1 Chronicles 14

A greater king meant a greater Israel.

Concubines were women who lived with a man in a legally binding relationship as secondary wives, but who had less social status and fewer perks than a wife (1 Kings 11:3).

Beeliada is another version “Eliada,” which appears in the same story, as reported in 2 Samuel 5:16.

The parallel story in 2 Samuel 5 says the opposite. It says he retreated to his hideout. Perhaps he did both: retreat to create a strategy, then attack.

Rephaim Valley descends southwest of Jerusalem, toward the Mediterranean coast in the west and to an ancient trail between the coast and the Judean Hills.

One of the common ways to ask the LORD for something was to ask the high priest. For an answer, David could use two objects that Israelites called the Urim and Thummim. The two words mean “lights” and “perfection.” These were two objects the high priest used to answer questions with a “yes” or “no” or “wait.” Bible writers never describe them. But they might have been stones, marked or colored in different ways. It might have worked a bit like tossing two coins in the air and seeing how they land. Two heads for “yes.” Two tails for “no.” One of each for “wait.” It might seem foolish to make an important decision that way, such as whether to go to war. But the people of Israel seemed to believe that God controlled the objects the priests used. That doesn’t mean the Bible endorses making decisions that way today. As in, two heads up for a four-wheeler or two tails up for retirement savings.

“The Unstoppable Lord” is Baal-perazim in the original Hebrew. “Baal” can refer to the Canaanite god by that name or gods or lords (human). Perazim is a word that describes something that breaks through whatever stands in its way, like a flashflood would or an overwhelming military force. The name may have originally been the name of the local god. But after David arrived, the name seemed to best describe the power of God.

The sound in the treetops may have been wind rustling the leaves. Bible writers often associate God’s arrival with the sound of wind. Perhaps the most famous example is on the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descended on the followers of Jesus after his death and ascension. “It sounded like a violent blast of wind” (Acts 2:2).