- 11-
then consisting chiefly, if not entirely, of foreign (Philistian) auxiliaries, with the older
(So in 1 Samuel 22:17) and more permanent* name of "runners" (ratsim).
- Kings 14:27; 2 Kings 11:4; 2 Chronicles 30:6. Considerable doubt, however, prevails as
to the literal reading of the "Cherethites and Pelethites." Some regard them as
appellations of Philistian clans; Kimchi even as those of two families in Israel; while
most translate "executioners and couriers." In our view, the "Kari," or "Kari tribe," is an
appellation marking the old name of the corps, due partly to its original composition,
partly, perhaps, also to the circumstances in which it was formed. The correct rendering
of 2 Kings 11:4 would be: "The centurions of the Kari and the Runners."
The account in the Book of Chronicles adds what in itself would seem most likely, that
the military leaders distributed themselves through the country to secure the adhesion and
co-operation of the heads of families and clans, and of the Levites. Manifestly it would be
necessary to enlist the latter, since the central scene of the rising was to be the Temple.
There the confederates met, probably at one of the great festivals, when the youthful
prince was presented to them. As, no doubt, in the first instance the military leaders, so
now the whole assembly bound themselves by a solemn oath to the undertaking, which
primarily had only the proclamation of the new king for its object (comp. 2 Chronicles
23:3).
The differences, and even more the similarity, in the narratives of the event in the Books
of Kings and Chronicles have suggested what to some appear discrepancies of detail. It is
well to know that, even if these were established, they would not in any way invalidate
the narrative itself, since in any case they only concern some of its minor details, not its
substance. The most notable difference is that in the Book of Kings the plot and its
execution seem entirely in the hands of the military; in Chronicles, exclusively in those of
the priests and Levites. But in Chronicles also - and, indeed, there alone - the five
military leaders are named; while, on the other hand, the narrative in the Book of Kings
throughout admits the leadership of the priest Jehoiada. And even a superficial
consideration must convince that both the priests and the military must have been
engaged in the undertaking, and that neither party could have dispensed with the other. A
revolution inaugurated by the high-priest in favor of his nephew, who for six years had
been concealed in the Temple, and which was to be carried out within the precincts of the
Sanctuary itself, could no more have taken place without the co-operation of the
priesthood than a change in the occupancy of the throne could have been brought about
without the support of the military power. And this leaves untouched the substance of the
narrative in the two accounts, even if what we are about to suggest in the sequel should
not seem to some a sufficient explanation of the part assigned respectively to the
priesthood and the military in the two narratives.
Of this, at least, there cannot be any doubt, that the account in the Book of Kings deals
with the operations assigned to the military. Briefly, they may be sketched as follows. As
(^)