The Men Who Came to David at Ziklag – 1 Chronicles 12:1-7
v1 David went to Ziklag town to escape from Saul son of Kish. Many men came to him there. They were among the soldiers who helped David in battle. v2 They came with their bows and arrows. They could shoot arrows or sling stones with either their right hands or their left hands. They were from Benjamin, the same tribe as Saul.
v3 Ahiezer was their leader, and there was Joash. Ahiezer and Joash were sons of Shemaah, who was from Gibeah town. There were Jeziel and Pelet, the sons of Azmaveth. There was Beracah, and there was Jehu from Anathoth town. v4 And there was Ishmaiah from Gibeon town. He was one of the special group of 30 soldiers. He was a leader of that group. There were Jeremiah, Jahaziel, Johanan, and Jozabad from Gederah. v5 There were Eluzai, Jerimoth, Bealiah, and Shemariah. There was Shephatiah from the clan of Haruph. v6 There were Elkanah, Isshiah, Azarel, Joezer, and Jashobeam from the clan of Korah. v7 And there were Joelah and Zebadiah, the sons of Jeroham, from Gedor town.
COMMENTARY
VERSES 1-2
This chapter has 4 lists of men who joined David. The first group were almost entirely from the tribe of Benjamin (verses 1-7). These men came to David in Ziklag. The next group came to him in his camp near the desert. These men were from the tribe of Gad (verses 8-15). The third group came to him when the Philistines sent him away from the battle. These men were from the tribe of Manasseh (verses 19-22). The 4th group were from other tribes. They came to David at Hebron to help make David king of all Israel (verses 23-40).
David ran away from King Saul, who was trying to kill him. King Achish of Gath gave Ziklag town to David as a safe place. Ziklag was on the south and west border of Judah. At that time, the Philistine King Achish ruled there.
Many men came to join the men who already followed David. These men were soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin. Saul had come from that tribe. They had the same family history as Saul. Probably they realised that God had chosen David to replace Saul as king. And that is why they left Saul in order to help David. They were experts in battle and they came with their weapons. They could use either hand to shoot arrows or to sling stones.
The sling was a bit of leather with two strings. The soldier would put a smooth stone in the leather bit. Then he would swing it round above his head by the strings a couple of times. Then he would let the stone fly out of the sling.
VERSES 3-7
This is a list of the leaders of the men from the tribe of Benjamin. The sons of Shemaah came from Gibeah town. This was the home town of Saul. He was born there. The 5 men who came from the clan of Korah were Levites. Probably they had lived with the tribe of Benjamin.
The Men Who Came to David at His Desert Camp – 1 Chronicles 12:8-18
v8 Many soldiers from the tribe of Gad came to David at his army camp in the desert. They were brave soldiers who had trained for war. They were skillful with shields and spears. They were as fierce as lions. And they seemed as fast as the animals called gazelles on the hills. v9 There were 11 leaders of these soldiers. In order of rank, the first was Ezer. The second was Obadiah and the third was Eliab. v10 Mishmannah was 4th and Jeremiah was 5th. v11 Attai was 6th and Eliel was 7th. v12 Johanan was 8th and Elzabad was 9th. v13 Jeremiah was 10th and Macbannai was 11th.
v14 They were the officers of the army from Gad. The least important of these officers led 100 men. And the best one had 1000 soldiers. v15 In the first month of the year, these men crossed the Jordan river when it flooded its sides. They chased away all the people in the valleys to the east and west.
v16 More people from the tribes of Benjamin and Judah came to David at his camp. v17 David went out to meet them and he spoke to them. ‘If you come as friends to help me, you may join us here. But if you intend to give me to my enemies, the God of our ancestors will know it. Because I have done nothing wrong, he will punish you.’
v18 Amasai was the leader of the 30 special soldiers. The Spirit took control of him, and he spoke. ‘We are yours, David. We are with you, son of Jesse. We want you to have peace and success. We want everyone who helps you to have success. Your God will give you success, because he helps you.’ So, David accepted them into his camp. And he made them officers in his army.
COMMENTARY
VERSES 8-15
Before David went to Ziklag, he was in a camp in the desert. 11 officers from the army of the tribe of Gad came with their men to him. They were all skilled and ready for battle.
The passage compares these men to two kinds of animals: lions and gazelles. A lion is the strongest and fiercest animal. A gazelle is an animal that lives in the hills. Gazelles can run very fast. So these men were strong and they could run quickly. Such skills were very useful in the army.
The tribe of Gad lived on the east side of the river Jordan. These men crossed the river during the first month (that is, March or April in a modern calendar). That is the time when the river floods. Then they had to fight their way through their enemies on both sides of the river. Their success in this battle showed how brave and strong these men were.
VERSES 16-18
People from the tribes of Benjamin and Judah came to David. It seems that he suspected them. In other words, he thought that they might be enemies. Maybe they had come to take him to Saul. So, David went to meet them. He had to find out whether they were enemies. If they were enemies, God would know it. And he believed that God would punish them. But God spoke by means of Amasai. And Amasai convinced David that they were friends. They would fight to support David.
More Men Join David at Ziklag – 1 Chronicles 12:19-22
v19 Some men from Manasseh left Saul and joined David. They came when David went with the Philistines to fight Saul. But David and his men did not help the Philistines. The Philistine leaders decided to send David away from the battle. They said, ‘David may go back to Saul his master. If he did go back we would die.’ v20 As David returned to Ziklag, these men from Manasseh joined him. The names of the men were Adnah, Jozabad, Jediael, Michael, Jozabad, Elihu, and Zillethai. Each of them led 1,000 soldiers from Manasseh. v21 All these men from Manasseh were brave soldiers. They helped David as he fought against other armies. These men became officers in David’s army. v22 Day after day, more men came to help David. And his army became large, like the army of God.
COMMENTARY
VERSES 19-22
While David was living in Ziklag, David went with Achish to join the Philistine army. The other Philistine leaders saw David with Achish. And they refused to let him go with them to fight against Saul (1 Samuel chapter 29). As David returned to Ziklag, some men joined him from the tribe of Manasseh. This was before the battle on Mount Gilboa in which Saul died (1 Chronicles chapter 10).
The 7 leaders who came each had 1,000 soldiers in his command. They joined David’s army. Each day more men came to David so that his army became very large.
The Soldiers Who Came to David at Hebron – 1 Chronicles 12:23-40
v23 These are the numbers of the soldiers that joined David at Hebron. These men were ready for battle. They came to give the kingdom of Saul to David, as the LORD had said.
• v24 There were 6,800 men with their weapons from Judah. They carried shields and spears.
• v25 There were 7,100 men from Simeon. They were soldiers ready for war.
• v26 There were 4,600 men from Levi. v27 Jehoiada, a leader from Aaron’s family, was in that group. There were 3,700 men with him. v28 Zadok was also in that group. He was a strong young soldier. 22 leaders from his family came with him.
• v29 3,000 men from Benjamin came. They were Saul’s relatives. Most of them had remained loyal to Saul’s family until then.
• v30 20,800 men came from Ephraim. They were brave soldiers and they were famous men in their own clans.
• v31 From the half-tribe of Manasseh 18,000 men came. Their clans chose each of them by name to come and to make David king.
• v32 There were 200 leaders who came from Issachar. They knew what Israel should do. And they knew the right time to do it. Their relatives were with them and under their command.
• v33 50,000 men came from the tribe of Zebulun. They were skilled soldiers, and they were ready for battle. They knew how to use every kind of weapon of war. They would be completely loyal to David.
• v34 1,000 officers came from Naphtali. They had 37,000 soldiers with them who carried shields and spears.
• v35 28,600 men who were ready for battle came from Dan.
• v36 40,000 skilled soldiers who were ready for battle came from Asher.
• v37 120,000 soldiers came from the east of the river Jordan. They came from Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. They had every kind of weapon.
v38 All these soldiers were ready to go to war. They came to Hebron because they really wanted to make David king of all Israel. All the rest of the Israelites also wanted to make David king. v39 The men were there with David for three days. They ate and drank with him. Their families had supplied food for them. v40 People came with them from as far away as Issachar, Zebulun, and Naphtali. They brought food to them on donkeys, camels, mules, and oxen. They brought much flour, fig cakes, raisins (dried fruit), wine, oil, cows, and sheep because there was joy in Israel.
COMMENTARY
VERSES 23-40
After the death of Saul’s son Ish-Bosheth, all these people came to David at Hebron. They came on behalf of each of their tribes. They came to make David the king of all Israel. For the last 7 years, he had been the king of Judah, which is in the south of Israel.
All the Israelites wanted David to be their king. They sent their soldiers to show that they completely supported David. The soldiers carried their weapons and they were ready for war. But they did not have to fight on this occasion. Everyone in Israel now agreed that David should be king. So this was a very happy event.
All the people who came to Hebron had a great party for three days. Many people had brought food for the soldiers. The people from as far away as the tribes of Issachar, Zebulun and Naphtali supplied food. These tribes along with Dan and Asher are the furthest north in Israel. They brought the food on their animals, that is, donkeys, camels, mules and oxen. Among the food, the passage mentions figs and raisins. These are sweet dried fruit. Also the people had plenty of meat and other good foods.
After this party, David took control of Jerusalem (11:4-5). He made it his capital city. In chapter 13, we will read about the events when David first tried to bring the ark into Jerusalem.
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