And the LORD shall return his blood upon his own head, who fell upon two men more righteous and better than he, and slew them with the sword, my father David not knowing thereof, to wit, Abner the son of Ner, captain of the host of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, captain of the host of Judah.

1 KINGS 2:32KJV
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1 Kings 2:32 (KJV)

What does 1 Kings 2:32 mean?

In 1 Kings 2:32, Solomon says that Joab must answer for killing two military leaders. Solomon describes the deaths as unjust and says that David, Solomon’s father, did not know about them.

Solomon is speaking to Benaiah, whom he has sent to execute Joab. The picture of blood returning “upon his own head” places responsibility for the deaths on Joab himself.

The Hebrew behind 1 Kings 2:32

  • “return” — שׁוּב (shuv): This word often means to turn back or bring back. Here it contributes to the picture of the blood coming back upon the person responsible for shedding it.
  • “blood” — דָּם (dam): This word means blood, but it can also point to a violent death and the responsibility for it. Solomon uses it to speak about the consequences of Joab’s killings.
  • “righteous” — צַדִּיק (tsaddiq): This word can describe someone who is just or in the right. Solomon’s comparison presents Abner and Amasa as more upright than Joab.

Why 1 Kings 2:32 matters

  • Solomon distinguishes David from Joab’s actions. “My father David not knowing thereof” separates the king from the killings carried out by his commander.

  • The two victims had led forces on different sides. Abner had commanded Israel’s army, while Amasa had commanded Judah’s; Solomon names both deaths as grounds for holding Joab responsible.

  • The surrounding accounts show why Solomon calls the killings unjust. Joab killed Abner after speaking with him privately, and he struck Amasa while appearing to greet him (2 Samuel 3:27; 20:9–10).

Where else these words appear

“Jether” Hebrew H3500 · used in 8 verses

  • Exodus 4:18 And Moses went and returned to Jethro his father in law, and said unto him, Let me go, I pray thee, and return unto my brethren which are in Egypt, and see whether they be yet alive. And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace.
  • 1 Kings 2:5 Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner, and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet.
  • 1 Chronicles 2:32 And the sons of Jada the brother of Shammai; Jether, and Jonathan: and Jether died without children.

“Amasa” Hebrew H6021 · used in 12 verses

  • 2 Samuel 17:25 And Absalom made Amasa captain of the host instead of Joab: which Amasa was a man's son, whose name was Ithra an Israelite, that went in to Abigail the daughter of Nahash, sister to Zeruiah Joab's mother.
  • 2 Samuel 20:5 So Amasa went to assemble the men of Judah: but he tarried longer than the set time which he had appointed him.
  • 2 Samuel 20:12 And Amasa wallowed in blood in the midst of the highway. And when the man saw that all the people stood still, he removed Amasa out of the highway into the field, and cast a cloth upon him, when he saw that every one that came by him stood still.

“Ner” Hebrew H5369 · used in 16 verses

  • 1 Samuel 14:50 And the name of Saul's wife was Ahinoam, the daughter of Ahimaaz: and the name of the captain of his host was Abner, the son of Ner, Saul's uncle.
  • 2 Samuel 2:12 And Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ishbosheth the son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.
  • 1 Kings 2:5 Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner, and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet.

“fell” Hebrew H6293 · used in 43 verses

  • Genesis 23:8 And he communed with them, saying, If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight; hear me, and intreat for me to Ephron the son of Zohar,
  • Joshua 19:27 And turneth toward the sunrising to Bethdagon, and reacheth to Zebulun, and to the valley of Jiphthahel toward the north side of Bethemek, and Neiel, and goeth out to Cabul on the left hand,
  • 1 Kings 2:34 So Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon him, and slew him: and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness.