שמואל ב, פרק כ״ג, פסוק ל״ט

The roster of King David's military elite concludes with a final tally of thirty-seven renowned fighters and high-ranking commanders [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. However, simply counting the names listed throughout the records does not yield exactly thirty-seven individuals. This numerical discrepancy prompts various methods to complete the count.

One approach reaches the total by combining the thirty warriors listed from Asahel to Uriah with the first three mighty men, the three warriors who retrieved water, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada [רד״ק]. A different calculation counts the thirty warriors separately from Asahel, adds the first three warriors and the three who retrieved water, but entirely excludes Benaiah. This exclusion is based on Benaiah being a priest entrusted with enforcing David's discipline. He generally avoided going to war to prevent becoming ritually impure from contact with the dead [מצודת דוד]. Other methods suggest the missing names belong to the sons of Jashen, who accounted for three or four individuals [רש״י], or that the unlisted men were four figures who served exclusively in command positions [ביאור שטיינזלץ].

A striking detail agreed upon across these calculations is the complete absence of Joab the son of Zeruiah, David's senior military leader. As the supreme commander of the army, his rank elevated him above the rest of the elite forces, making it inappropriate for him to be counted alongside them [מצודת דוד]. In his supreme role, he was not expected to engage in personal combat as a regular soldier, even though he was highly capable of doing so [ביאור שטיינזלץ].