Albert Barnes Commentary 1 Samuel 22
Albert Barnes Commentary
1 Samuel 22
Albert Barnes Commentary
1 Samuel 22
"David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave of Adullam: and when his brethren and all his father`s house heard it, they went down thither to him." — 1 Samuel 22:1 (ASV)
To the cave Adullam. This should be understood as the cave “of” Adullam, located near the town of that name. Adullam was a town in the Shephelah region of Judah, not far from Bethlehem and at a lower elevation. Innumerable caverns, one nearly 100 feet long, are excavated in the soft limestone hills in the neighborhood of Beit-Jibrin. (The cave is placed by Ganneau and Conder on the 500-foot-high hill over ‘Aid el Ma or Miyeh.)
David’s brothers and relatives joined him there, partly out of sympathy for him and partly because their own lives were in jeopardy from Saul’s furious enmity.
"And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men." — 1 Samuel 22:2 (ASV)
Discontented - See the margin. (Compare 1 Samuel 30:6; 2 Samuel 17:8.) The phrase here denotes those who were exasperated by Saul’s tyranny.
"And David went thence to Mizpeh of Moab: and he said unto the king of Moab, Let my father and my mother, I pray thee, come forth, [and be] with you, till I know what God will do for me." — 1 Samuel 22:3 (ASV)
Mizpeh of Moab - A reasonable conjecture connects it with “Zophim” (a word from the same root as Mizpeh) on the top of Pisgah (Numbers 23:14). It is probable that David’s descent from Ruth the Moabitess had something to do with his seeking asylum for Jesse, her grandson, in the land of her birth. It would have been very easy to get to the Jordan River from the vicinity of Bethlehem and cross over near where it empties into the Dead Sea.
Come forth, and be with you - The construction of the Hebrew is very strange. The Vulgate, Syriac, and Arabic seem to have read “dwell” instead of “come forth.”
"And he brought them before the king of Moab: and they dwelt with him all the while that David was in the stronghold." — 1 Samuel 22:4 (ASV)
He brought them before ... - The Septuagint renders this as “he persuaded (the face of) the king.”
In the hold - This refers to where David was after he left the cave of Adullam, probably in the land of Moab.
The phrase “all the while” indicates that David stayed for a considerable time in Moab.
"And the prophet Gad said unto David, Abide not in the stronghold; depart, and get thee into the land of Judah. Then David departed, and came into the forest of Hereth." — 1 Samuel 22:5 (ASV)
The prophet Gad — Mentioned here for the first time. One may conjecture that Samuel had sent him privately from Naioth to tell David not to stay in the stronghold. Whether he stayed with David or returned to the College of the Prophets is not recorded. For later mentions of him, see the marginal references.
The location of the forest of Hareth is unknown.
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