Bible Strands
2 Samuel 2:29
And all that night Abner and his men marched through the Arabah. They crossed the Jordan, marched all morning, and arrived at Mahanaim.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator records Abner’s retreat immediately after Joab blows the ram’s horn to halt the pursuit. The account notes Abner and his forces moving through the Arabah, crossing the Jordan, and reaching Mahanaim.
The words — The verb הָֽלְכוּ (ha.le.Khu) literally means “they went” or “they marched,” emphasizing continuous movement. The phrase וַ/יַּעַבְר֣וּ (va/i.ya.'av.Ru) translates “and they passed over,” marking the physical crossing of the Jordan River.
The thread — This route echoes Abner’s earlier strategic relocation of Ish-bosheth to Mahanaim (2 Samuel 2:8). The journey’s completion fulfills the territorial movement established in the opening of the chapter.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to track the precise geography and timing of a military withdrawal. It demands attention to how narrative pacing mirrors the exhaustion and urgency of fleeing combatants.
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 Abner and his men walked all that night through the plain, and passed over Jordan, and went through all Bithron, and they came to Mahanaim.
Cross-references
- 2 Samuel 2:8 Meanwhile, Abner son of Ner, the commander of Saul’s army, took Saul’s son Ish-bosheth, moved him to Mahanaim,
- Song of Solomon 2:17 Before the day breaks and shadows flee, turn, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of Bether.