Reference: Cherethites and Pelethites
Hastings
These were mercenary soldiers, who probably began to attach themselves to David whilst he was an outlaw (2Sa 22:2 etc.), and subsequently became the king's bodyguard and the nucleus of his army (2Sa 8:18; 15:18; 20:7,23; 1Ki 1:38,44; 1Ch 18:17). Benaiah, whom Josephus calls 'captain of the guard' (Ant. VII. xi. 8), was their commander. They accompanied David in his retreat from Jerusalem (2Sa 15:18), fought against Absalom (2Sa 20:7,23), acted as Solomon's bodyguard at his coronation (1Ki 1:38,44). The Cherethites were a Philistine clan (1Sa 30:14), dwelling on the coast (Eze 25:16; Zep 2:5); and the name Pelethites may have been a corrupt form of Philistines. Unwillingness to believe that foreigners stood so near the national hero led certain Jewish scholars to assert that the two clans were Israelites. The appellation 'Cherethite' seems to be connected with Crete, and there is good ground (but see Caphtor) for the belief that Caphtor, from which Am 9:7 says the Philistines came, is to be identified with Crete. The Septuagint of Eze 25:16; Zep 2:5 uses Cretans as the equivalent of Cherethites.
J. Taylor.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
We raided the south of the Cherethites, and on that belonging to Judah, and on the south of Caleb. And we burned Ziklag with fire.
And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites. And David's sons were priests.
And all his servants passed on beside him. And all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.
And all his servants passed on beside him. And all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.
And Joab's men went out after him, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and all the mighty men. And they went out of Jerusalem to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri.
And Joab's men went out after him, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and all the mighty men. And they went out of Jerusalem to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri.
And Joab was over all the army of Israel. And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and over the Pelethites.
And Joab was over all the army of Israel. And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and over the Pelethites.
And he said, Jehovah is my Rock, and my Fortress, and my Deliverer.
And Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, went down and caused Solomon to ride upon King David's mule, and brought him to Gihon.
And the king has sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and they have caused him to ride upon the king's mule.
So the Lord Jehovah says this: Behold, I will stretch out My hand on the Philistines, and I will cut off the Cherethites, and will destroy the rest of the sea coast.
So the Lord Jehovah says this: Behold, I will stretch out My hand on the Philistines, and I will cut off the Cherethites, and will destroy the rest of the sea coast.
Are you not like sons of the Ethiopians to Me, O sons of Israel, says Jehovah? Have I not brought Israel up out of the land of Egypt? and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?
Woe to the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! The Word of Jehovah is against you: Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will destroy you, so that no inhabitant survives.
Woe to the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! The Word of Jehovah is against you: Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will destroy you, so that no inhabitant survives.