Chapter 11 - Part 3: Continuing the Enumeration of David's Mighty Men
We continue with the enumeration of David's mighty men, which will accompany us through the end of the chapter. Until now, we dealt with the three warriors of the first tier, and from here on, the text counts the second tier - Avshai and Benayah - followed by the valiant warriors and the long list of names that concludes the chapter.
Avshai the Brother of Yoav - Chief of the Three
וְאַבְשַׁי אֲחִי יוֹאָב הוּא הָיָה רֹאשׁ הַשְּׁלוֹשָׁה, וְהוּא עוֹרֵר אֶת חֲנִיתוֹ עַל שְׁלֹשׁ מֵאוֹת חָלָל, וְלוֹ שֵׁם בַּשְּׁלוֹשָׁה׃ (כ) - And Avshai the brother of Yoav was chief of the three, and he brandished his spear against three hundred slain, and he had a name among the three. (20)
"Avshai" is the familiar Avishai; certain names appear with slight letter variations in different places in Tanach. And he was "chief of the three" - the commentary attributed to Rashi explains that this refers to those three who broke through the Philistine camp and drew the water, and he was their head.
The commentary attributed to Rashi asks: What about Yoav? Why is he not numbered among the mighty warriors? He answers that the text does not count him because it would not be befitting his honor to be numbered among them, for he was the commander of the army and the leader over them all. When a person is the supreme commander, he is not counted as one of the soldiers, as that would detract from his stature. Therefore, the warriors are listed, while Yoav stands above them all.
The Malbim explains that here the text begins to detail who the warriors were, and the foremost among them was Avshai. "And he had a name among the three" - meaning that even among the three warriors of the first tier, he held renown. That is, even though he is listed among the ranks of the warriors who were not of the very first rank, the verse comes to inform us how distinguished he was: he was the head of the three in the second tier, and even among the first tier he was held in high regard. Proof of this is that "he brandished his spear against three hundred slain," much like Adino HaEtzni, who was among the three foremost warriors. From this you can understand that he was considered a mighty man even in their league.
מִן הַשְּׁלוֹשָׁה בַשְּׁנַיִם נִכְבָּד, וַיְהִי לָהֶם לְשָׂר, וְעַד הַשְּׁלוֹשָׁה לֹא בָא׃ (כא) - Of the three, he was the most honored among the second tier, and became their commander; yet he did not attain unto the [first] three. (21)
According to the Malbim, "of the three among the second" means of the three in the second tier. There is a first tier, and there is the tier of the "second." In that second tier, Avshai was the most honored among them and served as their leader, yet "he did not attain unto the three" - he did not reach the level of the first three warriors. Although we saw that he held renown even among them and they valued him, he was not counted with them, as he did not match their level.
The Malbim adds: Here Ezra comes in Divrei HaYamim to clarify what was left ambiguous in the Book of Shmuel. In Shmuel it states, "Was he not the most honored of the three?", without specifying which three; Ezra arrives and explains that it means of the three in the second tier, for he had not reached the level of the first three. According to the Radak, however, "of the three, he was honored among the two" refers to the three warriors who fetched the water - that he was more distinguished than his two comrades who brought the water with him.
Benayah Son of Yehoyada - Three Feats of Valor
בְּנָיָה בֶן יְהוֹיָדָע בֶּן אִישׁ חַיִל רַב פְּעָלִים מִן קַבְצְאֵל, הוּא הִכָּה אֵת שְׁנֵי אֲרִיאֵל מוֹאָב, וְהוּא יָרַד וְהִכָּה אֶת הָאֲרִי בְּתוֹךְ הַבּוֹר בְּיוֹם הַשָּׁלֶג׃ (כב) - Benayah the son of Yehoyada, the son of a valiant man of many deeds from Kavtze'el; he struck down the two lion-like men of Moav, and he went down and struck down the lion in the midst of the pit on a snowy day. (22)
"Benayah" is the familiar Benayahu ben Yehoyada. "The son of a valiant man" [ben ish chayil] - the commentary attributed to Rashi explains that this does not refer to a biological son, but is similar to the expression "ben beliya'al" (a scoundrel): when one says ben beliya'al, it does not mean his father is Beliya'al, and when one says bar mitzvah, it does not mean his mother is a mitzvah, but rather one who possesses that quality - like "the man is a ben mavet" (deserving of death). So too, "ben ish chayil" means a valiant man. And in the Book of Shemuel it says "ben ish chai" (the son of a living man), and such is human idiom: when people see an energetic, swift person, they say of him, "He is completely alive" - a man full of vital energy.
"Of many deeds" - he performed many acts of valor. "From Kabtze'el" - from the place called Kabtze'el, and in Shemuel "from Kavtze'el", a city located in the portion of Yehudah. "Ariel Moav" - warriors who possessed the strength of a lion, for "el" always denotes strength, as in "it is in the power of my hand" [yesh le'el yadi]. And he struck down the two warriors of Moav.
"He also went down and slew a lion in the midst of a pit on a snowy day" - without fearing the chill and the cold. The commentary attributed to Rashi adds: Some say that throughout the entire year a lion is never more dangerous than on a snowy day, for when a man approaches him, he kicks snow with his paw into the man's eyes until he cannot see, and kills him. And so I heard regarding this, says the commentary attributed to Rashi, and all this serves to demonstrate the greatness of his valor.
The Malbim explains that Benayah is the second warrior among the three heroes of the second rank - the first was Avishai the brother of Yoav, and the second was Benayah, a valiant man of many deeds from the city of Kabtze'el in the portion of Yehudah. He displayed three acts of heroism: first, that he struck down the two warrior-lions of Moav; second, that he slew the lion, even though the lion was inside its pit where its strength was greater, and on a snowy day, when the lion is emboldened and man is encumbered; and third, that he struck down the Egyptian man, a man of stature, five cubits tall, around two and a half meters (and according to the Chazon Ish's measurement, even taller), holding a spear, while he went down against him with only a staff.
וְהוּא הִכָּה אֶת הָאִישׁ הַמִּצְרִי אִישׁ מִדָּה חָמֵשׁ בָּאַמָּה, וּבְיַד הַמִּצְרִי חֲנִית כִּמְנוֹר אֹרְגִים, וַיֵּרֶד אֵלָיו בַּשָּׁבֶט, וַיִּגְזֹל אֶת הַחֲנִית מִיַּד הַמִּצְרִי וַיַּהַרְגֵהוּ בַּחֲנִיתוֹ׃ (כג) - And he struck down the Egyptian man, a man of stature, five cubits tall; and in the hand of the Egyptian was a spear like a weavers' beam, and he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian's hand, and slew him with his own spear. (23)
The Malbim notes: Here Ezra explains details that were not mentioned in the Book of Shemuel - that he was "a man of stature" [ish middah]. What is an ish middah? The commentary attributed to Rashi explains: With ordinary people, we estimate their height by sight - one is 1.70 meters and another is 1.80 meters - but when dealing with an exceptionally tall person, one must actually measure him. "Ish middah" means that whoever sees him measures him, similar to what is said: "whom we saw in it are men of great stature" [anshei middot] - people who must be measured to know their size.
"A spear like a weavers' beam" - this detail was also not mentioned in Shemuel, and therefore Scripture repeats it here. The Metzudat Tziyon explains: A weavers' beam is the round wooden roller around which the weaver winds the warp threads. The warp threads [sheti] are the foundation (from the root tashtit, foundation), and they are stretched across the weavers' beam - an upper beam and a lower beam. Afterward, one passes the weft threads [erev], over and under, interweaving them among the warp threads (hence their name erev, because they intermingle [mit'arbevim] with the warp). Once a section of cloth is woven, it is rolled onto the upper beam, more warp threads are released from the lower roller, and weaving continues. That round cylinder is called a weavers' beam, and such was the thickness of that Egyptian's spear shaft. "And he went down to him with a staff" - with a stick, "and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian's hand," and killed him with it.
"And plucked the spear out of the Egyptian's hand" - Fighting with the tools of the generation
This verse is often used homiletically to teach how one must defend against the forces of evil: if we fight only with outdated tools, we will lose the battle.
In his time, people came to the Chazon Ish and said to him: "Rebbe, haven't you heard what is happening in Jerusalem? They have begun teaching in Hebrew in the schools, yet there is an ancient ban [cherem hakadmonim] in Jerusalem forbidding teaching in schools in Hebrew rather than Yiddish alone!" He said to them: "I will tell you a parable. A young general was facing a war with enemy forces, and sat planning how to act. Suddenly an elderly general came to him, leaning on his cane and barely able to walk, and said: 'My friend, you are still young; we fought a war here seventy years ago, come and let me tell you how we conquered them.' The young man replied: 'My friend, I do not know what you know, but all the rules of warfare have changed - the outposts have changed, the battlegrounds have changed, the weaponry has changed. Whoever fights today the way they fought back then will not only lag behind, but will ultimately be easily defeated; for you would be fighting with spear and sword and the old rules.' Once upon a time, paratroopers played a central role; such units still exist today, but when was the last time paratroopers dropped behind enemy lines? Today warfare is cyber warfare, an entirely different battlefield."
And so the Chazon Ish told them: "In those days, to erect a fence against Ben-Yehuda and his companions - the renewers, or rather the undertakers, of the Hebrew language - it was necessary to build a barrier and forbid teaching in Hebrew. But today that is no longer the battle, and if we fight that battle, we are bound to fail."
What this means in practice: there are tools that, from our perspective, are completely rejected, such as television, which was once considered abhorrent and untouchable [muktzeh machamat mi'us]. One can still recall giant posters in the Netanya marketplace declaring a severe cherem against anyone who brought a television into his home. Today, compared to all the destructive devices and modern afflictions, television is child's play - not that it is permissible, it is utterly non-kosher, but it is like meat that became tereifah versus carrion [neveilah]. And the internet is the mother of all perils. In every generation one must understand what to fight, and if the emphasis is placed on the wrong issue, the battle is lost. Someone once illustrated how some people try to fight while completely detached from reality, saying: "It starts with the internet, continues to television, and in the end they even listen to the radio!" A detached person does not understand how to combat the yetzer hara, and to wage battle, one must understand the tools.
Indeed, television - which was placed under a severe ban - has brought back to teshuvah what thousands of outreach figures could not accomplish over generations, through organizations like Hidabroot and their activities. Who could ever enter a kibbutz in the past? Who would have agreed to let an Orthodox lecturer set foot there? Yet today, one hears endless stories of people channel-surfing on television, fed up with the nonsense, and suddenly they see "some religious guy" and say: Let us hear what he has to say - and they stay watching. This is the way to fight today. And if you argue: but this is repulsive and utterly off-limits - you are right, but sometimes one must fulfill "and he snatched the spear from the Egyptian's hand and killed him with his own spear", specifically slaying the Egyptian with his own spear.
For if we continue fighting with the old tools - should we continue distributing pamphlets? Who reads a pamphlet today? The average secular person does not know how to handle texts. Show him a page of Gemara and his eyes glaze over: where does it begin, where does it end, there are no vowels, no cantillation marks, it is all continuous text. The era of spreading Judaism through books is long past. Today, Judaism is spread on the internet, on Instagram, on Facebook, and through various other modern plagues whose names one hardly even knows, thank God.
Yet this is not a recommendation to enter these arenas, for it is an immense danger, and many who engage with it later fall, so one must be extremely cautious. But one must recognize that people are there, and it is in the media where they are present that one must reach them. When a person tires of all the nonsense, he will find Hidabroot and other holy channels through which he can learn. To be sure, this is a double-edged sword, for the evil inclination can come and tell a person: "I want the internet for holy purposes" - and in this way lead him into matters of impurity. Therefore, first of all, whoever has not reached this point should not involve himself with it at all. And second, whoever already has it should put up maximum filtering, leaving no access whatsoever to places leading to corruption. Thank God, there are good filters today, such as NetFree and the like, very strict filters where people inspect every single image, and someone who uses them will never even see the form of a woman. If you do not have it - leave it alone and do not engage with it at all; and if you already have it - let it at least be in a manner that does not lead to sin. But let us know that the path of "snatching the spear from the Egyptian's hand" is the way to fight in this generation, and whoever thinks one must not touch it at all ultimately loses the battle. Rather, it must be done with the proper boundaries and appropriate safeguards, and in this way one has the power to reach those who are far away and draw them near.
The Stature of Benayahu - Mighty and Honored
אֵלֶּה עָשָׂה בְּנָיָהוּ בֶּן יְהוֹיָדָע, וְלוֹ שֵׁם בִּשְׁלוֹשָׁה הַגִּבֹּרִים׃ (כד) - These things did Benayahu the son of Yehoyada, and he had a name among the three mighty men.
"These things" - the deeds mentioned earlier: that he struck down the two warrior-lions of Moav, went down and struck the lion, and struck down the Egyptian man. "And he had a name among the three mighty men" - according to the Metzudat David, he was renowned as a mighty warrior among the three mighty men who drew the water, for despite their immense valor, they considered him mighty as well. However, the first three mighty men, in light of their surpassing strength, did not consider him equal to them at all - unlike Avishai the brother of Yoav, who had renown even among the first three and was considered mighty in their eyes, even though he was not numbered among them.
מִן הַשְּׁלוֹשִׁים הִנּוֹ נִכְבָּד הוּא, וְאֶל הַשְּׁלֹשָׁה לֹא בָא, וַיְשִׂימֵהוּ דָוִיד עַל מִשְׁמַעְתּוֹ׃ (כה) - Behold, he was honored above the thirty, but he did not attain to the three; and David set him over his guard.
"Behold, he was honored above the thirty" - he was more honored than David's thirty mighty men. Radak explains: he was not numbered among the thirty, but rather was honored above the thirty, as the thirty occupied a lower tier, and he was esteemed above them. "But he did not attain to the three" - he did not reach the level of the first three: the Tachkemonite, Elazar, and Shammah. It follows that the phrase "and he had a name among the three mighty men" refers to the three of the second tier, but not to the first three.
The Malbim explains: "Honored" here is meant in the sense of dignity and honor, not physical valor. And in what did his honor consist? In that he was the head of the Sanhedrin. Thus, "he was honored above the thirty" - in terms of honor, he was more distinguished than all thirty mighty men, for he was the head of the Sanhedrin while they were not. And although in terms of valor he did not reach the first three and had no standing among them, in terms of honor he was the most exalted of all. Therefore, King David appointed him over his guard ("mishma'ato"). Pseudo-Rashi explains that "mishma'at" is related to appointment, meaning the officials under his charge; while simply understood, it refers to those obedient to him, to whom King David continuously issued operational orders.
The Valiant Mighty Men
וְגִבּוֹרֵי הַחֲיָלִים: עֲשָׂהאֵל אֲחִי יוֹאָב, אֶלְחָנָן בֶּן דּוֹדוֹ מִבֵּית לָחֶם׃ (כו) - And the valiant mighty men: Asahel the brother of Yoav, Elchanan the son of Dodo of Beit-Lechem.
"And the valiant mighty men" - Pseudo-Rashi explains: these were mighty men, though not on the level of those mentioned earlier. And the Malbim notes that he had already explained earlier that the third mighty man among the three of the second tier was Asahel; there it states, "Asahel the brother of Yoav was among the thirty" - meaning he was counted among the six mighty men, yet he did not remain in the king's presence like the first five, but only served with the thirty, who are the thirty mighty men enumerated here.
And so we find later, "and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites," which Targum Yonatan renders: over the slingers and the archers - those who sling stones and shoot with the bow. Therefore, here too the verse mentions him among the mighty men of the forces, for he was chief over all of them. In the Book of Shmuel, additional warriors are mentioned up to Uriah the Hittite, who appears here in verse 41, and it concludes there, "thirty-seven in all" - thirty-seven including the first six. Here, some of them are mentioned with different names; the Malbim explains that some had two names, as we find in many examples throughout the Book of Divrei HaYamim. Another possibility: some of the warriors had died, and here we are dealing with the warriors who succeeded them in the second phase, whom Ezra records. And from Uriah the Hittite onward, Ezra found in the Book of Divrei HaYamim another sixteen warriors whom he enumerates.
The List of Mighty Warriors
שַׁמּוֹת הַהֲרוֹרִי, חֶלֶץ הַפְּלוֹנִי׃ עִירָא בֶן עִקֵּשׁ הַתְּקוֹעִי, אֲבִיעֶזֶר הָעַנְּתוֹתִי׃ סִבְּכַי הַחֻשָׁתִי, עִילַי הָאֲחוֹחִי׃ מַהְרַי הַנְּטֹפָתִי, חֵלֶד בֶּן בַּעֲנָה הַנְּטוֹפָתִי׃ אִיתַי בֶּן רִיבַי מִגִּבְעַת בְּנֵי בִנְיָמִן, בְּנָיָה הַפִּרְעָתֹנִי׃ חוּרַי מִנַּחֲלֵי גָעַשׁ, אֲבִיאֵל הָעַרְבָתִי׃ עַזְמָוֶת הַבַּחֲרוּמִי, אֶלְיַחְבָּא הַשַּׁעַלְבֹנִי׃ (כז-לג) - Shammoth the Harorite, Heletz the Pelonite; Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, Abiezer the Anathothite; Sibbecai the Hushathite, Ilai the Ahohite; Maharai the Netophathite, Heled the son of Baanah the Netophathite; Ithai the son of Ribai of Gibeah of the children of Benjamin, Benaiah the Pirathonite; Hurai of the valleys of Gaash, Abiel the Arbathite; Azmaveth the Baharumite, Eliahba the Shaalbonite. (27-33)
Most of these appellations are based on the place from which each man came: "the Shaalbonite" - from the place called Shaalbim, which is the source of the name; "the Pirathonite" - from a place called Pirathon; "of the valleys of Gaash," "the Arbathite" - each according to the name of his locality.
בְּנֵי הָשֵׁם הַגִּזוֹנִי, יוֹנָתָן בֶּן שָׁגֵה הַהֲרָרִי׃ אֲחִיאָם בֶּן שָׂכָר הַהֲרָרִי, אֱלִיפַל בֶּן אוּר׃ חֵפֶר הַמְּכֵרָתִי, אֲחִיָּה הַפְּלֹנִי׃ חֶצְרוֹ הַכַּרְמְלִי, נַעֲרַי בֶּן אֶזְבָּי׃ יוֹאֵל אֲחִי נָתָן, מִבְחָר בֶּן הַגְרִי׃ צֶלֶק הָעַמּוֹנִי, נַחְרַי הַבֵּרֹתִי נֹשֵׂא כְּלֵי יוֹאָב בֶּן צְרוּיָה׃ עִירָא הַיִּתְרִי, גָּרֵב הַיִּתְרִי׃ אוּרִיָּה הַחִתִּי, זָבָד בֶּן אַחְלָי׃ (לד-מא) - The sons of Hashem the Gizonite, Jonathan the son of Shageh the Hararite; Ahiam the son of Sacar the Hararite, Eliphal the son of Ur; Hepher the Mecherathite, Ahijah the Pelonite; Hezro the Carmelite, Naarai the son of Ezbai; Joel the brother of Nathan, Mibhar the son of Hagri; Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Berothite, the armorbearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah; Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite; Uriah the Hittite, Zabad the son of Ahlai. (34-41)
"The armorbearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah" - Metzudat David explains that this refers back to Naharai the Berothite, who carried the armor and weapons of Joab.
עֲדִינָא בֶן שִׁיזָא הָראוּבֵנִי רֹאשׁ לָראוּבֵנִי וְעָלָיו שְׁלֹשִׁים׃ (מב) - Adina the son of Shiza the Reubenite, a chief of the Reubenites, and thirty under his command. (42)
"And thirty under his command" - this refers to those attached to him and following his lead, who numbered thirty.
חָנָן בֶּן מַעֲכָה וְיוֹשָׁפָט הַמִּתְנִי׃ עֻזִּיָּא הָעַשְׁתְּרָתִי, שָׁמָע וִיעִיאֵל בְּנֵי חוֹתָם הָעֲרֹעֵרִי׃ יְדִיעֲאֵל בֶּן שִׁמְרִי וְיֹחָא אָחִיו הַתִּיצִי׃ אֱלִיאֵל הַמַּחֲוִים וִירִיבַי וְיוֹשַׁוְיָה בְּנֵי אֶלְנָעַם וְיִתְמָה הַמּוֹאָבִי׃ אֱלִיאֵל וְעוֹבֵד וְיַעֲשִׂיאֵל הַמְּצֹבָיָה׃ (מג-מז) - Hanan the son of Maacah, and Joshaphat the Mithnite; Uzzia the Ashterathite, Shama and Jeiel the sons of Hotham the Aroerite; Jediael the son of Shimri, and Joha his brother, the Tizite; Eliel the Mahavite, and Jeribai and Joshaviah, the sons of Elnaam, and Ithmah the Moabite; Eliel, and Obed, and Jaasiel the Mezobaite. (43-47)
In summary: In this part of the chapter, Scripture enumerates the ranks of David's mighty men: Abishai the brother of Joab, chief of the three of the second rank, who also had renown among the first three though he was not counted with them; Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, a valiant man of many deeds, who displayed three feats of valor - the two lion-like men of Moab, the lion in the pit on a snowy day, and the Egyptian man whose spear he snatched from his hand and killed him with it - and who was the most honored among the thirty on account of being head of the Sanhedrin, which is why David appointed him over his bodyguard; and following them, the mighty men of the forces and the list of names through the end of the chapter, some of whom appear with different names from the Book of Shmuel, whether because they had two names or because these were warriors who replaced the earlier ones. And from the verse, "and he snatched the spear from the Egyptian's hand," we learned a great principle in the spiritual work of our generation: to battle precisely with today's tools, with caution and proper safeguards, for with the very tools used to fight against us - with those very tools we can draw people near and return hearts to our Father in Heaven.