As already discussed in verse 17, the beginning of this verse may be part of a flashback. If so, it may be translated “Abner had also spoken to the people of the tribe of Benjamin.”

Also spoke: the word also goes with the verb spoke and not with the noun Abner as if he, in addition to someone else, spoke to the people of Benjamin.

To Benjamin: literally “in the ears of Benjamin,” as in An American Translation. However, this does not refer to the individual named Benjamin, but rather to his descendants, that is, to the whole tribe of Benjamin. New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh seeks to communicate this idea by using the form “Benjaminites.” Some translations take the words “in the ears of” to be an emphasis on the personal nature of the communication. New International Version says “spoke to the Benjamites in person,” while New American Bible has “spoke personally….”

To tell David: as above, this is literally “to tell in the ears of David,” perhaps again emphasizing the personal nature of the communication.

The last part of this verse reads literally “all that is good in the eyes of Israel and in the eyes of all the house of Benjamin.” New American Bible “all that would be agreeable to….” The rendering of Revised Standard Version, thought good to do, may be misleading. This was not merely a matter of internal thinking. It was rather a decision to act that had been agreed upon. For this reason it may be better to translate “had decided to do.”

The two expressions Israel and the whole house of Benjamin are not meant to describe two completely separate groups. The family, or tribe, of Benjamin was a part of Israel. Perhaps the idea is “the people of Israel and especially the tribe of Benjamin.” Compare 2.25, 28, 31.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .