Charles Ellicott Commentary 1 Chronicles 14:11

"So they came up to Baal-perazim, and David smote them there; and David said, God hath broken mine enemies by my hand, like the breach of waters. Therefore they called the name of that place Baal-perazim." — 1 Chronicles 14:11 (ASV)

So they came up to Baal-perazim. —"They" refers to David and his troops. Samuel states, And David came into Baal-perazim. The locality is unknown. The prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 28:21) refers to these two victories of David: For Jehovah shall rise up as in Mount Perazim, he shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his work, his strange work; and bring to pass his act, his strange act. Such a reference proves the great significance of the events so briefly chronicled here.

God has broken in upon my enemies. —Samuel has "Jehovah" here and in 1 Chronicles 14:10a, and again in 1 Chronicles 14:14–15. (See Note on 1 Chronicles 13:12.) True to his character, David acknowledges the mighty hand of God in the results of his own valor. (Compare 1 Chronicles 17:16 and following.) He is conscious of being God’s instrument. Contrast the haughty self-confidence of the Assyrian conqueror (Isaiah 10:5–15).

By my hand. —Samuel states, before me; and so do the Syriac and Arabic versions here. The Hebrew phrases are probably synonymous. (Compare 1 Samuel 21:14, in their hand, that is, before them.) In Arabic, “between the hands” means before. Our text seems the more original here.

Like the breaking forth of waters. —David’s forces probably charged down the slopes of Mount Perazim (Isaiah 28:21), like a mountain torrent, sweeping all before it.

They called. —An explanation from Samuel, which has he [that is, one] called. The remark indicates the antiquity of the narrative. (Compare the frequent verbal plays of this kind in the stories of the Book of Genesis.)

Baal-perazim. —This means Lord, or owner, of breaches, or breakings forth. “Baal” may refer to Jehovah (compare 1 Chronicles 9:33, Note); and perâzîm may have also meant the fissures or gullies on the mountain-side. It is the plural of the word perez (1 Chronicles 13:11).