Bible Strands
2 Samuel 15:30
But David continued up the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went up. His head was covered, and he was walking barefoot. And all the people with him covered their heads and went up, weeping as they went.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — David ascends the Mount of Olives during Absalom’s rebellion, leading a retinue of mourners while fleeing Jerusalem. The narrator records his physical posture and the collective grief of his followers at this moment of political collapse.
The words — The Hebrew verb עֹלֶה ('o.Leh) denotes the physical act of climbing the ascent, while חָפ֔וּי (cha.Fui) describes the ritual posture of having the head covered. These terms anchor the scene in concrete, observable grief rather than abstract lament.
The thread — This posture of covered heads and weeping ascent recurs when Haman mourns in Esther 6:12 and when David himself laments Absalom in 2 Samuel 19:4. The motif of upward movement paired with weeping also appears in Luke 19:41 as Jesus approaches Jerusalem.
Why it lands — The text records David’s public mourning and barefoot ascent without explaining his internal motives, leaving the reader to observe the physical weight of exile. It demands recognition that leadership under judgment manifests as shared, visible grief rather than rhetorical defense.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And David went up by the ascent of mount Olivet, and wept as he went up, and had his head covered, and he went barefoot: and all the people that was with him covered every man his head, and they went up, weeping as they went up.
Cross-references
- Esther 6:12 Then Mordecai returned to the king’s gate. But Haman rushed home, with his head covered in grief.
- 2 Samuel 19:4 But the king covered his face and cried out at the top of his voice, “O my son Absalom! O Absalom, my son, my son!”
- Luke 19:41 As Jesus approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it
- Isaiah 20:2 the LORD had already spoken through Isaiah son of Amoz, saying, “Go, remove the sackcloth from your waist and the sandals from your feet.” And Isaiah did so, walking around naked and barefoot.
- Jeremiah 14:3 The nobles send their servants for water; they go to the cisterns, but find no water; their jars return empty. They are ashamed and humiliated; they cover their heads.
- Ezekiel 24:17 Groan quietly; do not mourn for the dead. Put on your turban and strap your sandals on your feet; do not cover your lips or eat the bread of mourners.”
- Ezekiel 24:23 Your turbans will remain on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep, but you will waste away because of your sins, and you will groan among yourselves.
- Zechariah 14:4 On that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half the mountain moving to the north and half to the south.
- Luke 19:29 As He approached Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, He sent out two of His disciples,
- Luke 19:37 And as He approached the descent from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of disciples began to praise God joyfully in a loud voice for all the miracles they had seen: