But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind, who were so faint that they couldn’t go over the brook Besor. They found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David, and gave him bread, and he ate; and they gave him water to drink. They gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins. When he had eaten, his spirit came again to him; for he had eaten no bread, and drank no water for three days and three nights. David asked him, “To whom do you belong? Where are you from?” He said, “I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite; and my master left me, because three days ago I got sick.
We made a raid on the South of the Cherethites, and on that which belongs to Judah, and on the South of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire.”
David said to him, “Will you bring me down to this troop?” He said, “Swear to me by God that you will not kill me and not deliver me up into the hands of my master, and I will bring you down to this troop.”
When he had brought him down, behold, they were spread around over all the ground, eating, drinking, and dancing, because of all the great plunder that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah. David struck them from the twilight even to the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped from there, except four hundred young men, who rode on camels and fled. David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and David rescued his two wives. There was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither plunder, nor anything that they had taken to them. David brought back all. David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drove before those other livestock, and said, “This is David’s plunder.”
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv11, 15, 16, 17, 20 God by his providence both provided for the necessity…
God by his providence both provided for the necessity of this poor stranger, and made him a guide to David to accomplish his enterprise.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv10–20 1Sa 30:10 But David pursued, he and four hundred…
1Sa 30:10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men: for two hundred abode behind, which were so faint that they could not go over the brook Besor.
Ver. 10. He and four hundred men.] For those six hundred were too many for God to work by, as Jdg 7:4. He delighteth to help his people "with a little help." {Dan 11:34}
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For two hundred abode behind.] Being either so weary, or so lazy, for the word will bear both, saith Vatablus, {a} that they marched no farther. Piscator noteth, that of the Hebrew word here used cometh pheger, for a dead carcass: to show that these two hundred were so weak and weary, that they were well nigh dead.
{a} פגרו significat et lassum esse et pigrum esse.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20 Four hundred men; a small number for such an…
Four hundred men; a small number for such an attempt; but David was strong in faith, giving God the glory of his power and faithfulness.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv10–20 But David pursued, he and four hundred men,.... Not…
But David pursued, he and four hundred men,.... Not discouraged with being obliged to leave a third part of his little army behind; though it was doubtless a trial of his faith, with these to pursue an enemy, whose numbers he knew not, which must greatly exceed his; for after the rout and slaughter of them, as many escaped on camels as David had with him, Sa1 30:17,
for two hundred abode behind, which were so faint; through their grief and sorrow for the loss of their wives and children, and through their march from the camp of the Philistines to Ziklag, and from thence hither, that they looked like a corpse, as the word signifies; Procopius Gazaeus has it only seventy men:
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so that they could not go over the brook Besor: being so weak and feeble; for this was not owing to fear of their enemies, and faint heartedness on that account, then it would rather have been said, "they would not go over"; the Targum renders the word "faint" by "restrained" or prohibited, as if they were forbid by David to go over, but were ordered to tarry here by the stuff, while the rest pursued; and, according to the Syriac and Arabic versions, they were placed there, that none might go over the brook; and it seems, by Sa1 30:22, that they had a good will to go over, but were made to abide there; or as all Gideon's army, but three hundred, were sent back, and not suffered to go with him, being too many, Jdg 7:2.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20 Four hundred - A small number for such an…
Four hundred - A small number for such an attempt: but David was strong in faith, giving God the glory of his power and faithfulness.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20 Verse 12. A cake of figs] See on 1Sa…
Verse 12. A cake of figs] See on 1Sa 25:18.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv12, 14, 15, 16, 20 1Sa 30:12-13. Three days and nights — One whole…
1Sa 30:12-13. Three days and nights — One whole day, and part of two others, as appears from the next verse, where he says, Three days ago I fell sick; but in the Hebrew it is, This is the third day since I fell sick. A young man of Egypt — God of his providence so ordering it that he was not one of the race of the Amalekites, devoted to destruction, but an Egyptian, that might be spared. And my master left me — In this place and condition; a barbarous act this, to leave him there to perish, when they had good store of camels for the carriage of men, as well as of their spoil, 1Sa 30:17. But this inhumanity cost them dear; for, through it, they lost their own lives, and David recovered what they had taken at Ziklag. Such is the wonderful providence of God, ordering or overruling every thing for his own glory and the good of those that trust in him, even the thoughts and desires, the counsels, works, and ways of men, both the good and the bad! So that there is no fighting against him, who can make the smallest actions serviceable to the production of the greatest effects.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv12, 14, 20 Three days and three nights - Indicating that at…
Three days and three nights - Indicating that at least so long a time had elapsed since the sack of Ziklag.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20 Weary. Hebrew pigru, denotes those who are "lazy and…
CHAPTER XXX.
Weary. Hebrew pigru, denotes those who are "lazy and dead." Septuagint, "some sat down on the other side of the torrent." Syriac and Arabic insinuate, to defend the passage. But why then do the rest complain? (Calmet) --- They acted irrationally, as David shewed afterwards. Some of the 600 might well be more exhausted than others, and these were selected to guard the baggage, ver. 24. This was only the third day since they left Aphec, ver. 1. (Haydock)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv11, 14, 15, 16 they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought…
they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David--Old and homeborn slaves are usually treated with great kindness. But a purchased or captured slave must look to himself; for, if feeble or sick, his master will leave him to perish rather than encumber himself with any additional burden. This Egyptian seems to have recently fallen into the hands of an Amalekite, and his master having belonged to the marauding party that had made the attack on Ziklag, he could give useful information as to the course taken by them on their return.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv12, 14, 20 12. His spirit came again to him — That…
12. His spirit came again to him — That is, he revived from the half-unconscious and dreamlike state into which, through anxiety and lack of food, he had fallen.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv10–20 10. abode behind] Stayed, as in 1Sa_30:9. The condensed…
10. abode behind] Stayed, as in 1Sa_30:9. The condensed expression of the last clause of 1Sa_30:9 is explained by 1Sa_30:10.
were so faint] A verb found only here and in 1Sa_30:21, connected with a substantive meaning a corpse; as we should say, they were dead-beat.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20 (11) An Egyptian.—The Amalekites, as above stated, were a…
(11) An Egyptian.—The Amalekites, as above stated, were a nomad race; their wanderings would have taken them to the frontiers of Egypt, hence the probability of their having Egyptian slaves in their tribe. The savage nature of these untamed sons of the desert has been already commented upon when the war of extermination with Amalek was discussed. They seem to have been a ruthless, cruel race, the scourge of the desert, and of the people dwelling near its borders. From the narrative, they had evidently many camels in their force (1Sa_30:17), so the abandonment of the sick slave, left, without food or water, to die of hunger, was a needless act of barbarity on their part.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20 Vers. 11, 12. An Egyptian, the slave, as we…
Vers. 11, 12. An Egyptian, the slave, as we read in ver. 13, of some Amalekite, left in the field, in the open common, to perish. He had become faint and could not travel as fast as they did, and so was left behind with no supplies of food, for he had eaten nothing for three days and three nights. The Amalekites had thus a start of at least this time, or even more, as this slave would probably have carried some food away with him from Ziklag.
Vers. 11-20.
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The consequences of kindness.
The facts are
1. Pursuing the Amalekites, David finds an Egyptian slave in distress, and administers to him food and drink.
2. On being questioned, the man states that his master, who was one of theforce destroying Ziklag, had left him there three days before.
3. On promise of not being delivered up to his master, he engages to act asguide to the rendezvous of the Amalekites.
4. On coming upon them in the midst of their revels, David smites them,and recovers all that his force had lost, and acquires also much spoil.
5. David keeps the captured flocks and herds as his portion of the spoil.The incidents of this section suggest
I THE UNKNOWN RESULTS OF KINDNESS. Here was a case of a sick, starving foreigner a poor waif nigh unto death; and the kind attentions of David and his men not only were appreciated by a fellow creature, but issued in important results which, prior to the act of kindness, were not, perhaps, deemed possible. The feeble man, well used, led on to victory. At the close of that eventful day David must have felt how useful as well as how holy a thing it is to act the part of a good Samaritan. Men are often under temptation to be indifferent to the sorrows of others; but good always comes out of an exhibition of the law of kindness. No man ever lost anything by binding up the wounds of another; and often the healer has obtained an inward blessing as a pledge of some still further good that is to flow from his deed. The blessing of those ready to perish is worth more than the applause and favour of the rich and strong. By single acts of kindness hard hearts have been touched, and a new and blessed course of life has been entered on. Many a waif, fed and nourished by Christian benevolence, has become an honourable and holy member of society, aiding to overthrow an evil power worse than that of the ancient Amalekites. Who can tell the vast and blissful consequences that may ensue if only Christians would care more constantly and wisely for the outcast and degraded?
II THE VALUE OF DETAIL IN SCRIPTURE HISTORY. The historian is specific in the account of what was given to this poor slave "water," "a piece of a cake of figs," and two clusters of raisins." This occasional detail indicates the pure historic character of the Biblical narrative, and invests the Bible with a human interest. This circumstantial character of narrative is especially seen in the Gospel by St. Mark, and more or less in every writer. As a book designed for all degrees of culture, and in all ages and climes, the Bible wins its way to the heart and commends itself to the common sense of mankind by the air of reality with which its great facts are incorporated with an incidental setting of circumstances; and it is singular that its occasional detail is never contradicted by well established fact, but, on the other hand, is being constantly confirmed by discoveries concerning manners, customs, natural productions, and international relations.
III THE BARBARITIES OF SLAVERY AND OF WAR. This unfortunate man had a master, but longed not to be restored to him. The barbarous manner in which he had been left to die justified his horror of his former owner. Slavery necessarily hardens the heart and debases the entire nature of all who promote it. The horrors that have been perpetrated under its influence more befit a hell than an earth like this. Christianity has proved its beneficent character in removing from many a fair region this accursed evil: and it enjoins on masters of the free to manifest towards their servants a kind, generous spirit, worthy of the Saviour they profess to follow. It is well when servants care to return to employers, and there is something wrong where there is aversion and reproach. The barbarities of war, which in this section and elsewhere are conspicuous, are among the foulest blots on human nature. In nothing as in war do the vilest passions of men break forth in wild licence. The ease and complacency with which many so called Christians speak and read of war is really shocking to one who enters deeply into the spirit of Christ. More care ought to be taken in preventing our children from imbibing a love of war and its literature, and in the Christian state its manifold, incipient, and actual evils ought to be removed or avoided by the most energetic measures. It is doubtful whether the Church rises to a due sense of its solemn obligations in this respect.
IV THE RESTORATION SUBSEQUENT TO REPENTANCE AND OBEDIENCE. David had repented of the course to which he had committed himself, and, encouraging himself in God, he had followed the direction conveyed through the high priest. The result was a restoration of all he had lost by his folly and an acquisition of much besides. Of course this was a case of material loss, through misconduct, attended with much anguish of spirit, and the restoration was of the same character; but have we not here something analogous with the result of our repentance and renewal of life? The loss and damage occasioned by our sins are removed when we turn to God and follow the guidance of our High Priest. In due time we recover purity, peace with God, most blessed joys, varied spiritual treasures, and even convert the weapons of our great enemy into means of moral advancement. Much has been ruined by our sins, and the whole race has suffered from the curse; but the effect of our restoration of soul to God through Christ is a recovery of the lost position and blessedness, with also an attainment of a bliss surpassing anything known by our first parent in his state of innocence. The promise reads, "I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the canker worm, and the caterpillar, and the palmer worm, my great army which I sent among you". (Joe_2:25)
V PRUDENT FORESIGHT IN ANTICIPATION OF COMING EVENTS. David"s consideration for his followers in allowing them a large share in the spoil was attended also with a wise prevision of what was soon to take place, and no doubt it was on this account that he kept for himself the cattle taken from the enemy. Having repented of his former self-choosing, and having drawn nearer to his God (ver. 6), his soul rose to the old confidence in his call to the kingdom, and, calm in the fresh assurance of God"s care, he saw from impending events that the end of Saul"s reign was nigh at hand. Hence, to pave the way for an easy and prosperous return to Judah, he selected what would prove suitable gifts to elders and friends (ver. 20; cf. ver. 26). Them we see how recovery from backsliding tends to a healthy tone and balance of ordinary mental operations, and how prudent anticipation of requirements becomes one called to high service in the kingdom of God. Faith in God"s purposes concerning us should be accompanied with wise effort to obviate difficulties in the realisation of that purpose. Our elevation in the service of Christ"s kingdom is to be secured on our part by the vigorous use of our best powers in dependence on God.
General lessons:
1. Amidst the hurry and excitement of our life we, like David, should turn aside to care for the poor and destitute, and shall find in so doing a blessing for ourselves.
2. As slavery was put down by the energetic assertion of the principles andspirit of the gospel, so may not the Church, if in earnest, equally suppress the war spirit which too largely prevails in so called Christian lands?
3. After the pattern of David in temporal matters we ought to strive withall zeal and constancy to recover the blessed inheritance of good lost to us individually and as a race through sin.
4. In so far as men are convinced of the certainty and glory of Christ"skingdom will they exercise all their utmost powers to hasten it on and win men over to it. Indifferent action is a sure sign of spiritual decay.
Vers. 11-20. (SOUTH OF THE BROOK BESOR.)
An Egyptian slave.
was reminded of the poor Egyptian whom David found half dead, and brought to life again by giving him "a piece of cake of figs and two clusters of raisins" to eat, and water to drink, by an incident which occurred to me when crossing the plain of Askelon. Far from any village, a sick Egyptian was lying by the road side in the burning sun, and apparently almost dead with a terrible fever. He wanted nothing but "water! water!" which we were fortunately able to give him from our traveling bottle; but we were obliged to pass on and leave him to his fate, whatever that might be" (Thomson, "The Land and the Book"). How the "young man of Egypt" became "slave to an Amalekite" is not stated, but it is probable that he fell into his hands in some marauding expedition, like the Hebrew women and children in the raid on Ziklag. His condition was an involuntary, hard, and degrading one. He was
I ABANDONED BY HIS MASTER with
1. Indifference and contempt. His worth as a man created in the image of God was disregarded (as is generally the case in the odious institution of slavery). He was treated as the absolute property of his master, "an animated tool" (Aristotle), and when deemed no longer useful, thrown away.
2. Injustice. Every claim in return for his services was ignored. He was entirely at the mercy of his master, and unprotected by any law (such as existed among the Hebrews).
3. Inhumanity. "My master left me three days agone because I fell sick" (ver. 13). He might have been easily carried forward on one of the camels (ver. 17), but the Amalekites were hard and cruel, and he was left to perish with hunger or to be devoured by wild beasts. "He that is higher than the highest regardeth", (Ecc_5:8) and the meanest slave cannot be despised and neglected with impunity.
II BEFRIENDED BY STRANGERS (vers. 11, 12).
1. Out of compassion and desire to save his life by every means in their power.
2. In fulfilment of the law of God, which required that kindness should be shown to the poor, the stranger, and the slave. "Love ye therefore the stranger, for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt". (Deu_10:19 Deu_23:7, Deu_23:15, Deu_23:16)
3. With appreciation of the service he might render (ver. 15). The more helpless any one is, the more urgent his claim to assistance; yet no one is so helpless but that he may be capable of requiting the kindness shown to him. Slavery among the Hebrews differed widely from slavery among other ancient and modern peoples. (1Sa_25:10; Ewald, Ginsburg, "Ecclesiastes," p. 283; "Ecce Homo "By Christianising the master the gospel enfranchised the slave. It did not legislate about mere names and forms, but it went to the root of the evil, it spoke to the heart of man. When the heart of the master was filled with Divine grace and was warmed with the love of Christ the rest would soon follow. The lips would speak kind words, the hands would do liberal things" (Wordsworth, "Com. on Philemon").
III SERVICEABLE TO HIS BENEFACTORS.
1. From gratitude for the benefit received. No human heart is wholly insensible to the power of kindness.
2. Under a solemn assurance of protection. After his abandonment by his master he could have no scruple concerning his right to his continued service, if any such right ever existed; but experience had made him fearful and suspicious of men, and therefore he said, "Swear unto me by God," etc. (ver. 15). He had a sense of religion, and believed that Divine justice would avenge the violation of an oath, though it should be taken to a slave.
3. With efficient and faithful performance of his engagements. He not only gave David the information he sought, but guided him to the camp of the enemy, and contributed to a result which repaid him a hundredfold (ver. 18).
IV PRESERVED AND EMPLOYED BY DIVINE PROVIDENCE, which
1. Cares for the lowliest. "Behold, God is mighty, and despiseth not any". (Job_36:5) "Neither doth God respect any person". (2Sa_14:14)
1. Often makes use of the feeblest instrumentality for the chastisement ofthe "wicked in great power.
2. And for the promotion of the welfare of the people of God, and theestablishment of his kingdom. What a rich harvest may spring from a single act of kindness toward even the most despised!
He prayeth well who loveth well Both man and bird and beast. He prayeth best who loveth best All things both great and small: For the dear God who loveth us He made and loveth all". (Coleridge) D.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv11, 20 And they found an Egyptian in the field.
1Sa_30:11-13
And they found an Egyptian in the field.
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Christian beneficence
The debasing influence of prosperity and success, and the humanising tendency of disaster and distress, were never more strikingly contrasted than in the portion of sacred history to which the words that have now been read turn our attention. It exhibits to us, on the one hand, a most painful instance of savage cruelty and neglect, in the midst of triumph and gladness; and presents, on the other, a pleasing example of tenderness and sympathy in the season of sorrow and depression. With the exception of one circumstance, the case of this Egyptian youth is one which is daily presented to us, and makes constant appeals to our sympathy and beneficence. The exception to which I allude, is one for which we can never be sufficiently grateful to Him who appoints the bounds of our habitation. In this land of freemen, slavery is never added to the miseries of the wretched, and, in the gloomiest hour of poverty and distress, the consciousness of freedom is left to console the sufferer. But in this single, though invaluable, exception, the sufferings of this young Egyptian have many parallel in this vale of tears. The union of poverty and disease is one of the most common forms of human wretchedness; its bitterness may be estimated without any effort of fancy, and its anguish painted without the aid of the imagination. Poverty and sickness are presented to us so often in melancholy union, that, to describe them, is not to draw upon the fancy, but to copy the sad original.
1. The first and most obvious consideration that calls us to the exercise of humanity and mercy, is our own liability to those very ills which claim our sympathy and relief. Poverty and sickness are not exclusively incident to any particular individuals, among the children of men. They imply the absence of the frailest and most perishable blessings of our lot.
2. In the next place, you are aware that compassion to the afflicted poor is enjoined by the authority of the Gospel. The Divine author of Christianity was anointed to proclaim glad tidings to the poor, and the poor and the sorrowful were his constant care His whole life was one grand act of benevolence; and whether we think of the purity of His motives, or the extent of His designs of good, or His indefatigable labours or His painful sufferings in the cause of humanity, we have before us a pattern of charity and mercy, the most affecting and instructive. And with His conduct, His doctrine most beautifully coincides. It breathes peace and good will to man; and it enforces on all His followers the same love which He Himself manifested to the sons of men.
3. I entreat you to remember, that our neglect of exercises of mercy to the afflicted will be the ground of that sentence which in the day of our last account will be pronounced upon us all. In terms which the simplest understanding may comprehend, but which no heart can hear without the deepest awe, the Judge of all has assured us that in that hour when we shall stand before Him, the most searching inquiries will be made concerning our conduct to the child of want. (John Johnston.)
The outcast servant
You have here a lively picture of Satans cast off servant, And they found an Egyptian in the field. Unable any longer go be actively employed for his master, he is left go linger out a miserable existence. Never shall one of Christs happy servants say, My master left me. David now finds that he had been feeding a former enemy, that this man was one of the company who had pillaged and destroyed Ziklag: but never was any David a loser by ministering to an enemy. This Egyptian is now become his guide, and leads him to the spot where the Amalekites were feasting upon what they had carried off from Ziklag. And when he had brought him down, behold, they were spread abroad upon all the earth. Having been three days without any pursuers, they conclude that all is now safe, and as if the world were their own, they are spread abroad upon all the earth. Do you know the set time when sinners are to be destroyed? It is just when they say, Peace and safety (1Th_5:3), when they feel most secure, and in an hour when they think not. So was it with these miserable revellers. Oh! when Davids Lord comes upon His enemies like a mighty man--when He comes to recover all the spoil, when He brings the solemn charge, Ye have robbed God--when all is restored to its rightful owner, then shall judgment return to righteousness, and all the upright in heart shall follow it (Psa_94:15). Do you think David could forget his two hundred faint soldiers? Not if David had any of the mind which is in Christ. No, the first act is to return to them, and salute them, or ask them how they did. But all who follow David are not like David: they would thrust the weak with side and shoulder, and fain have all themselves. Oh! when you feel this greedy, covetous spirit, this rising fear, and jealous eye, lest another, whom you do not think so deserving, should get as much as you, remember it is the mark of an unclean animal, it is the feature of the children of Belial. Very different is the language of David and his true followers. Then said David, Ye shall not do so, etc. Lovely law! worthy of King David, and of Davids Lord! Yea, blessed be the God of all grace, it was so from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel unto this day. She that tarrieth at home still divides the spoil--her God reckons it her act, if it is only in her heart; yea, he graciously says, The desire of a man is his kindness (Pro_19:22). They shall part alike! the same Christ, the same Comforter, the same free gift, the same heaven. Neither did David forget any of his former friends. All who had ministered be him in his straits and difficulties shall find that he is not forgetful, nor ungrateful. To all places whither he and his men ware wont to haunt, is a present sent. For God is not unrighteous go forget your work and labour of love, which ye have showed toward His name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister (Heb_6:10). (Helen Plumptre.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v11 David Recovers the Spoil
David Recovers the Spoil
v. 11. And they, the men with David, found an Egyptian in the field, for the Amalekites could easily obtain Egyptian slaves, and brought him to David, and gave him bread, and he did eat; and they made him drink water, in order to revive him from his utter exhaustion, for he was almost famished;
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v. 12. and they gave him a piece of a cake of figs, a slice of pressed figs, and two clusters, pressed cakes, of raisins; and when he had eaten, his spirit came again to him, he recovered, he was filled with new life; for he had eaten no bread nor drunk any water three days and three nights.
v. 13. And David said unto him, when he was strong enough to talk, To whom belongest thou? And whence are thou? And he said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant, slave, to an Amalekite; and my master left me because three days agone I fell sick. He had simply been abandoned because his master could not bother with him on their hasty flight.
v. 14. We made an invasion upon the south of the Cherethites, a Philistine tribe of the south country, and upon the coast which belongeth to Judah, and upon the south of Caleb, the neighborhood of Hebron; and we burned Ziklag with fire.
v. 15. And David said to him, Canst thou bring me down to this company, to the place where the raiding troop had its permanent camp? And he said, Swear unto me by God that thou wilt neither kill me nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will bring thee down to this company. The caution of the Egyptian was due to the fact that informers and guides were often put to death by those whom they had served, while the hatred of those whom they had betrayed may well be understood.
v. 16. And when he, the Egyptian, had brought him, David with his men, down, behold, they, the Amalekites, were spread abroad upon all the earth, having abandoned themselves entirely to the enjoyment of their successful raid, not dreaming of the nearness of any enemy, eating, and drinking, and dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines and out of the land of Judah, celebrating the event with rejoicing.
v. 17. And David, finding them so utterly unprepared, smote them from the twilight, from the break of day, even unto the evening of the next day, literally, "of their morrow," for the Israelites began their day at sundown; it was an all day battle. And there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, which rode upon camels and fled.
v. 18. And David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away; and David rescued his two wives. The pursuit was a complete success.
v. 19. And there was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil, nor anything that they had taken to them; David recovered all, all the booty from the entire raided district.
v. 20. And David took all the flocks and the herds, those captured from the Amalekites in addition to the recovered property of the raided territory, which they drave before those other cattle, at the head of David’s little band, and said, This is David’s spoil. If matters are only begun with the Lord, then He will give His blessing and success in due season.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv11, 13, 15, 16, 18 an Egyptian in a field
an Egyptian in a field
He was left there to die from the Amalekite raiding party.
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clusters of raisins
"clusters of dried grapes"
translationWords
Egypt
David
bread
fig
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv10, 11, 13, 14, 17 30:10 too exhausted: David’s men had traveled for three…
30:10 too exhausted: David’s men had traveled for three days (30:1) and were now in hot pursuit of the Amalekites without having rested. David did not upbraid them or drive them on mercilessly. See 30:23-25.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.