And David numbered the people that were with him, and set captains of thousands and captains of hundreds over them.
David numbered the people that were with him. The hardy mountaineers of Gilead came in great numbers at the call of their chieftains; so that, although without money to pay any troops, David soon found himself at the head of a considerable army. The number of his soldiers is not stated in the sacred history. Josephus says they amounted to about 4,000 ('Antiquities,' b. 7:, ch. 10:, sec. 1). A pitched battle was now inevitable. But so much depending on the life of the king, he was not allowed to take the field in person, and therefore divided his forces into three detachments under Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, the commander of the foreign guards.