2 Samuel 8:18
New International Version
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Kerethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were priests.

New Living Translation
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was captain of the king’s bodyguard. And David’s sons served as priestly leaders.

English Standard Version
and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites, and David’s sons were priests.

Berean Standard Bible
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were priestly leaders.

King James Bible
And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were chief rulers.

New King James Version
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief ministers.

New American Standard Bible
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief ministers.

NASB 1995
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief ministers.

NASB 1977
And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief ministers.

Legacy Standard Bible
and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and the sons of David were priests.

Amplified Bible
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was [head] over both the Cherethites and Pelethites [the king’s bodyguards]; and David’s sons were chief [confidential] advisers (officials) [to the king].

Christian Standard Bible
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief officials.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief officials.

American Standard Version
and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were chief ministers.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And Benaya, son of Yuyada, over Free Men and over the Laborers, and the sons of David were Princes

Brenton Septuagint Translation
and Banaeas son of Jodae was councillor, and the Chelethite and the Phelethite, and the sons of David, were princes of the court.

Contemporary English Version
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was the commander of David's bodyguard. David's sons were priests.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And Banaias the son of Joiada was over the Cerethi and Phelethi: and the sons of David were the princes.

English Revised Version
and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were priests.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Jehoiada's son Benaiah was commander of the Cherethites and the Pelethites. And David's sons were priests.

Good News Translation
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was in charge of David's bodyguards; and David's sons were priests.

International Standard Version
Jehoida's son Benaiah supervised the special forces and mercenaries, and David's sons were priests.

JPS Tanakh 1917
and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were chief ministers.

Literal Standard Version
and Benaiah son of Jehoiada [is over] both the Cherethite and the Pelethite, and the sons of David have been ministers.

Majority Standard Bible
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were priestly leaders.

New American Bible
Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, was in command of the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were priests.

NET Bible
Benaiah son of Jehoida supervised the Kerithites and Pelethites; and David's sons were priests.

New Revised Standard Version
Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were priests.

New Heart English Bible
and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were chief ministers.

Webster's Bible Translation
And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were chief rulers.

World English Bible
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief ministers.

Young's Literal Translation
and Benaiah son of Jehoiada is over both the Cherethite and the Pelethite, and the sons of David have been ministers.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
David's Officers
17Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Seraiah was the scribe; 18Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were priestly leaders.

Cross References
1 Samuel 30:14
We raided the Negev of the Cherethites, the territory of Judah, and the Negev of Caleb, and we burned down Ziklag."

2 Samuel 15:18
and all his servants marched past him--all the Cherethites and Pelethites, and six hundred Gittites who had followed him from Gath.

2 Samuel 20:7
So Joab's men, along with the Cherethites, the Pelethites, and all the mighty men, marched out of Jerusalem in pursuit of Sheba son of Bichri.

2 Samuel 20:23
Now Joab was over the whole army of Israel; Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites;

2 Samuel 23:20
And Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a man of valor from Kabzeel, a man of many exploits. He struck down two champions of Moab, and on a snowy day he went down into a pit and killed a lion.

1 Kings 1:8
But Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and David's mighty men would not join Adonijah.

1 Kings 1:38
Then Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, along with the Cherethites and Pelethites, went down and set Solomon on King David's mule, and they escorted him to Gihon.


Treasury of Scripture

And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were chief rulers.

Benaiah

1 Kings 1:44
And the king hath sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and they have caused him to ride upon the king's mule:

1 Kings 2:34,35
So Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon him, and slew him: and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness…

1 Chronicles 18:17
And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and the sons of David were chief about the king.

the Cherethites

2 Samuel 15:18
And all his servants passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men which came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.

2 Samuel 20:7,23
And there went out after him Joab's men, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and all the mighty men: and they went out of Jerusalem, to pursue after Sheba the son of Bichri…

2 Samuel 23:20-23
And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man, of Kabzeel, who had done many acts, he slew two lionlike men of Moab: he went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow: …

chief rulers.

2 Samuel 20:26
And Ira also the Jairite was a chief ruler about David.

Jump to Previous
Advisers Benaiah Benai'ah Cherethite Cherethites Cher'ethites Chief David David's Jehoiada Jehoi'ada Kerethites Ministers Pelethite Pelethites Pel'ethites Priests Royal Rulers
Jump to Next
Advisers Benaiah Benai'ah Cherethite Cherethites Cher'ethites Chief David David's Jehoiada Jehoi'ada Kerethites Ministers Pelethite Pelethites Pel'ethites Priests Royal Rulers
2 Samuel 8
1. David subdues the Philistines and the Moabites
3. He smites Hadadezer, and the Syrians
9. Toi sends Joram with presents to bless him
11. David dedicates the presents and the spoil to God
14. He puts garrisons in Edom
16. David's officers














(18) The Cherethites and the Pelethites.--These bodies of men, here mentioned for the first time, afterwards appear frequently, constituting the most trusted part of the king's army, and forming his especial body-guard (2Samuel 15:18; 2Samuel 20:7; 2Samuel 20:23; 1Kings 1:38; 1Kings 1:44; 1Chronicles 18:17). Benaiah, who commanded them, a hero from Kabzeel (2Samuel 23:20), was afterwards promoted by Solomon to be general-in-chief (1Kings 2:35). But the meaning of the words, "the Che-rethites and the Pelethites," has been much disputed. On the one hand it is urged that the form of the name indicates a tribal designation, and that there was a tribe of Cherethites living south of Philistia (1Samuel 30:14), who are also mentioned in connection with the Philistines in Ezekiel 25:16; Zephaniah 2:5. Besides, these names appear as those of bodies of troops only during the reign of David, and the objection that he would have been unlikely to employ foreign mercenaries may be met by the supposition that they had embraced the religion of Israel. On the other hand, the Chaldee ("archers and slingers") and Syriac ("nobles and Tustics") understood them as appellatives, and it is said that they should properly be translated "executioners and runners," such offices falling to the chief troops in all Oriental armies; no tribe of "Pelethites" is known, and in 2Samuel 20:23 the expression translated "Cherethites and Pelethites" has another form for "Cherethites," which again occurs with "Pelethites" in 2Kings 11:4; 2Kings 11:19, and is translated "the captains and the guard." The question does not seem to admit of positive determination. . . . Verse 18. - The Cherethites and the Pelethites. As we have already seen (1 Samuel 30:14), the Cherethim were an insignificant tribe inhabiting the southern part of the country of the Philistines. Nor is that place the only proof of this fact; for they are connected with the Philistines also in Ezekiel 25:16 and Zephaniah 2:5. David made their acquaintance when at Ziklag; and probably the Pelethim dwelt in the same neighbourhood, and were a still more unimportant clan or family. Much ingenuity has been expended in finding for their names a Hebrew derivation, and Gesenius explains them as meaning "cutters and runners," though for the latter signification he has to go to the Arabic, where he finds a verb falata, "to run away," "flee." But this craze of explaining the names of aboriginal tribes and their towns by Hebrew words is not only absurd in itself, but bars the way to sounder knowledge. For it is possible that, by the study of names not belonging to the Hebrew language, we might arrive at some correct ideas about the races who had previously occupied Palestine. Instead of this, the whole system of derivation is corrupted, and philology made ridiculous. What can be more ludicrous than to explain these Pelethim as "runners away," unless it be the notion that the Rephaim took their name from the Hebrew word for "a ghost"? In his "mighties" David had a powerful bodyguard of native Israelites, and Saul previously had formed a similar force of three thousand men, not merely for the protection of his own person, but to guard the land from marauding incursions of Amalekites and other freebooting tribes. Such a body of men was of primary importance for police purposes and the safety of the frontiers. How useful such a force would be we can well understand from the history of the marches between England and Scotland (see also note on 2 Samuel 3:22); but I imagine that the Cherethites and Pelethites were used for humbler purposes. While "the mighties" guarded the frontiers, and kept the peace of the kingdom, these men would be used about the court and in Jerusalem, to execute the commands of the king and his great officers. Native Israelites would refuse such servile work, and the conquered Canaanites might become dangerous if trained and armed; while these foreigners, like the Swiss Guard in France, would be trustworthy and efficient. As for the true-born Israelites, they probably did not form the mass of the population, but, like the Franks in France, were the privileged and dominant race. We read that even from Egypt, besides their own dependents, there went up with Israel "a great mixture" (Exodus 12:38, margin). In Numbers 11:4 these are even contemptuously designated by a word which answers to our "omnium gatherum;" yet even they, after the conquest of Palestine, would be higher in rank than the subjugated Canaanites, from whom, together with another "mixed multitude" spoken of in Nehemiah 13:3, are descended the felahin of the present day. David's armies would be drawn from the Israelites, among whom were now reckoned the mixed multitude which went up from Egypt, and which was ennobled by taking part in the conquest of Canaan. In the army "the mighties" would hold the chief place; while the mercenaries, recruited from Ziklag and its neighbourhood, which continued to be David's private property (1 Samuel 27:6), would be most useful in the discharge of all kinds of administrative duty, and would also guard the king's person. In 2 Samuel 20:23 for Cherethi we find Cheri, which word also occurs in 2 Kings 11:4, 19. In the former passage the spelling is a mistake, the letter t having dropped out, and it is so regarded by the Jews, who read "Cherethi." The versions also translate there just as they do here, namely the Vulgate and LXX., "Cherethi and Pelethi;" and the Syriac by two nouns of somewhat similar sound to the Hebrew, and which signify "freemen and soldiers." In the latter place in Kings it is probable that some other tribe supplied the bodyguard in Queen Athaliah's time. David's sons were chief rulers; Hebrew and Revised Version, priests. Similarly, in ch. 20:26, "Ira the Jairite was David's priest," Hebrew, cohen; and in 1 Kings 4:5, "Zabud was Solomon's priest." Gesenius and others suppose that they were domestic chaplains, not ministering according to the Levitical law, but invested with a sort of sacerdotal sacredness in honour of their birth. But if we look again at 1 Kings 4:5 we find "Zabud was priest, the king's friend;" and the latter words seem to be an explanation of the title cohen, added because the word in this sense was already becoming obsolete. In 1 Chronicles 18:17 the language is completely changed, and we read, "and David's sons were chief at the king's hand." We may feel sure that the Chronicler knew what was the meaning of the phrase in the Books of Samuel, and that he was also aware that it had gone out of use, and therefore gave instead the right sense. Evidently the word cohen had at first a wider significance, and meant a "minister and confidant." He was the officer who stood next to his master, and knew his purpose and saw to its execution. And this was the meaning of the term when applied to the confidential minister of Jehovah, whose duty it was to execute his will according to the commands given in the Law; but when so used it gradually became too sacred for ordinary employment. Still, there is a divinity about a king, and so his confidants and the officers nearest to his person were still called cohens; and we find the phrase lingering on for another century and a half. For Jehu puts to death, not only Ahab's great men and kinsfolk, but also "his cohens," the men who had been his intimate friends (2 Kings 10:11).



Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Benaiah
וּבְנָיָ֙הוּ֙ (ū·ḇə·nā·yā·hū)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 1141: Benaiah -- 'Yah has built up', the name of several Israelites

son
בֶּן־ (ben-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 1121: A son

of Jehoiada [was over]
יְה֣וֹיָדָ֔ע (yə·hō·w·yā·ḏā‘)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3077: Jehoiada -- 'the LORD knows', the name of several Israelites

the Cherethites
וְהַכְּרֵתִ֖י (wə·hak·kə·rê·ṯî)
Conjunctive waw, Article | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3774: Cherethites -- the foreign bodyguard of King David

and Pelethites;
וְהַפְּלֵתִ֑י (wə·hap·pə·lê·ṯî)
Conjunctive waw, Article | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 6432: A courier, official messenger

and David’s
דָוִ֖ד (ḏā·wiḏ)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 1732: David -- perhaps 'beloved one', a son of Jesse

sons
וּבְנֵ֥י (ū·ḇə·nê)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 1121: A son

were
הָיֽוּ׃ (hā·yū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be

priests.
כֹּהֲנִ֥ים (kō·hă·nîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 3548: Priest


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OT History: 2 Samuel 8:18 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was (2Sa iiSam 2 Sam ii sam)
2 Samuel 8:17
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