A New King
David laments the deaths of Saul and Jonathan. In time, he becomes king of Judah and then of Israel. David captures Jerusalem, making it Israel's capital.
 
Davidic Covenant
Now in his palace, David desires to build God a house. Instead, God promises David an eternal royal house that will come from his descendants.
 
David and Bathsheba
When David commits terrible sins, God spares him, but the damage is done: a future of family strife embroiled in politics, rebellion and death begins.
 
Sin and Consequence
Family strife continues as Amnon rapes Tamar and is murdered by vengeful Absalom, who attempts to usurp David's rule but is violently killed. David grieves.
 
Future Hope
Despite his failures, David remembers God's goodness in his life. David believes that God will deliver His promised Messiah through his descendants – and He does.
 

►2 Samuel / Chapters 1-24

OT/NT (a): Old Testament (1)
 
SECTION (a): Historical Books (2)
 
PLACEMENT (b) (c): 2 Samuel is the tenth book of the Holy Bible (3), the tenth book of the Old Testament, and the fifth of the twelve Historical Books. Originally, the books of 1 Samuel (4) and 2 Samuel were one book. The translators of the Septuagint (5) separated them, and we have retained that separation ever since.
 
TRADITIONAL AUTHORS (b):  The Book of 2 Samuel does not identify its author. It could not be the Prophet (6) Samuel (7), since he died in 1 Samuel. Possible writers include Nathan (8) and Gad (9) (see 1 Chronicles 29:29).

TIMELINE: The events of 2 Samuel span approximately 40 years, circa 1010 BC (10) to 970 BC (11). For more info, explore our Bible Timeline (12).
 
KEY FIGURES: Absalom (13), Amnon (14), Bathsheba (15), David (16), Ish-bosheth (17), Joab (18), Michal (19), Nathan (20), Tamar (21), Uriah (22).
 
SUMMARY (b): 2 Samuel is the record of King David’s reign. This book places the Davidic Covenant in its historical context. The book of 2 Samuel can be divided into two main sections—David’s triumphs (chapters 1-10) and David’s troubles (chapters 11-20). The last part of the book (chapters 21-24) is a non-chronological appendix which contains further details of David’s reign.
 
The book begins with David receiving news of the death of Saul (23) and his sons. He proclaims a time of mourning. Soon afterward, David is crowned king over Judah (24), while Ish-bosheth, one of Saul’s surviving sons, is crowned king over Israel (chapter 2). A civil war follows, but Ish-bosheth is murdered, and the Israelites ask David to reign over them as well (chapters 4-5).
 
David moves the country's (25) capital from Hebron (26) to Jerusalem (27) and later moves the Ark of the Covenant (28) (chapters 5-6). David’s plan to build a temple in Jerusalem is vetoed by God (29), who then promises David the following things:
 
1) David would have a son (30) to rule after him;
2) David’s son would build the Temple (31);
3) the throne occupied by David’s lineage would be established forever; and
4) God would never take His mercy from David’s house (2 Samuel 7:4-16).
 
David leads Israel to victory over many of the enemy nations which surrounded them. He also shows kindness to the family of Jonathan (32) by taking in Mephibosheth (33), Jonathan’s crippled son (chapters 8-10).
 
Then David falls. He lusts for a beautiful woman named Bathsheba, commits adultery with her, and then has her husband (Uriah) murdered (chapter 11). When Nathan the prophet confronts David with his sin (34), David confesses, and God graciously forgives (35). However, the Lord tells David that trouble would arise from within his own household.
 
Trouble does come when David’s firstborn son, Amnon, rapes his half-sister, Tamar. In retaliation, Tamar’s brother, Absalom, kills Amnon. Absalom then flees Jerusalem rather than face his father’s anger. Later, Absalom leads a revolt against David, and some of David’s former associates join the rebellion (chapters 15-16). David is forced out of Jerusalem, and Absalom sets himself up as king for a short time. The usurper is overthrown, however, and—against David’s wishes—is killed. David mourns his fallen son.
 
A general feeling of unrest plagues the remainder of David’s reign. The men of Israel threaten to split from Judah, and David must suppress another uprising (chapter 20).
 
The book’s appendix includes information concerning a three-year famine in the land (chapter 21), a song of David (chapter 22), a record of the exploits of David’s bravest warriors (chapter 23), and David’s sinful census and the ensuing plague (chapter 24).
 
APPLYING 2 SAMUEL TO MY LIFE (b): Anyone can fall. Even a man like David, who truly desired to follow God and who was richly blessed by God, was susceptible to temptation. David’s sin with Bathsheba should be a warning to all of us to guard our hearts, our eyes, and our minds. Pride (36) over our spiritual maturity and our ability to withstand temptation in our own strength is the first step to a downfall (1 Corinthians 10:12).
 
God is gracious to forgive even the most heinous sins when we truly repent. However, healing (37) the wound caused by sin does not always erase the scar. Sin has natural consequences, and even after he was forgiven, David reaped what he had sown. His son from the illicit union with another man’s wife was taken from him (2 Samuel 12:14-24) and David suffered the misery of a break in his loving relationship with his heavenly Father (Psalms 32:1-11 and Psalms 51:1-19). How much better to avoid sin in the first place, rather than having to seek forgiveness later!

CHAPTER SUMMARIES: Explore (38) chapter by chapter summaries!
 
COMING UP:  Next up is the Book of 1 Kings (39)!

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All Bible verse references linked herein are courtesy of Bible Gateway (a). The narrative (b) offered herein has been published with permission (c) and no monetary gain is being sought. Any footnotes within the narrative have been inserted by The Marion County Manna Project and re-direct to our webpages (unless otherwise noted) for additional spiritual insight and discernment.
 

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The Invitation: If you're seeking additional info about Christianity on a more personal level, consider visiting a Christian Church here in Marion County (40). Introduce yourself to members and ask to speak with someone to learn more about Jesus. Surrendering your life to Christ (41) (g) is the most rewarding, everlasting decision you'll ever make, and it's comforting to have someone guide you as you begin your new life as a child of the Most High! May God shower you with great favor in this endeavor!
 

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Footnotes, Page Credits and External Resources appear below. Consider printing and sharing the offered PDF narrative and other listed resources with family, friends and strangers alike for use in Bible Studies (42), Home/Church Faith Sharing Groups (43), Discipleship Encounters (44) and/or Personal Faith Enrichment!
 
Modifications are welcome at [email protected].
 

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FOOTNOTES:
  (1) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/old-testament
  (2) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/historical-books
  (3) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/the-good-news
  (4) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/2-samuel
  (5) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/septuagint
  (6) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/prophets-of-the-bible
  (7) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/samuel
  (8) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/nathan-ot-prophet
  (9) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/gad
(10) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/1100-bc
(11) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/1000-bc
(12) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/bible-timeline
(13) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/absalom
(14) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/amnon
(15) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/bathsheba
(16) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/david
(17) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/ish-bosheth
(18) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/joab
(19) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/michal
(20) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/nathan-ot-prophet
(21) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/tamar
(22) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/uriah-the-hittite
(23) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/they-clamored-for-a-king
(24) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/judah-1
(25) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/israel
(26) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/hebron
(27) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/jerusalem
(28) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/ark-of-the-covenant
(29) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/God-of-the-Bible
(30) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/solomon
(31) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/temple-first
(32) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/jonathan
(33) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/mephibosheth
(34) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/sin
(35) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/forgiveness
(36) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/pride
(37) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/healing
(38) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/2-samuel-1-24-chapter-summaries
(39) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/1-kings
(40) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/listing-by-city
(41) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/the-gracious-visitor
(42) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/bible-studies
(43) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/christian-education
(44) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/discipleship
 
PAGE CREDITS:
(a) Bible Gateway, New International Version (NIV) Bible, accessed September 18, 2020, https://www.biblegateway.com/
 
(b) Summary of the Book of 2 Samuel, Got Questions Ministries, accessed October 18, 2020, https://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-2-Samuel.html
 
(c) Summary of the Book of 1 Samuel, Got Questions Ministries, accessed February 4, 2021, https://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-1-Samuel.html
 
(d) Copyright Policy, Got Questions Ministries, accessed January 11, 2020,
https://www.gotquestions.org/about.html
 
(e) Chronology of United Kingdom, Steve Rudd, accessed February 3, 2021,
https://www.bible.ca/archeology/bible-archeology-exodus-route-date-1200-1004bc.jpg
 
(f) Videos, Milestones, Blogs & Poster, BibleProject, accessed September 29, 2020,
https://www.bibleproject.com/terms/#use
 
EXTERNAL RESOURCES:
(g)  How Do I Convert to Christianity?, Got Questions Ministries, accessed January 12, 2020, https://www.gotquestions.org/convert-to-Christianity.html

Information offered herein has been generated for non-profit use.
 
Feel free to re-produce and distribute without monetary gain.
 
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