שמואל ב, פרק י״ט, פסוק מ״א

David's return to his throne is marked by a massive crossing of the Jordan River toward Gilgal, an event that serves as a type of re-coronation ceremony [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The people of the tribe of Judah arrived in huge numbers, as the king specifically desired their participation [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. They actively assisted him in crossing the river and making his way to Gilgal [מצודת דוד, מלבי״ם, אברבנאל].

Alongside the tribe of Judah, a portion of the Israelites also took part in this initial crossing. A difficulty arises when trying to reconcile this detail with the events immediately following, which state that all the men of Israel eventually came to the king. The primary approach among commentators is that the reported participation of half the nation does not represent an exact mathematical split. Instead, it indicates a fraction of the whole, regardless of whether that amount is large or small.

According to this view, the group of Israelites crossing with David was actually quite small. It consisted of individuals who had already blended in with the people of Judah during the time of David's escape, along with Shimei son of Gera and the thousand men from the tribe of Benjamin who traveled with him [רד״ק, אברבנאל]. The rest of the Israelites were simply delayed, arriving to meet the king only after he had already crossed the Jordan and reached Gilgal [אברבנאל]. Alternatively, some explain that this fraction refers specifically to half of those thousand men from Israel who managed to arrive early, while the remaining half was delayed and crossed the river at a later time [מלבי״ם].