2 Samuel 15:23All the country wept with a loud voice, and all the people passed over: the king also himself passed over the brook Kidron, and all the people passed over, toward the way of the wilderness.
The setting
Kidron Valley, Jerusalem, Israel, ~1000 BC. The entire city watches as their king becomes a refugee, crossing the same brook Jesus would cross 1000 years later...
The emotion here: recording a moment of national heartbreak with literary precision
The original word
bakah (בָּכָה) — to weep audibly, the same word used when Jacob mourned Joseph's 'death'
Why it matters
The Kidron Brook only flows during rainy season — David likely crossed dry stones, making the journey feel even more desolate
Read with care
What most readers miss in 2 Samuel 15:23
This is the same brook where kings burned idols and threw away pagan objects — now David himself is being thrown away
Common misconceptionPeople think the weeping shows the people turned against David, but it actually shows they loved him and grieved his exile — they weren't celebrating Absalom's victory.
The thread continues
Verses that echo 2 Samuel 15:23
Bible Genome reading
2 Samuel 15:23 — Bible Genome reading
Emotional genome
2 Samuel 15:23 comes from the book of 2 Samuel, written during the United Kingdom period. The setting is wilderness. These words are attributed to Narrator. The dominant emotion in this verse is grieving, with a comfort power of 40% and a tone that is lamenting. It belongs to the narrative genre of biblical literature. Key themes include grief, exile, national mourning. Notable phrases: All the country wept; passed over the brook Kidron.
Emotionally similar
Verses that meet the same grieving
“By the sweat of your face will you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For you are dust, and to dust you…”
— Genesis 3:19
“Jesus wept.”
— John 11:35
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?”
— Psalms 22:1
“They divide my garments among them. They cast lots for my clothing.”
— Psalms 22:18
“for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God;”
— Romans 3:23
Your reflection
What does 2 Samuel 15:23 mean to you, today?
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