2 Samuel 23:6-7

The sons of Belial; Hebrew, belial ; not a proper name, but a word signifying "worthlessness," and especially vicious worthlessness (see note on 1 Samuel 1:16 ). It is from this worthlessness that opposition arises to the just king, and he recognizes it as that which thwarts his efforts. The words may be rendered ―

"But the ungodly are as thorns, to be all of them thrust away;

For they may not be taken hold of with the hand.

And the man that would touch them

Must arm himself with iron and the staff of a spear;

And they shall be utterly burned with fire unto nothingness."

The vicious worthlessness which opposes righteous government must be treated like thorns, too prickly and sharp pointed for gentle dealing. They must be torn up by an iron hook fixed to the end of a spear-handle, and then burnt. The word translated in the same place in the Authorized Version is rendered by Jerome "even to nothing;" and it is just the sort of phrase for which his authority is greatest; for he went to Palestine, and remained there several years, to study the language under Hebrew teachers on the spot. The Septuagint must have had a different reading, as it translates "their shame."