^20 (A)Abishai the brother of Joab was chief of another ^[a]three. He had lifted up his spear against three hundred men, killed them, and won a name among these three.

⁶ Then David answered, and said to Ahimelech the Hittite and to Abishai ^(A)the son of Zeruiah, brother of ^(B)Joab, saying, “Who will ^(C)go down with me to Saul in the camp?”

And ^(D)Abishai said, “I will go down with you.”

¹⁶ Now their sisters were Zeruiah and Abigail. ^(A)And the sons of Zeruiah were Abishai, Joab, and Asahel—three.

¹⁸ Now ^(A)Abishai the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief of ^[a]another three. He lifted his spear against three hundred men, killed them, and won a name among these three. ¹⁹ Was he not the most honored of three? Therefore he became their captain. However, he did not attain to the first three.

²⁰ Benaiah was the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man from ^(B)Kabzeel, ^[b]who had done many deeds. ^(C)He had killed two lion-like heroes of Moab. He also had gone down and killed a lion in the midst of a pit on a snowy day. ²¹ And he killed an Egyptian, ^[c]a spectacular man. The Egyptian had a spear in his hand; so he went down to him with a staff, wrested the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and killed him with his own spear. ²² These things Benaiah the son of Jehoiada did, and won a name among three mighty men. ²³ He was more honored than the thirty, but he did not attain to the first three. And David appointed him ^(D)over his guard.

^24 (E)Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty; Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem, ^25 (F)Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite, ²⁶ Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, ²⁷ Abiezer the Anathothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite, ²⁸ Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite, ²⁹ Heleb the son of Baanah (the Netophathite), Ittai the son of Ribai from Gibeah of the children of Benjamin, ³⁰ Benaiah a Pirathonite, Hiddai from the brooks of ^(G)Gaash, ³¹ Abi-Albon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite, ³² Eliahba the Shaalbonite (of the sons of Jashen), Jonathan, ^33 (H)Shammah the ^[d]Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Hararite, ³⁴ Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai, the son of the Maachathite, Eliam the son of ^(I)Ahithophel the Gilonite, ^35 [e]Hezrai the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite, ³⁶ Igal the son of Nathan of ^(J)Zobah, Bani the Gadite, ³⁷ Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite (armorbearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah), ^38 (K)Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite, ³⁹ and ^(L)Uriah the Hittite: thirty-seven in all.

¹⁷ But ^(A)Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid, and struck the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, ^(B)“You shall go out no more with us to battle, lest you quench the ^(C)lamp of Israel.”

⁶ And David said to ^(A)Abishai, “Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom. Take ^(B)your lord’s servants and pursue him, lest he find for himself fortified cities, and escape us.”

² Then David sent out one third of the people under the hand of Joab, ^(A)one third under the hand of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, and one third under the hand of ^(B)Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the people, “I also will surely go out with you myself.”

³⁰ So Joab and Abishai his brother killed Abner, because he had killed their brother ^(A)Asahel at Gibeon in the battle.

¹⁸ Now the ^(A)three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab and Abishai and Asahel. And Asahel was ^(B)as fleet of foot ^(C)as a wild gazelle.