1 Chronicles 20

1 At the time of the return of the year, at the time when kings go out, Joab led out the army and wasted the country of the children of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem. Joab struck Rabbah, and overthrew it.

2 David took the crown of their king from off his head, and found it to weigh a talent of gold, and there were precious stones in it. It was set on David’s head, and he brought very much plunder out of the city.

3 He brought out the people who were in it, and had them cut with saws, with iron picks, and with axes. David did so to all the cities of the children of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

4 After this, war arose at Gezer with the Philistines. Then Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Sippai, of the sons of the giant; and they were subdued.

5 Again there was war with the Philistines; and Elhanan the son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.

6 There was again war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had twenty-four fingers and toes, six on each hand and six on each foot; and he also was born to the giant.

7 When he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea, David’s brother, killed him.

8 These were born to the giant in Gath; and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.

Around 1 Chronicles 20

Context

Context for this book is being written. A note appears here only once it names its sources.

AI explanation

1 Chronicles 20 · Written by an AI model · Not reviewed by a theological reader

This explanation was written by an AI model to help you get started. It names no sources and can contain mistakes. Scripture comes first, and context with sources is shown separately on this page.

What this chapter says

The chapter begins with a phrase that carries its own weight: at the time when kings go out to war, Joab led the army against Ammon and besieged Rabbah, but David stayed at Jerusalem. Joab overthrows the city. David takes the crown from the king's head, finds it weighs a talent of gold, and has it set on his own. The text then says he brought out the people and put them to work or to death with saws, picks and axes. That sentence is hard to read, and readers differ on exactly what it describes. The rest of the chapter turns to the giants of Gath. Sibbecai kills Sippai. Elhanan kills the brother of Goliath, whose spear shaft was like a weaver's beam. A man with twenty-four fingers and toes defies Israel and is killed by David's nephew Jonathan.

Background

The first verse hints at the story Chronicles leaves out: in 2 Samuel 11 and 12, David stays at home while Joab fights, and that is when David wrongs Uriah and Bathsheba. Chronicles does not tell it. The Goliath verse differs in wording from 2 Samuel 21, and Christians have explained that in different ways. Many scholars think the book was written after the exile for a community looking for its roots.

About this explanation

Written by Claude Sonnet 5.5, an AI model, on 1 November 2026. It draws on the WEB text and general knowledge and was not checked against sources by a person. Every quotation from Scripture is checked automatically against the WEB text.

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World English Bible. Public-domain source and edition notes