11:22 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a brave warrior from Kabzeel who performed great exploits. He struck down the two sons of Ariel of Moab; 1 he also went down and killed a lion inside a cistern on a snowy day. 11:23 He even killed an Egyptian who was seven and a half feet 2 tall. The Egyptian had a spear as big as the crossbeam of a weaver’s loom; Benaiah attacked 3 him with a club. He grabbed the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear. 11:24 Such were the exploits of Benaiah son of Jehoiada, who gained fame along with the three elite warriors. 11:25 He received honor from 4 the thirty warriors, though he was not one of the three elite warriors. David put him in charge of his bodyguard.
22:20 But one of the sons of Ahimelech son of Ahitub escaped and fled to David. His name was Abiathar. 22:21 Abiathar told David that Saul had killed the priests of the Lord. 22:22 Then David said to Abiathar, “I knew that day when Doeg the Edomite was there that he would certainly tell Saul! I am guilty 6 of all the deaths in your father’s house! 22:23 Stay with me. Don’t be afraid! Whoever 7 seeks my life is seeking your life as well. You are secure with me.”
23:21 Saul replied, “May you be blessed by the Lord, for you have had compassion on me. 23:22 Go and make further arrangements. Determine precisely 9 where he is 10 and who has seen him there, for I am told that he is extremely cunning. 23:23 Locate precisely all the places where he hides and return to me with dependable information. 11 Then I will go with you. If he is in the land, I will find him 12 among all the thousands of Judah.”
1 tc Heb “the two of Ariel, Moab.” The precise meaning of אֲרִיאֵל (’ari’el) is uncertain; some read “warrior.” The present translation assumes that the word is a proper name and that בְּנֵי (bÿney, “sons of”) has accidentally dropped from the text by homoioarcton (note the preceding שְׁנֵי, shÿney).
2 tn Heb “five cubits.” Assuming a length of 18 inches for the standard cubit, this individual would be 7.5 feet (2.3 m) tall.
3 tn Heb “went down to.”
4 tn Or “more than.”
5 tn Heb “you were the one who led out and the one who brought in Israel.”
6 tc The translation follows the LXX, which reads “I am guilty,” rather than the MT, which has “I have turned.”
7 tn Or “the one who.” This may refer specifically to Saul, in which case David acknowledges that Abiathar’s life is endangered because of his allegiance to David. The translation assumes that the statement is more generalized, meaning that any enemy of Abiathar is an enemy of David. In other words, David promises that he will protect Abiathar with his very own life.
8 tn Heb “to all the desire of your soul.”
9 tn Heb “know and see.” The expression is a hendiadys. See also v. 23.
10 tn Heb “his place where his foot is.”
11 tn Heb “established.”
12 tn Heb “I will search him out.”