Charles Ellicott Commentary 2 Samuel 4:7

"Now when they came into the house, as he lay on his bed in his bedchamber, they smote him, and slew him, and beheaded him, and took his head, and went by the way of the Arabah all night." — 2 Samuel 4:7 (ASV)

Took his head. — There is no difficulty with the repetition in 2 Samuel 4:7 of what has already been mentioned in verse 6, for it is common in the Scripture narratives to repeat statements when any additional fact (as here, the carrying off of the head) is to be mentioned. (See, e.g., 2 Samuel 3:22–23, where Joab’s arrival is twice mentioned, and 2 Samuel 5:1–3, where the mention of the assembly at Hebron is repeated.)

Through the plain. — As in 2 Samuel 2:29, the Arabah, or valley of the Jordan, is the natural way from Mahanaim to Hebron.