When I was a kid, we would often play games where we would have to pick teams. We would elect two captains who would begin to take turns picking who they wanted on their team. The picking was often strategic. For example, the captain not only wanted good players, he also wanted team members who would be loyal to the team and would follow his leadership. Who would you want on your side?
When Saul was king of Israel and after he had rebelled, God told Samuel to anoint David to be king. Saul, being who he was, continued in his rebellion and tried on a number of occasions to kill David. David stays on the run during this time and gathers an army of followers. These men help him evade capture and also fight the enemies of Israel. The ultimate goal, however, was to turn the kingdom over to David as God desired.
1 Chronicles 12:23 And these are the numbers of the bands that were ready armed to the war, and came to David to Hebron, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of the LORD. Continue reading