2 Samuel 15:18

Contemporary English Version

Then David stood there and watched while his regular troops and his bodyguards marched past. The last group was the six hundred soldiers who had followed him from Gath. Their commander was Ittai.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
while all his servants marched past him. Then all the Cherethites, the Pelethites, and the people of Gath—six hundred men who came with him from there—marched past the king.

Hebrew Names Version
All his servants passed on beside him; and all the Kereti, and all the Peleti, and all the Gitti, six hundred men who came after him from Gat, passed on before the king.

King James Version
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.

Lexham English Bible
All his servants were passing by him: all of the Kerethites and all of the Pelethites and all of the Gittites—six hundred men who had followed him from Gath—passing before the king.

English Standard Version
And all his servants passed by him, and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the six hundred Gittites who had followed him from Gath, passed on before the king.

New Century Version
All the king's servants passed by him—the Kerethites and Pelethites, all those from Gath, and the six hundred men who had followed him.

New English Translation
All his servants were leaving with him, along with all the Kerethites, all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites—some six hundred men who had come on foot from Gath. They were leaving with the king.

Amplified Bible
All of David's servants passed on beside him, and all the Cherethites, Pelethites and the Gittites, six hundred men who had come with him from Gath, passed on before the king.

New American Standard Bible
Now all of his servants passed by beside him, and all the Cherethites, all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who had come with him from Gath, passed by before the king.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And all his seruants went about him, & all the Cherethites and all the Pelethites & all the Gittites, euen sixe hudreth men which were come after him from Gath, went before the King.

Legacy Standard Bible
Now all his servants passed on beside him, all the Cherethites, all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who had come with him from Gath, passed on before the king.

Complete Jewish Bible
for all his servants to pass by him in review; all the K'reti and P'leti and all the Gittim (600 men who had accompanied him from Gat) passed in review before the king.

Darby Translation
And all his servants passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men that came after him from Gath, passed over before the king.

Easy-to-Read Version
All the king's officers passed by him. And all the Kerethites, all the Pelethites, and the Gittites (600 men from Gath) passed by the king.

George Lamsa Translation
And all his servants passed on beside him; and all his noblemen and all his army and all the Gittites who had followed him from Gath passed on before the king.

Good News Translation
All his officials stood next to him as the royal bodyguards passed by in front of him. The six hundred soldiers who had followed him from Gath also passed by,

Literal Translation
And all his servants were passing on by his side, and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who came at his feet from Gath. These were passing on before the king.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and all his seruauntes wente by him, and all the Chrethians and Plethians, and all the Gethites (euen sixe hundreth men) which were come on fote from Gath, wente before the kynge.

American Standard Version
And all his servants passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men that came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.

Bible in Basic English
And all the people went on by his side; and all the Cherethites and all the Pelethites and all the men of Ittai of Gath, six hundred men who came after him from Gath, went on before the king.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And al his seruauntes went about him: and all the Cerethites, and all the Phelethites, and all the Gethites, euen sixe hundred men whiche were come after him from Geth, went before the king.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And all his servants passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men that came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.

King James Version (1611)
And all his seruants passed on beside him: and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, sixe hundred men, which came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And all his servants passed on by his side, and every Chelethite, and every Phelethite, and they stood by the olive tree in the wilderness: and all the people marched near him, and all his court, and all the men of might, and all the men of war, six hundred: and they were present at his side: and every Chelethite, and every Phelethite, and all the six hundred Gittites that came on foot out of Geth, and they went on before the king.

English Revised Version
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.

Berean Standard Bible
and all his servants marched past him-all the Cherethites and Pelethites, and six hundred Gittites who had followed him from Gath.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And alle hise seruauntis yeden bisidis him, and the legiouns of Cerethi and of Ferethi, and alle men of Geth `strong fiyters, sixe hundrid men, that sueden him fro Geth, yeden on foote bifor the kyng.

Young's Literal Translation
And all his servants are passing on at his side, and all the Cherethite, and all the Pelethite, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who came at his feet from Gath, are passing on at the front of the king.

Update Bible Version
And all his slaves passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men that came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.

Webster's Bible Translation
And all his servants passed on by his side; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.

World English Bible
All his servants passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.

New King James Version
Then all his servants passed before him; and all the Cherethites, all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who had followed him from Gath, passed before the king.

New Living Translation
to let all the king's men move past to lead the way. There were 600 men from Gath who had come with David, along with the king's bodyguard.

New Life Bible
All his servants passed by him, and all the Cherethites, Pelethites, Gittites, and 600 men who had come with him from Gath. They all passed by the king.

New Revised Standard
All his officials passed by him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the six hundred Gittites who had followed him from Gath, passed on before the king.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And, all his servants, were passing on beside him, and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, - and, all the Gittites - six hundred men, who had accompanied him from Gath, - were passing on before the king.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And all his servants walked by him, and the bands of the Cerethi, and the Phelethi, and all the Gethites, valiant warriors, six hundred men who had followed him from Geth on foot, went before the king.

Revised Standard Version
And all his servants passed by him; and all the Cher'ethites, and all the Pel'ethites, and all the six hundred Gittites who had followed him from Gath, passed on before the king.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Now all his servants passed on beside him, all the Cherethites, all the Pelethites and all the Gittites, six hundred men who had come with him from Gath, passed on before the king.

Contextual Overview

¹³ A messenger came and told David, "Everyone in Israel is on Absalom's side!" ¹⁴ David's officials were in Jerusalem with him, and he told them, "Let's get out of here! We'll have to leave soon, or none of us will escape from Absalom. Hurry! If he moves fast, he could catch us while we're still here. Then he will kill us and everyone else in the city." ¹⁵ The officials said, "Your Majesty, we'll do whatever you say." ¹⁶David left behind ten of his wives to take care of the palace, but the rest of his family and his officials and soldiers went with him. They stopped at the last house at the edge of the city. ¹⁸ Then David stood there and watched while his regular troops and his bodyguards marched past. The last group was the six hundred soldiers who had followed him from Gath. Their commander was Ittai. ¹⁹ David spoke to Ittai and said, "You're a foreigner from the town of Gath. You don't have to leave with us. Go back and join the new king! ²⁰ You haven't been with me very long, so why should you have to follow me, when I don't even know where I'm going? Take your soldiers and go back. I pray that the Lord will be kind and faithful to you." ²¹ Ittai answered, "Your Majesty, just as surely as you and the Lord live, I will go where you go, no matter if it costs me my life." ²² "Then come on!" David said. So Ittai and all his men and their families walked on past David. ²³ The people of Jerusalem were crying and moaning as David and everyone with him passed by. He led them across Kidron Valley and along the road toward the desert.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Cherethites: 2 Samuel 8:18, 2 Samuel 20:7, 2 Samuel 20:23, 1 Samuel 30:14, 1 Kings 1:38, 1 Chronicles 18:17

Gittites: 2 Samuel 15:19-22, 2 Samuel 6:10, 2 Samuel 18:2, 1 Samuel 27:3

Reciprocal: 2 Samuel 17:8 - mighty men Ezekiel 25:16 - Cherethims

Cross-References

Genesis 2:14
The Tigris River that flows east of Assyria is the third, and the fourth is the Euphrates River.

Genesis 12:7
but the Lord appeared to Abram and promised, "I will give this land to your family forever." Abram then built an altar there for the Lord .

Genesis 13:15
I will give you and your family all the land you can see. It will be theirs forever!

Genesis 15:1
Later the Lord spoke to Abram in a vision, "Abram, don't be afraid! I will protect you and reward you greatly."

Genesis 15:2
But Abram answered, " Lord All-Powerful, you have given me everything I could ask for, except children. And when I die, Eliezer of Damascus will get all I own.

Genesis 15:3
You have not given me any children, and this servant of mine will inherit everything."

Genesis 15:4
The Lord replied, "No, he won't! You will have a son of your own, and everything you have will be his."

Genesis 15:7
The Lord said to Abram, "I brought you here from Ur in Chaldea, and I gave you this land."

Genesis 15:8
Abram asked, " Lord God, how can I know the land will be mine?"

Genesis 15:13
Then the Lord said: Abram, you will live to an old age and die in peace. But I solemnly promise that your descendants will live as foreigners in a land that doesn't belong to them. They will be forced into slavery and abused for four hundred years. But I will terribly punish the nation that enslaves them, and they will leave with many possessions.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And all his servants passed on beside him,.... Or at his hand or side; his household servants walking perhaps some on one side of him, and some on the other, see 2 Samuel 16:6;

and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites; which were his bodyguards, see 2 Samuel 8:18;

and all the Gittites, six hundred men which came after him from Gath; which either came with him from Gath, when he conquered that city, and took it out of the hands of the Philistines, 2 Samuel 8:1; compared with

1 Chronicles 18:1; and who might become proselytes, and be incorporated into the commonwealth of Israel, and into David's army, a troop of men, of which Ittai, after mentioned, was captain, 2 Samuel 15:22; or else these were Israelites, so called, because with David they sojourned in Gath a while, when he fled from Saul; and so Josephus l says, they were companions of him in his first flight, when Saul was living; and this number is just the number of the men that were with him at Gath, 1 Samuel 27:2; and it may be David kept a troop of men always of the same number, to whom he gave this name in memory of them, having been a set of trusty and faithful men to him: these, with the Cherethites and Pelethites,

passed on before the king: in this form and manner David and his men marched in their flight.

l Ut supra, (Antiqu. l. 7. c. 9.) sect. 2.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Passed on - Rather, “crossed” the Brook Kidron, as in 2 Samuel 15:22-23.

Gittites - During David’s residence in the country of the Philistines he attached such a band to himself; and after the settlement of his kingdom, and the subjugation of the Philistines, the band received recruits from Gath, perhaps with the king of Gath’s consent. They were now under the command of Ittai the Gittite, a foreigner 2 Samuel 15:19, and “his brethren” 2 Samuel 15:20. The number 600 probably indicates that this band or regiment of Gittites had its origin in David’s band of 600 1 Samuel 23:13; 1 Samuel 27:2. They were at first, it is likely, all Israelites, then Gittites mixed with Israelites, and at last all Gittites.