Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Samuel 30:26
And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah, [even] to his friends, saying, Behold a present for you of the spoil of the enemies of the LORD;
26 31. The presents sent to the elders of Judah
26. he sent of the spoil, &c.] In gratitude for the assistance he had received from them during his wanderings, and to secure their good will when Saul’s death should open the way for him to the throne. On the elders see at 1Sa 8:4.
a present ] Lit. a blessing, as in 1Sa 25:27.
the spoil of the enemies of the Lord ] Since Israel was Jehovah’s people, the enemies of Israel were the enemies of His kingdom and His cause, and every war against them was a holy war. Cp. 1Sa 18:17, 1Sa 25:28.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 26. Unto the elders of Judah] These were the persons among whom he sojourned during his exile, and who had given him shelter and protection. Gratitude required these presents.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Partly in gratitude for their former favour to him; and partly in policy to engage their affections to him now when he apprehended Sauls death near.
The enemies of the Lord; he intimates, that though he was fled to the Philistines, yet he employed not his forces against the Israelites, as, no doubt, Sauls courtiers and soldiers reported that he designed; but only against Gods enemies.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
26. when David came to Ziklag, hesent of the spoil to the elders of JudahThis was intended asan acknowledgment to the leading men in those towns and villages ofJudah which had ministered to his necessities in the course of hisvarious wanderings. It was the dictate of an amiable and gratefulheart; and the effect of this well-timed liberality was to bring alarge accession of numbers to his camp (1Ch12:22). The enumeration of these places shows what a numerous andinfluential party of adherents to his cause he could count within hisown tribe [1Sa 30:27-31].
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And when David came to Ziklag,…. Perhaps with an intention to rebuild it, and make it still the place of his residence; and it is possible there might be some houses that escaped flames, and if not, tents might be pitched until the city was rebuilt, and it appears that he continued there some time:
he sent of the spoil to the elders of Judah: of that part of it which belonged to himself as a general:
[even] to his friends; such as had been kind to him when he sojourned among them; so that this was a piece of gratitude, as well as of policy in him, to make his way to the throne the easier, he perceiving the time drawing on for the expiration of the kingdom in the family of Saul; and besides, some in those parts he sent of the spoil to might have been sufferers by the Amalekites, so that it was but a point of justice to restore to them what had been taken from them; for they had invaded the south of Judea, and took spoils from thence, 1Sa 30:14; it was to his friends in those parts he sent, not to the inhabitants of Ziph and Keilah, which were places in the tribe of Judah; but these having attempted to betray him, were not entitled to his favours, though they were not the objects of his vengeance:
saying, behold, a present for you, of the spoil of the Lord’s enemies; or a “blessing” z, which he sent them with a good will, wishing health and happiness to them; which they might without hesitation receive, seeing it was not the spoil of private enemies, or of what was taken from them in a way of private revenge, but the spoil of the enemies of the Lord, his and their common enemies; nor need they scruple eating and enjoying it, though the spoil of those that cursed the Lord, Abarbinel observes, since this they had with the blessing of the Lord.
z “benedictio”, Pagninus, Montanus.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(26) He sent of the spoil.To have made it worth while to have sent presents to all the places enumerated below, the spoil of the Amalekites captured on this occasion must have been enormous. One special circumstance connected with the history besides leads us to this conclusion. Although these desert Arabs were surprised and attacked at a terrible disadvantage after a debauch, they seem (so great evidently was their numbers) to have held their ground from early morning until evening, and then 400 managed to escape on their swiftest camels. It was not improbably the main division of the great tribe, and they had with them the bulk of their flocks and herds, besides what they had just captured in their raid in southern Canaan. No doubt the cities to whom rich gifts of cattle were sent were those places where, during his long wanderings, he and his followers had been kindly received and helped.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
26. To his friends Those who had given him shelter and encouragement during the time of his wanderings. “Sending these gifts could not fail to make the elders of these cities well disposed towards him, and so to facilitate his recognition as king after the death of Saul, which occurred immediately afterwards.” Keil.
(26) And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying, Behold a present for you of the spoil of the enemies of the LORD; (27) To them which were in Bethel, and to them which were in south Ramoth, and to them which were in Jattir, (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, (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, and to all the places where David himself and his men were wont to haunt.
We have here an instance of David’s gratitude. No doubt, but that during his long wanderings, and flights from place to place to avoid Saul, he had pretty w ell exercised the generosity of his friends, for he and his army of 600 men, could not he supplied, and fed upon a trifle. Hence he availed himself of the first moment the Lord had enabled him, to recompense those who had been kind to him. But from David’s generosity to his friends, let you and I, Reader, turn our eyes to the view of David’s Lord, whose generosity was manifested to his enemies. After our dear Lord returned to glory, having spoiled principalities and powers, he gave gifts to his enemies, even to the rebellious, saith the Holy Ghost, even to you and me. Yes, dearest Jesus! thy love is commended to us, in that while we were enemies, Christ died for us. Oh! matchless generosity! Oh, unequalled love! Lord be thou the first and best, and the unrivalled object of my love, as thine swallows up every other: and may I love thee for that thou hast first loved me.
1Sa 30:26 And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah, [even] to his friends, saying, Behold a present for you of the spoil of the enemies of the LORD;
Ver. 26. He sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah. ] Thereby to show his liberalitas muneraria, and so to make them his friends; for “a gift maketh room for a man”; Pro 18:16 it “is as a precious stone,” Pro 17:8 and hath a marvellous conciliating property; it is a very loadstone. Much about this time were Saul and his sons slain, and thereby way made for David to the crown; whereunto these presents would not a little conduce. The Roman emperors were wont to insinuate into their soldiers and subjects by gifts and congiaries. a
a [ Lenire multitudinem imperitam congiariis. – Cic., apud Ainsw. ]
present. All these places south of Hebron were protected by David, and these presents were a return for their support.
to his friends: 1Ch 12:1-15, Psa 35:27, Psa 68:18, Pro 18:16-24, Isa 32:8
present: Heb. blessing, 1Sa 25:27, Gen 33:11, 2Ki 5:15, 2Co 9:5
Reciprocal: 1Sa 30:20 – This is David’s spoil 1Ch 19:2 – I will show Pro 18:24 – that hath Eph 4:8 – and
1Sa 30:26. He sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah Partly in gratitude for their former favours to him; and partly in policy to engage their affections to him. Behold a present for you In the Hebrew, a blessing. So he calls the present, because it was a token that he wished all prosperity to them, who had been kind to him in his banishment, and had helped to maintain and protect him. Of the spoil of the enemies of the Lord The success of David in this pursuit of the Amalekites, will, upon examination, appear so extraordinary that it is not easy to account for it, otherwise than from the peculiar superintendence of Providence over David and his concerns. Indeed, the interposition of Providence is seen in every circumstance of this adventure; the number, the perseverance, the issue. That they might not think their number did the work, God reduced them to four hundred, as he did Gideons company to three, Judges 7. Many others have been as fortunate in surprising, and as successful in slaughtering their enemies; but to have strength both for the slaughter and pursuit, for so many hours together, is altogether extraordinary. But what is yet more remarkable is, that he should recover all the captives unhurt, out of the hands of a people so abandoned, and so execrable as the Amalekites! We have intimated that these Amalekites, being poor, spared their captives from a prospect of profiting greatly by the sale of them. Others, however, perhaps with as much reason, think they only respited their cruelty to execute it to more advantage at their leisure. How beautiful a contemplation is it to observe the signal goodness of God and malignity of man co-operating to the same end! See Delaney.
Sharing spoil with the Judahites 30:26-31
David also distributed some of the war plunder to the elders of Judah. [Note: See Youngblood, "1, 2 Samuel," p. 795, for the locations of the sites named in 1Sa 30:27-30.] He evidently did so because he viewed the booty as coming from the enemies of all Judah, even the enemies of the Lord (1Sa 30:26). He may have also done this to curry favor with the elders. They later anointed David king over the house of Judah (2Sa 2:4; 2Sa 5:1-3). David’s propensity to give made his new kingdom possible.
"Many victorious kings have used surplus plunder to enrich themselves and to build grandiose palaces; David used these first spoils to show his gratitude to the citizens of those areas and towns in Judah where he and his men had wandered when being pursued by Saul." [Note: David Payne, p. 153.]
This chapter presents many qualities that mark strong, effective leadership. These include empathy (1Sa 30:4), faith (1Sa 30:6; 1Sa 30:8; 1Sa 30:23; 1Sa 30:26), decisiveness (1Sa 30:10), kindness (1Sa 30:12), persistence (1Sa 30:17), integrity (1Sa 30:23), fairness (1Sa 30:24), and generosity (1Sa 30:21-31), to name a few. We can also see development in David’s restraint as compared to his dealings with Nabal (cf. ch. 25). David’s effectiveness also contrasts with Saul’s ineffectiveness as a leader.
"Saul, disobeying God’s prophet, defeated the Amalekites but lost his kingdom (ch. 15); David, seeking God’s will, defeats the Amalekites and embarks on his reign (ch. 30)." [Note: Youngblood, "1, 2 Samuel," p. 791.]
One of the strongest emphases in this chapter is David’s generosity. When God gives blessings, His people should view them as His gifts to us. We should share them with our fellow spiritual warriors and with our fellow spiritual citizens (cf. Heb 13:16; Rom 12:13; 1Co 12:14-26; Gal 6:10).
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)