and another company turned the way to Beth Horon; and another company turned the way of the border that looks down on the valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness.
The main physical advantage the Philistines enjoyed was their ability to smelt iron. This advanced technology gave them a strong military edge over the Israelites. [Note: Dothan, p. 20.] As in the days of Deborah and Barak (Judges 5:8), the Philistines still had the advantage of superior weapons and the power to restrict the Israelites’ use of iron implements.