2 Samuel 23:21

21 He also killed a giant Egyptian who had a spear in his hand. Benaiah went against him armed with a staff. He grabbed the spear out of the Egyptian's hand and killed him with his own spear.

2 Samuel 23:21 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 23:21

And he slew an Egyptian, a goodly man
A person of good countenance and shape, very large and tall; in ( 1 Chronicles 11:28 ) , he is said to be a man of great stature, and five cubits high, and so wanted a cubit and a span of the height of Goliath, ( 1 Samuel 17:4 ) ;

and the Egyptian had a spear in his hand;
as large as Goliath's; for in ( 1 Chronicles 11:23 ) , it is said to be like a weaver's beam, as Goliath's was, (See Gill on 1 Samuel 17:7):

and he went down to him with a staff;
with a walking staff only, having no other weapon:

and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian's hand;
and therefore must be a man very nimble and dexterous, as well as bold and courageous:

and slew him with his own spear;
as David cut off Goliath's head with his own sword. This is supposed ^F12 to be Shimei, the son of Gera, ( 1 Kings 2:46 ) .

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FOOTNOTES:

F12 Hieron. Trad. Heb. ut supra. (in. 2 Reg. fol. 80. C.)

2 Samuel 23:21 In-Context

19 He was the most famous of the Thirty. He became their commander, but he wasn't among the Three.

20 Jehoiada's son Benaiah was a hero from Kabzeel who performed great deeds. He killed the two sons of Ariel from Moab. He once went down into a pit and killed a lion on a snowy day.

21 He also killed a giant Egyptian who had a spear in his hand. Benaiah went against him armed with a staff. He grabbed the spear out of the Egyptian's hand and killed him with his own spear.

22 These were the kinds of things Jehoiada's son Benaiah did. He made a name for himself along with the three warriors.

23 He was famous among the Thirty, but he didn't become one of the Three. David placed him in command of his own bodyguard.

Footnotes

• [a]. MT handsome; cf 1 Chron 11:23