Wherefore David arose and went, he and his men, and slew of the Philistines two hundred men,.... This he did himself, for the verb is singular, and which were an hundred more than required; this he did to show his regard to the orders of Saul, and his obedience to him, and to testify the sincerity of his afflictions to his daughter, for whose sake he risked his life in this expedition, as well as to express his zeal for God, and his country, against their avowed enemies; the Greek version has only one hundred men, see 2Sa 3:14;and David brought their foreskins; along with him to Saul's court, having taken them off when slain.
Josephus says he cut off their heads, and brought them to him, and he makes the number to be six hundred; neither are according to the text, but to make his history more agreeable to the Gentiles, see 1Sa 18:21; an Arabic writer makes mention of a people, that cut off the genital parts of men, and gave them to their wives for their dowry:and they gave them in full tale to the king; the messengers David sent in with them, even the full tale of two hundred, which were as many more as were demanded:that he might be the king's son in law; being now as desirous of it as the king was:and Saul gave him Michal his daughter to wife; which he could not in honour refuse to do, seeing he had performed the condition he had required.
David's marriage of the younger sister, when upon various considerations it might have been expected that he should have married the elder, may be an emblem of Christ's espousing the Gentile church, when the Jewish church, her elder sister, is neglected by him, she having rejected him.
Antiqu. l. 6. c. 10. sect. 3. Alcamus apud Bochart. Hierozoic. par. 2. l. 1. c. 19. col.