Now Joab was over all the host of Israel: and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and over the Pelethites:
| Word | Hebrew | Strong’s | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joab | וְיוֹאָ֕ב ve.yo.'Av | H3097 | Joab · conjunction + proper noun, a man's name |
| host | הַצָּבָ֖א ha.tza.Va' | H6635 | a mass of persons (or figuratively · definite article + noun, common masculine singular construct |
| Israel | יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל Yis.ra.'El | H3478 | Jisrael · proper noun, a place name |
| Benaiah | וּבְנָיָה֙ u.ve.na.Yah | H1141 | Benajah · conjunction + proper noun, a man's name |
| son | בֶּן ben- | H1121 | a son (as a builder of the family name) · noun, common masculine singular construct |
| Jehoiada | יְה֣וֹיָדָ֔ע ye.Ho.ya.Da' | H3077 | Jehojada · proper noun, a man's name |
| Cherethites | הַכְּרֵתִ֖י ha.ke.ri | H3774 | a Kerethite or life-guardsman · definite article + noun, gentilic masculine singular absolute |
| Pelethites | הַפְּלֵתִֽי ha.pe.le.Ti | H6432 | a courier (collectively) or official messenger · definite article + noun, gentilic masculine singular absolute |
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Here is an account of the state of David's court after his restoration. Joab retained the office of general, being too great to be displaced. Benaiah, as before, was captain of the guards. Here is one new office erected, which we had not (Sa2 8:16-18), that of treasurer, or one over the tribute, for it was not till towards the latter end of his time that David began to raise taxes. Adoram was long in this office, but it cost him his life at last, Kg1 12:18.
DAVID'S GREAT OFFICERS. (Sa2 20:23-26) Now Joab was over all the host of Israel--David, whatever his private wishes, found that he possessed not the power of removing Joab; so winking at the murder of Amasa, he re-established that officer in his former post of commander-in-chief. The enumeration of David's cabinet is here given to show that the government was re-established in its wonted course. Next: 2 Samuel Chapter 21
Joab was over all the host - He had murdered Amasa, and seized on the supreme command: and such was his power at present, and the service which he had rendered to the state by quelling the rebellion of Sheba, that David was obliged to continue him; and dared not to call him to account for his murders without endangering the safety of the state by a civil war. Benaiah - over the Cherethites - Benaiah was over the archers and slingers. See the notes on Sa2 8:18.
Now Joab was over all the host of Israel,.... Established in the post in which he formerly was; either having been never displaced, which though David thought to do, he was not able to effect it, because of his power and influence with the people; or if he had displaced him, which by some things in this chapter seemed to be the case, yet Amasa being dead, and the rebellion crushed by Joab, which still made him more haughty, and increased his popularity, David saw it most advisable to replace him; and because mention is made of him, as established in his office as general over the whole army, an account is given of the rest of David's officers; and the rather, as it was a sort of beginning hi…
David's Ministers of State. - The second section of the history of David's reign closes, like the first (Sa2 8:16.), with a list of the leading ministers of state. The author evidently found the two lists in his sources, and included them both in his work, for the simple reason that they belonged to different periods, as the difference in the names of some of the officers clearly shows, and that they supplemented on another. The list before us belongs to a later period of David's reign than the one in Sa2 8:16-18. In addition to the office-bearers mentioned in 2 Samuel 8, we find here Adoram over the tribute, and Ira the Kairite a confidential counsellor (cohen: see at Sa2 8:18), in the plac…
Read the whole note in the consoleThis list of David’s leaders and the similar list in 8:15-18 bracket chs 9–20 in David’s life. Even after the major crises described in these 12 chapters, David’s monarchy did not fall apart; he still had an intact administration. 20:23 In 8:16, Joab was called “commander of the army,” but here he is commander of the army of Israel. David’s wider control of Israel was established when the northern secessionist movements were defeated.
Yoav commanded the entire army. Despite the fact that Dovid had said to Amosoh, "I will make you the commanding general in Yoav's stead",14Earlier in 19:14. now that Amsoh was dead Yoav was not replaced. And because of Yoav [remaining commander], he [Dovid] had to appoint his [Yoav's] friends.15To the positions mentioned in the next few verses.
Henry, Jamieson-Fausset-Brown, Clarke, Gill, Calvin and Keil & Delitzsch are in the public domain; Tyndale Open Study Notes © Tyndale House Publishers, CC BY-SA 4.0 — all from the Free Use Bible API (bible.helloao.org). Rashi: the Rosenbaum & Silbermann Pentateuch (public domain) and the Judaica Press and Metsudah Tanakh (CC BY), via Sefaria. Spurgeon's Treasury of David: public domain (lyteword's markdown edition, CC0).
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
