2 Samuel 19:28

2Sa 19:28 For all [of] my father’s house were but dead men before my lord the king: yet didst thou set thy servant among them that did eat at thine own table. What right therefore have I yet to cry any more unto the king?

Ver. 28. For all of my father’s house were but dead men,] sc., For our siding with Ishbosheth.

What right therefore have I yet to cry? &c., ] i.e., To complain of my servant’s treachery, or mine own infelicity.

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.

2Sa 19:28. All my father’s house were but dead men before my lord — Before thy tribunal: we were all at thy mercy; not my estate only, but my life also was in thy power, if thou hadst dealt with rigour, and as earthly kings use to do with their predecessors’ and enemies’ children. What right have I yet to cry? — For the vindication of my honour, and the restitution of my estate.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Worthy to die for Saul’s cruelty toward thee.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

28. were but dead men] For David might have put them all to death. Possibly there is an allusion to the surrender of Saul’s sons to the Gibeonites (ch. 2Sa_21:6-9).

what right, &c.] Since all David’s favours to him were undeserved, he had no ground for making a complaint, and demanding the restoration of his property as a right.

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.

For all of my, father's house were but dead men before my lord the king,.... Or "men of death" (m); worthy of death, not on account of Saul's persecution, for which his family did not deserve to suffer; rather for the attempt of Ishbosheth to get the kingdom from him, which might be deemed treason, and so the family was tainted for it; though the sense may be only this, that their lives lay at his mercy, and that if he had dealt with rigour and severity towards them, as was usual for princes to do towards the family of their predecessors, who had any claim to the kingdom, put them to death, this would have been their case:

yet didst thou set thy servant among them that eat at thine own table; which was showing him great kindness, and doing him great honour:

what right therefore have I yet to cry any more unto the king? to ask any favour of him, or make any complaint to him.

(m) "viris mortis", Montanus.

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

Death, on account of Saul’s persecution, and his sons assuming the purple; so that all his adherents might have been justly slain. (Calmet) --- Cry, as if I had been wronged. (Menochius)

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).

Before my lord the king, i.e. before thy tribunal: we were all at thy mercy; not my estate only, (which thou hast now granted to Ziba,) but my life also was in thy power, if thou hadst dealt with rigour, and as earthly kings use to do with their predecessors’ and enemies’ children. For otherwise by the law of God Saul himself had not deserved to die by David’s hands, as David himself confessed; much less his children, who were not to die for their father’s sins, Deu 24:16. But Mephibosheth speaks like a courtier, and like an orator, aggravating matters against himself, that he might seem to justify the king’s sentence, and to submit to it; and so insinuate himself unto the king’s favour.

To cry any more unto the king, to wit, for the vindication of mine honour, and the restitution of my estate.

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

Before - Before thy tribunal: we were all at thy mercy: not my estate only but my life also was in thy power, if thou hadst dealt with rigor, and as earthly kings use to do with their predecessor's and enemies children. To cry - For the vindication of mine honour, and the restitution of my estate.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.