The Fallible Synthetic Study Bible — 1 Chronicles 12:1

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1 Chronicles 12:1–22 — The Mighty Men Join David at Ziklag. Each verse below carries the full apparatus: the Berean Standard Bible, the vocalized original (tap any word), and a parsed breakdown of every term transcribed from the interlinear. Synthesized commentary, canonical threads, and the reading of Christ gather at the end, over the whole unit.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

The Hebrew is concise and obscure, but the Authorised Version fairly renders it. David was still shut up in his stronghold, or restrained within bounds, because of, i.e., from dread of King Saul. Or perhaps the meaning is “banished from the presence of Saul.

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Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

before Saul, imprisoned as it were, without being able to appear in a manner corresponding to his divine election to be ruler over Israel.

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

David was shut in, as in a prison, and unable to move freely through the land of Israel.

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Joseph BensonCommentary on the Old and New Testaments1810s

This author thought fit to do those the honour of having their names recorded, (which was omitted in the book of Samuel,) who came and joined themselves to him when he was in exile

Benson notices the editorial act itself: these names are absent from Samuel, and the Chronicler restores them deliberately.

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Now these were the men who came to David at Ziklag, while he was still banished from the presence of Saul son of Kish (they were among the mighty men who helped him in battle;

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

wə·’êl·leh hab·bā·’îm ’el- dā·wîḏ lə·ṣî·qə·laḡ ‘ō·wḏ ‘ā·ṣūr mip·pə·nê šā·’ūl ben- qîš wə·hêm·māh bag·gib·bō·w·rîm ‘ō·zə·rê ham·mil·ḥā·māh

Word by word15 · parsed

וְאֵ֗לֶּהwə·’êl·lehNow these [were] the [men]H428

√ ʼêl-leh — these or thoseConjunctive wawPronouncommon plural

הַבָּאִ֤יםhab·bā·’îmwho cameH935

√ bôwʼ — to go or come (in a wide variety of applications)ArticleVerbQalParticiplemasculine plural

bôwʼ: to go or come A participle with the article, so a class rather than an event: the ones coming. The Chronicler opens the register with a verb of arrival that he will still be using in v. 22, where men come to David day after day until the band is a camp of God.

אֶל־’el-toH413

√ ʼêl — near, with or amongPreposition

דָּוִיד֙dā·wîḏDavidH1732

√ Dâvid — David, the youngest son of JesseNounpropermasculine singular

לְצִ֣יקְלַ֔גlə·ṣî·qə·laḡat ZiklagH6860

√ Tsiqlag — Tsiklag or Tsikelag, a place in PalestinePreposition-lNounproperfeminine singular

ע֣וֹד‘ō·wḏwhileH5750

√ ʻôwd — properly, iteration or continuanceAdverb

עָצ֔וּר‘ā·ṣūrhe was still banishedH6113

√ ʻâtsâr — to incloseVerbQalQalPassParticiplemasculine singular

ʻâtsar: to enclose, restrain, hold back The theological weight of the unit sits on this passive participle. David is not travelling; he is fenced in, unable to act as what he already is. K&D gets the paradox exactly right: David is “imprisoned as it were, without being able to appear in a manner corresponding to his divine election to be ruler over Israel.” The anointing is real, the confinement is real, and the whole chapter takes place inside that gap.

מִפְּנֵ֖יmip·pə·nêfrom the presenceH6440

√ pânîym — the face (as the part that turns)Preposition-mNouncommon plural construct

שָׁא֣וּלšā·’ūlof SaulH7586

√ Shâʼûwl — Shaul, the name of an Edomite and two IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

בֶּן־ben-sonH1121

√ bên — a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etcNounmasculine singular construct

קִ֑ישׁqîšof KishH7027

√ Qîysh — Kish, the name of five IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

Qîysh: Kish Naming Saul by his father is not filler. Chronicles routinely places a man in his line, and here the patronymic quietly frames Saul as a man from a family rather than as the LORD's anointed, at the very moment his own tribesmen are walking out.

וְהֵ֙מָּה֙wə·hêm·māhtheyH1992

√ hêm — they (only used when emphatic)Conjunctive wawPronounthird person masculine plural

בַּגִּבּוֹרִ֔יםbag·gib·bō·w·rîmwere among the mighty menH1368

√ gibbôwr — powerfulPreposition-b, ArticleAdjectivemasculine plural

gibbôwr: powerful, mighty The word that titles the whole Davidic corps in chapter 11 is here applied with the preposition and article, among the mighty ones: these men belong to that company. It recurs at 12:4, 12:8 and 12:21, binding the three lists into one claim.

עֹזְרֵ֖י‘ō·zə·rêwho helped himH5826

√ ʻâzar — to surround, iVerbQalParticiplemasculine plural construct

ʻâzar: to surround, to help The load-bearing root of the unit. It titles these men in v. 1, is the thing David asks for in v. 17, is what Amasai pronounces peace upon in v. 18, is what the Manassites withhold from the Philistines in v. 19 and supply to David in v. 21, and is the daily verb of v. 22. Every human helping in the chapter is finally grounded in one clause: your God has helped you.

הַמִּלְחָמָֽה׃ham·mil·ḥā·māhin battleH4421

√ milchâmâh — a battle (iArticleNounfeminine singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-these the-ones-coming unto David to-Ziklag, while-yet shut-in from-the-face-of Saul son-of Kish; and-they among-the-mighty-ones, helpers-of the-battle.

Where the English smooths the original

עָצוּר עָצוּר (ʻā·ṣūr, H6113 ʻâtsar, Qal passive participle) is rendered “banished,” but the root means to enclose, restrain, shut up, hold back. Nothing in the word says “sent away”; it says penned in. K&D renders the clause “he was still held back before Saul,” and Cambridge translates “while he was yet shut up,” explaining that David “was shut in, as in a prison.” Ellicott concedes the Hebrew is “concise and obscure” and allows the sense “banished from the presence of Saul” as a possibility, not a certainty.
הַבָּאִים הַבָּאִים (hab·bā·’îm, H935, articled Qal participle masculine plural) is not a past tense. It is “the ones coming,” an ongoing stream, which is exactly what v. 22 will confirm with day by day. English “who came” closes off a process the Hebrew leaves open.
מִפְּנֵי מִפְּנֵי (mip·pə·nê, H6440 pânîym, construct plural) is literally “from the face of.” BSB's “from the presence of” is fair, but the same noun returns in v. 8 (faces of lions) and v. 17 (David goes out to their faces), and the English hides the repetition.
עֹזְרֵי עֹזְרֵי הַמִּלְחָמָה (ʻō·zə·rê, H5826, participle construct) is a title, “helpers of the battle,” not the clause “who helped him in battle.” Cambridge prefers “his helpers in war.” The English inserts him, which the Hebrew does not have: the noun phrase is about their standing, and ʻâzar will govern the rest of the unit (vv. 17, 18, 19, 21, 22).

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Jamieson, Fausset & BrownCommentary Critical and Explanatory1871

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

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Matthew PooleAnnotations upon the Holy Bible1685

who were moved hereunto by God’s Spirit, and by the conscience of their duty to David, to whom God had given the crown in reversion

Poole, with Benson, reads the defection as Spirit-wrought conviction rather than opportunism. It is a theological judgment about motive, not something the Hebrew states.

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

On the occasion described in Judges 20 the Benjamites are said to have had seven hundred men lefthanded who could sling stones at a hair and not miss

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Albert BarnesNotes on the Bible1834

Even of Saul's own tribe there were some who separated themselves from his cause, and threw in their lot with David.

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they were archers using both the right and left hands to sling stones and shoot arrows; and they were Saul’s kinsmen from Benjamin):

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

nō·šə·qê qe·šeṯ may·mî·nîm ū·maś·mi·lîm bā·’ă·ḇā·nîm ū·ḇa·ḥiṣ·ṣîm baq·qā·šeṯ šā·’ūl mê·’ă·ḥê mib·bin·yā·min

Word by word10 · parsed

נֹ֣שְׁקֵיnō·šə·qêthey were archersH5401

√ nâshaq — to kiss, literally or figuratively (touch)VerbQalParticiplemasculine plural construct

nâshaq: to kiss, to touch, to handle The same root gives the noun for weaponry. To be “kissers of the bow” is an idiom of intimacy with a weapon, the Hebrew way of saying a man and his bow are not strangers. K&D lists the synonymous phrase at 1 Chronicles 8:40 and the parallels in 2 Chronicles 17:17 and Psalm 78:9.

קֶ֗שֶׁתqe·šeṯ. . .H7198

√ qesheth — a bow, forshooting (hence, figuratively, strength) or the irisNounfeminine singular

מַיְמִינִ֤יםmay·mî·nîmusing both the rightH3231

√ yâman — to be right-handed or take the right-hand sideVerbHifilParticiplemasculine plural

yâman: to be right-handed, to take the right hand A genuinely rare verb (4 verses). With its mirror sâmaʼl (5 verses), it forms a merism: no side of the body is weak, no approach is blind. The same rare pair stands behind Abram's offer to Lot in Genesis 13:9 and Ezekiel's sword that turns either way.

וּמַשְׂמִאלִים֙ū·maś·mi·lîmand left [hands]H8041

√ sâmaʼl — to use the left hand or pass in that direction)Conjunctive wawVerbHifilParticiplemasculine plural

בָּֽאֲבָנִ֔יםbā·’ă·ḇā·nîm[to sling] stonesH68

√ ʼeben — a stonePreposition-b, ArticleNounfeminine plural

ʼeben: a stone The sling stone is the Benjamite signature (Judges 20:16) and also, uncomfortably, the weapon of the shepherd these Benjamites are now joining. The Chronicler does not comment; he simply puts the stone in their hands in the same breath as Saul's name.

וּבַחִצִּ֖יםū·ḇa·ḥiṣ·ṣîmand [shoot] arrowsH2671

√ chêts — properly, a piercer, iConjunctive waw, Preposition-b, ArticleNounmasculine plural

בַּקָּ֑שֶׁתbaq·qā·šeṯ. . .H7198

√ qesheth — a bow, forshooting (hence, figuratively, strength) or the irisPreposition-b, ArticleNounfeminine singular

שָׁא֖וּלšā·’ūl[and they were] Saul’sH7586

√ Shâʼûwl — Shaul, the name of an Edomite and two IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

מֵאֲחֵ֥יmê·’ă·ḥêkinsmenH251

√ ʼâch — a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance (like father))Preposition-mNounmasculine plural construct

ʼâch: a brother The widest sense of kinship, here fellow-tribesmen. Barnes states the scandal plainly: “even of Saul's own tribe there were some who separated themselves from his cause, and threw in their lot with David.” JFB reads the defection as evidence, a public verdict on Saul by the people best placed to judge him.

מִבִּנְיָמִֽן׃mib·bin·yā·minfrom BenjaminH1144

√ Binyâmîyn — Binjamin, youngest son of JacobPreposition-mNounpropermasculine singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

Armed-of bow, right-handing and-left-handing with-the-stones and-with-the-arrows on-the-bow; from-the-brothers-of Saul, from-Benjamin.

Where the English smooths the original

נֹשְׁקֵי נֹשְׁקֵי קֶשֶׁת (nō·šə·qê, H5401 nâshaq, participle construct) is rendered “they were archers,” which loses the verb. Nâshaq means to kiss, to touch, and in this military idiom to handle or equip oneself with. Ellicott renders it “drawers of the bow,” K&D “those preparing bows, i.e., those armed with bows.” The Hebrew names a posture toward the weapon, not a job title.
מַיְמִינִים מַיְמִינִים (may·mî·nîm, H3231 yâman, Hiphil participle) is a verb coined from the noun “right hand”: to right-hand it. English has no such verb, so BSB writes “using both the right ... hands.” The Hebrew makes handedness itself an action, and pairs it with its mirror וּמַשְׂמִאלִים (sâmaʼl, H8041, to left-hand it).
מֵאֲחֵי מֵאֲחֵי שָׁאוּל (mê·’ă·ḥê, H251 ʼâch) is “from the brothers of Saul,” smoothed to “kinsmen.” Cambridge notes that “brother is used in Heb. and Arabic for fellow-tribesman,” and K&D agrees it means the men of the tribe, “not of his nearer relatives.” But the smoothing costs the sting: the text calls these deserters Saul's brothers.
בַּקָּשֶׁת קֶשֶׁת (H7198) appears twice in the verse (indices 1 and 6) and BSB renders both with the single word “archers” and two sets of ellipsis dots. The Hebrew actually frames the verse between bow and bow: armed of bow ... and with arrows on the bow.

Ahiezer their chief and Joash, who were the sons of Shemaah the Gibeathite; Jeziel and Pelet, the sons of Azmaveth; Beracah; Jehu the Anathothite;

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

’ă·ḥî·‘e·zer hā·rōš wə·yō·w·’āš bə·nê haš·šə·mā·‘āh hag·giḇ·‘ā·ṯî wī·zū·ʾēl wā·p̄e·leṭ bə·nê ‘az·mā·weṯ ū·ḇə·rā·ḵāh wə·yê·hū hā·‘ăn·nə·ṯō·ṯî

Word by word13 · parsed

אֲחִיעֶ֜זֶר’ă·ḥî·‘e·zerAhiezerH295

√ ʼĂchîyʻezer — Achiezer, the name of two IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

הָרֹ֨אשׁhā·rōštheir chiefH7218

√ rôʼsh — the head (as most easily shaken), whether literal or figurative (in many applications, of place, time, rank, itcArticleNounmasculine singular

rôʼsh: the head, chief The organizing noun of the whole unit. It titles Ahiezer here, Ezer at v. 9, the Gadite captains at v. 14, Amasai at v. 18, the Manassite chiefs at v. 20, and, in the Philistine lords' mouths at v. 19, the literal heads they fear to lose. Rank and risk share a word.

וְיוֹאָ֗שׁwə·yō·w·’āšand JoashH3101

√ Yôwʼâsh — Joash, the name of six IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

בְּנֵי֙bə·nê[who were] the sonsH1121

הַשְּׁמָעָ֣הhaš·šə·mā·‘āhof ShemaahH8094

√ Shᵉmâʻâh — Shemaah, an IsraeliteArticleNounpropermasculine singular

הַגִּבְעָתִ֔יhag·giḇ·‘ā·ṯîthe GibeathiteH1395

√ Gibʻâthîy — a Gibathite, or inhabitant of GibathArticleNounpropermasculine singular

Gibʻâthîy: a Gibeathite Gibeah is Saul's own town (1 Samuel 11:4). Ellicott places it “between Ramah and Anathoth,” and K&D notes it is “Gibeah of Saul or Benjamin.” The first two names in the register come from the king's home village. Gill adds that “these might be some of his kindred.”

וִיזוּאֵלwī·zū·ʾēlJezielH3149

√ Yᵉzavʼêl — Jezavel, an IsraeliteConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וָפֶ֖לֶטwā·p̄e·leṭand PeletH6404

√ Peleṭ — Pelet, the name of two IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

בְּנֵ֣יbə·nêthe sonsH1121

עַזְמָ֑וֶת‘az·mā·weṯof AzmavethH5820

√ ʻAzmâveth — Azmaveth, the name of three Israelites and of a place in PalestineNounpropermasculine singular

וּבְרָכָ֕הū·ḇə·rā·ḵāhBeracahH1294

√ Bᵉrâkâh — Berakah, the name of an Israelite, and also of a valley in PalestineConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

Bᵉrâkâh: blessing A rare name (2 verses). The only other canonical occurrence is the Valley of Berachah, where Jehoshaphat's people blessed the LORD after a deliverance they did not have to fight for (2 Chronicles 20:26). Here the blessing walks in as a man, to a king who cannot yet bless anybody.

וְיֵה֖וּאwə·yê·hūJehuH3058

√ Yêhûwʼ — Jehu, the name of five IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

הָעֲנְּתֹתִֽי׃hā·‘ăn·nə·ṯō·ṯîthe AnathothiteH6069

√ ʻAnthôthîy — a Antothite or inhabitant of AnathothArticleNounpropermasculine singular

ʻAnthôthîy: an Anathothite K&D identifies Anathoth as “the priests' city.” Gill notes it is “the native place of Jeremiah the prophet.” The register keeps drifting toward towns of priests and Levites, a fact the voices dispute at v. 6.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

Ahiezer the-head, and-Joash, sons-of Hash-shemaah the-Gibeathite; and-Jeziel and-Pelet sons-of Azmaveth; and-Berachah, and-Jehu the-Anathothite.

Where the English smooths the original

הָרֹאשׁ הָרֹאשׁ (hā·rōš, H7218) is simply “the head,” with the article and no pronoun. BSB supplies “their chief.” Ellicott gives “captain of the band. Heb., head,” and K&D “the head, i.e., the leader of this host of warriors.” The same noun runs through the unit at vv. 9, 14, 18, 19 and 20, where it means variously chief, commander and literal head staked on a bargain.
הַשְּׁמָעָה הַשְּׁמָעָה (haš·šə·mā·‘āh) carries the definite article on what English prints as a personal name. Ellicott notes “Heb., Hashshemaah,” and Pulpit argues the name “should appear in our version either as ‘Has-Shemaah,’ or ‘the Shemaah.’” English proper-name conventions erase a real feature of the text.
וִיזוּאֵל וִיזוּאֵל is a Kethib/Qere name: Ellicott records “Jeziel. So Hebrew margin; Hebrew text, Jezûel,” comparing Peniel and Penuel. BSB prints one form without signalling the split, and Pulpit notes the Syriac omits the name altogether.
בְּנֵי בְּנֵי (bə·nê, H1121, construct plural) is read as a plural here, “the sons of Shemaah.” Pulpit reports that the Peshitta reads the singular בְּנו, which would make Joash the son of Ahiezer and Shemaah a third independent name. The consonantal difference is one letter; the roster it produces is different.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

Ismaiah’s name does not occur in the catalogue, perhaps because he died before it was drawn up.

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

the phrase is therefore perhaps only a kind of superlative; Ismaiah was worthy to be ranked with the thirty or even above them.

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Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

words which can hardly have any other sense than that Ismaiah belonged also to David's corps of thirty heroes ( 1 Chronicles 11 ), and was (temporarily) their leader, although his name does not occur in 1 Chronicles 11

K&D states as near-certain what Cambridge treats as merely possible. Both are reading the same two Hebrew phrases; the confidence is the commentator's, not the text's.

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Matthew PooleAnnotations upon the Holy Bible1685

who came attended with thirty valiant Benjamites, and was their leader and commander.

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Ishmaiah the Gibeonite, a mighty man among the Thirty and a leader over the Thirty; Jeremiah, Jahaziel, Johanan, and Jozabad the Gederathite;

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

wə·yiš·ma‘·yāh hag·giḇ·‘ō·w·nî gib·bō·wr baš·šə·lō·šîm wə·‘al- haš·šə·lō·šîm wə·yir·mə·yāh wə·ya·ḥă·zî·’êl wə·yō·w·ḥā·nān wə·yō·w·zā·ḇāḏ hag·gə·ḏê·rā·ṯî

Word by word11 · parsed

וְיִֽשְׁמַֽעְיָ֧הwə·yiš·ma‘·yāhIshmaiahH3460

√ Yishmaʻyâh — Jishmajah, the name of two IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

הַגִּבְעוֹנִ֛יhag·giḇ·‘ō·w·nîthe GibeoniteH1393

√ Gibʻônîy — a Gibonite, or inhabitant of GibonArticleNounpropermasculine singular

גִּבּ֥וֹרgib·bō·wra mighty manH1368

√ gibbôwr — powerfulAdjectivemasculine singular

gibbôwr: powerful, mighty The adjective is applied to a single man in a list otherwise made of bare names, marking Ishmaiah out. He is nonetheless absent from the roster of chapter 11, and both Ellicott and K&D offer the same explanation: he probably died before that catalogue was drawn up.

בַּשְּׁלֹשִׁ֖יםbaš·šə·lō·šîmamong the ThirtyH7970

√ shᵉlôwshîym — thirtyPreposition-b, ArticleNumbercommon plural

shᵉlôwshîym: thirty The corps of chapter 11. The double phrase here, among and over, is the crux the voices divide on, and the division is worth preserving: Cambridge treats it as an idiom of praise, K&D as an actual (and temporary) command. Cambridge adds the historically decisive point, that “the list in ch. 11 and that in ch. 12 belong to different times.”

וְעַל־wə·‘al-and a leader overH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsConjunctive wawPreposition

ʻal: above, over, upon The preposition governs command here, but it carries the unit's other heavy uses too: the Manassites “fall upon” David (vv. 19, 20), and the Jordan “fills over” its banks (v. 15). One small word for authority, defection and flood.

הַשְּׁלֹשִֽׁים׃haš·šə·lō·šîmthe ThirtyH7970

√ shᵉlôwshîym — thirtyArticleNumbercommon plural

וְיִרְמְיָ֤הwə·yir·mə·yāhJeremiahH3414

√ Yirmᵉyâh — Jirmejah, the name of eight or nine IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וְיַחֲזִיאֵל֙wə·ya·ḥă·zî·’êlJahazielH3166

√ Yachăzîyʼêl — Jachaziel, the name of five IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וְי֣וֹחָנָ֔ןwə·yō·w·ḥā·nānJohananH3076

√ Yᵉhôwchânân — Jehochanan, the name of eight IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וְיוֹזָבָ֖דwə·yō·w·zā·ḇāḏand JozabadH3107

√ Yôwzâbâd — Jozabad, the name of ten IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

הַגְּדֵרָתִֽי׃hag·gə·ḏê·rā·ṯîthe GederathiteH1452

√ Gᵉdêrâthîy — a Gederathite, or inhabitant of GederahArticleNounpropermasculine singular

Gᵉdêrâthîy: a Gederathite The gentilic that starts the argument about whether this is a purely Benjamite list. Pulpit notes the difficulty frankly: the Gederah of Joshua 15:36 “cannot to all appearance be that” of a Benjamite, unless the town changed hands.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-Ishmaiah the-Gibeonite, a-mighty-one among-the-Thirty and-over the-Thirty; and-Jeremiah and-Jahaziel and-Johanan and-Jozabad the-Gederathite.

Where the English smooths the original

גִּבּוֹר גִּבּוֹר (gib·bō·wr, H1368, masculine singular adjective) is one word, “a mighty one,” the same root that titles the whole company in v. 1 and the Gadites in v. 8. BSB expands it to “a mighty man,” which is fair, but the repetition across the three lists is a deliberate thread the English does not mark.
בַּשְּׁלֹשִׁים The Hebrew pairs two different relations to the same body: בַּשְּׁלֹשִׁים (in/among the Thirty) and וְעַל־הַשְּׁלֹשִׁים (and over the Thirty). BSB renders the second as “a leader over,” supplying a noun. Ellicott holds that “over the thirty” may mean captaincy “or it may simply denote comparison, a hero above the thirty,” and Cambridge suggests “the phrase is therefore perhaps only a kind of superlative.” K&D insists it can “hardly have any other sense” than actual, temporary leadership.
הַגְּדֵרָתִי הַגְּדֵרָתִי (H1452) ties Jozabad to Gederah, which Joshua 15:36 places in the Judaean Shephelah, not in Benjamin. The gentilic is a geographic claim the smooth English simply transliterates. JFB, citing Bertheau, uses it as evidence “that this first list contains men of Judah as well as Benjamin,” while K&D argues at length that tribal domains shifted and the inference does not hold.
הַגִּבְעוֹנִי הַגִּבְעוֹנִי (H1393) is “the Gibeonite,” a loaded gentilic given Joshua 9. Ellicott is careful: “Gibeon belonged to Benjamin, and 1 Chronicles 12:2 proves that Ismaiah was a Benjamite, not a Gibeonite in the strict sense of the term.” JFB reads it the other way, allowing Canaanite Gibeonites among the men. The English name decides nothing; the Hebrew does not either.

Eluzai, Jerimoth, Bealiah, Shemariah, and Shephatiah the Haruphite;

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

’el·‘ū·zay wî·rî·mō·wṯ ū·ḇə·‘al·yāh ū·šə·mar·yā·hū ū·šə·p̄aṭ·yā·hū ha·ḥă·rī·p̄ī

Word by word6 · parsed

אֶלְעוּזַ֤י’el·‘ū·zayEluzaiH498

√ ʼElʻûwzay — Eluzai, an IsraeliteNounpropermasculine singular

וִירִימוֹת֙wî·rî·mō·wṯJerimothH3406

√ Yᵉrîymôwth — Jerimoth or Jeremoth, the name of twelve IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וּבְעַלְיָ֣הū·ḇə·‘al·yāhBealiahH1183

√ Bᵉʻalyâh — Bealjah, an IsraeliteConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

Bᵉʻalyâh: Baal is Jah The most theologically interesting word in the verse. Ellicott's inference, that baʻal (owner, lord, husband) once served as an unobjectionable title for the God of Israel, is supported elsewhere in Chronicles (compare the note on 1 Chronicles 8:33) and by Hosea 2:16, where the LORD says Israel will call him ʼîshî and no longer baʻlî. A man carrying this name joins David while Israel is still working out which lord the word belongs to.

וּשְׁמַרְיָ֔הוּū·šə·mar·yā·hūShemariahH8114

√ Shᵉmaryâh — Shemarjah, the name of four IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

Shᵉmaryâh: Yah has kept A name meaning Yah has guarded, worn by a man walking into the camp of a fugitive whom Yah has, so far, guarded and not enthroned. The register's names keep saying what the situation does not yet show.

וּשְׁפַטְיָ֖הוּū·šə·p̄aṭ·yā·hūand ShephatiahH8203

√ Shᵉphaṭyâh — Shephatjah, the name of ten IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

הַחֲרִיפִי׃ha·ḥă·rī·p̄īthe HaruphiteH2741

√ Chărûwphîy — a Charuphite or inhabitant of Charuph (or Chariph)ArticleNounpropermasculine singular

Chărûwphîy: a Haruphite A gentilic with a Kethib/Qere split. Pulpit connects it to the sons of Hariph in Nehemiah 7:24 and notes they “may have belonged to the tribe of Benjamin,” while K&D observes the Nehemiah list places them “along with the Gibeonites.” Neither settles it.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

Eluzai, and-Jerimoth, and-Bealiah, and-Shemariah, and-Shephatiah the-Haruphite.

Where the English smooths the original

וּבְעַלְיָה וּבְעַלְיָה (ū·ḇə·‘al·yāh, H1183) is transliterated as a neutral name, but the Hebrew is a sentence: Baal plus Yah. Ellicott glosses it “Baal is Jah” and draws the historical conclusion that “such names indicate that ‘Baal’ was once a title of the God of Israel.” Pulpit notes simply that “this name comprises both the word Baal, and Jah.” English transliteration erases a theological datum.
הַחֲרִיפִי הַחֲרִיפִי is a Kethib/Qere gentilic. Ellicott records that “the Hebrew margin here is ‘Hariphite,’” and K&D that the form “is a patronymic, which denotes either one descended from Haruph, or belonging to” the sons of Hariph of Nehemiah 7:34. BSB prints “the Haruphite” without marking either the variant or the ambiguity between ancestor and clan.
וּשְׁמַרְיָהוּ וּשְׁמַרְיָהוּ (H8114) and וּשְׁפַטְיָהוּ (H8203) both end in the long theophoric -yāhû, Yah has kept and Yah has judged. Four of the five names in this verse confess something about God. English flattens all of them into inert labels.
אֶלְעוּזַי אֶלְעוּזַי (ʼel·‘ū·zay, H498) opens the verse with the ʼêl element, and the verse then chains its remaining names with the conjunctive waw. BSB replaces the chain with commas, which reads faster but hides that Hebrew lists are built by repeated and.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

Five members of the Levitical clan Korah. The name “Elkanah” occurs thrice in the lineage of Heman, the Korhite musician

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Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

The names Elkanah and Azareel are thoroughly Levitic names, and their service in the porter's office in the holy place may have roused in them the desire to fight for David, the chosen of the Lord.

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

Probably not the Levitic but the Calebitic sons of Korah ( 1 Chronicles 2:43 ), who belonged to Judah, are meant.

Directly contradicts K&D on the same word. We record both and settle neither; see the flagged thread on verse 6.

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The Pulpit CommentarySpence & Exell, eds.1880s

Some authorities are as positive that this name designates Levitic Korahites , as others are sceptical about it.

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Elkanah, Isshiah, Azarel, Joezer, and Jashobeam, who were Korahites;

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Hebrew — tap a word ↓

’el·qā·nāh wə·yiš·šî·yā·hū wa·‘ă·zar·’êl wə·yō·w·‘e·zer wə·yā·šā·ḇə·‘ām haq·qā·rə·ḥîm

Word by word6 · parsed

אֶלְקָנָ֡ה’el·qā·nāhElkanahH511

√ ʼElqânâh — Elkanah, the name of several IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

ʼElqânâh: God has acquired A name embedded in the Korahite musical line (1 Chronicles 6:33ff) and in Samuel's genealogy. Ellicott and K&D both treat its presence here as evidence that these five are Levites, which would mean sanctuary servants left the tabernacle to fight for an outlaw.

וְ֠יִשִּׁיָּהוּwə·yiš·šî·yā·hūIsshiahH3449

√ Yishshîyâh — Jishshijah, the name of five IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וַעֲזַרְאֵ֧לwa·‘ă·zar·’êlAzarelH5832

√ ʻĂzarʼêl — Azarel, the name of five IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

ʻĂzarʼêl: God has helped The verb of the whole unit (ʻâzar, H5826) fossilized in a proper name. When Amasai says in v. 18 that God has helped David, he is saying aloud what one of the men standing in this list has been called all his life.

וְיוֹעֶ֛זֶרwə·yō·w·‘e·zerJoezerH3134

√ Yôwʻezer — Joezer, an IsraeliteConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וְיָשָׁבְעָ֖םwə·yā·šā·ḇə·‘āmand JashobeamH3434

√ Yâshobʻâm — Jashobam, the name of two or three IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

Yâshobʻâm: Jashobeam Borne by the chief of David's Three at 1 Chronicles 11:11 and by a divisional commander at 1 Chronicles 27:2. Whether this is the same man is unresolved; Pulpit raises it, and Cambridge's observation that the two chapters “belong to different times” is the relevant caution.

הַקָּרְחִֽים׃haq·qā·rə·ḥîm[who were] KorahitesH7145

√ Qorchîy — a Korchite (collectively) or descendants of KorachArticleNounpropermasculine singular

Qorchîy: a Korahite Three incompatible readings are on the table, and each has different consequences. If K&D is right, doorkeepers of the sanctuary defected to David and he notes that “their service in the porter's office in the holy place may have roused in them the desire to fight for David, the chosen of the Lord.” If Cambridge and Bertheau are right, they are Judaeans of 1 Chronicles 2:43 and the list is not purely Benjamite. If Gill is right, they are an otherwise unknown Benjamite family. Pulpit concedes the standoff. We flag this rather than choose.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

Elkanah, and-Isshiah, and-Azarel, and-Joezer, and-Jashobeam, the-Korahites.

Where the English smooths the original

הַקָּרְחִים הַקָּרְחִים (haq·qā·rə·ḥîm, H7145, articled gentilic plural) is rendered “who were Korahites,” supplying a relative clause the Hebrew does not have: it is simply the Korahites, in apposition to the five names. That bare apposition is the whole problem, because it does not say which Korah. K&D says Levite “without doubt”; Cambridge says “probably not the Levitic but the Calebitic sons of Korah”; Gill says “not Korahites, descendants of Levi ... but the posterity of Korah a Benjaminite.”
אֶלְקָנָה אֶלְקָנָה (ʼel·qā·nāh, H511) means God has acquired or created. Ellicott observes that the name “occurs thrice in the lineage of Heman, the Korhite musician,” and in Samuel's line, which is precisely why the Levitic reading of the verse is attractive. The English transliteration carries none of that evidential weight.
וַעֲזַרְאֵל וַעֲזַרְאֵל (wa·‘ă·zar·’êl, H5832) is built on ʻâzar, God has helped: the unit's governing root turned into a man's name. Ellicott notes “Azareel is a priestly name,” and K&D that “the names Elkanah and Azareel are thoroughly Levitic names.” English hides both the root and the argument riding on it.
וְיָשָׁבְעָם וְיָשָׁבְעָם (H3434) is the same name as the chief of the Three in 1 Chronicles 11:11. Ellicott flags it, and Pulpit thinks it “possibly the same” man. BSB gives no signal that the reader has met this name a chapter earlier in a very different rank.

and Joelah and Zebadiah, the sons of Jeroham from Gedor.

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Hebrew — tap a word ↓

wə·yō·w·‘ê·lāh ū·zə·ḇaḏ·yāh bə·nê yə·rō·ḥām min- hag·gə·ḏō·wr

Word by word6 · parsed

וְיוֹעֵאלָ֧הwə·yō·w·‘ê·lāhand JoelahH3132

√ Yôwʻêʼlâh — Joelah, an IsraeliteConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וּזְבַדְיָ֛הū·zə·ḇaḏ·yāhand ZebadiahH2069

√ Zᵉbadyâh — Zebadjah, the name of nine IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

Zᵉbadyâh: Yah has given Another theophoric confession in a list of defectors. What Yah has given, in this chapter, is a king nobody can see yet and a company that will not be paid.

בְּנֵ֥יbə·nêthe sonsH1121

יְרֹחָ֖םyə·rō·ḥāmof JerohamH3395

√ Yᵉrôchâm — Jerocham, the name of seven or eight IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

Yᵉrôchâm: Jeroham Ellicott notes that “Jeroham is the name of a Benjamite clan” at 1 Chronicles 8:27, and Pulpit that even if the Gedor here is the Judaean one, “it is to be noted still that Jeroham is a name of a Benjamite.” Patronymic and place point to different tribes at once.

מִן־min-fromH4480

√ min — properly, a part ofPreposition

הַגְּדֽוֹר׃hag·gə·ḏō·wrGedorH1446

√ Gᵉdôr — Gedor, a place in PalestineArticleNounproperfeminine singular

Gᵉdôr: Gedor A town of Judah southwest of Bethlehem (1 Chronicles 4:4; Joshua 15:58), here with the article. Its appearance at the end of a Benjamite roster is the last and strongest of the geographic anomalies. JFB and Cambridge conclude Judaeans are mixed in; Ellicott suggests two lists welded together; K&D argues tribal boundaries and populations shifted so much that the inference fails. Gill offers a fourth option, “another city of the same name in that tribe.”

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-Joelah and-Zebadiah, sons-of Jeroham, from the-Gedor.

Where the English smooths the original

הַגְּדוֹר מִן־הַגְּדוֹר carries the definite article on the place name: from the Gedor. Pulpit insists on the point, that “it is to be observed that in the Hebrew the article precedes the word,” and that the place “is unknown.” BSB's bare “from Gedor” quietly identifies a site the Hebrew leaves marked as common or generic (gâdêr is a wall or enclosure).
וּזְבַדְיָה וּזְבַדְיָה (ū·zə·ḇaḏ·yāh, H2069) is Yah has given. Ellicott notes that “two Benjamite chiefs are called ‘Zebadiah’” at 1 Chronicles 8:15 and 8:17, which is part of the evidence that this closing pair is Benjamite despite the Judaean town.
בְּנֵי בְּנֵי יְרֹחָם is a construct chain, sons of Jeroham, with no verb. BSB adds “the sons of,” which is right, but the register's whole grammar is nominal: no one in vv. 3 to 7 does anything. They are simply named, ranked and located. The action verbs do not return until v. 8.
וְיוֹעֵאלָה וְיוֹעֵאלָה (H3132) appears only here in the canon, and the list closes with two men whose sole canonical trace is this act of joining David in exile. The English name gives no hint that the register is itself these men's only memorial, which is Benson's point about the Chronicler's purpose at v. 1.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

The poetic style of this betrays its ancient source. The chronicler is clearly borrowing from some contemporary record.

source ↗

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

At the threat of an attack an army was drawn up in close array, shield touching shield and spears at the charge. Only in a high state of discipline could men quickly and effectively handle shield and spear thus

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Joseph BensonCommentary on the Old and New Testaments1810s

Who were full of courage, and by the majesty and fierceness of their countenances terrified their adversaries.

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Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

they separated themselves from the other Gadites who were on Saul's side

source ↗

Some Gadites defected to David at his stronghold in the wilderness. They were mighty men of valor, trained for battle, experts with the shield and spear, whose faces were like the faces of lions and who were as swift as gazelles on the mountains:

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

ū·min- hag·gā·ḏî niḇ·də·lū ’el- dā·wîḏ lam·ṣaḏ miḏ·bā·rāh gib·bō·rê ’an·šê ha·ḥa·yil ṣā·ḇā lam·mil·ḥā·māh ‘ō·rə·ḵê ṣin·nāh wā·rō·maḥ pə·nê·hem ū·p̄ə·nê ’ar·yêh lə·ma·hêr wə·ḵiṣ·ḇā·yim ‘al- he·hā·rîm

Word by word22 · parsed

וּמִן־ū·min-SomeH4480

√ min — properly, a part ofConjunctive wawPreposition

הַגָּדִ֡יhag·gā·ḏîGaditesH1425

√ Gâdîy — a Gadite (collectively) or descendants of GadArticleNounpropermasculine singular

נִבְדְּל֣וּniḇ·də·lūdefectedH914

√ bâdal — to divide (in variation senses literally or figuratively, separate, distinguish, differ, select, etcVerbNifalPerfectthird person common plural

bâdal: to divide, separate, distinguish, select The Nifal makes it reflexive: they separated themselves. This is the vocabulary of holiness applied to a political defection, and it is the hinge of the second list. K&D reads it as separation “from the other Gadites who were on Saul's side.” Nothing compelled them; the verb puts the initiative entirely on the men.

אֶל־’el-toH413

√ ʼêl — near, with or amongPreposition

דָּוִיד֩dā·wîḏDavidH1732

√ Dâvid — David, the youngest son of JesseNounpropermasculine singular

לַמְצַ֨דlam·ṣaḏat his strongholdH4679

√ mᵉtsad — a fastness (as a covert of ambush)Preposition-lNounmasculine singular construct

mᵉtsad: a fastness, a covert of ambush A rarer word than the usual mᵉtsûdâh, and K&D notes it is pointed here with pathach “on account of its intimate connection with” the following word. Which stronghold is meant is genuinely disputed: Barnes argues Adullam, JFB and Poole argue Ziklag, Ellicott lists four candidates, and K&D concludes it means the mountain fastnesses of Judah generally, since David “did not hide himself in one single definite mountain-fortress.”

מִדְבָּ֜רָהmiḏ·bā·rāhin the wildernessH4057

√ midbâr — a pasture (iNounmasculine singularthird person feminine singular

גִּבֹּרֵ֣יgib·bō·rêThey were mightyH1368

√ gibbôwr — powerfulAdjectivemasculine plural construct

אַנְשֵׁ֤י’an·šêmenH376

√ ʼîysh — a man as an individual or a male personNounmasculine plural construct

הַחַ֗יִלha·ḥa·yilof valorH2428

√ chayil — probably a force, whether of men, means or other resourcesArticleNounmasculine singular

chayil: force, whether of men, means or other resources Not merely courage. Chayil covers strength, wealth, competence and an army all at once, so gibborê anshê ha-chayil stacks three words for capability. The same phrase returns at v. 21 to describe the Manassites, tying the second and fourth lists together.

צָבָא֙ṣā·ḇātrainedH6635

√ tsâbâʼ — a mass of persons (or figuratively, things), especially regNouncommon singular

לַמִּלְחָמָ֔הlam·mil·ḥā·māhfor battleH4421

√ milchâmâh — a battle (iPreposition-l, ArticleNounfeminine singular

עֹרְכֵ֥י‘ō·rə·ḵêexpertsH6186

√ ʻârak — to set in a row, iVerbQalParticiplemasculine plural construct

ʻârak: to set in a row, to arrange in order A battle-line verb (compare its use of drawing up armies in 1 Samuel 17). Cambridge draws out the tactical meaning: shield touching shield with spears at the charge, and “only in a high state of discipline could men quickly and effectively handle shield and spear thus.” The praise is for formation discipline, not individual ferocity.

צִנָּ֖הṣin·nāhwith the shieldH6793

√ tsinnâh — a hook (as pointed)Nounfeminine singular

וָרֹ֑מַחwā·rō·maḥand spearH7420

√ rômach — a lance (as thrown)Conjunctive wawNounmasculine singular

פְּנֵיהֶ֔םpə·nê·hemwhose faces [were like]H6440

√ pânîym — the face (as the part that turns)Nounmasculine plural constructthird person masculine plural

וּפְנֵ֤יū·p̄ə·nêthe facesH6440

√ pânîym — the face (as the part that turns)Conjunctive wawNouncommon plural construct

אַרְיֵה֙’ar·yêhof lionsH738

√ ʼărîy — a lionNounmasculine singular

ʼărîy: a lion The simile of David's own lament over Saul and Jonathan, who were “stronger than lions” (2 Samuel 1:23), and the root behind Ariel, lion of God, used of a champion at 1 Chronicles 11:22. Ellicott hears the meter and says the poetic style “betrays its ancient source”; Barnes agrees the passage is taken verbatim from an older document. So the Chronicler is quoting Israel's own war poetry back at us.

לְמַהֵֽר׃סlə·ma·hêrand who were as swiftH4116

√ mâhar — properly, to be liquid or flow easily, iPreposition-lVerbPielInfinitive construct

וְכִצְבָאיִ֥םwə·ḵiṣ·ḇā·yimas gazellesH6643

√ tsᵉbîy — splendor (as conspicuous)Conjunctive waw, Preposition-kNounmasculine plural

tsᵉbîy: splendor, a gazelle Cambridge notes that in David's lament Jonathan is compared both to a lion and to a gazelle, “the same Heb. word as for roe here,” and 2 Samuel 2:18 uses the comparison of Asahel. The two similes together, terror and speed, are the two halves of ancient warfare: JFB says they “were qualities of the highest estimation.”

עַל־‘al-onH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPreposition

הֶהָרִ֖יםhe·hā·rîmthe mountainsH2022

√ har — a mountain or range of hills (sometimes used figuratively)ArticleNounmasculine plural

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-from the-Gadite separated-themselves unto David to-the-stronghold wilderness-ward: mighty-ones-of men-of the-valor, host for-the-battle, arrayers-of shield and-lance; faces-of-lion their-faces, and-like-gazelles upon the-mountains to-hasten.

Where the English smooths the original

נִבְדְּלוּ נִבְדְּלוּ (niḇ·də·lū, H914 bâdal, Nifal perfect) is rendered “defected,” a political word. The root is the priestly verb of dividing, separating, distinguishing, selecting, the same root that divides light from darkness and Israel from the nations. Benson and Poole both unpack the cost: they separated “from Saul, to whom they had hitherto adhered; and from their brethren of their own tribe ... and from their families, and the places where they lived.” The Hebrew calls it a consecrated cut, not a betrayal.
מִדְבָּרָה מִדְבָּרָה (miḏ·bā·rāh, H4057) carries the directional he: wilderness-ward, toward the desert. Barnes corrects the English precisely, “rather, into the hold toward the wilderness,” and K&D agrees the addition shows the stronghold is “a mountain-top or mountain-fortress in the wilderness of Judah.” BSB's “at his stronghold in the wilderness” converts a vector into a location and adds a possessive pronoun the Hebrew lacks.
צָבָא צָבָא (ṣā·ḇā, H6635) is rendered “trained,” but the noun means a mass of persons, a host, military service, a campaign. K&D reads the phrase as “men for service in the host for the war, i.e., combatants practised in war,” and Cambridge as “men trained for war.” It is the same noun the unit uses at v. 14 and v. 21 for the army itself.
עֹרְכֵי עֹרְכֵי צִנָּה וָרֹמַח (ʻō·rə·ḵê, H6186 ʻârak) is not “experts with.” The verb means to set in a row, to arrange in battle array. Cambridge glosses it literally, “ordering,” and K&D “preparing shield and spear, i.e., wielding shield and spear.” The image is a formed line, shield edge to shield edge, not individual marksmanship.
וָרֹמַח וָרֹמַח (rômach, H7420) is a thrown or couched lance. The Authorized Version's “buckler” reflects a different reading, וּמָגֵן, which Cambridge calls “a mistake of several early editions of the printed Heb. text” with “hardly any MS. authority,” and which K&D likewise rejects. BSB's “spear” is right, but the older English error is worth knowing.

Ezer the chief, Obadiah the second in command, Eliab the third,

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Hebrew — tap a word ↓

‘ê·zer hā·rōš ‘ō·ḇaḏ·yāh haš·šê·nî ’ĕ·lî·’āḇ haš·šə·li·šî

Word by word6 · parsed

עֵ֖זֶר‘ê·zerEzerH5829

√ ʻÊzer — Ezer, the name of four IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

ʻÊzer: help The leading Gadite carries the unit's governing root as his name. He is the first of eleven men listed to help a king who cannot help himself, and the chapter will close by grounding all such help in God's (v. 18).

הָרֹ֑אשׁhā·rōšthe chiefH7218

√ rôʼsh — the head (as most easily shaken), whether literal or figurative (in many applications, of place, time, rank, itcArticleNounmasculine singular

rôʼsh: the head, chief Third occurrence in the unit, and the structural marker of each list: Ahiezer heads Benjamin (v. 3), Ezer heads Gad (v. 9), Amasai heads the band from Benjamin and Judah (v. 18), and seven chiefs head Manasseh (v. 20).

עֹבַדְיָה֙‘ō·ḇaḏ·yāhObadiahH5662

√ ʻÔbadyâh — Obadjah, the name of thirteen IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

הַשֵּׁנִ֔יhaš·šê·nîthe second [in command]H8145

√ shênîy — properly, double, iArticleNumberordinal masculine singular

אֱלִיאָ֖ב’ĕ·lî·’āḇEliabH446

√ ʼĔlîyʼâb — Eliab, the name of six IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

הַשְּׁלִשִֽׁי׃haš·šə·li·šîthe thirdH7992

√ shᵉlîyshîy — thirdArticleNumberordinal masculine singular

shᵉlîyshîy: third The ordinal chain begun here runs unbroken to the eleventh in v. 13, and K&D notes the closing idiom: עַשְׁתֵּי עָשָׂר “at the end of a series of ordinal numbers, denotes the eleventh.” The form is a list with the seams showing, which is part of Barnes's case that it was copied from an older document.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

Ezer the-head, Obadiah the-second, Eliab the-third,

Where the English smooths the original

הָרֹאשׁ הָרֹאשׁ (hā·rōš, H7218) is “the head,” the same word used of Ahiezer at v. 3. Ellicott cross-references exactly that: “The first. The chief 1 Chronicles 12:3 (har'osh).” BSB varies its English (“their chief” at v. 3, “the chief” here), which conceals that the Hebrew uses one fixed term for the lead man of each contingent.
הַשֵּׁנִי הַשֵּׁנִי (haš·šê·nî, H8145, ordinal) is simply “the second.” BSB adds “in command,” a reasonable inference but an inference: the Hebrew gives a bare ordinal series (second, third, fourth ... eleventh) with no word for rank at all, and Gill suggests the order may be “according to their age, or merit, or order in coming to David.”
עֵזֶר עֵזֶר (ʻê·zer, H5829) is the noun help used as a name, from the same root ʻâzar that runs through vv. 1, 17, 18, 19, 21 and 22. The Gadite list is headed by a man called Help. English transliteration makes that invisible.

Mishmannah the fourth, Jeremiah the fifth,

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Hebrew — tap a word ↓

miš·man·nāh hā·rə·ḇî·‘î yir·mə·yāh ha·ḥă·mi·šî

Word by word4 · parsed

מִשְׁמַנָּה֙miš·man·nāhMishmannahH4925

√ Mishmannâh — Mashmannah, an IsraeliteNounpropermasculine singular

Mishmannâh: Mishmannah A hapax name in the canon. The Chronicler preserves a man of whom nothing else is known except that he crossed to David in the wilderness and, per v. 15, probably swam a flooded Jordan to do it.

הָרְבִיעִ֔יhā·rə·ḇî·‘îthe fourthH7243

√ rᵉbîyʻîy — fourthArticleNumberordinal masculine singular

rᵉbîyʻîy: fourth Bare ordinals of this kind are how ancient rosters were kept, and their survival in Chronicles is part of what Barnes points to when he argues that this whole section “seems to be taken verbatim from an ancient source.”

יִרְמְיָ֖הyir·mə·yāhJeremiahH3414

√ Yirmᵉyâh — Jirmejah, the name of eight or nine IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

Yirmᵉyâh: Jeremiah The name means roughly Yah loosens or Yah exalts. Two men in this eleven bear it, distinguished in Hebrew only by the long and short theophoric ending. Cambridge is the only voice in the brief to notice; the duplicate is a textual fact, not a scribal slip.

הַחֲמִשִֽׁי׃ha·ḥă·mi·šîthe fifthH2549

√ chămîyshîy — fifthArticleNumberordinal masculine singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

Mishmannah the-fourth, Jeremiah the-fifth,

Where the English smooths the original

מִשְׁמַנָּה מִשְׁמַנָּה (miš·man·nāh, H4925) is a name attested nowhere else in the canon. BSB transliterates it as though it were ordinary; the Hebrew reader meets a word he will never see again. Pulpit's general note on vv. 9 to 13 holds: the names are known elsewhere, but never of these men.
יִרְמְיָה יִרְמְיָה (yir·mə·yāh, H3414) appears here as the fifth and again at v. 13 as the tenth, and Cambridge points out that “a very slight difference of spelling distinguishes the two in the Heb.” (here Yirmᵉyâh, there Yirmᵉyāhû). English prints the identical string “Jeremiah” twice and hides the orthographic distinction that keeps them apart.
הָרְבִיעִי הָרְבִיעִי (H7243) is an articled ordinal with no noun: “the fourth,” not “the fourth in command.” The verse is two names and two ordinals, four words of Hebrew, and any English that reads as a sentence has added something.

Attai the sixth, Eliel the seventh,

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Hebrew — tap a word ↓

‘at·tay haš·šiš·šî ’ĕ·lî·’êl haš·šə·ḇi·‘î

Word by word4 · parsed

עַתַּי֙‘at·tayAttaiH6262

√ ʻAttay — Attai, the name of three IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

הַשִּׁשִּׁ֔יhaš·šiš·šîthe sixthH8345

√ shishshîy — sixth, ordArticleNumberordinal masculine singular

shishshîy: sixth The ordinals do not state a command structure; they state a sequence. Whether that sequence is age, merit or order of arrival, Gill admits, is unknown.

אֱלִיאֵ֖ל’ĕ·lî·’êlElielH447

√ ʼĔlîyʼêl — Eliel, the name of nine IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

ʼĔlîyʼêl: my God is God One of several ʼêl and Yah names in the Gadite eleven (Eliab v. 9, Eliel here, Elzabad v. 12, Obadiah v. 9, Jeremiah vv. 10 and 13). The register of defectors reads, name by name, like a creed.

הַשְּׁבִעִֽי׃haš·šə·ḇi·‘îthe seventhH7637

√ shᵉbîyʻîy — seventhArticleNumberordinal masculine singular

shᵉbîyʻîy: seventh The midpoint of the eleven. Barnes's repeated note on this stretch (vv. 8 to 15) is the relevant frame: these verses preserve an older record largely untouched, ordinals and all.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

Attai the-sixth, Eliel the-seventh,

Where the English smooths the original

אֱלִיאֵל אֱלִיאֵל (ʼĕ·lî·’êl, H447) is a double divine name, my God is God (ʼêl twice over). English “Eliel” is inert; the Hebrew is a confession, and one borne by nine different Israelites in the canon.
עַתַּי עַתַּי (‘at·tay, H6262) is borne by three Israelites in Scripture, one of them a grandson of Sheshan in Judah's line (1 Chronicles 2:35-36). Pulpit's caution applies: the names are “all known elsewhere, but none of them as designating the same persons.” BSB gives no signal either way.
הַשְּׁבִעִי הַשְּׁבִעִי (H7637, articled ordinal) continues the bare numbering. As with v. 10, the verse has no verb and no noun of rank: four Hebrew words, two of them ordinals.

Johanan the eighth, Elzabad the ninth,

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Hebrew — tap a word ↓

yō·w·ḥā·nān haš·šə·mî·nî ’el·zā·ḇāḏ hat·tə·šî·‘î

Word by word4 · parsed

יֽוֹחָנָן֙yō·w·ḥā·nānJohananH3076

√ Yᵉhôwchânân — Jehochanan, the name of eight IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

Yᵉhôwchânân: Yah has been gracious A name that will carry into the New Testament as John. Its recurrence across both the Benjamite (v. 4) and Gadite lists quietly argues that the men crossing to David out of hostile tribes share one confession about who has been gracious.

הַשְּׁמִינִ֔יhaš·šə·mî·nîthe eighthH8066

√ shᵉmîynîy — eightArticleNumberordinal masculine singular

אֶלְזָבָ֖ד’el·zā·ḇāḏElzabadH443

√ ʼElzâbâd — Elzabad, the name of two IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

ʼElzâbâd: God has given Rare (2 verses). The Verifier's candidate list pairs this verse with 1 Chronicles 26:7, the only other occurrence, where an Elzabad appears among the Korahite gatekeepers, a family the voices already dispute at v. 6. We note the coincidence without building on it.

הַתְּשִׁיעִֽי׃hat·tə·šî·‘îthe ninthH8671

√ tᵉshîyʻîy — ninthArticleNumberordinal masculine singular

tᵉshîyʻîy: ninth Ninth of eleven. The precision is the point: the Chronicler is not summarizing a crowd, he is transmitting a roster that someone kept while the men were still alive and the king was still hunted.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

Johanan the-eighth, Elzabad the-ninth,

Where the English smooths the original

יוֹחָנָן יוֹחָנָן (yō·w·ḥā·nān, H3076) is Yah has been gracious, the Hebrew behind the later John. The name has already appeared in the Benjamite list at v. 4 for a different man. English gives no clue that the same confession is being made twice in one chapter by men of two different tribes.
אֶלְזָבָד אֶלְזָבָד (ʼel·zā·ḇāḏ, H443) is God has given, a rare name (2 verses in the canon). It is the Gadite counterpart to Jozabad (Yah has given) at v. 4 and v. 20. The transliteration hides that this list is full of men named for divine gift arriving at a king with nothing to give.
הַתְּשִׁיעִי הַתְּשִׁיעִי (H8671) is the ninth in the unbroken ordinal chain. The chain itself is the verse's real content, and K&D treats the whole run as a single enumerating structure: “in 1 Chronicles 12:9-13 the names are enumerated individually.”

Jeremiah the tenth, and Machbanai the eleventh.

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Hebrew — tap a word ↓

yir·mə·yā·hū hå̄·ʿă·śī·rīs maḵ·ban·nay ‘aš·tê ‘ā·śār

Word by word5 · parsed

יִרְמְיָ֙הוּ֙yir·mə·yā·hūJeremiahH3414

√ Yirmᵉyâh — Jirmejah, the name of eight or nine IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

Yirmᵉyâh: Jeremiah The second Jeremiah of the eleven, distinguished in Hebrew by spelling alone. Cambridge is the voice who catches it; no English version can show it without a footnote.

הָעֲשִׂירִ֔יסhå̄·ʿă·śī·rīsthe tenthH6224

√ ʻăsîyrîy — tenthArticleNumberordinal masculine singular

מַכְבַּנַּ֖יmaḵ·ban·nayand MachbanaiH4344

√ Makbannay — a Macbannite or native of MacbenaNounpropermasculine singular

Makbannay: a Macbannite The last of Gad's eleven. Like Mishmannah at v. 10, he exists in Scripture only in this list. The Chronicler's whole point in recording the names, per Benson at v. 1, is that men who joined a king in exile should not be forgotten for it.

עַשְׁתֵּ֥י‘aš·têthe eleventhH6249

√ ʻashtêy — eleven or (ordinal) eleventhNumbercommon singular construct

ʻashtêy: eleven, eleventh An unusual compound numeral whose first element may relate to the sense one. K&D compares its use at 1 Chronicles 24:12 and reads it here as the eleventh in sequence. Its appearance at the end of an ordinal chain is exactly the kind of rough edge an excerpted source leaves behind.

עָשָֽׂר׃‘ā·śār. . .H6240

√ ʻâsâr — ten (only in combination), iNumbermasculine singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

Jeremiah the-tenth, Machbanai eleven-ten.

Where the English smooths the original

עַשְׁתֵּי עַשְׁתֵּי עָשָׂר (‘aš·tê ‘ā·śār, H6249 with H6240) is not an ordinal at all but the cardinal compound “eleven,” literally something like one-ten. The chain of ordinals (second, third ... tenth) breaks at the last name, and K&D explains why it still reads as an ordinal: the form “at the end of a series of ordinal numbers, denotes the eleventh.” BSB's smooth “the eleventh” hides the grammatical seam.
יִרְמְיָהוּ יִרְמְיָהוּ (yir·mə·yā·hū) is spelled with the long theophoric ending, against יִרְמְיָה at v. 10. Cambridge flags the pair explicitly. BSB prints “Jeremiah” both times, so the English reader cannot tell that the text itself distinguishes the two men.
מַכְבַּנַּי מַכְבַּנַּי (maḵ·ban·nay, H4344) is a gentilic-looking form, “a Macbannite or native of Macbena” per the lexicon, Macbena being a Calebite settlement of 1 Chronicles 2:49. BSB treats it as a plain personal name, which may be right, but the form itself points somewhere.
הָעֲשִׂירִי הָעֲשִׂירִי (H6224) closes the ordinal run. The interlinear transliteration here carries a trailing consonant (a section marker absorbed into the word), one of several places where the supplied data merges a scribal division sign with the preceding form.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

This. too, is poetic, or, at least, rhetorical in character, and quite unlike the chronicler’s usual style.

source ↗

Jamieson, Fausset & BrownCommentary Critical and Explanatory1871

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.

source ↗

Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

the smaller (weaker) could cope with a hundred, the stronger with a thousand men; cf. Leviticus 26:8 . This, which is the only correct interpretation

K&D claims exclusivity for a reading that Pulpit, in the next excerpt, shows is not the only grammatical option. We record the confidence and the counter-option together.

source ↗

The Pulpit CommentarySpence & Exell, eds.1880s

The preposition lamed prefixed to the two numerals," hundred" and" thousand," will signify either that the "little one was as good as a hundred, and the great one as good as a thousand;" or that the "little one was rare as one of a hundred, and the great one rare as one of a thousand.

source ↗

These Gadites were army commanders, the least of whom was a match for a hundred, and the greatest for a thousand.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

’êl·leh mib·bə·nê- ḡāḏ haṣ·ṣā·ḇā ’e·ḥāḏ rā·šê haq·qā·ṭān lə·mê·’āh wə·hag·gā·ḏō·wl lə·’ā·lep̄

Word by word10 · parsed

אֵ֥לֶּה’êl·lehTheseH428

√ ʼêl-leh — these or thosePronouncommon plural

מִבְּנֵי־mib·bə·nê-GaditesH1121

√ bên — a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etcPreposition-mNounmasculine plural construct

גָ֖דḡāḏ. . .H1410

√ Gâd — Gad, a son of Jacob, including his tribe and its territoryNounpropermasculine singular

הַצָּבָ֑אhaṣ·ṣā·ḇāwere armyH6635

√ tsâbâʼ — a mass of persons (or figuratively, things), especially regArticleNouncommon singular

אֶחָ֤ד’e·ḥāḏH259

√ ʼechâd — properly, united, iNumbermasculine singular

רָאשֵׁ֣יrā·šêcommandersH7218

√ rôʼsh — the head (as most easily shaken), whether literal or figurative (in many applications, of place, time, rank, itcNounmasculine plural construct

rôʼsh: the head, chief K&D's distinction is worth holding: heads of the host can mean the foremost fighters in it rather than officers commanding it. JFB makes the historical objection to the officer reading, that “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.”

הַקָּטָ֔ןhaq·qā·ṭānthe least [of whom]H6996

√ qâṭân — abbreviated, iArticleAdjectivemasculine singular

qâṭân: abbreviated, small, least Paired against gâdôwl (great) to form a merism covering the whole company. The rhetorical shape, smallest to largest with numbers attached, is what Ellicott means when he calls the line poetic “and quite unlike the chronicler's usual style.”

לְמֵאָה֙lə·mê·’āhwas a match for a hundredH3967

√ mêʼâh — a hundredPreposition-lNumberfeminine singular

mêʼâh: a hundred The number that puts this verse in the orbit of Leviticus 26:8, where five chase a hundred and a hundred put ten thousand to flight, and of Deuteronomy 32:30, where one chases a thousand. Ellicott cites both. Gill reports Jarchi's reading that the least “would put to flight and pursue one hundred, and the greatest of them 1000, and so fulfilled the passage in Leviticus 26:8.” Read that way, the verse is not a boast about soldiers but a claim that the covenant's promised disproportion is already running.

וְהַגָּד֖וֹלwə·hag·gā·ḏō·wland the greatestH1419

√ gâdôwl — great (in any sense)Conjunctive waw, ArticleAdjectivemasculine singular

לְאָֽלֶף׃lə·’ā·lep̄for a thousandH505

√ ʼeleph — hence (the ox's head being the first letter of the alphabet, and this eventually used as a numeral) a thousandPreposition-lNumbermasculine singular

ʼeleph: a thousand The same noun supplies the tribal division called a thousand at v. 20, where seven Manassites are “chiefs of thousands.” The unit uses the word first as hyperbole and then as an administrative unit, and both senses depend on the same counting.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

These from-sons-of Gad, heads-of the-host: one to-a-hundred the-small, and-the-great to-a-thousand.

Where the English smooths the original

רָאשֵׁי רָאשֵׁי הַצָּבָא (rā·šê, H7218 construct plural) is “heads of the host.” Ellicott renders “literally, heads of the host, i.e., chief warriors,” and K&D insists on the distinction: “heads of the war-host, i.e., chief warriors, not leaders of the host.” BSB's “army commanders” takes the side K&D rejects.
אֶחָד אֶחָד לְמֵאָה is bare and verbless: one to a hundred. BSB supplies “was a match for,” which is an interpretation, and Pulpit shows why it matters by offering the alternative: the preposition “will signify either that the ‘little one was as good as a hundred’ ... or that the ‘little one was rare as one of a hundred.’” The Hebrew states a ratio and leaves the verb to the reader.
הַקָּטָן הַקָּטָן (haq·qā·ṭān, H6996) is “the small one,” the root meaning abbreviated, little, insignificant. BSB's “the least of whom” is idiomatic but converts an absolute adjective into a superlative relative clause. K&D's gloss keeps the force: “the smaller (weaker) could cope with a hundred.”
הַצָּבָא הַצָּבָא (H6635) is the same noun rendered “trained” at v. 8 and “the army” at v. 21. Rendering it three ways in one unit costs the reader a thread: these men are of the host, for the host, and over the host.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

They did not wait till summer had made the Jordan shallow, but crossed it in spring, when perilously swollen with the rains and the melted snows of Lebanon.

source ↗

Jamieson, Fausset & BrownCommentary Critical and Explanatory1871

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.

source ↗

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

all inhabitants of the valleys who in the interest of Saul sought to bar their march westward to join David.

Cambridge names an enemy the Hebrew leaves unnamed. It is a plausible reconstruction shared with JFB and K&D, not a datum of the text.

source ↗

Albert BarnesNotes on the Bible1834

seems to be taken verbatim from an ancient source, the poetical expressions in 1 Chronicles 12:8 , 1 Chronicles 12:14 , being especially unlike the usual style of our author.

source ↗

These are the ones who crossed the Jordan in the first month when it was overflowing all its banks, and they put to flight all those in the valleys, both to the east and to the west.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

’êl·leh hêm ’ă·šer ‘ā·ḇə·rū ’eṯ- hay·yar·dên hā·ri·šō·wn wə·hū ba·ḥō·ḏeš mə·mal·lê ‘al- kāl- gi·ḏ·yō·ṯå̄w way·yaḇ·rî·ḥū ’eṯ- kāl- hā·‘ă·mā·qîm lam·miz·rāḥ wə·lam·ma·‘ă·rāḇ

Word by word19 · parsed

אֵ֣לֶּה’êl·lehTheseH428

√ ʼêl-leh — these or thosePronouncommon plural

הֵ֗םhêmareH1992

√ hêm — they (only used when emphatic)Pronounthird person masculine plural

אֲשֶׁ֨ר’ă·šerthe ones whoH834

√ ʼăsher — who, which, what, thatPronounrelative

עָבְר֤וּ‘ā·ḇə·rūcrossedH5674

√ ʻâbar — to cross overVerbQalPerfectthird person common plural

ʻâbar: to cross over The Jordan-crossing verb of Joshua 3, where the same river is said to fill all its banks in harvest. To cross east to west at flood, in Nisan, toward a fugitive rather than toward a promise, is a deliberate echo with the terms reversed: the miracle of a stopped river is precisely what these men did not get.

אֶת־’eṯ-H853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Direct object marker

הַיַּרְדֵּן֙hay·yar·dênthe JordanH3383

√ Yardên — Jarden, the principal river of PalestineArticleNounproperfeminine singular

הָרִאשׁ֔וֹןhā·ri·šō·wnin the firstH7223

√ riʼshôwn — first, in place, time or rank (as adjective or noun)ArticleAdjectivemasculine singular

riʼshôwn: first, in place, time or rank The first month is Abib or Nisan, which Geneva glosses as “containing half March and half April, when Jordan was wont to overflow its banks.” Cambridge calls it “the month of harvest ... when the snow was melting and filling all streams.” The date is the evidence: Ellicott's point is that “they did not wait till summer had made the Jordan shallow.”

וְה֥וּאwə·hūH1931

√ hûwʼ — he (she or it)Conjunctive wawPronounthird person masculine singular

בַּחֹ֣דֶשׁba·ḥō·ḏešmonthH2320

√ chôdesh — the new moonPreposition-b, ArticleNounmasculine singular

מְמַלֵּ֖אmə·mal·lêwhen it was overflowingH4390

√ mâlêʼ — to fill or (intransitively) be full of, in a wide application (literally and figuratively)VerbPielParticiplemasculine singular

mâlêʼ: to fill, to be full In the Piel with ʻal, to make run over. K&D contrasts the season sharply: in summer the Jordan is fordable at many points, but in spring, swollen by the snows of Lebanon, “it is very dangerous to attempt to cross.” Gill and Poole both suppose the Gadites simply swam it.

עַל־‘al-. . .H5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPreposition

כָּל־kāl-allH3605

√ kôl — properly, the wholeNounmasculine singular construct

גִּדיֹתָיוgi·ḏ·yō·ṯå̄wits banksH1428

√ gidyâh — a river brinkNounfeminine plural constructthird person masculine singular

וַיַּבְרִ֙יחוּ֙way·yaḇ·rî·ḥūand they put to flightH1272

√ bârach — to bolt, iConjunctive wawVerbHifilConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine plural

bârach: to bolt, to flee In the Hifil, to put to flight. Who fled is disputed: Cambridge says the inhabitants “who in the interest of Saul sought to bar their march westward to join David”; JFB agrees they had to “cut their passage through the opposing adherents of Saul”; Gill offers Philistines, Moabites or Arabs, or simply frightened locals. The Hebrew names no enemy at all.

אֶת־’eṯ-H853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Direct object marker

כָּל־kāl-all [those]H3605

√ kôl — properly, the wholeNounmasculine singular construct

הָ֣עֲמָקִ֔יםhā·‘ă·mā·qîmin the valleysH6010

√ ʻêmeq — a vale (iArticleNounmasculine plural

לַמִּזְרָ֖חlam·miz·rāḥ[both] to the eastH4217

√ mizrâch — sunrise, iPreposition-l, ArticleNounmasculine singular

mizrâch: sunrise, the east With maʻărâb (the west, the region of the evening sun) it forms a totality formula. The Gadites came from east of Jordan and cleared the ground on both sides, so the merism is also a literal account of a two-front fight.

וְלַֽמַּעֲרָֽב׃סwə·lam·ma·‘ă·rāḇand to the westH4628

√ maʻărâb — the west (as a region of the evening sun)Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l, ArticleNounmasculine singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

These they who crossed-over the-Jordan in-the-month the-first, and-it filling-over all its-banks; and-they-put-to-flight all the-valleys, to-the-sunrise and-to-the-sunset.

Where the English smooths the original

מְמַלֵּא מְמַלֵּא עַל־כָּל־גִּדיֹתָיו (mə·mal·lê, H4390 mâlêʼ, Piel participle) is literally “filling over all its banks.” K&D notes the construction precisely: “the Piel millêʼ with ʻal denotes to make full, to make to run over, in the signification to overflow.” Ellicott renders it “was filling or brimming over.” BSB's “when it was overflowing” is right but loses the causative force: the river is not merely high, it is actively filling itself past its edges.
וַיַּבְרִיחוּ וַיַּבְרִיחוּ (way·yaḇ·rî·ḥū, H1272 bârach, Hifil) is a causative: they made flee. Ellicott gives the literal, “and they made all the valleys flee.” The root means to bolt, run away, and the Hifil makes the Gadites the cause of someone else's bolting.
הָעֲמָקִים הָעֲמָקִים (H6010) is “the valleys,” and the Hebrew makes the valleys themselves flee. K&D supplies the figure: “the valleys, for the inhabitants of the valleys.” BSB's “all those in the valleys” unpacks the metonymy and so flattens a vivid line into a report.
לַמִּזְרָח לַמִּזְרָח וְלַמַּעֲרָב (H4217, H4628) are not the neutral compass words “east” and “west” but the place of sunrise and the place of the evening sun. The pairing is a merism for everywhere, and Ellicott reads it as “on both sides of the river.” Poole offers two readings, either the people living further and nearer, or a rout scattering in both directions.
גִּדיֹתָיו גִּדיֹתָיו (H1428, gidyâh, a river brink) is a Kethib form; K&D notes the Kethib “comes from gidyâh, elsewhere only the plural” and that the Qere reads the standard form. BSB prints “its banks” with no mark of the variant.

Other Benjamites and some men from Judah also came to David in his stronghold.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

bə·nê ḇin·yā·min wî·hū·ḏāh ‘aḏ- way·yā·ḇō·’ū min- lə·ḏā·wîḏ lam·ṣāḏ

Word by word8 · parsed

בְּנֵ֤יbə·nêOther BenjamitesH1121

bên: a son, in the widest sense The construct “sons of” plus a tribal name is the ordinary formula for tribal membership, the same idiom as “brothers of Saul” in v. 2. The Chronicler is stacking kinship terms in a chapter about men abandoning their kin.

בִנְיָמִן֙ḇin·yā·min. . .H1144

√ Binyâmîyn — Binjamin, youngest son of JacobNounpropermasculine singular

וִֽיהוּדָ֔הwî·hū·ḏāhand some men from JudahH3063

√ Yᵉhûwdâh — Jehudah (or Judah), the name of five IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

Yᵉhûwdâh: Judah David's own tribe, arriving alongside Saul's. Ellicott notes that the names of these men “are not given, why we cannot tell,” and K&D that they are absent “possibly because they were not handed down in the historical works made use of by the chronicler.” The Chronicler records an arrival he cannot itemize, which is itself a mark of honest transmission.

עַד־‘aḏ-H5704

√ ʻad — as far (or long, or much) as, whether of space (even unto) or time (during, while, until) or degree (equally with)Preposition

וַיָּבֹ֗אוּway·yā·ḇō·’ūalso cameH935

√ bôwʼ — to go or come (in a wide variety of applications)Conjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine plural

bôwʼ: to go or come The verb of v. 1 returns in the consecutive imperfect, carrying the register's one continuous action forward: men keep coming. It will appear once more at v. 22, where the coming becomes daily.

מִן־min-. . .H4480

√ min — properly, a part ofPreposition

לְדָוִֽיד׃lə·ḏā·wîḏto DavidH1732

√ Dâvid — David, the youngest son of JessePreposition-lNounpropermasculine singular

לַמְצָ֖דlam·ṣāḏin his strongholdH4679

√ mᵉtsad — a fastness (as a covert of ambush)Preposition-lNounmasculine singular

mᵉtsad: a fastness, a covert of ambush The second of two occurrences (with v. 8). Whether it is Adullam (Barnes), Ziklag (JFB, Poole) or the Judaean fastnesses generally (K&D) is unresolved, and Cambridge declines to decide. What matters narratively is that David is again approached at a defensive position by men he did not summon.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-came sons-of Benjamin and-Judah unto the-stronghold, to-David.

Where the English smooths the original

בְּנֵי בְּנֵי בִנְיָמִן is “sons of Benjamin,” the standard idiom for members of the tribe. BSB's “other Benjamites” adds “other” to distinguish them from vv. 1 to 7; the Hebrew simply names the tribe again and lets the reader notice.
וִיהוּדָה וִיהוּדָה is the bare tribal name Judah, governed by the same construct “sons of.” BSB expands to “some men from Judah.” The addition of Judah here is significant and unexplained: JFB guesses “the Benjamites invited the Judahites to accompany them, in order to prevent David being suspicious of them.” That is a reconstruction, not a translation.
לַמְצָד לַמְצָד (H4679) is the same stronghold word as v. 8, here pointed with qamets rather than pathach (K&D notes the difference). BSB renders “in his stronghold,” supplying a possessive the Hebrew does not have. Poole and Gill both simply refer the reader back: “the same as in 1 Chronicles 12:8.”
עַד־ The supplied interlinear carries עַד־ (H5704, “as far as, until”) at index 3 with no gloss attached, and its English falls elsewhere in the row. The word order of the Hebrew clause and the order of the English glosses do not run together in this verse, and we follow the Hebrew.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

I shall have (fiet mihi) towards you a heart for union, or at unity: that is, a heart at one with and true to you.

source ↗

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

Instead of letting himself be surprised he took up a favourable position in advance from which he could hold parley with them.

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Joseph BensonCommentary on the Old and New Testaments1810s

Which your number, and quality, and near relation to Saul, give me some cause to suspect.

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The Pulpit CommentarySpence & Exell, eds.1880s

The solemn tone of David's language recorded here, and the beautiful pathos and religious appeal of the last two sentences of the verse, bespeak sufferings and disappointments experienced by David heretofore through deception.

Pulpit honestly undercuts his own inference in the next clause, noting there is no direct testimony of any such betrayal by men who came to David. We keep the caution attached.

source ↗

And David went out to meet them, saying, “If you have come to me in peace to help me, my heart will be united with you; but if you have come to betray me to my enemies when my hands are free of violence, may the God of our fathers see it and judge you.”

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

way·yê·ṣê ḏā·wîḏ lip̄·nê·hem way·ya·‘an way·yō·mer lā·hem ’im- bā·ṯem ’ê·lay lə·šā·lō·wm lə·‘ā·zə·rê·nî lî lê·ḇāḇ yih·yeh- lə·yā·ḥaḏ ‘ă·lê·ḵem wə·’im- lə·ram·mō·w·ṯa·nî lə·ṣā·ray bə·ḵap·pay bə·lō ḥā·mās ’ĕ·lō·hê ’ă·ḇō·w·ṯê·nū yê·re wə·yō·w·ḵaḥ

Word by word26 · parsed

וַיֵּצֵ֣אway·yê·ṣêAnd DavidH3318

√ yâtsâʼ — to go (causatively, bring) out, in a great variety of applications, literally and figuratively, direct and proximConjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singular

דָוִיד֮ḏā·wîḏwent outH1732

√ Dâvid — David, the youngest son of JesseNounpropermasculine singular

לִפְנֵיהֶם֒lip̄·nê·hemto meet themH6440

√ pânîym — the face (as the part that turns)Preposition-lNounmasculine plural constructthird person masculine plural

וַיַּ֙עַן֙way·ya·‘an. . .H6030

√ ʻânâh — properly, to eye or (generally) to heed, iConjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singular

וַיֹּ֣אמֶרway·yō·mersayingH559

√ ʼâmar — to say (used with great latitude)Conjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singular

לָהֶ֔םlā·hem

Prepositionthird person masculine plural

אִם־’im-IfH518

√ ʼim — used very widely as demonstrative, lo!Conjunction

בָּאתֶ֤םbā·ṯemyou have comeH935

√ bôwʼ — to go or come (in a wide variety of applications)VerbQalPerfectsecond person masculine plural

אֵלַי֙’ê·layto meH413

√ ʼêl — near, with or amongPrepositionfirst person common singular

לְשָׁל֞וֹםlə·šā·lō·wmin peaceH7965

√ shâlôwm — safe, iPreposition-lNounmasculine singular

shâlôwm: safe, whole, at peace Not merely absence of hostility. David's condition is that they come for shalom, with intent to make whole, and Amasai will answer in v. 18 with a threefold shalom that takes up David's own word and returns it. Ellicott catches the exchange: “David had said, ‘If ye be come for peace’ ... Amasai answers, We will be fast friends with thee.”

לְעָזְרֵ֔נִיlə·‘ā·zə·rê·nîto help meH5826

√ ʻâzar — to surround, iPreposition-lVerbQalInfinitive constructfirst person common singular

לִּ֧יlîmy

Prepositionfirst person common singular

לֵבָ֖בlê·ḇāḇheartH3824

√ lêbâb — the heart (as the most interior organ)Nounmasculine singular

lêbâb: the heart, the most interior organ The seat of will and allegiance rather than emotion. What David offers is a joined will, and K&D's paraphrase is the right weight: “I will be with you of one heart, be true to you.” The offer is conditional and stated aloud, which is the striking thing: David will not simulate trust he does not have.

יִֽהְיֶה־yih·yeh-will beH1961

√ hâyâh — to exist, iVerbQalImperfectthird person masculine singular

לְיָ֑חַדlə·yā·ḥaḏunitedH3162

√ yachad — properly, a unit, iPreposition-lAdverb

עֲלֵיכֶ֛ם‘ă·lê·ḵemwith youH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPrepositionsecond person masculine plural

וְאִֽם־wə·’im-but ifH518

√ ʼim — used very widely as demonstrative, lo!Conjunction

לְרַמּוֹתַ֣נִיlə·ram·mō·w·ṯa·nîyou have come to betray meH7411

√ râmâh — to hurlPreposition-lVerbPielInfinitive constructfirst person common singular

râmâh: to hurl, to beguile The Piel infinitive with a first person suffix. Ellicott reaches for classical parallels of treachery inside the gate, “the false part of Sextus Tarquinius at Gabii, or of Zopyrus at Babylon.” Benson names David's concrete grounds for the fear: “your number, and quality, and near relation to Saul.”

לְצָרַ֗יlə·ṣā·rayto my enemiesH6862

√ tsar — narrowPreposition-lNounmasculine plural constructfirst person common singular

בְּכַפַּ֔יbə·ḵap·paywhen my handsH3709

√ kaph — the hollow hand or palm (so of the paw of an animal, of the sole, and even of the bowl of a dish or sling, the handle of a bolt, the leaves of a palm-tree)Preposition-bNounfeminine dual constructfirst person common singular

בְּלֹ֤אbə·lōare freeH3808

√ lôʼ — not (the simple or absPreposition-bAdverbNegative particle

חָמָס֙ḥā·māsof violenceH2555

√ châmâç — violenceNounmasculine singular

châmâç: violence, wrong A heavy word, the noun that fills the earth before the flood (Genesis 6:11) and that Isaiah 53:9 denies of the Servant. David pleads innocence in the precise vocabulary the canon uses for the innocent sufferer, and Ellicott cites Job 16:17 and Psalm 7:4 alongside it.

אֱלֹהֵ֥י’ĕ·lō·hêmay the GodH430

√ ʼĕlôhîym — gods in the ordinary senseNounmasculine plural construct

אֲבוֹתֵ֖ינוּ’ă·ḇō·w·ṯê·nūof our fathersH1

√ ʼâb — father, in a literal and immediate, or figurative and remote applicationNounmasculine plural constructfirst person common plural

ʼâb: father “The God of our fathers” is a shared possessive, and Benson draws out the argument hidden in the pronoun: David “suggests a reason why they should not deal ill with him: namely, because they were both descendants from the same patriarchs, and servants of the same God.” The appeal is to covenant kinship, the very bond these men have just strained.

יֵ֛רֶאyê·resee [it]H7200

√ râʼâh — to see, literally or figuratively (in numerous applications, direct and implied, transitive, intransitive and causative)VerbQalImperfect Jussivethird person masculine singular

râʼâh: to see A jussive: let him see. David's whole appeal rests on a God who looks, which is Benson's point: “he encourages himself to believe, that God would right him if he were injured.” Nothing in the verse asks God to act on David's behalf against Saul; it asks only that the court be in session.

וְיוֹכַֽח׃סwə·yō·w·ḵaḥand judge youH3198

√ yâkach — to be right (iConjunctive wawVerbHifilImperfect Jussivethird person masculine singular

yâkach: to be right, to decide, to reprove The forensic counterpart to râʼâh. K&D pairs the clause with 2 Chronicles 24:22, where dying Zechariah says “the LORD look upon it, and require it.” Gill notes that the phrase is “not only a wish that he would, but a prayer of faith that so it would be.”

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-went-out David to-their-faces and-answered and-said to-them: “If for-peace you-have-come unto-me to-help-me, there-shall-be to-me toward-you a-heart for-union; but-if to-betray-me to-my-adversaries with-no violence in-my-palms, may-see the-God-of our-fathers and-judge.”

Where the English smooths the original

לְיָחַד לִּי לֵבָב יִהְיֶה־לְיָחַד עֲלֵיכֶם is not “my heart will be united with you.” Ellicott gives the literal: “I shall have (fiet mihi) towards you a heart for union, or at unity,” and K&D “then shall there be to me towards you a heart for union.” The Hebrew makes the heart a thing David will be given, not a state he promises to feel. K&D adds that lêbâb lᵉyâchad here “is plainer than lêb ʼechâd” in v. 38.
לְרַמּוֹתַנִי לְרַמּוֹתַנִי (lə·ram·mō·w·ṯa·nî, H7411 râmâh, Piel infinitive) is the verb to hurl in one sense and to deceive, beguile in another. Ellicott renders “and if to beguile me for my foes,” K&D “to practise deceit against me.” BSB's “to betray me” is the effect; the Hebrew names the method, a trick.
בְּכַפַּי בְּכַפַּי בְּלֹא חָמָס is “in my palms” (kaph, H3709, the hollow of the hand), dual, not the general “hands.” Ellicott's literal is exact: “although (there be) no violence in my palms,” comparing Job 16:17 and Isaiah 53:9. BSB's “when my hands are free of violence” turns a stark noun clause into a temporal one.
וְיוֹכַח יֵרֶא ... וְיוֹכַח are two jussives, and Ellicott insists on the mood: “the verbs are jussive or optative.” Yâkach (H3198) means to be right, hence to argue a case, decide, convict, reprove. BSB's “judge you” supplies an object; Poole and Benson translate “rebuke it.” The Hebrew simply invokes the court and leaves the sentence to it.
לִפְנֵיהֶם לִפְנֵיהֶם is literally “to their faces.” Ellicott notes “literally, before them, i.e., confronted them.” The same noun pânîym carried “the presence of Saul” in v. 1 and “faces of lions” in v. 8. English uses three idioms for one Hebrew word.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Matthew HenryConcise Commentary on the Whole Bible1706

From the words of Amasai we may learn how to testify our affection and allegiance to the Lord Jesus; his we must be throughly; on his side we must be forward to appear and act.

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Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

But if we look deeper, and seek a definite interpretation of our terms, we shall allow that the impulses of spirit are spiritual, and that enthusiasm for truth and right is indeed a sort of divine possession.

Ellicott is restating an ancient claim in Victorian psychological terms. Readers should notice the move: he begins by offering to reword the Spirit as “enthusiasm” and then argues himself back toward possession.

source ↗

Geneva Study BibleMarginal Notes1599

The spirit of boldness and courage moved him to speak thus.

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Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

and here also the Spirit of God is meant; and אלהים is omitted only because all that was of importance here was to show that the resolution announced by Amasai was an effect of higher spiritual influence.

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Then the Spirit came upon Amasai, the chief of the Thirty, and he said: “We are yours, O David! We are with you, O son of Jesse! Peace, peace to you, and peace to your helpers, for your God helps you.” So David received them and made them leaders of his troops.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

wə·rū·aḥ lā·ḇə·šāh ’eṯ- ‘ă·mā·śay rōš haš·šə·lō·šīm lə·ḵā ḏā·wîḏ wə·‘im·mə·ḵā ḇen- yi·šay šā·lō·wm šā·lō·wm lə·ḵā wə·šā·lō·wm lə·‘ō·zə·re·ḵā kî ’ĕ·lō·he·ḵā ‘ă·zā·rə·ḵā dā·wîḏ way·qab·bə·lêm way·yit·tə·nêm bə·rā·šê hag·gə·ḏūḏ

Word by word24 · parsed

וְר֣וּחַwə·rū·aḥThen the SpiritH7307

√ rûwach — windConjunctive wawNouncommon singular

rûwach: wind, breath, spirit The unnamed rûach of this verse is the turning point of the whole unit: David's question cannot be answered from the outside, and it is not answered by argument. Cambridge and Ellicott both cite Judges 6:34 (the Spirit clothed Gideon) and 2 Chronicles 24:20 (the Spirit clothed Zechariah), where the same construction always produces public, committing speech.

לָבְשָׁ֗הlā·ḇə·šāhcame uponH3847

√ lâbash — properly, wrap around, iVerbQalPerfectthird person feminine singular

lâbash: to wrap around, to clothe With rûach as subject and a person as object, the idiom reverses ordinary language: a man does not put on the Spirit, the Spirit puts on the man. The Syriac, Ellicott reports, renders it “the spirit of valour clothed Amasai,” and Gill's Targum-based gloss is “a spirit of fortitude.” Ellicott's own reflection is worth the space: “the impulses of spirit are spiritual, and ... enthusiasm for truth and right is indeed a sort of divine possession.”

אֶת־’eṯ-H853

√ ʼêth — properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely)Direct object marker

עֲמָשַׂי֮‘ă·mā·śayAmasaiH6022

√ ʻĂmâsay — Amasai, the name of three IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

רֹ֣אשׁrōšthe chiefH7218

√ rôʼsh — the head (as most easily shaken), whether literal or figurative (in many applications, of place, time, rank, itcNounmasculine singular construct

הַשְּׁלוֹשִׁיםhaš·šə·lō·šīmof the Thirty, and he saidH7970

√ shᵉlôwshîym — thirtyArticleNounmasculine plural

לְךָ֤lə·ḵāWe are yours

Prepositionsecond person masculine singular

דָוִיד֙ḏā·wîḏO DavidH1732

√ Dâvid — David, the youngest son of JesseNounpropermasculine singular

וְעִמְּךָ֣wə·‘im·mə·ḵāWe are with youH5973

√ ʻim — adverb or preposition, with (iConjunctive wawPrepositionsecond person masculine singular

בֶן־ḇen-O sonH1121

יִשַׁ֔יyi·šayof JesseH3448

√ Yishay — Jishai, David's fatherNounpropermasculine singular

שָׁל֨וֹם׀šā·lō·wmPeaceH7965

√ shâlôwm — safe, iNounmasculine singular

shâlôwm: peace, wholeness Spoken three times in one breath, first to David, then doubled, then extended to his helpers. The repetition answers David's conditional if for shalom in v. 17 by exceeding it, and the ground given is not the speakers' good faith but God's action.

שָׁל֜וֹםšā·lō·wmpeaceH7965

√ shâlôwm — safe, iNounmasculine singular

לְךָ֗lə·ḵāto you

Prepositionsecond person masculine singular

וְשָׁלוֹם֙wə·šā·lō·wmand peaceH7965

√ shâlôwm — safe, iConjunctive wawNounmasculine singular

לְעֹ֣זְרֶ֔ךָlə·‘ō·zə·re·ḵāto your helpersH5826

√ ʻâzar — to surround, iPreposition-lVerbQalParticiplemasculine singular constructsecond person masculine singular

ʻâzar: to surround, to help The unit's governing root, here as a participle (“thy helper”) immediately before its perfect (“thy God has helped thee”). Amasai blesses the helpers and then explains why there are any: the help is derivative. K&D reads the perfect as covering both record and prospect, God “has helped thee in the fortunate combats in which you have heretofore been engaged ... and He will help still further.”

כִּ֥יkîforH3588

√ kîy — (by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below)Conjunction

אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ’ĕ·lō·he·ḵāyour GodH430

√ ʼĕlôhîym — gods in the ordinary senseNounmasculine plural constructsecond person masculine singular

עֲזָרְךָ֖‘ă·zā·rə·ḵāhelps youH5826

√ ʻâzar — to surround, iVerbQalPerfectthird person masculine singularsecond person masculine singular

ʻâzar: to help The decisive clause of the chapter, אֱלֹהֶיךָ עֲזָרְךָ. Cambridge states the evidential basis Amasai is working from: “the belief that David's frequent escapes from Saul were due to Divine protection influenced Amasai and his companions in joining David.” They are reading providence, not prophecy.

דָּוִ֔ידdā·wîḏSo DavidH1732

√ Dâvid — David, the youngest son of JesseNounpropermasculine singular

וַיְקַבְּלֵ֣םway·qab·bə·lêmreceived themH6901

√ qâbal — to admit, iConjunctive wawVerbPielConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singularthird person masculine plural

qâbal: to admit, to receive A late Hebrew verb marking the Chronicler's own narration. David, who had just demanded that God judge a possible betrayal, now simply receives the men on the strength of a Spirit-given word. The reception precedes any test of their loyalty.

וַֽיִּתְּנֵ֖םway·yit·tə·nêmand made themH5414

√ nâthan — to give, used with greatest latitude of application (put, make, etcConjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine singularthird person masculine plural

בְּרָאשֵׁ֥יbə·rā·šêleadersH7218

√ rôʼsh — the head (as most easily shaken), whether literal or figurative (in many applications, of place, time, rank, itcPreposition-bNounmasculine plural construct

הַגְּדֽוּד׃פhag·gə·ḏūḏof his troopsH1416

√ gᵉdûwd — a crowd (especially of soldiers)ArticleNounmasculine singular

gᵉdûwd: a crowd, especially of soldiers The same noun that names the Amalekite raiding band at v. 21. David's own company is called by the word used for a marauding troop, which is exactly what 1 Samuel 22:2 describes it as being. The Chronicler does not dress it up.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-spirit clothed Amasai, head-of the-Thirty: “To-thee, David, and-with-thee, son-of Jesse! Peace, peace to-thee, and-peace to-thy-helper, for thy-God has-helped-thee.” And-received-them David and-gave-them among-heads-of the-band.

Where the English smooths the original

לָבְשָׁה וְרוּחַ לָבְשָׁה אֶת־עֲמָשַׂי (lā·ḇə·šāh, H3847 lâbash, Qal perfect feminine) is not “came upon.” The verb means to wrap around, to put on as clothing, and the Spirit is the subject with Amasai as direct object. Ellicott gives “literally, and spirit clothed Amasai”; Cambridge, “a spirit (i.e. from God) clothed itself with (i.e. entered into) Amasai”; Gill, “or ‘clothed’ him.” The man becomes the garment.
רוּחַ רוּחַ (H7307) stands without ʼĕlôhîym or the divine name. Ellicott suspects a textual loss: “the term for ‘God’ (Elohim) has probably fallen out of the Heb. text.” K&D disagrees, arguing the omission is deliberate because “all that was of importance here was to show that the resolution announced by Amasai was an effect of higher spiritual influence.” BSB's capitalized “the Spirit” silently takes a side.
הַשְּׁלוֹשִׁים רֹאשׁ הַשְּׁלוֹשִׁים is a Kethib/Qere crux. Cambridge sets it out: the Authorized Version follows the Qere “chief of the captains,” the Revised Version the Kethib “chief of the thirty.” Ellicott calls the Qere reading “knights, or chariot-soldiers” and judges it “less probable.” BSB prints “the chief of the Thirty” without noting the split.
לְךָ לְךָ דָוִיד וְעִמְּךָ בֶן־יִשַׁי has no verb at all: to thee, David; and with thee, son of Jesse. Cambridge notes the literal, “For thee, David, and with thee,” and Gill says the clipped form “denotes the vehemency with which he spake.” BSB's “We are yours ... We are with you” supplies a subject and copula twice, taming a shout into a sentence.
וַיְקַבְּלֵם וַיְקַבְּלֵם (way·qab·bə·lêm, H6901 qâbal, Piel) is, as Ellicott observes, “a late Heb. word (qibbēl),” one of the markers of the Chronicler's own hand resuming after an older source. It means to admit, to receive. BSB's plain “received them” is accurate but gives no sign that the vocabulary has just changed centuries.
וַיִּתְּנֵם וַיִּתְּנֵם בְּרָאשֵׁי הַגְּדוּד is literally “and he gave them among the heads of the band.” Ellicott renders “and bestowed them among the heads of the band,” and Poole allows “he put them among the heads or officers of his band.” BSB's “made them leaders” decides a question Poole and Benson both leave open, namely whether the promotion happened then or after David was king.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

At the price of our heads ( 1Chronicles 11:19 ). By betraying us he will make his peace with his old master.

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

their lords here (in Chron.) express their dread lest David reconcile himself to Saul by some act of treachery and slaughter done against his present Philistine patrons

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The Pulpit CommentarySpence & Exell, eds.1880s

The phrase does not correspond with our own idiom of "falling to" one's lot, but with that of" falling away" from the service or love of one to another, i.e. deserting.

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John GillExposition of the Entire Bible1746–63

meaning, that he would go off with his troops to Saul, and betray them into his hands, and with their heads make his peace with him

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Some from Manasseh defected to David when he went with the Philistines to fight against Saul. (They did not help the Philistines because the Philistine rulers consulted and sent David away, saying, “It will cost us our heads if he defects to his master Saul.”)

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

nā·p̄ə·lū ū·mim·mə·naš·šeh ‘al- dā·wîḏ bə·ḇō·’ōw ‘im- pə·liš·tîm ‘al- šā·’ūl lam·mil·ḥā·māh wə·lō ‘ă·zā·rum kî p̄ə·liš·tîm sar·nê ḇə·‘ê·ṣāh šil·lə·ḥu·hū lê·mōr bə·rā·šê·nū yip·pō·wl ’el- ’ă·ḏō·nāw šā·’ūl

Word by word23 · parsed

נָפְל֣וּnā·p̄ə·lūSome fromH5307

√ nâphal — to fall, in a great variety of applications (intransitive or causative, literal or figurative)VerbQalPerfectthird person common plural

nâphal: to fall The blunt verb of desertion, used twice in this verse and again at v. 20. Its ordinary meanings (to fall, to be cast down, to die in battle) give the defection its edge: these men are not portrayed as converts but as deserters, and the Chronicler uses the word anyway.

וּמִֽמְּנַשֶּׁ֞הū·mim·mə·naš·šehManassehH4519

√ Mᵉnashsheh — Menashsheh, a grandson of Jacob, also the tribe descended from him, and its territoryConjunctive waw, Preposition-mNounpropermasculine singular

עַל־‘al-defectedH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPreposition

דָּוִ֗ידdā·wîḏto DavidH1732

√ Dâvid — David, the youngest son of JesseNounpropermasculine singular

בְּבֹא֨וֹbə·ḇō·’ōwwhen he wentH935

√ bôwʼ — to go or come (in a wide variety of applications)Preposition-bVerbQalInfinitive constructthird person masculine singular

bôwʼ: to go or come The chapter's verb of arrival, used here of David marching in a Philistine column against Israel. The Chronicler does not conceal the episode, and Ellicott notes the verse “is a summary of the narrative of 1 Samuel 29:2 to 1 Samuel 30:1.”

עִם־‘im-withH5973

√ ʻim — adverb or preposition, with (iPreposition

פְּלִשְׁתִּ֧יםpə·liš·tîmthe PhilistinesH6430

√ Pᵉlishtîy — a Pelishtite or inhabitant of PeleshethNounpropermasculine plural

עַל־‘al-to fightH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPreposition

שָׁא֛וּלšā·’ūlagainstH7586

√ Shâʼûwl — Shaul, the name of an Edomite and two IsraelitesPreposition

לַמִּלְחָמָ֖הlam·mil·ḥā·māhSaulH4421

√ milchâmâh — a battle (iPreposition-l, ArticleNounfeminine singular

וְלֹ֣אwə·lōThey did notH3808

√ lôʼ — not (the simple or absConjunctive wawAdverbNegative particle

עֲזָרֻ֑ם‘ă·zā·rumhelp the PhilistinesH5826

√ ʻâzar — to surround, iVerbQalPerfectthird person common pluralthird person masculine plural

ʻâzar: to help The unit's key root turns negative for the only time: the one thing these men did not do was help. Read against v. 18, where God's help grounds all other help, the withholding is itself the tell. Geneva puts it plainly: “they came only to help David, and not to help the Philistines, who were enemies of their country.”

כִּ֣יkîbecauseH3588

√ kîy — (by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below)Conjunction

פְלִשְׁתִּים֙p̄ə·liš·tîmthe PhilistineH6430

√ Pᵉlishtîy — a Pelishtite or inhabitant of PeleshethNounpropermasculine plural

סַרְנֵ֤יsar·nêrulersH5633

√ çeren — an axleNounmasculine plural construct

çeren: an axle, a lord of the Philistines A technical term used almost exclusively of the five Philistine rulers, related to the word for an axle or pivot. The Chronicler keeps the foreign political vocabulary intact, which is part of why K&D can lay 1 Samuel 29:1-11 alongside this verse as “the historical commentary on this event.”

בְעֵצָ֗הḇə·‘ê·ṣāhconsultedH6098

√ ʻêtsâh — advicePreposition-bNounfeminine singular

שִׁלְּחֻ֜הוּšil·lə·ḥu·hūand sent David awayH7971

√ shâlach — to send away, for, or out (in a great variety of applications)VerbPielPerfectthird person common pluralthird person masculine singular

לֵאמֹ֔רlê·mōrsayingH559

√ ʼâmar — to say (used with great latitude)Preposition-lVerbQalInfinitive construct

בְּרָאשֵׁ֕ינוּbə·rā·šê·nūIt will cost us our headsH7218

√ rôʼsh — the head (as most easily shaken), whether literal or figurative (in many applications, of place, time, rank, itcPreposition-bNounmasculine plural constructfirst person common plural

rôʼsh: the head Here the literal head, wagered. The same noun has titled every chief in the chapter. The Philistine lords fear losing their heads to a man whose followers are all called heads, and the pun is the Hebrew's, not ours.

יִפּ֖וֹלyip·pō·wlif he defectsH5307

√ nâphal — to fall, in a great variety of applications (intransitive or causative, literal or figurative)VerbQalImperfectthird person masculine singular

אֶל־’el-toH413

√ ʼêl — near, with or amongPreposition

אֲדֹנָ֥יו’ă·ḏō·nāwhis masterH113

√ ʼâdôwn — sovereign, iNounmasculine plural constructthird person masculine singular

שָׁאֽוּל׃šā·’ūlSaulH7586

√ Shâʼûwl — Shaul, the name of an Edomite and two IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-from-Manasseh fell upon David, in-his-coming with the-Philistines against Saul to-the-battle; and-not did-they-help-them, for by-counsel the-lords-of the-Philistines sent-him-away, saying: “With-our-heads he-will-fall to his-master Saul.”

Where the English smooths the original

נָפְלוּ נָפְלוּ עַל־דָּוִיד (nâ·p̄ə·lū, H5307 nâphal) is literally “fell upon David.” Ellicott calls it “the regular term for desertion of one cause for another,” and Pulpit corrects the English idiom directly: the phrase does not mean falling to one's lot but “falling away” from one allegiance to another, “i.e. deserting.” BSB's “defected” is accurate in sense and loses the verb the verse then reuses against David.
יִפּוֹל יִפּוֹל אֶל־אֲדֹנָיו שָׁאוּל uses the same root nâphal the verse opened with, now in the Philistine lords' mouths about David. Cambridge and the Revised Version render it “fall away.” The Hebrew builds the verse on a single verb of desertion aimed in two directions at once; English, using “defected” and then “defects,” nearly keeps it but severs the tie to v. 20.
בְּרָאשֵׁינוּ בְּרָאשֵׁינוּ is “with/at our heads,” the preposition of price. Ellicott translates “at the price of our heads,” Cambridge “rather, at the price of our heads,” K&D “for our heads, i.e., for the price of them.” BSB's “it will cost us our heads” is the right sense but loses that rôʼsh is the same noun that has meant chief in vv. 3, 9, 14, 18 and 20.
בְעֵצָה בְעֵצָה (H6098 ʻêtsâh, advice, counsel) is “by counsel,” which Cambridge renders “after consideration” and K&D compares with Proverbs 20:18. BSB's “consulted and sent David away” splits one prepositional phrase into a second finite verb.
עֲזָרֻם עֲזָרֻם is “they helped them,” and the referents are genuinely ambiguous in Hebrew. Ellicott notes the difficulty and suggests “perhaps the right reading is he helped them ... not they helped them.” BSB resolves it as “they did not help the Philistines”; Poole and Cambridge read it of David's men. The text leaves the subject open.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

The term “thousand” interchanges with “father-house” (clan); and perhaps each clan originally furnished 1,000 warriors to the tribal host.

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The Pulpit CommentarySpence & Exell, eds.1880s

It is scarcely likely that the same name should appear twice in this short list, without some qualifying mark being put to one of the two.

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Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

and consequently before the battle in which Saul lost his life (Berth.), and not after Saul's great misfortune, as Ewald thinks, the Manassites whose names follow went over to David.

K&D is dating the defection against Ewald, who placed it after Gilboa. The Hebrew gives only “in his going to Ziklag,” so the chronology is argued, not stated.

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

This name occurs twice; possibly in the original list different patronymics were attached to the two mentions of the name.

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When David went to Ziklag, these men of Manasseh defected to him: Adnah, Jozabad, Jediael, Michael, Jozabad, Elihu, and Zillethai, chiefs of thousands in Manasseh.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

bə·leḵ·tōw ’el- ṣî·qə·laḡ mim·mə·naš·šeh nā·p̄ə·lū ‘ā·lāw ‘aḏ·naḥ wə·yō·w·zā·ḇāḏ wî·ḏî·‘ă·’êl ū·mî·ḵā·’êl wə·yō·w·zā·ḇāḏ we·’ĕ·lî·hū wə·ṣil·lə·ṯāy rā·šê hā·’ă·lā·p̄îm ’ă·šer lim·naš·šeh

Word by word17 · parsed

בְּלֶכְתּ֣וֹbə·leḵ·tōwWhen David wentH1980

√ hâlak — to walk (in a great variety of applications, literally and figuratively)Preposition-bVerbQalInfinitive constructthird person masculine singular

אֶל־’el-toH413

√ ʼêl — near, with or amongPreposition

צִֽיקְלַ֗גṣî·qə·laḡZiklagH6860

√ Tsiqlag — Tsiklag or Tsikelag, a place in PalestineNounproperfeminine singular

Tsiqlag: Ziklag The chapter closes its geography where it opened it (v. 1). Ellicott, Pulpit and K&D all note the site has never been identified. The place that anchors two of the three lists is, to us, unlocatable.

מִֽמְּנַשֶּׁ֡הmim·mə·naš·šehthese men of ManassehH4519

√ Mᵉnashsheh — Menashsheh, a grandson of Jacob, also the tribe descended from him, and its territoryPreposition-mNounpropermasculine singular

נָפְל֣וּnā·p̄ə·lūdefectedH5307

√ nâphal — to fall, in a great variety of applications (intransitive or causative, literal or figurative)VerbQalPerfectthird person common plural

nâphal: to fall Second occurrence of the desertion verb in two verses. The Manassites do not merely arrive; they fall away from an army about to win onto a man about to lose. K&D dates the move “consequently before the battle in which Saul lost his life,” against Ewald, who put it after Gilboa. The dating decides whether this is faith or opportunism.

עָלָ֣יו׀‘ā·lāwto himH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPrepositionthird person masculine singular

עַ֠דְנַח‘aḏ·naḥAdnahH5734

√ ʻAdnâh — Adnah, the name of two IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

וְיוֹזָבָ֤דwə·yō·w·zā·ḇāḏJozabadH3107

√ Yôwzâbâd — Jozabad, the name of ten IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וִידִֽיעֲאֵל֙wî·ḏî·‘ă·’êlJediaelH3043

√ Yᵉdîyʻăʼêl — Jediael, the name of three IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וּמִיכָאֵ֣לū·mî·ḵā·’êlMichaelH4317

√ Mîykâʼêl — Mikael, the name of an archangel and of nine IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וְיוֹזָבָ֔דwə·yō·w·zā·ḇāḏJozabadH3107

√ Yôwzâbâd — Jozabad, the name of ten IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

וֶאֱלִיה֖וּאwe·’ĕ·lî·hūElihuH453

√ ʼĔlîyhûw — Elihu, the name of one of Job's friends, and of three IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

ʼĔlîyhûw: Elihu Another ʼêl name in a defectors' list, borne elsewhere by one of Job's friends. Five of these seven Manassite names are theophoric. Nothing else is known of any of them: Pulpit concludes flatly that “nothing else is known of these seven captains of the thousands of Manasseh.”

וְצִלְּתָ֑יwə·ṣil·lə·ṯāyand ZillethaiH6769

√ Tsillᵉthay — Tsillethai, the name of two IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

רָאשֵׁ֥יrā·šêchiefsH7218

√ rôʼsh — the head (as most easily shaken), whether literal or figurative (in many applications, of place, time, rank, itcNounmasculine plural construct

rôʼsh: the head, chief Seven heads at once, the largest single influx of rank in the chapter. Gill notes these were “captains over the thousands of the militia of the tribe,” so David gains not seven soldiers but seven clan commands.

הָאֲלָפִ֖יםhā·’ă·lā·p̄îmof thousandsH505

√ ʼeleph — hence (the ox's head being the first letter of the alphabet, and this eventually used as a numeral) a thousandArticleNumbermasculine plural

ʼeleph: a thousand The same noun that measured the greatest Gadite at v. 14. Here it is an administrative division, and Ellicott's suggestion is worth weighing: “perhaps each clan originally furnished 1,000 warriors to the tribal host.” The word slides between arithmetic and kinship.

אֲשֶׁ֥ר’ă·šerH834

√ ʼăsher — who, which, what, thatPronounrelative

לִמְנַשֶּֽׁה׃lim·naš·šehin ManassehH4519

√ Mᵉnashsheh — Menashsheh, a grandson of Jacob, also the tribe descended from him, and its territoryPreposition-lNounpropermasculine singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

In-his-going unto Ziklag, from-Manasseh fell upon-him: Adnah and-Jozabad and-Jediael and-Michael and-Jozabad and-Elihu and-Zillethai, heads-of the-thousands which to-Manasseh.

Where the English smooths the original

בְּלֶכְתּוֹ בְּלֶכְתּוֹ (bə·leḵ·tōw, H1980, infinitive construct with suffix) is “in his going,” a temporal clause with no subject named. BSB supplies “When David went.” K&D reads the phrase as the return march and links it to the lāleḵeṯ of 1 Samuel 29:11; Poole and Cambridge both gloss it “as he returned.” The Hebrew does not say going or returning, only in his walking.
נָפְלוּ נָפְלוּ עָלָיו repeats the desertion verb of v. 19 exactly, now with a pronoun: they fell upon him. BSB's “defected to him” is right in sense, but the Hebrew's repetition is doing structural work, framing vv. 19 to 20 as one act described twice.
רָאשֵׁי הָאֲלָפִים רָאשֵׁי הָאֲלָפִים is “heads of the thousands,” and the thousand is a social unit, not merely a count. Ellicott explains that “the term ‘thousand’ interchanges with ‘father-house’ (clan),” and Cambridge that “tribes were divided into ‘thousands’ which were subdivided into ‘hundreds’ ... of civil as well as of military significance.” BSB's “chiefs of thousands” reads as pure military rank.
וְיוֹזָבָד וְיוֹזָבָד appears twice in the same seven-name list (indices 7 and 10) with nothing to distinguish the two men. Ellicott suspects “the repetition may be a scribe's error”; Pulpit judges it “scarcely likely that the same name should appear twice in this short list, without some qualifying mark”; Cambridge proposes that “in the original list different patronymics were attached.” BSB prints both without comment.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

But why may we not render, “And these helped David over the band,” i.e. , in the joint command of his forces.

A minority reading Ellicott proposes against the Vulgate, Syriac and every other voice in this brief, who all take the band as the Amalekites of 1 Samuel 30. Recorded because the preposition genuinely allows it, not because it is likely.

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Geneva Study BibleMarginal Notes1599

That is, of the Amalekites who had burned the city of Ziklag, 1Sa 30:1,9.

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Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

against the detachment of Amalekites, who during David's absence had surprised and burnt Ziklag, and led captive the women and children

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

The Heb. word gĕdûd , here translated “band,” is translated “troop” ( ib. 1 Samuel 30:8 ; 1 Samuel 30:15 , R.V.). and were captains ] Render, and they became captains

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They helped David against the raiders, for they were all mighty men of valor and commanders in the army.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

wə·hêm·māh ‘ā·zə·rū ‘im- dā·wîḏ ‘al- hag·gə·ḏūḏ kî- way·yih·yū kul·lām ḡib·bō·w·rê ḥa·yil śā·rîm baṣ·ṣā·ḇā

Word by word13 · parsed

וְהֵ֗מָּהwə·hêm·māhTheyH1992

√ hêm — they (only used when emphatic)Conjunctive wawPronounthird person masculine plural

עָזְר֤וּ‘ā·zə·rūhelpedH5826

√ ʻâzar — to surround, iVerbQalPerfectthird person common plural

ʻâzar: to surround, to help Fifth occurrence in the unit. In v. 19 these same Manassites did not help the Philistines; here they help with David. The Chronicler uses one verb to mark both the refusal and the commitment, and the difference between them is simply which side of the line the root falls on.

עִם־‘im-H5973

√ ʻim — adverb or preposition, with (iPreposition

דָּוִיד֙dā·wîḏDavidH1732

√ Dâvid — David, the youngest son of JesseNounpropermasculine singular

עַֽל־‘al-againstH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPreposition

הַגְּד֔וּדhag·gə·ḏūḏthe raidersH1416

√ gᵉdûwd — a crowd (especially of soldiers)ArticleNounmasculine singular

gᵉdûwd: a crowd, a troop, a raiding band The word cuts both ways in this chapter. K&D notes it “in general only denotes single detachments or predatory bands,” used of the Amalekites at 1 Samuel 30:8 and 30:15, and used of David's own company at v. 18. A band of irregulars fights a band of raiders; the difference is not in the word.

כִּֽי־kî-forH3588

√ kîy — (by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below)Conjunction

וַיִּהְי֥וּway·yih·yūthey wereH1961

√ hâyâh — to exist, iConjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine plural

כֻּלָּ֑םkul·lāmallH3605

√ kôl — properly, the wholeNounmasculine singular constructthird person masculine plural

גִבּ֥וֹרֵיḡib·bō·w·rêmighty menH1368

√ gibbôwr — powerfulAdjectivemasculine plural construct

gibbôwr: powerful, mighty The unit's title for its men, applied now to the fourth group in turn (vv. 1, 4, 8, 21). Whatever their tribe and whatever they deserted, the Chronicler gives them all the same description.

חַ֖יִלḥa·yilof valorH2428

√ chayil — probably a force, whether of men, means or other resourcesNounmasculine singular

שָׂרִ֖יםśā·rîmand commandersH8269

√ sar — a head person (of any rank or class)Nounmasculine plural

sar: a head person of any rank or class A different word from rôʼsh, denoting an officer or prince. Its arrival at the end of the register signals organization: an outlaw band with sarim in its tsâbâʼ has become something a chronicler can call an army, which is exactly what v. 22 then says.

בַּצָּבָֽא׃baṣ·ṣā·ḇāin the armyH6635

√ tsâbâʼ — a mass of persons (or figuratively, things), especially regPreposition-b, ArticleNouncommon singular

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-they helped with David against the-band, for they-were all-of-them mighty-ones-of valor, and-commanders in-the-host.

Where the English smooths the original

עָזְרוּ עִם־ עָזְרוּ עִם־דָּוִיד is “helped with David,” not “helped David.” The preposition makes them fellow-agents rather than benefactors, which fits Amasai's word in v. 18 for those blessed as David's helpers. BSB's “They helped David” makes David the object of aid rather than the partner in it.
הַגְּדוּד הַגְּדוּד (H1416, a crowd especially of soldiers) is the same noun used of David's own band at v. 18. BSB renders it “the raiders” here and “his troops” there, hiding that the Chronicler uses one word for both David's company and the Amalekite raiding party. Cambridge notes the same word is translated “troop” at 1 Samuel 30:8 and 30:15.
עַל־ עַל־הַגְּדוּד is usually read “against the band,” and Geneva, Gill, Poole, JFB and K&D all identify that band as the Amalekites who burned Ziklag. Ellicott alone proposes reading the preposition as “over”: “And these helped David over the band, i.e., in the joint command of his forces.” The Hebrew preposition carries both, and BSB chooses one.
וַיִּהְיוּ וַיִּהְיוּ ... שָׂרִים is a consecutive imperfect, and Cambridge and Pulpit both correct the English: “render, and they became captains.” BSB's “they were ... commanders” states a prior status where the Hebrew may be describing a promotion, exactly parallel to David making the men of v. 18 heads of the band.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

Ancient Hebrew denotes excellence by reference to the Divine standard, which is the true ideal of all excellence.

source ↗

Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

The greatness of a host of God is to be estimated according to the power and the spirit, not according to the number, of the warriors

K&D is answering Movers, who read the verse as an idealizing exaggeration by a later hand. His reply, that the expression “is only rhetorical, not idealizing or exaggerating,” is a defense of the Chronicler's honesty as a historian.

source ↗

Matthew PooleAnnotations upon the Holy Bible1685

innumerable, like the stars or angels, both which are called God’s hosts.

source ↗

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

The epithet “of God” is used to distinguish a thing as “very great.”

source ↗

For at that time men came to David day after day to help him, until he had a great army, like the army of God.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

kî lə·‘eṯ- yā·ḇō·’ū ‘al- dā·wîḏ yō·wm bə·yō·wm lə·‘ā·zə·rōw ‘aḏ- ḡā·ḏō·wl lə·ma·ḥă·neh kə·ma·ḥă·nêh ’ĕ·lō·hîm

Word by word13 · parsed

כִּ֚יkîForH3588

√ kîy — (by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below)Conjunction

לְעֶת־lə·‘eṯ-at [that] timeH6256

√ ʻêth — time, especially (adverb with preposition) now, when, etcPreposition-lNouncommon singular construct

יָבֹ֥אוּyā·ḇō·’ūmen cameH935

√ bôwʼ — to go or come (in a wide variety of applications)VerbQalImperfectthird person masculine plural

bôwʼ: to go or come The verb that opened the unit (v. 1) closes it, now in an imperfect of habit. The register has been a snapshot of names; this verse converts it into a process. Poole places the window precisely: “while he was at Ziklag, and in his march to Hebron, and principally at Hebron.”

עַל־‘al-toH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPreposition

דָּוִ֖ידdā·wîḏDavidH1732

√ Dâvid — David, the youngest son of JesseNounpropermasculine singular

י֣וֹםyō·wmdayH3117

√ yôwm — a day (as the warm hours), whether literal (from sunrise to sunset, or from one sunset to the next), or figurative (a space of time defined by an associated term), (often used adverb)Nounmasculine singular

בְּי֔וֹםbə·yō·wmafter dayH3117

לְעָזְר֑וֹlə·‘ā·zə·rōwto help himH5826

√ ʻâzar — to surround, iPreposition-lVerbQalInfinitive constructthird person masculine singular

ʻâzar: to surround, to help The last of six occurrences. Every arrival in this chapter is described by the same infinitive of purpose: they came to help him. Against that, v. 18's perfect stands as the ground of it all, God has helped you. The chapter's theology of human help is entirely derivative and entirely real.

עַד־‘aḏ-untilH5704

√ ʻad — as far (or long, or much) as, whether of space (even unto) or time (during, while, until) or degree (equally with)Preposition

גָד֖וֹלḡā·ḏō·wlhe had a greatH1419

√ gâdôwl — great (in any sense)Adjectivemasculine singular

gâdôwl: great, in any sense The same adjective that described the strongest Gadite at v. 14. Applied now to the camp as a whole, it completes the arithmetic the unit has been running: one against a thousand, then a thousand-fold company, then a company measured by a standard no census reaches.

לְמַחֲנֶ֥הlə·ma·ḥă·neharmyH4264

√ machăneh — an encampment (of travellers or troops)Preposition-lNouncommon singular

machăneh: an encampment of travellers or troops Not a standing army but a camp, a company on the move with no settled ground, which is exactly David's situation. The word is used twice in a row here, once of David's company and once of God's, so the comparison is made with a single repeated noun.

כְּמַחֲנֵ֥הkə·ma·ḥă·nêhlike the armyH4264

√ machăneh — an encampment (of travellers or troops)Preposition-kNouncommon singular construct

אֱלֹהִֽים׃פ’ĕ·lō·hîmof GodH430

√ ʼĕlôhîym — gods in the ordinary senseNounmasculine plural

ʼĕlôhîym: God “A camp of God” may be a superlative (Cambridge: the epithet is used “to distinguish a thing as ‘very great’”; Geneva: “the Hebrews say a thing is of God when it is excellent”), or a real theological claim (Poole: “innumerable, like the stars or angels,” with the Targum reading it of the heavenly host). Poole himself rules out the flattened reading on grammatical grounds: with the comparative particle present, “it had been very improper to say, a great host like a great host.” K&D gives the measure that decides it: greatness here is reckoned “according to the power and the spirit, not according to the number, of the warriors.”

Literal — word-for-word from the original

For at-time-of day-by-day they-were-coming unto David to-help-him, until to-a-great camp, like-a-camp-of-God.

Where the English smooths the original

יוֹם בְּיוֹם לְעֶת־יוֹם בְּיוֹם is literally, as Ellicott renders it, “for at the time of each day,” and Cambridge “from day to day.” K&D gives “at the time of each day.” BSB's “at that time men came to David day after day” splits one construct phrase into two adverbials and inserts the subject “men,” which the Hebrew leaves unstated.
יָבֹאוּ יָבֹאוּ (H935, imperfect) with no expressed subject is durative: they kept coming. Ellicott renders “men used to come to David to help him.” The imperfect is the grammatical engine of the verse: the growth is habitual, not an event.
כְּמַחֲנֵה אֱלֹהִים כְּמַחֲנֵה אֱלֹהִים is “like a camp of God,” a machăneh (H4264, an encampment of travellers or troops), not the English “army.” Cambridge says “the phrase comes from Genesis 32:2” (Jacob at Mahanaim), and Ellicott quotes that passage in full, noting the expression “has an antique colouring.” BSB's “army of God” is idiomatic but hides the link to Jacob's camp and to Mahanaim.
לְעָזְרוֹ לְעָזְרוֹ (H5826, infinitive construct with suffix) is “to help him,” the sixth and last appearance of the root that has run through vv. 1, 17, 18, 19, 21 and here. BSB translates it consistently at this point, but the English reader has met the root as “helped him in battle,” “help me,” “helpers,” “help the Philistines” and “helped David,” with no marker that one Hebrew word is beneath them all.

The verse-by-verse work is done. What follows gathers the whole unit. All three layers below are machine-generated (⚙). Weigh them; they have no authority.

⚙

Grand Commentary — the unit, read whole

synthesis · verify

AI synthesis — woven from the public-domain voices above and the original text; generated and fallible.

i. A register kept while the king had nothing to give — 1 Chronicles 12:1-7

The chapter opens on a man who cannot reward anyone. עָצוּר (ʻā·ṣūr, H6113, Qal passive participle) is not a word for exile abroad but for being shut in, held back, fenced off. K&D reads it as a concise clause, “he was still held back before Saul,” and glosses it “imprisoned as it were, without being able to appear in a manner corresponding to his divine election to be ruler over Israel”; Cambridge puts it plainly, David “was shut in, as in a prison, and unable to move freely through the land of Israel.” Ellicott allows both the concise Hebrew and the rendering “banished from the presence of Saul.” Benson notices what the register itself is doing: the Chronicler “thought fit to do those the honour of having their names recorded, (which was omitted in the book of Samuel,) who came and joined themselves to him when he was in exile.” The men listed are Benjamites, Saul's own tribesmen (v. 2), and the ambidextrous מַיְמִינִים וּמַשְׂמִאלִים of Benjamin are the clan Judges 20:16 made famous. JFB weighs what that defection cost and meant: it “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.” Poole says the same with more theology in it, that they “were moved hereunto by God's Spirit, and by the conscience of their duty to David, to whom God had given the crown in reversion.” The names themselves are a quiet argument: Bealiah, Baal is Jah, of which Ellicott notes that “such names indicate that ‘Baal’ was once a title of the God of Israel”; the Korahites of v. 6, whom K&D takes for Levites of the doorkeeping line, while Cambridge answers that “probably not the Levitic but the Calebitic sons of Korah, who belonged to Judah, are meant.” The list will not resolve for us whether it is purely Benjamite; Ellicott records that some “account for the appearance of Judaean names in a list purporting to relate to Benjaminites, by the assumption that the chronicler has welded two; lists into one.”

ii. Lion faces at the stronghold, and a river taken at flood — 1 Chronicles 12:8-15

The second list changes register and, as Barnes insists, changes source: this passage “seems to be taken verbatim from an ancient source, the poetical expressions in 1 Chronicles 12:8, 1 Chronicles 12:14, being especially unlike the usual style of our author.” Ellicott hears the same seam, that “the poetic style of this betrays its ancient source” and that the Chronicler is “borrowing from some contemporary record.” The Gadites נִבְדְּלוּ (niḇ·də·lū, Niphal of bâdal, H914): the root that divides light from darkness and holy from common is here used of men tearing themselves off their own tribe. They are עֹרְכֵי צִנָּה וָרֹמַח, arrayers of shield and lance, and Cambridge explains the drill: “at the threat of an attack an army was drawn up in close array, shield touching shield and spears at the charge. Only in a high state of discipline could men quickly and effectively handle shield and spear thus.” Then the two similes, lion and gazelle, which Benson reads as terror and pursuit together, men “full of courage, and by the majesty and fierceness of their countenances terrified their adversaries.” Verse 14 is the crux the voices split over. K&D allows only one sense, that “the smaller (weaker) could cope with a hundred, the stronger with a thousand men,” and JFB agrees, calling it “a strong hyperbole to express their uncommon valor.” Pulpit keeps a second door open, that the little one may be “rare as one of a hundred.” Ellicott simply marks the line as verse: “This. too, is poetic, or, at least, rhetorical in character, and quite unlike the chronicler's usual style.” The proof follows in v. 15, a Jordan crossing in Nisan. Ellicott: “They did not wait till summer had made the Jordan shallow, but crossed it in spring, when perilously swollen with the rains and the melted snows of Lebanon.” JFB calls the feat what it is: “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.”

iii. The parley at the gate: a king who will not assume loyalty — 1 Chronicles 12:16-18

Benjamin and Judah arrive together, and JFB suspects the pairing was deliberate: “it is probable that the Benjamites invited the Judahites to accompany them, in order to prevent David being suspicious of them.” David is suspicious anyway. Cambridge notes the tactics, that “instead of letting himself be surprised he took up a favourable position in advance from which he could hold parley with them.” His speech is built on two conditional אִם clauses with a lawsuit at the end. “If for peace” yields לִּי לֵבָב יִהְיֶה־לְיָחַד, which Ellicott renders literally as “I shall have (fiet mihi) towards you a heart for union,” that is “a heart at one with and true to you.” If betrayal, then בְּכַפַּי בְּלֹא חָמָס, no violence in my palms, and two jussives: let the God of our fathers see and adjudicate. Benson hears the grounds of David's fear, “which your number, and quality, and near relation to Saul, give me some cause to suspect,” and Pulpit, honestly, notes that we have no recorded instance of such a betrayal, that “the solemn tone of David's language recorded here ... bespeak sufferings and disappointments experienced by David heretofore through deception” without direct testimony behind it. The answer is not argument but possession: וְרוּחַ לָבְשָׁה אֶת־עֲמָשַׂי, spirit clothed Amasai. Cambridge translates the idiom exactly, “a spirit (i.e. from God) clothed itself with (i.e. entered into) Amasai,” and K&D argues that “here also the Spirit of God is meant,” the divine name being omitted only to stress “an effect of higher spiritual influence.” Geneva is flatter, “the spirit of boldness and courage moved him to speak thus.” Ellicott lays out the answer as verse, “To thee, David! And with thee, son of Ishai! Peace, peace to thee. And peace to thine helper; For thy God hath holpen thee!” David's conditional if for peace is answered with a threefold שָׁלוֹם, and the ground given is not Amasai's sincerity but God's prior help.

iv. Deserters from a doomed house, and a camp of God — 1 Chronicles 12:19-22

The last list is the ugliest and the most honest. נָפְלוּ (nâphal, H5307) is, as Ellicott says, “the regular term for desertion of one cause for another,” and Pulpit sharpens it: the phrase means “falling away” from the service of one to another, “i.e. deserting.” The same verb is then turned back on David by the Philistine lords: he will יִפּוֹל to his master Saul בְּרָאשֵׁינוּ, at the price of our heads. Cambridge states their fear precisely: “their lords here (in Chron.) express their dread lest David reconcile himself to Saul by some act of treachery and slaughter done against his present Philistine patrons.” The Chronicler does not hide that David was marching in a Philistine column against Israel; he records only that the Manassites “did not help” and that David was dismissed. K&D dates the accession carefully, “consequently before the battle in which Saul lost his life ... the Manassites whose names follow went over to David.” These seven then help him against הַגְּדוּד, which Geneva identifies as “the Amalekites who had burned the city of Ziklag,” and K&D as the detachment “who during David's absence had surprised and burnt Ziklag, and led captive the women and children.” Ellicott, alone, proposes reading the preposition otherwise, “And these helped David over the band, i.e., in the joint command of his forces.” The unit then closes with an accountant's cadence, יוֹם בְּיוֹם, day upon day, until the band is כְּמַחֲנֵה אֱלֹהִים, like a camp of God. Poole takes it as sheer number, “innumerable, like the stars or angels, both which are called God's hosts”; Cambridge as pure idiom, the epithet used “to distinguish a thing as ‘very great.’” K&D refuses the inflation and gives the better measure: “the greatness of a host of God is to be estimated according to the power and the spirit, not according to the number, of the warriors.” Ellicott generalizes it: “Ancient Hebrew denotes excellence by reference to the Divine standard, which is the true ideal of all excellence.”

Read under Sola Scriptura — this tool’s own fallible reading (⚙)

⚙ Our own fallible reading, offered to be tested. Chapter 11 listed the men who served a crowned king; chapter 12 lists the men who came when there was no crown, no pay, no territory, and a standing warrant. That is the whole point of the dating clause in v. 1: while he was still עָצוּר, shut in. The register is not a muster roll, it is a record of timing. Nothing in it can be explained by advantage. The Benjamites gave up their own tribe's throne; the Gadites gave up the far side of Jordan and then crossed it at flood; the Manassites deserted an army that was, that very week, winning. And the text is scrupulous about the cost of reading hearts: David cannot tell friend from assassin, so he does not pretend to. He states the two possibilities aloud, refuses to prejudge, and hands the verdict to אֱלֹהֵי אֲבוֹתֵינוּ with two jussives. That is the posture of a man who believes there is a court above his own suspicion. What breaks the deadlock is not evidence but the Spirit, and note what the Spirit produces in Amasai: not a vision, not a prophecy of the throne, but a confession and a blessing whose ground is outside the speaker, for your God helps you. The men do not make David king. They recognize that God already has, and they say so before the fact is visible. Then the arithmetic of v. 22 runs the other way from every worldly calculation: the camp grows daily, not because David won, but because men kept coming to the loser. If v. 14 means what K&D and JFB say it means, one man against a hundred, then the register is also a standing rebuke to counting. A camp becomes a camp of God when its strength is God's help rather than its numbers, which is exactly K&D's point and the reason he refuses to inflate the figures. We hold this loosely: the Chronicler's silences are real, and he is writing the exile's case for David long after the fact.

Loyalty offered before the crown is the only loyalty the crown cannot buy.

⚙

Canonical Threads — out to the whole of Scripture

cross-refs · verify

AI-generated connections. Each carries a verification badge with a recorded basis; contested links are flagged.

Beracah the man and the Valley of Beracah structural / thematic: confirmed

The Benjamite וּבְרָכָה (Bᵉrâkâh, H1294) in v. 3 shares his name with only one other place in the canon: the valley where Jehoshaphat's people blessed the LORD after a battle they did not fight. The Verifier records the shared lexeme, and it is genuinely rare. We decline the verbal tier anyway, because a personal name and a place name are the same form, not the same claim, and no commentator in the brief draws the link. What survives is a real thematic rhyme: both texts stand at the seam between a deliverance and the naming of it.

2 Chronicles 20:26

basis: Verifier: shared Hebrew lexeme H1294 Bᵉrâkâh (in 2 vv, the only other occurrence in the canon), with H6010 ʻêmeq (in 64 vv) and H7243 rᵉbîyʻîy (in 54 vv). Rare enough to qualify for a verbal tier, deliberately downgraded: the shared form is a proper name used of a man here and of a valley there, so there is no quotation and no borrowing to claim.

Benjamin's left hand, from the war at Gibeah to the war for David structural / thematic: confirmed

Verse 2's Hiphil participles מַיְמִינִים וּמַשְׂמִאלִים describe fighters at home with either hand, slinging בָּאֲבָנִים. Cambridge makes the link explicit: “on the occasion described in Judges 20 the Benjamites are said to have had seven hundred men lefthanded who could sling stones at a hair and not miss,” and Barnes, Ellicott, Poole and K&D all cite the same passage. The Verifier can only confirm the shared stone, not a quotation. The point of the pairing is reversal: the tribal skill that once slaughtered Israel at Gibeah now defends Israel's true king against Gibeah's own son.

Judges 20:16 · Judges 3:15

basis: Verifier pair check on 1 Chronicles 12:2 / Judges 20:16 returns one shared lexeme, H68 ʼeben (in 239 vv), a common word: that is a motif link, not a quotation. The stronger warrant is editorial, five named commentators (Cambridge, Barnes, Ellicott, Poole, K&D) independently cite Judges 20:16 here.

One against a hundred: the covenant arithmetic of Leviticus structural / thematic: confirmed

Verse 14's terse אֶחָד לְמֵאָה ... וְהַגָּדוֹל לְאָלֶף is the Levitical blessing formula, five chasing a hundred and a hundred ten thousand, applied to Gad's captains. Barnes, Gill, Cambridge and K&D all cite Leviticus 26:8 at this verse, and Gill adds Jarchi's reading that the least “would put to flight and pursue one hundred.” Read together, the Chronicler is not flattering soldiers, he is claiming that the covenant's promised disproportion is already operating around the exiled anointed.

Leviticus 26:8 · Deuteronomy 32:30

basis: Verifier pair check on 1 Chronicles 12:14 / Leviticus 26:8 returns only H3967 mêʼâh (in 510 vv), far too common to carry a verbal claim. Tiered structural on a shared numerical formula plus the converging citation of Leviticus 26:8 by Barnes, Gill, Cambridge and K&D.

The Spirit that puts a man on like clothing structural / thematic: confirmed

וְרוּחַ לָבְשָׁה אֶת־עֲמָשַׂי uses lâbash (H3847, to wrap around, to clothe) with the Spirit as subject and the man as direct object. The idiom is rare, and every voice in the brief that treats it points to the same two verses: Cambridge and Ellicott cite Judges 6:34 and 2 Chronicles 24:20, K&D likewise. In each case the clothing produces speech or a summons that commits the speaker publicly and irreversibly. Ellicott notices that the divine name is missing here and suspects a textual loss; K&D argues it was never needed.

Judges 6:34 · 2 Chronicles 24:20

basis: Verifier pair check on 1 Chronicles 12:18 / Judges 6:34 returns H3847 lâbash (in 102 vv) and H7307 rûwach (in 348 vv). Both lexemes are common, so no verbal tier: what is rare is the construction (rûach as subject of lâbash with a person as object), and that is a pattern claim, not a quotation.

Mahaneh Elohim: Jacob's camp and David's structural / thematic: confirmed

The closing כְּמַחֲנֵה אֱלֹהִים borrows the phrase Jacob coined at Mahanaim when the angels met him. Ellicott makes the link and quotes Genesis 32 in full, noting the phrase “has an antique colouring”; Cambridge says flatly that “the phrase comes from Genesis 32:2.” Both texts describe a vulnerable man, returning without a throne, discovering that the company around him is larger than the company he counted.

Genesis 32:1-2 · Psalm 68:17

basis: Verifier pair check on 1 Chronicles 12:22 / Genesis 32:2 returns H4264 machăneh (in 189 vv), a common noun: the link rests on the fixed phrase machăneh Elohim and on the explicit derivation asserted by Cambridge and Ellicott, not on lexeme rarity.

With me or against me: David's test and the Lord's structural / thematic: confirmed

David's demand in v. 17 is binary, peace or betrayal, with no neutral third option, and Amasai's answer is equally binary: לְךָ דָוִיד וְעִמְּךָ בֶן־יִשַׁי, to you and with you. Ellicott himself reaches for the Gospel here, glossing “on thy side” as Hebrew with thee and comparing “our Saviour's ‘He that is not with me is against me.’” This is a cross-Testament link, so no shared Strong's number can exist between a Hebrew text and a Greek one and no verbal tier is possible. It is a structural correspondence: the rejected anointed puts the same either/or to those who approach him.

Matthew 12:30 · Luke 11:23

basis: Cross-Testament (Hebrew to Greek), so shared Strong's lexemes are structurally impossible and a verbal tier is excluded by definition. Recorded basis: the shared binary allegiance formula, asserted by Ellicott at 1 Chronicles 12:18, who cites the saying of Christ directly.

Whose Korahites? A disputed line in verse 6 flagged: verify source

הַקָּרְחִים is read three different ways by the named voices, and the difference matters: it decides whether Levites left the sanctuary to fight for David. K&D says “without doubt” they are Levites of the doorkeeping division, and that “their service in the porter's office in the holy place may have roused in them the desire to fight for David, the chosen of the Lord.” Cambridge, following Bertheau, holds that “probably not the Levitic but the Calebitic sons of Korah” are meant. Gill denies both and posits a Benjamite Korah, while Pulpit admits that “some authorities are as positive that this name designates Levitic Korahites, as others are sceptical about it.” We record the dispute rather than settle it.

1 Chronicles 9:19 · 1 Chronicles 2:43

basis: No Verifier lexeme basis was computed for either pair, and the underlying identification is contested among the named public-domain voices themselves (K&D Levitic, Cambridge and Bertheau Calebitic, Gill Benjamite, Pulpit undecided). Flagged so the reader checks the primary genealogies rather than trusting any one commentator.

⚙Christ in the Unittypology · verify

AI-generated reading; weigh it against the text.

Amasai's confession and the confession of the Church ancient/widely-held

⚙ The only direct speech in these twenty-two verses is a confession of allegiance to a rejected king, spoken under the Spirit, grounded not in the speaker's resolve but in God's prior help: for your God helps you. Henry draws the line himself: “from the words of Amasai we may learn how to testify our affection and allegiance to the Lord Jesus; his we must be throughly; on his side we must be forward to appear and act,” and he ties the Spirit's clothing of Amasai to the believer's own confession, “if we are under the influence of the Spirit, we shall desire to have our lot among them.” Ellicott independently compares David's either/or with Christ's “He that is not with me is against me.” The shape is apostolic: no one says the confession except by the Spirit, and the confession precedes the coronation. Amasai names the son of Jesse as king while Saul still wears the crown, exactly as the Church names Jesus as Lord while the present age still holds the throne.

Matthew 12:30 · 1 Corinthians 12:3 · Romans 10:9

The stronghold that takes in the distressed ancient/widely-held

⚙ Men in debt, in distress and in bitterness gathered to David at the cave (1 Samuel 22:2); here the same stronghold takes in deserters from Gad, doubted Benjamites and Manassites who had just walked out of a Philistine battle line. וַיְקַבְּלֵם (qâbal, H6901, to admit, to receive) is the pivot of v. 18: David receives them and then gives them rank. Henry reads the whole register this way, that “no difficulties or dangers should keep the sinner from coming to the Savior,” and that “if in faith and love we embrace the cause of Christ, he will receive, employ, and advance us.” That is the pattern exactly: received first, then employed, then advanced. The rejected king's refuge is the one place where a man's past allegiance does not disqualify him.

1 Samuel 22:2 · Matthew 11:28 · John 6:37

Day by day, until it was a camp of God novel

⚙ Verse 22's cadence is cumulative and unspectacular: יוֹם בְּיוֹם, day upon day, men kept coming לְעָזְרוֹ, to help him, until the band was like a camp of God. K&D refuses to inflate the numbers and insists the greatness of such a camp is measured “according to the power and the spirit, not according to the number, of the warriors.” We offer, as our own reading and not as anything the named voices say, that this is the growth pattern the Acts narrative reports of the first assembly gathered to the risen Son of David, daily additions to a company with no throne, no territory and a warrant out against it. The link is ours, and the reader should weigh it as such: no commentator in this unit's brief makes it, and no verbal basis is claimed.

Acts 2:47 · Acts 5:14

Apparatus & Provenance

The biblical text is the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain (CC0). Hebrew/Greek text, transliteration, morphology and Strong’s are transcribed from the Berean interlinear (CC0) + Strong’s lexicons (PD); the literal renderings, divergence notes, word notes and all synthesis are this tool’s own work (⚙) — fallible; verify them.

Named voices, quoted verbatim from public-domain works:

Albert Barnes, Notes on the Bible (1834)
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges, — (1880s)
Charles Ellicott, Commentary for English Readers (1878)
Geneva Study Bible, Marginal Notes (1599)
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory (1871)
John Gill, Exposition of the Entire Bible (1746–63)
Joseph Benson, Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1810s)
Keil & Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1860s)
Matthew Henry, Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible (1706)
Matthew Poole, Annotations upon the Holy Bible (1685)
The Pulpit Commentary, Spence & Exell, eds. (1880s)

Text: BSB (CC0) with the Berean interlinear and Strong's numbering. Several alignment quirks in the supplied interlinear are the data's, not the Hebrew's, and we flag them rather than smooth them: in 12:16 the gloss order runs ahead of the Hebrew (the verb וַיָּבֹאוּ stands at index 4 while its English “also came” is attached there, and index 3 עַד־ carries no gloss); in 12:18 index 5 carries both “of the Thirty” and “and he said,” the second having no separate Hebrew word in the row; in 12:19 the glosses for indices 7 through 9 are displaced, so that שָׁאוּל is labelled “against” and לַמִּלְחָמָה is labelled “Saul”; and in 12:8 the infinitive לְמַהֵר is indexed before וְכִצְבָאיִם though the sense runs the other way. Our notes follow the Hebrew forms and their parses, not the displaced English.

Textual uncertainty inside the Hebrew itself: 12:3 וִיזוּאֵל is Jeziel in the margin and Jezuel in the text (Ellicott); 12:5 הַחֲרִיפִי is Kethib Haruphite, Qere Hariphite (K&D); 12:8 several older printed editions read וּמָגֵן (buckler) for וָרֹמַח (lance), which Cambridge calls “a mistake of several early editions of the printed Heb. text” with “hardly any MS. authority”; 12:15 גִּדיֹתָיו is Kethib for the Qere plural; 12:18 the Kethib reads “chief of the thirty” where the Qere reads “chief of the captains” (Cambridge, Ellicott); 12:19 Ellicott suggests the consonants may originally have read “he helped them” rather than “they helped them.” We have not chosen between these readings.

What is genuinely unknown: the site of Ziklag (Ellicott, K&D and Pulpit all say it is unidentified); which stronghold is meant in 12:8 and 12:16 (Barnes votes Adullam, JFB and Poole vote Ziklag, Ellicott lists Adullam, Hachilah, Maon and En-gedi, Cambridge declines to decide); whether the first list is purely Benjamite or has absorbed Judaean names (Bertheau via JFB and Cambridge say yes, K&D argues at length that it does not follow); whether Amasai of 12:18 is the Amasa of 2 Samuel 17:25 (Ellicott, Cambridge and K&D think it likely, Barnes doubts it because David would hardly have suspected a band led by his own nephew); and whether the duplicated Jozabad in 12:20 is a scribal repetition (Ellicott and Pulpit suspect so, Cambridge suggests lost patronymics). The chronology is also disputed: Cambridge holds that “chronologically 1 Chronicles 12:8 should precede 1 Chronicles 12:1”, so the register is arranged by group rather than by date.

The pull quote above the sola reading is our own composed line, not Scripture and not a quotation from any commentator. Everything inside quotation marks and attributed to a named voice is verbatim public-domain text expanded from anchors by the resolver; the ⚙ paragraphs are our fallible synthesis and should be tested against the text.

✦ = human, public-domain source, quoted and named. ⚙ = machine synthesis, to be verified. Flagged cross-references are left visible on purpose — the verifier working in the open. “Search the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)