David's Mighty Men

Biblical Text and Content

The list first appears in 2 Samuel 23:8-39. It stands near the end of 2 Samuel, in a section that functions as an appendix summarizing the story of David. The same list also appears in 1 Chronicles 11:10-47, where it is placed immediately after David's capture of Jerusalem. First Chronicles presents these men as those who helped make David king (1 Chronicles 11:10). First Chronicles 12 separately records the men who gathered to David during the days of Saul.

The list in 2 Samuel 23 falls into several groups.

• The Three: Josheb-basshebeth, Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, and Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. Josheb-basshebeth is said to have slain eight hundred men at one time. In 1 Chronicles 11:11 his name is given as Jashobeam and the number as three hundred. Eleazar and Shammah are remembered for standing their ground alone against the Philistine army.
• The water from the well of Bethlehem (2 Samuel 23:13-17): The three mighty men broke through the Philistine camp and drew water from the well by the gate of Bethlehem. David would not drink it, saying, "Is not this the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives?" and poured it out unto the Lord.
• Abishai and Benaiah: Abishai, the brother of Joab, won renown by slaying three hundred men with his spear. Benaiah the son of Jehoiada is known for such deeds as killing a lion in a pit on a snowy day, and he was set over David's guard. Both were honored, yet the text records that each "attained not unto the first three."
• The Thirty: This list runs from Asahel the brother of Joab to Uriah the Hittite. The text closes the list with the words "thirty and seven in all" (2 Samuel 23:39).

Background

The band that followed David began when he hid from Saul in the cave of Adullam. At that time "every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented" gathered to him, about four hundred men (1 Samuel 22:1-2). The Hebrew word for "mighty man" is gibbor (plural gibborim), meaning a strong man or warrior. The list includes men of non-Israelite origin, such as Zelek the Ammonite and Uriah the Hittite. It also includes Asahel, who was killed early in the conflict with the house of Saul (2 Samuel 2:23). On this basis, many hold that the list is not a roster of a unit at a single point in time but a record of the distinguished men of David's entire reign.

Significance in the Whole of Scripture

Benaiah later became the commander of Solomon's army (1 Kings 2:35). Thus some of David's mighty men also appear in the later history of the kingdom. The New Testament does not mention David's mighty men directly. In the Christian interpretive tradition, however, the image of those who were loyal to their king has been read in light of discipleship to Jesus Christ. Verses such as "a good soldier of Jesus Christ" (2 Timothy 2:3) are often cited in this connection. This is an interpretive application rather than something the text itself states.

Interpretation and Issues

• "The Thirty" and "thirty and seven": These figures do not match the actual number of names in the list. Explanations vary with the method of counting, such as adding the Three, Abishai, and Benaiah, or including Joab. Some scholars hold that "the Thirty" was the name of an elite unit rather than an exact head count.
• Differences between the two texts: Second Samuel and 1 Chronicles differ in some names, numbers, and the central figures of certain episodes. The battle in the field recorded as Shammah's exploit in 2 Samuel appears as part of Eleazar's story in 1 Chronicles 11:12-14. Some explain these differences as changes introduced in the course of copying, while others attribute them to the use of different sources.
• A list ending with Uriah: Some interpreters read the fact that the list in 2 Samuel ends with Uriah as a deliberate reminder of David's sin in the Bathsheba affair. Some also identify Eliam the son of Ahithophel in the list (2 Samuel 23:34) with Eliam the father of Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:3), though the text does not say so explicitly.

In the Korean Church

In sermons and Bible studies in the Korean church, this passage is treated mainly in two ways. One approach focuses on the discouraged people gathered in the cave of Adullam being transformed into mighty men; the other focuses on the scene in which David poured out the water from the well as an offering. These passages are frequently cited in sermons on devotion, loyalty, and community.