Allies from Ziklag and the Gathering at Hebron

At Ziklag come Benjaminites, "Saul's brethren," who could "use both the right hand and the left in hurling stones and shooting arrows." Gadites cross the Jordan in flood, "whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as the roes upon the mountains."

"Then the spirit came upon Amasai… Thine are we, David, and on thy side, thou son of Jesse: peace, peace be unto thee, and peace be to thine helpers; for thy God helpeth thee." Men of Manasseh join as he goes with the Philistines against Saul.

At Hebron the tribes come "with a perfect heart": Judah 6,800; Simeon 7,100; Levi 4,600; Zebulun 50,000; Naphtali 38,000; and others. Issachar's men "had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do." "There was joy in Israel."

Numbers

The total of the tribal contingents is very large, as in many lists in Chronicles and Numbers. Some scholars read 'eleph ("thousand") as a military unit or clan, which would make the numbers much smaller; others take them as idealized. The question is the same as for Numbers 1.

Saul's own tribe

Chronicles stresses that Benjaminites, Saul's kin, joined David early, which supports its picture of all Israel choosing David.