And David and all Israel went to Jerusalem, which is Jebus; where the Jebusites were, the inhabitants of the land.
David has just been anointed king over all Israel, and his first move is against a city still in enemy hands. Why this one stronghold, and why does the verse also call it by the enemy name Jebus?
The city carries two names in this verse, and each has a story:
Zion is closely linked with David's anointing as king over all Israel. Jerusalem is now to become the capital of the great kingdom. The oldest name was Salem; the Jebusites gave it the name Jebus (Judges 19:10). After David conquered it, the old name came back and it became known as Jerusalem ("habitation of peace"). The town had been captured earlier (Judges 1:8), but the stronghold of the upper city, Mount Zion, remained in the hands of the Jebusites. David took the stronghold. Jebusite means "the one who treads down." It reminds us of the words of our Lord, "Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled" (Luke 21:24). [Older translations read "trodden down," which matches the meaning of "Jebusite."]
Israel's earlier conquests had left this one fortress standing. David felt what that meant for God's honour:
Joshua won his conquests, and more was won after him. Yet in the very middle of the land, in the centre of Jerusalem itself, this stronghold still stood, held by the Jebusites. The time had come for a great change. The kingdom could not be according to God unless Zion was taken for the king from the enemy who had so boldly defied His people. David felt this with full force. He felt keenly the dishonour done to God, because the very heart and fortress of the kingdom belonged to a cursed race of Canaan.
Nothing in the place itself explains the choice:
What reason did God have to interest Himself in this place more than in another? There was no reason whatsoever except that He loved this city which had been under the power of the Jebusites, the enemies of Jehovah and of His anointed. His heart was set on this place, for this is where He wanted to establish the throne of His grace on earth once and for all. "For the LORD has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His dwelling place: 'This is My resting place forever; here I will dwell, for I have desired it'" (Ps. 132:13-14).
The order matters. First the anointing, then the city:
As the anointed king, his first great act was to take Jerusalem out of the hand of the Jebusites. It was to be the city of the great king. It was the appointed centre on earth to display His kingdom and the glory of the throne of Israel.
The same campaign appears in 2 Samuel 5, but told differently:
Verses 4-9 describe the capture of Jerusalem. Here again we find a noteworthy difference from the account in 2 Samuel 5:6-9. Here there is not a word about "the lame and the blind hated of David's soul…!" And Joab, whom Samuel leaves out of the account, here takes first place after David… Here he is not the ambitious, vengeful man. He is the man destined, according to God's counsels, to conquer the fortress of Zion for the king… If we had read only the account of Chronicles, would we not say that Joab was an upright man beyond reproach? The truth is that here Joab is only the instrument prepared to install the Lord's anointed at Jerusalem — the king according to God's thoughts.
Zion's names tell its story, from conquest to what is still to come:
Zion is the place which, as we see from another psalm (Ps. 78:68), shows God's sovereignty in grace, after man has done all he could to bring utter ruin. Zion itself means "fixed." The first place that mentions it (2 Sam. 5:7) is where David takes it out of the hand of the Gentile "treader down" — the Jebusite. It becomes then "the city of David," which, we are glad to remember, means "Beloved." And it will yet be the city of the One of infinite glory, when the time of Jerusalem's "treading-down" is over.
- Chosen — God fixed on this city for no reason found in the city: "there was no reason whatsoever except that He loved this city."
- Occupied — What God loved, the enemy held. The Jebusite, "the one who treads down," sat in "the very middle of the land."
- Taken — The kingdom "could not be according to God unless Zion was taken for the king." The anointing over all Israel demanded the conquest at Jerusalem.
- Renamed — Jebus gives way to Jerusalem, "habitation of peace," and the stronghold becomes the city of David — the city of "Beloved."
- Awaited — Zion means "fixed," and it "will yet be the city of the One of infinite glory, when the time of Jerusalem's treading-down is over."
And the inhabitants of Jebus said to David, Thou shalt not come in hither. But David took the stronghold of Zion, which is the city of David.
Commentary for this verse has not been generated yet.
And David said, Whoever smites the Jebusites first shall be chief and captain. And Joab the son of Zeruiah went first up, and was chief.
When David became king over all Israel, the Jebusites still held Jerusalem. He promises the army's top command to whoever attacks them first — and the man who wins it is one David had already branded a wicked man.
This was not just another walled town. Whether David's kingdom could be what God intended hung on it.
When David and his men came to Jerusalem, the stronghold of Zion was still in enemy hands, as it had been all along. Joshua made his conquests, and others achieved more afterwards. Yet in the very middle of the land, in the centre of Jerusalem itself, this stronghold still stood, held by the Jebusites. The time had come to mark a most important change. The kingdom could not be according to God unless Zion was taken back for the king from the enemy who had so boldly defied His people. David felt this in all its force.
Taking that position lifted Joab above every other soldier. The place itself still has a future.
The Jebusites held the key position in the land. The fortress of Zion was in their hands. Joab took it from them; and, according to the word of David, this secured for him the chief place among the mighty men. This capture mattered greatly, because Zion is the chosen centre of government on earth. In a future day, which will outshine the brightest days of the past, "out of Zion shall go forth the law," and then men shall "learn war no more." Strangely, it was the stronghold of the "treaders down", for that is the meaning of the name Jebusites.
The chapter goes on to list David's finest soldiers. Not one of them takes the prize — and one writer finds the reason in Joab's motives.
It is remarkable that Joab steps forward. Not Abishai, not any one of those most honourable three, not Eleazar or Jashobeam, or any of the others. None of them, but Joab. Joab was not among them. The truth is that Joab was an ambitious man. He did not care to expose himself more than was necessary; but when there was anything to be gained, Joab was the man… So Joab goes forward and takes the stronghold, and becomes chief. So it will always be until the true David comes. There will be no Joabs then.
One writer lists what David already knew about Joab before he made that offer.
We have seen Joab's craftiness from the very beginning. David knew his wickedness. He had branded him with the name "wicked man" before all the people. He had called down God's judgment on his head, and had declared him to be "too hard for me". This is the Joab whom David's word gave the opportunity to become general in chief.
The same writer turns this into a warning for us.
One word, not given by the Holy Spirit, stirred up rivalry in the flesh — and these were the consequences it brought. How easily man abuses the power which God has entrusted to him, using it in an independent way! This fact should make us reflect. A word spoken in the flesh often bears more dangerous fruit than an evil act does.
Commentators differ on how to read Joab here, and the reason lies in the text itself.
The account in Samuel leaves Joab out altogether. Here he occupies the first place after David… He is not the ambitious, vindictive man here. He is the man destined, according to God's counsels, to conquer the fortress of Zion for the king… His struggle with Abner, his revenge on that noble captain, the murder he committed — Chronicles passes over them all in silence. Would we not say, if we had only read the account of Chronicles, that Joab was an upright man beyond reproach? The truth is that here Joab is simply the instrument prepared to install the Lord's anointed, the king according to God's thoughts, at Jerusalem.
Being first up the wall made Joab great as a soldier. It did not make him like his king.
Zeal, ability, diligence, devotion to David's interests and quick perception marked him in abundance. But he never learned anything of David's grace… Anyone who stood in the way of what he thought David's honour needed had to go under at all costs. The greater conquests he did not understand… He was a stranger to moral triumphs over self. So he set himself against David's victories through forgiveness, reconciliation and grace.
- First — the fortress had to fall before the kingdom could stand as God meant it to. The enemy holding Zion had boldly defied God's people.
- First up — Joab climbed while the honoured mighty men stood still. One writer sees the mark of a man who moved when there was something to gain.
- First place — the promise made him commander. Chronicles records only the deed, and shows him as the instrument prepared to seat God's anointed in Jerusalem.
- First word — David spoke his offer in the flesh, and one unguarded word can bear worse fruit than a wrong act.
- Last — Joab gained the top post but never gained his king's grace. Zeal won him the post; it never taught him his king's grace.