What is the meaning of 2 Samuel 8:3?

David also defeated

• The verse opens by linking this victory to David’s wider military successes recorded in 2 Samuel 8 (see v. 1–2, 5–6).

• Each conquest underscores God’s promise in 2 Samuel 7:9 that He would “make your name great.”

• David’s triumphs were not random; they were divinely enabled (2 Samuel 5:10; Psalm 18:32–34).

• By noting “also,” the writer shows a pattern of deliverance similar to Joshua’s victories (Joshua 10:42).

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Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah

• Zobah was an Aramean (Syrian) kingdom north of Israel, influential in the region (1 Kings 11:23–24).

• Hadadezer’s name appears again in 1 Chronicles 18:3–8, confirming the same event.

• Confronting such a ruler highlights David’s expanding reach beyond immediate neighbors like the Philistines (2 Samuel 8:1) and Moabites (v. 2).

• God’s covenant people were called to be a light to surrounding nations (Genesis 12:2–3); these victories prepared the way.

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who had marched out to restore his dominion

• Hadadezer sought to reassert control over lands he once held—likely territories lost to previous conflicts (compare 1 Kings 11:24).

• His aggressive move threatened Israel’s security, prompting David to act decisively.

• The Lord’s promise in Deuteronomy 11:24—that Israel’s borders would expand wherever their feet tread—finds fresh fulfillment here.

• David’s success affirms the principle of divine opposition to proud human ambition (Proverbs 16:18; Psalm 2:1–6).

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along the Euphrates River

• The Euphrates formed the northern boundary of the land originally pledged to Abraham (Genesis 15:18).

• By pushing his influence to this river, David realizes in part the geographic extent God foresaw for Israel.

• Control of trade routes near the Euphrates brought economic blessing (2 Samuel 8:7–8, 11–12).

• The mention of this distant landmark signals that the kingdom under David is no small tribal confederation but a rising regional power (2 Samuel 8:13–14).

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summary

2 Samuel 8:3 shows David defeating a formidable northern monarch, Hadadezer, just as that king attempts to reclaim strategic territory by the Euphrates. The verse testifies that God is faithfully enlarging Israel’s borders, fulfilling longstanding promises, thwarting hostile ambitions, and establishing David’s reign as a channel of divine blessing far beyond Israel’s immediate frontiers.