David Made King over Judah

2 So it happened after this that David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go up into one of the cities of Judah?” And the Lord said to him, “Go up.” David asked, “Where shall I go?” And He said, “To Hebron.” ² So David went up there [to Hebron] with his two wives also, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel [in Judah]. ³ And David brought up his men who were with him, each one with his household; and they lived in the cities of Hebron. ⁴ Then the men of Judah came and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah.

Then they told David, “It was the men of Jabesh-gilead who buried Saul.”^{(A) 5} So David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh-gilead, and said to them, “May you be blessed by the Lord because you showed this graciousness and loyalty to Saul your lord (king), and buried him. ⁶ Now may the Lord show lovingkindness and truth and faithfulness to you. I too will show this goodness to you, because you have done this thing. ⁷ So now, let your hands be strong and be valiant; for your lord Saul is dead, and also the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”

Ish-bosheth Made King over Israel

⁸ Now [Saul’s cousin] Abner the son of Ner, commander of Saul’s army, had taken Ish-bosheth the son of Saul and brought him over to ^[a]Mahanaim. ⁹ He made him king over Gilead, over the Ashurites, over Jezreel, over Ephraim, over Benjamin, even over all Israel [except Judah]. ¹⁰ Ish-bosheth, Saul’s son, was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he reigned for two years. But the house of Judah followed David. ¹¹ And the time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.

Civil War

¹² Now Abner the son of Ner and the servants of Ish-bosheth the son of Saul went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon. ¹³ Joab [David’s nephew] the son of Zeruiah and the servants of David also went out and met them by the pool of Gibeon. They sat down, with one group on one side of the pool and the other group on the other side of the pool. ¹⁴ Then Abner said to Joab, “Let the young men now stand and ^[b]have a contest before us.” And Joab said, “Let them stand.” ¹⁵ So they stood up and went over by number, twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, and twelve of the servants of David. ¹⁶ Each one of them seized his opponent by the head and thrust his sword into his opponents side; so they fell down together. Therefore that place was called Helkath-hazzurim [that is, the Field of Sides], which is in Gibeon. ¹⁷ There was a very fierce battle that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.

¹⁸ Three sons of Zeruiah [the half sister of David] were there: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Now Asahel was as light and swift-footed as one of the [wild] gazelles in the field. ¹⁹ Asahel pursued Abner and did not turn to the right or to the left as he followed him. ²⁰ Then Abner looked behind him and said, “Is that you, Asahel?” He answered, “It is I.” ²¹ So Abner said to him, “Turn to your right or to your left, and grab one of the young men and take his armor for yourself.” But Asahel was not willing to turn away from pursuing Abner. ²² Abner repeated again, “Turn away from following me. Why should I have to strike you to the ground? How would I ^[c]be able to face Joab your brother [and look him in the eye]?” ²³ But Asahel refused to turn away; so Abner struck him in the abdomen with the ^[d]butt end of his spear, and the spear came out his back; and he fell there and died on that spot. And it came about that everyone who came to the place where Asahel fell and died, stood still [and reflected].

²⁴ But Joab and Abishai [Asahel’s brothers] pursued Abner. When the sun was going down, they came to the hill of Ammah, which is in front of Giah on the way to the wilderness of Gibeon. ²⁵ And the sons of [the tribe of] Benjamin gathered together behind Abner and became one troop, and took their stand on the top of a hill. ²⁶ Then Abner called to Joab, “Must the sword devour forever? Do you not know that it will be bitter in the end? How long [will it be] before you tell the people to stop pursuing their brothers?” ²⁷ Joab said, “As God lives, if you had not spoken, then the people certainly would have stopped pursuing their brothers in the morning.” ²⁸ So Joab blew the trumpet; and all the people halted and no longer pursued Israel, nor did they fight anymore. ²⁹ Then Abner and his men went through the Arabah (desert region) all that night, crossed the Jordan, went through Bithron and walked the whole morning and came to Mahanaim [where Ish-bosheth ruled Israel].

³⁰ Joab returned from pursuing Abner; and when he had gathered all the people together, nineteen of David’s servants were missing, besides Asahel. ³¹ But the servants of David had struck down many of Benjamin and Abner’s men; so that three hundred and sixty men died. ³² And they picked up [the body of] Asahel and buried him in the tomb of his father in Bethlehem. Then Joab and his men walked all night and they arrived in Hebron at daybreak.

The House of David Strengthened

3 There was a long war between the house of Saul and the house of David; but David grew steadily stronger, while the house of Saul grew weaker and weaker [to the point of being powerless].

² Sons were born to David in Hebron: his firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam of Jezreel; ³ his second, Chileab, by Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel; the third, Absalom the son of [his wife] Maacah, daughter of Talmai the king of Geshur; ⁴ the fourth, Adonijah the son of [his wife] Haggith; the fifth, Shephatiah the son of [his wife] Abital; ⁵ and the sixth, Ithream, by David’s wife Eglah. These [sons] were born to David in Hebron.

Family of David

3 These were the sons of David who were born to him in Hebron: the firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; second, Daniel (Chileab), by Abigail the Carmelitess; ² third, Absalom the son of Maacah, daughter of Talmai king of Geshur; fourth, Adonijah, the son of Haggith; ³ fifth, Shephatiah, by Abital; sixth, Ithream, by his wife Eglah. ⁴ These six were born to David in Hebron; he reigned there seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years.

His Mighty Men

⁸ These are the names of the mighty men (warriors) whom David had: Josheb-basshebeth, a Tahchemonite, chief of the ^[a]captains, also called Adino the Eznite (spear) because of the ^[b]eight hundred men killed [by him] at one time.^{(A) 9} Next to him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the son of Ahohi. He was one of the three mighty men with David when they taunted and defied the Philistines assembled there for battle, and the men of Israel had gone. ¹⁰ Eleazar stood up and struck down the Philistines until his hand was weary and clung to the sword. The Lord brought about a great victory that day; the people returned after him only to take the spoil [of the slain].

¹¹ Next to Eleazar was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. The Philistines were gathered into an army where there was a plot of ground full of lentils, and the people [of Israel] fled from the Philistines. ¹² But he took his stand in the center of the plot and defended it and struck down the Philistines; and the Lord brought about a great victory.

¹³ Then three of the thirty chief men went down and came to David at harvest time in the cave of Adullam, while an army of Philistines was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim. ¹⁴ David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Bethlehem. ¹⁵ And David had a craving and said, “Oh that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate!” ¹⁶ So the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines, and drew water from the well of Bethlehem by the gate, and carried and brought it to David. But he would not drink it, but poured it out [in worship] to the Lord. ¹⁷ And he said, “Far be it from me, O Lord, that I should drink this. [Is it not the same as] the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives?” So he would not drink it. These things the ^[c]three mighty men did.

David’s Mighty Men

¹⁰ Now these are the chiefs of David’s mighty men, who strongly supported him in his kingdom, together with all Israel, to make him king, in accordance with the word of the Lord concerning Israel. ¹¹ This is the list of David’s mighty men: Jashobeam, the son of a Hachmonite, the chief of the thirty [heroes]. He lifted up his spear against three hundred whom he killed at one time.

¹² Next to him [in rank] was Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, who was one of the three mighty men. ¹³ He was with David at Pasdammim [where David had killed Goliath] and there the Philistines were gathered together for battle, and there was a plot of ground full of barley; and the people [of Israel] fled before the Philistines. ¹⁴ But they took their stand in the midst of that plot and defended it, and killed the Philistines; and the Lord rescued them by a great victory.^(A)

¹⁵ Three of the thirty chief men went down to the rock to David, into the cave of Adullam, while the army of the Philistines was camped in the Valley of Rephaim. ¹⁶ David was then in the stronghold, while the garrison of the Philistines was in Bethlehem. ¹⁷ David had a craving and said, “Oh that someone would give me a drink of water from the well of Bethlehem, which is next to the gate!” ¹⁸ Then the three [mighty men] broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem which was next to the gate, and brought it to David. But David would not drink it; he poured it out to the Lord [as an offering]; ¹⁹ and he said, “Far be it from me before my God that I would do this thing! Shall I drink the blood of these men who have put their lives in jeopardy? For they brought it at the risk of their lives.” So he would not drink it. These things the three mighty men did.

¹⁸ Now Abishai the brother of Joab the son of Zeruiah was chief of the ^[a]thirty. He wielded his spear against three hundred men and killed them, and gained a reputation beside the three. ¹⁹ He was the most honored of the thirty, so he became their commander; however, he did not attain to the [greatness of the] three.

²⁰ Then Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, who had done many notable acts, killed two [famous] warriors of Moab. He also went down and killed a lion in the middle of a pit on a snowy day. ²¹ And he killed an Egyptian, an impressive and handsome man. The Egyptian had a spear in his hand, but Benaiah went down to him with a club, snatched the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand and killed the man with his own spear. ²² These things Benaiah the son of Jehoiada did, and gained a reputation beside the three mighty men. ²³ He was honored among the thirty, but he did not attain to the [greatness of the] three. David appointed him over his guard.

²⁴ Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty; then Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem, ²⁵ Shammah of Harod, Elika of Harod, ²⁶ Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh of Tekoa, ²⁷ Abiezer of Anathoth, Mebunnai the Hushathite, ²⁸ Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai of Netophah, ²⁹ Heleb the son of Baanah of Netophah, Ittai the son of Ribai of Gibeah of the Benjamites, ³⁰ Benaiah of Pirathon, Hiddai of the brooks of Gaash, ³¹ Abi-albon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite, ³² Eliahba of Shaalbon, the sons of Jashen, Jonathan, ³³ Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Ararite, ³⁴ Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai the son of Maacah, Eliam the son of Ahithophel of Giloh, ³⁵ Hezro (Hezrai) of Carmel, Paarai the Arbite, ³⁶ Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite, ³⁷ Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai of Beeroth, armor bearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah, ³⁸ Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite, ³⁹ Uriah the Hittite—thirty-seven in all.

²⁰ Abishai the brother of Joab was chief of the [other] ^[a]three, and he lifted up his spear against three hundred and killed them, and he had a name as well as the three. ²¹ Of the three in the second [rank] he was the most honored and became their captain; however, he did not attain to the first three [Jashobeam, Eleazar, and Shammah].

²² Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a courageous man of Kabzeel who had done great things, killed the two sons of Ariel of Moab. Also he went down and killed a lion in a pit on a snowy day. ²³ He killed an Egyptian also, a man of great stature, five ^[b]cubits tall. In the Egyptian’s hand was a spear like a weaver’s beam, and Benaiah went down to him with [only] a staff (rod) and grabbed the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear. ²⁴ Benaiah the son of Jehoiada did these things, and had a name as well as the three mighty men. ²⁵ He was honored among the thirty, but he did not attain to [the rank of] the [first] three. David appointed him over his bodyguard.

²⁶ Now the mighty men of the armies were: Asahel the brother of Joab, Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem, ²⁷ Shammoth the Harorite, Helez the Pelonite, ²⁸ Ira the son of Ikkesh of Tekoa, Abiezer of Anathoth, ²⁹ Sibbecai the Hushathite, Ilai the Ahohite, ³⁰ Maharai the Netophathite, Heled the son of Baanah the Netophathite, ³¹ Ithai the son of Ribai of Gibeah of the Benjamites, Benaiah the Pirathonite, ³² Hurai of the brooks of Gaash, Abiel the Arbathite, ³³ Azmaveth the Baharumite, Eliahba the Shaalbonite, ³⁴ the sons of Hashem the Gizonite, Jonathan the son of Shagee the Hararite, ³⁵ Ahiam the son of Sacar the Hararite, Eliphal the son of Ur, ³⁶ Hepher the Mecherathite, Ahijah the Pelonite, ³⁷ Hezro the Carmelite, Naarai the son of Ezbai, ³⁸ Joel the brother of Nathan, Mibhar the son of Hagri, ³⁹ Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Berothite, the armor bearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah [David’s half sister], ⁴⁰ Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite, ⁴¹ Uriah the Hittite [Bathsheba’s husband], Zabad the son of Ahlai, ⁴² Adina the son of Shiza the Reubenite, a chief of the Reubenites, and thirty [heroes] with him, ⁴³ Hanan the son of Maacah, and Joshaphat the Mithnite, ⁴⁴ Uzzia the Ashterathite, Shama and Jeiel the sons of Hotham the Aroerite, ⁴⁵ Jediael the son of Shimri, and his brother Joha, the Tizite, ⁴⁶ Eliel the Mahavite, Jeribai and Joshaviah the sons of Elnaam, Ithmah the Moabite, ⁴⁷ Eliel and Obed and Jaasiel the Mezobaite.