Bible Strands
2 Samuel 15:8
For your servant made a vow while dwelling in Geshur of Aram, saying: ‘If indeed the LORD brings me back to Jerusalem, I will worship the LORD in Hebron.’”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Absalom addresses King David after four years have passed, requesting permission to travel to Hebron to fulfill a religious commitment. The words — נֵ֙דֶר (ne.der) denotes a formal vow, marking the spoken condition that justifies the requested departure. The thread — Conditional vows appear in Genesis 28:20, where Jacob pledges worship if God protects him, and 1 Samuel 1:11, where Hannah promises dedication if God grants her a son. Why it lands — The verse records a stated motive for departure without confirming its sincerity, requiring the reader to evaluate spoken commitments against subsequent actions.
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
For thy servant vowed a vow while I abode at Geshur in Syria, saying, If the Lord shall bring me again indeed to Jerusalem, then I will serve the Lord.
Cross-references
- Genesis 28:20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and watch over me on this journey, and if He will provide me with food to eat and clothes to wear,
- 2 Samuel 13:37 Now Absalom fled and went to Talmai son of Ammihud, the king of Geshur. But David mourned for his son every day.
- 1 Samuel 1:11 And she made a vow, saying, “O LORD of Hosts, if only You will look upon the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, not forgetting Your maidservant but giving her a son, then I will dedicate him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall ever touch his head.”
- Jeremiah 9:3 “They bend their tongues like bows; lies prevail over truth in the land. For they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not take Me into account,” declares the LORD.
- Joshua 24:15 But if it is unpleasing in your sight to serve the LORD, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD!”
- 1 Samuel 16:2 “How can I go?” Samuel asked. “Saul will hear of it and kill me!” The LORD answered, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’
- 2 Samuel 14:23 So Joab got up, went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem.
- 2 Samuel 14:32 “Look,” said Absalom, “I sent for you and said, ‘Come here. I want to send you to the king to ask: Why have I come back from Geshur? It would be better for me if I were still there.’ So now, let me see the king’s face, and if there is iniquity in me, let him kill me.”
- Psalms 56:12 Your vows are upon me, O God; I will render thank offerings to You.
- Ecclesiastes 5:4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it, because He takes no pleasure in fools. Fulfill your vow.