Translation & Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ The Redeemer Church, Manhattan, KS, 27 Mar 2022
Read NAW translation of chapter 8: 1 After this, it came about that David made a strike against the Philistines and made them vassals. David also took Meteg-Ha-Ammah from the control of the Philistines. And he made a strike against Moab, and he measured them with the measuring-string after having made them lie down on the ground, {measuring} two string-lengths to put to death and one full string-length to keep alive, and those Moab{ites} became servants who raised a food-offering for David. David also made a strike against Hadadezer, son of Rekhob, king of Tsobah while he was going to {establish} his control at the {Euphrates} River. Then David selected from him 1,000 {chariot-horses} and 700 cavalrymen and 20,000 foot soldiers, then David hamstrung every chariot-horse, except he left 100 chariot-horses from that [number]. However, Damascus Syria came to the aid of Hadadezer King of Tsobah, so David struck down 22,000 men in Syria. Then David placed garrisons in Damascus Syria, so Syria belonged to David to be his servants who raised up a food-offering. So Yahweh preserved David everywhere he went. David also took the gold shields which had been {on} the servants of Hadadezer, and he brought them to Jerusalem. {(And it was these that were taken afterward when Shishaq king of Egypt went up against Jerusalem during the days of Rehoboam son of Solomon)}. Also, from Hadadezer’s cities of Betach and from Berothai, David the King took {a} very large amount of bronze. Now, when {Tow} King of Hamath heard that David had struck down all the army of Hadadezer, {Tow} sent Joram his son to David the king to petition him for peace and to bless him, since he had fought with Hadadezer and had struck him down (for {Tow was an enemy to} Hadadezer), and in his hand were articles of silver and articles of gold and articles of bronze. These also David the King consecrated to Yahweh along with the silver and the gold which he consecrated from all the nations over which he had taken dominion: from {Edom} and from Moab and from the descendants of Ammon and from the Philistines and from the Amalekites, and from the plunder of Hadadezer son of Rekhob King of Tsobah. David also created a reputation when he returned from striking down 18,000 {Edomites} in the Valley of Salt. He also put garrisons in Edom. In all of Edom he put garrisons, so it was that all Edom belonged to David as servants, and Yahweh preserved David everywhere he went. So David reigned over all Israel, and it happened that David executed justice and righteousness for all his people, and Joab son of Tseruiah was over the army, and Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was librarian, and Zadok son of Achitub and Achimelek son of Abiathar were priests, and Seraiah was secretary, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada {was over} both the Cerethites and the Pelethites, and the sons of David were {chieftains}.
Now, how do we apply this text to our lives? I suggest we look at it in terms of the exemplary way in which David Conquered the nations, Worshipped God, and Administered justice. All three are things God has called us to do also.
In 1 Samuel1, King Saul did some good work in defending Israel from its enemies, but David is the one who really brought peace to Israel. This chapter lists 7 of his conquests + 1 tributary:
v.1 Philistines
This was prophecied in 2 Samuel 3:18 “...Yahweh has spoken to David saying, 'It is by the hand of my servant David that {I will} save my people Israel from the control of the Philistines, and from the control of all their enemies.'" (NAW)
Our account here mentions that “David also took Meteg-HaAmmah from the control of the Philistines.” There is some debate as to what Meteg-Ammah was.
It literally means “bridle of the cubit,” or “bridle of the hill2,” or “bridle of the mother.”
the LXX interpreted it as “tribute,”
and the NASB morphed it into “control of the chief city,”
but the parallel passage in 1 Chronicles 18 explains that what David took from the hand of the Philistines at that time was the city of “Gath and its daughter-towns,” so it seems likely that Meteg-Ammah was another name for Gath.
v.2 Moabites
Baalam prophecied this in Numbers 24:17 "I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; A Star shall come out of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, And batter the brow of Moab, And destroy all the sons of tumult.” (NKJV)
One of the stories of the fight against the Moabites is in list of mighty men at the end of 2 Samuel 23:20 “Benaiah ... killed two lion-like heroes of Moab....” (NKJV)
David’s killing of two-thirds of the Moabite captives seems odd.
It appears that he had them all lie down on the ground3, then stretched three measuring tapes out over them and had those under the first two measuring-lines killed, but kept alive those under the third line.
The Hebrew text said that the third line was to be a “full” one, indicating that the numbers of those killed was rounded downward and the ones kept alive were rounded upward, but unfortunately the NIV and NLT and NET Bibles omit this.
The ones allowed to live were made servants of David, and it seems their particular service was to carry food to him – perhaps they were supposed to grow the food too.
The Moabites were not on the list that God gave Israel of Canaanites to be wiped out, they were merely a political threat to Israel, so for this reason David followed a policy of reducing their threat but not wiping them out.
The Moabites continued tributaries to Israel until after the death of Ahab (2 Ki. 3:4-5, Henry).
vs.3-4 & 7-8 Tsobah
Tsobah is called “Tsobah in the direction of Hamath” in the parallel passage in 1 Chr. 18.
It’s a river valley north of Israel between the mountains of Syria and the coast of Phoenicia, and it extends up to the city of Hamath, then widens out into a broad plain leading all the way up to the Euphrates River.
It appears that Hadadezer was marching his army up this valley to establish (or re-establish) his holdings up north on that plain of Hamath when David and his army caught up with him and gave him a beating.
This opened up a trade route for Israel – without any middlemen – all the way from Israel to the great Euphrates River and thence to several countries along its arc to the East and South.
This victory had been prophecied long ago to Abraham and Moses:
Genesis 15:18 On the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying: "To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates.” (cf. Ex. 23:31)
Deut. 11:24 "Every place on which the sole of your foot treads shall be yours: from the wilderness and Lebanon, from the river, the River Euphrates, even to the Western Sea, shall be your territory.” (NKJV)
v.4 tells us that David hamstrung (or made barren) most of Hadadezer’s chariot horses.
In doing this, it appears he was following God’s command from hundreds of years earlier when Joshua was leading a war campaign in that same area. In Joshua 11:6 the LORD said to Joshua, "Do not be afraid because of them [that is, the king of Hazor and his allies], for tomorrow about this time I will deliver all of them slain before Israel. You shall hamstring their horses and burn their chariots with fire."
In the law, God had also told the Israelites not to multiply horses for themselves (Deut. 17:164) so maybe that was a related issue.
Like the Moabites, the people of Tsobah were also not on the list of Canaanites that God had commanded to be wiped out, so David let them live. He just knocked out their military so that Hadadezer wouldn’t be able take control of that area away from David.
vs. 5-6 Syria/Aram
Damascus was the capitol city in the country of Aram, also called Syria, so some call the inhabitants “Arameans” and others call them “Syrians,” but they’re the same thing.
v.5 tells us that these Syrians sent an army intending to help their western neighbors in Tsoba defeat David, but God protected David, and it appears at Damascus was a little late in sending aid, resulting in David being able to deal with the armies of Tsobah and Syria separately rather than all-at-once.
In fact, the last prepositional phrase in v.5, although most English versions translate it “of Syria,” in Greek and in Hebrew it literally reads “in Syria,” perhaps indicating that they were still marching from Damascus to Tsobah and were still in the land of Syria when David’s army marched East to intercept them. We’ll read more about this battle in ch.10.
Syria was also not on God’s list of Canaanite nations to destroy, so David did not level Damascus. He left it as a neighbor to the north, but left with their respect.
22,000 of them were dead,
and those left alive were under Israelite occupation,
as garrisons of Israelite soldiers enforced regular tribute payments of food from them to King David.
vs.9-11 Hamath (tribute only)
Verses 9-10 tell us that the Ugaritic king far to the North of Israel sent his son with gifts of gold and silver and bronze to congratulate David and get on his good side.
Literally the Hebrew says “to ask to him for peace” – and maybe the words he said were “Peace to you,” but he was really thinking, “Hey leave me at peace; don’t try to conquer me too; I’ll be supportive of you. If you want to run trade caravans through Hamath up to the Euphrates River, be my guest! I don’t want any trouble. And, man am I glad you put Hadadezer in his place; he was a really annoying neighbor-king – unlike you who I’m sure will be a great neighbor-king, right?!”
So there was wealth coming from Hamath without even having to fight a battle!
v.12 mentions Ammon and Amalek in passing
Ammon is to the East of Israel and Amalek to the South.
God gave David victory in pushing back each one of these neighboring countries and collecting tribute from them.
The last of the nations on the list is...
vs.13-14 Edom
Edom is the nation of Esau’s descendants, located southeast of Israel between Ammon and Amalek.
The subjugation of Esau’s descendants to those of his brother Jacob was prophecied
by the angel of the Lord in Genesis 25:23 to their mother saying, “Two nations are in your womb, Two peoples shall be separated from your body; One people shall be stronger than the other, And the older shall serve the younger.”
and by Isaac in Genesis 27:37 “Indeed I have made him your master, and all his brethren I have given to him as servants...”
and later by Baalam in Numbers 24:18 “And Edom shall be a possession... While Israel does valiantly.” (NKJV)
In Hebrew, the words for “Edom” and for “Syria” look very similar, so there seems to have been some confusion on the part of some translators throughout history as to whether v.13 is referring to Edom or to Syria,
so if you’re reading a KJV, NAS, RSV (or the Latin Vulgate or Chaldee Targums) you’ll see “Syria/Aram,”
but if you’re reading an NIV, ESV, NLT (or even a Greek Septuagint or Aramaic Peshitta) you’ll see “Edom,”
however, that confusion does not exist in the parallel passages of 1 Chronicles 18 and Psalm 60, where everyone agrees that it says that the 18,000 killed at the valley of Salt were Edomites.
Furthermore, in 2 Samuel 8, David’s subjugation of the Syrians and placement of garrisons among them was already covered back in verses 5-6, whereas, here, after v.13 it talks about David placing garrisons of Israelite soldiers in Edom, so I think v.13 is talking about a victory led by David and his men over the nation of Edom.
Edom is located south of the Dead Sea, so valleys of salt left over from the drying of the super-salty Dead Sea water makes sense there.
So even Edom had to join in service to David, presumably with tribute payments like the rest.
With all these military victories, David secured peace for Israel on literally every side. He had practically every neighboring country paying tribute to him, and God used him to bring Israel into a golden age of peace under Solomon during which His special temple could be built.
However, when it comes to conquering the nations, God’s calling on our lives is different than it was for David.
In the Old Testament law, God gave detailed instructions regarding relating to the nations and extending the kingdom of David among those nations. It included wiping out Canaanite tribes and establishing a political kingdom in Jerusalem to which other nations could look for leadership and instruction. David was careful to follow those instructions, as we’ve seen.
But in the New Testament Gospel, we find a new set of instructions from Jesus (David’s son and David’s Lord) about how to relate to the nations and how to extend His kingdom among them.
The prophet Micah gives us a hint using the same word “subdue/take dominion over,” which David did over the gentiles in 2 Samuel 8:11, to say that the Messiah will “subdue” “sins”! Micah 7:19 “He will again have compassion on us, And will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins Into the depths of the sea.” (NKJV)
In the Gospels, the “nations” are not entities to be conquered with military might but rather future subjects of King Jesus to be evangelized. Jesus said in:
Matthew 28:19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...”
Mark 13:10 “And the gospel must first be preached to all the nations.”
Luke 24:47 “...repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations…”
And when Jesus and the apostles talked about warfare, it was about preaching the Gospel, believing it, and overcoming disobedience to Jesus, for instance:
1 Cor. 9:23-26 “I’m doing all [these] things on account of the gospel in order that I might become its co-sharer... This is how I’m fighting…” (NAW)
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ…” (NKJV)
Romans 12:21 “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
Ephesians 6:12-19 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God... truth…. Righteousness… the gospel of peace... the shield of faith... the helmet of salvation... the word of God... praying… with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints... to make known the mystery of the gospel…” (NKJV)
1Tim. 6:12 “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”
1 John 2:14 “...I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God is staying in you and you have conquered the evil one.” (NAW)
1 John 5:4-5 “...whatever has been born out of God is conquering the world, and this is the victory which has conquered the world: our faith. And who is the one who is conquering the world if not the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (NAW)
Jude 3-4 “Loved ones, while I was making all due diligence to write to y’all concerning our shared salvation, I felt the necessity to write to y’all exhorting [y’all] to step up the fight for the faith once delivered to the saints, because certain men have settled in alongside [you]... ungodly men who are displacing the grace of our God with licentiousness and who deny our only Master and Lord Jesus Christ.” (NAW)
and to each of the 7 churches in the book of Revelation, Jesus warns them of a sin to avoid and urges them to keep trusting Him through the persecution to come, then promises that “he who overcomes” will enjoy the blessings of heaven. Overcoming disobedience to Christ and overcoming the temptation to be unfaithful to Him has rich benefits of enjoying the presence of Christ forever. This along with sharing the Gospel with others and discipling the nations is the nature of the warfare to which we have been called.
The second area of example David provides for is in the...
David fought hard as a soldier and was very successful. But the statement at the end of v. 6 is instructive: all this was because “the LORD preserved/helped/brought victory to David everywhere he went.”
David recognized that it was his God Yahweh who was keeping him safe in all these battles (such as when the Damascans came too late to help Tsobah so that David only had to deal with 20,000 soldiers at a time rather than over 40,000 at once). And because David recognized that Yahweh was his deliverer David was keen to worship God.
If you see your daily bread and your successes in life and the security of your surroundings as God’s work of preservation and deliverance, then that will also drive your keenness to worship God.
How did David worship God in this context? We know he wrote songs like Psalm 605 and 108 and 144 specifically about these victories, giving glory to God, and I’ve brought that out as an application before, so I’m not going to camp on that now. Just keep composing songs and books and blogs and tracts about God’s work in your life and God’s glory in salvation. That’s great!
However, in this chapter, David’s worship is described solely in terms of making donations. Giving to the Lord is something I don’t think I’ve harped on as much, but this seems to be a major point here.
v. 7 tells us that David took the gold shields which Hadadezer’s soldiers had been wearing, and he brought them to Jerusalem6. What did he do with them?
v.8 speaks of more loot confiscated by David from Hadadezer’s towns, this time bronze (or brass) – and quite a bit of it.
What did David do with all that bronze? Cast an image of himself? Decorate his house? Build a fancy tomb?
No, he was a worshipper of God, so when God provided wealth to him, he used it to glorify God!
How do we know that? Because the parallel passage in 1 Chronicles 18:8 has an additional note explaining that the bronze which David collected from Hadadezer’s cities was the source of the bronze utensils that Solomon had made for the new temple – the “bronze sea and the pillars and the utensils.”
What had been the wealth of pagans was re-purposed by David to make holy furniture for the temple of God!
We see the same in v.11, where David dedicates – literally “makes holy” – the articles of silver and gold and brass that the king of Hamath had sent down to David as a peace offering.
One of the commentaries I’ve been reading on the books of Samuel, the New International Commentary on the Old Testament, was written by a specialist in the Ugaritic writings of the peoples of that area, so he frequently quotes from documents written in Ugaritic at the time of Samuel, and they are thoroughly pagan, no doubt about it! And yet, David made their stuff holy by giving it to the one true God – probably put in storage to use for the building of the temple under Solomon.
In v.12 we see it was was not only that stuff, but David also gave to the Lord plunder he confiscated from all the other countries he conquered: Edom/Syria, Moab, Ammon, Philistia, Amalek, etc.
It is an act of worship to give to God the wealth you obtain in your work and the windfalls you receive from gifts given to you. As we consider this, I’d like to address two practical questions:
How much should we give? I believe that God has given us freedom to decide how much we want to give, although a strong case can be made from scripture that it should be over 10 percent.
Throughout the Bible – even in the New Testament7, the 10% tithe is affirmed,
but also there were special offerings given above and beyond that8 - not only monetary gifts but also other gifts-in-kind.
God seems to leave it up to each individual to decide exactly how much of an offering above-and-beyond the tithe to give.
For instance, in the New Testament case of Ananias and Saphira, the Apostle Peter tells them in Acts 5:4, that they were under no obligation to give all the proceeds of the sale of their land to the church; he specifically says that the money was “under [their] control” (NASB) to decide how it would be spent.
Another question that people ask is Who to give to. I believe that God has given us freedom within limits here as well. The Bible speaks of giving
directly to the poor and needy,
giving to the church treasury,
giving directly to men of God – such as prophets and missionaries,
and even of using tithes and offerings on yourself for holiday celebrations.
I don’t have time to go into all of the proof texts for these four categories of giving to the Lord. If you want to delve into that subject, I’d recommend the book Tithing and Dominion by Rousas Rushdoony.
I do want to make the point, however, that, as long as you are not neglecting any of these categories of giving, you have the freedom to decide how much you want to allocate to each recipient. That’s part of the fun of this act of worshipping God through giving!
So David conquered nations, Worshipped God through giving, and then the chapter concludes with a mention of his administration, which bears only a brief mention:
In verses 15-18, seven administrators are listed + David, the king,
We’ve met Joab before, in his role with the army.
Related to that was the special-forces group, David’s bodyguard called the “Cerethites and the Pelethites,” led by Benaiah, one of the mightiest of David’s mighty men.
David also had religious leadership with two high-priests:
We have previously met Achimelek and Abiathar (1Sam. 22:20), of the line of Eli and Ithamar before him. This Abiathar may be the grandson of the Abiathar we met with in 1 Samuel (K&D). They were not the proper blood-line of the high priests according to the law of Moses, but they had taken over the priesthood during the time of the Judges, and they served under Saul and David until Solomon finally put them out of business.
Zadok, David’s other priest, was of the proper line of high-priesthood through Eleazar; he was the up-and-coming priest (cf. 2 Sam. 16:39, 24:3).
And in every organization, you’ve got to have a secretary (filled by Seraiah in David’s administration), and related to that was the role of “recorder/librarian” (literally “the one who remembers”), filled by Ahilud.
Finally we have David’s sons, who are called “priests” in some versions (in the sense of a “minister” of the state), and “chieftains” in other versions (and also in the parallel passage in 1 Chronicles).
The important thing is that through this court David upheld justice and righteousness for his people. You also have people before whom God holds you responsible to uphold justice and righteousness. That people may be the people of our civil body or the people of our church or the people in your business or in your household – maybe your siblings or kids you babysit.
Whatever your jurisdiction is, pursue righteousness and justice.
And worship God with giving your tithes and offerings to the needy, to the church, to missions, and to your observance of holy days.
And conquer the nations, starting with conquering unbelief and disobedience to Christ in your own heart and extending to share the Gospel and make disciples of others.
LXX |
Brenton |
DRB |
KJV |
NAW |
MT |
MT 1ChB |
NAW 1Ch |
1 Καὶ ἐγένετο μετὰ ταῦτα καὶ ἐπάταξεν Δαυιδ τοὺς ἀλλοφύλους καὶ ἐτροπώσατο αὐτούς· καὶ ἔλαβεν Δαυιδ τὴν ἀφωρισμένην ἐκ χειρὸς τῶν ἀλλοφύλων. |
1 And it came to pass after this, that David smote the Philistines, and put them to flight, and David took the tribute from out of the hand of the Philistines. |
1 And it came to pass after this that David defeated the Philistines, and brought them down, and David took the bridle of tribute out of the hand of the Philistines, |
1 And after this it came to pass, that David smote the Philistines, and subdued them: and David took Methegammah out of the hand of the Philistines. |
1 After this, it came about that David made a strike against the Philistines and made them vassals. David also took Meteg-Ha-Ammah from the control of the Philistines. |
1 וַיְהִי אַחֲרֵי-כֵן וַיַּךְ דָּוִד אֶת- פְּלִשְׁתִּים וַיַּכְנִיעֵם וַיִּקַּח דָּוִד אֶת-מֶתֶג הָאַמָּהC מִיַּד פְּלִשְׁתִּים: |
18:1 וַיְהִי אַחֲרֵי-כֵן וַיַּךְ דָּוִיד אֶת- פְּלִשְׁתִּים וַיַּכְנִיעֵם וַיִּקַּח X אֶת-גַּת וּבְנֹתֶיהָ מִיַּד פְּלִשְׁתִּים: |
18:1 After this, it came about that David made a strike against the Philistines and made them vassals and took Gath and its daughter-towns from the control of the Philistines. |
2
καὶ ἐπάταξεν
Δαυιδ τὴν Μωαβ
καὶ διεμέτρησεν
αὐτοὺς ἐν σχοινί |
2
And David smote
Moab, and measured them out with line[s],
having laid them down on the ground: and there |
2
And he defeated
Moab, and measured them with a line,
casting them down to the earth: and he measured with two lines,
one to put to death, and |
2
And he smote
Moab, and measured them with a line,
casting them down to the ground; even with two lines
measured he to put to death, and with one full line
to keep alive. And so
the Moab |
2 And he made a strike against Moab and he measured them with the measuring-string after having made them lie down on the ground, {measuring} two string-lengths to put to death and one full string-length to keep alive, and those Moab{ites} became servants who raised a food-offering for David. |
2 וַיַּךְ אֶת-מוֹאָב וַיְמַדְּדֵם בַּחֶבֶל הַשְׁכֵּב אוֹתָם אַרְצָה וַיְמַדֵּדD שְׁנֵי-חֲבָלִים לְהָמִית וּמְלֹאE הַחֶבֶלF לְהַחֲיוֹת וַתְּהִיG מוֹאָב לְדָוִד לַעֲבָדִים נֹשְׂאֵי מִנְחָה: |
18:2
וַיַּךְ
אֶת-
מוֹאָב |
18:2 And he made a strike against Moab, and the Moabites became servants who raised a food-offering for David. |
3
καὶ ἐπάταξεν
Δαυιδ τὸν Αδρααζαρ
υἱὸν Ρααβ βασιλέα
Σουβα πορευομένου
αὐτοῦ |
3
And David smote
Adraazar
the son of Raab king of Suba, as he went to |
3
David defeated
also Adarezer the son of Rohob king of Soba, when he went to
|
3
David smote
also Hadadezer,
the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to recover his |
3 David also made a strike against Hadadezer, son of Rekhob, king of Tsobah while he was going to {establish} his control at the {Euphrates} River. |
3 וַיַּךְ דָּוִד אֶת-הֲדַדְעֶזֶרH בֶּן-רְחֹב מֶלֶךְ צוֹבָה בְּלֶכְתּוֹI לְהָשִׁיבJ יָדוֹ בִּנְהַר-K: |
18:3 וַיַּךְ דָּוִיד אֶת-הֲדַדְעֶזֶר X X מֶלֶךְ- צוֹבָה חֲמָתָה בְּלֶכְתּוֹ לְהַצִּיב יָדוֹ בִּנְהַר-פְּרָת: |
18:3 David also made a strike against {Hadarezer} king of Tsobah by Hamath while he was going to establish his control at the Euphrates River. |
4
καὶ προκατελάβετο
Δαυιδ τῶν αὐτοῦ
χίλια [ἅρματα]
καὶ ἑπτὰ |
4
And David took a thousand of his [chariots],
and seven |
4
And David took from him a thousand and seven hundred
horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen, and houghed all the chariot
horses: and only reserved of |
4
And David took from him a thousand chariots,
and seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen: and David
houghed all the chariot horses,
but reserved of |
4 Then David selected from him 1,000 {chariot-horses} and 700 cavalrymen and 20,000 foot soldiers, then David hamstrung every chariot-horse, except he left 100 chariot-horses from that [number]. |
4
וַיִּלְכֹּד
דָּוִד
מִמֶּנּוּ
אֶלֶףM
וּשְׁבַע- |
18:4 וַיִּלְכֹּד דָּוִיד מִמֶּנּוּ אֶלֶף רֶכֶב וְשִׁבְעַת אֲלָפִים פָּרָשִׁים וְעֶשְׂרִים אֶלֶף אִישׁ רַגְלִי וַיְעַקֵּר דָּוִיד אֶת-כָּל-הָרֶכֶב וַיּוֹתֵר מִמֶּנּוּ מֵאָה רָכֶב: |
18:4 Then David selected from him 1,000 chariot-horses and 7,000 cavalrymen and 20,000 foot soldiers. Then David hamstrung every chariot-horse, except he left 100 chariot-horses from that [number]. |
5
καὶ παραγίνεται
Συρία Δαμασκοῦ
βοηθῆσαι τῷ
|
5
And Syria of Damascus comes to help |
5
And the Syrians of Damascus came to succour |
5
And when the Syrians of Damascus
came to succour X
Hadadezer
king of Zobah, David slew
|
5 However, Damascus Syria came to the aid of Hadadezer King of Tsobah, so David struck down 22,000 men in Syria. |
5 וַתָּבֹא אֲרַם דַּמֶּשֶׂק לַעְזֹר לַהֲדַדְעֶזֶרO מֶלֶךְ צוֹבָה וַיַּךְ דָּוִד בַּאֲרָם עֶשְׂרִים-וּשְׁנַיִם אֶלֶף אִישׁ: |
18:5 וַיָּבֹא אֲרַם דַּרְמֶשֶׂק לַעְזוֹר לַהֲדַדְעֶזֶרP מֶלֶךְ צוֹבָה וַיַּךְ דָּוִיד בַּאֲרָם עֶשְׂרִים-וּשְׁנַיִם אֶלֶף אִישׁ: |
18:5 However, Damascus Syria came to the aid of {Hadar}ezer King of Tsobah, so David struck down 22,000 men in Syria. |
6
καὶ ἔθετο Δαυιδ
φρουρ |
6
And David placed |
6
And David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus: and Syria X
X X serv |
6
Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus: and the Syrians
became servants to David, and
br |
6 Then David placed garrisons in Damascus Syria, so Syria belonged to David to be his servants who raised up a food-offering. So Yahweh preserved David everywhere he went. |
6 וַיָּשֶׂם דָּוִד נְצִבִים בַּאֲרַם דַּמֶּשֶׂק וַתְּהִי אֲרָם לְדָוִד לַעֲבָדִיםQ נוֹשְׂאֵי מִנְחָה וַיֹּשַׁע יְהוָה אֶת-דָּוִד בְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר הָלָךְ: |
18:6 וַיָּשֶׂם דָּוִיד X בַּאֲרַם דַּרְמֶשֶׂק וַיְהִי אֲרָם לְדָוִיד xעֲבָדִים נֹשְׂאֵי מִנְחָה וַיּוֹשַׁע יְהוָה לְדָוִיד בְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר הָלָךְ: |
18:6 Then David made placements in Damascus Syria, so Syria belonged to David to be servants who raised up a food-offering. So Yahweh gave victory to David everywhere he went. |
7
καὶ ἔλαβεν
Δαυιδ τοὺς
χλιδῶνας
τοὺς χρυσοῦς,
οἳ ἦσαν ἐπὶ τῶν
παίδων τῶν |
7
And David took the golden
bracelets
which were on the servants of |
7
And David took the arms
of gold, which the servants of |
7 And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem. |
7 David also took the gold shields which had been {on} the servants of Hadadezer, and he brought them to Jerusalem. {(And it was these that were taken afterward when Shishaq king of Egypt went up against Jerusalem during the days of Rehoboam son of Solomon)}. |
7 וַיִּקַּח דָּוִד אֵת שִׁלְטֵיR הַזָּהָב אֲשֶׁר הָיוּ אֶלS עַבְדֵי הֲדַדְעָזֶרT וַיְבִיאֵם יְרוּשָׁלִָםU: |
18:7 וַיִּקַּח דָּוִיד אֵת שִׁלְטֵי הַזָּהָב אֲשֶׁר הָיוּ עַל עַבְדֵי הֲדַדְעָזֶרV וַיְבִיאֵם יְרוּשָׁלִָם: |
18:7 David also took the gold shields which had been on the servants of Hadadezer, and he brought them to Jerusalem. |
8
καὶ ἐκ τῆς Μασβακ
X
ἐκ
τῶν |
8
And king David took from Metebac,
and from the |
8
And out of Bete, and out of Beroth, cities of A |
8 And from Betah, and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, king David took exceeding much brass. |
8 Also, from Hadadezer’s cities of Betach and from Berothai, David the King took {a} very large amount of bronze. |
8 וּמִבֶּטַחW וּמִבֵּרֹתַי עָרֵי הֲדַדְעָזֶר לָקַח הַמֶּלֶךְ דָּוִד נְחֹשֶׁת הַרְבֵּהX מְאֹד: ס |
18:8 וּמִטִּבְחַת וּמִכּוּן עָרֵי הֲדַדְעֶזֶר לָקַח X דָּוִיד נְחֹשֶׁת xרַבָּה מְאֹד בָּהּ עָשָׂה שְׁלֹמֹה אֶת-יָם הַנְּחֹשֶׁת וְאֶת- הָעַמּוּדִים וְאֵת כְּלֵי הַנְּחֹשֶׁת: פ |
18:8 Also from Hadadezer’s towns of Tibchat and from Cun David took a very large amount of bronze with which Solomon made the bronze tank and the pillars and the utensils of bronze. |
9
καὶ ἤκουσεν
Θο |
9
And Th |
9
And Th |
9 When Toi king of Hamath heard that David had smitten all the host of Hadadezer, |
9 Now, when {Tow} King of Hamath heard that David had struck down all the army of Hadadezer, |
9 וַיִּשְׁמַע תֹּעִיY מֶלֶךְ חֲמָת כִּי הִכָּה דָוִד אֵת כָּל- חֵיל הֲדַדְעָזֶרZ: |
18:9 וַיִּשְׁמַע תֹּעוּ מֶלֶךְ חֲמָת כִּי הִכָּה דָוִיד אֶת-כָּל- חֵיל הֲדַדְעֶזֶרAA מֶלֶךְ-צוֹבָה: |
18:9 Now, when Tow King of Hamath heard that David had struck down all the army of Hadadezer, king of Tsobah, |
10
καὶ ἀπέστειλεν
Θο |
10
And Th |
10
And Th |
10 Then Toi sent Joram his son unto king David, to salute him X X, and to bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer, and smitten him: for Hadadezer had X wars with Toi. And Joram brought with him vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and vessels of brass: |
10 {Tow} sent Joram his son to David the king to petition him for peace and to bless him, since he had fought with Hadadezer and had struck him down (for {Tow was an enemy to} Hadadezer), and in his hand were articles of silver and articles of gold and articles of bronze. |
10 וַיִּשְׁלַח תֹּעִי אֶת-יוֹרָם-בְּנוֹ אֶל-הַמֶּלֶךְ-דָּוִד לִשְׁאָל-לוֹ לְשָׁלוֹם וּלְבָרֲכוֹ עַל אֲשֶׁר נִלְחַם בַּהֲדַדְעֶזֶר וַיַּכֵּהוּ כִּי-אִישׁ מִלְחֲמוֹת תֹּעִי הָיָה הֲדַדְעָזֶרAE וּבְיָדוֹ הָיוּ כְּלֵי- כֶסֶף וּכְלֵי-זָהָב וּכְלֵי נְחֹשֶׁת: |
18:10 וַיִּשְׁלַח Xאֶת-הֲדוֹרָם-בְּנוֹ אֶל-הַמֶּלֶךְ-דָּוִיד לִשְׁאוֹל AFX לְשָׁלוֹם וּלְבָרֲכוֹ עַל אֲשֶׁר נִלְחַם בַּהֲדַדְעֶזֶר וַיַּכֵּהוּ כִּי-אִישׁ מִלְחֲמוֹת תֹּעוּ הָיָה הֲדַדְעָזֶרAG וְכֹל X כְּלֵי זָהָב X וָכֶסֶף X וּנְחֹשֶׁת: |
18:10 he sent his son AHDoram to David the king to petition for peace and to bless him since he had fought with Hadadezer and had struck him down, for Tow {was an enemy to} Hadarezer, and there were all the vessels of gold and of silver and of bronze. |
11
καὶ ταῦτα ἡγίασεν
ὁ βασιλεὺς
Δαυιδ τῷ κυρίῳ
μετὰ τοῦ ἀργυρίου
καὶ [μετὰ]
τοῦ χρυσίου,
οὗ ἡγίασεν
ἐκ πασῶν τῶν
|
11
And these king David consecrated to the Lord, with the silver and
[with]
the gold which he consecrated out of all the |
11 And king David dedicated them to the Lord, together with the silver and gold that he had dedicated of all the nations, which he had subdued: |
11 Which also king David did dedicate unto the LORD, with the silver and gold that he had dedicated of all nations which he subdued; |
11 These also David the King consecrated to Yahweh along with the silver and the gold which he consecrated from all the nations over which he had taken dominion: |
11 גַּם-אֹתָם הִקְדִּישׁ הַמֶּלֶךְ דָּוִד לַיהוָה עִם-הַכֶּסֶף וְהַזָּהָב אֲשֶׁר הִקְדִּישׁ מִכָּל-הַגּוֹיִםAI אֲשֶׁר כִּבֵּשׁ: |
18:11
גַּם-אֹתָם
הִקְדִּישׁ
הַמֶּלֶךְ
דָּוִיד
לַיהוָה עִם-הַכֶּסֶף
וְהַזָּהָב
אֲשֶׁר נָשָׂא
מִכָּל-הַגּוֹיִם
X
X |
18:11 These also David the King consecrated to Yahweh along with the silver and the gold which he consecrated from all the nations over which he had taken dominion: from Edom and from Moab and from the descendants of Ammon and from the Philistines and from the Amalekites. |
12
ἐκ τῆς |
12
out of |
12 Of Syria, and of Moab, and of the children Ammon, and of the Philistines, and of Amalec, and of the spoil[s] of Adarezer the son of Rohob king of Soba. |
12 Of Syria, and of Moab, and of the children of Ammon, and of the Philistines, and of Amalek, and of the spoil of Hadadezer, son of Rehob, king of Zobah. |
12 from {Edom} and from Moab and from the descendants of Ammon and from the Philistines and from the Amalekites, and from the plunder of Hadadezer son of Rekhob King of Tsobah. |
12
מֵאֲרָםAJ
וּמִמּוֹאָב |
||
13
καὶ ἐποίησεν
Δαυιδ ὄνομα·
[καὶ]
ἐν τῷ ἀνακάμπτειν
αὐτὸν X
X ἐπάταξεν
τὴν |
13
And David made [himself]
a name: [and]
when he returned X
he
smote
|
13
David also made [himself]
a name, when he returned after
|
13 And David gat him a name when he returned from smiting of the Syrians in the valley of salt, being eighteen thousand men. |
13 David also created a reputation when he returned from striking down 18,000 {Edomites} in the Valley of Salt. |
13 ALוַיַּעַשׂ דָּוִד שֵׁםAM בְּשֻׁבוֹ מֵהַכּוֹתוֹ אֶת-אֲרָםAN בְּגֵיא-מֶלַח שְׁמוֹנָה עָשָׂר אָלֶף: |
18:12 וְאַבְשַׁי בֶּן-צְרוּיָה הִכָּה אֶת-אֱדוֹם בְּגֵיא הַמֶּלַח שְׁמוֹנָה עָשָׂר אָלֶף: |
18:12 Abishai son of Tseruiah also struck down 18,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt |
14
καὶ ἔθετο ἐν
τῇ Ιδουμαίᾳ
φρουράν, ἐν πάσῃ
τῇ Ιδουμαίᾳ,
X
X καὶ
ἐγένοντο πάντες
οἱ Ιδουμαῖοι
δοῦλοι τῷ
|
14
And he set garrisons in Idumea, even in all Idumea: X
X and
all the Idumeans were servants to the |
14 And he put guards in Edom, X X X [and placed] there a garrison: and all Edom was made to serve David: and the Lord preserved David in all [enterprises] he went about. |
14 And he put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom put he garrisons, and all they of Edom became David's servants. And the LORD preserved David whithersoever he went. |
14 He also put garrisons in Edom. In all of Edom he put garrisons, so it was that all Edom belonged to David as servants, and Yahweh preserved David everywhere he went. |
14 וַיָּשֶׂם בֶּאֱדוֹם נְצִבִים בְּכָל-אֱדוֹם שָׂם נְצִבִיםAO וַיְהִי כָל-אֱדוֹם עֲבָדִים לְדָוִד וַיּוֹשַׁע יְהוָה אֶת-דָּוִד בְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר הָלָךְ: |
18:13
וַיָּשֶׂם
בֶּאֱדוֹם
נְצִיבִים
X
X |
18:13 He also put garrisons in Edom. So it was that all Edom belonged to David as servants, and Yahweh preserved David everywhere he went. |
15
Καὶ ἐβασίλευσεν
Δαυιδ ἐπὶ XAP
Ισραηλ,
καὶ ἦν Δαυιδ
ποιῶν
κρίμα καὶ δικαιοσύνην
|
15
And David reigned over all Israel: and David wrought
judgment and justice
|
15 And David reigned over all Israel: and David did judgment and justice to all his people. |
15 And David reigned over all Israel; and David executed judgment and justice unto all his people. |
15 So David reigned over all Israel, and it happened that David executed justice and righteousness for all his people, |
15 וַיִּמְלֹךְ דָּוִד עַל-כָּל-יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיְהִי דָוִד עֹשֶׂה מִשְׁפָּט וּצְדָקָה לְכָל-עַמּוֹ:AQ |
18:14 וַיִּמְלֹךְ דָּוִיד עַל-כָּל-יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיְהִי X עֹשֶׂה מִשְׁפָּט וּצְדָקָה לְכָל-עַמּוֹ: |
18:14 So David reigned over all Israel, and he was executing justice and righteousness for all his people, |
16 καὶ Ιωαβ υἱὸς Σαρουιας ἐπὶ τῆς στρατιᾶς, καὶ Ιωσαφατ υἱὸς ΑχιαAR ἐπὶ τῶν ὑπομνημάτων, |
16 And Joab the son of Saruia was over the host; and Josaphat the son of Achilud was keeper of the records. |
16 And Joab the son Sarvia was over the army: and Josaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder: |
16 And Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the host; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder; |
16 and Joab son of Tseruiah was over the army, and Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was librarian, |
16 וְיוֹאָב בֶּן- צְרוּיָה עַל- הַצָּבָא וִיהוֹשָׁפָט בֶּן-אֲחִילוּד מַזְכִּיר: |
18:15 וְיוֹאָב בֶּן- צְרוּיָה עַל- הַצָּבָא וִיהוֹשָׁפָט בֶּן-אֲחִילוּד מַזְכִּיר: |
18:15 and Joab son of Tseruiah was over the army, and Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was librarian, |
17 καὶ Σαδδουκ υἱὸς Αχιτωβ καὶ Αχιμελεχ υἱὸς Αβιαθαρ ἱερεῖς, καὶ ΑσαAS ὁ γραμματεύς, |
17 And Sadoc the son of Achitob, and Achimelech son of Abiathar, were priests; and SasaAT was the scribe, |
17 And Sadoc the son of Achitob, and Achimelech the son of Abiathar, were the priests: and Saraias was the scribe: |
17 And Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar, were the priests; and Seraiah was the scribe; |
17 and Zadok son of Achitub and Achimelek son of Abiathar were priests, and Seraiah was secretary, |
17 וְצָדוֹק בֶּן-אֲחִיטוּב וַאֲחִימֶלֶךְ בֶּן- אֶבְיָתָר כֹּהֲנִים וּשְׂרָיָה סוֹפֵר: |
18:16 וְצָדוֹק בֶּן-אֲחִיטוּב וַאֲבִימֶלֶךְ בֶּן- אֶבְיָתָר כֹּהֲנִים וְשַׁוְשָׁא סוֹפֵר: |
18:16 and Zadok son of Achitub and Achimelek son of Abiathar were priests, and Shavsha was secretary, |
18
καὶ Βαναιας
υἱὸς Ιωδαε
[ |
18
and Banaeas son of Jodae was [ |
18 And Banaias the son of Joiada was [over] the Cerethi and Phelethi: and the sons of David were the princes. |
18 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were chief [ruler]s. |
18 and Benaiah son of Jehoiada {was over} both the Cerethites and the Pelethites, and the sons of David were {chieftains}. |
18 וּבְנָיָהוּ בֶּן-יְהוֹיָדָעAU וְהַכְּרֵתִי וְהַפְּלֵתִי וּבְנֵי דָוִד כֹּהֲנִיםAV הָיוּ: פ |
18:17 וּבְנָיָהוּ בֶּן-יְהוֹיָדָע עַל-הַכְּרֵתִי וְהַפְּלֵתִי וּבְנֵי- דָוִיד הָרִאשֹׁנִים לְיַד הַמֶּלֶךְ: פ |
18:17 and Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cerethites and the Pelethites, and the sons of David were chieftains at the hand of the king. |
11 Samuel 14:47 “...Saul was selected for the kingdom over Israel, and he fought against all its enemies round about: against Moab, and against the descendants of Ammon, and against Edom, and against the king of Tsobah, and against the Philistines, and in everything that he faced, he brought deliverance.” (NAW)
2Andrew Willett: “Iunius commeth neerer the sense, taking Ammah here for the proper name of an hill among the Philistims, where Gath stood: of which word Amma, and Gor, or Gerar commeth the word Amgar, the name of an hilly tract among the Philistims, whereof Plinie maketh mention, lib. 5. c. 13. So then by the bridle of Ammah, is vnderstood Gath, the cheife citie in that hilly coast of the Philistims, which was as a bridle, and defence, and fort vnto all the countrey.”
3Matthew Henry (following Osiander, Vatabulus, and Pellican, Junius, and Willett) thought that instead the measuring lines were survey-boundary lines, meaning that David had the country of the Moabites divided in thirds by a geological survey and two thirds wiped out by the army. This is certainly one of the meanings of hebel, but Lightfoot, JFB, K&D, Goldman, and the English translations support the view I expressed above.
4"But he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, for the LORD has said to you, `You shall not return that way again.’” (NKJV)
5Psalm
60:1 “A Michtam of David. When he fought against
Mesopotamia and Syria of Zobah, and Joab returned and killed twelve
thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.”
Psalm
108:9 Moab is My washpot; Over Edom I will cast My shoe; Over
Philistia I will triumph."
Psalm 144:1 “A
Psalm of David. Blessed be the LORD my Rock, Who trains my hands for
war… 10 The One who gives salvation to kings, Who delivers
David His servant From the deadly sword.” (NKJV)
6The two oldest manuscripts of this passage contain a note that later, during the reign of David’s grandson Rehoboam, King Shishaq of Egypt attacked Jerusalem and confiscated these same gold shields.
7Matt. 23:23 “... y’all are tithing your mint and your dill and your cumin... it is necessary to do these things...” (NAW)
8Deut.
12:6 “And thither ye shall bring your burnt
offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings
of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the
firstlings of your herds and of your flocks… 11... thither
shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and
your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand,
and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the LORD:… 17 Thou
mayest not eat within thy gates the tithe of thy corn, or of thy
wine, or of thy oil, or the firstlings of thy herds or of thy flock,
nor any of thy vows which thou vowest, nor thy freewill offerings,
or heave offering of thine hand:”
2Chron. 31:12
“And brought in the offerings and the tithes and the dedicated
things faithfully”
Malachi 3:8 “Will
a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we
robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.”
AMy
original chart includes the NASB and NIV, but their copyright
restrictions have forced me to remove them from the
publicly-available edition of this chart. I have included the ESV in
footnotes when it employs a word not already used by the KJV, NASB,
or NIV. (NAW is my translation.) When a translation adds words not
in the Hebrew text, but does not indicate it has done so by the use
of italics (or greyed-out text), I put the added words in [square
brackets]. When one version chooses a wording which is different
from all the other translations, I underline it. When a
version chooses a translation which, in my opinion, either departs
too far from the root meaning of the Hebrew word or departs too far
from the grammar form of the original text, I use strikeout.
And when a version omits a word which is in the original text, I
insert an X. (I also place an X at the end of a word if the original
word is plural but the English translation is singular.) I
occasionally use colors to help the reader see correlations between
the various editions and versions when there are more than two
different translations of a given word. The only known Dead Sea
Scroll containing 2 Samuel 8 is 4Q51Samuela, which
contains fragments of vs. 1-8, and which has been dated between
50-25 B.C. Where the DSS is legible and in agreement with the MT,
the MT is colored purple. Where the DSS
supports the LXX (or Vulgate) with omissions or text not in the MT,
I have highlighted with
yellow the LXX and its translation into English, and where I
have accepted that into my NAW translation, I have marked it with
{pointed brackets}.
BI have marked up the parallel passage in the MT of 1 Chronicles by placing a capital X where a whole word found in the 2Sam text is not found in the 1Chr text, a lower case “x” when a letter of a word is in 2Sam but not 1Chr, grey text to indicate words in the 1Chr text not found in 2Sam, and orange text to indicate words where a synonym was substituted.
CSyriac = “Ramoth gammah,” Targums = תִקֻון אַמְתָא (“repair of the cubit” or, as Willet translated it “commodity of the river”), LXX = tribute. K&D “bridle of the mother” as in mother-city of Philistia.
DDSS ddmw Jra (without the directional he on “land” and turning the verb “measured” into the participle “measuring” – neither of which changes the meaning. Targums and Syriac, however, appear to read “he anointed,” and the LXX reads “were.”
ETargums
and Syriac support the MT, but LXX reads “two” and
Vulgate reads “one” instead.
“[L]et the line
of mercy be stretched to the utmost in favorem vitae - so as to
favour life.” ~Matthew Henry
FDSS is obliterated at this point, but there is space between legible parts of this verse for an extra word not in the MT, enough space for the word השלישי “the third,” but where are people getting that word from?
GDSS reads wyhyw “they became,” as opposed to the MT “she became.” LXX and Vulgate follow the MT with the singular, but Targums, Syriac, Geneva, KJV, NASB, NIV, NET, and ESV follow the DSS with the plural, as does the 1 Chronicles parallel verse, but there is no difference in meaning, since the subject “Moab” works with either.
HTargums and MT of 1 Chron 18 support the MT “HDDEZR,” but it is curious that the Syriac, Septuagint, and Vulgate all read HDREZR. The Hebrew R and D are very similar visually, but why would it be the same in ALL the ancient versions? Curiously, the Targums and Syriac of 1 Chron. 18 also read HDR... as opposed to the MT, and the LXX of 1 Chron. is consistent with HDR... but in v.8, the DSS is legible at this name and spells it with the MT “HDD…” It doesn’t change the story, though; it’s just a dispute over how to spell a name, which is very common.
IJFB interpreted “he” as David, but K&D argued convincingly that it meant Hadadezar, and Goldman concurred.
JThe parallel passage in 1 Chron. 18 has one character different in the word, changing השיב “cause to turn” to הציב “cause to stand.” The Greek versions (LXX = epistasei “stand up” and Symmachus στησαι “stand”) read as though they were looking at that word. Syriac reads דנהפך (?), and Targums support the MT with לְאַשׁנָאָה “to return.”
KThe MT ends with a hyphen after “river,” as though another word were intended to be written but wasn’t. The Qere there suggests adding פרת, an addition which is in the parallel passage in 1 Chron. 18, as well as in multiple other Hebrew manuscripts of 2 Sam. 8 (as well as the Targums and Syriac). LXX and Vulgate also read with the addition “Euphrates.”
LVaticanus uses a singular 3rd person pronoun matching the MT, whereas the LXX uses a plural form, but the LXX uses the genitive-ablative case matching the MT preposition “from,” whereas the Vaticanus changes it to a dative-locative case denoting “in.”
MLXX adds “chariots,” fitting the DSS which has a short word that starts with ר, which is the first letter of the Hebrew word for “chariots” also found in the parallel account in 1 Chron. KJV, NIV, and NLT follow this track. The Syriac, Targums, and Vulgate, however, follow the MT here with 1,700 horsemen, followed by Geneva, ASV/NASB, RV/ESV, and CEV.
NLXX, Old Latin, and 1 Chron. 18 read 7,000. No disagreement with the LXX in versions by Aquila and Symmachus is recorded in Fields’ Hexapla. Syriac, Targums, and Vulgate, however, read 700 with the MT. Unfortunately, the DSS is illegible at this point and unable to break the tie.
OSyriac, LXX, and Vulgate read Hadarezer instead of the MT’s (and Targums’) Hadadezer. There is no indication that the later Greek versions (such as Aquila or Symmachus) preferred the MT spelling of this name over the LXX.
PTargums, Syriac, LXX, and Vulgate read Hadarezer instead of the MT’s Hadadezer.
QDSS and 1 Chron. omit the lamed preposition, but this doesn’t change the meaning.
RThese would be small, round shields. Only here, 2 Ki. 11:10; 1 Chr. 18:7; 2 Chr. 23:9; Cant. 4:4; Jer. 51:11; & Ezek. 27:11
SLXX, Targums, Syriac, and the parallel passage in 1 Chron. all use the preposition “on” which is practically synonymous.
TSyriac, LXX, and Vulgate read Hadarezer instead of MT (and Targums’) Hadadezer. There is no indication that the later Greek versions (such as Aquila or Symmachus) preferred the MT spelling of this name over the LXX.
UDSS adds xxבימי רחבעם בן שלו xxxxxעלותו אל ירx xxxxx xxx xxxx xxx xxגם אותם ל , which exactly matches the LXX text. This clearly seems to be a late editor’s note, but if it is in the oldest manuscripts, it seems to have been removed due to modern editorial prejudice.
VTargums, Syriac, LXX, and Vulgate read Hadarezer instead of the MT’s Hadadezer.
WSyriac, Septuagint, and 1 Chron. (MT, LXX, Syr, Targ) reverse the order of the first two letters in this proper noun.
XThe DSS, LSS, Syriac, Vulgate and Targums, along with the NASB and NIV and the parallel passage in 1 Chron. do not have a definite article here like the MT of this verse does. The difference in meaning between “David took the very great amount of brass” and “David took a very great amount of brass” is negligible, however.
YThe last vowel doesn’t seem to be important in this name. It is spelled as though it doesn’t exist (To’) or as a sureq (Tou) in 1 Chron. and in most of the versions. The Targums alone support the MT. The DSS is illegible at this point.
ZLXX, Syriac, and Vulgate all spell HDR...
AASyriac, LXX, Vulgate, and Targums all spell HDR...
ABThe versions of the parallel passage in 1 Chronicles 18 lend support to this spelling.
ACAquila and also Symmachus followed the MT in their Greek versions with πολεμων (“wars”).
ADThis preposition is in the MT but not in the LXX.
AESyriac, LXX, and Vulgate all read HDR… in both instances of this word in this verse.
AFQere = לִשְׁאָל-לוֹ
AGSyriac, LXX, Targums and Vulgate all read HDR… in both instances of this word in this verse.
AHTargum follows MT here, but LXX reads Ιδουραμ and Syriac “Joram”
AISyriac & Targums read עממים “peoples”
AJEdom and Aram look extremely similar in Hebrew. LXX and Syriac and the parallel passage in 1 Chron. 18 (MT as well as all versions of it) read Edom/Idumea, and NIV, ESV, and NLT went with that, whereas Targums and Vulgate of 2 Sam. 8 support the MT there, and Geneva, KJV, RV, N/ASB, NET support the MT here.
AKThis is just a transliteration of the Hebrew word which the LXX editors recognized (rightly) as a proper noun.
ALCuriously, the Syriac and Targums mention “serving David there” at this point.
AMcf. Phil. 2:9 “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name” (NKJV)
ANThe LXX (and later versions by Aquila and Symmachus), Syriac, and even several Hebrew manuscripts read “Edom” instead of “Aram” (the two words look very similar in Hebrew), and the parallel passages in 1 Chronicles 18 and Psalm 60:1 (including all versions of them) also read Edom instead of Aram (or in the case of the LXX of Psalm 60, don’t say either, which still doesn’t support “Aram” as the reading). The circumstances in number and location are singular enough to warrant concluding that only one or the other location is accurate. The circumstance of persons involved in the attack, however, could all be true at once, although 2 Samuel only mentions David, Psalm 60 only mentions Joab, and 1 Chronicles only mentions Abishai.
AOOld Latin, Syriac, LXX, and 1 Chron. 18 omit these words. Since they are redundant to the opening phrase of the verse, no meaning is lost in the omission.
APVaticanus supplies παντα “all” in conformance with the MT.
AQcf. Jer. 23:5-6 "Behold, the days are coming," says the LORD, "That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.” (NKJV)
ARVaticanus supplies the last syllable in this man’s name in conformance with the MT. Origen’s (Acbimelec) and Lucian’s (Aceinaab) editions are just wacky.
ASSymmachus supported this spelling.
ATThis reflects the Vaticanus spelling which added an “S” to the front of the word in the LXX, matching the name as it is spelled in the MT of 1 Chronicles 18.
AUVulgate, Targums, Syriac, and 1 Chron. insert “over” here, without which the MT does not make sense. The LXX also saw the need for an insertion, but went with “counsellor.”
AVOf the 748 times that this word cohen occurs in the Old Testament, there is not a single verse where the versions agree that “priest” cannot be the translation. This is the only time in the NASB when this word is not translated “priest.” The fact that the Targums (רַברְבִין), Septuagint (αὐλάρχαι), Syriac (רורבין), all follow the 1 Chronicles passage which uses the word “chiefs/heads,” indicates that is the better way.