1 Chronicles 12
Israel joins David’s Raiders
Benjamin’s warriors join David
1These are the men who joined David’s militia while David was in the town Philistines gave him, Ziklag. [1] That’s when David was a fugitive, on the run from King Saul, Kish’s son. These men later fought in battles alongside David.2This first group of men were Saul’s relatives, from his tribe of Benjamin. They could strike an enemy soldier with arrows. Or they could pummel him with rocks fired from slings. And they could do it with left hand or right.
3Two brothers led the group, Ahiezer and Joash. They came from the town of Saul’s hometown of Gibeah. [2] Shemaah was their father. Other men in the group included:
brothers Jeziel and Pelet, sons of Azmaveth, [3] along with Beracah, and Jehu from Anathoth. 4Ishmaiah from Gibeon. He led the elite fighting unit called the Thirty. Jeremiah, Jahaziel, Johanan, Jozabad from Gederah, 5Eluzai, Jerimoth, Bealiah, Shemariah, Shephatiah from Haruph, 6Elkanah, Isshiah, Azarel, Joezer, and Jashobeam from Korah’s clan, 7and brothers Joelah and Zebadiah, sons of Jeroham from Gedor.
Gad militia joins David
8Eleven men from Gad’s tribe joined David at his hideout in the desert badlands. These men knew how to fight, especially with spears and shields. They had the fierce look of a lion etched into their faces. And they ran like gazelles racing over the hills.9Ezer led this group. Others: Obadiah, Eliab, 10Mishmannah, Jeremiah, 11Attai, Eliel, 12Johanan, Elzabad, 13Jeremiah, and Machbannai.
14Each man from Gad was a military officer. The worst warriors among them were worth 100 soldiers. The best were worth a thousand. 15These men joined David after crossing the Jordan River at springtime flood season, when the river rose over the banks. From east to west, they drove off everyone in the river valley who got in their way.
More join from Benjamin, Judah
16More people from the tribes of Benjamin and Judah joined David at his hideout. 17David saw them coming and went out to greet them. He said, “If you have come to help me as my new friends, I’ll welcome you into my heart and life. But if you’ve come as moles to betray me, though I’ve done nothing wrong, the God of our ancestors will see you and deal with you.”18When Amasai, who later led the Thirty, heard that, God’s spirit moved him to say,
“We’re with you, David.
We’re on your side, Jesse’s boy.
Peace to you. That's our wish.
Peace to whoever helps you.
For the help they bring comes from God.”
Warriors come from Manasseh’s tribe
19Some soldiers [4] from Manasseh’s tribe defected to David’s militia when they heard he was joining the Philistines to fight Saul. But Philistine commanders refused to fight alongside David’s men. They said, “He’s one of them. He’ll switch sides and desert to his former king, Saul. Then their combined forces will take our heads.”20So David and his men broke away from the march and turned back toward the town of Ziklag. Along the way, some other men from Manasseh joined him: Adnah, Jozabad, Jediael, Michael, Jozabad, Elihu, and Zillethai, who led an army of the thousands in Manasseh.
21The men from Manasseh were all warriors. So, they become part of David’s Raiders. They stole supplies from people in enemy towns and communities. [5]
22Day after day, people came into David’s camp and joined his movement. In time, with God’s help, David commanded a powerful army.
David’s Raiders based in Hebron
23This is a report on the troops who joined David in the town of Hebron—piece by piece delivering Saul’s kingdom to David’s care, as the LORD intended.24Judah’s tribe: 6,800 men armed with spears and shields.
25Simeon’s tribe: 7,100 warriors.
26Levi’s tribe: 4,600.
27Jehoiada, leader of Aaron’s clan, brought 3,700 men.
28Zadok, a young warrior, brought 22 commanders from his extended family.
29Benjamin’s tribe (King Saul’s relatives): 3,000, most of whom had only recently deserted Saul’s army.
30Ephraim’s tribe:20,800 strong warriors, well respected in their families.
31West Manasseh, east of the Jordan River: 18,000 assigned to reinforce David.
32Issachar: 200 commanders and all their soldiers. They saw the signs of what was in store for the nation. So they got on board with David.
33Zebulun, 50,000 seasoned soldiers, armed and ready to follow David into war.
34Naphtali: 1,000 commanders and 37,000 soldiers armed with spears and shields.
35Dan: 28,600 soldiers ready for battle.
36Asher: 40,000 seasoned troops ready to go to war.
37Reuben, Gad, and West Manasseh (all the Israelite tribes east of the Jordan River): 120,000 armed soldiers ready for battle.
38These soldiers left their home tribal lands and came to Hebron for one reason: to make David king of Israel. Everyone in Israel wanted it. 39The people celebrated with David like they were at a family reunion. It went on for three days, eating and drinking together, for their families sent them on this mission with supplies.
40Israelites came from as far away as Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali in northern Israel. They brought food hauled in on donkeys, camels, mules, and oxen—anything that could carry a load. Supplies included: flour, fig cakes, wine, olive oil, clusters of raisins, along with cattle and sheep for fresh meat. This was a party. The whole country celebrated what was happening with David.
Footnotes
Ziklag is a town that the Philistine king of the Gath gave to David when he thought David had deserted King Saul and the Israelites (1 Samuel 27).
Gibeah was King Saul’s hometown and capital (1 Samuel 14:2). It was about 3 miles (5 km) north of Jerusalem, inside the tribal boundaries of Benjamin. Several other cities mentioned in this Benjamin grouping are inside the tribal boundaries: Azmaveth, Gibeon, and Anathoth. Others are not: Gadera, Haruph (if that’s a place and not the name of a group of people), Korah, and Gedor.
It’s hard to know if Azmaveth is a man’s name, a place name, or both. If it was a city, some scholars say it was likely Hizma, a village about 5 miles (8 km) northeast of Jerusalem.
It’s hard to tell if these soldiers are the same ones whose names show up in verse 20. Some translators say there were two groups, and that the writer doesn’t report names of the soldiers in verse 19. Others say both verses refer to the same soldiers, and that the men deserted David in verse 20 because they thought he might turn on them since they had joined to fight Saul, and now David seemed to be back on Saul’s side. They feared David might kill them.
David and his raiders did more than steal supplies. They killed everyone in each town they attacked (1 Samuel 27:9). That way there were no witnesses to alert the Philistines that David, who Philistines thought had defected to their side, was still their enemy. David had taken refuge in Philistine lands as a safe haven from King Saul who wanted him dead. David, meanwhile, targeted towns on good terms with the Philistines. Some scholars speculate David especially targeted Amalekite people (2 Samuel 1:1).
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