2 Samuel 8:3

“And David also smote Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, etc.] Called sometimes Aramzobah, and was a part of Syria, as its name shows. Benjamin, of Tudela f133 takes it to be the same with Haleb or Aleppo; Josephus f134 calls it Sophene; but that is placed by Ptolemy f135 beyond the Euphrates; whereas this country must be between that river and the land of Israel, and was contiguous to it, and near Damascus; and it was so near the land of Israel, and being conquered by David, that it became a controversy with the Jews, whether it was not to be reckoned part of it, and in several things they allow it to be equal to it f136. Rehob was the first king of this part of Syria, and then his…”

“HE SMITES HADADEZER AND THE SYRIANS. (Sa2 8:3-14) Zobah-- (Ch1 18:3). This kingdom was bounded on the east by the Euphrates, and it extended westward from that river, perhaps as far north as Aleppo. It was long the chief among the petty kingdoms of Syria, and its king bore the hereditary title of "Hadadezer" or "Hadarezer" ("Hadad," that is, "helped"). as he went to recover his border at the river Euphrates--in accordance with the promises God made to Israel that He would give them all the country as far as the Euphrates (Gen 15:18; Num 24:17). In the first campaign David signally defeated Hadadezer. Besides a great number of foot prisoners, he took from him an immense amount of booty in…”

“Hadadezer - Not (see the margin) Hadarezer. Hadadezer, is the true form, as seen in the names Benhadad, Hadad (1 Kings 15:18, etc.; 1 Kings 11:14, etc.). Hadad was the chief idol, or sun-god, of the Syrians. To recover his border - literally, to cause his hand to return. The phrase is used sometimes literally, as e. g. Exodus 4:7; 1 Kings 13:4; Proverbs 19:24; and sometimes figuratively, as Isaiah 1:25; Isaiah 14:27; Amos 1:8; Psalms 74:11. The exact force of the metaphor must in each case be decided by the context. If, as is most probable, this verse relates to the circumstances more fully detailed in 2 Samuel 10:15-19, the meaning of the phrase here will be when he (Hadadezer) went to…”

“As he went - David, remembering the grant which God had made to his people of all the land as far as Euphrates, and having subdued his neighbouring enemies, went to recover his rights, and stablish his dominion as far as Euphrates. 2 Kings (2 Samuel) 8:4”

“8:3 Hadadezer reappears in 10:16 as David’s foe. He was either the direct son of Rehob and his successor or the reigning king of a dynasty established by a king named Rehob, whose kingdom was near the northern city of Dan (see Judg 18:28; cp. Num 13:21). • Zobah was north and east of David’s kingdom. • It is possible that David, not Hadadezer (literally he), marched out to strengthen his control. • the Euphrates River: Literally the river; 1 Chr 18:3 specifically identifies the Euphrates. Cp. 2 Sam 10:16.”

“Hadadezer: Ch1 18:3, Hadarezer Zobah: Sa2 10:6; Sa1 14:47; Kg1 11:23, Kg1 11:24; Psa 60:1 \*title at the river: Gen 15:18; Exo 23:31; Deu 11:24; Kg1 4:21; Psa 72:8 2 Kings (2 Samuel) 8:4”

“Conquest and Subjugation of the King of Zobah, and of the Damascene Syrians. - Sa2 8:3. The situation of Zobah cannot be determined. The view held by the Syrian church historians, and defended by Michaelis, viz., that Zobah was the ancient Nisibis in northern Mesopotamia, has no more foundation to rest upon than that of certain Jewish writers who suppose it to have been Aleppo, the present Haleb. Aleppo is too far north for Zobah, and Nisibis is quite out of the range of the towns and tribes in connection with which the name of Zobah occurs. In Sa1 14:47, compared with Sa2 8:12 of this chapter, Zobah, or Aram Zobah as it is called in Sa2 10:6 and Psa 60:2, is mentioned along with Ammon,…”