All the tribes of Israel come to David at Hebron, acknowledge him as their rightful shepherd and commander, and formally anoint him king over a united Israel. David captures the Jebusite stronghold of Zion, renames it the City of David, and establishes it as his capital. Hiram of Tyre sends materials and craftsmen to build David a palace, confirming his international legitimacy. David takes additional wives and concubines, and a list of sons born in Jerusalem is recorded. The Philistines twice challenge David's new kingship, and twice the LORD grants him decisive victory -- first at Baal-perazim and then in the Valley of Rephaim, where God Himself leads the assault through the sound of marching in the treetops.
What Makes This Chapter Remarkable
This chapter records the political and theological climax of David's long ascent: the anointing that was private in 1 Samuel 16 is now ratified publicly by every tribe. The Hebrew makes the transition stark -- the same nation that followed Saul and then fractured between Ish-bosheth and David now speaks with a single voice: 'We are your bone and your flesh.' The capture of Jerusalem is equally significant. The Jebusites taunt David that even the blind and the lame could defend their fortress, yet David takes it anyway, seizing a city that belonged to no Israelite tribe and making it the capital of all twelve -- a stroke of political genius that avoids tribal jealousy. The Philistine battles at the end reveal a David utterly unlike Saul: he inquires of the LORD before each engagement and obeys precisely, even when God gives different instructions for the second battle. The sound of marching in the balsam trees (v. 24) is one of Scripture's most vivid images of divine warfare -- God's invisible army moving ahead of David's visible one.
Translation Friction
Verse 6 contains one of the most debated passages in Samuel. The Jebusites' taunt about 'the blind and the lame' and David's apparent counter-statement that 'the blind and the lame shall not come into the house' has generated centuries of interpretive difficulty. Does David issue a permanent ban on disabled persons from the temple? Is this a proverb about the Jebusites? The Hebrew is compressed and likely idiomatic. We render the exchange as a military taunt and counter-taunt about the Jebusites' confidence, not as legislation about disabled persons. The phrase in verse 8 about the tsinnor ('water shaft' or 'gutter') through which the city was taken is also notoriously obscure -- the word occurs only here and in Psalm 42:8, and its exact meaning remains uncertain. We render it as 'water channel' with a note on the ambiguity. Verse 2 uses nagid ('prince, designated ruler') rather than melek ('king'), preserving the theological distinction that God designates and the people confirm.
Connections
David's anointing at Hebron fulfills Samuel's anointing in 1 Samuel 16:13, completing a journey that spans nearly twenty chapters. The covenant (berit) David cuts with the elders in verse 3 echoes the covenant-making pattern established at Sinai (Exodus 24:7-8) and renewed by Joshua (Joshua 24:25) -- Israel's leadership transitions are marked by formal covenant ratification. The capture of Zion anticipates the Ark's arrival in chapter 6 and Solomon's temple in 1 Kings 6 -- David is preparing the stage for God's permanent dwelling. The Philistine defeats reverse the disaster of 1 Samuel 4 and 31; the nation that killed Saul on Gilboa is now routed by Saul's successor. God's instruction to circle behind the Philistines and wait for the sound in the trees (v. 24) echoes the holy-war pattern where the LORD fights while Israel follows (Exodus 14:14, Joshua 5:13-15, Judges 4:14).
All the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and declared, "We are your bone and your flesh."
KJV Then came all the tribes of Israel to David unto Hebron, and spake, saying, Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh.
Notes & Key Terms
1 term
Key Terms
עַצְמְךָ וּבְשָׂרְךָatsmekha uvsarekha
"your bone and your flesh"—bone and flesh; kinship, blood relation, covenant solidarity
This formula expresses the deepest possible claim of shared identity. It appears in covenant and kinship contexts (Genesis 2:23, Genesis 29:14, Judges 9:2) and functions as both a statement of fact and a pledge of allegiance. The tribes are not merely acknowledging biology -- they are binding themselves to David.
Translator Notes
The tribes come to David, not the reverse. The verb vayyavo'u ('they came') emphasizes that this is a voluntary convergence -- David does not summon or coerce. Hebron, David's capital during the seven-year civil period, serves as the meeting place. The declaration hinnenu ('here we are') carries overtones of covenant readiness, the same word Abraham uses in response to God (Genesis 22:1).
Even before, when Saul was king over us, you were the one leading Israel out and bringing them back. And the LORD said to you, 'You will shepherd My people Israel, and you will be leader over Israel.'
KJV Also in time past, when Saul was king over us, thou wast he that leddest out and broughtest in Israel: and the LORD said to thee, Thou shalt feed my people Israel, and thou shalt be a captain over Israel.
Notes & Key Terms
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Key Terms
נָגִידnagid
"leader"—prince, ruler, designated leader, commander, one placed at the front
Nagid is distinct from melek ('king'). A nagid is God's appointee -- the one whom the LORD has designated to lead. Saul was first called nagid (1 Samuel 9:16), and now the title transfers to David. The word carries the theological weight that kingship in Israel is not self-made but divinely conferred. The people may anoint, but God designates.
Translator Notes
The phrase gam temol gam shilshom ('also yesterday also the day before') is idiomatic for 'in the past, previously.' It acknowledges David's leadership during Saul's reign without directly condemning Saul -- a diplomatically careful statement.
The verb tir'eh ('you will shepherd') frames kingship as pastoral care, not domination. Israel's king is a shepherd first -- responsible for feeding, protecting, and guiding the flock. This metaphor governs the entire Davidic theology and reaches forward to Ezekiel 34 and the messianic 'good shepherd' tradition.
All the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David cut a covenant with them at Hebron before the LORD. Then they anointed David king over all Israel.
KJV So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and king David made a league with them in Hebron before the LORD: and they anointed David king over Israel.
The berit is the foundational concept of Israelite theology and politics. Here it establishes a constitutional relationship between king and people under God's oversight. David's covenant with the elders mirrors the Sinai pattern: mutual obligation, divine witness, formal ratification. The king gains authority; the people gain protection and accountability.
Translator Notes
The sequence matters: covenant first, then anointing. David binds himself to obligations toward the people before receiving the oil of kingship. This pattern distinguishes Israelite monarchy from ancient Near Eastern despotism -- the king serves under covenant, not above it.
This is David's third anointing: first by Samuel privately (1 Samuel 16:13), then by the men of Judah (2 Samuel 2:4), and now by all Israel. Each anointing expands the scope of his authority -- from divine designation to tribal recognition to national confirmation.
David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned for forty years.
KJV David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
This summary formula is characteristic of the regnal records embedded in Samuel-Kings. Thirty was the age of full maturity in ancient Israel -- the age at which Levites entered full service (Numbers 4:3). Forty years is the conventional number for a complete generation of leadership (Moses, the wilderness period, Eli, Solomon). Whether precisely literal or typological, it signals that David's reign was complete and full.
He ruled over Judah from Hebron for seven years and six months, then ruled from Jerusalem over all Israel and Judah for thirty-three years.
KJV In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months: and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty and three years over all Israel and Judah.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The precision of 'seven years and six months' for the Hebron period contrasts with the round number of thirty-three for Jerusalem, suggesting the narrator drew on different record sources. The distinction between reigning 'over Judah' and 'over all Israel and Judah' marks the political transformation: David's move to Jerusalem coincides with his authority expanding from one tribe to the entire nation.
The king and his men marched to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land. They said to David, "You will never get in here -- even the blind and the lame could turn you back!" They were certain David could not enter.
KJV And the king and his men went to Jerusalem unto the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land: which spake unto David, saying, Except thou take away the blind and the lame, thou shalt not come in hither: thinking, David cannot come in hither.
Notes & Key Terms
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Key Terms
הַיְבוּסִיhaYevusi
"the Jebusites"—Jebusites (Canaanite people); inhabitants of Jebus/Jerusalem
The Jebusites were a pre-Israelite Canaanite people who held Jerusalem (called Jebus in Judges 19:10) for centuries. Their continued presence in the heart of Israelite territory was a reminder of the incomplete conquest. David's capture of their stronghold completes what Joshua began.
Translator Notes
This verse is notoriously difficult in Hebrew. The phrase ki im hesirekha ha'ivrim vehapiskhim is compressed and likely idiomatic. The meaning appears to be a scornful challenge: you cannot enter unless you first remove even the blind and lame (who are sufficient to defend it). The Jebusites are not describing their actual garrison but mocking David's capacity to breach their walls.
Jerusalem (Yerushalaim) was strategically positioned between the tribal territories of Judah and Benjamin, belonging fully to neither. By capturing a non-Israelite city, David avoided the political problem of ruling from any single tribe's territory -- a masterstroke that would make Jerusalem a truly national capital.
But David captured the stronghold of Zion -- that is, the City of David.
KJV Nevertheless David took the strong hold of Zion: the same is the city of David.
Notes & Key Terms
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Key Terms
מְצֻדַת צִיּוֹןmetsudat Tsiyyon
"stronghold of Zion"—fortress, stronghold, citadel; Zion (place name, later theological symbol)
This is the first occurrence of the name Zion attached to David's conquest, and it marks the beginning of Zion's transformation from a Jebusite fortress name into one of the most theologically loaded words in the Hebrew Bible. In the Psalms and Prophets, Zion becomes synonymous with God's presence, His chosen city, and the hope of ultimate redemption. Every later use of 'Zion' reaches back to this moment -- David's capture of an impregnable fortress that God gave him.
Translator Notes
The word metsudah ('stronghold, fortress') comes from the root ts-w-d, meaning 'to hunt, to capture' -- the stronghold is named for its capacity to trap and defend. That David captures the capture-proof fortress is embedded in the word itself.
The identification hi ir David ('that is the City of David') is an editorial note that fixes the name for all subsequent readers. The City of David is not the entirety of later Jerusalem but specifically the original Jebusite citadel on the Ophel ridge -- a narrow spur south of what would become the Temple Mount.
David said on that day, "Whoever strikes down the Jebusites -- let him reach the water channel! -- and the lame and the blind whom David despises..." For this reason people say, "The blind and the lame will not enter the house."
KJV And David said on that day, Whosoever getteth up to the gutter, and smiteth the Jebusites, and the lame and the blind, that are hated of David's soul, he shall be chief and captain. Wherefore they said, The blind and the lame shall not come into the house.
This rare word has generated extensive archaeological and linguistic debate. The most widely accepted interpretation connects it to the underground water systems discovered beneath ancient Jerusalem, which would have provided a covert entry point for attackers. If correct, David's conquest of the 'impregnable' city was achieved not by overwhelming force but by exploiting a hidden vulnerability.
Translator Notes
The tsinnor is the crux of this verse. The word appears only here and in Psalm 42:8 (where it means 'waterfall' or 'water channel'). Most scholars connect it to Warren's Shaft or a similar underground water access point in ancient Jerusalem. The strategy would involve soldiers ascending through the water system to bypass the walls -- a commando-style infiltration that renders the 'impregnable' fortress vulnerable from within.
The verse's grammar is broken or compressed, likely because the narrator is summarizing a well-known military tradition in shorthand. The 1 Chronicles 11:6 parallel clarifies that Joab was the first to go up and thereby earned the position of commander -- a detail this verse implies but does not state.
David settled in the stronghold and named it the City of David. Then David built up the surrounding area from the Millo inward.
KJV So David dwelt in the fort, and called it the city of David. And David built round about from Millo and inward.
Notes & Key Terms
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Key Terms
הַמִּלּוֹאhammillo
"the Millo"—the Millo (a fill, terrace, or rampart structure); from mala' ('to fill')
The Millo appears repeatedly in Jerusalem's building history (1 Kings 9:15, 9:24, 11:27; 2 Kings 12:20). It was likely a massive stone-and-earth fill that created level building platforms on the steep slopes of the City of David. Its construction and repair were significant royal projects for both David and Solomon.
Translator Notes
The verb vayyeshev ('he settled, dwelt') marks the transition from conquest to residency -- David does not merely capture the citadel but makes it his permanent home. The renaming is an act of political claim: the anonymous Jebusite fortress becomes ir David, permanently associated with the new dynasty.
The Millo (from the root m-l-', 'to fill') refers to a terraced fill structure that expanded the usable area of Jerusalem's narrow ridge. Archaeological work on the southeastern hill has uncovered massive stone terracing that may correspond to this Millo. Building 'from the Millo inward' suggests David constructed or reinforced the outer terracing and then developed the interior -- a program of urban expansion that transformed a captured citadel into a royal capital.
David continued to grow greater, and the LORD God of Armies was with him.
KJV And David went on, and grew great, and the LORD God of hosts was with him.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The title YHWH Elohei Tseva'ot ('the LORD God of Armies/Hosts') appears here to frame David's expanding power as divine, not merely political. The 'armies' may refer to Israel's forces, the angelic hosts, or the cosmic powers under God's command -- likely all three simultaneously. We render Tseva'ot as 'Armies' rather than the traditional 'hosts' to preserve the military force of the title.
Hiram king of Tyre sent envoys to David, along with cedar timber, woodworkers, and stonemasons, and they built David a palace.
KJV And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters, and masons: and they built David an house.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Hiram's initiative is significant: a foreign king sends materials and skilled labor to David unsolicited. This is diplomatic recognition from the most powerful commercial city on the Mediterranean coast. Tyre's cedar wood was the premier building material of the ancient Near East -- its use signaled wealth, permanence, and royal status. The construction of a bayit ('house, palace') in Jerusalem transforms David from a military occupier into an established monarch with international standing.
The word bayit ('house') will become theologically loaded in chapter 7, where God promises to build David a 'house' (dynasty) in return. Here the physical house foreshadows the dynastic house -- David builds a palace, and God will build a lineage.
David recognized that the LORD had established him as king over Israel and had elevated his kingdom for the sake of His people Israel.
KJV And David perceived that the LORD had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for his people Israel's sake.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The verb hekino ('He established him') from the root k-w-n is the same root used in God's promise to establish David's throne forever (2 Samuel 7:12-16). The narrator anticipates the dynastic covenant by using its key vocabulary here.
The phrase ba'avur ammo Yisrael ('for the sake of His people Israel') is the theological corrective to royal self-aggrandizement. David's kingdom is instrumental -- it exists as a means to bless Israel, not as an end in itself.
David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem after he came from Hebron, and more sons and daughters were born to David.
KJV And David took him more concubines and wives out of Jerusalem, after he was come from Hebron: and there were yet sons and daughters born to David.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The narrator records this without explicit commentary, but the placement immediately after David's recognition that his kingdom serves God's people creates an implicit tension. Multiple marriages were standard practice for ancient Near Eastern kings -- they cemented political alliances and demonstrated royal status. Yet Deuteronomy 17:17 warns that the king 'must not acquire many wives for himself, or his heart will turn away.' The seeds of future crisis (Amnon, Absalom, Adonijah) are planted in this single verse.
The distinction between nashim ('wives') and pilagshim ('concubines') reflects legal status: wives had full marriage contracts and inheritance rights for their children, while concubines had a recognized but subordinate position.
These are the names of those born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon,
KJV And these be the names of those that were born unto him in Jerusalem; Shammuah, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon,
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The list of sons born in Jerusalem signals dynastic establishment. Of these four, Nathan and Solomon are the most significant for later history. Solomon will succeed David as king, and Nathan appears in the genealogy of Jesus in Luke 3:31. The names themselves carry meaning: Shammua ('heard'), Shobab ('returned' or possibly 'rebellious'), Nathan ('He gave'), and Shelomoh/Solomon ('his peace, his wholeness').
2 Samuel 5:15
וְיִבְחָ֣ר וֶאֱלִישׁ֔וּעַ וְנֶ֖פֶג וְיָפִֽיעַ׃
Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, and Japhia,
KJV Ibhar also, and Elishua, and Nepheg, and Japhia,
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The names continue the dynastic register. Ibhar ('He chooses'), Elishua ('My God is salvation'), Nepheg ('sprout'), and Japhia ('He shines'). Several of these names are theophoric -- containing embedded references to God's character and action. The naming of royal sons was itself a theological statement: each name proclaimed something about the God who gave the king his dynasty.
2 Samuel 5:16
וֶאֱלִישָׁמָ֣ע וְאֶלְיָדָ֔ע וֶאֱלִיפָֽלֶט׃
Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet.
KJV And Elishama, and Eliada, and Eliphalet.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The final three sons all bear names beginning with El- ('God'): Elishama ('My God has heard'), Eliada ('God knows'), and Eliphelet ('My God is deliverance'). The concentration of theophoric names in David's household reflects the theological conviction that every child is a gift from God and every name is a confession of faith. The parallel list in 1 Chronicles 3:5-8 includes additional names, suggesting that this list may be selective rather than exhaustive.
When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over Israel, all the Philistines came up to find him. David heard of it and went down to the stronghold.
KJV But when the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, all the Philistines came up to seek David; and David heard of it, and went down to the hold.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The Philistines had tolerated David as a Judahite vassal king ruling from Hebron -- a divided Israel served their interests. A united Israel under David was a different matter entirely, demanding immediate military response. The phrase kol Pelishtim ('all the Philistines') indicates a full military mobilization, not a raiding party.
The Philistines came and spread out across the Valley of Rephaim.
KJV The Philistines also came and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The verb vayyinateshu ('they spread out, deployed') is military language describing an army taking up battle positions across a wide area. The Valley of Rephaim (emeq Refa'im) lies southwest of Jerusalem, providing a natural invasion corridor toward the new capital. The name Rephaim carries overtones of the ancient giant warriors (cf. Genesis 15:20, Deuteronomy 2:11) and of the shades of the dead -- an ominous valley for a decisive confrontation.
The Philistines' choice of terrain is strategic: by occupying the valley between their territory and Jerusalem, they threaten to cut David off from Judah and reverse his consolidation of power.
David inquired of the LORD, "Should I go up against the Philistines? Will You give them into my hand?" The LORD said to David, "Go up, for I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand."
KJV And David enquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I go up to the Philistines? wilt thou deliver them into mine hand? And the LORD said unto David, Go up: for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into thine hand.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The inquiry was likely made through the priestly ephod, using the Urim and Thummim (cf. 1 Samuel 23:9-12, 30:7-8). David's two questions -- 'Should I go up?' and 'Will You give them to me?' -- seek both tactical permission and theological assurance. God answers both with a single response: go, and I will give.
The infinitive absolute construction naton etten ('giving I will give') expresses certainty and emphasis. God's promise is not conditional or tentative -- it is guaranteed.
David came to Baal-perazim and defeated them there. David said, "The LORD has burst through my enemies before me like a flood breaking through!" That is why he named that place Baal-perazim.
KJV And David came to Baalperazim, and David smote them there, and said, The LORD hath broken forth upon mine enemies before me, as the breach of waters. Therefore he called the name of that place Baalperazim.
Notes & Key Terms
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Key Terms
בַּעַל פְּרָצִיםBa'al Peratsim
"Baal-perazim"—Master/Lord of breakthroughs, breaches, bursting-forth
The place name commemorates God's overwhelming victory using the language of flooding and breaking through barriers. The root p-r-ts appears throughout the Hebrew Bible for divine acts of power that shatter opposition (cf. 2 Samuel 6:8, 1 Chronicles 13:11). Naming the battlefield makes the theology permanent and geographic.
Translator Notes
The imagery of flooding water (perets mayim) would have been powerfully concrete in the Judean landscape, where flash floods in dry wadis could obliterate everything in their path. David compares God's assault on the Philistines to a flash flood -- sudden, total, and irresistible.
The name Ba'al Peratsim is provocative: ba'al ('master, lord') was the chief Canaanite deity, but David uses it as a common noun meaning 'master, possessor.' The LORD is the true Ba'al -- the true Master -- of the breakthrough. There may be deliberate theological polemic in this naming.
The Philistines abandoned their idols there, and David and his men carried them away.
KJV And there they left their images, and David and his men burned them.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The MT reads vayyissa'em ('they carried them away'), while the parallel in 1 Chronicles 14:12 reads vayyisarefu ba'esh ('they burned them with fire'), following the command of Deuteronomy 7:5, 25. The Chronicles version reflects the Torah's mandate to destroy captured idols. We follow the MT of Samuel, which simply records removal. Both traditions agree on the essential point: the Philistine gods were powerless.
The Philistines came up yet again and spread out across the Valley of Rephaim.
KJV And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The Philistines' return to the same valley demonstrates both their determination and their failure to learn. The verb vayyosifu ('they did again, they continued') shows persistence -- a single defeat did not break their resolve. They deploy in the same location, expecting perhaps a different outcome. But this time God will give David a completely different strategy, demonstrating that the LORD is not bound to a single method and that David must inquire fresh each time.
David inquired of the LORD, and He said, "Do not go straight up. Circle around behind them and come at them from in front of the balsam trees."
KJV And when David enquired of the LORD, he said, Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The bekha'im (plural of bakha, possibly related to bakhah, 'to weep') are usually identified as balsam trees, which exude a resinous sap that 'weeps' from the bark. Some scholars connect the name to the 'Valley of Baca' in Psalm 84:7. The exact species is uncertain, but the trees served as a geographic marker and would play a crucial role in the next verse.
The verb hasev ('circle around') is a military maneuver term -- David is to execute a flanking movement, coming at the Philistines from behind rather than meeting them head-on. This requires discipline and trust: the army must resist the instinct to charge and instead execute a patient encirclement.
When you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then move decisively, for at that moment the LORD will have gone out ahead of you to strike the Philistine camp.
KJV And let it be, when thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself: for then shall the LORD go out before thee, to smite the host of the Philistines.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The qol tse'adah berashei habekha'im ('sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees') has fascinated interpreters for millennia. The word tse'adah means 'a step, a marching pace' -- it is the sound of feet, not wind. The narrator presents this as the audible evidence of God's heavenly army deploying through the forest canopy. Whether understood as a supernatural phenomenon or as God using the sound of wind as a tactical signal, the theological point is the same: God fights ahead of David.
The verb techarats (from the root ch-r-ts, 'to be sharp, to decide, to act decisively') appears only here and in a few other places. It conveys urgency and sharpness -- the moment the sound comes, David must strike without delay.
David did exactly as the LORD commanded him, and he struck down the Philistines from Geba all the way to Gezer.
KJV And David did so, as the LORD had commanded him; and smote the Philistines from Geba until thou come to Gazer.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The phrase ka'asher tsivvahu YHWH ('just as the LORD commanded him') is the narrator's final verdict on David's military conduct: complete obedience. This stands in sharp contrast to Saul, who repeatedly modified or ignored divine commands (1 Samuel 13:8-14, 15:1-23). The theological point is clear: obedience to God's specific instructions, even unconventional ones, produces victory.
Geba (or Gibeon, as some manuscripts and the LXX read) was a Benjaminite town north of Jerusalem. Gezer was a major Canaanite city on the western edge of the Shephelah, guarding the approach to the coastal plain. A rout extending from Geba to Gezer covers roughly twenty miles of pursuit -- the Philistine army was completely shattered.