4 And the Gibeonites said to him, “We will have no silver or gold from Saul or from his house, nor shall you kill any man in Israel for us.” So he said, “Whatever you say, I will do for you.”
5 Then they answered the king, “As for the man who consumed us and plotted against us, that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the territories of Israel,
6 let seven men of his descendants be delivered ato us, and we will hang them before the Lordbin Gibeah of Saul, cwhom the Lord chose.” And the king said, “I will give them.”
7 But the king spared aMephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of bthe Lord’s oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.
8 So the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, the two sons of aRizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul, and the five sons of1 Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she2 brought up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite;
9 and he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them on the hill abefore the Lord. So they fell, all seven together, and were put to death in the days of harvest, in the first days, in the beginning of barley harvest.
10 Now aRizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the rock, bfrom the beginning of harvest until the late rains poured on them from heaven. And she did not allow the birds of the air to rest on them by day nor the beasts of the field by night.
Seven men - Seven was a sacred number not only with the Hebrews but with other Oriental nations Numbers 23:1, Numbers 23:29, and is therefore brought in on this occasion when the judicial death of the sons of Saul was a religious act intended to appease the wrath of God for the violation of an oath Numbers 25:4.
Whom the Lord did choose - Rather, "the Lord' s chosen," or elect. The same phrase is applied to Moses Psalms 106:23, to the Israelites Isaiah 43:20, and to ChristIsaiah 42:1.
Other Barnes' Notes entries containing 2 Samuel 21:6:
DISCLAIMER: Church of the Great God (CGG) provides these resources to aid the individual in studying the Bible. However, it is up to the individual to "prove all things, and hold fast to that which is good" (I Thessalonians 5:21). The content of these resources does not necessarily reflect the views of CGG. They are provided for information purposes only.
