He mustered: It may be helpful to make the subject of the verb mustered explicit, either as “the king” (Good News Translation) or “Ahab” (Revised English Bible, New American Bible, New Jerusalem Bible).

The English word mustered is a technical military term, meaning to enroll or to call up the military in order to go fight. The same Hebrew verb for mustered occurs with this same sense in verses 26 and 27, and a different Hebrew verb has this same meaning in verse 25. Revised Standard Version is consistent in translating the same Hebrew verb as mustered in both occurrences in this verse. New American Bible, however, renders the first occurrence “called up” and the second occurrence “mustered.” New Jerusalem Bible says that Ahab first “inspected” and then “reviewed.” It has also been translated “collected” (Moffatt) and “gathered” (New Century Version).

The servants of the governors of the districts: See the comments on verse 14.

The people of Israel: The reference here is to the “army” (New Jerusalem Bible), or more specifically, “the Israelite army” (Good News Translation). The Hebrew word translated people is frequently used in the historical books to refer specifically to the army. See also the comments on verse 8.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .