Showing posts with label Shammoth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shammoth. Show all posts

Friday, October 16, 2026

David's Mightiest Men

Continuing a chronological Bible study: 

In the last post began a list of David's most mighty men under his general Joab which had included Adino, Eleazar, Shammah, Abishai, Benaiah, Asahel, Elhanan, Shammoth, and Elika.  The list continued with:

(2 Samuel 23:26) Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, (27) Abiezer the Anethothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite, (28) Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite, (29) Heleb the son of Baanah, a Netophathite, Ittai the son of Ribai out of Gibeah of the children of Benjamin, (30) Benaiah the Pirathonite, Hiddai of the brooks of Gaash, (31) Abialbon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite, (32) Eliahba the Shaalbonite, of the sons of Jashen, Jonathan, 

Because Blogger only allows twenty labels per post, the list had to be continued on another post:

And The Rest of David's Mighty Men

(1 Chronicles 11:10) These also are the chief of the mighty men whom David had, who strengthened themselves with him in his kingdom, with all Israel, to make him king, according to the word of the Lord concerning Israel.

1 Chronicles 11 also listed the chief of the mighty men of David, especially those who had exerted themselves with all Israel to make him king, according to the Lord's word and will.

(11) And this is the number of the mighty men whom David had, Jashobeam, an Hachmonite, the chief of the captains; he lifted up his spear against three hundred killed at one time.

This list named Jashobeam first, rather than Adino as in the list in 2 Samuel 23.  Jashobeam is probably his actual name, as Adino the Eznite was probably a nickname of sorts given to him because he was good with a spear as "Adino" and "Eznite" both referred to a spear.  In the previous account he was said to have killed eight hundred men at one time; here it states three hundred.  Perhaps he fought against eight hundred and personally killed three hundred; I don't really know the reason for the discrepancy.

(12) And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo, the Ahohite, who was one of the three mighties. (13) He was with David at Pasdammim, and there the Philistines were gathered together to battle, where was a parcel of ground full of barley; and the people fled from before the Philistines. (14) And they set themselves in the midst of that parcel, and delivered it, and slew the Philistines; and the LORD saved them by a great deliverance.

The account in 2 Samuel 23 spoke of Eleazar clinging to a sword although his hand was weary striking Philistines, and that it was Shammah who had defended a parcel of lentils, said to be barley here.  Adam Clarke, in his Commentary on the Bible, quoted Hebrew scholar Dr. Benjamin Kennicott who said that, "...thirty-four Hebrew words have been lost out of this part of the passage in Chronicles, which are happily preserved in Samuel."  That would account for the discrepancy.

(15) Now three of the thirty captains went down to the rock to David, into the cave of Adullam; and the host of the Philistines encamped in the valley of Rephaim. (16) And David was then in the hold, and the Philistines' garrison was then at Bethlehem. (17) And David longed, and said, "Oh, that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, that is at the gate!" (18) And the three broke through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David, but David would not drink of it, but poured it out to the Lord, (19) And said, "My God forbid it me, that I should do this thing; shall I drink the blood of these men who have put their lives in jeopardy? For with the jeopardy of their lives they brought it." Therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mightiest.

This same account was recorded in 2 Samuel 23.

(20) And Abishai the brother of Joab, he was chief of the three, for lifting up his spear against three hundred, he killed them and had a name among the three. (21) Of the three, he was more honorable than the two, for he was their captain; however he did not attain to the first three.

Although verse 20 seemed to place Abishai among the aforementioned three, it becomes clear in verse 21 that he was captain over the second set of three as recorded in 2 Samuel 23.

(22) Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, who had done many acts; he killed two lionlike men of Moab; also he went down and slew a lion in a pit in a snowy day. (23) And he killed an Egyptian, a man of great stature, five cubits high, and in the Egyptian's hand was a spear like a weaver's beam, and he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian's hand, and killed him with his own spear. (24) These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and had the name among the three mighties. (25) Behold, he was honorable among the thirty but did not attain to the first three, and David set him over his guard.

The exploits of Benaiah were repeated from 2 Samuel 23 with a little more detail about the Egyptian he killed.  The man was five cubits high which is about seven and a half feet tall, and his spear was as large as a weaver's beam, but Benaiah wrenched the spear out of the Egyptian's hand and killed him with his own spear.

(26) Also the valiant men of the armies were, Asahel the brother of Joab, Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem, (27) Shammoth the Harorite, Helez the Pelonite, (28) Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, Abiezer the Antothite, (29) Sibbecai the Hushathite, Ilai the Ahohite,

Elika (2 Samuel 23:25) was left out of this list, and Sibbecai and Ilai are named instead of Mebunnai and Zalmon.  However, in the case of Mebunnai/Sibbecai and Zalmon/Ilai, they are said to be from the same tribes, Hushthites and Ahohites, so either they were also called by other names, or perhaps the formers died early and were replaced with others from their tribes.

(30) Maharai the Netophathite, Heled the son of Baanah the Netophathite, (31) Ithai the son of Ribai of Gibeah, of the children of Benjamin, Benaiah the Pirathonite, (32) Hurai of the brooks of Gaash, Abiel the Arbathite, (33) Azmaveth the Baharumite, Eliahba the Shaalbonite, (34) The sons of Hashem the Gizonite, Jonathan the son of Shage the Hararite,

The list continued with pretty much the same names as in 2 Samuel 23 except for variance in spelling.  However, verse 34 is a bit difficult to discern.  The account in Samuel named Jonathan "of the sons of Jashen."  Since it didn't specifically say he was the son of Jashen, but was of the sons of Jashen, the family of Jashen, then he could have had a father named Shage of the same family, and the two accounts are reconciled.  As with the former list, Blogger only allows twenty labels per post, so the rest of the mighty men will be named on a separate post:

The List of David's Mighty Men Continues