David Defeats the Amalekites

¹⁶ And when he had taken him down, behold, they were spread abroad over all the land, eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great spoil they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah. ¹⁷ And David struck them down from twilight until the evening of the next day, and not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men, who mounted camels and fled. ^18 (A)David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and David rescued his two wives. ¹⁹ Nothing was missing, whether small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything that had been taken. ^(B)David brought back all. ²⁰ David also captured all the flocks and herds, and the people drove the livestock before him,^[a] and said, “This is David's spoil.”

²¹ Then David came to ^(C)the two hundred men who had been too exhausted to follow David, and who had been left ^(D)at the brook Besor. And they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him. And when David came near to the people he greeted them. ²² Then all the wicked and worthless fellows among the men who had gone with David said, “Because they did not go with us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have recovered, except that each man may lead away his wife and children, and depart.” ²³ But David said, “You shall not do so, my brothers, with what the Lord has given us. He has preserved us and given into our hand the band that came against us. ²⁴ Who would listen to you in this matter? ^(E)For as his share is who goes down into the battle, so shall his share be who stays by the baggage. They shall share alike.” ²⁵ And he made it a statute and a rule for Israel from that day forward to this day.

²⁶ When David came to Ziklag, he sent part of the spoil to his friends, the elders of Judah, saying, “Here is a present for you from the spoil of the enemies of the Lord.” ²⁷ It was for those in ^(F)Bethel, in Ramoth of the Negeb, in ^(G)Jattir, ²⁸ in ^(H)Aroer, in Siphmoth, in ^(I)Eshtemoa, ²⁹ in Racal, in the cities of ^(J)the Jerahmeelites, in the cities of ^(K)the Kenites, ³⁰ in ^(L)Hormah, in Bor-ashan, in Athach, ³¹ in ^(M)Hebron, for all the places where David and his men had roamed.