2 Samuel 2:7
ESV
Now therefore let your hands be strong, and be valiant, for Saul your lord is dead, and the house of Judah has anointed me king over them."
NIV
Now then, be strong and brave, for Saul your master is dead, and the people of Judah have anointed me king over them."
NASB
Now then, let your hands be strong and be valiant, since Saul your lord is dead, and also the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.'
CSB
Therefore, be strong and valiant, for though Saul your lord is dead, the house of Judah has anointed me king over them."
NLT
Now that Saul is dead, I ask you to be my strong and loyal subjects like the people of Judah, who have anointed me as their new king.'
KJV
Therefore now let your hands be strengthened, and be ye valiant: for your master Saul is dead, and also the house of Judah have anointed me king over them.
NKJV
Now therefore, let your hands be strengthened, and be valiant; for your master Saul is dead, and also the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”
What does 2 Samuel 2:7 mean?
David is thanking the people of Jabesh-gilead for rescuing Saul's body from the Philistines. He gave them a formal blessing in the form of a prayer that the Lord will show them steadfast love and faithfulness for their courageous act in burying Saul's remains. David has also promised to do good for them himself (2 Samuel 2:5–6).Now, David encourages them to be strong and valiant. Saul was good in war; one of his first battles was rescuing Jabesh-gilead from the Ammonites (1 Samuel 11). Now, he's dead, and there is no centralized army to protect the Israelites from the Philistines who have moved in (1 Samuel 31:7).
David finishes by mentioning he's now king of Judah. David is a man of war to the Philistines, but a man of peace to the Israelites. When Saul chased him, he ran rather than fighting. Instead of taking the crown of Judah by force, he sent gifts to the elders and allowed them to decide (1 Samuel 31:26–31; 2 Samuel 2:1–4). And in his five years being king of Judah, he apparently makes no attempt to threaten the other tribes to accept him. He may subtly bribe Jabesh-gilead with thanks and the inference of protection, but he won't conquer them.
Jabesh-gilead either won't or can't follow David. Five years into David's reign in Judah, Abner, Saul's cousin and military commander, makes Saul's son Ish-bosheth king in Gilead (2 Samuel 2:8). The two kingdoms will fight for two years until Abner realizes that Ish-bosheth is not kingly material, and that Abner can't take the crown. Abner manages a mostly peaceful transfer of power to David (2 Samuel 3:1–21).
