What Does 2 Samuel 11:23 Mean?
And the messenger said to David, "Surely the men grew mighty against us, and came out to us into the field, and we were upon them even to the opening of the gate."
Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.
Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.
King James wording
King James Version
And the messenger said unto David, Surely the men prevailed against us, and came out unto us into the field, and we were upon them even unto the entering of the gate.THE KEY
The Hebrew behind “prevailed” speaks of strength, while the report ends at the gate’s opening: force is real, and its edge is a threshold.
THE MEANING
The report names force in both directions: the opposing men are strong against the speaker’s side, and that side presses them as far as the gate’s opening. The violence stays concrete, carrying the struggle from the field to the city’s entrance.
THE ROOT
חָזְקוּ
chazqu
GROWS FROM
חזק
ḥ-z-q
To be strong or firm; to take hold.
“grew mighty” in this verse is chazqu. The verb translated “prevailed” describes the men as strong against the speaker’s side. The same root can describe strength that steadies or strengthens, so the root names force while the scene shows what that force does.
ALSO GROWS
chazaq: To be strong, become firm.
חָזַק
This is the root verb behind the men’s force in the report.
chizzeq: To strengthen, make firm.
חִזֵּק
The same root can describe strengthening, showing that strength itself does not determine whether its effect is threatening or supportive.
דָּוִד
David
GROWS FROM
דוד
d-w-d
Beloved; beloved kinsman.
David’s name carries the meaning of “beloved,” while the report addressed to him speaks in the hard register of military force. The name and the violence occupy the same sentence without one canceling the other.
ALSO GROWS
dod: A beloved one; also a kinsman or uncle.
דּוֹד
This root gives David’s name its association with belovedness.
dodim: Loves, caresses, expressions of affection.
דּוֹדִים
This form uses the same root for affection, keeping the name’s connection to belovedness visible.
פֶּתַח הַשָּׁעַר
petaḥ hasha'ar
GROWS FROM
פתח
p-t-ḥ
To open; make an opening.
“opening of the gate” in this verse is petaḥ hasha'ar. The phrase names the opening or entrance of the gate, where the report places the edge of the fighting. The threshold is part of the scene, not just a marker of distance.
ALSO GROWS
pataḥ: To open.
פָּתַח
The verb supplies the root image of an opening.
petaḥ: An opening, doorway, or entrance.
פֶּתַח
This noun identifies the gate’s opening as the point the report reaches.
THE PATTERN
Scripture treats prevailing as force in motion; what that force presses against depends on who bears it and where the scene directs it.
And the messenger said to David, "Surely the men grew mighty against us, and came out to us into the field, and we were upon them even to the opening of the gate."Hold fast and be firm. Do not fear, and do not quake before them. For the LORD your God is the one who walks with you. He will not release you, nor leave you.So with strength the word of God grew and was strong.THE THREAD
Hold fast and be firm. Do not fear, and do not quake before them. For the LORD your God is the one who walks with you. He will not release you, nor leave you.The Hebrew root חזק (chazaq, “be strong” or “be firm”) lies behind “prevailed” here and “Be strong” there. In this report it names force against the speaker’s side; in Deuteronomy it names strength called forth in the face of fear.
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