1 Samuel 30:17

WEB

David struck them from the twilight even to the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped from there, except four hundred young men, who rode on camels and fled.

KJV

And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day: and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, which rode upon camels, and fled.

Commentary

And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day,.... As there are two twilights, the twilight of the morning, and the twilight of the evening; this is differently understood some take it for t he twilight of the morning, and that it was night when David came to them, and let them alone till they were drunk and asleep, and then early in the morning fell upon them, and smote them until the evening; so Josephus (s) relates it; but others take it to be the twilight of the evening, and that he fell upon them that night, and continued the slaughter of them to the evening of the next day, with which agrees the Targum; nay, some take the next day, or the morrow, to be that which followed after the two evenings; so that this slaughter was carried on to the third day: and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men that rode upon camels, and fled; that sort of camels called dromedaries, according to Josephus (t), and which were very swift, and much used by the Arabians, near whom these people dwelt, see Isa 60:6 . (s) Antiqu. l. 6. c. 4. sect. 6. (t) Ibid.