2 Samuel 15:18-22 sits inside this longer paragraph.
16The king went out, and all his household after him. The king left ten women, who were concubines, to keep the house. 17The king went out, and all the people after him; and they stayed in Beth Merhak. 18All his servants passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who came after him from Gath, passed on before the king. 19Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite, “Why do you also go with us? Return, and stay with the king; for you are a foreigner, and also an exile. Return to your own place. 20Whereas you came but yesterday, should I today make you go up and down with us, since I go where I may? Return, and take back your brothers. Mercy and truth be with you.”
21Ittai answered the king, and said, “As Yahweh lives, and as my lord the king lives, surely in what place my lord the king is, whether for death or for life, your servant will be there also.”
22David said to Ittai, “Go and pass over.” Ittai the Gittite passed over, and all his men, and all the little ones who were with him. 23All the country wept with a loud voice, and all the people passed over. The king also himself passed over the brook Kidron, and all the people passed over, toward the way of the wilderness. 24Behold, Zadok also came, and all the Levites with him, bearing the ark of the covenant of God; and they set down God’s ark; and Abiathar went up, until all the people finished passing out of the city. 25The king said to Zadok, “Carry God’s ark back into the city. If I find favor in Yahweh’s eyes, he will bring me again, and show me both it, and his habitation; 26but if he says, ‘I have no delight in you;’ behold, here I am. Let him do to me as seems good to him.” 27The king said also to Zadok the priest, “Aren’t you a seer? Return into the city in peace, and your two sons with you, Ahimaaz your son, and Jonathan the son of Abiathar. 28Behold, I will stay at the fords of the wilderness, until word comes from you to inform me.” 29Zadok therefore and Abiathar carried God’s ark to Jerusalem again; and they stayed there. 30David went up by the ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up; and he had his head covered, and went barefoot. All the people who were with him each covered his head, and they went up, weeping as they went up.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv18–20 These were as the king’s guard, or as some…
These were as the king’s guard, or as some write, his counselors.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv18–22 2Sa 15:18 And all his servants passed on beside…
2Sa 15:18 And all his servants passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men which came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.
Ver. 18. Six hundred men which came after him from Gath.] That had stuck to him in all his afflictions; then when he was at Gath, and now also that Absalom was up in arms against him. As any of these six hundred died, others of like fidelity were succenturiated, and set in their room; and these were to David as that Sacra cohors was to the Thebans, who esteemed them the prime of all their strength in battle, {a} God likewise setteth a high price on such as keep close to him in evil times. See Zep 3:18 Luk 22:28-29.
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{a} Athenaeus, lib. iii.
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 vv18, 19, 20, 22 Of the Cherethites and the Pelethites See Poole on…
Of the Cherethites and the Pelethites See Poole on "2Sa 8:18". The Gittites were either, first, Israelites by birth, called Gittites because they went with him to Gath, and abode with him in that country. Or rather, secondly, Strangers, as Ittai their head is called, 2Sa 15:19, and they are called his brethren, 2Sa 15:20; and probably they were Philistines by birth born in the city or territory of Gath, as the following words imply, who by David’s counsel, and example, and the success of his arms, were won to embrace and profess the true religion, and had given good proof of their military skill, and valour, and fidelity to the king.
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 vv18–22 And all his servants passed on beside him,.... Or…
And all his servants passed on beside him,.... Or at his hand or side; his household servants walking perhaps some on one side of him, and some on the other, see Sa2 16:6,
and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites; which were his bodyguards, see Sa2 8:18,
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and all the Gittites, six hundred men which came after him from Gath; which either came with him from Gath, when he conquered that city, and took it out of the hands of the Philistines, Sa2 8:1; compared with Ch1 18:1; and who might become proselytes, and be incorporated into the commonwealth of Israel, and into David's army, a troop of men, of which Ittai, after mentioned, was captain, Sa2 15:22; or else these were Israelites, so called, because with David they sojourned in Gath a while, when he fled from Saul; and so Josephus (l) says, they were companions of him in his first flight, when Saul was living; and this number is just the number of the men that were with him at Gath, Sa1 27:2; and it may be David kept a troop of men always of the same number, to whom he gave this name in memory of them, having been a set of trusty and faithful men to him: these, with the Cherethites and Pelethites:
passed on before the king: in this form and manner David and his men marched in their flight.
(l) Ut supra, (Antiqu. l. 7. c. 9.) sect. 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 vv18–22 Gittites - Or rather strangers, as Ittai their head…
Gittites - Or rather strangers, as Ittai their head is called, ver. 19, and they are called his brethren, ver. 20. Probably they were Philistines by birth, born in the city or territory of Gath, as the following words imply, who by David's counsel, and example, were won to embrace the true religion, and had given good proof of their military skill, and valour, and fidelity to the king.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv19–20 Verse 19. Thou art a stranger, and also an…
Verse 19. Thou art a stranger, and also an exile.] Some suppose that Ittai was the son of Achish, king of Gath, who was very much attached to David, and banished from his father's court on that account. He and his six hundred men are generally supposed to have been proselytes to the Jewish religion.
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Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv19, 21, 22 2Sa 15:19-20. Then said the king to Ittai the…
2Sa 15:19-20. Then said the king to Ittai the Gittite, &c. — He seems to have been the commander of those six hundred men before mentioned. And the Jews make him the son of Achish, king of Gath, who, they say, out of religion and friendship came to David. Return to thy place — To Jerusalem, where thy place of residence is. And abide with the king —
With Absalom, king by usurpation. For thou art a stranger and an exile — Not much concerned in our affairs, and therefore thou oughtest not to be involved in our troubles. And, as a stranger, thou mayest hope to be civilly treated by Absalom. Whereas thou camest but yesterday — That is, very lately; should I this day make thee go up and down with us? — Should I unsettle thee again so soon? Seeing I go whither I may — Or, I know not whither, having now no certain dwelling-place. Take back thy brethren — Thy countrymen the Gittites. Mercy and truth be with thee — Since I am now unable to recompense thy kindness and fidelity to me, my hearty prayer to God is, that he would show to thee his mercy, in blessing thee with all sorts of blessings, and his faithfulness in making good all these promises which he hath made, not to Israelites only, but to all true-hearted proselytes, such as thou art.
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Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv18, 20 Passed on - Rather, “crossed” the Brook Kidron, as…
Passed on - Rather, “crossed” the Brook Kidron, as in 2Sa 15:22-23.
Gittites - During David’s residence in the country of the Philistines he attached such a band to himself; and after the settlement of his kingdom, and the subjugation of the Philistines, the band received recruits from Gath, perhaps with the king of Gath’s consent. They were now under the command of Ittai the Gittite, a foreigner 2Sa 15:19, and “his brethren” 2Sa 15:20. The number 600 probably indicates that this band or regiment of Gittites had its origin in David’s band of 600 1Sa 23:13; 1Sa 27:2. They were at first, it is likely, all Israelites, then Gittites mixed with Israelites, and at last all Gittites.
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Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv18–20 Phelethi, the king’s foreign guards, of Philistine extraction, chap.…
Phelethi, the king’s foreign guards, of Philistine extraction, chap. viii. 18. --- Gethites, who had been probably induced to enter his service by Ethai, ver. 19. (Calmet) --- Men. This number David kept up, in honour of those valiant companions who had defended him at Odollam, &c. (Salien) --- It is observable, that David is attended only by his own family, and by strangers; representing Jesus Christ, who rejects the Synagogue and its sacrifices, while he makes choice of the Gentiles. (Calmet)
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 v18 all the Gittites, six hundred men--These were a body…
all the Gittites, six hundred men--These were a body of foreign guards, natives of Gath, whom David, when in the country of the Philistines, had enlisted in his service, and kept around his person. Addressing their commander, Ittai, he made a searching trial of their fidelity in bidding them (Sa2 15:19) abide with the new king.
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 vv18–22 18. Cherethites — See note on 2Sa_8:18.
18. Cherethites — See note on 2Sa_8:18.
The Gittites, six hundred men — That old, tried, and faithful band whom he had gathered around him principally when he enjoyed the protection of the king of Gath, (1Sa_27:2,) and from that land of their refuge ever after bore the name of Gittites. We need not suppose that these Gittites were all Philistines from Gath, and all foreigners who had become proselytes to the Jewish religion. But it is very likely that most of these six hundred were of foreign birth. As one after another of the old warriors died, the king, perhaps to perpetuate old associations, filled up their places with men from Gath. See note on 2Sa_8:18.
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 vv18–21 18. all the Gittites] If the text is sound,…
18. all the Gittites] If the text is sound, we must infer that David had brought with him a body of Philistine followers from Gath, a supposition which is in accordance with the view that the Cherethites and Pelethites were Philistines. See note on ch. 2Sa_8:18. But it is possible that we should follow the LXX. in reading Gibbôrîm in place of Gittites. During his wanderings David formed a corps of six hundred picked men, who were particularly distinguished as “David’s men.” They appear first at Keilah (1Sa_23:13, cp. 1Sa_22:2), were with him in the wilderness of Paran (1Sa_25:13), followed him to Gath (1Sa_27:2-3) and Ziklag (1Sa_27:8, 1Sa_29:1, 1Sa_30:1; 1Sa_30:9), came up with him to Hebron (1Sa_2:3), and finally to Jerusalem (2Sa_15:6). This corps seems to have been afterwards maintained as a guard with the title of “the Gibbôrîm,” that is, “the Heroes” or “the Mighty Men” (cp. ch. 2Sa_10:7, 2Sa_16:6, 2Sa_20:7; 1Ki_1:8), and it is natural to identify the six hundred here mentioned with that body. Some critics think that without altering the reading, we should identify the Gittites with the Gibbôrîm, and suppose that they were called Gittites either because they had followed David ever since his residence in Gath; or because the corps had at this time been largely recruited from the natives of Gath.
The Sept. text of 2Sa_15:18 is as follows: “And all his servants passed on beside him, and all the Cherethites and all the Pelethites, and halted at the olive tree in the wilderness. And all the people marched by close to him, and all his attendants, and all the mighty men, and all the warriors, six hundred men, and were present by his side; and all the Cherethites and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, the six hundred men who came after him from Gath, marched on before the king.” This appears to be the rendering of a text differing somewhat from the present Hebrew, to which has been added a rendering of the present Hebrew text, with some further glosses or alternative renderings. “The olive tree in the wilderness,” which marked the scene of the second halt, (if the reading is genuine and not a mere mistranslation), was probably beyond the Mount of Olives on the road to the Jordan.
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 vv18–19 (18) Cherethites . . . Pelethites.—See Note on 2Sa_8:18.
(18) Cherethites . . . Pelethites.—See Note on 2Sa_8:18.
Gittites.—This word in its form would naturally mean men of Gath, and it has therefore been understood by some commentators of a body of Philistines in David’s service. But the term is distinctly explained here as meaning the “six hundred men which came after him from Gath,” and called “Gittites” for that reason, a body of men with whom the previous history of David has made us very familiar. They had gathered to him during his outlawry (1Sa_22:1-2), had been with him at Keilah (1Sa_23:13), in the wilderness of Paran (1Sa_25:13), and at Gath (1Sa_27:3), “came after him from Gath” to Ziklag, and shared with him in his life and exploits there (1Sa_27:8; 1Sa_29:2; 1Sa_30:1-9), and went up with him to Hebron (2 Samuel 23), and thence to Jerusalem (2Sa_5:6). They are generally supposed to have afterwards constituted the body of “heroes” or “mighty men,” to whom frequent reference is made (2Sa_10:7; 2Sa_16:6; 2Sa_20:7; 1Ki_1:8). The Vatican LXX. here, as often, adds considerably to the text.
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 vv18–22 All the Gittites, air hundred men which came after…
All the Gittites, air hundred men which came after him from Gath. The Septuagint reads "Gibborim," and without doubt these are the persons meant; but while they were styled Gibborim, the "mighties," for honour"s sake, because of their prowess, they probably were popularly called David"s Gittites, because they were the six hundred men who had formed his little army when he sought refuge with Achish, King of Gath. (1Sa_27:2 1Sa_30:9) They were not Philistines, but Israelites of desperate fortune; (1Sa_22:2) and it is a proof of David"s great ability, and of the moral influence of his character, that he was successful, not only in controlling them and maintaining discipline, but also in forming them into as noble a set of heroes as ever existed, and who were faithful to him in all his fortunes. To their number belonged the thirty-seven champions endmerated in ch. 23., and possibly the title "Gibborim" strictly belonged to them only. As they are still called "the six hundred," it is probable that the corps was maintained at this number by new appointments, and that they had special privileges which made their position very desirable. Certainly David would never forget men who had shared all his fortunes, and been so true and so useful to him; and it is evident, from Hushai"s counsel, (2Sa_17:8) that Absalom feared their resolute valour, and hesitated to attack without overwhelming numbers. Thenius compares these veterans to Napoleon"s Old Guard.
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 v19 Ittai the Gittite.
2Sa_15:19
Ittai the Gittite.
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Ittai the Gittite
Ittai of Gath was not only a heathen but a heathen of the heathens, a member of a race the most malignant of all the foes of the Church. Yet among the events of this day--a day over which the historian fondly if sadly lingers, more minutely and at greater length described than any other day of Old Testament history--an episode of which he is the hero finds a prominent place. It is not much we can know about him; but what we can that we desire to learn. Let us look at his environment and at himself; his People, his Position, and his Personality.
I. His people. Probably in a degree in which it can be said of no other country, Palestine has been the meeting-place and battleground of nations. From earliest historical times we find wave after wave of conquerors breaking upon, settling down, or passing over it; and there are not wanting indications that long before history began to be written the monotonous process had commenced. The shadowy forms of the earlier races can be dimly discerned, ghost-like, before the rising of the historic sun. Amongst the many pre-Hebrew arrivals and settlers--and, historically, the most important of them all--was the people to whom Ittai belonged, the Philistines. Concerning their origin, the events which led to their migration into Palestine, and the development of their power there, we know almost nothing--barely sufficient to suggest a few guesses. A reference to the genealogical table in Genesis (Gen_10:14) suggests an Egyptian origin, whilst the Book of Deuteronomy and the Prophets Amos and Jeremiah speak of them as Caphtorim out of Caphtor; but the endeavour to fix a site for Caphtor has not yet been attended with success. Cappadocia, Cyprus, and Crete are all claimants; but the balance of opinion seems to incline in favour of the last-mentioned of the three. From whatever race they sprung, from whatever quarter they came, we find a tribe of them at the extreme southern limit of Palestine, on the route down to Egypt, as far back as the time of Abraham, though their very name--strangers, or emigrants--indicates that they were arrivals in the country, and not aboriginals. We shall probably not be far wrong if we suppose a small swarm of Caphtorim from Caphtor (say, Cretans from Crete) hiving off and settling down upon the southern border of Palestine, where the fertile land shades off into the desert on the way to Egypt; there multiplying their number and developing their genius for war; civilising, casting off nomadic habits, and acquiring those of dwellers in cities; and in due course acquiring a greater proficiency in the arts and arms than any of the rude tribes around them. Then comes the great commotion to the North consequent upon the invasion and conquest by Joshua and his Israelites. The Philistines are too far off in their southern corner to feel the shock in any direct way; but their next-door neighbours, the Avites--who occupied the great plain lying between them and the new-comers, and on whose rich corn-fields they had doubtless cast many a longing eye--are shaken to their centre. Already three of their principal towns have fallen; the great Tribe of Judah, under the hero son-in-law of Caleb, presses sore upon them; half of the plain (Shefela) is no longer theirs. We can then conceive of them, in their extremity and desperation, invoking the aid of their warlike and rising rivals along their southern side, who had already begun to intermarry and mingle with themselves. Nothing loth, the desired assistance is given, and soon Philistine swords--for the first time, but not for the last, by many a score--cross and crash with Hebrew spears. Four results follow:--
1. The first is a decided stop to Hebrew extension in that quarter. The captured cities are regained, and for many a day are thorns in the side of Judah, Dan, and Simeon.
2. The next is a permanent occupation by the Philistines of the territory into which they had come as allies. It was the richest part of all Palestine, excelling even the beautiful Esdraelon, and, moreover, its coast embraced the two best harbours between Egypt and Phoenicia.
3. Another result is a new name for that portion, and eventually for the whole, of Canaan. Henceforth the Plain is known from them as Philistia--a name which, thus derived from a heathen tribe in its south-western corner, has, curiously enough, in a slightly altered form, spread over, and to this day covers all of the Holy Land. It is an illustration of the irony of history that a name which we fondly cherish as a name holy and revered, should be thus a child of a pure heathen parentage. In vain Israel cultivated exclusiveness; ever and anon God compelled an indication of the universalism that was wrapped up in His Call. The very name which the Holy Land bears is a standing memorial of that making of both one, which, being one of the counsels of God from the beginning, became realised in Him in whom Jew and Gentile find their meeting-place with one another and both with Him.
4. The fourth result is a great and rapid development of the Philistine power. The supposition of a second migration from Crete, though quite possible, does not seem to be necessary. The fertility of their new possessions--the granary of Palestine--their commercial advantages, the great increase of numbers through the absorption of the Avites, Anakim, and possibly other tribes, including an influx of fugitive Amorites and Canaanites, and the separation of the dominant race as a warrior or fighting castle to the art and practice of war--these are considerations quite sufficient to account for such rapid development of power as the facts of the narrative require. With the institution of the monarchy and the establishment of a central authority in Israel, implying some amount of national cohesion in place of tribal isolation, the tables were turned. Saul inflicted many grievous defeats upon them; and after the accession of David and the perfecting of his military system they had small chance of success, in aggressive warfare at least, against their mere numerous foes. But, cooped up within their narrow borders, and forbidden aggressive war, this nation of soldiers seeks an outlet for its superfluous manhood in foreign service. As it was with Scotland and Switzerland three centuries ago, so was it with Philistia in Ittais time. What the Scottish and Swiss Guards were at the Court of France, what the Varangian Guard was to the Greek Emperors at Constantinople, what the Free Companies were to the cities and princes of Italy, that was the Philistine guard at the Court of Pharaoh and the Court of David--a reliable body of mercenaries, whose duty it was, in a general way, to fight the sovereigns battles, and, in a special way, to guard the royal person. The nucleus of this guard appears to have been enlisted by David during his sojourn at Gath, where for a time he found a refuge from the persecuting jealousy of Saul.
II. Ittais position. He was captain of these mercenaries, the Philistine guard, the Cherethites and Pelethites, in Davids service. We must conceive of him as a stranger among strangers, a soldier in a foreign employ, an exile from home and country--either voluntarily, through a desire to push his fortunes, or by necessity, because of some disagreement or quarrel with the Lords of the Philistines. He is among those who, however much they may appreciate his sword, hate himself, his race, and his religion. He and his comrades belonged to a people who, possessing the qualities of strength and pertinacity, were by temperament sluggish, heavy, and dull-witted. Such is the character everywhere implied in the pictures of them given in Scripture: They were almost the laughing-stock of their livelier and quicker neighbours--the easy prey of the rough humour of Samson, or the agility and cunning of the diminutive David (Stanleys Jewish Church.) In the city, and at the Court of Jerusalem, he and they would feel and would be regarded very much as Hereward and his Varangians felt and were regarded in the City and at the Court of Constantinople, as conceived by the historic imagination and pictured by the faithful pen of Scott in his Count Robert of Paris. Ittai and his guard would be the objects and the butts at once of the contemptuous civility of the courtiers, and the stinging spite of the citizens. Almost inevitably, they would draw off, isolate themselves, and as a caste, hated and hating, live there lives by themselves, reserving all their sympathies for those within the limits of their own order. Thus were these Cherethites and Pelethites--outside the sympathy of the people and remote from the gossip of the bazaar--when the shameful rebellion of Absalom bursts upon the astonished guard as a bolt out of a clear sky. Meanwhile David and Ittai have met. The king looks into the face, illumined with the light of the noblest feelings that shine out from the heart through the windows of the eyes: nobility meets nobility; magnanimity accepts what magnanimity offers. Two great souls meet, embrace, and grapple each to each with hooks of steel. The simple acceptance of the service proffered; the delicate recognition that further remonstrance would have been almost an outrage; the tacit treatment of the question as closed; and the renewed enrollment into a service that is to last for life--all this and much more is enwrapped in the Go, and pass over. The kings son was a rebel, his counsellor a traitor; how heart must have swelled and eye filled in the presence of devotion so unselfish and so strong in the stranger.
III. The Personality That Is Here Presented To Us. We know nothing concerning him save what we gather from these scenes. We see him only twice: once as, beside the brook Kedron, within stone-cast of Gethsemane, he vows the fealty he kept so well, and once as he marches out of Mahanaim at the head of his well-drilled corps. But as the naturalist from a single typical bone can construct the whole physical frame of the animal, so from these scanty yet typical facts the moralist can give the whole moral build of the man. We experience no difficulty in the endeavour to reproduce Ittais moral structure. He is simplicity, fidelity, and affection embodied.
1. Simplicity, for there was no double purpose in his mind, nor double speech in his tongue; he had one loyalty and one only, a soldiers surrender to the king whose soldier he was; one aim and one only, a servants service to the master whose man he was.
2. Fidelity, for selfish views and considerations seem to have found in him no place at all; he never asked, Where is the sunny side of fortune, that I may seek it? or, Where the shady side, that I may shun it? but, Come weal or woe, be it life or be it death, I follow where faith leads.
3. Affection, too, for manifestly this wondrous poet-king had won his love and held his heart. There was about this David a marvellous power of attracting, subduing, and holding men. (G. M. Grant, B. D.)
A specimen of nobleness
It is the darkest period of Davids life. He is fleeing, barefooted, in fear of Absaloms approaching army. Yet he is not altogether alone. A few loyal hearts cling to him. And, amid the desolating sorrow, appears this Ittai. He is not a Hebrew; he is a Gittite--that is, a Philistine. But he is among those who will cast in their fortunes with the fleeing king. Only recently he seems to have come to Jerusalem. David sees the resolve of splendid devotion in Ittai. It will be useless to try to dissuade him further. The noble devotion of Ittai teaches these lessons:--
I. That such devotion i should show toward Jesus Christ. There must have been a singular attractiveness and winningness about the personality of David inspiring devotion to him. There is more attractiveness in Jesus Christ, and to Him, therefore, I ought to be more devoted than Ittai was to David.
1. Think of the purity of Jesus. Tennyson wrote: I am amazed at Christs purity and holiness, and at His infinite beauty. The forms of religion may change, but Christ will grow more and more in the roll of the ages. His character is more wonderful than the greatest miracle.
2. Think of Christs sympathy. I have read how, before they knew of mines of diamonds there, a boy in South Africa flung a stone at a stranger. The man picked up the stone, and found it diamond, and it became his treasure. So Christ finds the diamond in us. Whom others cast away He regards, receives, redeems. Matthew the publican; the woman taken in her sin, etc.
3. Think of the sacrifice of Christ. His atoning cross tells it. This Christ of purity, sympathy, sacrifice, is worthy limitless devotion.
II. What does devotion mean and involve?
1. Definite decision for its object. Ittai decided for David. There were no ifs or buts, about his decision. It was downright. So I should decide for Christ.
2. Confession. And Ittai answered the king and said. A real devotion does not hesitate about telling itself forth.
3. Marching under the standard of its object. Ittai followed Davids flag. If I have real devotion to Christ I will join and march with His church and people.
4. Persistence. Ittai went the whole way with David in that long march from Jerusalem to Mahanaim. So I should persistently follow Christ.
5. Service. Ittai was one of the commanders for David in the subsequent battle with Absalom. So I should give myself to service for Christ. Christ will accept my devotion as David did that of Ittai. And the object of ones devotion is the discriminating and deciding test for life. The ignoble life has other than the highest object of devotion. (Homiletic Review.)
Ittai of Gath
Heartbroken and spiritless, David leaves Jerusalem. And as soon as he has got clear of the city he calls a halt, in order that he may master his followers and see on whom he may depend. Foremost among the little band come six hundred men from Gath--Philistines--from Goliaths city. These men, singularly enough, the king had chosen as his bodyguard; perhaps he was not altogether sure of the loyalty of his own subjects, and possibly felt safer with foreign mercenaries, who could have no secret leanings to the deposed house of Saul. Be that as it may, the narrative tells us that these men had come after him from Gath. Here they are, faithful among the faithless, as foreign soldiers surrounding a king often are--notably, for instance, the Swiss guard in the French Revolution. It is a beautiful nature that in the depth of sorrow shrinks from dragging other people down with itself. Generosity breeds generosity, and this Philistine captain breaks out into a burst of passionate devotion, garnished, in soldier-fashion, with an unnecessary oath or two, but ringing very sincere and meaning a great deal. As for himself and his men, they have chosen their side. Whoever goes, they stay. Davids heart is touched and warmed by their outspoken loyalty; he yields and accepts their service. Ittai and his noble six hundred tramp, on, out of our sight, and all their households behind them.
I. What grand passionate self-sacrifice may be evolved out of the roughest natures.
1. A passionate personal attachment; then, that love, issuing as such love always does, in willing sacrifice that recks not for a moment of personal consequences.
2. And we see in these words a supreme restful delight in the presence of Him whom the heart loves. And wherever, in some humble measure, these emotions are realised, there you get weakness springing up into strength, and the ignoble into loftiness. Astronomers tell us that, sometimes, a star that has shone inconspicuous, and stood low down in their catalogues as of fifth or sixth magnitude, will all at once flame out, having kindled and caught fire somehow, and will blaze in the heavens, outshining Jupiter and Venus. And so some poor, vulgar, narrow nature, touched by this Promethean fire of pure love that leads to perfect sacrifice, will flame in the, forehead of the morning sky, an undying splendour, and a light for ever more, You have all that capacity in you, and you are all responsible for the use of it. What have you done with it? Is there any person or thing in this world that has ever been able to lift you up out of your miserable selves? Is there any magnet that has proved strong enough to raise you from the low levels along which your life creeps? Have you ever known the thrill of resolving to become the bondservant and the slave of some great cause not your own? Or are you, as so many of you are, like spiders living in the midst of your web, mainly intent upon what you can catch in it? You have these capacities slumbering in you. Have you ever set a light to that inert mass of enthusiasm that lies in you? Have you ever woke up the sleeper?
II. These possibilities of love and sacrifice point plainly to God in Christ as their true object.
III. The terrible misdirection of these capacities is the sin and the misery of the world. I will not say that such emotions, even when expended on creatures, are ever wasted. And I am not going to say that when men love each other passionately and deeply, and sacrifice themselves for one another, or for some cause or purpose affecting only temporal matters, the precious elixir of love is wasted. God forbid! But I do say that all these objects, sweet and gracious as some of them are, ennobling and elevating as some of them are, if they are taken apart from God, are insufficient to fill your hearts: and that if they are slipped in between you and God, as they often are, then they bring sin and sorrow. And so let me gather all that I have been saying into the one earnest beseeching of you that you would bring that power of uncalculating love and self-sacrificing affection which is in you, and would fasten it where it ought to fix--on Christ who died on the cross for you. Such a love will bring blessedness to you. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
Loyal to the core
If Ittai, charmed with Davids person and character, though a foreigner and a stranger, felt that he could enlist beneath his banner for life--yea, and declared that he would do so there and then--how much more may you and I, if we know what Christ has done for us, and who He is and what he deserves at our hands, at this good hour plight our troth to Him and vow, As the Lord liveth, surely in whatsoever place my Lord and Saviour shall be, whether in death or life, even there also shall His servant be.
I. In what form and manner was this declaration made?
1. It was made at a time when Davids fortunes were at their lowest ebb, and consequently it was made unselfishly, without the slightest idea of gain from it. To take up with Christ when everybody cries up His name is what a hypocrite would do, but to take up with Christ when they are shouting, Away with him! away with him! is another matter. There are times in which the simple faith of Christ is at a great discount. It is such a season that we must stand out for Gods.
2. Ittai gave himself up wholly to David when he was but newly come to him. David says, Whereas thou camest but yesterday, should I this day make thee go up and down with us? But Ittai does not care whether he came yesterday or twenty years ago, but he declares, Surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether In death or life, even there also will thy servant be. It is best to begin the Christian life with thorough consecration. Have any of you professed to be Christians, and have you never given yourselves entirely to Christ? It is time that you began again. This should be one of the earliest forms of our worship of our Master--this total resignation of ourselves to him.
3. Ittai surrendered himself to David in the most voluntary manner. No one persuaded Ittai to do this; in fact, David seems to have persuaded him the other way. David tested and tried him, but he voluntarily, out of the fulness of his heart, said, Where my lord, the king is, there also shall his servant be. If you believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is yours, give yourselves up to him by a distinct act and deed. Feel that one grand impulse without needing pressure or argument The love of Christ constraineth me.
4. Ittai did this very solemnly. He took an oath which we Christians may not do, and may not wish to do, but still we should make the surrender with quite as much solemnity.
5. And this Ittai did publicly. At any rate, he so acted that everybody saw him when David said, Go over, and he marched in front--the first man to pass the brook.
II. What did this declaration involve?
1. He was henceforth to be Davids servant, Of course, as his soldier, he was to fight for him, and to do his bidding, What sayest thou, man? Canst thou lift thy hand to Christ and say, Henceforth I will live as thy servant, not doing my own will, but thy will. Thy command is henceforth my rule? Canst thou say that? If not, do not mock him, but stand back. May the Holy Ghost give thee grace thus to begin, thus to persevere, and thus to end.
2. He was to do his utmost for Davids cause, not to be his servant in name, but his soldier, ready for scars and wounds and death, if need be, on the kings behalf. That is what Ittai meant as in rough soldier-tones, he took the solemn oath that it should be so. Now, if thou wouldst be Christs disciple, determine henceforth by His grace that thou wilt defend His cause.
3. His promise declared that he would give a personal attendance upon the person of his master. That was, indeed, the pith of it. In what place, my lord, the king, shall be, even there also will thy servant be. Brethren, let us make the same resolve in our hearts, that wherever Christ is, there we will be.
4. He intended to share Davids condition. It David was great, Ittai would rejoice. If David was exiled, Ittai would attended his wanderings. Our point must be to resolve in Gods strength to keep to Christ in all weathers and in all companies, and that whether in life or death. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Alexander MacLaren 1905 · Public Domain On v21 2 Samuel
2 Samuel
ITTAI OF GATH
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2Sa 15:21.
It was the darkest hour in David’s life. No more pathetic page is found in the Old Testament than that which tells the story of his flight before Absalom. He is crushed by the consciousness that his punishment is deserved-the bitter fruit of the sin that filled all his later life with darkness. His courage and his buoyancy have left him. He has no spirit to make a stand or strike a blow. If Shimei runs along the hillside abreast of him, shrieking curses as he goes, all he says is: ‘Let him curse; for the Lord hath bidden him.’
So, heartbroken and spiritless, he leaves Jerusalem. And as soon as he has got clear of the city he calls a halt, in order that he may muster his followers and see on whom he may depend. Foremost among the little band come six hundred men from Gath-Philistines-from Goliath’s city. These men, singularly enough, the king had chosen as his bodyguard; perhaps he was not altogether sure of the loyalty of his own subjects, and possibly felt safer with foreign mercenaries, who could have no secret leanings to the deposed house of Saul. Be that as it may, the narrative tells us that these men had ‘come after him from Gath.’ He had been there twice in the old days, in his flight from Saul, and the second visit had extended over something more than a year. Probably during that period his personal attraction, and his reputation as a brilliant leader, had led these rough soldiers to attach themselves to his service, and to be ready to forsake home and kindred in order to fight beside him.
At all events here they are, ‘faithful among the faithless,’ as foreign soldiers surrounding a king often are-notably, for instance, the Swiss guard in the French Revolution. Their strong arms might have been of great use to David, but his generosity cannot think of involving them in his fall, and so he says to them: ‘I am not going to fight; I have no plan. I am going where I can. You go back and “worship the rising sun.” Absalom will take you and be glad of your help. And as for me, I thank you for your past loyalty. Mercy and peace be with you!’
It is a beautiful nature that in the depth of sorrow shrinks from dragging other people down with itself. Generosity breeds generosity, and this Philistine captain breaks out into a burst of passionate devotion, garnished, in soldier fashion, with an unnecessary oath or two, but ringing very sincere and meaning a great deal. As for himself and his men, they have chosen their side. Whoever goes, they stay. Whatever befalls, they stick by David; and if the worst come to the worst they can all die together, and their corpses lie in firm ranks round about their dead king. David’s heart is touched and warmed by their outspoken loyalty; he yields and accepts their service. Ittai and his noble six hundred tramp on, out of our sight, and all their households behind them. Now what is there in all that, to make a sermon out of?
I. First, look at the picture of that Philistine soldier, as teaching us what grand passionate self-sacrifice may be evolved out of the roughest natures.
Analyse his words, and do you not hear, ringing in them, three things, which are the seed of all nobility and splendour in human character? First, a passionate personal attachment; then, that love issuing, as such love always does, in willing sacrifice that recks not for a moment of personal consequences; that is ready to accept anything for itself if it can serve the object of its devotion, and will count life well expended if it is flung away in such a service. And we see, lastly, in these words a supreme restful delight in the presence of him whom the heart loves. For Ittai and his men, the one thing needful was to be beside him in whose eye they had lived, from whose presence they had caught inspiration; their trusted leader, before whom their souls bowed down. So then this vehement speech is the pure language of love.
Now these three things,-a passionate personal attachment, issuing in spontaneous heroism of self-abandonment, and in supreme satisfaction in the beloved presence,-may spring up in the rudest, roughest nature. A Philistine soldier was not a very likely man in whom to find refined and lofty emotion. He was hard by nature, hardened by his rough trade; and unconscious that he was doing anything at all heroic or great. Something had smitten this rock, and out of it there came the pure refreshing stream. And so I say to you, the weakest and the lowest, the roughest and the hardest, the most selfishly absorbed man and woman among us, has lying in him and her dormant capacities for flaming up into such a splendour of devotion and magnificence of heroic self-sacrifice as is represented in these words of my text. A mother will do it for her child, and never think that she has done anything extraordinary; husbands will do such things for wives; wives for husbands; friends and lovers for one another. All who know the sweetness and power of the bond of affection know that there is nothing more gladsome than to fling oneself away for the sake of those whom we love. And the capacity for such love and sacrifice lies in all of us. Prosaic, commonplace people as we are, with no great field on which to work out our heroisms; yet we have it in us to love and give ourselves away thus, if once the heart be stirred.
And lastly, this capacity which lies dormant in all of us, if once it is roused to action, will make a man blessed and dignified as nothing else will. The joy of unselfish love is the purest joy that man can taste; the joy of perfect self-sacrifice is the highest joy that humanity can possess, and they lie open for us all.
And wherever, in some humble measure, these emotions of which I have been speaking are realised, there you see weakness springing up into strength, and the ignoble into loftiness. Astronomers tell us that sometimes a star that has shone inconspicuous, and stood low down in their catalogues as of fifth or sixth magnitude, will all at once flame out, having kindled and caught fire somehow, and will blaze in the heavens, outshining Jupiter and Venus. And so some poor, vulgar, narrow nature, touched by this Promethean fire of pure love that leads to perfect sacrifice, will ‘flame in the forehead of the morning sky’ an undying splendour, and a light for evermore.
Brethren, my appeal to you is a very plain and simple one, founded on these facts:-You all have that capacity in you, and you all are responsible for the use of it. What have you done with it? Is there any person or thing in this world that has ever been able to lift you up out of your miserable selves? Is there any magnet that has proved strong enough to raise you from the low levels along which your life creeps? Have you ever known the thrill of resolving to become the bondservant and the slave of some great cause not your own? Or are you, as so many of you are, like spiders living in the midst of your web, mainly intent upon what you can catch by it? You have these capacities slumbering in you. Have you ever set a light to that inert mass of enthusiasm that lies within you? Have you ever woke up the sleeper? Look at this rough soldier of my text, and learn from him the lesson that there is nothing that so ennobles and dignifies a commonplace nature as enthusiasm for a great cause, or self-sacrificing love for a worthy heart.
II. The second remark which I make is this:-These possibilities of love and sacrifice point plainly to God in Christ as their true object.
‘Whose image and superscription hath it?’ said Christ, looking at the Roman denarius that they brought and laid on His palm. If the Emperor’s head is on it, why, then, he has a right to it as tribute. And then He went on to say, ‘Render, therefore, unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s.’ So there are things that have God’s image and superscription stamped on them, and such are our hearts, our whole constitution and nature. As plainly as the penny had the head of Tiberius on it, and therefore proclaimed that he was Emperor where it was current, so plainly does every soul carry in the image of God the witness that He is its owner and that it should be rendered in tribute to Him.
And amongst all these marks of a divine possession and a divine destination printed upon human nature, it seems to me that none is plainer than this fact, that we can all of us thus give ourselves away in the abandonment of a profound and all-surrendering love. That capacity unmistakably proclaims that it is destined to be directed towards God and to find its rest in Him. As distinctly as some silver cup, with its owner’s initials and arms engraved upon it, declares itself to be ‘meet for the master’s use,’ so distinctly does your soul, by reason of this capacity, proclaim that it is meant to be turned to Him in whom alone all love can find its perfect satisfaction; for whom alone it is supremely blessed and great to lose life itself; and who only has authority over human spirits.
We are made with hearts that need to rest upon an absolute love; we are made with understandings that need to grasp a pure, a perfect, and, as I believe, paradoxical though it may sound, a personal Truth. We are made with wills that crave for an absolute authoritative command, and we are made with a moral nature that needs a perfect holiness. And we need all that love, truth, authority, purity, to be gathered into one, for our misery is that, when we set out to look for treasures, we have to go into many lands and to many merchants, to buy many goodly pearls. But we need One of great price, in which all our wealth may be invested. We need that One to be an undying and perpetual possession. There is One to whom our love can ever cleave, and fear none of the sorrows or imperfections that make earthward-turned love a rose with many a thorn, One for whom it is pure gain to lose ourselves, One who is plainly the only worthy recipient of the whole love and self-surrender of the heart.
That One is God, revealed and brought near to us in Jesus Christ. In that great Saviour we have a love at once divine and human, we have the great transcendent instance of love leading to sacrifice. On that love and sacrifice for us Christ builds His claim on us for our hearts, and our all. Life alone can communicate life; it is only light that can diffuse light. It is only love that can kindle love; it is only sacrifice that can inspire sacrifice. And so He comes to us, and asks that we should just love Him back again as He has loved us. He first gives Himself utterly for and to us, and then asks us to give ourselves wholly to Him. He first yields up His own life, and then He says: ‘He that loseth his life for My sake shall find it.’ The object, the true object, for all this depth of love which lies slumbering in our hearts, is God in Christ, the Christ that died for us.
III. And now, lastly, observe that the terrible misdirection of these capacities is the sin and the misery of the world.
I will not say that such emotions, even when expended on creatures, are ever wasted. For however unworthy may be the objects on which they are lavished, the man himself is the better and the higher for having cherished them. The mother, when she forgets self in her child, though her love and self-forgetfulness and self-sacrifice may, in some respects, be called but an animal instinct, is elevated and ennobled by the exercise of them. The patriot and the thinker, the philanthropist, ay! even-although I take him to be the lowest in the scale-the soldier who, in some cause which he thinks to be a good one, and not merely in the tigerish madness of the battlefield, throws away his life-are lifted in the scale of being by their self-abnegation.
And so I am not going to say that when men love each other passionately and deeply, and sacrifice themselves for one another, or for some cause or purpose affecting only temporal matters, the precious elixir of love is wasted. God forbid! But I do say that all these objects, sweet and gracious as some of them are, ennobling and elevating as some of them are, if they are taken apart from God, are insufficient to fill your hearts: and that if they are slipped in between you and God, as they often are, then they bring sin and sorrow.
There is nothing more tragic in this world than the misdirection of man’s capacity for love and sacrifice. It is like the old story in the Book of Daniel, which tells how the heathen monarch made a great feast, and when the wine began to inflame the guests, sent for the sacred vessels taken from the Temple of Jerusalem, that had been used for Jehovah’s worship; and {as the narrative says, with a kind of shudder at the profanation}, ‘They brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the House of God, which was at Jerusalem, and the king and his princes, his wives and his concubines, drank in them. They drank wine and praised the gods.’ So this heart of mine, which, as I said, has the Master’s initials and His arms engraven upon it, in token that it is His cup, I too often fill with the poisonous and intoxicating draught of earthly pleasure and earthly affections; and as I drink it, the madness goes through my veins, and I praise gods of my own making instead of Him whom alone I ought to love.
Ah, brethren! we should be our own rebukers in this matter, and the heroism of the world should put to shame the cowardice and the selfishness of the Church. Contrast the depth of your affection for your household with the tepidity of your love for your Saviour. Contrast the willingness with which you sacrifice yourself for some dear one with the grudgingness with which you yield yourselves to Him. Contrast the rest and the sense of satisfaction in the presence of those whom you love, and your desolation when they are absent, with the indifference whether you have Christ beside you or not. And remember that the measure of your power of loving is the measure of your obligation to love your Lord; and that if you are all frost to Him and all fervour to them, then in a very solemn sense ‘a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.’ ‘He that loveth father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me.’
And so let me gather all that I have been saying into the one earnest beseeching of you that you would bring that power of uncalculating love and self-sacrificing affection which is in you, and would fasten it where it ought to fix-on Christ who died on the cross for you. Such a love will bring blessedness to you. Such a love will ennoble and dignify your whole nature, and make you a far greater and fairer man or woman than you ever otherwise could be. Like some little bit of black carbon put into an electric current, my poor nature will flame into beauty and radiance when that spark touches it. So love Him and be at peace; give yourselves to Him and He will give you back yourselves, ennobled and transfigured by the surrender. Lay yourselves on His altar, and that altar will sanctify both the giver and the gift. If you can take this rough Philistine soldier’s words in their spirit, and in a higher sense say, ‘Whether I live I live unto the Lord, or whether I die I die unto the Lord; living or dying, I am the Lord’s,’ He will let you enlist in His army; and give you for your marching orders this command and this hope, ‘If any man serve Me let him follow Me; and where I am there shall also My servant be.’
Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (1904–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v21 Hushai goes to Jerusalem
Hushai goes to Jerusalem
v. 31. And one told David, saying, Ahithophel, in whom David had trusted as his secret counselor, is among the conspirators with Absalom. And David said, in a brief sigh commending the matter to the Lord, O Lord, I pray Thee, turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness. The way for the fulfillment of this prayer was immediately prepared.
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v. 32. And it came to pass that, when David was come to the top of the mount, where he worshiped God, or, where men were wont to worship God, for the summits of hills, the so-called high places, were still used for that purpose at the time of David, behold, Hushai the Archite, came to meet him with his coat rent and earth upon his head, as a token of his sympathetic grief;
v. 33. unto whom David said, if thou passest on with me, joining his forces in the campaign which was sure to come, then thou shalt be a burden unto me, probably on account of his advanced age and feeble condition:
v. 34. but if thou return to the city and say unto Absalom, I will be thy servant, O king; as I have been thy father’s servant hitherto, in the capacity of private counselor, 2Sa 16:16; 1Ch 27:33, so will I now also be thy servant, then mayest thou for me, in the interest of David, defeat the counsel of Ahithophel. In this way Hushai could be of assistance in defeating the insurrection and restoring the rightful king to the throne.
v. 35. And hast thou not there with thee Zadok and Abiathar, the priests? These two men also held to the cause of David. Therefore it shall be that what thing so ever thou shalt hear out of the king’s house, thou shalt tell it to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, with whom David had arranged to have such reports forwarded to him.
v. 36. Behold, they have there with them their two sons, Ahimaaz, Zadok’s son, and Jonathan, Abiathar’s son; and by them ye shall send unto me everything that ye can hear.
v. 37. So Hushai, David’s friend, for such he remained during the events which followed, came into the city, and Absalom came into Jerusalem, at about the same time. Note: It is the duty of all Christians not only to pray against the evil projects of the enemies, but also, so far as in them lies, to do all in their power to thwart the evil designs of the enemies against the kingdom of Christ.
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 vv19, 21 This is the name of a man. (See: How…
Ittai
This is the name of a man. (See: How to Translate Names)
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Gittite
Translate the name of this people group the same as you did in 2 Samuel 6:10.
Why will you come with us?
This rhetorical question indicates that the king does not think they should go along with him. This question can be written as a statement. AT: "You do not need to go with us." (See: Rhetorical Question)
why should I make you wander all over with us?
This rhetorical question emphasizes David did not want Ittai to come. This question can be translated as a statement. AT: "I do not want to cause you to wander around with us." (See: Rhetorical Question)
Since you just left yesterday
Here "yesterday" is an exaggeration that emphasizes a short amount of time. Ittai the Gittite had lived there for several years. AT: "Since you have lived here only a short time" (See: Hyperbole and Generalization)
May loyalty and faithfulness go with you
This is a blessing that David is giving to him. AT: "May Yahweh be faithful and loyal to you always" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
translationWords
alien
exile
faithful
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 vv18–19 15:18 600 men from Gath: This alliance went back…
15:18 600 men from Gath: This alliance went back to David’s relationship with the Philistines in Saul’s day (1 Sam 21:10-15; 27:1-12; 29:1-11). • the king’s bodyguard: See study note on 2 Sam 8:18.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.