John Gill Commentary 2 Samuel 20:8

"When they were at the great stone which is in Gibeon, Amasa came to meet them. And Joab was girded with his apparel of war that he had put on, and thereon was a girdle with a sword fastened upon his loins in the sheath thereof; and as he went forth it fell out." — 2 Samuel 20:8 (ASV)

When they [were] at the great stone which [is] in Gibeon
Which, according to Josephus ^F18, was forty furlongs, or five miles from Jerusalem: what this great stone was, whether an obelisk, or what, is not certain; one of the greatest stones we read of was that which Semiramis cut out of the mountains of Armenia, which was an hundred thirty feet long, and twenty five broad and thick ^F19. This place was appointed for the rendezvous of David's forces, and hither Amasa came with what he had assembled together, and joined them, and took the command of them: for it follows,

Amasa went before them ;
as the general of them:

and Joab's garment that he had put on was girded to him ;
who went along with his brother Abishai at the head of his own men. He was obliged to this by virtue of his commission, or went of himself to serve the common cause, and perhaps chiefly with a design to murder Amasa, whom he envied because he was put into his post as general. He therefore accoutred himself for it.

He put on, not a coat of mail, but a common garment which he girt about him, that it might be no incumbrance to him or hindrance to him, in doing what he intended, but that he might more expeditiously execute it:

and upon it a girdle [with] a sword fastened upon his loins in the
sheath thereof ;
the sword in the belt was not on his thigh, but on his loins, on the outside of his clothes, and was put into a sheath too large, and placed in such a position that with the least motion, when he pleased, it would easily drop out of it without drawing it. This would give no suspicion of his design:

and as he went forth ;
to meet Amasa, just as he came to him:

it fell out ;
the sword fell out of the sheath to the ground.

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FOOTNOTES:

• F18: Antiqu. l. 7. c. 11. sect. 7.
• F19: Diodor. Sic. l. 2. p. 100. Vid. ib. p. 53. Herodot. Euterpe, c. 111.