^24:1Now when Saul came back from fighting the Philistines, news was given him that David was in the waste land of En-gedi. ^24:2Then Saul took three thousand of the best men out of all Israel, and went in search of David and his men on the rocks of the mountain goats. ^24:3And on the way he came to a place where sheep were kept, where there was a hollow in the rock; and Saul went in for a private purpose. Now David and his men were in the deepest part of the hollow. ^24:4And David's men said to him, Now is the time when the Lord says to you, I will give up your hater into your hands to do with him whatever seems good to you. Then David, getting up, took the skirt of Saul's robe in his hand, cutting off the end of it without his knowledge. ^24:5And later, David was full of regret for cutting off Saul's skirt. ^24:6And David said to his men, Before the Lord, never let it be said that my hand was lifted up against my lord, the man of the Lord's selection, for the Lord's holy oil has been put on him. ^24:7So with these words David kept his servants back, and did not let them make an attack on Saul. And Saul got up and went on his way. ^24:8And after that David came out of the hollow rock, and crying after Saul said, My lord the king. And when Saul gave a look back, David went down on his face and gave him honour. ^24:9And David said to Saul, Why do you give any attention to those who say that it is my desire to do you wrong? ^24:10Look! you have seen today how the Lord gave you up into my hands even now in the hollow of the rocks: and some would have had me put you to death, but I had pity on you: for I said, Never will my hand be lifted up against my lord, who has been marked with the holy oil. ^24:11And see, my father, see the skirt of your robe in my hand: for the fact that I took off the skirt of your robe and did not put you to death is witness that I have no evil purpose, and I have done you no wrong, though you are waiting for my life to take it. ^24:12May the Lord be judge between me and you, and may the Lord give me my rights against you, but my hand will never be lifted up against you. ^24:13There is an old saying, From the evil-doer comes evil: but my hand will never be lifted up against you. ^24:14After whom has the king of Israel come out? for whom are you searching? for a dead dog, an insect. ^24:15So let the Lord be judge, and give a decision between me and you, and see and give support to my cause, and keep me from falling into your hands. ^24:16Now when David had said these words to Saul, Saul said, Is this your voice, David, my son? And Saul was overcome with weeping. ^24:17And he said to David, You are right and I am wrong: for you have given me back good, but I have given you evil. ^24:18And you have made clear to me how good you have been to me today: because, when the Lord gave me up into your hands, you did not put me to death. ^24:19If a man comes across his hater, will he let him get away safe? so may you be rewarded by the Lord for what you have done for me today. ^24:20And now I am certain that you will be king, and that the kingdom of Israel will be made strong under your authority. ^24:21So give me your oath by the Lord, that you will not put an end to my seed after me or let my name be cut off from my father's family. ^24:22And David gave Saul his oath. And Saul went back to his house; but David and his men went up to their safe place.

^25:1And death came to Samuel; and all Israel came together, weeping for him, and put his body in its resting-place in his house at Ramah. Then David went down to the waste land of Maon. ^25:2Now there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel; he was a great man and had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats: and he was cutting the wool of his sheep in Carmel. ^25:3Now this man was named Nabal, and his wife's name was Abigail: she was a woman of good sense and pleasing looks: but the man was cruel and evil in his ways; he was of the family of Caleb. ^25:4And David had word in the waste land that Nabal was cutting the wool of his sheep. ^25:5And David sent ten young men, and said to them, Go up to Carmel and go to Nabal, and say kind words to him in my name; ^25:6And say this to my brother, May all be well for you: peace be to you and your house and all you have. ^25:7I have had word that you have wool-cutters: now the keepers of your sheep have been with us, and we have done them no evil, and taken nothing of theirs while they were in Carmel. ^25:8If your young men are questioned they will say the same thing. So now, let my young men have grace in your eyes, for we are come at a good time; please give anything you may have by you to your servants and to your son David. ^25:9And when David's young men came, they said all this to Nabal, in David's name, and said nothing more. ^25:10And Nabal gave them his answer and said, Who is David? who is the son of Jesse? there are a number of servants in these days running away from their masters. ^25:11Am I to take my bread and my wine and the meat I have got ready for my wool-cutters and give it to men coming from I have no idea where? ^25:12So David's young men, turning away, went back and gave him an account of everything he had said. ^25:13And David said to his men, Put on your swords, every one of you. And every man put on his sword; and David did the same; and about four hundred men went up with David, and two hundred kept watch over their goods. ^25:14But one of the young men said to Nabal's wife Abigail, David sent men from the waste land to say kind words to our master, and he gave them a rough answer. ^25:15But these men have been very good to us; they did us no wrong and nothing of ours was touched while we were with them in the fields: ^25:16But day and night they were like a wall round us while we were with them, looking after the sheep. ^25:17So now, give thought to what you are going to do; for evil is in store for our master and all his house: for he is such a good-for-nothing person that it is not possible to say anything to him. ^25:18Then Abigail quickly took two hundred cakes of bread and two skins full of wine and five sheep ready for cooking and five measures of dry grain and a hundred parcels of dry grapes and two hundred cakes of figs, and put them on asses. ^25:19And she said to her young men, Go on in front of me and I will come after you. But she said nothing to her husband Nabal. ^25:20Now while she was going down under cover of the mountain on her ass, David and his men came down against her, and suddenly she came face to face with them. ^25:21Now David had said, What was the use of my taking care of this man's goods in the waste land, so that there was no loss of anything which was his? he has only given me back evil for good. ^25:22May God's punishment be on David, if when morning comes there is so much as one male of his people still living. ^25:23And when Abigail saw David, she quickly got off her ass, falling down on her face before him. ^25:24And falling at his feet she said, May the wrong be on me, my lord, on me: let your servant say a word to you, and give ear to the words of your servant. ^25:25Let my lord give no attention to Nabal, that good-for-nothing: for as his name is, so is he, a man without sense: but I, your servant, did not see the young men whom my lord sent. ^25:26So now, my lord, by the living God and by your living soul, seeing that the Lord has kept you from the crime of blood and from taking into your hands the punishment for your wrongs, may all your haters, and those who would do evil to my lord, be like Nabal. ^25:27And let this offering, which your servant gives to my lord, be given to the young men who are with my lord. ^25:28And may the sin of your servant have forgiveness: for the Lord will certainly make your family strong, because my lord is fighting in the Lord's war; and no evil will be seen in you all your days. ^25:29And though a man has taken up arms against you, putting your life in danger, still the soul of my lord will be kept safe among the band of the living with the Lord your God; and the souls of those who are against you he will send violently away from him, like stones from a bag. ^25:30And when the Lord has done for my lord all those good things which he has said he will do for you, and has made you a ruler over Israel; ^25:31Then you will have no cause for grief, and my lord's heart will not be troubled because you have taken life without cause and have yourself given punishment for your wrongs: and when the Lord has been good to you, then give a thought to your servant. ^25:32And David said to Abigail, May the Lord, the God of Israel, be praised, who sent you to me today: ^25:33A blessing on your good sense and on you, who have kept me today from the crime of blood and from taking into my hands the punishment for my wrongs. ^25:34For truly, by the living Lord, the God of Israel, who has kept me from doing you evil, if you had not been so quick in coming to me and meeting me, by dawn there would not have been in Nabal's house so much as one male living. ^25:35Then David took from her hands her offering: and he said to her, Go back to your house in peace; see, I have given ear to your voice, and taken your offering with respect. ^25:36And Abigail went back to Nabal; and he was feasting in his house like a king; and Nabal's heart was full of joy, for he had taken much wine; so she said nothing to him till dawn came. ^25:37And in the morning, when the effect of the wine was gone, Nabal's wife gave him an account of all these things, and all the heart went out of him, and he became like stone. ^25:38And about ten days after, the Lord sent disease on Nabal and death came to him. ^25:39And David, hearing that Nabal was dead, said, May the Lord be praised, who has taken up my cause against Nabal for the shame which he put on me, and has kept back his servant from evil, and has sent on Nabal's head the reward of his evil-doing. And David sent word to Abigail, desiring to take her as his wife. ^25:40And when David's servants came to Carmel, to Abigail, they said to her, David has sent us to you to take you to him as his wife. ^25:41And she got up, and going down on her face to the earth, said, See, I am ready to be a servant-girl, washing the feet of the servants of my lord. ^25:42Then Abigail got up quickly and went on her ass, with five of her young women, after the men whom David had sent; and she became David's wife. ^25:43And David had taken Ahinoam of Jezreel, to be his wife; these two were his wives. ^25:44Now Saul had given his daughter Michal, David's wife, to Palti the son of Laish of Gallim.

^26:1And the Ziphites came to Saul at Gibeah, and said, Is not David waiting secretly near us in the hill of Hachilah, before the waste land? ^26:2Then Saul went down to the waste land of Ziph, taking with him three thousand of the best men of Israel, to make search for David in the waste land of Ziph. ^26:3And Saul put up his tents on the hill of Hachilah, which is in front of the waste land on the road. But David was in the waste land, and he saw that Saul was coming after him. ^26:4And so David sent out watchers, and got word from them that Saul was certainly coming. ^26:5And David got up and came to the place where Saul's tents were: and David had a view of the place where Saul was sleeping with Abner, the son of Ner, the captain of his army: and Saul was sleeping inside the ring of carts, and the tents of the people were all round him. ^26:6Then David said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, brother of Joab, Who will go down with me to the tents of Saul? And Abishai said, I will go down with you. ^26:7So David and Abishai came down to the army by night: and Saul was sleeping inside the ring of carts with his spear planted in the earth by his head: and Abner and the people were sleeping round him. ^26:8Then Abishai said to David, God has given up your hater into your hands today; now let me give him one blow through to the earth with his spear, and there will be no need to give him a second. ^26:9And David said to Abishai Do not put him to death; for who, without sin, may put out his hand against the man on whom the Lord has put the holy oil? ^26:10And David said, By the living Lord, the Lord will send destruction on him; the natural day of his death will come, or he will go into the fight and come to his end. ^26:11Never will my hand be stretched out against the man marked with the holy oil; but take the spear which is by his head and the vessel of water, and let us go. ^26:12So David took the spear and the vessel of water from Saul's head; and they got away without any man seeing them, or being conscious of their coming, or awaking; for they were all sleeping because a deep sleep from the Lord had come on them. ^26:13Then David went over to the other side, and took his place on the top of a mountain some distance away, with a great space between them; ^26:14And crying out to the people and to Abner, the son of Ner, David said, Have you no answer to give, Abner? Then Abner said, Who is that crying out to the king? ^26:15And David said to Abner, Are you not a man of war? is there any other like you in Israel? why then have you not kept watch over your lord the king? for one of the people came in to put the king your lord to death. ^26:16What you have done is not good. By the living Lord, death is the right fate for you, because you have not kept watch over your lord, the man on whom the Lord has put the holy oil. Now see, where is the king's spear, and the vessel of water which was by his head? ^26:17And Saul, conscious that the voice was David's, said, Is that your voice, David, my son? And David said, It is my voice, O my lord king. ^26:18And he said, Why does my lord go armed against his servant? what have I done? or what evil is there in me? ^26:19Let my lord the king give ear now to the words of his servant. If it is the Lord who is moving you against me, let him take an offering: but if it is the children of men, may they be cursed before the Lord, for driving me out today and keeping me from my place in the heritage of the Lord, saying, Go, be the servant of other gods. ^26:20Then do not let my blood be drained out on the earth away from the face of the Lord: for the king of Israel has come out to take my life, like one going after birds in the mountains. ^26:21Then Saul said, I have done wrong: come back to me, David my son: I will do you no more wrong, because my life was dear to you today truly, I have been foolish and my error is very great. ^26:22Then David said, Here is the king's spear! let one of the young men come over and get it. ^26:23And the Lord will give to every man the reward of his righteousness and his faith: because the Lord gave you into my hands today, and I would not put out my hand against the man who has been marked with the holy oil. ^26:24And so, as your life was dear to me today, may my life be dear to the Lord, and may he make me free from all my troubles. ^26:25Then Saul said to David, May a blessing be on you, David, my son; you will do great things and without doubt you will overcome. Then David went on his way, and Saul went back to his place.

^27:1And David said to himself, Some day death will come to me by the hand of Saul: the only thing for me to do is to get away into the land of the Philistines; then Saul will give up hope of taking me in any part of the land of Israel: and so I may be able to get away from him. ^27:2So David and the six hundred men who were with him went over to Achish, the son of Maoch, king of Gath. ^27:3And David and his men were living with Achish at Gath; every man had his family with him, and David had his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel, and Abigail of Carmel, who had been the wife of Nabal. ^27:4And Saul, hearing that David had gone to Gath, went after him no longer. ^27:5Then David said to Achish, If now I have grace in your eyes, let me have a place in one of the smaller towns of your land, to be my living-place; for it is not right for your servant to be living with you in the king's town. ^27:6So Achish straight away gave him Ziklag: and for that reason Ziklag has been the property of the kings of Judah to this day. ^27:7And David was living in the land of the Philistines for the space of a year and four months. ^27:8And David and his men went up and made attacks on the Geshurites and the Girzites and the Amalekites; for these were the people who were living in the land from Telam on the way to Shur, as far as Egypt. ^27:9And David again and again made attacks on the land till not a man or a woman was still living; and he took away the sheep and the oxen and the asses and the camels and the clothing; and he came back to Achish. ^27:10And every time Achish said, Where have you been fighting today? David said, Against the South of Judah and the South of the Jerahmeelites and the South of the Kenites. ^27:11Not one living man or woman did David ever take back with him to Gath, fearing that they might give an account of what had taken place, and say, This is what David did, and so has he been doing all the time while he has been living in the land of the Philistines. ^27:12And Achish had belief in what David said, saying, He has made himself hated by all his people Israel, and so he will be my servant for ever.

^28:1Now in those days the Philistines got their forces together to make war on Israel. And Achish said to David, Certainly you and your men are to go out with me to the fight. ^28:2And David said to Achish, You will see now what your servant will do. And Achish said to David, Then I will make you keeper of my head for ever. ^28:3Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel, after weeping for him, had put his body in its last resting-place in Ramah, his town. And Saul had put away from the land all those who had control of spirits and who made use of secret arts. ^28:4And the Philistines came together and put their forces in position in Shunem; and Saul got all Israel together and they took up their positions in Gilboa. ^28:5And when Saul saw the Philistine army he was troubled, and his heart was moved with fear. ^28:6And when Saul went for directions to the Lord, the Lord gave him no answer, by a dream or by the Urim or by the prophets. ^28:7Then Saul said to his servants, Get me a woman who has control of a spirit so that I may go to her and get directions. And his servants said to him, There is such a woman at En-dor. ^28:8So Saul, putting on other clothing, so that he might not be seen to be the king, took two men with him and went to the woman by night; and he said, Now, with the help of the spirit which you have, make the person whose name I will give you come up. ^28:9And the woman said to him, But you have knowledge of what Saul has done, how he has put away out of the land those who have control of spirits and the users of secret arts: why would you, by a trick, put me in danger of death? ^28:10And Saul made an oath to her by the Lord, saying, By the living Lord, no punishment will come to you for this. ^28:11Then the woman said, Who am I to let you see? And he said, Make Samuel come up for me. ^28:12And the woman saw that it was Saul, and she gave a loud cry, and said to Saul, Why have you made use of deceit? for you are Saul. ^28:13And the king said to her, Have no fear: what do you see? And the woman said to Saul, I see a god coming up out of the earth. ^28:14And he said to her, What is his form? And she said, It is an old man coming up covered with a robe. And Saul saw that it was Samuel, and with his face bent down to the earth he gave him honour. ^28:15And Samuel said to Saul, Why have you made me come up, troubling my rest? And Saul in answer said, I am in great danger; for the Philistines are making war on me, and God has gone away from me and will no longer give me any answer, by the prophets or by dreams: so I have sent for you to make clear to me what I am to do. ^28:16And Samuel said, Why do you put your questions to me, seeing that God has gone away from you and is on the side of him who is against you? ^28:17And the Lord himself has done what I said: the Lord has taken the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbour David; ^28:18Because you did not do what the Lord said, and did not give effect to his burning wrath against Amalek. So the Lord has done this thing to you today. ^28:19And more than this, the Lord will give Israel up with you into the hands of the Philistines: and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me: and the Lord will give up the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines. ^28:20Then Saul went down flat on the earth, and was full of fear because of Samuel's words: and there was no strength in him, for he had taken no food all that day or all that night. ^28:21And the woman came to Saul and saw that he was in great trouble, and said to him, See now, your servant has given ear to your words, and I have put my life in danger by doing what you said. ^28:22So now, give ear to the voice of your servant, and let me give you a little bread; and take some food to give you strength when you go on your way. ^28:23But he would not, saying, I have no desire for food. But his servants, together with the woman, made him take food, and he gave way to them. So he got up from the earth, and took his seat on the bed. ^28:24And the woman had in the house a young cow, made fat for food; and she put it to death straight away; and she took meal and got it mixed and made unleavened bread; ^28:25And she put it before Saul and his servants, and they had a meal. Then they got up and went away the same night.

^29:1Now the Philistines got all their army together at Aphek: and the Israelites put their forces in position by the fountain in Jezreel. ^29:2And the lords of the Philistines went on with their hundreds and their thousands, and David and his men came after with Achish. ^29:3Then the rulers of the Philistines said, What are these Hebrews doing here? And Achish said to the rulers of the Philistines, Is this not David, the servant of Saul the king of Israel, who has been with me for a year or two, and I have never seen any wrong in him from the time when he came to me till now? ^29:4But the rulers of the Philistines were angry with him, and said to him, Make the man go back to the place you have given him; do not let him go down with us to the fight, or he may be turned against us and be false to us: for how will this man make peace with his lord? will it not be with the heads of these men? ^29:5Is this not David, who was named in their songs, when in the dance they said to one another, Saul has put to death thousands, and David tens of thousands? ^29:6Then Achish sent for David and said to him, By the living Lord, you are upright, and everything you have done with me in the army has been pleasing to me: I have seen no evil in you from the day when you came to me till now: but still, the lords are not pleased with you. ^29:7So now go back, and go in peace, so that you do not make the lords of the Philistines angry. ^29:8And David said to Achish, But what have I done? what have you seen in your servant while I have been with you till this day, that I may not go and take up arms against those who are now making war on my lord the king? ^29:9And Achish in answer said, It is true that in my eyes you are good, like an angel of God: but still, the rulers of the Philistines have said, He is not to go up with us to the fight. ^29:10So get up early in the morning, with the servants of your lord who are with you, and go to the place I have given you, and have no evil design in your heart, for you are good in my eyes; but when there is light enough in the morning, go away. ^29:11So David and his men got up early in the morning to go back to the land of the Philistines. And the Philistines went up to Jezreel.

^30:1Now when David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day, the Amalekites had made an attack on the South and on Ziklag, and had overcome Ziklag and put it on fire; ^30:2And had made the women and all who were there, small and great, prisoners: they had not put any of them to death, but had taken them all away. ^30:3And when David and his men came to the town, they saw that it had been burned down, and their wives and their sons and daughters had been made prisoners. ^30:4Then David and the people who were with him gave themselves up to weeping till they were able to go on weeping no longer. ^30:5And David's two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel, had been made prisoners. ^30:6And David was greatly troubled; for the people were talking of stoning him, because their hearts were bitter, every man sorrowing for his sons and his daughters: but David made himself strong in the Lord his God. ^30:7And David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, Come here to me with the ephod. And Abiathar took the ephod to David. ^30:8Then David, questioning the Lord, said, Am I to go after this band? will I be able to overtake them? And in answer he said, Go after them, for you will certainly overtake them, and get back everything. ^30:9So David went, and his six hundred men went with him, and they came to the stream Besor. ^30:10And David, with four hundred men, went on: but two hundred of them were overcome with weariness, and not able to go across the stream. ^30:11And in the fields they saw an Egyptian whom they took to David, and they gave him bread, and he had a meal, and they gave him water for drink; ^30:12And they gave him part of a cake of figs and some dry grapes; and after the food, his spirit came back to him, for he had had no food or drink for three days and nights. ^30:13And David said to him, Whose man are you and where do you come from? And he said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite; and my master went on without me because three days back I became ill. ^30:14We made an attack on the south part of the country of the Cherethites, and on the land which is Judah's, and on the south of Caleb; and we put Ziklag on fire. ^30:15And David said to him, Will you take me down to this band? And he said, If you give me your oath that you will not put me to death or give me up to my master, I will take you to them. ^30:16And when he had taken him down, they saw them all, seated about on all sides, feasting and drinking among all the mass of goods which they had taken from the land of the Philistines and the land of Judah. ^30:17And David went on fighting them from evening till the evening of the day after; and not one of them got away but only four hundred young men who went in flight on camels. ^30:18And David got back everything the Amalekites had taken; and he got back his two wives. ^30:19There was no loss of anything, small or great, sons or daughters or goods or anything which they had taken away: David got it all back. ^30:20And they took all the flocks and herds, and driving them in front of him, said, These are David's. ^30:21And David came to the two hundred men, who because of weariness had not gone with him, but were waiting at the stream Besor: and they went out, meeting David and the people who were with him; and when they came near them, they said, How are you? ^30:22Then the bad and good-for-nothing men among those who went with David said, Because they did not go with us, we will give them nothing of the goods which we have got back, but only to every man his wife and children, so that he may take them and go. ^30:23Then David said, You are not to do this, my brothers, after what the Lord has given us, who has kept us safe and given up the band which came against us into our hands. ^30:24Who is going to give any attention to you in this question? for an equal part will be given to him who went to the fight and to him who was waiting by the goods: they are all to have the same. ^30:25And so he made it a rule and an order for Israel from that day till now. ^30:26And when David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the goods to the responsible men of Judah, and to his friends, saying, Here is an offering for you from the goods of those who were fighting against the Lord; ^30:27He sent to those who were in Beth-el, and in Ramah of the South, and in Jattir; ^30:28And to those in Arara and Eshtemoa ^30:29and Carmel and in the towns of the Jerahmeelites, and in the towns of the Kenites; ^30:30And to those who were in Hormah and in Bor-ashan and in Athach; ^30:31And in Hebron, and to all the places where David and his men had been living.

^31:1Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel: and the men of Israel went in flight before the Philistines, falling down wounded in Mount Gilboa. ^31:2And the Philistines overtook Saul and his sons; and they put to death Jonathan and Abinadab and Malchi-shua, the sons of Saul. ^31:3And the fight was going badly for Saul, and the archers came across him, and he was wounded by the archers. ^31:4Then Saul said to the servant who had the care of his arms, Take out your sword and put it through me, before these men without circumcision come and make sport of me. But his servant, full of fear, would not do so. Then Saul took out his sword, and falling on it, put an end to himself. ^31:5And when his servant saw that Saul was dead, he did the same, and was united with him in death. ^31:6So death overtook Saul and his three sons and his servant on the same day. ^31:7And when the men of Israel across the valley and on the other side of Jordan saw that the army of Israel was in flight and that Saul and his sons were dead, they came out of their towns and went in flight; and the Philistines came and took them for themselves. ^31:8Now on the day after, when the Philistines came to take their goods from the dead, they saw Saul and his three sons dead on the earth in Mount Gilboa. ^31:9And cutting off his head and taking away his war-dress, they sent word into the land of the Philistines round about, to take the news to their gods and to the people. ^31:10His war-dress they put in the house of Astarte; and his body was fixed on the wall of Beth-shan. ^31:11And when the people of Jabesh-gilead had news of what the Philistines had done to Saul, ^31:12All the fighting men got up and, travelling all night, took Saul's body and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan; and they came to Jabesh and had them burned there. ^31:13And their bones they put in the earth under a tree in Jabesh; and for seven days they took no food.

2 Samuel

^1:1Now after the death of Saul, when David, having come back from the destruction of the Amalekites, had been in Ziklag for two days; ^1:2On the third day a man came from Saul's tents, with his clothing out of order and earth on his head: and when he came to David, he went down on the earth and gave him honour. ^1:3And David said to him, Where have you come from? And he said, I have come in flight from the tents of Israel. ^1:4And David said to him, How did things go? Give me the news. And in answer he said, The people have gone in flight from the fight, and a great number of them are dead; and Saul and his son Jonathan are dead. ^1:5And David said to the young man who gave him the news, Why are you certain that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead? ^1:6And the young man said, I came by chance to Mount Gilboa, and I saw Saul supporting himself on his spear; and the war-carriages and horsemen overtook him. ^1:7And looking back, he saw me and gave a cry to me. And answering him I said, Here am I. ^1:8And he said to me, Who are you? And I said, I am an Amalekite. ^1:9Then he said to me, Come here to my side, and put me to death, for the pain of death has me in its grip but my life is still strong in me. ^1:10So I put my foot on him and gave him his death-blow, because I was certain that he would not go on living after his fall: and I took the crown from his head and the band from his arm, and I have them here for my lord. ^1:11Then David gave way to bitter grief, and so did all the men who were with him: ^1:12And till evening they gave themselves to sorrow and weeping, and took no food, weeping for Saul and for Jonathan, his son, and for the people of the Lord and for the men of Israel; because they had come to their end by the sword. ^1:13And David said to the young man who had given him the news, Where do you come from? And he said, I am the son of a man from a strange land; I am an Amalekite. ^1:14And David said to him, Had you no fear of stretching out your hand to put to death the one marked with the holy oil? ^1:15And David sent for one of his young men and said, Go near and put an end to him. And he put him to death. ^1:16And David said to him, May your blood be on your head; for your mouth has given witness against you, saying, I have put to death the man marked with the holy oil. ^1:17Then David made this song of grief for Saul and Jonathan, his son: ^1:18(It is recorded in the book of Jashar for teaching to the sons of Judah) and he said: ^1:19The glory, O Israel, is dead on your high places! How have the great ones been made low! ^1:20Give no news of it in Gath, let it not be said in the streets of Ashkelon; or the daughters of the Philistines will be glad, the daughters of men without circumcision will be uplifted in joy. ^1:21O mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew or rain on you, you fields of death: for there the arms of the strong have been shamed, the arms of Saul, as if he had not been marked with the holy oil. ^1:22From the blood of the dead, from the fat of the strong, the bow of Jonathan was not turned back, the sword of Saul did not come back unused. ^1:23Saul and Jonathan were loved and pleasing; in their lives and in their death they were not parted; they went more quickly than eagles, they were stronger than lions. ^1:24O daughters of Israel, have sorrow for Saul, by whom you were delicately clothed in robes of red, with ornaments of gold on your dresses. ^1:25How have the great ones been made low in the fight! Jonathan is dead on your high places. ^1:26I am full of grief for you, my brother Jonathan: very dear have you been to me: your love for me was a wonder, greater than the love of women. ^1:27How have the great ones been made low, and the arms of war broken!

^2:1Now after this, David, questioning the Lord, said, Am I to go up into any of the towns of Judah? And the Lord said to him, Go up. And David said, Where am I to go? And he said, To Hebron. ^2:2So David went there, taking with him his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel, and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel. ^2:3And David took all his men with him, every man with his family: and they were living in the towns round Hebron. ^2:4And the men of Judah came there, and with the holy oil made David king over the people of Judah. And word came to David that it was the men of Jabesh-gilead who put Saul's body in its last resting-place. ^2:5And David sent to the men of Jabesh-gilead and said to them, May the Lord give you his blessing, because you have done this kind act to Saul your lord, and have put his body to rest! ^2:6May the Lord be good and true to you: and I myself will see that your kind act is rewarded, because you have done this thing. ^2:7Then let your hands be strong, and have no fear: though Saul your lord is dead, the people of Judah have made me their king. ^2:8Now Abner, the son of Ner, captain of Saul's army, had taken Saul's son Ish-bosheth over to Mahanaim, ^2:9And made him king over Gilead and the Asherites and over Jezreel and Ephraim and Benjamin, that is, over all Israel. ^2:10(Saul's son Ish-bosheth was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he was ruler for two years.) But Judah was on the side of David. ^2:11And the time when David was king in Hebron over the people of Judah was seven years and six months. ^2:12And Abner, the son of Ner, with the servants of Saul's son Ish-bosheth, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon. ^2:13And Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and the servants of David, went out and came face to face with them by the pool of Gibeon; and they took up their position, facing one another on opposite sides of the pool. ^2:14And Abner said to Joab, Let the young men give a test of their strength before us. And Joab said, Let them do so. ^2:15So they got up and went over by number: twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bosheth and twelve of the servants of David. ^2:16And every one got the other by the head, driving his sword into the other's side, so they all went down together: and that place was named the Field of Sides, and it is in Gibeon. ^2:17And there was hard fighting that day; and Abner and the men of Israel gave way before the servants of David. ^2:18There were three sons of Zeruiah there, Joab and Abishai and Asahel: and Asahel was as quick-footed as a roe of the fields. ^2:19Asahel went running after Abner, not turning to the right or to the left. ^2:20Then Abner, looking back, said, Is it you, Asahel? And he said, It is I. ^2:21And Abner said, Then go to the right or to the left and put your hands on one of the fighting-men and take his arms. But Asahel would not be turned away from going after Abner. ^2:22Then again Abner said to Asahel, Go to one side, do not keep on coming after me: why will you make me put an end to you? for then I will be shamed before your brother Joab. ^2:23But still he did not go to one side: so Abner gave him a back blow in the stomach with his spear, so that the spear came out at his back; and he went down on the earth, wounded to death: and all those who came to the place where Asahel went down dead, came to a stop. ^2:24But Joab and Abishai went after Abner: and the sun went down when they came to the hill of Ammah, which is to the east of the road through the waste land of Geba. ^2:25And the men of Benjamin came together after Abner in one band, and took their places on the top of a hill. ^2:26Then crying out to Joab, Abner said, Are fighting and destruction to go on for ever? do you not see that the end will only be bitter? how long will it be before you send the people back and make them give up attacking their countrymen? ^2:27And Joab said, By the living God, if you had not given the word, the people would have gone on attacking their countrymen till the morning. ^2:28So Joab had a horn sounded, and all the people came to a stop, and gave up going after Israel and fighting them. ^2:29And all that night Abner and his men went through the Arabah; they went over Jordan and through all Bithron and came to Mahanaim. ^2:30And Joab came back from fighting Abner: and when he had got all his men together, it was seen that nineteen of David's men, in addition to Asahel, were not with them. ^2:31But David's men had put to death three hundred and sixty of the men of Benjamin and of Abner's men ^2:32And they took Asahel's body and put it in the last resting-place of his father in Beth-lehem. And Joab and his men, travelling all night, came to Hebron at dawn.

^3:1Now there was a long war between Saul's people and David's people; and David became stronger and stronger, but those on Saul's side became more and more feeble. ^3:2While David was in Hebron he became the father of sons: the oldest was Amnon, son of Ahinoam of Jezreel; ^3:3And the second, Chileab, whose mother was Abigail, the wife of Nabal the Carmelite; and the third, Absalom, son of Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur; ^3:4And the fourth, Adonijah, the son of Haggith; and the fifth, Shephatiah, the son of Abital; ^3:5And the sixth, Ithream, whose mother was David's wife Eglah. These were the sons of David, whose birth took place in Hebron. ^3:6Now while there was war between Saul's people and David's people, Abner was making himself strong among the supporters of Saul. ^3:7Now Saul had among his wives a woman named Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah: and Ish-bosheth said to Abner, Why have you taken my father's wife? ^3:8And Abner was very angry at the words of Ish-bosheth, and he said, Am I a dog's head of Judah? I am this day doing all in my power for the cause of your father Saul and for his brothers and his friends, and have not given you up into the hands of David, and now you say I have done wrong with a woman. ^3:9May God's punishment be on Abner, if I do not for David as the Lord in his oath has said, ^3:10And if I do not take away the kingdom from the family of Saul and make David ruler over Israel and Judah from Dan as far as Beer-sheba! ^3:11And so great was Ish-bosheth's fear of Abner that he was not able to say a word in answer. ^3:12And Abner sent men to David at Hebron, saying, Make an agreement with me, and I will give you my support in getting all Israel on your side. ^3:13And he said, It is well; I will make an agreement with you, but on one condition, which is, that when you come before me, Saul's daughter Michal is to come with you; till she comes you will not see my face. ^3:14And David sent men to Saul's son Ish-bosheth, saying, Give me back Michal, my wife, whom I made mine for the price of the private parts of a hundred Philistines. ^3:15So Ish-bosheth sent and took her from her husband Paltiel, the son of Laish. ^3:16And her husband went with her as far as Bahurim, weeping while he went. Then Abner said to him, Go back. And he went back. ^3:17Then Abner had a talk with the chief men of Israel, saying, In the past it was your desire to make David your king: so now, do it: ^3:18For the Lord has said of David, By the hand of my servant David I will make my people Israel safe from the Philistines, and from all who are against them. ^3:19And Abner said the same things to Benjamin: and he went to David in Hebron to make clear to him what seemed good to Israel and to all the people of Benjamin. ^3:20So Abner, with twenty men, came to Hebron, to David. And David made a feast for Abner and the men who were with him. ^3:21And Abner said to David, Now I will go, and make all Israel come to my lord the king, so that they may make an agreement with you, and your kingdom may be as wide as your heart's desire. Then David sent Abner away and he went in peace. ^3:22Now the servants of David and Joab had been out attacking a band of armed men, and they came back with a great store of goods taken in the fight: but Abner was no longer in Hebron with David, for he had sent him away and he had gone in peace. ^3:23When Joab and his men came, news was given them that Abner, the son of Ner, had come to the king, who had let him go away again in peace. ^3:24Then Joab came to the king, and said, What have you done? when Abner came to you why did you send him away and let him go? ^3:25Is it not clear to you that Abner, the son of Ner, came with deceit to get knowledge of your going out and your coming in and of all you are doing? ^3:26And when Joab had come out from David, he sent men after Abner, and they overtook him at the water-spring of Sirah, and made him come back with them: but David had no knowledge of it. ^3:27And when Abner was back in Hebron, Joab took him on one side by the doorway of the town to have a word with him quietly, and there he gave him a wound in the stomach, causing his death in payment for the death of his brother Asahel. ^3:28And when David had word of it he said, May I and my kingdom be clear for ever in the eyes of the Lord from the blood of Abner, the son of Ner: ^3:29May it come on the head of Joab and all his father's family: among the men of Joab's family may there ever be some who are diseased or lepers, or who do the work of women, or are put to the sword, or are wasted from need of food! ^3:30So Joab and Abishai his brother put Abner to death, because he had put to death their brother Asahel in the fight at Gibeon. ^3:31And David said to Joab and all the people who were with him, Go in grief and put haircloth about you, in sorrow for Abner. And King David went after the dead body. ^3:32And they put Abner's body to rest in Hebron; and the king and all the people were weeping loudly by the resting-place of Abner's body. ^3:33And the king made a song of grief for Abner and said, Was the death of Abner to be like the death of a foolish man? ^3:34Your hands were free, your feet were not chained: like the downfall of a man before evil men, so was your fall. And the weeping of the people over him went on again. ^3:35And the people came to make David take food, while it was still day, but David with an oath said, May God's punishment be on me if I take a taste of bread or any other thing till the sun has gone down! ^3:36And all the people took note of it and were pleased: like everything the king did, it was pleasing to the people. ^3:37So it was clear to Israel and to all the people on that day that the king was not responsible for the death of Abner, the son of Ner. ^3:38And the king said to his servants, Do you not see that a chief and a great man has come to his end today in Israel? ^3:39While I, though I am crowned king, have little strength, and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, are out of my control: may the Lord give to the evil-doer the reward of his evil-doing!

^4:1And when Saul's son Ish-bosheth had news that Abner was dead in Hebron, his hands became feeble, and all the Israelites were troubled. ^4:2And Saul's son had two men, captains of bands, one named Baanah and the other Rechab, sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, of the tribe of Benjamin; (for Beeroth was at one time taken to be part of Benjamin: ^4:3But the people of Beeroth had gone in flight to Gittaim, where they have been living to this day.) ^4:4Now Jonathan, Saul's son, had a son whose feet were damaged. He was five years old when news of the death of Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel, and the woman who took care of him took him up and went in flight: and while she was getting him away as quickly as she was able, he had a fall and his feet were damaged. His name was Mephibosheth. ^4:5And Rechab and Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, went out and came to the house of Ish-bosheth in the heat of the day, when he was resting in the middle of the day. Now the woman who kept the door was cleaning grain, and sleep overcame her. ^4:6And Rechab and his brother Baanah got in without being seen. ^4:7And when they came into the house, Ish-bosheth was stretched on his bed in his bedroom; and they made an attack on him and put him to death, and, cutting off his head, they took it with them and went by the road through the Arabah all night. ^4:8And they took the head of Ish-bosheth to David in Hebron, and said to the king, Here is the head of Ish-bosheth, the son of Saul your hater, who would have taken your life; the Lord has taken payment for the wrongs of my lord the king from Saul and his seed today. ^4:9And David made answer to Rechab and his brother Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said to them, By the living Lord, who has kept me safe from all my trouble, ^4:10When one came to me with the news of Saul's death, in the belief that it would be good news, I took him and put him to death in Ziklag, which was the reward I gave him for his news: ^4:11How much more, when evil men have put an upright person to death, in his house, sleeping on his bed, will I take payment from you for his blood, and have you cut off from the earth? ^4:12And David gave orders to his young men and they put them to death, cutting off their hands and their feet and hanging them up by the side of the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-bosheth and put it in its last resting-place with Abner's body in Hebron.

^5:1Then all the tribes of Israel came to David in Hebron and said, Truly, we are your bone and your flesh. ^5:2In the past when Saul was king over us, it was you who went at the head of Israel when they went out or came in: and the Lord said to you, You are to be the keeper of my people Israel and their ruler. ^5:3So all the responsible men of Israel came to the king at Hebron; and King David made an agreement with them in Hebron before the Lord: and they put the holy oil on David and made him king over Israel. ^5:4David was thirty years old when he became king, and he was king for forty years, ^5:5Ruling over Judah in Hebron for seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem, over all Israel and Judah, for thirty-three years. ^5:6And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the people of the land: and they said to David, You will not come in here, but the blind and the feeble-footed will keep you out; for they said, David will not be able to come in here. ^5:7But David took the strong place of Zion, which is the town of David. ^5:8And that day David said, Whoever makes an attack on the Jebusites, let him go up by the water-pipe, and put to death all the blind and feeble-footed who are hated by David. And this is why they say, The blind and feeble-footed may not come into the house. ^5:9So David took the strong tower for his living-place, naming it the town of David. And David took in hand the building of the town all round, starting from the Millo. ^5:10And David became greater and greater; for the Lord, the God of armies, was with him. ^5:11And Hiram, king of Tyre, sent men to David, with cedar-trees and woodworkers and stoneworkers: and they made David a house. ^5:12And David saw that the Lord had made his position safe as king over Israel, and that he had made his kingdom great because of his people Israel. ^5:13And David took more women and wives in Jerusalem, after he had come from Hebron: and he had more sons and daughters. ^5:14These are the names of those whose birth took place in Jerusalem: Shammua and Shobab and Nathan and Solomon ^5:15And Ibhar and Elishua and Nepheg and Japhia ^5:16And Elishama and Eliada and Eliphelet. ^5:17And when the Philistines had news that David had been made king over Israel, they all went up in search of David; and David, hearing of it, went down to the strong place. ^5:18And when the Philistines came, they went in every direction in the valley of Rephaim. ^5:19And David, desiring directions from the Lord, said, Am I to go up against the Philistines? will you give them up into my hands? And the Lord said, Go up, for I will certainly give up the Philistines into your hands. ^5:20And David went to Baal-perazim, and overcame them there; and he said, The Lord has let the forces fighting against me be broken before me as a wall is broken by rushing waters. So that place was named Baal-perazim. ^5:21And the Philistines, when they went in flight, did not take their images with them, and David and his men took them away. ^5:22And the Philistines came up again, and went in every direction in the valley of Rephaim. ^5:23And when David went for directions to the Lord, he said, You are not to go up against them in front; but make a circle round them from the back and come on them opposite the spice-trees. ^5:24Then at the sound of footsteps in the tops of the trees, go forward quickly, for the Lord has gone out before you to overcome the army of the Philistines. ^5:25And David did as the Lord had said; and he overcame the Philistines, attacking them from Gibeon to near Gezer.

^6:1And David got together all the fighting-men of Israel to the number of thirty thousand; ^6:2And David, and all the people who were with him, went to Baal of Judah to get the ark of God, over which the holy name is named, the name of the Lord of armies, whose place is between the winged ones. ^6:3And they put the ark of God on a new cart and took it out of the house of Abinadab which was on the hill: and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were the drivers of the cart. ^6:4And Uzzah went by the side of the ark, while Ahio went before it. ^6:5And David and all the men of Israel made melody before the Lord with all their power, with songs and with corded instruments and instruments of brass. ^6:6And when they came to Nacon's grain-floor, Uzzah put his hand on the ark of God to keep it safe in its place, for the oxen were out of control. ^6:7And the wrath of the Lord, burning against Uzzah, sent destruction on him because he had put his hand on the ark, and death came to him there by the ark of God. ^6:8And David was angry because of the Lord's outburst of wrath against Uzzah: and he gave that place the name Perez-uzzah, which is its name to this day. ^6:9And such was David's fear of the Lord that day, that he said, How may I let the ark of God come to me? ^6:10So David did not let the ark of the Lord come back to him to the town of David: but had it turned away and put into the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. ^6:11And the ark of the Lord was in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite for three months: and the Lord sent a blessing on Obed-edom and all his family. ^6:12And they said to King David, The blessing of the Lord is on the family of Obed-edom and on all he has, because of the ark of God. And David went and took the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom into the town of David with joy. ^6:13And when those who were lifting the ark of the Lord had gone six steps, he made an offering of an ox and a fat young beast. ^6:14And David, clothed in a linen ephod, was dancing before the Lord with all his strength. ^6:15So David and all the men of Israel took up the ark of the Lord with cries of joy and sounding of horns. ^6:16And when the ark of the Lord came into the town of David, Michal, Saul's daughter, looking out of the window, saw King David dancing and jumping before the Lord; and to her mind he seemed foolish. ^6:17And they took in the ark of the Lord, and put it in its place inside the tent which David had put up for it: and David made burned offerings and peace-offerings to the Lord. ^6:18And after David had made the burned offerings and the peace-offerings, he gave the people a blessing in the name of the Lord of armies. ^6:19And he gave to every man and woman among all the people, among all the masses of Israel, a cake of bread and a measure of wine and a cake of dry grapes. Then all the people went away, every man to his house. ^6:20Then David came back to give a blessing to his family. And Michal, Saul's daughter, came out to him and said, How full of glory was the king of Israel today, who let himself be seen uncovered by his servant-girls like a foolish person uncovering himself without shame! ^6:21And David said to Michal, I was dancing before the Lord, who put me over your father and all his sons, to make me a ruler over the people of the Lord, over his people Israel: and I will go on playing before the Lord; ^6:22And I will do even worse than this, and make myself even lower in your eyes: but the servant-girls of whom you were talking will give me honour. ^6:23And Michal, Saul's daughter, had no child till the day of her death.

^7:1Now when the king was living in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from war on every side; ^7:2The king said to Nathan the prophet, See now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God is housed inside the curtains of a tent. ^7:3And Nathan said to the king, Go and do whatever is in your heart; for the Lord is with you. ^7:4Now that night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying, ^7:5Go and say to my servant David, The Lord says, Are you to be the builder of a house, a living-place for me? ^7:6For from the day when I took the children of Israel up out of Egypt till this day, I have had no house, but have gone from place to place in a tent. ^7:7In all the places where I went with all the children of Israel, did I ever say to any of the judges of Israel, to whom I gave the care of my people Israel, Why have you not made me a house of cedar? ^7:8Then say these words to my servant David, The Lord of armies says, I took you from the fields, from keeping the sheep, so that you might be a ruler over my people, over my people Israel: ^7:9And I have been with you wherever you went, cutting off before you all those who were against you; and I will make your name great, like the name of the greatest ones of the earth. ^7:10And I will make a resting-place for my people Israel, planting them there, so that they may be living in the place which is theirs, and never again be moved; and never again will they be troubled by evil men as they were at the first, ^7:11From the time when I put judges over my people Israel; and I will give you peace from all who are against you. And the Lord says to you that he will make you the head of a line of kings. ^7:12And when the time comes for you to go to rest with your fathers, I will put in your place your seed after you, the offspring of your body, and I will make his kingdom strong. ^7:13He will be the builder of a house for my name, and I will make the seat of his authority certain for ever. ^7:14I will be to him a father and he will be to me a son: if he does wrong, I will give him punishment with the rod of men and with the blows of the children of men; ^7:15But my mercy will not be taken away from him, as I took it from him who was before you. ^7:16And your family and your kingdom will keep their place before me for ever: the seat of your authority will never be overturned. ^7:17So Nathan gave David an account of all these words and this vision. ^7:18Then David the king went in and took his seat before the Lord, and said, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my family, that you have been my guide till now? ^7:19And this was only a small thing to you, O Lord God; but your words have even been about the far-off future of your servant's family, O Lord God! ^7:20What more may David say to you? for you have knowledge of your servant, O Lord God. ^7:21Because of your word and from your heart, you have done all this great work, and let your servant see it. ^7:22Truly you are great, O Lord God: there is no one like you and no other God but you, as is clear from everything which has come to our ears. ^7:23And what other nation in the earth, like your people Israel, did a god go out to take for himself, to be his people, and to make a name for himself, and to do great and strange things for them, driving out a nation and its gods from before his people? ^7:24But you took and made strong for yourself your people Israel, to be your people for ever; and you, Lord, became their God. ^7:25And now, O Lord God, may the word which you have said about your servant and about his family, be made certain for ever, and may you do as you have said! ^7:26And let your name be made great for ever, and let men say, The Lord of armies is God over Israel: and let the family of David your servant be made strong before you! ^7:27For you, O Lord of armies, the God of Israel, have clearly said to your servant, I will make you the head of a family of kings: and so it has come into your servant's heart to make this prayer to you. ^7:28And now, O Lord God, you are God and your words are true and you have said you will give your servant this good thing; ^7:29So may it be your pleasure to give your blessing to the family of your servant, so that it may go on for ever before you: (for you, O Lord God, have said it,) and may your blessing be on your servant's family line for ever!

^8:1And it came about after this that David made an attack on the Philistines and overcame them; and David took the authority of the mother-town from the hands of the Philistines. ^8:2And he overcame the Moabites, and he had them measured with a line when they were stretched out on the earth; marking out two lines for death and one full line for life. So the Moabites became servants to David and gave him offerings. ^8:3And David overcame Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, when he went to make his power seen by the River. ^8:4And David took from him one thousand, seven hundred horsemen and twenty thousand footmen: and David had the leg-muscles of the horses cut, only keeping enough of them for a hundred war-carriages. ^8:5And when the Aramaeans of Damascus came to the help of Hadadezer, king of Zobah, David put to the sword twenty-two thousand of the Aramaeans. ^8:6And David put armed forces in Aram of Damascus: and the Aramaeans became servants to David and gave him offerings. And the Lord made David overcome wherever he went. ^8:7And David took their gold body-covers from the servants of Hadadezer and took them to Jerusalem. ^8:8And from Tebah and Berothai, towns of Hadadezer, King David took a great store of brass. ^8:9And when Tou, king of Hamath, had news that David had overcome all the army of Hadadezer, ^8:10He sent his son Hadoram to David, with words of peace and blessing, because he had overcome Hadadezer in the fight, for Hadadezer had wars with Tou; and Hadoram took with him vessels of silver and gold and brass: ^8:11These King David made holy to the Lord, together with the silver and gold which he had taken from the nations he had overcome-- ^8:12The nations of Edom and Moab, and the children of Ammon and the Philistines and the Amalekites and the goods he had taken from Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, king of Zobah. ^8:13And David got great honour for himself, when he came back, by the destruction of Edom in the valley of Salt, to the number of eighteen thousand men. ^8:14And he put armed forces in Edom; all through Edom he had armed forces stationed, and all the Edomites became servants to David. And the Lord made David overcome wherever he went. ^8:15And David was king over all Israel, judging and giving right decisions for all his people. ^8:16And Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief of the army; and Jehoshaphat, the son of Ahilud, was keeper of the records; ^8:17And Zadok and Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub, were priests; and Seraiah was the scribe; ^8:18And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were priests.

^9:1And David said, Is there still anyone of Saul's family living, so that I may be a friend to him, because of Jonathan? ^9:2Now there was of Saul's people a servant named Ziba, and they sent him to David; and the king said to him, Are you Ziba? And he said, I am. ^9:3And the king said, Is there anyone of Saul's family still living, to whom I may be a friend in God's name? And Ziba said, There is a son of Jonathan, whose feet are damaged. ^9:4And the king said to him, Where is he? And Ziba said to the king, He is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar. ^9:5Then King David sent, and had him taken from Lo-debar, from the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel. ^9:6And Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, came to David, and falling down on his face, gave him honour. And David said, Mephibosheth. And answering he said, Your servant is here. ^9:7And David said to him, Have no fear: for truly I will be good to you, because of your father Jonathan, and I will give back to you all the land which was Saul's; and you will have a place at my table at all times. ^9:8And he went down on his face before the king, and said, What is your servant, for you to take note of a dead dog such as I am? ^9:9Then the king sent for Ziba, Saul's servant, and said to him, All the property of Saul and of his family I have given to your master's son. ^9:10And you and your sons and your servants are to take care of the land for him, and get in the fruit of it, so that your master's son may have food: but Mephibosheth, your master's son, will have a place at my table at all times. Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. ^9:11Then Ziba said to the king, Every order which you have given to your servant will be done. As for Mephibosheth, he had a place at David's table, like one of the king's sons. ^9:12And Mephibosheth had a young son named Mica. And all the people living in the house of Ziba were servants to Mephibosheth. ^9:13So Mephibosheth went on living in Jerusalem; for he took all his meals at the king's table; and he had not the use of his feet.

^10:1Now after this, death came to the king of the children of Ammon, and Hanun, his son, became king in his place. ^10:2And David said, I will be a friend to Hanun, the son of Nahash, as his father was a friend to me. So David sent his servants, to give him words of comfort on account of his father. And David's servants came into the land of the children of Ammon. ^10:3But the chiefs of the children of Ammon said to Hanun their lord, Does it seem to you that David is honouring your father by sending comforters to you? has he not sent his servants to go through the town and make secret observation of it, and overcome it? ^10:4So Hanun took David's servants, and after cutting off half the hair on their chins, and cutting off the skirts of their robes up to the middle, he sent them away. ^10:5When David had news of it, he sent men out with the purpose of meeting them on their way, for the men were greatly shamed: and the king said, Go to Jericho till your hair is long again, and then come back. ^10:6And when the children of Ammon saw that they had made themselves hated by David, they sent to the Aramaeans of Beth-rehob and Zobah, and got for payment twenty thousand footmen, and they got from the king of Maacah a thousand men, and from Tob twelve thousand. ^10:7And hearing of this, David sent Joab and all the army and the best fighting-men. ^10:8And the children of Ammon came out and put their forces in position at the way into the town: and the Aramaeans of Zobah and of Rehob, with the men of Tob and Maacah, were by themselves in the field. ^10:9Now when Joab saw that their forces were in position against him in front and at his back, he took the best of the men of Israel and put them in line against the Aramaeans; ^10:10And the rest of the people he put in position against the children of Ammon, with Abishai, his brother, at their head. ^10:11And he said, If the Aramaeans are stronger and get the better of me, then you are to come to my help; but if the children of Ammon get the better of you, I will come to your help. ^10:12Take heart, and let us be strong for our people and for the towns of our God, and may the Lord do what seems good to him. ^10:13Then Joab and the people with him went forward to the fight against the Aramaeans, and they went in flight before him. ^10:14And when the children of Ammon saw the flight of the Aramaeans, they themselves went in flight from Abishai, and came into the town. So Joab went back from fighting the children of Ammon and came to Jerusalem. ^10:15And when the Aramaeans saw that Israel had overcome them, they got themselves together. ^10:16And Hadadezer sent for the Aramaeans who were on the other side of the River: and they came to Helam, with Shobach, the captain of Hadadezer's army, at their head. ^10:17And word of this was given to David: and he got all Israel together and went over Jordan and came to Helam. And the Aramaeans put their forces in position against David, and made an attack on him. ^10:18And the Aramaeans went in flight before Israel; and David put to the sword the men of seven hundred Aramaean war-carriages and forty thousand footmen, and Shobach, the captain of the army, was wounded, and came to his death there. ^10:19And when all the kings who were servants of Hadadezer saw that they were overcome by Israel, they made peace with Israel and became their servants. So the Aramaeans, in fear, gave no more help to the children of Ammon.

^11:1Now in the spring, at the time when kings go out to war, David sent Joab and his servants and all Israel with him; and they made waste the land of the children of Ammon, and took up their position before Rabbah, shutting it in. But David was still at Jerusalem. ^11:2Now one evening, David got up from his bed, and while he was walking on the roof of the king's house, he saw from there a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful. ^11:3And David sent to get knowledge who the woman was. And one said, Is this not Bath-sheba, the daughter of Eliam and wife of Uriah the Hittite? ^11:4And David sent and took her; and she came to him, and he took her to his bed: (for she had been made clean;) then she went back to her house. ^11:5And the woman became with child; and she sent word to David that she was with child. ^11:6And David sent to Joab saying, Send Uriah the Hittite to me. And Joab sent Uriah to David. ^11:7And when Uriah came to him, David put questions to him about how Joab and the people were, and how the war was going. ^11:8And David said to Uriah, Go down to your house and let your feet be washed. And Uriah went away from the king's house, and an offering from the king was sent after him. ^11:9But Uriah took his rest at the door of the king's house, with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. ^11:10And when word was given to David that Uriah had not gone down to his house, David said to Uriah, Have you not come from a journey? why did you not go down to your house? ^11:11And Uriah said to David, Israel and Judah with the ark are living in tents, and my lord Joab and the other servants of my lord are sleeping in the open field; and am I to go to my house and take food and drink, and go to bed with my wife? By the living Lord, and by the life of your soul, I will not do such a thing. ^11:12And David said to Uriah, Be here today, and after that I will let you go. So Uriah was in Jerusalem that day and the day after. ^11:13And when David sent for him, he took meat and drink with him, and David made him the worse for drink: and when evening came, he went to rest on his bed with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house. ^11:14Now in the morning, David gave Uriah a letter to take to Joab. ^11:15And in the letter he said, Take care to put Uriah in the very front of the line, where the fighting is most violent, and go back from him, so that he may be overcome and put to death. ^11:16So while Joab was watching the town, he put Uriah in the place where it was clear to him the best fighters were. ^11:17And the men of the town went out and had a fight with Joab: and a number of David's men came to their death in the fight, and with them Uriah the Hittite. ^11:18Then Joab sent David news of everything which had taken place in the war: ^11:19And he gave orders to the man who took the news, saying, After you have given the king all the news about the war, ^11:20If the king is angry and says, Why did you go so near the town for the fight? was it not certain that their archers would be on the wall? ^11:21Who put Abimelech, the son of Jerubbaal, to death? did not a woman send a great stone down on him from the wall, putting him to death at Thebez? why did you go so near the wall? Then say to him, Your servant Uriah the Hittite is among the dead. ^11:22So the man went, and came to David, and gave him all the news which Joab had sent him to give; then David was angry with Joab and said, Why did you go so near the town for the fight? was it not certain that their archers would be on the wall? who put Abimelech, the son of Jerubbaal, to death? did not a woman send a great stone down on him from the wall, putting him to death at Thebez? why did you go so near the wall? ^11:23And the man said to David, Truly the men got the better of us, and came out against us into the open country, but we sent them back to the very doors of the town. ^11:24And the archers sent their arrows at your servants from the wall, and some of the king's servants are dead, and among them is your servant Uriah the Hittite. ^11:25Then David said to the man, Go and say to Joab, Do not let this be a grief to you; for one man may come to his death by the sword like another: put up an even stronger fight against the town, and take it: and do you put heart into him. ^11:26And when the wife of Uriah had news that her husband was dead, she gave herself up to weeping for him. ^11:27And when the days of weeping were past, David sent for her, and took her into his house, and she became his wife and gave him a son. But the Lord was not pleased with the thing David had done.