2 Samuel 3:18

2Sa 3:18 Now then do [it]: for the LORD hath spoken of David, saying, By the hand of my servant David I will save my people Israel out of the hand of the Philistines, and out of the hand of all their enemies.

Ver. 18. For the Lord hath spoken of David, saying,] Sententias loquitur carnifex. Hypocrites make use of God for their own purposes: and care only to make divine authority a colour for their own designs.

By the hand of my servant David.] We read not that God had so said in express terms: but either Abner had heard of such a promise made at the anointing of David by Samuel, or else he feigned it of his own head for his own ends.

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_3:18

Now then do it.

Now then do it

I. Remind undecided persons of former impulses.

1. The character and frequency of those impulses have varied greatly in different individuals.

2. These impulses have been usual in you at certain times, and these find a parallel in the case of Israel. These Israelites, perhaps, in their hearts sought for David to be king when they saw the joy upon the face of Davids men. His troopers often had spoil to share, and they always spake well of their captain, and whenever a Davids man was seen anywhere about Judah or Israel, the people said, Those warriors have a goodly heritage in being under such a noble leader, and they wished they had such a king themselves. I do not doubt but sometimes when you hear Christ preached in all His sweetness, your mouths begin to water after him. Is he so good, is he so pleasant? Oh, that we knew Him! And when you see Christians so happy, and especially when you see them in times of trouble so cheerful and joyous under all their trials, I know you have had an inward wish that you knew their secret and could share their peace.

3. These seekings after David were sometimes with the Israelites vivid and strong; and so, too, impulses with undecided people are occasionally very powerful.

4. Nothing has come of all the seekings of your youth and your after days.

II. Recommend decided action. Ye sought for David in times past to be king over you, now then do it.

1. Note the business on hand--it is that Jesus should be king over you.

2. Next notice that if Christ is to be your king, it must be by your own act and deed. So saith the text concerning king David Now then do it.

3. And here is the point, if Jesus is to reign the old king must go down. It is of no use trying to have Ishbosheth and David on the throne at the same time. It is impossible to serve sin and to serve Christ. Dream not of believing to-morrow or next year, nor even in half-an-hours time; but cast your guilty soul on Christ at once. Now then do it.

II. Reason with strong arguments. (C. H. Spurgeon.)

To-day

John Ruskin took for his great life-motto the simple word To-day. He had it engraved on his watch, and before him in his library, so that he could always see it as he sat at his desk, the text, Work, while it is yet called to-day. To-day let us repent, believe, love, pray, toil, so that to-day we may bring the kingdom to pass, by doing His will as it is done in heaven. (H. O. Mackey.)

Now

Perhaps there is now a shy, solitary serious thought, in your heart about becoming a Christian. If you let it alone, it may fly away like a bird through a cage-door left open, and may never come back. Or else a crowd of business cares and plans, or perhaps a host of social invitations will flock in, and the good thought be smothered to death. You have smothered just such blessed thoughts before. The thought in your heart is to become a Christian now, and the great bells ring out, Now is the accepted time: behold, now is the day of salvation. No soul was ever yet saved, and no good deed was ever done to-morrow. Be careful lest tomorrow shall find you beyond the world of probation! (Theodore L. Cuyler, D. D.)

The duty lying nearest

Soon after the death of Carlyle two friends met. And so Carlyle is dead, said one. Yes, said the other, he is gone; but he did me a very good turn once. How was that? asked the first speaker. Did you ever see him or hear him? No, came the answer, I never saw him nor heard him. But when I was beginning life, almost through my apprenticeship, I lost all interest in everything and everyone. I felt as if I had no duty of importance to discharge; that it did not matter whether I lived or not; that the world would do as well without me as with me. This condition continued more than a year. I should have been glad to die. One gloomy night, feeling that I could stand my darkness no longer, I went into a library, and lifting a book I found lying upon a table, I opened it. It was Sartor Resartus, by Thomas Carlyle. My eye fell upon one sentence, marked in italics, Do the duty which lies nearest to thee, which thou knowest to be a duty! The second duty will already have become clearer. That sentence, continued the speaker, was a flash of lightning striking into my dark soul. It gave me a new glimpse of human existence. It made a changed man of me. Carlyle, under God, saved me. He put content and purpose and power-into my life.

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2Sa 3:18. The Lord hath spoken — By the hand of my servant David, &c. — We nowhere find these words recorded; but it is probable Samuel had often spoken them; at least the sense of them is implied in the words of God to Samuel, when he commanded him to anoint David king over Israel, 1Sa 10:1-12; for the intention of giving them a king was, that he might fight their battles, 1Sa 8:20.

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

3:18 See also 3:9. By bringing relief from the Philistines, David would accomplish what Saul had failed to do (1 Sam 9:16).

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

Verse 18. The Lord hath spoken of David] Where is this spoken? Such a promise is not extant. Perhaps it means no more than, "Thus, it may be presumed, God hath determined."

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

(18) The Lord hath spoken.—The promise here quoted is not contained in so many words in the records which have come down to us. It may have been either an unrecorded utterance of one of the prophets (Samuel, Gad, or Nathan), or simply a reasonable inference from what had been promised, and from the Divine support of David in his career hitherto.

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

18. I will save my people] The commission which had been given to Saul (1Sa_9:16) was transferred to David. Again we have an intimation that prophetic utterances respecting David’s divine appointment to the throne were commonly known.

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.

Now then do it,.... Make him your king, and I shall no longer oppose it as I have done:

for the Lord hath spoken of David; concerning his being king, and the saviour of his people Israel:

saying, by the hand of my servant David I will save my people Israel out of the hand of the Philistines, and out of the hand of all their enemies; and which, though where recorded in so many words, yet was the sense of the promise of making him king, and the design of his unction; and besides they might have been spoken to Samuel, though not written; and which he might report, and so might pass from one to another to be generally known.

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

Enemies. We read not of this promise elsewhere. But how many other things are omitted in the sacred books? (Calmet) --- Abner alleges God’s decree, that he may not be deemed a traitor. (Cajetan)

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).

Now then do it; you shall have my free consent and utmost assistance in procuring it.

The Lord hath spoken of David; he wickedly pretends religion, when he intended nothing but the satisfaction of his own pride, and malice, and fury against Ish-bosheth. It is very probable God spake these words, but undoubtedly he spake the same sense by Samuel, though it be not expressed before.

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

18. The Lord hath spoken of David — From the many intimations we have that it was generally understood in Israel that David was destined to be king. (2Sa_3:9; 1Sa_23:17; 1Sa_24:20,) we can hardly be wrong in affirming that Samuel, or some member of his school of prophets, had uttered open oracles to this effect, though the prophecy recorded in this verse is nowhere else referred to.

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

The Lord hath spoken. Here again Abner"s statements go far beyond the text of anything recorded in Holy Scripture, but probably they give the popular interpretation of the prophecies respecting David. It will be noticed also that Abner endeavours to meet the general prejudice against David by asserting that he was Israel"s destined deliverer from Philistine oppression. As Abner"s speech is virtually an acknowledgment of failure, we may also be sure that he had found himself unable any longer to make head against the Philistines on the western side of the Jordan, and that Judah was the only tribe there that enjoyed tranquillity. Everywhere else they had once again established their supremacy. Though a brave soldier, Abner was inferior, not only to David, but also to Joab, both as statesman and general; and the weak Ishbosheth was no help to him, but the contrary.

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

Said about Dovid. About Dovid, and this is not [an instance of the usual] meaning of the word, אל, "to".

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.