Charles Ellicott Commentary 1 Samuel 22:2

"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)

Every one that was in distress.—Ewald writes on this statement: "The situation of the country, which was becoming more and more melancholy under Saul, ... drove men to seek a leader from whom they might hope for better things for the future. ... David did not send away these refugees, many of them distinguished and prominent Israelites, but organised them into a military force.

He foresaw that while commanding such a company as this, he might, without injuring his king and former benefactor, be of the very greatest use to the people, and protect the southern frontiers of the kingdom—sadly exposed in these later years of King Saul—from the plundering incursions of the neighbouring nomadic tribes. This state of things, with a few interruptions, really came to pass, and David won great repute and popularity among the protected districts during these years when he was a wanderer and an outlaw—a popularity which in after years stood him in good stead."

These persons "in distress" were especially those who were persecuted by Saul and his men for their attachment to David. The scriptural accounts of the refugees who took shelter in David’s armed camp, of course, cover a considerable period, for they did not all flock to his standard at once.

Some went to him in the first days of his exile, others after the massacre at the sanctuary at Nob, and still others later; thus, 400 gradually gathered around him. Soon after, these numbers swelled to 600. These were probably only the chosen men-at-arms of the little force, which was, no doubt, numerically far greater.

And every one that was in debt.—Throughout the whole long story of Israel, this unhappy love of greed and gain has been a characteristic feature of the chosen race, always a prominent and ugly sin. In the Mosaic Law, most stringent regulations were laid down to correct and mitigate this ruling passion of avarice among the Jews (See passages such as Exodus 22:25; Leviticus 25:36; Deuteronomy 23:19).

The poor, improvident, or perhaps unfortunate, debtor was protected by wise laws against the greedy, avaricious spirit of his merciless creditor. These beneficent regulations of the great lawgiver had, under the capricious and faulty rule of King Saul, of course, fallen into abeyance, and a terrible amount of misery, no doubt, was the consequence.

In the Divine record, sad scenes (see 2 Kings 4:1–7), exemplifying this pitiless spirit, are incidentally related; but they are so woven into the mosaic of the history as to show us they were, alas, no uncommon occurrence in the daily life of the people.

In Proverbs, for instance, we find some conspicuous examples. The chronicles of the Middle Ages in all countries teem with similar stories about the chosen people.

Our own great dramatist, some three centuries ago, evidently without attempt at exaggeration, selected the avaricious, grasping Jew as the central figure of one of his most famous dramas. In our own time, the same spirit, as is too well known, is still prevalent and constitutes the bitterest reproach that the many enemies of this unique, deathless race can level against a people evidently walled in by Divine protection and a changeless, eternal love.

And he became a captain over them.—Evidently, these outlaws of Adullam and the stronghold of Moab, of Hareth and Keilah, of Ziph and Engedi, were no undisciplined band. David quickly organised the refugees, among whom, gradually, many a man of distinction and proven valour and ability was included.

To complete the picture of this First Book of Samuel, we must synthesize the scattered accounts of this same period that appear in the Second Book of Samuel and in the Books of Kings and Chronicles (See Excursus I. at the end of this Book).