The Meaning of 2 Samuel 2:12 Explained

2 Samuel 2:12

KJV: And Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ishbosheth the son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.

YLT: And Abner son of Ner goeth out, and servants of Ish-Bosheth son of Saul, from Mahanaim to Gibeon.

Darby: And Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ishbosheth the son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.

ASV: And Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And Abner  the son  of Ner,  and the servants  of Ishbosheth  the son  of Saul,  went out  from Mahanaim  to Gibeon. 

What does 2 Samuel 2:12 Mean?

Context Summary

2 Samuel 2:12-23 - Sword-Play To The Death
For seven and a half years David reigned over the house of Judah. He was in the prime of life, thirty years of age, and seems to have given himself to the consolidation of his kingdom and the quiet sanctities of the home. He maintained throughout those years that spirit of quiet expectancy of which his psalms so often speak. In this, he reminds us of our Lord, who is depicted as sitting at His Father's side till His foes become His footstool.
From Hebron, the city of fellowship, bands of mighty men went forth to fight with Ishbosheth, just as the warriors of the Cross have, in every age, gone forth to engage in deadly conflict with unbelief and sin. Asahel's death reminds us of Stephen's martyrdom. But the end is not yet! The Church's warfare is not against flesh and blood, but against the wicked spirits that rule the darkness of the world. Her weapons, therefore, are not carnal but spiritual, and particularly that of "all-prayer," Ephesians 6:10-20. [source]

Chapter Summary: 2 Samuel 2

1  David, by God's direction, with his company goes up to Hebron
4  where he is made king of Judah
5  He commends them of Jabesh Gilead for their king of Israel
8  Abner makes Ishbosheth king of Israel
12  A mortal skirmish between twelve of Abner's and twelve of Joab's men
18  Asahel is slain
25  At Abner's motion, Joab sounds a retreat
32  Asahel's burial

What do the individual words in 2 Samuel 2:12 mean?

And went out Abner son of Ner and the servants of Ishbosheth of Saul from Mahanaim to Gibeon
וַיֵּצֵא֙ אַבְנֵ֣ר בֶּן־ נֵ֔ר וְעַבְדֵ֖י אִֽישׁ־ בֹּ֣שֶׁת שָׁא֑וּל מִֽמַּחֲנַ֖יִם גִּבְעֽוֹנָה

וַיֵּצֵא֙  And  went  out 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: יׄוצֵאת 
Sense: to go out, come out, exit, go forth.
אַבְנֵ֣ר  Abner 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֲבִינֵר 
Sense: Saul’s cousin and army captain, treacherously slain by Joab.
בֶּן־  son 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
נֵ֔ר  of  Ner 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: נֵר  
Sense: son of Jehiel, father of Kish, and grandfather of king Saul.
וְעַבְדֵ֖י  and  the  servants 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: עֶבֶד  
Sense: slave, servant.
בֹּ֣שֶׁת  Ishbosheth 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אִישׁ־בֹּשֶׁת  
Sense: surviving son of Saul, king of Israel for 7 years while David was king over Judah; succeeded by David who united the kingdom.
שָׁא֑וּל  of  Saul 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: שָׁאוּל  
Sense: a Benjamite, son of Kish, and the st king of Israel.
מִֽמַּחֲנַ֖יִם  from  Mahanaim 
Parse: Preposition-m, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: מַחֲנַיִם  
Sense: a place east of the Jordan, named from Jacob’s encounter with angels.
גִּבְעֽוֹנָה  to  Gibeon 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular, third person feminine singular
Root: גִּבְעֹן  
Sense: a Levitical city of Benjamin, modern ‘el-Jib’, which lies 5 miles or 8 km from Jerusalem.