Bible Strands
2 Samuel 17:18
But a young man did see them and told Absalom. So the two left quickly and came to the house of a man in Bahurim. He had a well in his courtyard, and they climbed down into it.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jonathan and Ahimaaz flee from En-rogel toward Jerusalem to warn David, but a young man spots them and reports their movement to Absalom before they reach safety.
The words — The Hebrew מְהֵרָה (me.he.Rah) denotes rapid movement, while נַ֔עַר (Na.'ar) identifies the observer as a youth whose disclosure triggers the fugitives' urgent retreat.
The thread — The location Bahurim reappears when Abner dismisses a weeping husband at 2 Samuel 3:16, when Shimei curses David at 2 Samuel 16:5, and when Shimei later meets the returning king at 2 Samuel 19:16.
Why it lands — The verse records the failure of covert intelligence operations when human observation overrides secrecy, demanding readers acknowledge that hidden plans remain vulnerable to accidental exposure.
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
Nevertheless a lad saw them, and told Absalom: but they went both of them away quickly, and came to a man’s house in Bahurim, which had a well in his court; whither they went down.
Cross-references
- 2 Samuel 3:16 Her husband followed her, weeping all the way to Bahurim. Then Abner said to him, “Go back.” So he returned home.
- 2 Samuel 16:5 As King David approached Bahurim, a man from the family of the house of Saul was just coming out. His name was Shimei son of Gera, and as he approached, he kept yelling out curses.
- 2 Samuel 19:16 Then Shimei son of Gera, a Benjamite from Bahurim, hurried down with the men of Judah to meet King David,