2 Samuel 17:28

2Sa 17:28 Brought beds, and basons, and earthen vessels, and wheat, and barley, and flour, and parched [corn], and beans, and lentiles, and parched [pulse],

Ver. 28. Brought beds, &c.] Strangers relieve David, whom his own son persecuteth. While the divine bounty serveth us in good meat, though not in our own dishes, we have good reason to be thankful.

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.

2Sa 17:28-29. Brought beds, and basins, and earthen vessels — All manner of household stuff; and wheat, and barley, and flour, and corn — That is, various kinds of provision, which they now wanted. For they said, The people is hungry and weary, &c.,in the wilderness — Having been in the wilderness, where there was a total want or scarcity of provisions and all conveniences, and therefore they needed refreshment when they were come out of it, which moved these persons to bring them these things. Thus God sometimes makes up to his people that comfort from strangers which they are disappointed of in their own families. The circumstances now related were all so many happy beginnings and omens of David’s future success, and pledges of that just and humble confidence which he had placed in the divine favour and protection.

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

God showeth himself most liberal to his, when they seem to be utterly destitute.

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

Verse 28. Brought beds] These no doubt consisted in skins of beasts, mats, carpets, and such like things.

Basons] ספות sappoth. Probably wooden bowls, such as the Arabs still use to eat out of, and to knead their bread in.

Earthen vessels] כלי יוצר keley yotser. Probably clay vessels, baked in the sun. These were perhaps used for lifting water, and boiling those articles which required to be cooked.

Wheat, and barley, c.] There is no direct mention of flesh-meat here little was eaten in that country, and it would not keep. Whether the sheep mentioned were brought for their flesh or their milk. I cannot tell.

According to Mr. Jones, "the Moors of west Barbary use the flour of parched barley, which is the chief provision they make for their journeys, and often use it at home; and this they carry in a leathern satchel." These are ordinarily made of goat-skins. One of them now lies before me: it has been drawn off the animal before it was cut up; the places where the fore-legs, the tail, and the anus were, are elegantly closed, and have leathers thongs attached to them, by which it can be slung over the back of man, ass, or camel. The place of the neck is left open, with a running string to draw it up, purse-like, when necessary. The skin itself is tanned; and the upper side is curiously embroidered with red, black, blue, yellow, and flesh-coloured leather, in very curious and elegant forms and devices. Bags of this kind are used for carrying wine, water, milk, butter, grain, flour, clothes, and different articles of merchandise. This is, as I have before stated, the Scripture bottle. Mr. Jones farther says: "Travellers use zumeet, tumeet, and limereece. Zumeet is flour mixed with honey, butter, and spice; tumeet is flour done up with organ oil; and limereece is flour mixed with water for drink. This quenches the thirst much better than water alone; satisfies a hungry appetite; cools and refreshes tired and weary spirits; overcoming those ill effects which a hot sun and fatiguing journey might well occasion."

This flour might be made of grain or pulse of any kind: and probably may be that which we here term parched corn and parched pulse; and in the forms above mentioned was well calculated, according to Mr. Jones's account, for the people hungry, weary, and thirsty, in the wilderness. This was a timely supply for David and his men, and no doubt contributed much to the victory mentioned in the following chapter.

A REMARKABLE account of maternal affection in a she-bear: "In the year 1772, the Seahorse frigate and Carcass bomb, under the command of the Hon. Captain C. J. Phipps, afterwards Lord Mulgrave, were sent on a voyage of discovery to the north seas. In this expedition the late celebrated admiral Lord Nelson served as midshipman. While the Carcass lay locked in the ice, early one morning, the man at the masthead gave notice that three bears were making their way very fast over the frozen sea, and were directing their course towards the ship. They had no doubt been invited by the scent of some blubber of a seahorse that the crew had killed a few days before, which had been set on fire, and was burning on the ice at the time of their approach. They proved to be a she-bear and her two cubs, but the cubs were nearly as large as the dam. They ran eagerly to the fire, and drew out from the flames part of the flesh of the seahorse that remained unconsumed, and ate voraciously. The crew from the ship threw great lumps of flesh of the seahorse, which they had still left upon the ice, which the old bear fetched away singly, laid every lump before her cubs as she brought it, and dividing it, gave each a share, reserving but a small portion to herself. As she was fetching away the last piece, they levelled their muskets at the cubs, and shot them both dead; and in her retreat they wounded the dam, but not mortally. It would have drawn tears of pity from any but unfeeling minds, to have marked the affectionate concern expressed by this poor beast in the dying moments of her expiring young. Though she was sorely wounded, and could but just crawl to the place where they lay, she carried the lump of flesh she had fetched away, as she had done the others before, tore it in pieces and laid it down before them; and when she saw that they refused to eat, she laid her paws first upon one, and then upon the other, and endeavoured to raise them up; all this while it was piteous to hear her moan. When she found she could not move them, she went off; and being at some distance, looked back and moaned. This not availing to entice them away, she returned, and smelling around them, began to lick their wounds. She went off a second time, as before; and having crawled a few paces, looked again behind her, and for some time stood moaning. But still her cubs not rising to follow her, she returned to them again, and with signs of inexpressible fondness went round one, and round the other, pawing them and moaning. Finding at last that they were cold and lifeless, she raised her head towards the ship, and growled a curse upon the murderers, which they returned with a volley of musket balls. She fell between her cubs, and died licking their wounds."

Had this animal got among the destroyers of her young, she would have soon shown what was implied in the chafed mind of a bear robbed of her whelps.

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

28. beds, and basons] The Sept. reads “ten beds with coverlets and ten bowls.”

parched corn … parched pulse] If the text is sound, this is the right explanation: but it is strange that the same word should be twice repeated in one sentence to denote different articles. The Sept. omits the second.

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.

Beds, will all the necessary furniture, coverlets, &c. Roman Septuagint, "ten beds, with fur on both sides." --- Tapestry. Some would translate, "bottles," (Chaldean) or "cauldrons;" (Roman Septuagint) but other editions agree with the Vulgate. --- Vessels. These are necessary, as much as things of greater magnificence. Precious metals were then rarely used in the kitchen. --- Pulse, (cicer) or "parched peas." Hebrew kali, is thus twice translated, as it had been rendered parched corn. It signifies any thing "parched." The ancients made great use of such food in journeys, as the Ethiopians and Turks do still. (Atheneus ii. 13.; Busbec. iii.; Bellon. ii. 53.) (Calmet)

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).

Beds and basons, i.e. all sorts of household stuff, as well as other provisions, all which David now wanted.

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

Beds. These would be for the women and children, and were scarcely more than rugs and small carpets. Basons; pots of metal for cooking, while the earthenware would be vessels for holding their food. Parched (corn) ... and parched (pulse); Hebrew, kali and kali. The word includes all kinds of parched grain. The Septuagint and Syriac rightly omit it in the second place, as it is probably a mere error of some ancient copyist; but for what word it has been substituted we have no means of ascertaining.

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

Mats. Mats.

Utensils. They are utensils for practical use. as [we find], "Silver utensils."

Toasted grain. Types of toasted foods Our Rabbis said Barzilai brought two types of porridge to Dovid, one made of wheat and one made of lentils as described here flour and קָלִי, this one was made from wheat. Beans, lentils and קָלִי [this one] was made from types of beans. They used to dry them in ovens [having been put in] while they were [still] moist, they [thus] were permenantly sweet [then] they ground them and made from them a food that was called "porridge."

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.