8 The battle spread out over the whole countryside, and the forest swallowed up more men that day than the sword.
8 The battle spread over the face of all the country, and the forest devoured more people that day than the sword.
8 There was fighting helter-skelter all over the place - the forest claimed more lives that day than the sword!
8 For the battle there was scattered over the face of the whole countryside, and the woods devoured more people that day than the sword devoured.
8 The battle raged all across the countryside, and more men died because of the forest than were killed by the sword.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on 2 Samuel 18:8
Commentary on 2 Samuel 18:1-8
(Read 2 Samuel 18:1-8)
How does David render good for evil! Absalom would have only David smitten; David would have only Absalom spared. This seems to be a resemblance of man's wickedness towards God, and God's mercy to man, of which it is hard to say which is most amazing. Now the Israelites see what it is to take counsel against the Lord and his anointed.