1 Samuel 30:9

9 David and the six hundred men with him came to the Besor Ravine, where some of the men stayed.

1 Samuel 30:9 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 30:9

So David went, he and the six hundred men that [were] with him,
&c.] Encouraged by the oracle of the Lord:

and came to the brook Besor;
which Adrichomius ^F17 places in the tribe of Simeon; it is thought to be near Gaza. Aristaeus ^F18 speaks of brooks that flowed by Gaza and Ashdod, places that belonged to the Philistines; some take it to be the river of the wilderness in Amos, (See Gill on Amos 6:14):

where those that were left behind stayed:
or a part of them were left, as the Targum; all the six hundred came to this brook, but two hundred of them were left here, ( 1 Samuel 30:10 ) shows, and stayed here till the rest returned; for this is not to be understood of any that were left behind at Ziklag, for all came from thence to this brook.

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FOOTNOTES:

F17 Theatrum Terrae Sanct. p. 133.
F18 Hist. 72. Interpret. p. 41.

1 Samuel 30:9 In-Context

7 David said to Abiathar the priest, "Bring me the holy vest."

8 Then David asked the Lord, "Should I chase the people who took our families? Will I catch them?" The Lord answered, "Chase them. You will catch them, and you will succeed in saving your families."

9 David and the six hundred men with him came to the Besor Ravine, where some of the men stayed.

10 David and four hundred men kept up the chase. The other two hundred men stayed behind because they were too tired to cross the ravine.

11 They found an Egyptian in a field and brought him to David. They gave the Egyptian some water to drink and some food to eat.