Bible Strands
2 Samuel 2:31
but they had struck down 360 Benjamites who were with Abner.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator records the aftermath of a skirmish between Joab’s forces and Abner’s Benjamite troops, noting the casualty count immediately after Joab musters his men. This occurs during the ongoing civil conflict between the house of Saul and the house of David.
The words — The Hebrew verb הִכּוּ (hi.Ku) denotes a decisive strike, paired with the quantified phrase מִבְּנֵי־בִנְיָמִן (mi./bin.ya.Min) to specify the targeted group. The text explicitly records that David’s servants struck down three hundred and sixty men from Benjamin who were serving with Abner.
The thread — This casualty report anchors the protracted conflict described in 2 Samuel 3:1, where the war between Saul’s house and David’s house continues. The numerical specificity echoes military accounting patterns found throughout the historical books, contrasting with the proverbial warning in 1 Kings 20:11 about premature boasting before victory is secured.
Why it lands — The verse demands acknowledgment that military outcomes in the narrative are measured by concrete losses rather than rhetorical claims. It requires the reader to track how David’s faction gains ground through sustained engagement rather than decisive conquest.
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
But the servants of David had smitten of Benjamin, and of Abner’s men, so that three hundred and threescore men died.
Cross-references
- 2 Samuel 3:1 Now the war between the house of Saul and the house of David was protracted. And David grew stronger and stronger, while the house of Saul grew weaker and weaker.
- 1 Kings 20:11 And the king of Israel replied, “Tell him: ‘The one putting on his armor should not boast like one taking it off.’”