2 Samuel 8

1 After this, David struck the Philistines and subdued them; and David took the bridle of the mother city out of the hand of the Philistines.

2 He defeated Moab, and measured them with the line, making them to lie down on the ground; and he measured two lines to put to death, and one full line to keep alive. The Moabites became servants to David, and brought tribute.

3 David also struck Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to recover his dominion at the River.

4 David took from him one thousand seven hundred horsemen and twenty thousand footmen. David hamstrung the chariot horses, but reserved enough of them for one hundred chariots.

5 When the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck twenty two thousand men of the Syrians.

6 Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus; and the Syrians became servants to David, and brought tribute. The LORD gave victory to David wherever he went.

7 David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.

8 From Betah and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, King David took a great quantity of bronze.

9 When Toi king of Hamath heard that David had struck all the army of Hadadezer,

10 then Toi sent Joram his son to King David to greet him and to bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and struck him; for Hadadezer had wars with Toi. Joram brought with him vessels of silver, vessels of gold, and vessels of bronze.

11 King David also dedicated these to the LORD, with the silver and gold that he dedicated of all the nations which he subdued—

12 of Syria, of Moab, of the children of Ammon, of the Philistines, of Amalek, and of the plunder of Hadadezer, son of Rehob, king of Zobah.

13 David earned a reputation when he returned from striking down eighteen thousand men of the Syrians in the Valley of Salt.

14 He put garrisons in Edom. Throughout all Edom, he put garrisons, and all the Edomites became servants to David. The LORD gave victory to David wherever he went.

15 David reigned over all Israel; and David executed justice and righteousness for all his people.

16 Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army, Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder,

17 Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were priests, Seraiah was scribe,

18 Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief ministers.

Around 2 Samuel 8

Context

Context for this book is being written. A note appears here only once it names its sources.

AI explanation

2 Samuel 8 · Written by an AI model · Not reviewed by a theological reader

This explanation was written by an AI model to help you get started. It names no sources and can contain mistakes. Scripture comes first, and context with sources is shown separately on this page.

What this chapter says

This chapter is a list of David's wars, and it moves quickly. He strikes the Philistines and takes the bridle of their mother city. He defeats Moab, makes the people lie on the ground, and measures them with a line, two lines to put to death and one to keep alive. He defeats Hadadezer of Zobah and the Syrians of Damascus who come to help, lames the chariot horses, and puts garrisons in Syria and in Edom. Wherever he goes, the text says, the LORD gives him victory.

Toi, king of Hamath, sends his son with gifts of silver, gold, and bronze, and David dedicates all of it to the LORD. The chapter closes with a quieter note. David reigns over all Israel and executes justice and righteousness for all his people. A list of his officers follows.

Background

The chapter summarizes the reach of David's kingdom after the promise of chapter 7. It tells of conquest, tribute, and the spoils given to the LORD, and it does so briefly. The measuring of the Moabites is one of the hard lines in the book, and it is stated without comment. Readers differ on how to hear it, and the text's focus is on David's rule as a whole. Ruth, David's Moabite great-grandmother, appears in the book of Ruth. The list of officers shows a kingdom with a working government.

About this explanation

Written by Claude Sonnet 5.5, an AI model, on 29 October 2026. It draws on the WEB text and general knowledge and was not checked against sources by a person. Every quotation from Scripture is checked automatically against the WEB text.

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World English Bible. Public-domain source and edition notes