| hag-Gibborim הַגִּבֹּרִ֛ים | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1010 BCE |
| Disbanded | 970 BCE |
| Country | United Monarchy |
| Allegiance | David |
| Type | Special operations force, shock troops |
| Role | Special operations, Infantry |
| Size | 37 |
| Nickname(s) | David’s Mighty Warriors |
| Commanders | |
| Founder & Commander | David |
David's Mighty Warriors (also known as David's Mighty Men or the Gibborim; Hebrew: הַגִּבֹּרִ֛ים, romanized: hagGībōrīm, lit. 'the Mighty') are a group of 37 men in the Hebrew Bible who fought with King David and are identified in 2 Samuel 23:8–38, part of the "supplementary information" added to the Second Book of Samuel in its final four chapters. The International Standard Version calls them "David's special forces".[1]
A similar list is given in 1 Chronicles 11:10–47 but with several variations and sixteen more names.
The text divides them into "the Three", of which there are three, and "the Thirty", of which there are more than thirty. The text explicitly states that there are 37 individuals in all,[2] but it is unclear whether this refers to The Thirty, which may or may not contain The Three, or the combined total of both groups. The text refers to The Three and The Thirty as though they were both important entities, and not just an arbitrary list of three or 30-plus significant men.