2 Samuel 3 · Verse 13

2 Samuel 3:13

And he said, Well; I will make a league with thee: but one thing I require of thee, that is, Thou shalt not see my face, except thou first bring Michal Saul’s daughter, when thou comest to see my face.
2 Samuel 3:13, King James Version

2 Samuel 3:13 in other translations

BSB“Good,” replied David, “I will make a covenant with you. But there is one thing I require of you: Do not appear before me unless you bring Saul’s daughter Michal when you come to see me.”
WEBDavid said, “Good. I will make a treaty with you, but one thing I require of you. That is, you will not see my face unless you first bring Michal, Saul’s daughter, when you come to see my face.”
ASVAnd he said, Well; I will make a league with thee; but one thing I require of thee: that is, thou shalt not see my face, except thou first bring Michal, Saul’s daughter, when thou comest to see my face.
YLTAnd he saith, ‘Good--I make with thee a covenant; only, one thing I am asking of thee, that is, Thou dost not see my face, except thou dost first bring in Michal, daughter of Saul in thy coming into see my face.'
DARBYAnd he said, Well, I will make a covenant with thee; only I require one thing of thee, that is, Thou shalt not see my face, except thou first bring Michal Saul's daughter, when thou comest to see my face.
BBEAnd he said, It is well; I will make an agreement with you, but on one condition, which is, that when you come before me, Saul's daughter Michal is to come with you; till she comes you will not see my face.
WebsterAnd he said, Well; I will make a league with thee: but one thing I require of thee, that is, Thou shalt not see my face, except thou shalt first bring Michal, Saul's daughter, when thou comest to see my face.

What does 2 Samuel 3:13 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 2 Samuel 3:12-13

12-13. Abner sent messengers to David--Though his language implied a secret conviction, that in supporting Ish-bosheth he had been laboring to frustrate the divine purpose of conferring the sovereignty of the kingdom on David, this acknowledgment was no justification either of the measure he was now adopting, or of the motives that prompted it. Nor does it seem possible to uphold the full integrity and honor of…

Read the full comment on 2 Samuel 3:12-13 →

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 13 Except thou first bring Michal - David had already six wives at Hebron; and none of them could have such pretensions to legitimacy as Michal, who had been taken away from him and married to Phaltiel. However distressing it was to take her from a husband who loved her most tenderly, (see 2Sam 3:16), yet prudence and policy required that he should strengthen his own interest in the kingdom as much as possible; and that he should not leave a princess in the possession of a man who might, in her right, have made pretensions to the throne. Besides, she was his own lawful wife, and he had a right to demand her when he pleased.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on 2 Samuel 3:7-21

Many, like Abner, are not above committing base crimes, who are too proud to bear reproof, or even the suspicion of being guilty. While men go on in sin, and apparently without concern, they are often conscious that they are fighting against God. Many mean to serve their own purposes; and will betray those who trust them, when they can get any advantage. Yet the Lord serves his own designs, even by those who are…

Read the full comment on 2 Samuel 3:7-21 →

2 Samuel 3:13 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיֹּ֣אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
ט֔וֹבTovgoodH2896
אֲנִ֕י'a.NiIH589
אֶכְרֹ֥ת'ekh.RotI will makeH3772
אִתְּךָ֖'i.te.Khawith youH854
בְּרִ֑יתbe.Rita covenantH1285
אַ֣ךְ'akhonlyH389
דָּבָ֣רda.Vara thingH1697
אֶחָ֡ד'e.ChadoneH259
אָנֹכִי֩'a.no.KhiIH595
שֹׁאֵ֨לsho.'El[am] askingH7592
מֵאִתְּךָ֤me.'i.te.Khafrom with <the> youH854
לֵאמֹר֙le.Mor<to> sayingH559
לֹא\־lo'-notH3808
תִרְאֶ֣הtir.'Ehyou will seeH7200
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
פָּנַ֔יpa.Naiface myH6440
כִּ֣י\׀kiforH3588
אִם\־'im-exceptH518
לִפְנֵ֣יlif.Nei<to> beforeH6440
הֱבִיאֲךָ֗he.vi.'a.Khabring youH935
אֵ֚ת'et<obj.>H853
מִיכַ֣לmi.KhalMichalH4324
בַּת\־bat-[the] daughter ofH1323
שָׁא֔וּלsha.'UlSaulH7586
בְּבֹאֲךָ֖be.vo.'a.Khawhen coming youH935
לִרְא֥וֹתlir.'otto seeH7200
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
פָּנָֽי\׃\ \סpa.Naiface myH6440

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for 2 Samuel 3:13

  • Genesis 43:3

    And Judah spake unto him, saying, The man did solemnly protest unto us, saying, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be with you.

  • 1 Chronicles 15:29

    And it came to pass, as the ark of the covenant of the Lord came to the city of David, that Michal the daughter of Saul looking out at a window saw king David dancing and playing: and she despised him in her heart.

  • Genesis 44:23

    And thou saidst unto thy servants, Except your youngest brother come down with you, ye shall see my face no more.

  • 1 Samuel 19:11-17

    Saul also sent messengers unto David’s house, to watch him, and to slay him in the morning: and Michal David’s wife told him, saying, If thou save not thy life to night, to morrow thou shalt be slain. So Michal let David down through a window: and he went, and fled, and escaped. And Michal took an image, and laid it in the bed, and put a pillow of goats’ hair for his bolster, and covered it with a cloth. And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, He is sick. …

  • 1 Samuel 18:20-28

    And Michal Saul’s daughter loved David: and they told Saul, and the thing pleased him. And Saul said, I will give him her, that she may be a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him. Wherefore Saul said to David, Thou shalt this day be my son in law in the one of the twain. And Saul commanded his servants, saying, Commune with David secretly, and say, Behold, the king hath delight in thee, and all his servants love thee: now therefore be the king’s son in law. And Saul’s servants spake those words in the ears of David. And David said, Seemeth it to you a light thing to be a king’s son in law, seeing that I am a poor man, and lightly esteemed? …

  • 2 Samuel 3:20-23

    So Abner came to David to Hebron, and twenty men with him. And David made Abner and the men that were with him a feast. And Abner said unto David, I will arise and go, and will gather all Israel unto my lord the king, that they may make a league with thee, and that thou mayest reign over all that thine heart desireth. And David sent Abner away; and he went in peace. And, behold, the servants of David and Joab came from pursuing a troop, and brought in a great spoil with them: but Abner was not with David in Hebron; for he had sent him away, and he was gone in peace. When Joab and all the host that was with him were come, they told Joab, saying, Abner the son of Ner came to the king, and he hath sent him away, and he is gone in peace.

  • Genesis 44:26

    And we said, We cannot go down: if our youngest brother be with us, then will we go down: for we may not see the man’s face, except our youngest brother be with us.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
that is. Heb. saying. Thou shalt.
Ge 43:3; 44:23,26
except.As Michal was not divorced, but violently separated from David, he had a legal right to demand her, and was justified in receiving her again. It is probable, also, that her marriage with Phaltiel was a force upon her inclinations; and whatever affections he might have for her, it was highly criminal for him to take another man's wife. David required Michal probably both out of affection for her, and to strengthen his interest, by asserting his affinity with the house of Saul.
Michal.
20-23; 1Sa 18:20-28; 19:11-17; 1Ch 15:29

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • 2 Samuel 3:12

    And Abner sent messengers to David on his behalf, saying, Whose is the land? saying also, Make thy league with me, and, behold, my hand shall be with thee, to bring about all Israel unto thee.

  • 2 Samuel 3:13

    And he said, Well; I will make a league with thee: but one thing I require of thee, that is, Thou shalt not see my face, except thou first bring Michal Saul’s daughter, when thou comest to see my face.

  • 2 Samuel 3:14

    And David sent messengers to Ish–bosheth Saul’s son, saying, Deliver me my wife Michal, which I espoused to me for an hundred foreskins of the Philistines.

Read all of 2 Samuel 3

2 Samuel 3:13 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Y David dijo: Bien; yo haré contigo alianza: mas una cosa te pido, y es, que no me vengas á ver sin que primero traigas á Michâl la hija de Saúl, cuando vinieres á verme.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et David dit: Bien, je ferai alliance avec toi; seulement je demande de toi une chose, savoir: Tu ne verras pas ma face, à moins qu’ auparavant tu ne fasses venir Mical, fille de Saül, quand tu viendras pour voir ma face.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und David sprach: Gut, ich will einen Bund mit dir machen; nur eine Sache fordere ich von dir, nämlich: Du sollst mein Angesicht nicht sehen, du bringest denn zuvor Michal, die Tochter Sauls, wenn du kommst, um mein Angesicht zu sehen.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Qui ait: Optime: ego faciam tecum amicitias: sed unam rem peto a te, dicens: Non videbis faciem meam antequam adduxeris Michol filiam Saul: et sic venies, et videbis me.