2 Samuel 23:15-17

New English Translation

¹⁵ David was thirsty and said, “How I wish someone would give me some water to drink from the cistern in Bethlehem near the gate!” ¹⁶ So the three elite warriors broke through the Philistine forces and drew some water from the cistern in Bethlehem near the gate. They carried it back to David, but he refused to drink it. He poured it out as a drink offering to the Lord ¹⁷ and said, “O Lord, I will not do this!^[a] It is equivalent to the blood of the men who risked their lives by going.”^[b] So he refused to drink it. Such were the exploits of the three elite warriors.^[c]