For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain, after he had smitten every male in Edom;

For when David was in Edom, and Joab the general of the army was gone up to bury them that were slain, and had killed every male in Edom,

and it cometh to pass, in David's being with Edom, in the going up of Joab head of the host to bury the slain, that he smiteth every male in Edom,

And when David had sent destruction on Edom, and Joab, the captain of the army, had gone to put the dead into the earth, and had put to death every male in Edom;

For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain, and had smitten every male in Edom-

For it happened, when David was in Edom, and Joab the commander of the army was gone up to bury the slain, and had struck every male in Edom

For when David was in Idumea, Joab, the leader of the military, had ascended to bury those who had been killed, and he had killed every male in Idumea.

The verse gives certain additional particulars of David's conquest of Edom (marginal references). Joab was left, or sent, to complete the subjugation of the country, with orders to exterminate all the grown male inhabitants. It was not very often that David acted with any extreme severity in his wars; but he may have considered himself justified by policy, as he certainly was by the letter of the Law Deuteronomy 20:13, in adopting this fierce course against Edom.
Was in Edom - Or, according to another reading, "smote" Edom.
The slain - Probably the Israelites who had fallen in the strnggle. Translate, "when Joab was gone up to bury the slain, and had smitten every male," etc.

Was gone up to bury the slain - The slain Edomites; for Joab had in the course of six months exterminated all the males, except Hadad and his servants, who escaped to Egypt. Instead of bury the slain, the Targum has to take the spoils of the slain.

For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the (i) slain, after he had smitten every male in Edom;
(i) Of the Edomites.

For it came to pass, when David was in Edom,.... Fighting with the Edomites, and subduing them, and putting garrisons in the land, 2-Samuel 8:14.
and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain: the Israelites that fell in battle, or whom the Edomites afterwards, through stratagem and surprise, fell upon in their garrisons and destroyed, and which caused Joab to go thither to bury them, and take vengeance on the Edomites for it; or these were the Edomites slain by David and Joab; and it has been always reckoned a piece of humanity to bury the dead of an enemy, and is to the honour of the conqueror, see Ezekiel 39:12 or to suffer the enemy to bury them themselves: it is said (o), that Hercules was the first that brought up this practice, and that before they were left on the field, to be devoured by dogs; so they were in the times of the Trojan war, as appears by the writings of Homer; but burying them, in later times, was used by the Romans (p) and Greeks; and Josephus (q) delivers it as a law of Moses to bury enemies, and not suffer any dead to lie without partaking of the earth, nor to pass by or overlook any unburied; but from whence he took it, or grounds it upon, is not very evident; this is the first mention of it; though the Targum is,
"to strip the slain:''
after he had smitten every male in Edom; as he thought, intending to root out the name of them; being enraged at their falling upon the garrisons, if that was the case.
(o) Aelian. Var. Hist. l. 12. c. 27. (p) Liv. Hist. l. 39. c. 21. Vid. Kirchman. Append. ad. lib. de Funer. Roman. c. 3, 4, & 5. (q) Antiqu. l. 4. c. 8. sect. 24. contr. Apion. l. 2. c. 29.

In Edom - By his army, to war against it. To bury - The Israelites who were slain in the battle, 2-Samuel 8:13-14, whom he honourably interred in some certain place, to which he is said to go up for that end. And this gave Hadad the opportunity of making his escape, whilst Joab and his men were employed in that solemnity. Had smitten - Or, and he smote, as it is in the Hebrew: which is here noted as the cause of Hadad's flight; he understood what Joab had done in part, and intended farther to do, even to kill all the males and therefore fled for his life.