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Sunday, October 11 2009
King David's "mighty men" were a fiercely-loyal elite fighting unit of thirty men within the king's army. They also served as the king's bodyguard. Among "the thirty" were "the three."
"23:8 These be the names of the mighty men whom David had:The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite: he lift up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time.
23:9 And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away: 23:10 He arose, and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clave unto the sword: and the LORD wrought a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to spoil.
23:11 And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a piece of ground full of lentiles: and the people fled from the Philistines. 23:12 But he stood in the midst of the ground, and defended it, and slew the Philistines: and the LORD wrought a great victory." (2 Samuel 23:8-12 KJV)
"And David set him over his guard"
The thirty were not just the king's security force in the palace. They also served to protect David when he insisted on leading his army into battle.
"23:13 And three of the thirty chief went down, and came to David in the harvest time unto the cave of Adullam: and the troop of the Philistines pitched in the valley of Rephaim. 23:14 And David was then in an hold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Bethlehem.23:15 And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate! 23:16 And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the LORD. 23:17 And he said, Be it far from me, O LORD, that I should do this: is not this the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives? therefore he would not drink it.
These things did these three mighty men." (2 Samuel 23:13-17 KJV)
The thirty were not just men of blood. They fought in an "honourable" manner against formidable enemy military forces in open battle.
"23:18 And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief among three. And he lifted up his spear against three hundred, and slew them, and had the name among three. 23:19 Was he not most honourable of three? therefore he was their captain: howbeit he attained not unto the first three.23:20 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: 23:21 And he slew an Egyptian, a goodly man: and the Egyptian had a spear in his hand; but 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. 23:22 These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and had the name among three mighty men. 23:23 He was more honourable than the thirty, but he attained not to the first three. And David set him over his guard." (2 Samuel 23:18-23 KJV)
Fact Finder: (a) How were (and are still to this day) kings elected? (b) Who elected King David?
(a) See Royal Democracy
(b) 1 Samuel 16:1 and see Israelite Monarchy - The Origin and The Civil War
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This Day In History, October 11
1521: Britain's King Henry VIII was given the title "Defender of The Faith" by Pope Leo X. Just over 12 years later, Henry broke away from Rome and established the Church of England with the reigning monarch designated as head of the church.
1727: King George II of England was crowned.
1737: An earthquake killed 300,000 in Calcutta India.
1809: Meriwether Lewis died at age 35. He and William Clark conducted the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1803-1806 which explored a large area of western North America.
1811: The first steam-powered ferry went into service.
1887: The first working mechanical adding machine was patented.
1911: Nationalist Chinese overthrew the Chinese monarchy on mainland China.
1915: During the First World War, a British hospital nurse, Edith Cavell, was executed in Belgium by German troops for her allegedly assisting the escape of allied prisoners. Her killing resulted in widespread international outrage.
1962: Pope John XXIII opened the Second Vatican Council in Rome with a theme of Christian unity. It was the largest Roman Catholic council ever held, and was attended by delegates from a number of Protestant denominations.
1968: Apollo 7 made a 163-orbit flight around the earth. It was the first 3-man mission (Schirra, Cunningham and Eisele) ever launched by the U.S. Altogether there were 12 Apollo missions: Apollo 1 ended in an accident that killed 3 astronauts (Grissom, White and Chaffee) on the launch pad during a practice session on January 27 1967. Apollo 7, 8, 9 and 10 were preparations for the moon landings. Apollo 11, 12, 14, 15, 16 and 17 all landed. Apollo 13 experienced technical problems on route to the moon that caused the landing to be aborted, and nearly resulted in the loss of the crew. To date, 12 men have walked on the moon.
1976: The so-called "Gang of Four," Chairman Mao Tse-tung's widow and three associates are arrested in Peking, setting in motion an extended period of turmoil in the Chinese Communist Party.
