24 The children of Judah that bare shield and spear were six thousand and eight hundred, ready armed to the war.
25 Of the children of Simeon, mighty men of valor for the war, seven thousand and one hundred.
26 Of the children of Levi four thousand and six hundred.
27 And Jehoiada was the leader of the Aaronites, and with him were three thousand and seven hundred;
28 And Zadok, a young man mighty of valor, and of his father's house twenty and two captains.
29 And of the children of Benjamin, the kindred of Saul, three thousand: for hitherto the greatest part of them had kept the ward of the house of Saul.
30 And of the children of Ephraim twenty thousand and eight hundred, mighty men of valor, famous throughout the house of their fathers.
31 And of the half tribe of Manasseh eighteen thousand, which were expressed by name, to come and make David king.
32 And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do; the heads of them were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their commandment.
33 Of Zebulun, such as went forth to battle, expert in war, with all instruments of war, fifty thousand, which could keep rank: they were not of double heart.
34 And of Naphtali a thousand captains, and with them with shield and spear thirty and seven thousand.
35 And of the Danites expert in war twenty and eight thousand and six hundred.
36 And of Asher, such as went forth to battle, expert in war, forty thousand.
37 And on the other side of Jordan, of the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and of the half tribe of Manasseh, with all manner of instruments of war for the battle, an hundred and twenty thousand.
24 The children H1121 of Judah H3063 that bare H5375 shield H6793 and spear H7420 were six H8337 thousand H505 and eight H8083 hundred, H3967 ready armed H2502 to the war. H6635
25 Of the children H1121 of Simeon, H8095 mighty men H1368 of valour H2428 for the war, H6635 seven H7651 thousand H505 and one hundred. H3967
26 Of the children H1121 of Levi H3878 four H702 thousand H505 and six H8337 hundred. H3967
27 And Jehoiada H3077 was the leader H5057 of the Aaronites, H175 and with him were three H7969 thousand H505 and seven H7651 hundred; H3967
28 And Zadok, H6659 a young man H5288 mighty H1368 of valour, H2428 and of his father's H1 house H1004 twenty H6242 and two H8147 captains. H8269
29 And of the children H1121 of Benjamin, H1144 the kindred H251 of Saul, H7586 three H7969 thousand: H505 for hitherto the greatest H4768 part of them had kept H8104 the ward H4931 of the house H1004 of Saul. H7586
30 And of the children H1121 of Ephraim H669 twenty H6242 thousand H505 and eight H8083 hundred, H3967 mighty H1368 men H582 of valour, H2428 famous H8034 throughout the house H1004 of their fathers. H1
31 And of the half H2677 tribe H4294 of Manasseh H4519 eighteen H8083 H6240 thousand, H505 which were expressed H5344 by name, H8034 to come H935 and make David H1732 king. H4427
32 And of the children H1121 of Issachar, H3485 which were men that had understanding H998 H3045 of the times, H6256 to know H3045 what Israel H3478 ought to do; H6213 the heads H7218 of them were two hundred; H3967 and all their brethren H251 were at their commandment. H6310
33 Of Zebulun, H2074 such as went forth H3318 to battle, H6635 expert H6186 in war, H4421 with all instruments H3627 of war, H4421 fifty H2572 thousand, H505 which could keep rank: H5737 they were not of double H3820 heart. H3820
34 And of Naphtali H5321 a thousand H505 captains, H8269 and with them with shield H6793 and spear H2595 thirty H7970 and seven H7651 thousand. H505
35 And of the Danites H1839 expert H6186 in war H4421 twenty H6242 and eight H8083 thousand H505 and six H8337 hundred. H3967
36 And of Asher, H836 such as went forth H3318 to battle, H6635 expert H6186 in war, H4421 forty H705 thousand. H505
37 And on the other side H5676 of Jordan, H3383 of the Reubenites, H7206 and the Gadites, H1425 and of the half H2677 tribe H7626 of Manasseh, H4519 with all manner of instruments H3627 of war H6635 for the battle, H4421 an hundred H3967 and twenty H6242 thousand. H505
24 The children of Judah that bare shield and spear were six thousand and eight hundred, armed for war.
25 Of the children of Simeon, mighty men of valor for the war, seven thousand and one hundred.
26 Of the children of Levi four thousand and six hundred.
27 And Jehoiada was the leader of `the house of' Aaron; and with him were three thousand and seven hundred,
28 and Zadok, a young man mighty of valor, and of his father's house twenty and two captains.
29 And of the children of Benjamin, the brethren of Saul, three thousand: for hitherto the greatest part of them had kept their allegiance to the house of Saul.
30 And of the children of Ephraim twenty thousand and eight hundred, mighty men of valor, famous men in their fathers' houses.
31 And of the half-tribe of Manasseh eighteen thousand, who were mentioned by name, to come and make David king.
32 And of the children of Issachar, men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, the heads of them were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their commandment.
33 Of Zebulun, such as were able to go out in the host, that could set the battle in array, with all manner of instruments of war, fifty thousand, and that could order `the battle array, and were' not of double heart.
34 And of Naphtali a thousand captains, and with them with shield and spear thirty and seven thousand.
35 And of the Danites that could set the battle in array, twenty and eight thousand and six hundred.
36 And of Asher, such as were able to go out in the host, that could set the battle in array, forty thousand.
37 And on the other side of the Jordan, of the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and of the half-tribe of Manasseh, with all manner of instruments of war for the battle, a hundred and twenty thousand.
24 The sons of Judah, bearing target and spear, `are' six thousand and eight hundred, armed ones of the host.
25 Of the sons of Simeon, mighty ones of valour for the host, `are' seven thousand and a hundred.
26 Of the sons of Levi `are' four thousand and six hundred;
27 and Jehoiada `is' the leader of the Aaronite, and with him `are' three thousand and seven hundred,
28 and Zadok, a young man, mighty of valour, and of the house of his father `are' twenty and two heads.
29 And of the sons of Benjamin, brethren of Saul, `are' three thousand, and hitherto their greater part are keeping the charge of the house of Saul.
30 And of the sons of Ephraim `are' twenty thousand and eight hundred, mighty of valour, men of name, according to the house of their fathers.
31 And of the half of the tribe of Manasseh `are' eighteen thousand, who have been defined by name, to come in to cause David to reign.
32 And of the sons of Issachar, having understanding for the times, to know what Israel should do; their heads `are' two hundred, and all their brethren `are' at their command.
33 Of Zebulun, going forth to the host, arranging battle with all instruments of battle, `are' fifty thousand, and keeping rank without a double heart.
34 And of Naphtali, a thousand heads, and with them, with target and spear, `are' thirty and seven thousand.
35 And of the Danite, arranging battle, `are' twenty and eight thousand and six hundred.
36 And of Asher, going forth to the host, to arrange battle, `are' forty thousand.
37 And from beyond the Jordan, of the Reubenite, and of the Gadite, and of the half of the tribe of Manasseh, with all instruments of the host for battle, `are' a hundred and twenty thousand.
24 The children of Judah that bore shield and spear were six thousand eight hundred, equipped for military service.
25 Of the children of Simeon, mighty men of valour for war, seven thousand one hundred.
26 Of the children of Levi four thousand six hundred.
27 And Jehoiada the prince of Aaron, and with him were three thousand seven hundred;
28 and Zadok, a valiant young man, and his father's house two and twenty chief men.
29 And of the children of Benjamin, the brethren of Saul, three thousand; but hitherto the greater part of them had adhered to the house of Saul.
30 And of the children of Ephraim twenty thousand eight hundred, mighty men of valour, men of name in their fathers' houses.
31 And of the half tribe of Manasseh eighteen thousand, who were expressed by name, to come and make David king.
32 And of the children of Issachar, who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, the heads of them were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their bidding.
33 Of Zebulun, such as went forth in the host, armed for war with all weapons of war, fifty thousand, keeping rank without double heart.
34 And of Naphtali a thousand captains, and with them thirty-seven thousand with shield and spear.
35 And of the Danites armed for war twenty-eight thousand six hundred.
36 And of Asher such as went forth in the host, to set themselves in battle array, forty thousand.
37 And from the other side of the Jordan, of the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and of the half tribe of Manasseh, with all manner of weapons of war for battle, a hundred and twenty thousand.
24 The children of Judah who bore shield and spear were six thousand and eight hundred, armed for war.
25 Of the children of Simeon, mighty men of valor for the war, seven thousand and one hundred.
26 Of the children of Levi four thousand and six hundred.
27 Jehoiada was the leader of [the house of] Aaron; and with him were three thousand and seven hundred,
28 and Zadok, a young man mighty of valor, and of his father's house twenty-two captains.
29 Of the children of Benjamin, the brothers of Saul, three thousand: for hitherto the greatest part of them had kept their allegiance to the house of Saul.
30 Of the children of Ephraim twenty thousand eight hundred, mighty men of valor, famous men in their fathers' houses.
31 Of the half-tribe of Manasseh eighteen thousand, who were mentioned by name, to come and make David king.
32 Of the children of Issachar, men who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, the heads of them were two hundred; and all their brothers were at their commandment.
33 Of Zebulun, such as were able to go out in the host, who could set the battle in array, with all manner of instruments of war, fifty thousand, and who could order [the battle array, and were] not of double heart.
34 Of Naphtali one thousand captains, and with them with shield and spear thirty-seven thousand.
35 Of the Danites who could set the battle in array, twenty-eight thousand six hundred.
36 Of Asher, such as were able to go out in the host, who could set the battle in array, forty thousand.
37 On the other side of the Jordan, of the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and of the half-tribe of Manasseh, with all manner of instruments of war for the battle, one hundred twenty thousand.
24 There were six thousand, eight hundred spearmen of the children of Judah, armed for war;
25 Seven thousand, one hundred of the children of Simeon, great men of war;
26 Of the children of Levi, four thousand, six hundred.
27 And Jehoiada, chief of the family of Aaron, and with him three thousand, seven hundred men;
28 And Zadok, a young man, great and strong in war, with twenty-two captains from his father's people.
29 And of the children of Benjamin, the brothers of Saul, three thousand; for up to that time the greater part of them had been true to Saul.
30 And of the children of Ephraim, twenty thousand, eight hundred great men of war, men of great name in their families.
31 And from the half-tribe of Manasseh, eighteen thousand, listed by name, came to make David king.
32 And of the children of Issachar, there were two hundred chiefs, men who had expert knowledge of the times and what it was best for Israel to do, and all their brothers were under their orders.
33 Of Zebulun, there were fifty thousand men, who went out with the army, expert in ordering the fight, to give help with all sorts of arms; true-hearted men.
34 And of Naphtali, a thousand captains with thirty-seven thousand spearmen.
35 And of the Danites, twenty-eight thousand, six hundred, expert in ordering the fight.
36 And of Asher, forty thousand who went out with the army, expert in ordering the fight.
37 From the other side of Jordan, there were a hundred and twenty thousand of the Reubenites and the Gadites and the men of the half-tribe of Manasseh, armed with every sort of instrument of war.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on 1 Chronicles 12
Commentary on 1 Chronicles 12 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 12
1Ch 12:1-22. The Companies That Came to David at Ziklag.
1-7. Now these are they that came to David to Ziklag—There are three lists given in this chapter, arranged, apparently, according to the order of time when the parties joined the standard of David.
while he yet kept himself close because of Saul—that is, when the king's jealousy had driven him into exile from the court and the country.
Ziklag—(See on 1Sa 27:6). It was during his retirement in that Philistine town that he was joined in rapid succession by the heroes who afterwards contributed so much to the glory of his reign.
2. of Saul's brethren of Benjamin—that is, of the tribe of Benjamin (compare 1Ch 12:29), but some of them might be relatives of the king. This movement to which the parties were led, doubtless by the secret impulse of the Spirit, was of vast importance to the cause of David, as it must have been founded on their observation of the evident withdrawal of God's blessing from Saul, and His favoring presence with David, to whom it was universally known the Divine King of Israel had given the crown in reversion. The accession of the Benjamites who came first and their resolution to share his fortunes must have been particularly grateful to David. It was a public and emphatic testimony by those who had enjoyed the best means of information to the unblemished excellence of his character, as well as a decided protest against the grievous wrong inflicted by causelessly outlawing a man who had rendered such eminent services to his country.
4. Ismaiah the Gibeonite—It appears that not only the Canaanites who were admitted into the congregation (Jos 9:1-27), but people of the tribe of Benjamin, were among the inhabitants of Gibeon. The mention of "the Gederathite," probably from Gederah (Jos 15:36), in the lowlands of Judah; of the Korhites (1Ch 12:6), from Korah (1Ch 2:43), and of Gedor (1Ch 12:7), a town in Judah, to the southwest of Beth-lehem (compare 1Ch 4:4), shows that this first list contains men of Judah as well as Benjamin [Bertheau].
8-13. of the Gadites there separated themselves unto David—that is, from the service of Saul and from the rest of the Gadites who remained steadfast adherents of his cause.
into the hold—or fortress, that is, of Ziklag, which was in the wilderness of Judah.
whose faces were like the faces of lions, &c.—A fierce, lion-like countenance (2Sa 1:23), and great agility in pursuit (2Sa 2:18), were qualities of the highest estimation in ancient warfare.
14. one of the least was over an hundred, and the greatest over a thousand—David, while at Ziklag, had not so large an amount of forces as to give to each of these the command of so many men. Another meaning, therefore, must obviously be sought, and excluding was, which is a supplement by our translators, the import of the passage is, that one of the least could discomfit a hundred, and the greatest was worth a thousand ordinary men; a strong hyperbole to express their uncommon valor.
15. These are they that went over Jordan in the first month—that is, in spring, when the swollen river generally fills up the banks of its channel (see on Jos 3:14; Jos 4:19; Jos 5:10).
they put to flight all them of the valleys—This was probably done at the time of their separating themselves and their purpose being discovered, they had to cut their passage through the opposing adherents of Saul, both on the eastern and western banks. The impossibility of taking the fords at such a time, and the violent rapidity of the current, make this crossing of the Jordan—in whatever way these Gadites accomplished it—a remarkable feat.
16. the children of Benjamin and Judah—It is probable that the Benjamites invited the Judahites to accompany them, in order to prevent David being suspicious of them. Their anticipations, as the result showed, were well founded. He did suspect them, but the doubts of David as to their object in repairing to him, were promptly dispelled by Amasai or Amasa, who, by the secret impulse of the Spirit, assured him of their strong attachment and their zealous service from a unanimous conviction that his cause was owned and blessed of God (1Sa 18:12-14).
19-22. there fell some of Manasseh—The period of their accession is fixed as the time when David came with the Philistines against Saul to battle.
but they helped them not—(See on 1Sa 29:4).
20. As he went to Ziklag—If those Manassites joined him on his return to Ziklag, after his dismissal from the Philistine army, then their arrival took place before the battle of Gilboa could have been fought (compare 1Sa 29:11). Convinced of the desperate state of Saul's affairs, they abandoned him, and resolved to transfer their allegiance to David. But some learned men think that they came as fugitives from that disastrous field [Calmet and Ewald].
captains of the thousands … of Manasseh—Those seven were commanders of the large military divisions of their tribe.
21, 22. they helped David against the band—that is, the Amalekites who had pillaged Ziklag in David's absence. This military expedition was made by all his men (1Sa 30:9), who, as David's early helpers, are specially distinguished from those who are mentioned in the latter portion of the chapter.
22. the host of God—that is, a great and powerful army.
1Ch 12:23-40. The Armies That Came to Him at Hebron.
23. these are the numbers of the bands … that came to David to Hebron—after the death of Ish-bosheth (see on 2Sa 5:1).
to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of the Lord—(1Ch 10:14; 11:3, 10). The account commences with the southern tribes, Levi being associated with Judah and Simeon, as the great majority of the leading men in this tribe resided in Judah; and, after recounting the representatives of the northern tribes, it concludes with those on the east of Jordan.
27. Jehoiada, the leader of the Aaronites—not the high priest, for that was Abiathar (1Sa 23:9), but the leader of the Aaronite warriors, supposed to be the father of Benaiah (1Ch 11:22).
29. Benjamin … three thousand—This small number shows the unpopularity of the movement in this tribe; and, indeed, it is expressly stated that the mass of the population had, even after Ish-bosheth's death, anxiously endeavored to secure the crown in the family of Saul.
32. children of Issachar, … that had understanding of the times, &c.—Jewish writers say that the people of this tribe were eminent for their acquirements in astronomical and physical science; and the object of the remark was probably to show that the intelligent and learned classes were united with the military, and had declared for David.
33. Zebulun … could keep rank—that is, were more disciplined soldiers than the rest.
not of double heart—Though their numbers were large, all were in a high degree well affected to David.
38. all the rest also of Israel were of one heart to make David king—that is, entertained a unanimous desire for his elevation.
39, 40. there they were with David three days, eating and drinking—According to the statements made in the preceding verses, the number of armed warriors assembled in Hebron on this occasion amounted to three hundred thousand. Supplies of provisions were abundantly furnished, not only by the people of the neighborhood, but from distant parts of the country, for all wished the festivities to be on a scale of liberality and magnificence suitable to the auspicious occasion.