Favor · the best way to learn the Bible
1 Chronicles 12 Bible study: We are yours, David
1 Chronicles 12 is a chapter about help: the Hebrew verb comes seven times, and at its centre the Spirit comes on Amasai to say, "Peace, peace be to you, and peace be to your helpers; for your God helps you" (12:18). The men who came to a fugitive became "a great army, like God’s army" (12:22), words the WEB uses only once more, for what Jacob saw (Genesis 32:2).
Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the words behind the words, what most readers miss, and how it all leads to Jesus.
First week free, then $10 a month per person
“Then the Spirit came on Amasai, who was chief of the thirty, and he said, “We are yours, David, and on your side, you son of Jesse. Peace, peace be to you, and peace be to your helpers; for your God helps you.” Then David received them and made them captains of the band.”
Try it · Did you catch it?
“1 Chronicles 12 says the Benjamite archers who came to David at Ziklag were Saul's relatives.”
Is that in 1 Chronicles 12, or not? Make your call.
What's really going on
A chapter about help
The chapter opens with the men who came to David "while he was a fugitive from Saul the son of Kish", and it calls them "his helpers in war" (12:1). From there one Hebrew verb, azar, help, runs through it (tap help). David asks the men from Benjamin and Judah whether they have come "to help me" (12:17). 12:19 says "they didn’t help them", and "They helped David against the band of raiders" (12:21). "For from day to day men came to David to help him, until there was a great army, like God’s army" (12:22). At the centre, the Spirit gives the reason in Amasai's words: "peace be to your helpers; for your God helps you" (12:18). The verb comes seven times in this chapter, more than in all the rest of 1 Chronicles (5:20, 15:26, 18:5, 22:17).
Where it leads to Jesus
Reading the time, and Jesus' own words
1 Chronicles 12:32leads toLuke 12:56
Of Issachar came "men who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do" (12:32), among those who came "to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the LORD’s word" (12:23). Jesus said to the multitudes, "You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky, but how is it that you don’t interpret this time?" (Luke 12:56), and, "Why don’t you judge for yourselves what is right?" (Luke 12:57). Luke doesn't cite 1 Chronicles 12, so setting the two side by side is a reading. It rests on a shared concern, understanding the time and knowing what to do, not only on the English word time. Some hear in Issachar's men, who came to make David king, what Jesus asked the crowds to do with the time he called "this time". Others read 12:32 as a note about one tribe's leaders, and Luke 12:56 within Jesus' warnings in Luke 12, without looking from one to the other.
Honest questions
Questions people ask about 1 Chronicles 12
That was a taste
The rest of 1 Chronicles 12 is waiting in Favor
- David's test, and the Spirit's answer
- From a fugitive to a king, by the LORD's word
- One heart at Hebron, and three days of joy
- Sons of the right hand, with both hands
- Men who fell to David
- The same days in 1 Samuel
- 19 questions as you read
- 13 more Hebrew words
- A short check at the end
- Your notes, saved as you go
Favor reads the Bible in order, so you'll reach 1 Chronicles 12 with everything before it in view. First week free, then $10 a month per person.
The Hebrew word behind it
עָזַרazarsay a-ZAR
Brown-Driver-Briggs: "help, succour". Strong's: "to surround, i.e. protect or aid". It comes seven times in this chapter: "his helpers in war" (12:1), "to help me" (12:17), "peace be to your helpers; for your God helps you" (12:18), "they didn’t help them" (12:19), "They helped David" (12:21) and "to help him" (12:22). 1 Chronicles uses the verb eleven times, and seven of them are here. In 12:18 the same verb names both the men and God: they are David's helpers, and God helps him. Its first use in the Hebrew Bible is Jacob's blessing of Joseph: "by the God of your father, who will help you" (Genesis 49:25).
For your group
1 Chronicles 12 Bible study questions
- 1David met new arrivals with a question: "If you have come peaceably to me to help me, my heart will be united with you" (12:17). When have you had to decide whether to trust someone new? What helped you decide?
- 2"We are yours, David, and on your side" (12:18). Who in your life needs to hear from someone that they are on their side? What would it take for you to say it to them this week?
- 3Issachar's men had "understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do" (12:32). Where do you most need to know what to do right now, and who or what helps you see it clearly?
Leading a group? In Favor, everyone reads 1 Chronicles 12 during the week and answers these questions privately. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together, and you can print the week's sheet.
Start a Bible studyThe best way to learn the Bible
Favor opens up every chapter as you read.
Favor is a Bible study app for your phone or computer. It takes you through the Bible one chapter at a time, a few minutes a day, and shows you what's really there: the words behind the words, the moments most people miss, and how the whole story fits together. For you. For everyone.
Every chapter explains itself
As you read, short notes open up what's really going on, the details most readers walk past, and the honest questions people ask.
The Hebrew and Greek behind it
Tap a highlighted word to see the original, how to say it, and what it means, checked against the original-language texts.
Every page leads to Jesus
Watch promises made in Genesis kept in Jesus. Each line lights up on your map as you read.
Better together
Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together.
- 1
Start your free week
Sign up in a minute with your email.
- 2
Read a few minutes a day
Each chapter opens itself up as you go. Tap what you're curious about.
- 3
Bring your people, if you like
Send one link. Everyone reads the same chapter, then meets to talk.
First week free, then $10 a month per person
Questions
What is Favor?
Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the Hebrew and Greek behind the words, the details most readers miss, and how each part of the Bible leads to Jesus. Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church.
How much does it cost?
Your first week is free. After that it's $10 a month per person, the same for everyone, including groups and churches. There are no tiers and nothing extra to unlock.
Can I read 1 Chronicles 12 straight away?
Favor takes the Bible as one story, in order, so you'll reach 1 Chronicles 12 with everything that leads up to it in view. Start from Genesis, or meet Jesus first in the Gospels. You can read the text of any chapter in Favor's Look up whenever you like.
Do I need a group?
No. Many people read on their own. If you'd like to read with others, start a Bible study and share one link. Everyone's answers stay private until you meet.
I've never really read the Bible. Is this for me?
Yes. Favor starts where you are and explains as it goes. The questions along the way aren't marked right or wrong: you answer, then see what the text shows.
Which Bible does Favor use?
The World English Bible, a modern, readable translation in the public domain. God's name appears as "the LORD", as in most English Bibles.
Is Favor tied to a church?
No. Favor is non-denominational. Where Christians read a passage differently, it shows the main views side by side and doesn't pick one.
Start with 1 Chronicles 12
The best way to learn the Bible. For you. For everyone.
There's a seat for you at the table.
Start your free weekFirst week free, then $10 a month per person · Log in
Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Hebrew and Greek words are checked against the original-language texts and public-domain lexicons. What we believe · Favor home