Came out: this implies that the Ammonite soldiers left the confines of the city. In many languages it will be necessary to say “came out of the city” or “left behind the city walls.”

Drew up in battle array: that is, “arranged themselves in their battle positions,” “set themselves in battle formation,” or “prepared to fight the battle.”

At the entrance of the gate: literally “at the opening of the gate.” The name of the city of Rabbah is not specifically mentioned in the text of 2 Samuel until the beginning of the next chapter. But there is little doubt that this passage is talking about the defense of the Ammonites’ capital city. Rabbah is, in fact, the only city mentioned in the Bible as being Ammonite (12.26; and see the comment on 1 Sam 11.1). Today it is called Amman and is the capital of Jordan. Good News Translation provides more explicit information than is found in the Hebrew, but the original readers understood this. Another possible solution is to say “the entrance to their city gate” as in New International Version.

By themselves: that is, as a group they were separate from the Ammonite soldiers. New Century Version makes this into a separate sentence, “They were standing away from the Ammonites.”

In the open country: this expression usually stands in opposition to the cities and highways (Judges 20.31). It was away from the places where large groups of people are usually found (1 Sam 30.11). It also implies that there were probably no forests in the immediate vicinity. Contemporary English Version translates “in the nearby fields.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .