1 Samuel 30:20

1Sa 30:20 And David took all the flocks and the herds, [which] they drave before those [other] cattle, and said, This [is] David’s spoil.

Ver. 20. And David took all the flocks,] i.e., All the rest of the flocks and herds which the enemy had pillaged from other places.

And said, This is David’s spoil.] The soldiers said so, and as some think, sung so, this being the burden of their triumphant song. This was better, I trow, than to speak of stoning him: to make him amends for which, some say they gave him all this booty.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

1Sa_30:20

This is Davids spoil.

Davids spoil

David may be regarded as a very special type of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I. We begin with the first observation that, practically, all the spoil of that day was Davids spoil, and in truth, all the good that we enjoy comes to us through our Lord Jesus.

1. Davids men defeated the Amalekites, and took their spoil, but it was for Davids sake that God gave success go the band.

2. Moreover, Davids men gained the victory over Amalek because of Davids leadership. If he had not been there to lead them to the fight, in the moment of their despair they would have lost all heart, and would have remained amidst the burning walls of Ziklag a discomfited company. The Lord Jesus Christ has been here among us and has fought our battle for us, and recovered all that we had lost by Adams fall and by our own sin. They said of Waterloo that it was a soldiers battle, and the victory was due to the men; but ours is our Commanders battle, and every victory won by us is due to the great Captain of our salvation. And our Lord Jesus has recovered for us the lucre as well as the past. Our outlook was grim and dark indeed till Jesus came; but oh, how bright it is now that he has completed his glorious work! Death is no more the dreaded grave of all our hopes. Hell exists no longer for believerses Heaven, whose gates were dosed, is now set wide open to every soul that believeth. We have recovered life and immortal bliss.

II. Those good things which we now possess, over and above what we lost by sin, come to us by the Lord Jesus. And first, think: In Christ Jesus human nature is lifted up where it never ought have been before. Man was made in his innocence to occupy a very lofty place. Thou madest him to have dominion over all the works of Thy hands; Thee hast put all things under his feet. The nearest being to God is a man. The noblest existence--how shall I word it?--the noblest of all beings is God, and the God-man Christ Jesse, in whom dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily, is with Him upon the throne. It is a wondrous honour this, that manhood should be taken into intimate connection, yea, absolute union with God!

2. Another blessing which was not ears before the fall, and therefore never was lost, but comes to as a surplusage, is the fact that we are redeemed.

3. We shall be creatures who have known sin and have been recovered from its pollution. We shall forever remember the price at which we were redeemed; and we shall have ties upon us that will bind us to an undeviating loyalty to him who exalted us to so glorious a condition.

4. We receive blessings unknown to beings who have never fallen.

5. Again, to my mind it is a very blessed fact that you and I will partake of a privilege which would have been certainly unnecessary to Adam, and could not by Adam have been known, and that is, the privilege of resurrection. Our singular relation to God, and yet to materialism, is another rare gift of Jesus. God intended, by the salvation of man, and the lifting up of man into union with himself, to link together in one the lowest and the highest--his creation and himself. Materialism is somewhat exalted in being connected with spirit at all. When spirit becomes connected with God, and refined materialism becomes connected with a purified spirit, by the resurrection from the dead, then shall be brought to pass the uplifting of clay and its junction with the celestial.

7. Our manifestation of the full glory of God is another of the choice gifts which the pierced hands of Jesus alone bestow. Principalities and powers shall see in the mystical body of Christ more of God than in all the universe besides. They will study in the saints the eternal purposes of God, and see therein His love, His wisdom, His power, His justice, His mercy blended in an amazing way.

III. That which we willingly give to Jesus may be called His spoil. There is a spoil for Christ which every true-hearted followed of His votes to Him enthusiastically.

1. First, our hearts are His alone foreverse Of every believing heart it may be said, This is Davids spoil.

2. Now there is another property I should like King Jesus to have, and that in our special gifts. I know one who, before his conversion, was wont to sing, and be often charmed the ears of men with the sweet music which he poured forth; but when he was converted he said, Henceforth my tongue shall sing nothing but blue praises of God. He devoted himself to proclaiming the gospel by his song, for he said, This is Davids spoil. Have you not some gift or other, dear friend, of which you could say, Henceforth this shall be sacred to my bleeding Lord?

3. Moreover, while our whole selves must be yielded to the Lord Jesus, there is one thing that must always be Christs, and that, is our religious homage as a church.

4. Lastly, have you not something of your own proper substance that shall be Davids spoil just now? There was a man who, in the providence of God, had been enabled to lay by many thousands. He was a very rich and respected man. I have heard it said that he owned at least half a million; and at one collection, when he felt specially grateful and generous, he found a well-worn sixpence for the place, for that was Davids spoil! That was Davids spoil. Out of all that he possessed, that sixpence was Davids spoil! This was the measure of his gratitude! Judge by this how much he owed, or at least how much he desired to pay. Are there not many persons who, on that despicable scale, reward the Saviour for the travail of His soul? (C. H Spurgeon.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

1Sa 30:20. David took all the flocks — Which had been taken by the Amalekites from the Philistines and others. Which they drave before those other cattle — His soldiers drave them before those cattle that belonged to Ziklag, which the Amalekites had taken from David and his men. And said, This is David’s spoil — Not that he claimed it all to himself. But the soldiers, who lately were so incensed against him that they spake of stoning him, now, upon his success, magnify him, and triumphantly celebrate his praise; and say, concerning this spoil, David purchased it by his valour and conduct, and he may dispose of it as he pleaseth.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Sa1 30:20 is obscure: "And David took all the sheep and the oxen: they drove them before those cattle, and said, This is David's booty." In order to obtain any meaning whatever from this literal rendering of the words, we must understand by the sheep and oxen those which belonged to the Amalekites, and the flocks taken from them as booty; and by "those cattle," the cattle belonging to David and his men, which the Amalekites had driven away, and the Israelites had now recovered from them: so that David had the sheep and oxen which he had taken from the Amalekites as booty driven in front of the rest of the cattle which the Israelites had recovered; whereupon the drovers exclaimed, "This (the sheep and oxen) is David's booty." It is true that there is nothing said in what goes before about any booty that David had taken from the Amalekites, in addition to what they had taken from the Israelites; but the fact that David had really taken such booty is perfectly obvious from Sa1 30:26-31, where he is said to have sent portions of the booty of the enemies of Jehovah to different places in the land. If this explanation be not accepted, there is no other course open than to follow the Vulgate, alter לפני into לפניו, and render the middle clause thus: "they drove those cattle (viz., the sheep and oxen already mentioned) before him," as Luther has done. But even in that case we could hardly understand anything else by the sheep and oxen than the cattle belonging to the Amalekites, and taken from them as booty.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

Which the Amalekites had taken of others, and David from them, besides the goods of Ziklag.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Verse 20. And David took all the flocks] He and his men not only recovered all their own property, but they recovered all the spoil which these Amalekites had taken from the south of Judah, the Cherethites, and the south of Caleb. When this was separated from the rest, it was given to David, and called David's spoil.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(20) The flocks and the herds, which they drave.—In the English translation the word “which,” inserted in italics, obscures the sense; the literal reading is, “And David took all the flocks and the herds; they drove them before their cattle, and said, this is David’s spoil.” David took, no doubt, by popular acclamation as his share of the plunder, all the flocks and herds belonging to the Amalekites, mostly acquired, no doubt, in the late raid; these were driven in front of “those cattle” thus particularising the cattle of Ziklag belonging to David’s own people. Of course, this plunder went back to the original Israelitish owners. The drovers, as they marched behind the vast herds of Amalekite cattle, sung of the prowess of their leader in words long remembered, “See all this. This is David’s spoil.” It was “these herds”—numerically, probably very great—that David distributed among the friendly cities of the south. (See 1Sa_30:26; 1Sa_30:31.) All the other plunder of the camp—arms, accoutrements, ornaments, jewels, camels’ cloths, &c.—was divided, as Bishop Hervey well suggests, among the little army. David’s motive in choosing the sheep and oxen (for his warriors certainly the least desirable part of the Amalekite possession) is evident from 1Sa_30:26-31. They were the most acceptable presents he could make to his friends in Judah.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

20. This verse as it stands admits of no satisfactory explanation. It is best to follow the Vulgate, with which the Sept. in the main agrees, and read, And he took all the flocks and the herds, and drave them before him: and they said, This is David’s spoil: i.e. he not only recovered his own property, but took a rich booty besides, which his men drove off with shouts of triumph. The number of places to which he sent presents (1Sa_30:26-31) shews how large it must have been.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And David took all the flocks, and the herds,.... Which they had taken from the land of the Philistines, or which belonged to the Amalekites properly:

which they drave before those other cattle; which had been carried from Ziklag; first went the spoil taken from other places, and then those taken from David and his men, or what was found at Ziklag. Abarbinel supposes the meaning to be this, that the herds were driven before the flocks, that the oxen were led out first, and then the sheep followed, as being the weaker sort, and more easily to be driven, and carried off; but the former sense seems best:

and said, this is David's spoil; either the whole of it, it being owing to him that it was got or brought back; or this may respect some peculiar part of it made a present of to him; or it may design what the Amalekites had taken from others, which was at the disposal of David, as distinguished from what was taken from Ziklag, and was restored, or to be restored to the proper owners: it may be taken in the first and more general sense, as being the song, or the burden of the song, sung by David's men as they returned with the spoil, giving him all the honour of it, of whom, but a little before, they talked of stoning.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

The meaning is, “and David took all the sheep and oxen which the Amalekites drove” (i. e. had in their possession) “before that acquisition of cattle” (namely, before what they took in their raid to the south), “and they” (the people) “said, This is David’s spoil.” This was his share as captain of the band (compare Jdg 8:24-26). All the other plunder of the camp - arms, ornaments, jewels, money, clothes, camels, accoutrements, and so on - was divided among the little army. David’s motive in choosing the sheep and oxen for himself was to make presents to his friends in Judah 1Sa 30:26-31.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

And made. Hebrew, "which they drove before those things (or cattle," taken from the Amalecites. Haydock) "which were separated from those which David had recovered." Each one reclaimed what he had lost. Perhaps David’s portion was placed by itself. (Calmet) --- Grotius thinks that, as the things taken in war cannot be reclaimed by the former proprietors, all was equally divided. See Selden, Jur. vi. 16.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

All the flocks and the herds, to wit, which the Amalekites had taken from the Philistines, or others.

Before those other cattle; before those which belonged to Ziklag.

This is David’s spoil, i.e. the soldiers, who lately were so incensed against David, that they spake of stoning him; now upon this success magnify him, and triumphantly celebrate his praise; and say concerning this spoil, David purchased it by his valour and conduct, and he may dispose of it as he pleaseth.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

20. David took all the flocks and the herds — Which belonged to the Amalekites.

Which they drave before those other cattle — Those other cattle mean the cattle which belonged to David and his men. So David not only recovered his own cattle, but he took all that belonged to the Amalekites besides, and called it his spoil. Of this spoil he sent to his friends in Judah. 1Sa_30:26-31.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

This verse, which is made unintelligible in the A.V by the insertion of the unauthorised word which, is really free from difficulty. After David, as related in vers. 18, 19, had recovered the cattle carried oft by the Amalekites, he also took all the flocks and herds belonging to them; and his own men "made these go in front of that body of cattle, and said, This is David"s spoil," i.e. they presented it to him by acclamation. It was this large booty which he distributed among his friends (vers. 26-31).

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Other cattle - Before those that belonged to Ziklag. David's spoil - The soldiers, who lately were so incensed against David, that they spake of stoning him: now upon this success magnify him, and triumphantly celebrate his praise; and say concerning this spoil, David purchased it by his valour and conduct, and he may dispose of it as he pleaseth.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

All the sheep and cattle. Which the troop had captured from the south of Yehudah and from the south of Caleiv.

They led. Men who were leading and marching before those cattle, to honor and praise themselves, [by declaring,] 'This is Dovid's spoil.'

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.