Here are examples of the skills of Abishai and Benaiah. Abishai was very aggressive toward David’s enemies, especially Saul (1 Samuel 26:6–9) and Saul’s relative Shimei (2 Samuel 16:9–11). Abishai saved David’s life during a Philistine war (2 Samuel 21:16–17).
Benaiah first appeared as the commander of the mercenaries who were David’s bodyguards. These men were separate from the regular army (2 Samuel 8:18; 20:23). He also led a 24,000-man division of the regular army that served the king every third month (1 Chronicles 27:5–6). He played a key role in Solomon’s rise to the throne (1 Kings 1:32–49) and became the commander of Solomon’s army, like Joab was for David.