King David sent several ambassadors to Hanun, king of the Ammonites, to express his sympathy at the death of his father (2 Samuel 10:1-2).

Convinced these messengers were spies, Hanun humiliated them by cutting off their beards on one side of their faces. Israelite men were fond of their beards and considered them a symbol of manhood. To have only half a beard made these messengers objects of ridicule and scorn.

Israelite men also wore long outer robes and full-length undergarments (1 Samuel 19:24). To have these clothes cut off below the waist so their lower bodies were exposed added to the embarrassment they had already endured. When David learned about these actions by Hanun, he took military action against the Ammonites (2 Samuel 10:7-9).

2 SAMUEL 10:4 – Hanun took David’s servants, and shaved off the one half of their garments in the middle, even to their buttocks, and sent them away.