Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of 1 Chronicles
Chapter 19: Let the LORD Do That Which Is Good
David seeks to show kindness to Hanun of Ammon, but the young king's suspicious advisers turn the gesture into an insult and provoke a war. As the Ammonites and their hired Syrian allies close in on two fronts, Joab rallies Israel with words that balance human courage and humble trust: 'let us behave ourselves valiantly for our people... and let the LORD do that which is good in his sight.' God gives the victory.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of 1 Chronicles chapter 19. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Hebrew words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
David's Comforters Insulted (1 Chronicles 19:1-6)
David sends kindness to a grieving king, but suspicious counsel turns the gesture into an outrage.
I Will Shew Kindness Unto Hanun
"Now it came to pass after this, that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon died, and his son reigned in his stead. And David said, I will shew kindness unto Hanun the son of Nahash, because his father shewed kindness to me. And David sent messengers to comfort him concerning his father. So the servants of David came into the land of the children of Ammon to Hanun, to comfort him. But the princes of the children of Ammon said to Hanun, Thinkest thou that David doth honour thy father, that he hath sent comforters unto thee? are not his servants come unto thee for to search, and to overthrow, and to spy out the land? Wherefore Hanun took David's servants, and shaved them, and cut off their garments in the midst hard by their buttocks, and sent them away. Then there went certain, and told David how the men were served. And he sent to meet them: for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, Tarry at Jericho until your beards be grown, and then return. And when the children of Ammon saw that they had made themselves odious to David, Hanun and the children of Ammon sent a thousand talents of silver to hire them chariots and horsemen out of Mesopotamia, and out of Syriamaachah, and out of Zobah."
Word Study
"kindness," Hebrew chesed (חֶסֶד), covenant loyalty, faithful lovingkindness. David's motive is pure chesed: "I will shew kindness unto Hanun the son of Nahash, because his father shewed kindness to me." Gratitude for a past kindness moves David to comfort the grieving young king. But Hanun's "princes" poison his mind with suspicion: surely these comforters are spies come "to search, and to overthrow, and to spy out the land." Unable to receive grace at face value, Hanun humiliates David's ambassadors, shaving off their beards (a grave dishonor in that culture) and cutting off their garments to expose them. David's tender care for his shamed men, "Tarry at Jericho until your beards be grown," shows a shepherd's heart even here. Realizing they had "made themselves odious" to David, the Ammonites hire vast Syrian mercenary armies. The whole tragedy springs from a refusal to believe in kindness. Suspicion read hostility into grace, insulted the messengers of peace, and plunged a nation into a needless, ruinous war. It is a sober picture of how a heart closed to grace turns a gift into an offense.
Explanation
When the Ammonite king Nahash died, David, remembering a past kindness Nahash had shown him, sent envoys to comfort his son Hanun in his grief. But Hanun's advisers convinced him that David's messengers were really spies sent to scout out the land for invasion. So Hanun disgraced the envoys, shaving their beards and cutting off their garments, and sent them home humiliated. David, caring for his shamed men, told them to stay at Jericho until their beards grew back. Realizing they had deeply offended David, the Ammonites hired large armies of Syrian mercenaries to fight against Israel. A gesture of pure kindness, twisted by suspicion, had escalated into war.
Gospel Focus
Hanun's tragedy is the tragedy of every heart that cannot believe in grace. David sent comforters in genuine kindness, but suspicion saw only a threat and answered love with insult. So the world often treats the kindness of God: "he came unto his own, and his own received him not" (John 1:11); the Lord of glory came in mercy, and men, misjudging His motives, shamed and crucified Him. The gospel is God's message of comfort and peace, "God sent... his Son into the world... that the world through him might be saved" (John 3:17), yet the suspicious heart recoils from grace, imagining God to be a hard master rather than a loving Father. Beware the counsel that whispers, "Thinkest thou that God means you good?", for it turns the gift of God into an offense and multiplies our own ruin. And note David's tender care for his dishonored servants: God likewise does not despise His people when they are shamed for His sake, but covers them and restores them. Receive the kindness of God with an open heart; do not, like Hanun, answer the messengers of peace with contempt and bring needless war upon your own soul. The King has sent comforters; believe His kindness, and be reconciled.
Joab's Words Before the Battle (1 Chronicles 19:10-15)
Facing enemies on two fronts, Joab rallies Israel to fight bravely and to leave the outcome to God.
Let the LORD Do That Which Is Good in His Sight
"Now when Joab saw that the battle was set against him before and behind, he chose out of all the choice of Israel, and put them in array against the Syrians. And the rest of the people he delivered unto the hand of Abishai his brother, and they set themselves in array against the children of Ammon. And he said, If the Syrians be too strong for me, then thou shalt help me: but if the children of Ammon be too strong for thee, then I will help thee. Be of good courage, and let us behave ourselves valiantly for our people, and for the cities of our God: and let the LORD do that which is good in his sight. So Joab and the people that were with him drew nigh before the Syrians unto the battle; and they fled before him. And when the children of Ammon saw that the Syrians were fled, they likewise fled before Abishai his brother, and entered into the city. Then Joab came to Jerusalem."
Word Study
"behave ourselves valiantly," Hebrew hithchazaq (הִתְחַזַּק), to strengthen oneself, to show oneself strong. Trapped between the Syrians in front and the Ammonites behind, Joab shows both tactical wisdom and spiritual insight. He splits his forces, taking the elite against the Syrians and giving the rest to his brother Abishai against Ammon, with a pledge of mutual aid: "If the Syrians be too strong for me, then thou shalt help me." Then he speaks words that beautifully balance human responsibility and divine sovereignty: "Be of good courage, and let us behave ourselves valiantly (hithchazaq, strengthen ourselves) for our people, and for the cities of our God: and let the LORD do that which is good in his sight." Notice the two halves. First, the call to action: be strong, fight bravely, for a worthy cause, "for our people, and for the cities of our God." Second, the call to surrender: leave the outcome to God, "let the LORD do that which is good in his sight." Joab does not say, "God will surely give us victory," presuming on God; nor does he say, "It is all up to us," trusting the flesh. He commits himself to do his utmost and then rests the result in the good will of God. The battle proves the wisdom of this faith: the Syrians flee, then the Ammonites, and Israel prevails.
Explanation
Joab found himself surrounded, with the Syrians in front and the Ammonites behind. He wisely divided his army, leading the best troops himself against the Syrians and giving the rest to his brother Abishai to face the Ammonites, agreeing that each would come to the other's aid if needed. Then he encouraged the men with memorable words: be courageous, fight valiantly for their people and the cities of their God, and leave the outcome in God's hands to do as He saw fit. When Joab advanced, the Syrians fled before him, and seeing this, the Ammonites also fled. The strategy and the faith behind it were vindicated in a clear victory, and Joab returned to Jerusalem.
Gospel Focus
Joab's words are a model for the life of faith: "let us behave ourselves valiantly... and let the LORD do that which is good in his sight." Here is the perfect balance between diligent effort and humble trust. We are not to sit idle and call it faith, nor to strive in the flesh as if everything depended on us; we are to do our utmost for a worthy cause, "for our people, and for the cities of our God," and then to rest the outcome wholly in God's good will. This is the spirit of "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you" (Philippians 2:12-13), and of Jesus in Gethsemane, "not my will, but thine, be done" (Luke 22:42). To say "let the LORD do that which is good in his sight" is the language of surrendered faith that trusts God's goodness even before the result is known. Whatever your battle, be of good courage and act faithfully, then commit the outcome to the God who does all things well. And take heart: we fight not for uncertain victory but "for the cities of our God," the cause of His kingdom, and in Christ the decisive battle is already won. Do your part valiantly, and leave the rest, with confidence, to the good and sovereign will of God.
Chapter in Review
First Chronicles 19 tells how a gesture of kindness became a war. David, out of gratitude, sent comforters to the grieving Ammonite king Hanun, but suspicious advisers convinced Hanun the envoys were spies, and he humiliated them, shaving their beards and exposing them. Realizing they had made themselves odious to David, the Ammonites hired vast Syrian armies. In the ensuing battle, Joab, surrounded on two fronts, wisely divided his forces and rallied Israel with words that balance courage and trust: "let us behave ourselves valiantly for our people, and for the cities of our God: and let the LORD do that which is good in his sight." God gave the victory; the Syrians and then the Ammonites fled. The chapter warns against the suspicion that turns grace into offense, as the world rejected the kindness of God, and it teaches the faith that does its utmost while leaving the outcome to the good and sovereign will of God, a faith perfected in Christ.
Key Takeaways
- Suspicion turns grace into offense. Hanun misjudged David's kindness, as the world misjudges the kindness of God.
- God cares for the shamed. David tenderly restored his dishonored servants; God does not despise His people in their shame.
- Balance courage and trust. "Behave ourselves valiantly... and let the LORD do that which is good"; work diligently and trust God fully.
- Fight for a worthy cause. Israel fought "for the cities of our God"; our labor is for the kingdom of God.
- Surrender the outcome to God's good will. "Let the LORD do that which is good in his sight" is the language of Gethsemane faith.
Questions for Reflection
- Do you receive the kindness of God with an open heart, or answer it with suspicion like Hanun?
- When you are shamed for doing right, do you trust God to restore you as David restored his servants?
- Are you living the balance of Joab's faith, working valiantly while trusting God with the results?
- For what cause are you spending your strength, and is it "for the cities of our God"?
- Can you say, before the outcome is known, "let the LORD do that which is good in his sight"?
References
- Scripture: 1 Chronicles 19:1-19, King James Version (commentary focuses on verses 1-6 and 10-15).
- Cross-references: John 1:11; 3:17; Luke 22:42; Philippians 2:12-13.
- Hebrew word meanings: standard lexical sources (Strong's, BDB) for chesed and hithchazaq; background on the Ammonite-Syrian war and the shaming of David's envoys.