1 Samuel 30:9

9 And David goeth on, he and six hundred men who [are] with him, and they come in unto the brook of Besor, and those left have stood still,

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.

---

FOOTNOTES:

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

1 Samuel 30:9 In-Context

7 And David saith unto Abiathar the priest, son of Ahimelech, `Bring nigh, I pray thee, to me the ephod;' and Abiathar bringeth nigh the ephod unto David,

8 and David asketh at Jehovah, saying, `I pursue after this troop -- do I overtake it?' And He saith to him, `Pursue, for thou dost certainly overtake, and dost certainly deliver.'

9 And David goeth on, he and six hundred men who [are] with him, and they come in unto the brook of Besor, and those left have stood still,

10 and David pursueth, he and four hundred men, (and two hundred men stand still who have been too faint to pass over the brook of Besor),

11 and they find a man, an Egyptian, in the field, and take him unto David, and give to him bread, and he eateth, and they cause him to drink water,