2 Samuel 18:21

2Sa 18:21 Then said Joab to Cushi, Go tell the king what thou hast seen. And Cushi bowed himself unto Joab, and ran.

Ver. 21. Then said Joab to Cushi.] {a} Cuidam Aethiopi; so Tremellius rendereth it; to a certain blackamoor, some slave that belonged to David’s house, {2Sa 18:31} whose acceptance before the king Joab did not so much regard; and, because of his blackness, he might be the fitter messenger of such doleful tidings, as he knew it would be to David.

{a} Non est nomen proprium. - Vat.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

18:21 a man from Ethiopia: Joab thought it would be better to send a foreigner to tell the king of Absalom’s death. If David overreacted, the loss of a foreigner was not as critical as the loss of a priest’s son.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 21. Tell the king what thou hast seen] At this time the death of Absalom was not publicly known; but Joab had given Cushi private information of it. This Ahimaaz had not, for he could not tell the king whether Absalom were dead. To this Joab seems to refer, 2Sa 18:22: "Thou hast no tidings ready."

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(21) Cushi.—Rather, the Cushite, probably an Ethiopian slave in Joab’s service, for whose falling under the king’s displeasure he had little care.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

21. Cushi] Rather, the Cushite, an Ethiopian slave in Joab’s service, who would have little to lose by the king’s displeasure.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Then said Joab to Cushi,.... The Ethiopian, or blackamoor; who either was an Ethiopian by birth and proselyted, or he was an Israelite of a black complexion, and therefore so called; and was judged a proper person by the general to carry such dismal news to the king, as he knew it would be. Some Jewish writers (a) take him to be the same with Cush the Benjaminite, in the title of the seventh psalm, Psa 7:1; and that he is the same that told Joab he saw Absalom hanging in an oak, and declared that, if a thousand shekels of silver were offered him, he would not have put forth his hand against him, Sa2 18:10; though some think this was one of the ten young men that waited on Joab, and by his orders slew Absalom; but it would have been dangerous for one of these to have carried the tidings, had he been known by David to have done it:

go tell the king what thou hast seen: by which it should seem that he was present when Absalom was killed:

and Cushi bowed himself unto Joab; in reverence to him as his general, and in thankfulness for sending him on this errand:

and ran; as fast as he could.

(a) Pirke Eliezer, c. 53.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Cushi - “The Cushite,” a foreign slave, perhaps of Joab’s, whom he did not scruple to expose to David’s anger. If, however, it is a name, it must be rendered “Haccushi.” In the title to Ps. 7, “Cush, the Benjamite,” cannot mean this Cushi, since the contents of the Psalm are not suitable to this occasion.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Chusi: perhaps, of Ethiopian extraction. (Grotius)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

To Cushi, or, to an Ethiopian; so he might be by birth, and yet by profession an Israelite.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

21. Cushi — Supposed by some to have been an Ethiopian slave in the service of Joab.

What thou hast seen — He was probably among those ten young men (2Sa_18:15) that smote Absalom.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Cushi. This is not a proper name, but signifies that he was an Ethiopian, that is, a negro slave in Joab"s service. Joab was unwilling to expose Ahimaaz to me king"s displeasure, and we gather from ver. 27 that the sending of a person of low rank would be understood to signify evil tidings. The bearer of good news received a present, and therefore the passing over all Joab"s personal friends to send a slave was proof that the message was not expected to bring the bearer honour or reward. And Joab was quite right in supposing that David would be more displeased at his son"s death than pleased at the victory.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Joab therefore entrusted the Cushite with the duty of conveying to David the announcement of what had occurred. It cannot be decided with certainty whether הכּוּשׁי or Cushi is the proper name of an Israelite, or whether it signifies the "Cushite," i.e., a descendant of Cush. The form of the name rather favours the latter view, in which case it would suggest the idea of a Moorish slave in the service of Joab.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

tell the king what you have seen

Joab is telling him to go and tell the king about the news of the battle.

translationWords

Cush

bow

reward

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.