44 You also have delivered me from the strivings of my people; You have kept me to be the head of the nations: A people whom I have not known shall serve me.
Behold, you shall call a nation that you don't know; and a nation that didn't know you shall run to you, because of Yahweh your God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he has glorified you.
After this it happened that David struck the Philistines, and subdued them: and David took the bridle of the mother city out of the hand of the Philistines. He struck Moab, and measured them with the line, making them to lie down on the ground; and he measured two lines to put to death, and one full line to keep alive. The Moabites became servants to David, and brought tribute. David struck also Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to recover his dominion at the River. David took from him one thousand seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen: and David hamstrung all the chariot horses, but reserved of them for one hundred chariots. When the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck of the Syrians two and twenty thousand men. Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus; and the Syrians became servants to David, and brought tribute. Yahweh gave victory to David wherever he went. David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem. From Betah and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, king David took exceeding much brass. When Toi king of Hamath heard that David had struck all the host of Hadadezer, then Toi sent Joram his son to king David, to Greet him, and to bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and struck him: for Hadadezer had wars with Toi. [Joram] brought with him vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and vessels of brass: These also did king David dedicate to Yahweh, with the silver and gold that he dedicated of all the nations which he subdued; of Syria, and of Moab, and of the children of Ammon, and of the Philistines, and of Amalek, and of the spoil of Hadadezer, son of Rehob, king of Zobah. David got him a name when he returned from smiting the Syrians in the Valley of Salt, even eighteen thousand men. He put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom put he garrisons, and all the Edomites became servants to David. Yahweh gave victory to David wherever he went.
He bowed the heart of all the men of Judah, even as [the heart of] one man; so that they sent to the king, [saying], Return you, and all your servants.
All the people were at strife throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, The king delivered us out of the hand of our enemies, and he saved us out of the hand of the Philistines; and now he is fled out of the land from Absalom.
There was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations, and languages should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
The seventh angel sounded, and great voices in heaven followed, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become the Kingdom of our Lord, and of his Christ. He will reign forever and ever!"
As he says also in Hosea, "I will call them 'my people,' which were not my people; And her 'beloved,' who was not beloved."
The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you killed, hanging him on a tree. God exalted him with his right hand to be a Prince and a Savior, to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins.
who by the mouth of your servant, David, said, 'Why do the nations rage, And the peoples plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth take a stand, And the rulers take council together, Against the Lord, and against his Christ{Christ (Greek) and Messiah (Hebrew) both mean Anointed One. (Compare Psalm 2)}.' For truly, in this city against your holy servant, Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever your hand and your council foreordained to happen.
I will sow her to me in the earth; And I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy; And I will tell those who were not my people, 'You are my people;' And they will say, 'My God!'"
Then came all the tribes of Israel to David to Hebron, and spoke, saying, Behold, we are your bone and your flesh.
For that nation and kingdom that will not serve you shall perish; yes, those nations shall be utterly wasted.
He will judge among the nations. He will heap up dead bodies. He will crush the ruler of the whole earth.
Moab is my wash basin. I will throw my shoe on Edom. I shout in triumph over Philistia." Who will bring me into the strong city? Who has led me to Edom?
You have delivered me from the strivings of the people. You have made me the head of the nations. A people whom I have not known shall serve me.
Why do the nations rage, And the peoples plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth take a stand, And the rulers take counsel together, Against Yahweh, and against his anointed,{The word "anointed" is the same as the word for "Messiah" or "Christ"} saying, "Let's break their bonds apart, And cast away their cords from us." He who sits in the heavens will laugh. The Lord will have them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his anger, And terrify them in his wrath: "Yet I have set my king on my holy hill of Zion."
Then the woman went to all the people in her wisdom. They cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri, and threw it out to Joab. He blew the trumpet, and they were dispersed from the city, every man to his tent. Joab returned to Jerusalem to the king.
There happened to be there a base fellow, whose name was Sheba, the son of Bichri, a Benjamite: and he blew the trumpet, and said, We have no portion in David, neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: every man to his tents, Israel. So all the men of Israel went up from following David, and followed Sheba the son of Bichri; but the men of Judah joined with their king, from the Jordan even to Jerusalem.
So the people went out into the field against Israel: and the battle was in the forest of Ephraim. The people of Israel were struck there before the servants of David, and there was a great slaughter there that day of twenty thousand men. For the battle was there spread over the surface of all the country; and the forest devoured more people that day than the sword devoured.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on 2 Samuel 22
Commentary on 2 Samuel 22 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 22
This chapter is a psalm, a psalm of praise; we find it afterwards inserted among David's psalms (Ps. 18) with some little variation. We have it here as it was first composed for his own closet and his own harp; but there we have it as it was afterwards delivered to the chief musician for the service of the church, a second edition with some amendments; for, though it was calculated primarily for David's case, yet it might indifferently serve the devotion of others, in giving thanks for their deliverances; or it was intended that his people should thus join with him in his thanksgivings, because, being a public person, his deliverances were to be accounted public blessings and called for public acknowledgments. The inspired historian, having largely related David's deliverances in this and the foregoing book, and one particularly in the close of the foregoing chapter, thought fit to record this sacred poem as a memorial of all that had been before related. Some think that David penned this psalm when he was old, upon a general review of the mercies of his life and the many wonderful preservations God had blessed him with, from first to last. We should in our praises, look as far back as we can, and not suffer time to wear out the sense of God's favours. Others think that he penned it when he was young, upon occasion of some of his first deliverances, and kept it by him for his use afterwards, and that, upon every new deliverance, his practice was to sing this song. But the book of Psalms shows that he varied as there was occasion, and confined not himself to one form. Here is,
2Sa 22:1
Observe here,
2Sa 22:2-51
Let us observe, in this song of praise,