2 Samuel 10

CHAPTER 10

David Defeats the Ammonites (10:1–19)
(1 Chronicles 19:1–19)

1–5 The Ammonites, who lived just east of Israel, had been hostile to the Israelites during Saul’s reign; indeed, on one occasion Saul had badly defeated them⁴⁰ (see 1 Samuel 11:1–11 and comment).

David, however, sought to maintain a friendship with the Ammonites; and so when their former king Nahash died, David sent a delegation to his son Hanun to express sympathy (verse 2).

David’s delegation was rebuffed and his men humiliated. Even our best intentions are often misinterpreted. When our good is evil spoken of, let us be patient. In due time, those who falsely accuse us will be put to shame, and our injured reputation will grow again—just as the beards of David’s men in time grew back⁴¹ (verse 5).

6–12 By provoking David in this way, the Ammonites made a bad miscalculation: Israel was much larger and stronger than Ammon. As soon as the Ammonites realized that they had become a stench in David’s nostrils (verse 6)—that is, when they realized that David would retaliate—they hired twenty thousand Aramean (Syrian) soldiers, as well as troops from other kingdoms located north of Israel.⁴²

In order to defend Israel, David sent his entire army out to fight the Ammonites and their allies (verse 7). Joab was in command, aided by his brother Abishai. They prepared a battle plan (verses 9–11), and then Joab left the outcome to the Lord: “Be strong and . . . fight bravely,” he told Abishai, “and the LORD will do what is good in his sight” (verse 12). Here we see once again the joining together of God’s sovereignty and human responsibility.⁴³ The Apostle Paul says that we are to work out our salvation” in a similar way-both we and God working together (see Philippians 2:12–13).

13–19 The Israelites won an initial victory (verses 13–14), but it was not decisive. The enemy regrouped (verse 15). Hadadezer⁴⁴ brought reinforcements from beyond the (Euphrates) River (verse 16).

In response, David himself led Israel’s army across the Jordan to fight Hadadezer’s forces, which were gathered on Israel’s eastern border. Once again the Israelites overcame their enemy, killing seven hundred⁴⁵ charioteers and forty thousand foot soldiers (verse 18).

When the kings of the various northern nations who were under Hadadezer’s control saw that they had been defeated, they surrendered to the Israelites and became subject to them and were afraid to help the Ammonites anymore (verse 19). However, the Ammonites themselves had not yet been completely defeated; they had retreated into their chief city, Rabbah (see 2 Samuel 11:1). Later on, we shall learn of the Ammonites’ final defeat (2 Samuel 12:26–31).