Commentary - 1 Chronicles 11:22-25

Bird's-eye view

This brief section in the Chronicler's account of David's mighty men provides a snapshot of the kind of valor that characterized the men who surrounded the king. This is not just a dusty military roster; it is a celebration of godly courage in action. The focus here is on Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, a man whose exploits were so remarkable they became legendary. His deeds are not just random acts of violence but are presented as emblematic of a certain kind of ferocious loyalty and competence that is pleasing to God. He takes on Moabite champions, a lion in a pit on a snowy day, and an Egyptian giant, and in each case, he prevails through a combination of raw strength and shrewd tactics. This passage serves to show the quality of the men God gathered to David, establishing his kingdom through strength and might. For the Christian, these accounts are more than just historical curiosities; they are rugged, earthy pictures of the kind of spiritual audacity required in the service of King Jesus, our greater David.

Benaiah's resume is a portrait of what we might call sanctified ferocity. He is a doer of great deeds, a man who does not shrink from impossible odds. The specificity of his actions, particularly killing a lion in a pit on a snowy day, is designed to stick in the memory. It paints a picture of a man who is not deterred by adverse conditions or formidable foes. His story is a type, a foreshadowing of the kind of militant faith that the followers of Christ are called to. We fight a greater lion in a much deeper pit, and we must do so with the same kind of unflinching, God-dependent courage that Benaiah displayed.

Outline

Context In 1 Chronicles

First Chronicles was written after the Babylonian exile, with the purpose of reminding the returned remnant of their identity and heritage in God's covenant plan. The author heavily emphasizes the Davidic monarchy and the Jerusalem temple as the two central pillars of Israel's life. After establishing the genealogies from Adam to David in the opening chapters, the Chronicler moves to the establishment of David's kingdom. Chapter 11 begins with all Israel coming to Hebron to anoint David as king, fulfilling the word of the Lord through Samuel. The capture of Jerusalem follows, and then the text immediately transitions to this list of David's "mighty men." The placement is significant. The strength of David's kingdom is not presented as a merely political or administrative achievement; it is established through the strength and loyalty of these warriors. Men like Benaiah are the instruments God used to secure the throne for His anointed, from which the Messiah would eventually come. This catalog of heroes was meant to inspire the post-exilic community to a similar courage and loyalty to God's house and God's king.

Key Issues

A Snowy Day in a Pit

The Bible is a thoroughly earthy book. It is not a collection of abstract philosophical principles. It is a story, full of blood and dirt and sweat and snow. When we read about Benaiah, we are not just given a summary of his character; we are given these unforgettable, granular details. He killed two of Moab's best. Fine. He killed a giant. Also good. But the detail that snags the imagination is that he went down into a pit, on a snowy day, and killed a lion. Why include these details? Because they tell you everything you need to know about the man's character.

The pit made it a fair fight, or perhaps an unfair fight in the lion's favor. There was no room to maneuver, no easy escape. The snow meant it was slippery, cold, and miserable. Most sensible men would be indoors by the fire. But Benaiah sees a threat, a lion, and he does not make excuses or wait for better conditions. He goes down into the pit. This is a picture of what true courage looks like. It is not the absence of fear or difficulty; it is the willingness to engage the enemy on the most difficult ground, under the worst conditions, because it is the right thing to do. This is the kind of man David wanted, and it is the kind of man Christ builds. The Christian life is not a stroll in a sunny meadow; it is often a fight in a pit on a snowy day.

Verse by Verse Commentary

22 Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, mighty in deeds, struck down the two sons of Ariel of Moab. He also went down and struck down a lion in the midst of a pit on a snowy day.

We begin with Benaiah's lineage. He comes from good stock, the son of a valiant man. Courage is often a generational inheritance, passed down from father to son. He was from Kabzeel, a town in the south of Judah, and he was known for being mighty in deeds. This is a man of action, not empty words. His resume is then presented. First, he struck down the "two sons of Ariel of Moab." The word Ariel can mean "lion of God," suggesting these were two champion warriors, famous and feared. Benaiah took on Moab's best and defeated them. Then comes the most famous exploit. He went down into a pit after a lion. And not just any day, but a snowy day. This is not a man who makes excuses. The conditions are terrible, the foe is ferocious, the location is claustrophobic. Benaiah engages anyway. This is a portrait of raw, masculine courage. He sees a problem, and he goes straight at it, regardless of the circumstances.

23 He had also struck down an Egyptian, an impressive man, five cubits tall. Now in the Egyptian’s hand was a spear like a weaver’s beam, but he went down to him with a club and snatched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear.

As if the lion were not enough, we now have the giant. This Egyptian was five cubits tall, which is about seven and a half feet. He was an impressive, intimidating figure. And he was well-armed. His spear was "like a weaver's beam," the same description used for Goliath's spear. This is a formidable opponent by any standard. But notice Benaiah's approach. He goes down to him with a simple club. He is outmatched in height, reach, and weaponry. But he is not outmatched in courage or cunning. He uses his inferior weapon to get inside the giant's guard, disarm him, and then, in a beautiful stroke of poetic justice, he kills the man with his own spear. This is not just brute force; it is tactical brilliance born of courage. He turned the enemy's greatest strength into the instrument of his own demise. This is a profound picture of how God's people are to fight. We take the weapons the world trusts in, whether intellectual or cultural, and we turn them against the enemies of God.

24 These things Benaiah the son of Jehoiada did, and had a name as well as the three mighty men.

Benaiah's deeds earned him a reputation. He gained a name, renown, fame. His courage was not done in a corner; it was recognized and celebrated. He was famous right alongside "the three," who were David's most elite warriors. In the kingdom of God, true greatness is not found in self-promotion but in faithful, courageous action that brings glory to the king. When a man serves his king with this kind of valor, his name becomes honored in the kingdom. God is not stingy with His commendations. He loves to honor those who honor Him with their strength and courage.

25 Behold, he was honored among the thirty, but he did not attain to the three. And David appointed him over his guard.

Here we see the structure of David's military order. There were the Three, the Thirty, and then men like Benaiah who were honored among the Thirty but not quite at the level of the top Three. This is not a slight. It shows a kingdom with order and rank, where men are recognized according to their deeds. Benaiah's valor was rewarded with a position of immense trust. David made him the commander of his personal guard. The king entrusted his very life to this man who had proven he would not flinch in the face of lions or giants. This is the kind of man you want watching your back. His loyalty and courage were not just for the battlefield but for the daily, crucial task of protecting the Lord's anointed. Faithfulness in the great tests prepares a man for positions of great trust.

Application

We are not all called to go into a literal pit and fight a literal lion. But every Christian man is called to the Benaiah spirit. We live in a world full of roaring lions and intimidating giants who mock the people of God. The spirit of our age is a seven-foot Egyptian with a spear like a weaver's beam, and it dares us to come out and fight. We are tempted to stay inside where it is warm, to complain about the snow, to point out the size of the enemy's spear.

Benaiah teaches us to pick up our club and go down to meet the enemy. Our club may be the simple truth of the gospel, a willingness to speak when others are silent, or the courage to build a Christian household in a pagan world. Like Benaiah, we must be men of deeds, not just opinions. We must be willing to engage the cultural lions in the pit, even when the conditions are against us. We must have the cunning to snatch the enemy's spear, to use their own philosophies and arguments against them, showing how they collapse under their own weight. And we do all this in service to our King, the greater David, the Lord Jesus.

The reward for this kind of faithfulness is honor in His kingdom and a position of trust. Christ is looking for men He can appoint over His guard, men He can trust with the protection and advancement of His church. The path to that trust is the path of Benaiah: a rugged, unflinching, joyful courage that sees the lion, sees the snow, and goes down into the pit anyway, for the glory of the King.