Show Bible Commentary For A Bible Verse

Click here to show/hide instructions.

Selected Verse: 1 Chronicles 12:23 - Strong Concordance

Verse	Translation	Text
1Ch 12:23	Strong Concordance	And these are the numbers [04557] of the bands [07218] that were ready armed [02502] to the war [06635], and came [0935] to David [01732] to Hebron [02275], to turn [05437] the kingdom [04438] of Saul [07586] to him, according to the word [06310] of the LORD [03068].
	King James	And these are the numbers of the bands that were ready armed to the war, and came to David to Hebron, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of the LORD.

Summary Of Commentaries Associated With The Selected Verse

Open All | Close All Open All | Close All

A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882]
THE ARMIES THAT CAME TO HIM AT HEBRON. (1Ch. 12:23-40) these are the numbers of the bands . . . that came to David to Hebron--after the death of Ish-bosheth (see on Sa2 5:1). to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of the Lord-- (Ch1 10:14; Ch1 11:3, Ch1 11:10). 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.

A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882]

THE ARMIES THAT CAME TO HIM AT HEBRON. (1Ch. 12:23-40)

these are the numbers of the bands . . . that came to David to Hebron--after the death of Ish-bosheth (see on Sa2 5:1).

to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of the Lord-- (Ch1 10:14; Ch1 11:3, Ch1 11:10). 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.

Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, [1834]
Rather, "These are the numbers of the men, ready equipped for the host, that came to David, etc." In the list which follows such points as (1) The large mumber sent by the trans-Jordanic tribes; (2) The large numbers from Zebulon, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan, all tribes somewhat remote, and generally speaking undistinguished; (3) The small size of the contingent from Judah, which is generally represented as numerically superior to every other tribe, and which might have been expected to be especially zealous on behalf of its own prince and tribesman; throw some doubt upon the numbers, which may be suspected of having in some instances undergone corruption.

Commentary on the Old Testament, by Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch [1857-78]
List of the warriors who made David king in Hebron. - The superscription (Ch1 12:23) runs: "These are the numbers of the bands of the men equipped for war, who came," etc. החלוּץ is a collective noun, denoting the equipped manhood. ראשׁי signifies here, not principes exercitus, as the Vulgate renders it, heads, i.e., leaders of the army (Berth.), but literally denotes sums, i.e., companies, bands of soldiers, as in Jdg 7:16, Jdg 7:20; Jdg 9:34, Jdg 9:37, Jdg 9:44; Sa1 11:1; or it may perhaps also be heads for individuals, as ראשׁ in Jdg 5:30. Both these meanings are linguistically certain; so that we cannot say, with Bertheau, that ראשׁי before החלוּץ denotes, according to the well-ascertained use of language, leaders of the army, and that גלגלת would have been used had it been wished to express the number by heads, e.g., 1 Chron 23:3-24. That use of the word is indeed also found, but it cannot be proved to be the only proper one. If we take ראשׁי here to denote leaders, we bring the superscription into irreconcilable contradiction with the contents of the following catalogue, which gives the names of the heads and the number of the warriors (Ch1 12:27.) only in the case of the families of Aaron, and in that of Issachar the number of the princes; while in the case of the other tribes we have only the numbers of the bands or detachments. This contradiction cannot be got rid of, as Bertheau imagines, by the hypothesis that the superscription referred originally to a catalogue which was throughout similar in plan to that which we find in Ch1 12:26-28, and that the author of the Chronicle has very considerably abridged the more detailed statements of the original documents which he used. This hypothesis is a mere makeshift, in which we have the less need "to take refuge," as the catalogue has neither the appearance of having been abridged or revised by the author of our Chronicle. It is shown to be a faithful copy of a more ancient authority, both by the characteristic remarks which it contains on the individual tribes, and by the inequality in the numbers. Bertheau, indeed, derives support for his hypothesis "from the inequality of the statements of number, and their relation to each other," and upon that ground throws doubt upon the accuracy and correctness of the numbers, but in both cases without sufficient warrant. If we place the respective statements together synoptically, we see that there came to David to Hebron - Of the tribe of: Judah 6,800 men Of the tribe of: Simeon 7,100 men Of the tribe of: Levi 4,600 men With Jehoiada the prince of Aaron 3,700 men With Zadok and his father's-house 22 שׂרים (captains) Of the tribe of: Benjamin 3,000 men Of the tribe of: Ephraim 20,800 men Of the half-tribe of: Manasseh 18,000 men Of the tribe of: Issachar 200 chiefs and all their brethren Of the tribe of: Zebulun 50,000 men Of the tribe of: Naphtali 37,000 men with 1000 שׂרים Of the tribe of: Dan 28,000 men Of the tribe of: Asher 40,000 men Of two and a half trans-Jordanic tribes 120,000 men Total 336,600 men with 1222 heads and captains The total is not objected to by Bertheau, and its correctness is placed beyond a doubt by the recollection that we have here to do not with the representation of the various estates of the kingdom, but with a declaration of the will of the whole nation, who wished to make David their king. We must, if we are to estimate these statements, endeavour to go back in imagination to the circumstances of that time when Israel, although settled in the land, had not quite laid aside the character of a nation of warriors, in which every man capable of bearing arms marched to battle with, and for, his king. Now if the total number of fighting men in Israel was 600,000 in the time of Moses, and if, when the people were numbered in the last year of David's reign, there were in Israel 800,000, and in Judah 500,000 (Sa2 24:9), - the Levites being excluded in both cases - the 340,000 men of all the tribes, except Issachar, in reference to which no number is given, or after subtracting Judah and Levi, the 324,500 men out of the remaining tribes, is not much more than a half of the men capable of bearing arms in Moses' time, and about a fourth part of the fighting population towards the end of David's reign. But the relation of the numbers in the respective tribes, on the contrary, is somewhat surprising, and calls forth from Bertheau the following remarks: "To Judah, David's tribe, which from the earliest time had been famous for its numbers and its powers, 6800 are assigned; to Zebulun, on the contrary, 50,000; to Naphtali, 1000 princes at the head of 37,000 warriors; to the two and a half East-Jordanic tribes, 120,000 men, etc. How does it happen that Zebulun and Naphtali, for example, two tribes that play no great part in Israel's history, are so strongly represented, while Judah sends only a relatively small number of warriors?" To this question we answer, that Judah's being represented by a number of warriors relatively so small, is accounted for simply by the fact that David had already been king over Judah for seven years, and consequently that tribe did not need to make him king by coming with the whole of its warriors, or the majority of them, when the other tribes were doing homage to David, but sent only a small number of its male population to this solemn act, who were witnesses in the name of the whole tribe to the homage proffered by the others. The same remark applies to the tribe of Simeon, whose domain was enclosed by that of Judah, and which had consequently recognised David as king at the same time as the larger tribe. In regard to the numbers of the other tribes, Levi had in the last year of David's reign 38,000 men from thirty years old and upwards (Ch1 23:3); and when here only 4600 Levites, besides the priestly families, are spoken of, the question arises, whether this number is to be understood to refer to the Levites in all the tribes, or only to those dwelling outside of Judah and Simeon, in the cities assigned to them by Moses and Joshua. The smallness of the number (3000) from the tribe of Benjamin is explained by the remark that the majority of this tribe still held to the house of Saul (Ch1 12:29). The only thing which is at all remarkable about the other numbers is, that the Ephraimites are so few (20,800 men) in contrast to the 180,000 men brought into the field by the half-tribe of Manasseh. But if we consider that Ephraim, which at the first census under Moses at Sinai had 40,500 men, had decreased to 32,500 at the second census in the wilderness of Moab, it is not improbable that at the time now treated of that tribe may not have been very strong in fighting men. For in Saul's last war with the Philistines, when they had pressed forward so far as Mount Gilboa, and also in Abner's struggle on behalf of King Ishbosheth for the re-conquest of the territory occupied by them, it probably suffered more, and was more weakened, than any of the other tribes. Perhaps also we may add that Ephraim, owing to its jealousy of Judah, which dates from the time of the judges, was not very much disposed to make David king over all Israel. That Zebulun and Naphtali are here so numerously represented, although they do not otherwise play an important part, is no reason for suspecting that the numbers given are incorrect. Since Zebulun under Moses numbered 57,400 men, and at a later time 60,500, and Naphtali 53,400 and 45,400 men capable of bearing arms respectively on the same occasions (see t. i. 2, S. 192); the first named tribe may easily have sent 50,000, the other 37,000 men to David, as the tribes dwelling in the north had been least affected by the wars which Israel carried on in the second half of the period of the judges and under Saul. Both of these tribes, too, are praised in the song of Deborah as a people ready to risk their lives for their fatherland (Jdg 5:18), and may have very much increased in the succeeding time. And besides all this, the tribes Asher, Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh are indeed more feebly represented than Zebulun, but more strongly than Naphtali. There therefore remains no reason for doubting the historical accuracy of the numbers given; but it is of course to be understood that the numbers, which are stated only in hundreds, are not the result of an enumeration of the individual persons, but only of an estimate of the various detachments according to the military partition of the tribes. In regard to להסב מ, cf. Ch1 10:14; and as to יהוה כּפי, see the remark on יהוה כּדבר, Ch1 11:3, Ch1 11:10. Ch1 12:24-25 For ורמח צנּה נשׂאי, cf. Ch1 12:8, Ch1 5:18. לצבא חיל גּבּורי, valiant men for the war service. Ch1 12:26-27 Jehoiada is thought by Rashi, Kimchi, and others, to be the father of Benaiah, Ch1 11:22. He was נגיד for Aaron, i.e., prince of the house of Aaron, head of the family of the Aaronites, not princeps sacerdotum, which was a title appertaining to the high-priesthood, an office held at that time by Abiathar (Sa1 23:9). Ch1 12:28 Zadok, a youth, i.e., then still a youth, may be the same who was made high priest in place of Abiathar (Kg1 2:26, but see on Kg1 6:8). "And his father's-house, twenty-two princes." The father's-house of Zadok is the Aaronite family descended from Eleazar, which was at that time so numerous that it could muster twenty-two שׂרים, family chiefs, who went with Zadok to Hebron. Ch1 12:29 From the tribe of Benjamin, to which Saul belonged (שׁאוּל אחי, see on Ch1 12:2), only 3000 men came, for until that time (הנּה ועד, cf. Ch1 9:18) the greater number of them were keeping the guard of the house of Saul, i.e., were devoted to the interests of the fallen house. For משׁמרת שׁמר, see on Gen 26:5 and Lev 8:35. From this we learn that the attachment of the Benjamites to Saul continued even after the death of his son Ishbosheth, and that it was with difficulty that they could bring themselves to recognise David as king. Ch1 12:30 Of Ephraim 20,800 famous men (שׁמות אנשׁי, see on Gen 6:4); לבית־אב, "in their fathers'-houses." Ch1 12:31 Of half Manasseh, this side Jordan (cf. Ch1 12:37), 18,000, who were appointed by name, i.e., chosen as famous men to go thither and make David king. בשׁמות נקּבוּ, as in Num 1:17, vide on Lev 24:16. The tribe of Manasseh had consequently held a general consultation on the matter, and determined upon sending their representatives. Ch1 12:32 From Issachar came "men of understanding in reference to the times, to know (i.e., who knew) what Israel should do." בּינה יודע, knowing in insight (cf. Ch2 2:12), i.e., experienced in a thing, having understanding of it. From this remark some of the older commentators (Chald., various Rabbins, and Cleric.) concluded that the tribe of Issachar had distinguished itself beyond the other tribes by astronomical and physical knowledge, by which it was qualified to ascertain and make choice of proper times for political action. But the words do not suggest astronomical or astrological knowledge, but merely state, as Salomo ben-Melech in the Miclol Yophi long ago interpreted them, noverant tempora ad omnem rem et quodque negotium, sicut sapiens dixit: Suum cuique tempus est et opportunitas cuique rei, Koh. iii. 1. The words refer not to the whole tribe, but only to the two hundred heads, who, as Lavater expresses it, are designated prudentes viri, as being men qui quid, quando et quomodo agendum esset, varia lectione et usu rerum cognoscebant. The only thing to be objected to in his statement is the varia lectione, since a sound and correct judgment in political matters does not necessarily presuppose scientific training and a wide acquaintance with books. The statement in question, therefore, affirms nothing more than that the tribe of Issachar (in deciding to raise David to the throne) followed the judgment of its princes, who rightly estimated the circumstances of the time. For all their brethren, i.e., all the men of this tribe, went with the two hundred chiefs. על־פּיהם, according to their mouth, i.e., followed their judgment; cf. Num 4:27; Deu 21:5. Ch1 12:33-38 מלחמה ערכי, preparing war with all manner of warlike weapons, i.e., practice in the use of all kinds of weapons for war; cf. Ch1 12:8. The infinitive לעדר is substantially a continuation of the preceding participles, but grammatically is dependent on בּאוּ understood (cf. Ch1 12:23, Ch1 12:38). Cf. as to this free use of the infinitive with ל, Ew. 351, c. The signification of the verb עדר, which occurs only here (Ch1 12:33, Ch1 12:38), is doubtful. According to the lxx and the Vulg. (βοηθῆσαι, venerunt in auxilium), and nine MSS, which read לעזר, we would be inclined to take עדר for the Aramaic form of the Hebrew עזר (cf. Arabic ‛dr), to help; but that meaning does not suit מערכה עדר, Ch1 12:38. Its connection there demands that עדר should signify "to close up together," to set in order the battle array; and so here, closing up together with not double heart, i.e., with whole or stedfast heart (שׁלם בּלבב שׁלם, Ch1 12:38), animo integro et firmo atque concordi; cf. Psa 12:3 (Mich.). - In Ch1 12:38 we have a comprehensive statement; כּל־אלּה, which refers to all the bodies of men enumerated in Ch1 12:24-37. שׁרית is שׁארית defectively written; and as it occurs only here, it may be perhaps a mere orthographical error. The whole of the remainder of Israel who did not go to Hebron were אחד לב אחד er, of one, i.e., of united heart (Ch2 30:12): they had a unanimous wish to make David king. Ch1 12:39 Those gathered together were there three days eating and drinking, holding festive meals (cf. Sa1 30:16; Kg1 1:45, etc.), for their brethren had prepared them for them. The object of הכינוּ, sc. the eating and drinking, may easily be supplied from the context. אחיהם are the inhabitants of Hebron and the neighbourhood; the tribe of Judah in general, who had already recognised David as king. Ch1 12:40 But it was not only these who performed this service, but also those of the remaining tribes dwelling near them; and indeed the men of Issachar, Zebulun, and Naphtali, those on the northern frontier of Canaan as well as those who bordered upon Judah, had sent provisions upon beasts of burden, "for joy was in Israel." This joy moved those who remained at home to show their sympathy with the national festival solemnized at Hebron by sending the provisions. For דּבלים, masses of dried figs, and צמּוּקים, masses of raisins or cakes, see on Sa1 25:18.

Commentary on the Old Testament, by Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch [1857-78]

List of the warriors who made David king in Hebron. - The superscription (Ch1 12:23) runs: "These are the numbers of the bands of the men equipped for war, who came," etc. החלוּץ is a collective noun, denoting the equipped manhood. ראשׁי signifies here, not principes exercitus, as the Vulgate renders it, heads, i.e., leaders of the army (Berth.), but literally denotes sums, i.e., companies, bands of soldiers, as in Jdg 7:16, Jdg 7:20; Jdg 9:34, Jdg 9:37, Jdg 9:44; Sa1 11:1; or it may perhaps also be heads for individuals, as ראשׁ in Jdg 5:30. Both these meanings are linguistically certain; so that we cannot say, with Bertheau, that ראשׁי before החלוּץ denotes, according to the well-ascertained use of language, leaders of the army, and that גלגלת would have been used had it been wished to express the number by heads, e.g., 1 Chron 23:3-24. That use of the word is indeed also found, but it cannot be proved to be the only proper one. If we take ראשׁי here to denote leaders, we bring the superscription into irreconcilable contradiction with the contents of the following catalogue, which gives the names of the heads and the number of the warriors (Ch1 12:27.) only in the case of the families of Aaron, and in that of Issachar the number of the princes; while in the case of the other tribes we have only the numbers of the bands or detachments. This contradiction cannot be got rid of, as Bertheau imagines, by the hypothesis that the superscription referred originally to a catalogue which was throughout similar in plan to that which we find in Ch1 12:26-28, and that the author of the Chronicle has very considerably abridged the more detailed statements of the original documents which he used. This hypothesis is a mere makeshift, in which we have the less need "to take refuge," as the catalogue has neither the appearance of having been abridged or revised by the author of our Chronicle. It is shown to be a faithful copy of a more ancient authority, both by the characteristic remarks which it contains on the individual tribes, and by the inequality in the numbers. Bertheau, indeed, derives support for his hypothesis "from the inequality of the statements of number, and their relation to each other," and upon that ground throws doubt upon the accuracy and correctness of the numbers, but in both cases without sufficient warrant. If we place the respective statements together synoptically, we see that there came to David to Hebron -

Of the tribe of: Judah 6,800 men Of the tribe of: Simeon 7,100 men Of the tribe of: Levi 4,600 men With Jehoiada the prince of Aaron 3,700 men With Zadok and his father's-house 22 שׂרים (captains) Of the tribe of: Benjamin 3,000 men Of the tribe of: Ephraim 20,800 men Of the half-tribe of: Manasseh 18,000 men Of the tribe of: Issachar 200 chiefs and all their brethren Of the tribe of: Zebulun 50,000 men Of the tribe of: Naphtali 37,000 men with 1000 שׂרים Of the tribe of: Dan 28,000 men Of the tribe of: Asher 40,000 men Of two and a half trans-Jordanic tribes 120,000 men Total 336,600 men with 1222 heads and captains

The total is not objected to by Bertheau, and its correctness is placed beyond a doubt by the recollection that we have here to do not with the representation of the various estates of the kingdom, but with a declaration of the will of the whole nation, who wished to make David their king. We must, if we are to estimate these statements, endeavour to go back in imagination to the circumstances of that time when Israel, although settled in the land, had not quite laid aside the character of a nation of warriors, in which every man capable of bearing arms marched to battle with, and for, his king. Now if the total number of fighting men in Israel was 600,000 in the time of Moses, and if, when the people were numbered in the last year of David's reign, there were in Israel 800,000, and in Judah 500,000 (Sa2 24:9), - the Levites being excluded in both cases - the 340,000 men of all the tribes, except Issachar, in reference to which no number is given, or after subtracting Judah and Levi, the 324,500 men out of the remaining tribes, is not much more than a half of the men capable of bearing arms in Moses' time, and about a fourth part of the fighting population towards the end of David's reign. But the relation of the numbers in the respective tribes, on the contrary, is somewhat surprising, and calls forth from Bertheau the following remarks: "To Judah, David's tribe, which from the earliest time had been famous for its numbers and its powers, 6800 are assigned; to Zebulun, on the contrary, 50,000; to Naphtali, 1000 princes at the head of 37,000 warriors; to the two and a half East-Jordanic tribes, 120,000 men, etc. How does it happen that Zebulun and Naphtali, for example, two tribes that play no great part in Israel's history, are so strongly represented, while Judah sends only a relatively small number of warriors?" To this question we answer, that Judah's being represented by a number of warriors relatively so small, is accounted for simply by the fact that David had already been king over Judah for seven years, and consequently that tribe did not need to make him king by coming with the whole of its warriors, or the majority of them, when the other tribes were doing homage to David, but sent only a small number of its male population to this solemn act, who were witnesses in the name of the whole tribe to the homage proffered by the others. The same remark applies to the tribe of Simeon, whose domain was enclosed by that of Judah, and which had consequently recognised David as king at the same time as the larger tribe. In regard to the numbers of the other tribes, Levi had in the last year of David's reign 38,000 men from thirty years old and upwards (Ch1 23:3); and when here only 4600 Levites, besides the priestly families, are spoken of, the question arises, whether this number is to be understood to refer to the Levites in all the tribes, or only to those dwelling outside of Judah and Simeon, in the cities assigned to them by Moses and Joshua. The smallness of the number (3000) from the tribe of Benjamin is explained by the remark that the majority of this tribe still held to the house of Saul (Ch1 12:29). The only thing which is at all remarkable about the other numbers is, that the Ephraimites are so few (20,800 men) in contrast to the 180,000 men brought into the field by the half-tribe of Manasseh. But if we consider that Ephraim, which at the first census under Moses at Sinai had 40,500 men, had decreased to 32,500 at the second census in the wilderness of Moab, it is not improbable that at the time now treated of that tribe may not have been very strong in fighting men. For in Saul's last war with the Philistines, when they had pressed forward so far as Mount Gilboa, and also in Abner's struggle on behalf of King Ishbosheth for the re-conquest of the territory occupied by them, it probably suffered more, and was more weakened, than any of the other tribes. Perhaps also we may add that Ephraim, owing to its jealousy of Judah, which dates from the time of the judges, was not very much disposed to make David king over all Israel. That Zebulun and Naphtali are here so numerously represented, although they do not otherwise play an important part, is no reason for suspecting that the numbers given are incorrect. Since Zebulun under Moses numbered 57,400 men, and at a later time 60,500, and Naphtali 53,400 and 45,400 men capable of bearing arms respectively on the same occasions (see t. i. 2, S. 192); the first named tribe may easily have sent 50,000, the other 37,000 men to David, as the tribes dwelling in the north had been least affected by the wars which Israel carried on in the second half of the period of the judges and under Saul. Both of these tribes, too, are praised in the song of Deborah as a people ready to risk their lives for their fatherland (Jdg 5:18), and may have very much increased in the succeeding time. And besides all this, the tribes Asher, Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh are indeed more feebly represented than Zebulun, but more strongly than Naphtali. There therefore remains no reason for doubting the historical accuracy of the numbers given; but it is of course to be understood that the numbers, which are stated only in hundreds, are not the result of an enumeration of the individual persons, but only of an estimate of the various detachments according to the military partition of the tribes.

In regard to להסב מ, cf. Ch1 10:14; and as to יהוה כּפי, see the remark on יהוה כּדבר, Ch1 11:3, Ch1 11:10.

Ch1 12:24-25

For ורמח צנּה נשׂאי, cf. Ch1 12:8, Ch1 5:18. לצבא חיל גּבּורי, valiant men for the war service.

Ch1 12:26-27

Jehoiada is thought by Rashi, Kimchi, and others, to be the father of Benaiah, Ch1 11:22. He was נגיד for Aaron, i.e., prince of the house of Aaron, head of the family of the Aaronites, not princeps sacerdotum, which was a title appertaining to the high-priesthood, an office held at that time by Abiathar (Sa1 23:9).

Ch1 12:28

Zadok, a youth, i.e., then still a youth, may be the same who was made high priest in place of Abiathar (Kg1 2:26, but see on Kg1 6:8). "And his father's-house, twenty-two princes." The father's-house of Zadok is the Aaronite family descended from Eleazar, which was at that time so numerous that it could muster twenty-two שׂרים, family chiefs, who went with Zadok to Hebron.

Ch1 12:29

From the tribe of Benjamin, to which Saul belonged (שׁאוּל אחי, see on Ch1 12:2), only 3000 men came, for until that time (הנּה ועד, cf. Ch1 9:18) the greater number of them were keeping the guard of the house of Saul, i.e., were devoted to the interests of the fallen house. For משׁמרת שׁמר, see on Gen 26:5 and Lev 8:35. From this we learn that the attachment of the Benjamites to Saul continued even after the death of his son Ishbosheth, and that it was with difficulty that they could bring themselves to recognise David as king.

Ch1 12:30

Of Ephraim 20,800 famous men (שׁמות אנשׁי, see on Gen 6:4); לבית־אב, "in their fathers'-houses."

Ch1 12:31

Of half Manasseh, this side Jordan (cf. Ch1 12:37), 18,000, who were appointed by name, i.e., chosen as famous men to go thither and make David king. בשׁמות נקּבוּ, as in Num 1:17, vide on Lev 24:16. The tribe of Manasseh had consequently held a general consultation on the matter, and determined upon sending their representatives.

Ch1 12:32

From Issachar came "men of understanding in reference to the times, to know (i.e., who knew) what Israel should do." בּינה יודע, knowing in insight (cf. Ch2 2:12), i.e., experienced in a thing, having understanding of it. From this remark some of the older commentators (Chald., various Rabbins, and Cleric.) concluded that the tribe of Issachar had distinguished itself beyond the other tribes by astronomical and physical knowledge, by which it was qualified to ascertain and make choice of proper times for political action. But the words do not suggest astronomical or astrological knowledge, but merely state, as Salomo ben-Melech in the Miclol Yophi long ago interpreted them, noverant tempora ad omnem rem et quodque negotium, sicut sapiens dixit: Suum cuique tempus est et opportunitas cuique rei, Koh. iii. 1. The words refer not to the whole tribe, but only to the two hundred heads, who, as Lavater expresses it, are designated prudentes viri, as being men qui quid, quando et quomodo agendum esset, varia lectione et usu rerum cognoscebant. The only thing to be objected to in his statement is the varia lectione, since a sound and correct judgment in political matters does not necessarily presuppose scientific training and a wide acquaintance with books. The statement in question, therefore, affirms nothing more than that the tribe of Issachar (in deciding to raise David to the throne) followed the judgment of its princes, who rightly estimated the circumstances of the time. For all their brethren, i.e., all the men of this tribe, went with the two hundred chiefs. על־פּיהם, according to their mouth, i.e., followed their judgment; cf. Num 4:27; Deu 21:5.

Ch1 12:33-38

מלחמה ערכי, preparing war with all manner of warlike weapons, i.e., practice in the use of all kinds of weapons for war; cf. Ch1 12:8. The infinitive לעדר is substantially a continuation of the preceding participles, but grammatically is dependent on בּאוּ understood (cf. Ch1 12:23, Ch1 12:38). Cf. as to this free use of the infinitive with ל, Ew. 351, c. The signification of the verb עדר, which occurs only here (Ch1 12:33, Ch1 12:38), is doubtful. According to the lxx and the Vulg. (βοηθῆσαι, venerunt in auxilium), and nine MSS, which read לעזר, we would be inclined to take עדר for the Aramaic form of the Hebrew עזר (cf. Arabic ‛dr), to help; but that meaning does not suit מערכה עדר, Ch1 12:38. Its connection there demands that עדר should signify "to close up together," to set in order the battle array; and so here, closing up together with not double heart, i.e., with whole or stedfast heart (שׁלם בּלבב שׁלם, Ch1 12:38), animo integro et firmo atque concordi; cf. Psa 12:3 (Mich.). - In Ch1 12:38 we have a comprehensive statement; כּל־אלּה, which refers to all the bodies of men enumerated in Ch1 12:24-37. שׁרית is שׁארית defectively written; and as it occurs only here, it may be perhaps a mere orthographical error. The whole of the remainder of Israel who did not go to Hebron were אחד לב אחד er, of one, i.e., of united heart (Ch2 30:12): they had a unanimous wish to make David king.

Ch1 12:39

Those gathered together were there three days eating and drinking, holding festive meals (cf. Sa1 30:16; Kg1 1:45, etc.), for their brethren had prepared them for them. The object of הכינוּ, sc. the eating and drinking, may easily be supplied from the context. אחיהם are the inhabitants of Hebron and the neighbourhood; the tribe of Judah in general, who had already recognised David as king.

Ch1 12:40

But it was not only these who performed this service, but also those of the remaining tribes dwelling near them; and indeed the men of Issachar, Zebulun, and Naphtali, those on the northern frontier of Canaan as well as those who bordered upon Judah, had sent provisions upon beasts of burden, "for joy was in Israel." This joy moved those who remained at home to show their sympathy with the national festival solemnized at Hebron by sending the provisions. For דּבלים, masses of dried figs, and צמּוּקים, masses of raisins or cakes, see on Sa1 25:18.

Adam Clarke Commentary on the Whole Bible - Published 1810-1826
And came to David to Hebron - That is, after the death of Ish-bosheth, Saul's son. See Sa2 4:5.

Top

¹⁰ These also are the chief [07218] of the mighty men [01368] whom David [01732] had, who strengthened [02388] themselves with him in his kingdom [04438], and with all Israel [03478], to make him king [04427], according to the word [01697] of the LORD [03068] concerning Israel [03478].

³ Therefore came [0935] all the elders [02205] of Israel [03478] to the king [04428] to Hebron [02275]; and David [01732] made [03772] a covenant [01285] with them in Hebron [02275] before [06440] the LORD [03068]; and they anointed [04886] David [01732] king [04428] over Israel [03478], according to the word [01697] of the LORD [03068] by [03027] Samuel [08050].

¹⁴ And enquired [01875] not of the LORD [03068]: therefore he slew [04191] him, and turned [05437] the kingdom [04410] unto David [01732] the son [01121] of Jesse [03448].

¹ Then came [0935] all the tribes [07626] of Israel [03478] to David [01732] unto Hebron [02275], and spake [0559], saying [0559], Behold, we are thy bone [06106] and thy flesh [01320].

¹⁸ Then Abigail [026] made haste [04116], and took [03947] two hundred [03967] loaves [03899], and two [08147] bottles [05035] of wine [03196], and five [02568] sheep [06629] ready dressed [06213], and five [02568] measures [05429] of parched [07039] corn, and an hundred [03967] clusters of raisins [06778], and two hundred [03967] cakes [01690] of figs, and laid [07760] them on asses [02543].

⁴⁰ Moreover they that were nigh [07138] them, even unto Issachar [03485] and Zebulun [02074] and Naphtali [05321], brought [0935] bread [03899] on asses [02543], and on camels [01581], and on mules [06505], and on oxen [01241], and meat [03978], meal [07058], cakes [01690] of figs, and bunches of raisins [06778], and wine [03196], and oil [08081], and oxen [01241], and sheep [06629] abundantly [07230]: for there was joy [08057] in Israel [03478].

⁴⁵ And Zadok [06659] the priest [03548] and Nathan [05416] the prophet [05030] have anointed [04886] him king [04428] in Gihon [01521]: and they are come up [05927] from thence rejoicing [08056], so that the city [07151] rang again [01949]. This is the noise [06963] that ye have heard [08085].

¹⁶ And when he had brought him down [03381], behold, they were spread abroad [05203] upon all [06440] the earth [0776], eating [0398] and drinking [08354], and dancing [02287], because of all the great [01419] spoil [07998] that they had taken [03947] out of the land [0776] of the Philistines [06430], and out of the land [0776] of Judah [03063].

³⁹ And there they were with David [01732] three [07969] days [03117], eating [0398] and drinking [08354]: for their brethren [0251] had prepared [03559] for them.

¹² Also in Judah [03063] the hand [03027] of God [0430] was to give [05414] them one [0259] heart [03820] to do [06213] the commandment [04687] of the king [04428] and of the princes [08269], by the word [01697] of the LORD [03068].

²⁴ The children [01121] of Judah [03063] that bare [05375] shield [06793] and spear [07420] were six [08337] thousand [0505] and eight [08083] hundred [03967], ready armed [02502] to the war [06635].
²⁵ Of the children [01121] of Simeon [08095], mighty men [01368] of valour [02428] for the war [06635], seven [07651] thousand [0505] and one hundred [03967].
²⁶ Of the children [01121] of Levi [03878] four [0702] thousand [0505] and six [08337] hundred [03967].
²⁷ And Jehoiada [03077] was the leader [05057] of the Aaronites [0175], and with him were three [07969] thousand [0505] and seven [07651] hundred [03967];
²⁸ And Zadok [06659], a young man [05288] mighty [01368] of valour [02428], and of his father's [01] house [01004] twenty [06242] and two [08147] captains [08269].
²⁹ And of the children [01121] of Benjamin [01144], the kindred [0251] of Saul [07586], three [07969] thousand [0505]: for hitherto the greatest [04768] part of them had kept [08104] the ward [04931] of the house [01004] of Saul [07586].
³⁰ And of the children [01121] of Ephraim [0669] twenty [06242] thousand [0505] and eight [08083] hundred [03967], mighty [01368] men [0582] of valour [02428], famous [08034] throughout the house [01004] of their fathers [01].
³¹ And of the half [02677] tribe [04294] of Manasseh [04519] eighteen [08083] [06240] thousand [0505], which were expressed [05344] by name [08034], to come [0935] and make David [01732] king [04427].
³² And of the children [01121] of Issachar [03485], which were men that had understanding [0998] [03045] of the times [06256], to know [03045] what Israel [03478] ought to do [06213]; the heads [07218] of them were two hundred [03967]; and all their brethren [0251] were at their commandment [06310].
³³ Of Zebulun [02074], such as went forth [03318] to battle [06635], expert [06186] in war [04421], with all instruments [03627] of war [04421], fifty [02572] thousand [0505], which could keep rank [05737]: they were not of double [03820] heart [03820].
³⁴ And of Naphtali [05321] a thousand [0505] captains [08269], and with them with shield [06793] and spear [02595] thirty [07970] and seven [07651] thousand [0505].
³⁵ And of the Danites [01839] expert [06186] in war [04421] twenty [06242] and eight [08083] thousand [0505] and six [08337] hundred [03967].
³⁶ And of Asher [0836], such as went forth [03318] to battle [06635], expert [06186] in war [04421], forty [0705] thousand [0505].
³⁷ And on the other side [05676] of Jordan [03383], of the Reubenites [07206], and the Gadites [01425], and of the half [02677] tribe [07626] of Manasseh [04519], with all manner of instruments [03627] of war [06635] for the battle [04421], an hundred [03967] and twenty [06242] thousand [0505].

³⁸ All these men [0582] of war [04421], that could keep [05737] rank [04634], came [0935] with a perfect [08003] heart [03820] to Hebron [02275], to make David [01732] king [04427] over all Israel [03478]: and all the rest [07611] also of Israel [03478] were of one [0259] heart [03824] to make David [01732] king [04427].

³ The LORD [03068] shall cut off [03772] all flattering [02513] lips [08193], and the tongue [03956] that speaketh [01696] proud [01419] things:

²³ And these are the numbers [04557] of the bands [07218] that were ready armed [02502] to the war [06635], and came [0935] to David [01732] to Hebron [02275], to turn [05437] the kingdom [04438] of Saul [07586] to him, according to the word [06310] of the LORD [03068].

⁸ And of the Gadites [01425] there separated [0914] themselves unto David [01732] into the hold [04679] to the wilderness [04057] men [01368] of might [02428], and men [0582] of war [06635] fit for the battle [04421], that could handle [06186] shield [06793] and buckler [07420], whose faces [06440] were like the faces [06440] of lions [0738], and were as swift [04116] as the roes [06643] upon the mountains [02022];

³³ Of Zebulun [02074], such as went forth [03318] to battle [06635], expert [06186] in war [04421], with all instruments [03627] of war [04421], fifty [02572] thousand [0505], which could keep rank [05737]: they were not of double [03820] heart [03820].
³⁴ And of Naphtali [05321] a thousand [0505] captains [08269], and with them with shield [06793] and spear [02595] thirty [07970] and seven [07651] thousand [0505].
³⁵ And of the Danites [01839] expert [06186] in war [04421] twenty [06242] and eight [08083] thousand [0505] and six [08337] hundred [03967].
³⁶ And of Asher [0836], such as went forth [03318] to battle [06635], expert [06186] in war [04421], forty [0705] thousand [0505].
³⁷ And on the other side [05676] of Jordan [03383], of the Reubenites [07206], and the Gadites [01425], and of the half [02677] tribe [07626] of Manasseh [04519], with all manner of instruments [03627] of war [06635] for the battle [04421], an hundred [03967] and twenty [06242] thousand [0505].
³⁸ All these men [0582] of war [04421], that could keep [05737] rank [04634], came [0935] with a perfect [08003] heart [03820] to Hebron [02275], to make David [01732] king [04427] over all Israel [03478]: and all the rest [07611] also of Israel [03478] were of one [0259] heart [03824] to make David [01732] king [04427].

⁵ And the priests [03548] the sons [01121] of Levi [03878] shall come near [05066]; for them the LORD [03068] thy God [0430] hath chosen [0977] to minister [08334] unto him, and to bless [01288] in the name [08034] of the LORD [03068]; and by their word [06310] shall every controversy [07379] and every stroke [05061] be tried:

²⁷ At the appointment [06310] of Aaron [0175] and his sons [01121] shall be all the service [05656] of the sons [01121] of the Gershonites [01649], in all their burdens [04853], and in all their service [05656]: and ye shall appoint [06485] unto them in charge [04931] all their burdens [04853].

¹² Huram [02361] said [0559] moreover, Blessed [01288] be the LORD [03068] God [0430] of Israel [03478], that made [06213] heaven [08064] and earth [0776], who hath given [05414] to David [01732] the king [04428] a wise [02450] son [01121], endued [03045] with prudence [07922] and understanding [0998], that might build [01129] an house [01004] for the LORD [03068], and an house [01004] for his kingdom [04438].

³² And of the children [01121] of Issachar [03485], which were men that had understanding [0998] [03045] of the times [06256], to know [03045] what Israel [03478] ought to do [06213]; the heads [07218] of them were two hundred [03967]; and all their brethren [0251] were at their commandment [06310].

¹⁶ And he that blasphemeth [05344] the name [08034] of the LORD [03068], he shall surely [04191] be put to death [04191], and all the congregation [05712] shall certainly [07275] stone [07275] him: as well the stranger [01616], as he that is born in the land [0249], when he blasphemeth [05344] the name [08034] of the LORD, shall be put to death [04191].

¹⁷ And Moses [04872] and Aaron [0175] took [03947] these men [0582] which are expressed [05344] by their names [08034]:

³⁷ And on the other side [05676] of Jordan [03383], of the Reubenites [07206], and the Gadites [01425], and of the half [02677] tribe [07626] of Manasseh [04519], with all manner of instruments [03627] of war [06635] for the battle [04421], an hundred [03967] and twenty [06242] thousand [0505].

³¹ And of the half [02677] tribe [04294] of Manasseh [04519] eighteen [08083] [06240] thousand [0505], which were expressed [05344] by name [08034], to come [0935] and make David [01732] king [04427].

⁴ There were giants [05303] in the earth [0776] in those days [03117]; and also after [0310] that [03651], when [0834] the sons [01121] of God [0430] came in [0935] unto the daughters [01323] of men [0120], and they bare [03205] children to them, the same [01992] became mighty men [01368] which were of old [05769], men [0582] of renown [08034].

³⁰ And of the children [01121] of Ephraim [0669] twenty [06242] thousand [0505] and eight [08083] hundred [03967], mighty [01368] men [0582] of valour [02428], famous [08034] throughout the house [01004] of their fathers [01].

³⁵ Therefore shall ye abide [03427] at the door [06607] of the tabernacle [0168] of the congregation [04150] day [03119] and night [03915] seven [07651] days [03117], and keep [08104] the charge [04931] of the LORD [03068], that ye die [04191] not: for so I am commanded [06680].

⁵ Because [06118] that Abraham [085] obeyed [08085] my voice [06963], and kept [08104] my charge [04931], my commandments [04687], my statutes [02708], and my laws [08451].

¹⁸ Who hitherto waited in the king's [04428] gate [08179] eastward [04217]: they were porters [07778] in the companies [04264] of the children [01121] of Levi [03878].

² They were armed [05401] with bows [07198], and could use both the right hand [03231] and the left [08041] in hurling stones [068] and shooting arrows [02671] out of a bow [07198], even of Saul's [07586] brethren [0251] of Benjamin [01144].

²⁹ And of the children [01121] of Benjamin [01144], the kindred [0251] of Saul [07586], three [07969] thousand [0505]: for hitherto the greatest [04768] part of them had kept [08104] the ward [04931] of the house [01004] of Saul [07586].

⁸ The door [06607] for the middle [08484] chamber [06763] was in the right [03233] side [03802] of the house [01004]: and they went up [05927] with winding stairs [03883] into the middle [08484] chamber, and out of the middle [08484] into the third [07992].

²⁶ And unto Abiathar [054] the priest [03548] said [0559] the king [04428], Get [03212] thee to Anathoth [06068], unto thine own fields [07704]; for thou art worthy [0376] of death [04194]: but I will not at this time [03117] put thee to death [04191], because thou barest [05375] the ark [0727] of the Lord [0136] GOD [03069] before [06440] David [01732] my father [01], and because thou hast been afflicted [06031] in all wherein my father [01] was afflicted [06031].

²⁸ And Zadok [06659], a young man [05288] mighty [01368] of valour [02428], and of his father's [01] house [01004] twenty [06242] and two [08147] captains [08269].

⁹ And David [01732] knew [03045] that Saul [07586] secretly practised [02790] mischief [07451] against him; and he said [0559] to Abiathar [054] the priest [03548], Bring hither [05066] the ephod [0646].

²² Benaiah [01141] the son [01121] of Jehoiada [03077], the son [01121] of a valiant [02428] man [0376] of Kabzeel [06909], who had done many [07227] acts [06467]; he slew [05221] two [08147] lionlike men [0739] of Moab [04124]: also he went down [03381] and slew [05221] a lion [0738] in [08432] a pit [0953] in a snowy [07950] day [03117].

¹⁸ The sons [01121] of Reuben [07205], and the Gadites [01425], and half [02677] the tribe [07626] of Manasseh [04519], of valiant men [02428], men [0582] able to bear [05375] buckler [04043] and sword [02719], and to shoot [01869] with bow [07198], and skilful [03925] in war [04421], were four [0702] and forty [0705] thousand [0505] seven [07651] hundred [03967] and threescore [08346], that went out [03318] to the war [06635].

¹⁴ And enquired [01875] not of the LORD [03068]: therefore he slew [04191] him, and turned [05437] the kingdom [04410] unto David [01732] the son [01121] of Jesse [03448].

¹⁸ Zebulun [02074] and Naphtali [05321] were a people [05971] that jeoparded [02778] their lives [05315] unto the death [04191] in the high places [04791] of the field [07704].

³ Now the Levites [03881] were numbered [05608] from the age [01121] of thirty [07970] years [08141] and upward [04605]: and their number [04557] by their polls [01538], man by man [01397], was thirty [07970] and eight [08083] thousand [0505].

⁹ And Joab [03097] gave up [05414] the sum [04557] of the number [04662] of the people [05971] unto the king [04428]: and there were in Israel [03478] eight [08083] hundred [03967] thousand [0505] valiant [02428] men [0376] [0381] that drew [08025] the sword [02719]; and the men [0376] of Judah [03063] were five [02568] hundred [03967] thousand [0505] men [0376].

²⁶ Of the children [01121] of Levi [03878] four [0702] thousand [0505] and six [08337] hundred [03967].
²⁷ And Jehoiada [03077] was the leader [05057] of the Aaronites [0175], and with him were three [07969] thousand [0505] and seven [07651] hundred [03967];
²⁸ And Zadok [06659], a young man [05288] mighty [01368] of valour [02428], and of his father's [01] house [01004] twenty [06242] and two [08147] captains [08269].

²⁷ And Jehoiada [03077] was the leader [05057] of the Aaronites [0175], and with him were three [07969] thousand [0505] and seven [07651] hundred [03967];

³⁰ Have they not sped [04672]? have they not divided [02505] the prey [07998]; to every [07218] man [01397] a damsel [07356] or two [07361]; to Sisera [05516] a prey [07998] of divers colours [06648], a prey [07998] of divers colours [06648] of needlework [07553], of divers colours [06648] of needlework on both sides [07553], meet for the necks [06677] of them that take the spoil [07998]?

¹ Then Nahash [05176] the Ammonite [05984] came up [05927], and encamped [02583] against Jabeshgilead [03003] [01568]: and all the men [0582] of Jabesh [03003] said [0559] unto Nahash [05176], Make [03772] a covenant [01285] with us, and we will serve [05647] thee.

⁴⁴ And Abimelech [040], and the company [07218] that was with him, rushed forward [06584], and stood [05975] in the entering [06607] of the gate [08179] of the city [05892]: and the two [08147] other companies [07218] ran upon [06584] all the people that were in the fields [07704], and slew [05221] them.

³⁷ And Gaal [01603] spake [01696] again [03254] and said [0559], See there come [03381] people [05971] down [03381] by the middle [02872] of the land [0776], and another [0259] company [07218] come [0935] along by the plain [0436] of [01870] Meonenim [06049].

³⁴ And Abimelech [040] rose up [06965], and all the people [05971] that were with him, by night [03915], and they laid wait [0693] against Shechem [07927] in four [0702] companies [07218].

²⁰ And the three [07969] companies [07218] blew [08628] the trumpets [07782], and brake [07665] the pitchers [03537], and held [02388] the lamps [03940] in their left [08040] hands [03027], and the trumpets [07782] in their right [03225] hands [03027] to blow [08628] withal: and they cried [07121], The sword [02719] of the LORD [03068], and of Gideon [01439].

¹⁶ And he divided [02673] the three [07969] hundred [03967] men [0376] into three [07969] companies [07218], and he put [05414] a trumpet [07782] in every man's hand [03027], with empty [07386] pitchers [03537], and lamps [03940] within [08432] the pitchers [03537].

⁵ And the sons [01121] of Rimmon [07417] the Beerothite [0886], Rechab [07394] and Baanah [01196], went [03212], and came [0935] about the heat [02527] of the day [03117] to the house [01004] of Ishbosheth [0378], who lay [07901] on a bed [04904] at noon [06672].