2 Samuel 1:1-27

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• Reading the Text:
  • NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
  • The Bible Gateway: NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
  • The Blue Letter Bible. KJV, alternate versions, Hebrew text with concordance, commentaries.
  • The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary, exposition and sermons.
• Historical References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:
  • "Friendship," Comparative World Scriptures from United Communities of Spirit.
  • Rashi's Commentary, c. 1075. chabad.org.
  • From the Geneva Notes.
    • "This book and the former are called Samuel, because they contain the conception, birth and the whole course of his life, and also the lives and acts of two kings, that is, of Saul and David, whom he anointed and consecrated kings by the ordinance of God."
  • From Matthew Henry's Commentary.
    • "Next to the love between Christ and his people, that affection which springs form it, produces the strongest friendship."
  • From Wesley's Notes.
    • "For, besides the loss of a true friend, which is inestimable; he lost him who both could, and undoubtedly would have given him a speedy, and quiet, and sure possession of the kingdom, whereas now, he met with long and troublesome interruptions."
  • From the Commentary on the Whole Bible (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
• Contemporary Commentary, Studies, and Exegesis:
  • Commentary, 2 Samuel 1:1, 17-27, Ralph W. Klein, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2009.
    • "This lament can express the grief all of us have experienced over the loss of a close friend or relative, those fallen in warfare, or a great leader (John F. Kennedy; Martin Luther King, Jr.). Sometimes our whole communities experience the trials of grief and loss (think of those who mourn the victims of September 11 or Hurricane Katrina)."
  • 2 Samuel 1:1, 17-27, Pentecost 4, 2009, The Old Testament Readings: Weekly Comments on the Revised Common Lectionary, Howard Wallace Audrey Schindler, Morag Logan, Paul Tonson, Lorraine Parkinson, Theological Hall of the Uniting Church, Melbourne, Australia.
    • "After the death of Saul, David places himself by this lament as being close to Saul, a natural heir and successor, and from this position he offers fulsome praise of Saul’s prowess in battle, and of his conduct in the face of death.  This is in part a generous act when the relationship between the two has been so strained.  It is also, however, good politics, offering the best chance for reconciliation and the best chance for a unification of power under David."
  • 2 Samuel 1:1, 17-27, Pentecost 4, 2009, Commentary, Background, Insights from Literary Structure, Theological Message, Ways to Present the Text. Anna Grant-Henderson, Uniting Church in Australia.
    • "We in the church can model the capacity to grieve and speak of people honestly when we are in those situations."
  • "What an Amalekite is Dying to Tell David (2 Samuel 1:1-27)," by Robert Deffinbaugh at the Biblical Studies Foundation.
    • "The Amalekite messenger thinks the news of the deaths of Saul and Jonathan will be good news to David. He is wrong. This psalm tells us that David feels a deep sense of loss and sorrow because of their deaths. David genuinely grieves over the news he receives."
• Articles & Background:
  • "Friendship in the Bible," Benedict Janecko, Spiritual Life, 2002.
    • "In our culture today, there is much talk about 'love' but relatively little about friendship."
  • "David the Man: The Construction of Masculinity in the Hebrew Bible," David J.A. Clines, 1995.
  • Zehnder, M., "Exegetische Beobachtungen zu den David-Jonathan-Geschichten," Biblica Vol.79(1998) 153-179.  Abstract (Article is in German; abstract is in English.)
  • "Die Liebe von David und Jonatan als Frage der modernen Exegese," M. Nissinen, Biblica 80 (1999). Abstract (in English).
    • "The relationship of David and Jonathan may be understood as a socially acceptable male bonding between equals, in which mutual love and affection is depicted with some homoerotic traits but in which the differentiation of active and passive, i.e. male and female sexual roles plays no role."
  • "A Crown, Some Oil, And A Throne: Coronation in Ancient Israel." From Jewish Heritage Online Magazine's Topic of the Month: Crown.
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  • Arnold, Bill T., "The Amalekite's Report of Saul's Death: Political Intrigue or Incompatible Sources?" Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, 1989.
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  • Bailey, Randall C., "Reading the Book of Samuel as a Message to the Exiles: A Hermeneutical Shift," Journal of the Interdenominational Theological Center, 1990-91.
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  • Barrick, W. Boyd, "Saul's Demise, David's Lament, and Custer's Last Stand," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 1997.
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  • Holladay, William L., "Form and Word-Play in David's Lament over Saul and Jonathan," Vetus Testamentum, 1970.
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  • Lawton, Robert B., "Saul, Jonathan and the 'Son of Jesse'," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 1993.
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  • Olyan, Saul M., "Honor, Shame, and Covenant Relations in Ancient Israel and Its Environment," Journal of Biblical Literature, 1996.
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  • Reis, Pamela Tamarkin, "Killing the Messenger: David's Policy or Politics?" Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 2006.
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  • Shea, William H. "Chiasmus and the Structure of David's Lament," Journal of Biblical Literature, 1986.
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  • Tull, Patricia K., "Jonathan's Gift of Friendship," Interpretation, 2004. (See also, Friendship, issue focus of Interpretation, 2004.)
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  • Yee, Gale A., "The Anatomy of Biblical Parody: The Dirge Form in 2 Samuel 1 and Isaiah 14," Catholic Bible Quarterly, 1988.
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  • Zehnder, Markus, "Observations on the Relationship between David and Jonathan and the Debate on Homosexuality," Westminster Theological Society, 2007.
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• Reviews:
  • Review: Alexander Achilles Fischer, Von Hebron nach Jerusalem: Eine redaktionsgeschichtliche Studie zur Erzählung von König David in II Sam 1-5. Review by Mark Wade Hamilton in SBL's Review of Biblical Literature. (Review is in English.)
• Sermons:
• With Children:
  • "King David," Illustrating the Story (lessons, children's sermons), coloring pages, activity sheets, crafts, children's songs. MSSS Crafts.
• Drama:
• Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
  • Images for this week's readings, Pitts Theology Library Digital Image Archive.
• Hymns and Music:
• Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
• Movies scenes with the following themes, listed at The Text This Week's Movie Concordance:
• Study Links and Resources for the Book of 2 Samuel