1 Chronicles 12:17

17 And David went out against them, and said, If ye come peaceable to me, for to help me, mine heart be joined to you; forsooth if ye set ambush to me for mine adversaries, since I have not wickedness in the hands, God of our fathers see and deem. (And David went out to meet them, and said, If ye have come in peace to me, yea, to help me, my heart shall be joined to you; but if ye set ambush against me for my adversaries, since I have no wickedness in my hands, let the God of our fathers see and judge.)

1 Chronicles 12:17 Meaning and Commentary

1 Chronicles 12:17

And David went out to meet them
Out of the hold where he was; either out of respect and deference to them, some of them being persons of eminence; or it may be out of suspicion, fearing they were not his friends, being, it may be, chiefly of the tribe of Benjamin, and therefore was desirous of sounding them before he admitted them:

and said unto them, if ye be come peaceably unto me to help me;
if they were come with a good will to him, and intention to help him against his enemy, and protect him:

mine heart shall be knit unto you;
they should have such a share in his affections, that their hearts would be as one, as his and Jonathan's were, ( 1 Samuel 18:1 ) ,

but if ye be come to betray me to mine enemies;
into the hands of Saul, and his courtiers, that sought his life:

seeing there is no wrong in mine hands;
no injury done by him to Saul, or to them, or to any other:

the God of our fathers look thereon, and rebuke it;
he that sees all things, let him revenge it; and it is not only a wish that he would, but a prayer of faith that so it would be.

1 Chronicles 12:17 In-Context

15 These it be that passed over (the) Jordan in the first month, when it was wont to flow over his brinks; and they drove away all men, that is, heathen men, that dwelled in the valleys at the east coast, and [at the] west coast. (These it were who passed over the Jordan River in the first month, when it was wont to overflow its banks; and they drove away all the people, that is, all the heathen, who lived in the valleys to the east, and to the west.)

16 And also (some) men of Benjamin and of Judah came to the stronghold, wherein David dwelled (where David lived).

17 And David went out against them, and said, If ye come peaceable to me, for to help me, mine heart be joined to you; forsooth if ye set ambush to me for mine adversaries, since I have not wickedness in the hands, God of our fathers see and deem. (And David went out to meet them, and said, If ye have come in peace to me, yea, to help me, my heart shall be joined to you; but if ye set ambush against me for my adversaries, since I have no wickedness in my hands, let the God of our fathers see and judge.)

18 And the spirit clothed Amasai, the prince among (the) thirty, and he said, O! David, we be thine, and thou, son of Jesse, we shall be with thee; peace, peace to thee, and peace to thine helpers, for thy Lord God helpeth thee. Therefore David received them, and made [them] princes of the company. (And the spirit clothed Amasai, later the leader of The Thirty, and he said, O! David, we be thine, and thou, son of Jesse, we shall be with thee; peace, peace to thee, and peace to thine helpers, for the Lord thy God helpeth thee. And so David received them, and made them leaders in his army.)

19 And (some) men of Manasseh fled over to David, when he came with Philistines to fight against Saul, and he fought not with them; for after that the princes of Philistines had taken counsel, they sent him again, and said, With peril of our head, he shall turn again to Saul his lord. (And some men of Manasseh fled over to David, when he came with the Philistines to fight against Saul, though he did not fight with them; for after that the princes, or the leaders, of the Philistines had taken counsel, they sent him away, for they said, He shall return to his lord Saul, at the peril of our own heads.)