2 Samuel 5:17-25

David Against the Philistines 2 Samuel 5:17-25

17 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.

18 The Philistines also came and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.
19 And David inquired 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.
20 And David came to Baal-perazim, 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 Baal-perazim.
21 And there they left their images, and David and his men burned them.
22 And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.
23 And when David inquired 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.

24 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.
25 And David did so, as the Lord had commanded him; and smote the Philistines from Geba until thou come to Gazer.

8.

What was the purpose of the Philistine invasion? 2 Samuel 5:17-21

The Philistines learned that David had been anointed king over Israel. They naturally desired to attack him before he was able to strengthen himself greatly. David went down to the stronghold. Had he already been in control of Jerusalem at this time he probably would not have left the city. As it was, he went down to meet the hosts of the enemy which were encamped in the valley of Rephaim.
The valley of Rephaim leads away from the west side of Jerusalem. Its main course extends toward the Philistine plain. The main body of the valley can be located not far from Bethlehem. The Philistines, who had seen David's rising power and desired to check him, evidently found this to be a likely spot for a pitched battle.
Baal-perazim, as a name, signifies, The place of breakings forth. The Philistines gave way all at once, like water breaking loose. The people called the place, the breaking away of Baal. It was here that the enemy left the images that they had brought with them into the battle. David and his men took them away to be burned.

9.

Where was the battle of the Mulberry Trees? 2 Samuel 5:22-25

In the second attack, the Philistines again encamped in the valley of Rephaim. They had gone farther north this time. Chronicles says that the place of retreat is Gibeon, a site farther west. The name Geba may have been mistaken for Gibeah. Probably the names were confused. The location according to Chronicles would be some seven or eight miles from Jerusalem in a northwesterly direction.

10.

Where was Gazer? 2 Samuel 5:25

Gazer is another name for Gezer. Gezer was a very ancient city on the Shephelah. It lay just above the maritime plains, some eighteen miles northwest of Jerusalem and seventeen miles southwest of Joppa. The site was strategic since it guarded one of the few roads of access from Joppa to Jerusalem. --Tel Gezer is the modern town of Khirbet-yerdeh. It is called Gezer in 2 Samuel 5:25 and 1 Chronicles 14:16. The occupation of the site goes back to times of the Canaanites who occupied the area in the last half of the third millennium before Christ. Their descendants were in the area when the Israelites came into the land under Joshua. Joshua smote the king of Gezer (Joshua 12:12). Yet the Canaanites regained control of the city and remained safe behind their extensive fortifications (Judges 1:29). A famous calendar containing an agenda for a Palestinian farmer's activities in the age of Saul and David was translated by W. F. Albright from Hebrew characters dating around 925 B.C. Whether the Philistines were able to find refuge in Gezer or not, we cannot tell from this narrative, but it was apparent that David was not able to pursue them any further than this well-fortified settlement.