E G 1-6-. Ziklag. Taken.
H u -6-8. Yahaveh's promise. Made.
v 9,10. Division of forces.
J 11-16. Colloquy with Egyptians.
H u 17-20. Yahaveh's promise. Kept.
v 21-25. Junction of forces.
G 26-31. Ziklag. Retaken.
960 B.C.
1 Samuel 30)
1 And it came to pass, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the south (= the Negev. The hill country south of Judah.), and Ziklag, and smitten Ziklag, and burned it up with fire; (Do you think that David is getting away scott free? It was hard marching. See 27:8.)
2 And had taken the women captives, [and all] that were therein: they slew not any, either great or small, but carried them away, and went on their way. (He took them as slaves, probably short handed. )
3 So David and his men came to the city, and, behold, it was burning with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives. (By rushing into things, you can leave things open for attack. David pays a price for not asking for God's help. See 27:1.)
4 Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.
5 And David's two wives were taken captives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. (Figure of speech, by which Abigail is still called the wife of Nabal, though he was dead. Cp. 27:3; 2 Sam. 3:3. Those ignorant of figures of speech would call this a "discrepancy".)
6 And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the People was emitterd, every man for his sons and for his daughters:
but David strengthened himself in the LORD (Yahaveh) his God (Elohim. Finally He turn to God!).
7 And David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech's son, "I pray you, bring me here the ephod." And Abiathar brought there the ephod to David (He had the ephod, with David. Zadok, who was with Saul, had it not).
8 And David inquired at the LORD, saying, "Shall I pursue after this troop? shall I overtake them?" And He answered him, "Pursue: for you shall surely overtake them, and without fail recover all." (It makes all the difference in the world when you include Father in your life.)
9 So David went, he and the six hundred men that were with him, and came to the brook Besor, where those that were left behind stayed. (600 in Biblical numerics = Warfare.)
10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men: for two hundred abode behind, which were so faint that they could not go over the brook Besor (= cool).
11 And they found an Egyptian in the field (one out wandering), and brought him to David, and gave him bread, and he did eat; and they made him drink water;
12 And they gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins: and when he had eaten, his spirit came again to him: for he had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights (shows how fast the enemy was moving. Cp. Esther 4:16. Jonah 1:17. Matt. 12:40).
13 And David said to him, "To whom do you belong? and where are you from?" And he said, "I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite; and my master left me, because three days agone I fell sick.
14 We made an invasion upon the south of the Cherethites (probably a clan of Philistines, v.16), and upon the coast which belongs to Judah, and upon the south of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire." (Bad boy's. He was part of the raiding party.)
15 And David said to him, "Can you bring me down to this troop?" And he said, "Swear to me by God, that you will neither kill me, nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will bring thee down to this troop." (This Egyptian was not happy with the Amalekites.)
16 And when he had brought him down, behold, they were spread abroad upon all the surrounding land, eating and drinking, and dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah. (They thought they had it made.)
17 And David smote them from the morning even unto the evening of the next day: and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, which rode upon camels, and fled. (David couldn't catch them.)
18 And David recovered all (see v.9 - with God's help) that the Amalekites had carried away: and David rescued his two wives.
19 And there was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil, nor any thing that they had taken to them (none of them were molested. We see God's hand here; He can protect): David recovered all.
20 And David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drove [in triumph] before those other spoils (Heb. acquisition, or substance), and said, "This is David's spoil."
21 And David came to the two hundred men, which were so faint that they could not follow David, whom they had made also to abide at the brook Besor: and they went forth to meet David, and to meet the people that were with him: and when David came near to the people, he saluted them. (Sept. "they inquired of his welfare".)
22 Then answered all the wicked men and men of Belial, of those that went with David, and said, "Because they went not with us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have recovered, save to every man his wife and his sons, that they may lead them away, and depart." (There will always be a few bad apples in larger groups. Evil has a way of creeping in.)
23 Then said David, "You shall not do so, my brethren, with that which the LORD has given us, who has preserved us, and delivered the company that came against us into our hand. (It is God that gives us the victory.)
24 For who will hear unto you in this matter? but as his part is that goes down to the battle, so shall his part be that tarries by the stuff: they shall part alike."
25 And it was so from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day. (David is maturing as a man of God.)
26 And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil to the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying, "Behold a present for you of the spoil of the enemies of the LORD;" (All these places south of Hebron were protected by David, and these presents were a return for their support. He is returning what had been taken from them.)
27 To them which were in Bethel, and to them which were in south Ramoth, and to them which were in Jattir, (These listed below are all south of Hebron.)
28 And to them which were in Aroer, and to them which were in Siphmoth, and to them which were in Eshtemoa,
29 And to them which were in Rachal, and to them which were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, and to them which were in the cities of the Kenites (see v.22.),
30 And to them which were in Hormah, and to them which were in Chorashan, and to them which were in Athach,
31 And to them which were in Hebron (= alliance), and to all the places where David himself and his men were wanting to frequent. (Or visit. They were welcomed because of their justice and treating them right.)