1 Chronicles 12:1–40 contains material that has no parallels in Samuel or the rest of the Old Testament, and it is assumed that the Chronicler has drawn on a source that he alone had access to, perhaps an untitled military document from the period of the united monarchy.
This section neatly divides into two basic sections:
Early tribal support for David (before his enthronement; 1 Chronicles 12:1–22)
Later tribal support (after his enthronement at Hebron; 1 Chronicles 12:23–40).
Statements emphasizing this support introduce each of the subsections in the first section (1 Chronicles 12:1, 1 Chronicles 12:8, 1 Chronicles 12:16, 1 Chronicles 12:19) and close off the first section as a whole (1 Chronicles 12:22).1 The same vocabulary introduces the second main section (1 Chronicles 12:23), which then shifts to the theme of support for his kingship at Hebron, bringing closure to the account of David’s enthronement that began at 1 Chronicles 11:1.2
1 Voici ceux qui se rendirent auprès de David à Tsiklag, lorsqu'il était encore éloigné de la présence de Saül, fils de Kis. Ils faisaient partie des vaillants hommes qui lui prêtèrent leur secours pendant la guerre.