📖WEB · 1 Chronicles 18:2
What does 1 Chronicles 18:2 mean?
"He defeated Moab; and the Moabites became servants to David, and brought tribute."
— 1 Chronicles 18:2 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
After this, David defeated the Philistines and subdued them, and took Gath and its towns out of the hand of the Philistines.
He defeated Moab; and the Moabites became servants to David, and brought tribute.
David defeated Hadadezer king of Zobah to Hamath, as he went to establish his dominion by the river Euphrates.
David took from him one thousand chariots, seven thousand horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen; and David hamstrung all the chariot horses, but reserved of them enough for one hundred chariots.
When the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck twenty-two thousand men of the Syrians.
Explanation
First Chronicles 18:2 records a brief but significant moment in the summary of David's military campaigns: David conquered Moab, a nation east of the Dead Sea descended from Lot, and the Moabites were subdued to the point of paying regular tribute — goods, money, or resources given as a sign of submission to a conquering king. In plain terms, this verse tells us that Moab, once independent, now answered to David's authority and financially supported his kingdom.
The book of Chronicles was likely written after the Babylonian exile, probably by Ezra or a scribe within his circle, for the Jewish community that had returned to the land. Their monarchy was gone, their temple destroyed and later rebuilt on a much smaller
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