1 Chronicles — Chapter 18
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1Some time later, David defeated the Philistines, subdued them, and took Gath and its villages from the hand of the Philistines.
2David also defeated the Moabites, and they became subject to David and brought him tribute.
3As far as Hamath, David also defeated King Hadadezer of Zobah, who had marched out to establish his dominion along the Euphrates River.
4David captured from him a thousand chariots, seven thousand charioteers, and twenty thousand foot soldiers, and he hamstrung all the horses except a hundred he kept for the chariots.
5When the Arameans of Damascus came to help King Hadadezer of Zobah, David struck down twenty-two thousand of their men.
6Then he placed garrisons in Aram of Damascus, and the Arameans became subject to David and brought him tribute. So the LORD made David victorious wherever he went.
7And David took the gold shields that belonged to the officers of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem.
8And from Tibhath and Cun, cities of Hadadezer, David took a large amount of bronze, with which Solomon made the bronze Sea, the pillars, and various bronze articles.
9When King Tou of Hamath heard that David had defeated the entire army of Hadadezer king of Zobah,
10he sent his son Hadoram to greet King David and bless him for fighting and defeating Hadadezer, who had been at war with Tou. Hadoram brought all kinds of articles of gold and silver and bronze,
11and King David dedicated these to the LORD, along with the silver and gold he had carried off from all these nations—from Edom and Moab, and from the Ammonites, Philistines, and Amalekites.
12Moreover, Abishai son of Zeruiah struck down eighteen thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
13He placed garrisons in Edom, and all the Edomites were subject to David. So the LORD made David victorious wherever he went.
14Thus David reigned over all Israel and administered justice and righteousness for all his people:
15Joab son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder;
16Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Shavsha was the scribe;
17Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief officials at the king’s side.
1Now after this it came to pass, that David smote the Philistines, and subdued them, and took Gath and her towns out of the hand of the Philistines.
2And he smote Moab; and the Moabites became David’s servants, and brought gifts.
3And David smote Hadarezer king of Zobah unto Hamath, as he went to stablish his dominion by the river Euphrates.
4And David took from him a thousand chariots, and seven thousand horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen: David also houghed all the chariot horses, but reserved of them an hundred chariots.
5And when the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadarezer king of Zobah, David slew of the Syrians two and twenty thousand men.
6Then David put garrisons in Syria-damascus; and the Syrians became David’s servants, and brought gifts. Thus the LORD preserved David whithersoever he went.
7And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadarezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.
8Likewise from Tibhath, and from Chun, cities of Hadarezer, brought David very much brass, wherewith Solomon made the brasen sea, and the pillars, and the vessels of brass.
9Now when Tou king of Hamath heard how David had smitten all the host of Hadarezer king of Zobah;
10He sent Hadoram his son to king David, to enquire of his welfare, and to congratulate him, because he had fought against Hadarezer, and smitten him; (for Hadarezer had war with Tou;) and with him all manner of vessels of gold and silver and brass.
11Them also king David dedicated unto the LORD, with the silver and the gold that he brought from all these nations; from Edom, and from Moab, and from the children of Ammon, and from the Philistines, and from Amalek.
12Moreover Abishai the son of Zeruiah slew of the Edomites in the valley of salt eighteen thousand.
13And he put garrisons in Edom; and all the Edomites became David’s servants. Thus the LORD preserved David whithersoever he went.
14So David reigned over all Israel, and executed judgment and justice among all his people.
15And Joab the son Zeruiah was over the host; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, recorder.
16And Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Abimelech the son of Abiathar, were the priests; and Shavsha was scribe;
17And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and the sons of David were chief about the king.
1And after this it came to pass, that David smote the Philistines, and subdued them, and took Gath and its towns out of the hand of the Philistines.
2And he smote Moab; and the Moabites became servants to David, and brought tribute.
3And David smote Hadarezer king of Zobah unto Hamath, as he went to establish his dominion by the river Euphrates.
4And David took from him a thousand chariots, and seven thousand horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen; and David hocked all the chariot horses, but reserved of them for a hundred chariots.
5And when the Syrians of Damascus came to succor Hadarezer king of Zobah, David smote of the Syrians two and twenty thousand men.
6Then David put [garrisons] in Syria of Damascus; and the Syrians became servants to David, and brought tribute. And Jehovah gave victory to David whithersoever he went.
7And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadarezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.
8And from Tibhath and from Cun, cities of Hadarezer, David took very much brass, wherewith Solomon made the brazen sea, and the pillars, and the vessels of brass.
9And when Tou king of Hamath heard that David had smitten all the host of Hadarezer king of Zobah,
10he sent Hadoram his son to king David, to salute him, and to bless him, because he had fought against Hadarezer and smitten him; (for Hadarezer had wars with Tou;) and [he had with him] all manner of vessels of gold and silver and brass.
11These also did king David dedicate unto Jehovah, with the silver and the gold that he carried away from all the nations; from Edom, and from Moab, and from the children of Ammon, and from the Philistines, and from Amalek.
12Moreover Abishai the son of Zeruiah smote of the Edomites in the Valley of Salt eighteen thousand.
13And he put garrisons in Edom; and all the Edomites became servants to David. And Jehovah gave victory to David whithersoever he went.
14And David reigned over all Israel; and he executed justice and righteousness unto all his people.
15And Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the host; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder;
16and Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Abimelech the son of Abiathar, were priests; and Shavsha was scribe;
17and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and the sons of David were chief about the king.
1Later David defeated the Philistines and subdued them. He took Gath and its surrounding towns away from the Philistines.
2He defeated the Moabites; the Moabites became David’s subjects and brought tribute.
3David defeated King Hadadezer of Zobah as far as Hamath, when he went to extend his authority to the Euphrates River.
4David seized from him 1,000 chariots, 7,000 charioteers, and 20,000 infantrymen. David cut the hamstrings of all but 100 of Hadadezer’s chariot horses.
5The Arameans of Damascus came to help King Hadadezer of Zobah, but David killed 22,000 of the Arameans.
6David placed garrisons in the territory of the Arameans of Damascus; the Arameans became David’s subjects and brought tribute. The Lord protected David wherever he campaigned.
7David took the golden shields which Hadadezer’s servants had carried and brought them to Jerusalem.
8From Tibhath and Kun, Hadadezer’s cities, David took a great deal of bronze. (Solomon used it to make the big bronze basin called “The Sea,” the pillars, and other bronze items.)
9When King Tou of Hamath heard that David had defeated the entire army of King Hadadezer of Zobah,
10he sent his son Hadoram to King David to extend his best wishes and to pronounce a blessing on him for his victory over Hadadezer, for Tou had been at war with Hadadezer. He also sent various items made of gold, silver, and bronze.
11King David dedicated these things to the Lord, along with the silver and gold which he had carried off from all the nations, including Edom, Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, and Amalek.
12Abishai son of Zeruiah killed 18,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
13He placed garrisons in Edom, and all the Edomites became David’s subjects. The Lord protected David wherever he campaigned.
14David reigned over all Israel; he guaranteed justice for all his people.
15Joab son of Zeruiah was commanding general of the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was secretary;
16Zadok son of Ahitub and Abimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Shavsha was scribe;
17Benaiah son of Jehoiada supervised the Kerethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were the king’s leading officials.
1After this, David defeated the Philistines and subdued them, and took Gath and its towns out of the hand of the Philistines.
2He defeated Moab; and the Moabites became servants to David, and brought tribute.
3David defeated Hadadezer king of Zobah to Hamath, as he went to establish his dominion by the river Euphrates.
4David took from him one thousand chariots, seven thousand horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen; and David hamstrung all the chariot horses, but reserved of them enough for one hundred chariots.
5When the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck twenty-two thousand men of the Syrians.
6Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus; and the Syrians became servants to David, and brought tribute. Yahweh gave victory to David wherever he went.
7David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.
8From Tibhath and from Cun, cities of Hadadezer, David took very much brass, with which Solomon made the bronze sea, the pillars, and the vessels of brass.
9When Tou king of Hamath heard that David had struck all the army of Hadadezer king of Zobah,
10he sent Hadoram his son to king David, to Greet him, and to bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and struck him (for Hadadezer had wars with Tou); and he had with him all kinds of vessels of gold and silver and brass.
11King David also dedicated these to Yahweh, with the silver and the gold that he carried away from all the nations; from Edom, from Moab, from the children of Ammon, from the Philistines, and from Amalek.
12Moreover Abishai the son of Zeruiah struck eighteen thousand of the Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
13He put garrisons in Edom; and all the Edomites became servants to David. Yahweh gave victory to David wherever he went.
14David reigned over all Israel; and he executed justice and righteousness for all his people.
15Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder;
16Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Abimelech the son of Abiathar, were priests; Shavsha was scribe;
17and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and the sons of David were chief officials serving the king.
Summary
David continues extending his kingdom through a string of military victories (v. 1). He subdues the Philistines, taking Gath from their control, then defeats Moab, whose people become tribute-paying servants (vv. 1-2). Marching north, he defeats Hadadezer king of Zobah, capturing chariots and horses; when the Syrians of Damascus come to Hadadezer's aid, David kills twenty-two thousand of them and makes both nations tributaries (vv. 3-6). He brings the captured gold and bronze to Jerusalem - bronze Solomon later uses for temple furnishings - and receives gifts from Tou king of Hamath, all of which David dedicates to the LORD (vv. 7-11). Abishai then strikes down eighteen thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt, bringing Edom under garrison as well (vv. 12-13). The chapter closes noting that the LORD gives David victory wherever he goes and that he reigns with justice and equity, then lists his chief officials, including Joab over the army and Benaiah over his guard (vv. 14-17).
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- Largely parallels 1-2 Samuel geographically. Jerusalem (Zion/City of David) is the theological and political center.
- Key sites: Hebron (David's first capital, 7 years), the threshing floor of Ornan/Araunah (future Temple site, ch.21).
- Chapters 1-9 (genealogies) contain tribal allotments but minimal narrative geography.
Places on this map
- JerusalemJerusalemA hill town about 2,500 feet up in the central spine of Judah, roughly 35 miles inland from the Mediterranean and 15 miles west of the Jordan. It sits on no trade route and has no river, which is why it mattered as a fortress and a sanctuary rather than as a market. Wikipedia
- HebronHebron, West BankThe highest town in the Judean hills at about 3,000 feet, 19 miles south of Jerusalem. Abraham bought a burial cave here, and David reigned from it for seven years before moving north, so it carries both the patriarchal and the royal claim to the land. Wikipedia
Towns sit on their excavated or traditional site. Regions, rivers and seas are ringed rather than dotted, because for those a single point is only an anchor. Coastlines from Natural Earth.
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik emphasizes the refrain "the LORD preserved David wherever he went" as the key to understanding David's conquests. He notes that David's dedication of spoils to God (v. 11) reveals a king whose military campaigns served a higher purpose than personal aggrandizement—everything pointed toward the future Temple.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of 1 Chronicles -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- Trusting God Over Military Technology (v.4) — David hamstrings the captured chariot horses rather than adding them to his own arsenal, refusing to let hardware become his source of security. What resources, credentials, or safety nets do you lean on instead of trusting God?
- Crediting God, Not Yourself, for Victory (v.6) — The chapter's refrain is that the LORD preserved David wherever he went, not that David preserved himself through skill. When something goes well for you, is your first instinct to credit God or to credit yourself?
- Dedicating the Spoils of Success (v.11) — David sets apart the wealth won in battle for the LORD rather than keeping it for himself. When God gives you increase — money, opportunity, influence — what portion of it do you dedicate back to His purposes?
- Power Exercised With Justice (v.14) — David's reign is summarized not just by conquest but by executing judgment and justice for all his people. In whatever authority you hold — at work, at home, in your community — are you using it fairly for everyone, or mainly for your own advantage?