Bible Strands
2 Samuel 10:18
But the Arameans fled before Israel, and David killed seven hundred charioteers and forty thousand foot soldiers. He also struck down Shobach the commander of their army, who died there.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — David commands Israelite forces at Helam after crossing the Jordan, confronting the arrayed Aramean army. The verse records the immediate military outcome of that engagement.
The words — וַיָּנָס (va.ya.nos) translates "and it fled," describing the Aramean rout, while שֶׁבַע (she.va') means "seven," specifying the exact count of charioteers David killed.
The thread — The account parallels 1 Chronicles 19:18, which records the same battle with a different chariot count, and aligns with the routed commander motif in Judges 4:2 and 4:22.
Why it lands — The text states the Arameans fled and David killed seven hundred charioteers and forty thousand foot soldiers before noting Shobach's death. This sequence shows how battlefield defeat directly forces subjecting kings to negotiate peace and end military support.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew the men of seven hundred chariots of the Syrians, and forty thousand horsemen, and smote Shobach the captain of their host, who died there.
Cross-references
- 1 Chronicles 19:18 But the Arameans fled before Israel, and David killed seven thousand of their charioteers and forty thousand foot soldiers. He also killed Shophach the commander of their army.
- Judges 4:2 So the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his forces was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-hagoyim.
- Judges 4:22 When Barak arrived in pursuit of Sisera, Jael went out to greet him and said to him, “Come, and I will show you the man you are seeking.” So he went in with her, and there lay Sisera dead, with a tent peg through his temple.
- Judges 5:26 She reached for the tent peg, her right hand for the workman’s hammer. She struck Sisera and crushed his skull; she shattered and pierced his temple.
- 2 Samuel 8:4 David captured from him a thousand chariots, seven thousand charioteers, and twenty thousand foot soldiers, and he hamstrung all the horses except a hundred he kept for the chariots.
- Psalms 18:38 I crushed them so they could not rise; they have fallen under my feet.
- Psalms 46:11 The LORD of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah