ESV Global Study Bible :: Footnotes for 2 Samuel 21

21:1–24:25 Epilogue. The last four chapters provide an epilogue to David’s story. They contain six episodes, which are not necessarily in chronological order (e.g., the first episode occurred “in the days of David”; 21:1). The first describes a famine and its connection to Saul’s family. The second details David’s wars with Philistia. The third and fourth are psalms of David. The fifth lists David’s heroic warriors. The sixth describes David’s pride and its results, concluding with the important story of how David acquired the future site of the temple.

2 Sam 21:1–14 When told by the Lord that a famine is the result of Saul’s misdeed against the Gibeonites, David has Saul’s sons slain to make atonement.

2 Sam 21:1–2 Joshua 9 tells how the Gibeonites tricked the Israelites into guaranteeing their safety with an oath (Josh. 9:15). Because of his zeal, Saul had broken that oath and killed some Gibeonites. This incident is not recorded elsewhere.

2 Sam 21:3–6 The Gibeonites’ request that seven of his sons be given to them to be put to death ignores the command in Deut. 24:16: “nor shall children be put to death because of their fathers.” The narrator never says that God approved of David’s action here.

2 Sam 21:7–8 The writer lists the sons of Saul who were handed over to the Gibeonites. Mephibosheth the son of Rizpah (Saul’s concubine; see 3:7) is different from Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, who was spared. Likewise Barzillai, grandfather of five of the hanged men, is not the Barzillai of 19:31–40.

2 Sam 21:9 The beginning of barley harvest was April.

2 Sam 21:10–14 Rizpah, mother of two of the men hanged by the Gibeonites, sheltered their bodies from the birds and wild animals (compare 1 Sam. 17:44, 46; Ps. 79:2). According to Deut. 21:22–23, the bodies of those who are hanged should be buried that same day (see Josh. 8:29). until rain fell upon them. It may have been decided that the men would not be buried until the rains fell and the famine stopped. This suggests that, when David heard what Rizpah was doing, he buried them earlier than planned. God responded (2 Sam. 21:14), probably by sending rain.

2 Sam 21:15–22 This section tells of four fights with Philistine giants. “There was war again” suggests that this is an excerpt from some writing about David’s wars.

2 Sam 21:16 The giants are usually identified as the Rephaim, the ancient, pre-Israelite inhabitants of Canaan (e.g., Gen. 15:20; Deut. 2:10–11; 20–21; 3:11).

2 Sam 21:19 Elhanan . . . struck down Goliath the Gittite. Since David killed Goliath of Gath (1 Samuel 17), and “Gittite” means someone from Gath, this statement is puzzling. Among the proposed solutions are three that uphold the truthfulness of Scripture: (1) in view of the parallel passage in 1 Chron. 20:5, perhaps this passage should read “Lahmi the brother of Goliath”; (2) the passages refer to two different men named Goliath; (3) “Goliath” was a common noun meaning “giant.”

2 Sam 21:21 Jonathan may be the Jonathan listed as one of David’s 30 mighty men (23:32). Shimei was David’s third eldest brother, not the Shimei of chs. 16 and 19. His name is given in various forms in 1 Sam. 16:9; 17:13; 2 Sam. 13:3; and 1 Chron. 2:13.