For David had offered that day a reward to whosoever should strike the Jebusites and get up to the gutters of the tops of the houses, and take away the blind and the lame that hated the soul of David: therefore it is said in the proverb: The blind and the lame shall not come into the temple.

“For (here is one of Marcion's antitheses): whereas David long ago, in the capture of Zion, was offended by the blind who opposed his admission (into the stronghold). In this respect (I should rather say) that they were a type of people equally blind, who in later times would not admit Christ to be the son of David. So, on the contrary, Christ helped the blind man to show, by this act, that he was not David's son and how different in disposition he was, by being kind to the blind while David ordered them to be slain. If all this were so, why did Marcion allege that the blind man's faith was of such a worthless type? The fact is, the Son of David acted so that the antithesis must lose its point by its own absurdity. Those persons who offended David were blind, and the man who now presents himself as a beggar to David's son is afflicted with the same infirmity. Therefore the Son of David was appeased with some sort of satisfaction by the blind man when he restored him to sight, and added his approval of the faith which had led him to believe the very truth that he must gain the Son of David's help by earnest entreaty. But, after all, I suspect that it was the audacity (of the old Jebusites) which offended David, and not their malady.”

“Whoever kills the Yevusi and touches [and destroys] the towers spire Whoever kills the Yevusi and has the strength to conquor the fortress. And [the idols of] the lame. And destroys [the idols of] the lame and the blind which were abhorrent to Dovid. Upon which they are saying. Upon which they are saying, "The blind one and the lame one," i.e., while the blind one and the lame one are here. [Dovid] will not come Dovid will not come here. This is a shortened verse [because] it stated, "Whoever kills the Yevusi and touches [and destroys] the tower's spire" but [the verse] does not explain what happens to the person [who reaches the spire]. However, in Divrei Hayomim I, 11, 6) it explains, "Whoever kills the Yevusi first will be made a chief and a prince." Similar to this [we find]. "Therefore, whoever kills Kayin" (Bereishis 4, 14) and [that verse] does not explain what happens to the person [who kills Kayin] but from its context, it's understood that the language conveys rebuke and anger. And touches [and destroys] the tower's spire. [This word] denotes the spire of a tower because that's where their idols were placed. [During] the days of Dovid, the generations of the oath had already passed.”

“And David said on that day,.... On which he took the strong hold of Zion: whosoever getteth up to the gutter; where it is generally supposed the blind and lame were, whether images or real men: but what is meant by "Tzinnur", we render "gutter", is not easy to say; we follow some of the Jewish writers, who take it to be a canal, or water spout, used to carry off the water from roofs of houses into cisterns, as the word is rendered in Psa 42:7; which is the only place besides this in which it is used in Scripture; but R. Isaiah takes it to be the bar or bolt of the gate, and the sense to be, whoever got up to the gate, and got in at that, unbolting it, or breaking through it; the Targum interprets it of the tower of the city, or strong fortress, and so Abarbinel; but Jarchi says it was a ditch, agreeably to which Bochart (h) translates the words, and indeed more agreeably to the order of them;"whosoever smites the Jebusites, let him cast into the ditch (next the wall) both the blind and the lame, extremely hated by David.''But a learned modern writer (i) gives a more ingenious and probable interpretation of these words thus;"whosoever (first) smiteth the Jebusites, and through the subterraneous passages reaches the lame and the blind, &c.''and which seems to be favoured by Josephus, as he observes; who says (k), the king promised the command of the whole army to him who should , "through the subterraneous cavities", go up to the citadel, and take it: to which I would add that the word is used in the Chaldee paraphrase of Ecc 1:7, of the several subterraneous passages, through which the rivers flow out of and reflow into the ocean: remarkable is the note of Theodoret, "a certain Hebrew says, Aquila renders it "through a pipe"; on which, he observes, David being willing to spare the walls of the city, ordered the citizens should enter into the city by an aqueduct;''according to the Jews, there, was a cave underground, which reached from the king's house in Jerusalem to Jericho, when it was taken by Nebuchadnezzar; See Gill on Jer 39:4; in which story there may be a mixture of fable; yet it is not improbable that there was such a subterraneous passage; since Dio Cassius (l) speaks of several such, through which the Jews made their escape in the last siege of the city: and smiteth the Jebusites, and the lame and the blind; or even the lame and the blind men the Jebusites had placed to mock David; and therefore it follows: that are hated of David's soul: because he was despised and jeered at by them, and through them: if these could be understood of their idols and images, the phrase would be easily accounted for, nothing being more abominable to David than idolatry: he shall be chief and captain; these words are not in the original text here, but are supplied from Ch1 11:6; that is, he shall be chief commander of the army, as Joab became, who was the first that went up and smote them: wherefore they said, the blind and the lame shall not come into the house; that is, either the Jebusites said this, that their images, called in derision by David the blind and the lame, if these did not keep David out, they should never be intrusted with the safety of their fort any more (m); or rather because the blind and the lame men said this of David, he shall not come into the house, the fort, or citadel, therefore David hated them; which is the sense of the above learned writer (n). (h) Phaleg. l. 4. c. 36. col. 304. (i) Dr. Kennicott's Dissert. 1. p. 35. (k) Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 7. c. 3. sect. 1.) (l) Hist. l. 66. (m) Gregory, ut supra. (Notes and Observations, &c. ch. 7.) (n) Dr. Kennicott, ut supra. (Dissert. 1. p. 35.)”

“Gutters. Hebrew Tsinnor, “through (Nodius) the subterraneous passage,” (leading to the tops of the houses.) (Hugo of Vienna) — Thus Babylon was taken by Cyrus, who passed through the channel of the Euphrates, the waters of which he had let out; though the inhabitants had derided his attempt to take the city by siege, as the men of Jebus do here. Polybius says, “Rabatamana, a city of Arabia, could not be taken, till one of the prisoners shewed the besiegers a subterraneous passage, ( uponomon ) through which the besieged came down for water.” Of the same nature were the gutters here spoken of. (Kennicott) — “The king promised to give the command of the army to the man who would pass through the cavities ( pharaggon ) below, and take the citadel.” (Josephus) — This reward is expressly mentioned in 1 Paralipomenon xi. 6, with the person who obtained it; (St. Jerome, Trad.) and it seems, after David, this ought to be inserted, “shall be the head and captain. And Joab, the son of Sarvia, went up first, and was made the general.” (Haydock) — Hatred. Hebrew, “that are hated by David’s soul.” Cajetan supposes that the Jebusites in the citadel, are thus distinguished from those who dwelt peaceably in the lower town, with the Israelites. (Calmet) — Proverb. Protestants insert, “ He shall be head and captain. Wherefore they said, the blind….into the house.” What is translated temple, may denote also, “the house” of David, or “the place” where this provocation had been given. (Haydock) — Idols shall never be adored in the true Church. (Worthington) — Some think that the blind and the lame were excluded from the temple, or from David’s palace. But we find that they had free access to the temple; (Matthew xxi. 14., and Acts iii. 2.) and Miphiboseth ate at David’s table, though he was lame. If the Jebusites be designated, they were already excluded from the temple, like other infidels of Chanaan. (Calmet) — Josephus ([Antiquities?] vii. 3.) insinuates, that “David drove them from Jerusalem,” though we read of Areuna residing there, chap. xxiv.16. But he might be a proselyte before, and not dwell in the fort. The expression seems however to be proverbial, to signify any very difficult enterprize, which proves successful, and contrary to expectation. (Haydock) — The Jebusites were thus derided (Sanctius) in their turn. (Tirinus) — Whether Joab took this strong place by a subterraneous passage, (Haydock) or scaled the walls, and so got to the top, whence the water falls, as from a gutter; (Calmet) it is certain that he displayed the utmost valour, and thus obtained the confirmation of his authority, which David would perhaps have willingly taken from him, (Salien) if another had offered himself, and performed this hazardous enterprize. (Haydock) — He made a fair offer to all Israel, as they probably expected. (Kennicott)”

“Whosoever getteth up to the gutter--This is thought by some to mean a subterranean passage; by others a spout through which water was poured upon the fire which the besiegers often applied to the woodwork at the gateways, and by the projections of which a skilful climber might make his ascent good; a third class render the words, "whosoever dasheth them against the precipice" (Ch1 11:6).”