INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SAMUEL 27 David, fearing he should perish by the hand of Saul at one time or another, went into the land of the Philistines, which Saul hearing of, sought no more after him, 1 Samuel 27:1; and finding favour in the eyes of the king of Gath, desired a place in his country might... [ Continue Reading ]
AND DAVID SAID IN HIS HEART,.... Within himself, and to himself; while he was pondering things in his own mind, and considering the circumstances in which he was, and things appearing, very gloomy to him, he falls into a fit of unbelief and thus addresses himself: I SHALL NOW ONE DAY PERISH BY THE... [ Continue Reading ]
AND DAVID AROSE,.... From the place where he was: AND HE PASSED OVER; the borders of land of Canaan: WITH THE SIX HUNDRED MEN THAT [WERE] WITH HIM; having neither lost any, nor had any added to him, since he was at Keilah, 1 Samuel 23:13; UNTO ACHISH, THE SON OF MAOCH, KING OF GATH; whether this... [ Continue Reading ]
AND DAVID DWELT WITH ACHISH AT GATH,.... The metropolis of his kingdom, called, 1 Samuel 27:5, the royal city: HE AND HIS MEN, EVERY MAN WITH HIS HOUSEHOLD; or family; which they brought with them, to secure them from the malice of Saul; who in their absence might have destroyed them, as being the... [ Continue Reading ]
AND IT WAS TOLD SAUL THAT DAVID WAS FLED TO GATH,.... Who very probably had his spies out to watch his motions, and report to him where he was, and what he was doing: AND HE SOUGHT NO MORE AGAIN FOR HIM; by which it seems as if he would have sought after him again, had he continued in the land of I... [ Continue Reading ]
AND DAVID SAID UNTO ACHISH,.... After he had been some time with him: IF I HAVE NOW FOUND GRACE IN THINE EYES; or was in favour, as he thought himself to be, by various instances of respect shown him: LET THEM GIVE ME A PLACE IN SOME TOWN IN THE COUNTRY, THAT I MAY DWELL THERE: he does not ask for... [ Continue Reading ]
THEN ACHISH GAVE HIM ZIKLAG THAT DAY,.... A city which in the division of the land was given to the tribe of Judah, and after that to the tribe of Simeon, Joshua 15:31; though it seems not to have been possessed by either of them, at least not long, but soon came into the hands of the Philistines, w... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE TIME THAT DAVID DWELT IN THE COUNTRY OF THE PHILISTINES,.... At Gath and Ziklag: WAS A FULL YEAR AND FOUR MONTHS; or "days and four months"; days being sometimes put for a year, Judges 17:10; though some interpret it not of a year, but of some few days out of the fifth month, besides the fo... [ Continue Reading ]
AND DAVID AND HIS MEN WENT UP,.... From Ziklag, where they dwelt: AND INVADED THE GESHURITES; some of the old inhabitants of the land of Canaan, the remains of the Amorites, whose land was given to the half tribe of Manasseh, but could never be expelled; and therefore David had a just right to inva... [ Continue Reading ]
AND DAVID SMOTE THE LAND,.... In which the above mentioned people dwelt, that is, the inhabitants of it: AND LEFT NEITHER MAN NOR WOMAN ALIVE; for these being the old Canaanites and Amalekites, according to the law of God were not to be spared, but utterly destroyed; which may be observed to remove... [ Continue Reading ]
AND ACHISH SAID, WHITHER HAVE YE MADE A ROAD TODAY?.... Or whither had they rushed in, or poured in and spread themselves? or where had they made their excursion to fetch in the prey and booty they now brought? AND DAVID SAID, AGAINST THE SOUTH OF JUDAH; he meant against some people that lay to the... [ Continue Reading ]
AND DAVID SAVED NEITHER MAN NOR WOMAN ALIVE TO BRING [TIDINGS] TO GATH,.... How David had fallen upon these people, and destroyed great numbers of them, and carried off their substance; which would have given great offence to Achish, and caused him to have driven him out of his country once more; th... [ Continue Reading ]
AND ACHISH BELIEVED DAVID,.... As he would have him understand his story; imposing upon him by ambiguous terms, insinuating he had been against the southern parts of Judah, when he had been against foreign nations that lay to the south of Judah: SAYING, HE HATH MADE HIS PEOPLE ISRAEL UTTERLY TO ABH... [ Continue Reading ]