2 Samuel 4

Complete Jewish Bible

4 When Ish-Boshet the son of Sha’ul heard that Avner had died in Hevron, his courage failed; and all Isra’el became alarmed. ² Sha’ul’s son had two men who were captains of raiding parties, one called Ba‘anah and the other Rekhav, sons of Rimmon the Be’eroti, of the people of Binyamin (for Be’erot is counted as part of Binyamin, ³ even though the Be’erotim fled to Gittayim and have lived as foreigners there to this day). ⁴ Now Y’honatan the son of Sha’ul’s had a son, and he was lame in both legs. He had been five years old when the news about Sha’ul and Y’honatan came from Yizre‘el. His nurse had gathered him up and fled; but as she was hurrying to get away, he fell and became lame. His name was M’fivoshet. ⁵ The sons of Rimmon the Be’eroti, Rekhav and Ba‘anah went and arrived during the heat of the day at the home of Ish-Boshet as he was taking his afternoon rest. ⁶ They went right into the house, as if they were coming to get wheat, and stabbed him in the groin; then Rekhav and Ba‘anah his brother escaped. ⁷ They entered the house as he lay on his bed in his bedroom, stabbed him and killed him; then they beheaded him, took his head and fled all night along the road through the ‘Aravah. ⁸ They brought the head of Ish-Boshet to David in Hevron and said to the king, “Here is the head of Ish-Boshet the son of Sha’ul your enemy, who wanted to take your life. Today Adonai has taken revenge on Sha’ul and his son for the sake of my lord the king.”

⁹ But David answered Rekhav and Ba‘anah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Be’eroti, “As Adonai lives, who has rescued me from every kind of difficulty, ¹⁰ when someone told me, ‘Here, Sha’ul is dead,’ thinking to himself that he was bringing good news, I didn’t reward him for his news but seized him and killed him in Ziklag. ¹¹ How much more, when criminals have killed an innocent man in his own house on his own bed, shouldn’t I hold you responsible for his death and rid the earth of you?” ¹² David then gave the order to his men, and they put them to death, cutting off their hands and feet and hanging them up next to the pool at Hevron. But they took the head of Ish-Boshet and buried it in Avner’s grave at Hevron.