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1 Chronicles 12:9

in 1 Chronicles 12

Ezer the chief, Obadiah the second in command, Eliab the third,

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV

ASV

Ezer the chief, Obadiah the second, Eliab the third,

KJV

Ezer the first, Obadiah the second, Eliab the third,

This verse in 1 Chronicles 12

Commentary

4 notes on this verse

This site's exposition

whose faces were like the faces of lions

on 1 Chronicles 12:8-9

The Gadites are described rather than merely named: whose faces were like the faces of lions and who were as swift as the roes upon the mountains, the poetic parallelism marking older material folded into the roster. Adam Clarke notes that swiftness ranked among the prized qualities of any ancient warrior, alongside the shield and buckler these men already carried. Spurgeon preached this company as a picture of the volunteers a greater David still gathers, men who join him in his rejection rather than in his glory.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

Ezer the first,.... This, and those that follow, are the names of the Gadites given, according to their age, or merit, or order in coming to David: Obadiah, Eliab, Mishmannah, Jeremiah, Attai, Eliel, Johanan, Elzabad, Jeremiah, Machbanai; in all eleven.

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

DAVID, compelled to flee from his own country, and to hide himself from the malice of Saul, was eminently a type of our Lord Jesus Christ who, in the days when He dwelt here among men, was despised and rejected of men. And at this moment it is well known to the true Church of God and it becomes palpably evident to every earnest Believer in the Gospel that Jesus, the Son of David, is not received, acknowledged, or tolerated in this present evil world. He has gone forth outside the camp.
DAVID, compelled to flee from his own country, and to hide himself from the malice of Saul, was eminently a type of our Lord Jesus Christ who, in the days when He dwelt here among men, was despised and rejected of men. And at this moment it is well known to the true Church of God and it becomes palpably evident to every earnest Believer in the Gospel that Jesus, the Son of David, is not received, acknowledged, or tolerated in this present evil world. He has gone forth outside the camp. All who would repair to Him must go forth likewise, bearing His reproach. These eleven Gadites—all of them remarkable men—espoused the cause of David when he was in his very worst condition—they left the ease and comfort, the honors and elements of their own homes to associate themselves with him when he was regarded as an outlaw under the ban of society. And to this day, every Christian who is faithful to his profession must separate himself from his fellow men to be a follower of the despised Jesus. In that way and with that faith which men still count heresy, must he join himself with that to which is everywhere spoken against, running the gauntlet of the age if he would espouse the cause of the Lord's Anointed! In tracing out the parallel, let me now draw your attention, first, to the leader who commanded the voluntary homage of good and valiant men. And then to the recruits who joined themselves to him, of whom we find a graphic description it our text. I. THE LEADER, whom we regard as a type of our Lord Jesus Christ, was David, the son of Jesse. And in tracing out some points of analogy, we begin by noticing that like David, our Lord was anointed of God to be the Leader of His people. Hence the words of prophecy concerning Him, "I will make an Everlasting Covenant with You, even the sure mercies of David.

The words behind it

6 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • עֵ֖זֶרEzer

    ʾezerH58295 times

  • הָרֹ֑אשׁthe chief

    haroshH7218599 times

  • עֹבַדְיָה֙Obadiah

    ʾoadyahH566220 times

  • הַשֵּׁנִ֔יthe second

    hasheniH8145156 times

  • אֱלִיאָ֖בEliab

    ʾeliavH44621 times

  • הַשְּׁלִשִֽׁי׃the third

    hashelishiH7992107 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

About 1 Chronicles

Cedars Are Cut Down for the Jerusalem Temple, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Cedars Are Cut Down for the Jerusalem Temple, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 3297, "David and His Volunteers"; Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 3297: “David and His Volunteers” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition) and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).