deities could not save themselves. David and his men took them as trophies of war, which were later burnt (1 Chr. 14:12).”[]
(5:22) Once more the Philistines came up and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim.
Undeterred, the Philistines attacked David once again. They must have thought that the first battle was a fluke. Little did they know, God was fighting for David, and he was unstoppable.
(5:23) So, David inquired of the Lord, and he answered, “Do not go straight up, but circle around behind them and attack them in front of the poplar trees.”
David continues to seek counsel from God. It is no wonder that this is the key to his success.
(5:24) “As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the poplar trees, move quickly, because that will mean the Lord has gone out in front of you to strike the Philistine army.”
The marching would be loud on the poplar trees. So, it would be unmistakable to know when God was telling them to move. Consequently, this concept of hearing the sound of the poplar trees has become a Christian idiom for moving when God is telling you to advance.
(5:25) So David did as the Lord commanded him, and he struck down the Philistines all the way from Gibeon to Gezer.
Geba (or Gibeon, 1 Chron. 14:16) was six miles northwest of Jerusalem,[] and Gezer was a Canaanite stronghold. The Philistines must have run to these allies for refuge. Baldwin writes, “The Philistines made no further attempt to thwart the rise of David. So decisive was this battle, that from this time on the Philistines ceased to be a serious menace to Israel, though they continued to cause trouble during the period of the monarchy.”[]
It took 15 years of suffering before David was ready to be the king. He was anointed years ago (1 Sam. 16:13), but God used that time to prepare David for the throne. Similarly, we can receive a distinct calling from God. We can know that he called us, but this doesn’t tell us when God is going to bring us into an active or successful ministry. That’s his prerogative—not ours. Our role is to trust in his calling and wait for his timing.
David sought counsel from God before he made any military moves. This was the key to his success, and it is the key to ours as well. When we seek God’s direction, we can’t lose.
David couldn’t be stopped if God was behind him. David learned this lesson well (v.10, 12), and this gave him confidence to trust God even further.
Robert D. Bergen, 1, 2 Samuel, vol. 7, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996), 321.
Kathleen Kenyon, Royal Cities of the Old Testament (London: Barrie & Jenkins, 1971), p. 26.
Joyce G. Baldwin, 1 and 2 Samuel: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 8, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 215.
Joseph Holden and Norman Geisler, The Popular Handbook of Archaeology and the Bible (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 2013), 259.
Randall Price and H. Wayne House, Zondervan Handbook of Biblical Archaeology (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2017), 120.
Ronald F. Youngblood, “1, 2 Samuel,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992), 856-857.
Joyce G. Baldwin, 1 and 2 Samuel: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 8, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 212.
Ronald F. Youngblood, “1, 2 Samuel,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992), 859.
Robert D. Bergen, 1, 2 Samuel, vol. 7, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996), 325.
Joyce G. Baldwin, 1 and 2 Samuel: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 8, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 217.
Ronald F. Youngblood, “1, 2 Samuel,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992), 863.
Robert D. Bergen, 1, 2 Samuel, vol. 7, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996), 325.
Ronald F. Youngblood, “1, 2 Samuel,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992), 864.
Joyce G. Baldwin, 1 and 2 Samuel: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 8, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 218.
Ronald F. Youngblood, “1, 2 Samuel,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992), 865.
Joyce G. Baldwin, 1 and 2 Samuel: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 8, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 219.
James is an elder at Dwell Community Church, where he teaches classes in theology, apologetics, and weekly Bible studies.
