1 Chronicles 18:7

18:1-17 David's victories. - This chapter is the same as 2Sa 8. Our good fight of faith, under the Captain of our salvation, will end in everlasting triumph and peace. The happiness of Israel, through David's victories, and just government, faintly shadowed forth the happiness of the redeemed in the realms above.

Verse 7. - The shields ; Hebrew שֶׁלֶט . Much doubt has been entertained as to the meaning of this word. Its etymology is uncertain. Gesenius derives it from a root signifying "hardness." For the most part, however, the context of the seven places of its occurrence which he instances ( 2 Samuel 8:7 ; 2 Kings 11:10 ; 1 Chronicles 18:7 ; 2 Chronicles 23:9 ; Song of Solomon 4:4 ; Jeremiah 51:11 ; Ezekiel 27:11 ) favour the rendering "shields," though the quotation from Jeremiah 51:11 (literally, "fill ye the shields") is not so satisfactory. The wealth of Zobah is, of course, illustrated by these shields of gold. 1 Chronicles 18:7

7 . shields of gold ] “shields” = Heb. shĕlâtim . The meaning of the Heb. word is doubtful; most probably it does not mean “shield,” for (1) a shield would not be described as “upon” the person to whom it belonged, (2) the early authorities, i.e. the LXX. translators, the Targum, and the Peshitta (on 2 Samuel 8:7 ; 2 Kings 11:10 ; Jeremiah 51:11 ; Ezekiel 27:11 ) never give “shield,” but either leave the word untranslated or give various conjectural renderings. A later authority (Targ. on 1 Chronicles 18:7 ; 2 Chronicles 23:9 ) gives “shield,” while LXX. gives “collars ( κλοιούς ),” and “arms,” or “shields” ( τὰ ὅπλα ) in 2 Chr. The most probable rendering of the word is “suit of armour”; cp. R.V. mg. on Jeremiah 51:11 . and brought them to Jerusalem ] So Heb. LXX. Targ., but the Peshitta (all important MSS.) omits the words, and they may be a gloss introduced from 2 Samuel 8:7 .

4-8. And David took from him a thousand chariots—(See on [387]2Sa 8:3-14). In 2Sa 8:4 David is said to have taken seven hundred horsemen, whereas here it is said that he took seven thousand. This great discrepancy in the text of the two narratives seems to have originated with a transcriber in confounding the two Hebrew letters which indicate the numbers, and in neglecting to mark or obscure the points over one of them. We have no means of ascertaining whether seven hundred or seven thousand be the more correct. Probably the former should be adopted [Davidson's HERMENUTICS]. but reserved of them an hundred chariots—probably to grace a triumphal procession on his return to Jerusalem, and after using them in that way, destroy them like the rest.

The events recorded in these three chapters are all narrated in the second book of Samuel also, and in the same order. First, there are grouped together in our 18th chapter, and in 2 Samuel 8 , in such a manner as to afford a general view of the whole, all the wars which David carried on victoriously against all his enemies round about in the establishment of the Israelitish rule, with a short statement of the results, followed by a catalogue of David's chief public officials. In 1 Chronicles 19 and in 2 Samuel 10 we have a more detailed account of the arduous war against the Ammonites and Syrians, and in 1 Chronicles 20:1-3 and 2 Samuel 12:26-31 the conclusion of the war with the capture of Rabbah, the capital of the Ammonites; and finally, in 1 Chronicles 20:4-8 , we have a few short accounts of the victories of the Israelitish heroes over giants from the land of the Philistines, which are inserted in 2 Samuel 21:18-22 as a supplement to the last section of David's history. Apart from this last section, which is to be regarded even in the Chronicle as an appendix, we find the arrangement and succession of the events to be the same in both books, since the sections which in 2 Samuel 9:1-13 and 2 Samuel 11:1-12 , 2 Samuel 11:25 , stand between the histories of the wars, contain sketches of David's family life, which the author of the Chronicle has, in accordance with his plan, omitted.

Even as to individual details the two narratives are perfectly agreed, the divergences being inconsiderable; and even these, in so far as they are original, and are not results of careless copying, - as, for instance, the omission of the word נציבים, 1 Chronicles 18:6 , as compared with 1 Chronicles 18:13 and 2 Samuel 8:6 , and the difference in the numbers and names in 1 Chronicles 18:4 , 1 Chronicles 18:8 , as compared with 2 Samuel 4:4 , 2 Samuel 4:8 , are, - partly mere explanations of obscure expressions, partly small additions or abridgments. For the commentary, therefore, we may refer to the remarks on 2nd Samuel, where the divergences of the Chronicle from the record in Samuel are also dealt with. With 1 Chronicles 18:1-13 cf. 2 Samuel 8:1-14 ; and with the register of public officials, 2 Samuel 18:14-17 , cf. 2 Samuel 8:15-18 . Examples of paraphrastic explanation are found in 1 Chronicles 18:1, where the figurative expression, David took the bridle of the mother out of the hands of the Philistines, i.e., deprived them of the hegemony, is explained by the phrase, David took Gath and her cities out of the hands of the Philistines, i.e., took from the Philistines the capital with her daughter cities; and in 1 Chronicles 18:17, כּהנים is rendered by, the first at the king's hand.