Charles Ellicott Commentary 2 Samuel 5

All the tribes. —Not only as represented by their elders (2 Samuel 5:3), but by the large bodies of their warriors enumerated in 1 Chronicles 12:23–40. It should be noted, then, that the children of Judah (1 Chronicles 12:24), over whom David was already king, joined in the assembly, and that there were 4,600 Levites with Jehoiada as the leader of the priestly family of Aaron, while Zadok appears only as a conspicuous member of that family (1 Chronicles 12:27–28).

Thy bone and thy flesh. —The Israelites, oppressed by the Philistines and their other enemies, and having seen the utter failure of the house of Saul and the death of their leader, Abner, felt the necessity of union under a competent leader. It is probable that this gathering to David, already prepared for by the negotiations of Abner, took place immediately after the death of Ishbosheth. They assigned three reasons for their action:

1. That they were of the same flesh and bone with David (Judges 9:2; 2 Samuel 19:12)—i.e., were of such common descent that it was unfitting for them to constitute separate nations;
2. That David, even in Saul’s reign, had been their military leader, and therefore they knew him and had confidence in his prowess and sagacity;
3. That the Lord had chosen him for their king.

The exact language of the Divine promise quoted is not found in the record, but is either (as in the case of Abner’s words, 2 Samuel 3:18) a summary of the communications made to David, or else some unrecorded language of one of the prophets.

Made a league with them. —It would be an anachronism to interpret this as the establishment of a constitutional monarchy, but the “league” may have pertained to certain special matters, such as leading them against their enemies, not destroying the remnant of the house of Saul or its late adherents, and not showing partiality (as Saul had done) to the members of his own tribe.

Thirty years old. —This statement of the age and of the length of the reign of David (which is repeated in 1 Chronicles 29:26–27, at the end of the history of David’s life) shows us approximately the length of time since the combat with Goliath as some ten or twelve years. It also proves that the greater part of Saul’s reign is treated very briefly in 1 Samuel, and further shows that David was seventy years old at his death.

Seven years and six months. —The six months is also mentioned in 2 Samuel 2:11; 1 Chronicles 3:4, but, because it is only the fraction of a year, is generally omitted in the summary of the length of his reign, as in 2 Samuel 5:4; 1 Chronicles 29:27. It was the habit of the sacred historians either to omit such fractions or else to count them as whole years, thus introducing a certain element of indefiniteness into the chronology, which is very marked in the parallel narratives of the kings of Israel and of Judah.

Went to Jerusalem. —The king of Jerusalem had been defeated and slain by Joshua (Joshua 10:23–26; Joshua 12:10), and the city had been subsequently taken and destroyed by Judah (Judges 1:7–8). It was, however, only partially occupied by the tribes of Judah and Benjamin (Judges 1:21; Judges 15:63), and at a later time fell again entirely into the hands of the Jebusites (Judges 19:11–12). That Jebus and Jerusalem were two names of the same city is stated in 1 Chronicles 11:4.

This expedition must have taken place immediately after the coronation, since the length of reign over all Israel and of the reign in Jerusalem are said in 2 Samuel 5:5 to be the same. David doubtless saw the importance of at once uniting the tribes in common action as well as the advantages of Jerusalem for his capital (Hebron being much too far southward), and the necessity of dislodging this remnant of the old Canaanites from their strong position in the centre of the land.

Except thou take away. —A better translation is, Thou shalt not come hither; but the blind and the lame shall keep thee off. The Jebusites, confident in the natural strength of their fortress, boast that even the lame and the blind could defend it. Their citadel was upon Mount Zion, the highest of the hills of Jerusalem, south-west of the temple hill of Moriah, and surrounded on three sides by deep valleys.