2 Samuel

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Chapters in 2 Samuel

1. 2 Samuel 1: David Mourns Saul and Jonathan

   An Amalekite brings David news of Saul’s death on Gilboa, claims he killed the king himself, and is executed on his own testimony for striking the LORD’s anointed. David then grieves in a lament honoring Saul and his dear friend Jonathan, warning that the Philistines must not gloat.

2. 2 Samuel 2: David Made King Over Judah

   Guided by the LORD, David moves to Hebron, where Judah anoints him king, and he blesses the town that buried Saul. Abner sets up Ish-bosheth, a son of Saul, as a rival king, and a clash at Gibeon ends in defeat for Abner, who kills Joab’s brother Asahel before the fighting is halted.

3. 2 Samuel 3: Abner Joins David and Is Murdered

   As David grows stronger, Abner quarrels with Ish-bosheth and agrees to bring Israel over to David, who first demands the return of his wife Michal. Joab, avenging his brother Asahel, kills Abner by treachery, and David publicly mourns him and declares himself innocent of the murder.

4. 2 Samuel 4: Ish-bosheth Is Assassinated

   Abner’s death leaves Ish-bosheth fearful, and the narrator introduces Jonathan’s lame son Mephibosheth. Two of Ish-bosheth’s captains murder him and bring the proof to David expecting reward, but David condemns them for killing an innocent man and has them executed.

5. 2 Samuel 5: David Becomes King of All Israel

   Israel’s tribes gather at Hebron and anoint David as king over the whole nation. David captures the Jebusite stronghold of Zion and makes it his capital, grows ever stronger with God’s help, and twice defeats the Philistines after asking God for direction.

6. 2 Samuel 6: The Ark Comes to Jerusalem

   David sets out to bring the ark to Jerusalem on a cart, and God strikes Uzzah dead for touching it. After three months in which God blesses Obed-edom’s home where the ark is kept, David brings it into his city with sacrifices and joyful dancing, and Michal scorns him for it.

7. 2 Samuel 7: God’s Covenant With David

   David wants to build a temple for God, but through the prophet Nathan the LORD promises instead to build David a lasting dynasty. God pledges that David’s son will build the temple and that his royal line will rule for all time, and David responds with a humble prayer of praise and trust.

8. 2 Samuel 8: David’s Victories Over the Nations

   David defeats the Philistines, Moab, the Arameans of Zobah and Damascus, and Edom, and these nations become subject to him. The narrator credits the LORD for every victory, records the treasures David dedicated to God, and describes his reign over Israel as just and righteous.

9. 2 Samuel 9: David's Kindness to Mephibosheth

   David seeks a survivor of Saul's family to honor for his friend Jonathan's sake and learns of Jonathan's disabled son Mephibosheth. David restores Saul's estate to him, assigns Ziba's household to farm it, and gives Mephibosheth a permanent seat at the royal table as one of his sons.

10. 2 Samuel 10: War with the Ammonites and Arameans

    David sends envoys to console the new Ammonite king Hanun, but Hanun disgraces them on his officials' advice. The Ammonites hire Aramean troops, and Joab and Abishai defeat both armies while trusting the outcome to God. David then crushes the regrouped Arameans, whose vassal kings submit to Israel.

11. 2 Samuel 11: David, Bathsheba, and Uriah

    While Joab besieges Rabbah, David stays in Jerusalem, takes Bathsheba, Uriah's wife, and she becomes pregnant. When the loyal Uriah refuses to go home, David has Joab arrange his death in battle. David then marries Bathsheba, but the LORD judges his deed as evil.

12. 2 Samuel 12: Nathan Confronts David

    The prophet Nathan tells David a parable about a rich man who steals a poor man's lamb, then declares that David is the guilty man and announces trouble within his house. David confesses and is forgiven, yet his infant son dies. Solomon is born and loved by the LORD, and Rabbah falls.

13. 2 Samuel 13: Amnon, Tamar and Absalom's Revenge

    David's son Amnon, helped by a scheme from his cousin Jonadab, rapes his half-sister Tamar and then casts her out. David is angry but does nothing, and two years later Absalom has Amnon killed at a feast and flees to Geshur for three years.

14. 2 Samuel 14: The Wise Woman of Tekoa

    Joab sends a woman from Tekoa with a made-up story that draws from David a pledge of mercy, which she then turns toward his exiled son. Absalom returns to Jerusalem but is barred from the king for two years, until he burns Joab’s field to force a meeting and David receives him.

15. 2 Samuel 15: Absalom's Revolt and David's Flight

    Absalom wins Israel's loyalty by flattery at the city gate, then has himself proclaimed king at Hebron with Ahithophel's support. David flees Jerusalem in tears, accepts Ittai's loyalty, sends the ark back, and sends Hushai back to defeat Ahithophel's advice.

16. 2 Samuel 16: Ziba’s Report and Shimei’s Curses

    As David flees, Ziba brings supplies and accuses Mephibosheth of seeking Saul’s throne, so David gives Ziba the estate. Shimei of Saul’s family curses David, who stops Abishai from killing him, saying the LORD sent the curse. Hushai joins Absalom, who follows Ahithophel’s counsel about David’s concubines.

17. 2 Samuel 17: Hushai Defeats Ahithophel’s Counsel

    Ahithophel urges Absalom to strike David at once, but Hushai persuades him to wait and gather all Israel, because the LORD had determined to defeat Ahithophel’s good advice. Two messengers hide in a well and warn David, who crosses the Jordan. Ahithophel takes his own life, and friends supply David at Mahanaim.

18. 2 Samuel 18: The Death of Absalom

    David sends his army out under three commanders with orders to spare Absalom, and his forces win the battle in Ephraim’s woods. Absalom is caught in a great oak, and Joab kills him against the king’s command. Runners bring the news to David, who grieves bitterly for his son.

19. 2 Samuel 19: David Returns Across the Jordan

    Joab rebukes David for mourning Absalom while his army feels shamed, and the king takes his place at the gate. Judah escorts David back across the Jordan, where he spares Shimei, hears Mephibosheth’s side against Ziba, and honors the aged Barzillai. Israel and Judah then quarrel over the king.

20. 2 Samuel 20: Sheba's Revolt and the Wise Woman of Abel

    Sheba, a Benjamite, leads the northern tribes away from David while Judah stays loyal. Joab murders Amasa, his rival for command, and besieges Sheba at Abel, where a wise woman persuades the city to put the rebel to death and spare itself. Joab again commands the army.

21. 2 Samuel 21: The Gibeonites and the Giants

    A three-year famine is traced to Saul's breaking of Israel's oath to the Gibeonites, and seven of Saul's descendants are handed over while Jonathan's son is spared. Rizpah guards the bodies, David gives Saul and Jonathan a proper burial, and his men defeat four huge Philistine warriors.

22. 2 Samuel 22: David's Song of Deliverance

    David praises God as his rock and fortress for rescuing him from Saul and every enemy, in a song that also appears as Psalm 18. He describes God coming in power to save him, giving him victory and rule over nations, and keeping faithful love for David's line forever.

23. 2 Samuel 23: David's Last Words and His Mighty Men

    In his final poem David says God's Spirit spoke through him, praises the king who rules justly, and rests on God's everlasting covenant with his house. The chapter then honors his bravest warriors, including three who fetched him water from Bethlehem, and ends its roll with Uriah the Hittite.

24. 2 Samuel 24: David's Census and the Plague

    With the LORD angry at Israel, David orders a count of its fighting men despite Joab's objection, then confesses his sin. Offered three judgments through the prophet Gad, he chooses God's hand over men's, and God halts the plague at Jerusalem; David buys Araunah's threshing floor and offers sacrifices there.