Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
The Amalekites burn Ziklag and drive off the plunder; David with his men pursues them, and strikes them while they feast and despoils them; then he divides the spoils equally between those who had fought and those who had remained with the baggage, verse 21, and sends a portion of them to other cities of Judea.
Vulgate Text: 1 Kings 30:1-31
1. And when David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day, the Amalekites had made a raid from the south on Ziklag, and had struck Ziklag, and burned it with fire. 2. And they had taken the women captive, from the least to the greatest, and had not killed anyone, but had led them away and gone on their way. 3. When David and his men came to the city, and found it burned with fire, and their wives, sons, and daughters led away captive, 4. David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept until they had no more strength to weep. 5. Indeed David's two wives had also been taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelite, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. 6. And David was greatly distressed; for the people wanted to stone him, because the soul of every man was bitter over his sons and daughters; but David strengthened himself in the Lord his God. 7. And he said to Abiathar the priest: Bring me the ephod; and Abiathar brought the ephod to David, 8. and David consulted the Lord, saying: Shall I pursue these raiders? And the Lord said: Pursue; for you shall surely overtake them and recover the plunder. 9. So David went, he and the six hundred men, and they came to the brook Besor, and some who were weary stopped there. 10. But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred had stopped, who were too weary to cross the brook Besor. 11. And they found an Egyptian in the field, and gave him bread and water; 12. and also a piece of a cake of figs and two clusters of raisins. And when he had eaten, his spirit returned. 13. And David said: To whom do you belong? He said: I am an Egyptian youth, servant of an Amalekite; my master abandoned me because I became ill three days ago. 14. We had raided the southern region of the Cherethites, and against Judah, and the south of Caleb, and we burned Ziklag with fire. 15. And David said: Can you lead me to this band? And he said: Swear to me by God; and David swore. 16. And when he had led him, there they were, spread out over all the land, eating and drinking and celebrating, because of all the great plunder they had taken. 17. And David struck them from evening until the evening of the next day, and none of them escaped, except four hundred young men who had mounted camels and fled. 18. So David recovered all. 19. And nothing was lacking. 20. And David took all the flocks and herds. 21. And David came to the two hundred men who had been too weary to follow; and they went out to meet David. 22. And every wicked man said: Because they did not go with us, we will give them nothing of the plunder. 23. But David said: You shall not do so, my brothers. 24. For the share of the one who goes down to battle shall be equal to the share of the one who remains with the baggage; they shall divide alike. 25. And from that day forward this was made a statute and ordinance in Israel to this day. 26. And David came to Ziklag and sent gifts from the plunder to the elders of Judah, saying: Here is a blessing for you from the plunder of the enemies of the Lord. 27. To those who were in Bethel, and to those who were in Ramoth to the south, and to those who were in Jattir, 28. and to those who were in Aroer, and to those who were in Siphmoth, and to those who were in Eshtemoa, 29. and to those who were in Rachal, and to those who were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, and to those who were in the cities of the Kenites, 30. and to those who were in Hormah, and to those who were in the lake of Ashan, and to those who were in Athach, 31. and to those who were in Hebron, and to all the rest who were in those places where David himself and his men had sojourned.
Verse 6: David Strengthened Himself in God
6. AND DAVID STRENGTHENED HIMSELF IN THE LORD HIS GOD -- that is, he recovered his courage, relying on hope and trust in God, says Vatablus: God instilled this strength and hope in David's soul, so that, hoping he would defeat the Amalekites, he would pursue them and wrest from them the plunder driven off from Ziklag. For where human resources are lacking, one must take refuge in the divine. Wisely Seneca says in epistle 88: "I make the year fortunate and happy by good thoughts and greatness of soul; which is never greater than when it has put aside what belongs to others; and has made peace for itself by fearing nothing; has made riches for itself by coveting nothing."
Verse 7: Bring the Ephod
7. BRING THE EPHOD TO ME -- In Hebrew, "bring the Ephod to me," namely so that clothed in it, through it as High Priest you may consult God for me, whether I should pursue the Amalekites or not.
Verse 13: The Egyptian Slave
13. AND MY MASTER ABANDONED ME BECAUSE I BECAME ILL. -- Tropologically, Eucherius says: "What does it mean that the Egyptian Amalekite boy sits exhausted on the road, except that the lover of the present world, covered with the blackness of his sin, is often left by that same world as weak and despised? God therefore chooses those whom the world despises, because very often the contempt itself calls a man back to himself."
Verse 14: The Cherethites
14. WE RAIDED THE SOUTHERN REGION OF THE CHERETHITES. -- The "Cherethites" were a certain region of the Philistines situated to the south, from which David gathered his bravest legions, hence called Cherethites and Pelethites, that is, executioners and couriers, which he therefore always kept with him thereafter, as praetorian soldiers and royal bodyguards.
Verse 16: Eating and Drinking
16. EATING AND DRINKING. -- Note the stratagem of David, by which with a few men he unexpectedly attacked the very numerous Amalekites while they were feasting, and slew them all. In a similar way Abraham, with three hundred servants, pursued four kings who had captured Lot, attacked them by night, and killed them while sleeping, Genesis 14:14.
Verse 24: Equal Shares
24. FOR THE SHARE OF THE ONE WHO GOES DOWN TO BATTLE SHALL BE EQUAL TO THE SHARE OF THE ONE WHO REMAINS WITH THE BAGGAGE -- because they cooperated equally in the victory; for if those men had not guarded the baggage of the fighters, the fighters would not have won; but from fear of losing their baggage they would have fought more timidly and turned their backs to the enemy. In a similar manner Polybius, Book X, relates that the Romans divided plunder acquired in war not only to those present in battle, but also to those left as a garrison, to the sick, and to those performing public duties.
Verse 25: A Statute in Israel
25. AND THIS WAS ESTABLISHED FROM THAT DAY FORWARD. -- Our Vulgate, the Septuagint, and the Chaldean indicate that this law began with David, not with Adam, interpreting the Hebrew mala as "henceforth."
Verse 26: Gifts to the Elders of Judah
HE SENT GIFTS FROM THE PLUNDER TO THE ELDERS OF JUDAH. -- Note here the generosity of David, which God instilled in him, so that by this munificence he might win the hearts of his tribesmen, that they might soon choose him as their king. For on the very same day that David defeated the Amalekites in battle and distributed the spoils, Saul entered battle with the Philistines and fell slain in it, and David therefore soon succeeded him in the kingdom of Judah by God's counsel.