Overview
The Bible addresses assassination across 4 verses, drawn from the Old Testament. These passages cluster most in 2 Samuel. Closely related themes include Ish-Bosheth, Rechab, Rimmon and Pools and Ponds. Figures whose stories touch this theme include David, Saul, Abner and Ishbosheth.
Key Bible verses about assassination
Old Testament
2 Samuel
And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said unto them, As the LORD liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity,
When one told me, saying, Behold, Saul is dead, thinking to have brought good tidings, I took hold of him, and slew him in Ziklag, who thought that I would have given him a reward for his tidings: thinking: Heb. he was in his own eyes as a bringer, etc who: or, which was the reward I gave him for his tidings
How much more, when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon his bed? shall I not therefore now require his blood of your hand, and take you away from the earth?
And David commanded his young men, and they slew them, and cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them up over the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ishbosheth, and buried it in the sepulchre of Abner in Hebron.
People in the Bible and assassination
Biblical figures whose stories intersect with this theme.
In the Bible dictionary
Studying assassination for yourself
- Begin with 2 Samuel 4:9, then read the passages below in canonical order.
- Consider the lives of David, Saul and Abner and how their stories intersect with it.
- Widen the study to related themes: Ish-Bosheth, Rechab, Rimmon and Pools and Ponds.
Frequently asked questions
What does the Bible say about assassination?
The Bible addresses assassination across 4 verses, drawn from the Old Testament. These passages cluster most in 2 Samuel. Closely related themes include Ish-Bosheth, Rechab, Rimmon and Pools and Ponds. Figures whose stories touch this theme include David, Saul, Abner and Ishbosheth.
How many Bible verses are about assassination?
The Bible references assassination in 4 verses (King James Version).
Where does the Bible first mention assassination?
In canonical order, the first of these passages is 2 Samuel 4:9: “And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said unto them, As the LORD liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity,”
Which people in the Bible are associated with assassination?
David, Saul, Abner and Ishbosheth.
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