Charles Ellicott Commentary 2 Samuel 1:18

"(and he bade them teach the children of Judah [the song of] the bow: behold, it is written in the book of Jashar):" — 2 Samuel 1:18 (ASV)

The use of the bow. —The words in italics, the use of, are not in the original and should be omitted. David instructed them to teach the children of Judah the bow; that is, the following dirge called “the bow.” This name was chosen not merely from the allusion to Jonathan’s bow in 2 Samuel 1:22, but because it is a martial ode, and the bow was one of the chief weapons of the time with which the Benjamites were particularly skillful (1 Chronicles 12:2; 2 Chronicles 14:8; 2 Chronicles 17:17).

The word is omitted in the Vatican Septuagint. David taught this song to “the children of Judah” rather than to all Israel because, for the following seven and a half years, while the memory of Saul was fresh, he reigned only over Judah and Benjamin.

In the book of Jasher. —This book is also referred to in Joshua 10:13, and nothing more is really known about it, although it has been the subject of endless discussion and speculation. It is supposed to have been a collection of songs relating to memorable events and men in the early history of Israel, and it appears that this elegy was included among them.

The song is in two parts: the first relates to both Saul and Jonathan (2 Samuel 1:19–24), and the second to Jonathan alone (2 Samuel 1:25–26). Each part begins with the lament, How are the mighty fallen! and the whole song closes with the same refrain (2 Samuel 1:27).