Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 2 Samuel 8:7
And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.
7. that were on the servants of Hadadezer ] Or, that belonged to, &c. Probably it was his bodyguard which was distinguished by these golden shields. Similarly a corps of the Macedonian army under Alexander the Great was known as “the silver-shields” ( ).
The Septuagint adds at the end of the verse: “And Susakim [i.e. Shishak] king of Egypt took them, when he went up to Jerusalem in the days of Roboam the son of Solomon.” In 1Ki 14:26 there is a corresponding addition in the Sept.: “And the golden spears which David took from the hand of the servants of Adraazar king of Soba and carried to Jerusalem, he took them all.”
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 7. David took the shields of gold] We know not what these were. Some translate arms, others quivers, others bracelets, others collars, and others shields. They were probably costly ornaments by which the Syrian soldiers were decked and distinguished. And those who are called servants here, were probably the choice troops or body-guard of Hadadezer, as the argyraspides were of Alexander the Great. See Quintus Curtius.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
That were on the servants, or rather, which were with the servants, i.e. committed to their custody, as being kept in the kings armory; for it is not probable they carried them into the field.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer,…. That were found with them, which they had in their hands; these must be supposed to be with the principal officers of his army; or golden chains, as Aquila, or golden bracelets on their arms, as the Septuagint; the Syriac version is “quivers of gold”, such as they put arrows into, and so Jarchi and R. Isaiah understand it of such, and refer to Jer 51:11; and so Josephus r:
and brought them to Jerusalem; where they were laid up, and converted to the use of the sanctuary Solomon built; see So 4:4.
r Ut supra, (Antiqu. l. 7. c. 5.) sect. 3.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Of the booty taken in these wars, David carried the golden shields which he took from the servants, i.e., the governors and vassal princes, of Hadadezer, to Jerusalem.
(Note: The lxx has this additional clause: “And Shishak the king of Egypt took them away, when he went up against Jerusalem in the days of Rehoboam the son of Solomon,” which is neither to be found in the Chronicles nor in any other ancient version, and is merely an inference drawn by the Greek translator, or by some copyists of the lxx, from 1Ki 14:25-28, taken in connection with the fact that the application of the brass is given in 1Ch 18:8. But, in the first place, the author of this gloss has overlooked the fact that the golden shields of Rehoboam which Shishak carried away, were not those captured by David, but those which Solomon had had made, according to 1Ki 10:16, for the retainers of his palace; and in the second place, he has not observed that, according to 2Sa 8:11 of this chapter, and also of the Chronicles, David dedicated to the Lord all the gold and silver that he had taken, i.e., put it in the treasury of the sanctuary to be reserved for the future temple, and that at the end of his reign he handed over to his son and successor Solomon all the gold, silver, iron, and brass that he had collected for the purpose, to be applied to the building of the temple (1Ch 22:14., 1Ch 29:2.). Consequently the clause in question, which Thenius would adopt from the lxx into our own text, is nothing more than the production of a presumptuous Alexandrian, whose error lies upon the very surface, so that the question of its genuineness cannot for a moment be entertained.)
Shelet signifies “a shield,” according to the Targums and Rabbins, and this meaning is applicable to all the passages in which the word occurs; whilst the meaning “equivalent” cannot be sustained either by the rendering adopted by Aquila and Symmachus in 2Ki 11:10, or by the renderings of the Vulgate, viz., arma in loc. and armatura in Son 4:4, or by an appeal to the etymology (vid., Gesenius’ Thes. and Dietrich’s Lexicon).
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
(7) Shields of gold.Solomon also made shields of gold (1Ki. 10:17), which appear to have been a mark of oriental magnificence. Solomons shields were ultimately carried off by Shishak (1Ki. 14:25-28). The LXX. has here a curious addition, saying that Shishak carried off the shields which David captured, a manifest error, since those were made by Solomon.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
7. Shields of gold Golden plated shields; an evidence of the wealth of the kingdom of Zobah.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
2Sa 8:7. The shields of gold See Solomon’s Song, chap. 2Sa 4:4. Note; (1.) The enemies of God’s church may associate themselves, but they shall be broken to pieces. (2.) Better to be relied on than shields of gold, is God, the shield and the defence of every spiritual Israelite.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
2Sa 8:7 And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.
Ver. 7. And David took the shields of gold. ] As Alexander had his Argyraspides, a so Hadadezer his Chrysaspides; as if they had been masters of those two islands in India, called Chryse and Argyre, for the plenty of gold and silver there.
a Polyhist., cap. 65.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
shields. Septuagint reads “bracelets”.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
shields: 1Ki 10:16, 1Ki 10:17, 1Ki 14:26, 1Ki 14:27, 1Ch 18:7, 2Ch 9:15, 2Ch 9:16
Reciprocal: 1Ki 7:51 – things which David his father had dedicated 2Ki 11:10 – king David’s spears 2Ch 23:9 – spears
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
2Sa 8:7. The shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer It hath been the practice of many princes to make the arms of their soldiers ornamental and precious, partly from the love of splendour and magnificence, and partly to influence the courage of those, that carried them: since nothing else could secure them from becoming a property and a prey to the enemy. Some think, however, the meaning here is, Which were with the servants; that is, committed to their custody, as being kept in the kings armory; for it is not probable, they think, that they carried shields of gold into the field.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
8:7 And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to {e} Jerusalem.
(e) For the use of the temple.