(Camp)

Kinds used by David’s men:

…they were armed with bows and were able to shoot arrows or to sling stones right-hand or left-handed; they were kinsmen of Saul from the tribe of Benjamin – – 1 Chronicles 12:2

Archers and slingers had special weapons. The sling was unassuming in appearance but deadly in battle. A shallow leather pouch with a cord of leather or goat’s hair attached to each side, the sling was whirled around the head. When one side was released, it sent a stone to its target. The bow and arrow had been in use for thousands of years. Arrowheads were made of stone, wood, or bone because the Philistines still had a monopoly on metalworking (1 Samuel 13:19, 20). Arrow shifts were made of reed or wood, and bowstrings were made of animal gut.

Some Gadites defected to David at his stronghold in the desert. They were brave warriors, ready for battle and able to handle the shield and spear. Their faces were the faces of lions, and they were as swift as gazelles in the mountains. – – 1 Chronicles 12:8

While the men of Benjamin were expert archers and slingers, the warriors of Gad were experts with the shield and spear. Israelite spears had wood shafts and spearheads of bone or stone and were often thrown through the air toward their mark. Philistine spears had bronze shafts and iron spearheads, and their shields were made of wood and overlaid with leather. Large shields were often carried by an armour-bearer, whose main task was to protect the warrior.

All the warriors mentioned here were from the tribe of Benjamin. Even members of Saul’s own tribe (1 Samuel 9:1, 2) were deserting him to help David become king over all Israel. It was clear to them that God had chosen David to be Israel’s next leader.