The Philistines Reject David

29 Then ^(A)the Philistines gathered together all their armies ^(B)at Aphek, and the Israelites encamped by a fountain which is in Jezreel. ² And the ^(C)lords of the Philistines ^[a]passed in review by hundreds and by thousands, but ^(D)David and his men passed in review at the rear with Achish. ³ Then the princes of the Philistines said, “What are these Hebrews doing here?”

And Achish said to the princes of the Philistines, “Is this not David, the servant of Saul king of Israel, who has been with me ^(E)these days, or these years? And to this day I have ^(F)found no fault in him since he defected to me.”

⁴ But the princes of the Philistines were angry with him; so the princes of the Philistines said to him, ^(G)“Make this fellow return, that he may go back to the place which you have appointed for him, and do not let him go down with us to ^(H)battle, lest ^(I)in the battle he become our adversary. For with what could he reconcile himself to his master, if not with the heads of these ^(J)men? ⁵ Is this not David, ^(K)of whom they sang to one another in dances, saying:

⁶ Then Achish called David and said to him, “Surely, as the Lord lives, you have been upright, and ^(M)your going out and your coming in with me in the army is good in my sight. For to this day ^(N)I have not found evil in you since the day of your coming to me. Nevertheless the lords do not favor you. ⁷ Therefore return now, and go in peace, that you may not displease the lords of the Philistines.”

⁸ So David said to Achish, “But what have I done? And to this day what have you found in your servant as long as I have been with you, that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my lord the king?”

⁹ Then Achish answered and said to David, “I know that you are as good in my sight ^(O)as an angel of God; nevertheless ^(P)the princes of the Philistines have said, ‘He shall not go up with us to the battle.’ ¹⁰ Now therefore, rise early in the morning with your master’s servants ^(Q)who have come with ^[b]you. And as soon as you are up early in the morning and have light, depart.”

¹¹ So David and his men rose early to depart in the morning, to return to the land of the Philistines. ^(R)And the Philistines went up to Jezreel.

David’s Conflict with the Amalekites

30 Now it happened, when David and his men came to ^(S)Ziklag, on the third day, that the ^(T)Amalekites had invaded the South and Ziklag, attacked Ziklag and burned it with fire, ² and had taken captive the ^(U)women and those who were there, from small to great; they did not kill anyone, but carried them away and went their way. ³ So David and his men came to the city, and there it was, burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive. ⁴ Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep. ⁵ And David’s two ^(V)wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite, had been taken captive. ⁶ Now David was greatly distressed, for ^(W)the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was ^[c]grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. ^(X)But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.

^7 (Y)Then David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech’s son, “Please bring the ephod here to me.” And ^(Z)Abiathar brought the ephod to David. ^8 (AA)So David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?”

And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.”

⁹ So David went, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and came to the Brook Besor, where those stayed who were left behind. ¹⁰ But David pursued, he and four hundred men; ^(AB)for two hundred stayed behind, who were so weary that they could not cross the Brook Besor.

¹¹ Then they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David; and they gave him bread and he ate, and they let him drink water. ¹² And they gave him a piece of ^(AC)a cake of figs and two clusters of raisins. So ^(AD)when he had eaten, his strength came back to him; for he had eaten no bread nor drunk water for three days and three nights. ¹³ Then David said to him, “To whom do you belong, and where are you from?”

And he said, “I am a young man from Egypt, servant of an Amalekite; and my master left me behind, because three days ago I fell sick. ¹⁴ We made an invasion of the southern area of ^(AE)the Cherethites, in the territory which belongs to Judah, and of the southern area ^(AF)of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire.”

¹⁵ And David said to him, “Can you take me down to this troop?”

So he said, “Swear to me by God that you will neither kill me nor deliver me into the hands of my ^(AG)master, and I will take you down to this troop.”

¹⁶ And when he had brought him down, there they were, spread out over all the land, ^(AH)eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great spoil which they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah. ¹⁷ Then David attacked them from twilight until the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled. ¹⁸ So David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away, and David rescued his two wives. ¹⁹ And nothing of theirs was lacking, either small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything which they had taken from them; ^(AI)David recovered all. ²⁰ Then David took all the flocks and herds they had driven before those other livestock, and said, “This is David’s spoil.”

²¹ Now David came to the ^(AJ)two hundred men who had been so weary that they could not follow David, whom they also had made to stay at the Brook Besor. So they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him. And when David came near the people, he ^[d]greeted them. ²² Then all the wicked and ^(AK)worthless^[e] men of those who went with David answered and said, “Because they did not go with us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have recovered, except for every man’s wife and children, that they may lead them away and depart.”

²³ But David said, “My brethren, you shall not do so with what the Lord has given us, who has preserved us and delivered into our hand the troop that came against us. ²⁴ For who will heed you in this matter? But ^(AL)as his part is who goes down to the battle, so shall his part be who stays by the supplies; they shall share alike.” ²⁵ So it was, from that day forward; he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day.

²⁶ Now when David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the ^[f]spoil to the elders of Judah, to his friends, saying, “Here is a present for you from the spoil of the enemies of the Lord”— ²⁷ to those who were in Bethel, those who were in ^(AM)Ramoth of the South, those who were in ^(AN)Jattir, ²⁸ those who were in ^(AO)Aroer, those who were in ^(AP)Siphmoth, those who were in ^(AQ)Eshtemoa, ²⁹ those who were in Rachal, those who were in the cities of ^(AR)the Jerahmeelites, those who were in the cities of the ^(AS)Kenites, ³⁰ those who were in ^(AT)Hormah, those who were in ^[g]Chorashan, those who were in Athach, ³¹ those who were in ^(AU)Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men were accustomed to ^(AV)rove.

The Tragic End of Saul and His Sons^(AW)

31 Now ^(AX)the Philistines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell slain on Mount ^(AY)Gilboa. ² Then the Philistines followed hard after Saul and his sons. And the Philistines killed ^(AZ)Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua, Saul’s sons. ^3 (BA)The battle became fierce against Saul. The archers ^[h]hit him, and he was severely wounded by the archers.

^4 (BB)Then Saul said to his armorbearer, “Draw your sword, and thrust me through with it, lest ^(BC)these uncircumcised men come and thrust me through and ^[i]abuse me.”

But his armorbearer would not, ^(BD)for he was greatly afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword and ^(BE)fell on it. ⁵ And when his armorbearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword, and died with him. ⁶ So Saul, his three sons, his armorbearer, and all his men died together that same day.

⁷ And when the men of Israel who were on the other side of the valley, and those who were on the other side of the Jordan, saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook the cities and fled; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them. ⁸ So it happened the next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. ⁹ And they cut off his head and stripped off his armor, and sent word throughout the land of the Philistines, to ^(BF)proclaim it in the temple of their idols and among the people. ^10 (BG)Then they put his armor in the temple of the ^(BH)Ashtoreths, and ^(BI)they fastened his body to the wall of ^(BJ)Beth^[j] Shan.

^11 (BK)Now when the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, ^12 (BL)all the valiant men arose and traveled all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth Shan; and they came to Jabesh and ^(BM)burned them there. ¹³ Then they took their bones and ^(BN)buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, ^(BO)and fasted seven days.

The Report of Saul’s Death

1 Now it came to pass after the ^(A)death of Saul, when David had returned from ^(B)the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had stayed two days in Ziklag, ² on the third day, behold, it happened that ^(C)a man came from Saul’s camp ^(D)with his clothes ^[a]torn and dust on his head. So it was, when he came to David, that he ^(E)fell to the ground and prostrated himself.

³ And David said to him, “Where have you come from?”

So he said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.”

⁴ Then David said to him, ^(F)“How did the matter go? Please tell me.”

And he answered, “The people have fled from the battle, many of the people are fallen and dead, and Saul and ^(G)Jonathan his son are dead also.”

⁵ So David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?”

⁶ Then the young man who told him said, “As I happened by chance to be on ^(H)Mount Gilboa, there was ^(I)Saul, leaning on his spear; and indeed the chariots and horsemen followed hard after him. ⁷ Now when he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. And I answered, ‘Here I am.’ ⁸ And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ So I answered him, ‘I am an Amalekite.’ ⁹ He said to me again, ‘Please stand over me and kill me, for ^[b]anguish has come upon me, but my life still remains in me.’ ¹⁰ So I stood over him and ^(J)killed him, because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. And I took the crown that was on his head and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my lord.”

¹¹ Therefore David took hold of his own clothes and ^(K)tore them, and so did all the men who were with him. ¹² And they ^(L)mourned and wept and ^(M)fasted until evening for Saul and for Jonathan his son, for the ^(N)people of the Lord and for the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword.

¹³ Then David said to the young man who told him, “Where are you from?”

And he answered, “I am the son of an alien, an Amalekite.”

¹⁴ So David said to him, “How ^(O)was it you were not ^(P)afraid to ^(Q)put forth your hand to destroy the Lord’s anointed?” ¹⁵ Then ^(R)David called one of the young men and said, “Go near, and execute him!” And he struck him so that he died. ¹⁶ So David said to him, ^(S)“Your blood is on your own head, for ^(T)your own mouth has testified against you, saying, ‘I have killed the Lord’s anointed.’ ”

The Song of the Bow

¹⁷ Then David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son, ^18 (U)and he told them to teach the children of Judah the Song of the Bow; indeed it is written ^(V)in the Book ^[c]of Jasher:

David Anointed King of Judah

2 It happened after this that David ^(AJ)inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go up to any of the cities of Judah?”

And the Lord said to him, “Go up.”

David said, “Where shall I go up?”

And He said, “To ^(AK)Hebron.”

² So David went up there, and his ^(AL)two wives also, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite. ³ And David brought up ^(AM)the men who were with him, every man with his household. So they dwelt in the cities of Hebron.

^4 (AN)Then the men of Judah came, and there they ^(AO)anointed David king over the house of Judah. And they told David, saying, ^(AP)“The men of Jabesh Gilead were the ones who buried Saul.” ⁵ So David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead, and said to them, ^(AQ)“You are blessed of the Lord, for you have shown this kindness to your lord, to Saul, and have buried him. ⁶ And now may ^(AR)the Lord show kindness and truth to you. I also will repay you this kindness, because you have done this thing. ⁷ Now therefore, let your hands be strengthened, and be valiant; for your master Saul is dead, and also the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”

Ishbosheth Made King of Israel

⁸ But ^(AS)Abner the son of Ner, commander of Saul’s army, took ^[e]Ishbosheth the son of Saul and brought him over to ^(AT)Mahanaim; ⁹ and he made him king over ^(AU)Gilead, over the ^(AV)Ashurites, over ^(AW)Jezreel, over Ephraim, over Benjamin, and over all Israel. ¹⁰ Ishbosheth, Saul’s son, was forty years old when he began to reign over Israel, and he reigned two years. Only the house of Judah followed David. ¹¹ And ^(AX)the ^[f]time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.

Israel and Judah at War

¹² Now Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ishbosheth the son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to ^(AY)Gibeon. ¹³ And ^(AZ)Joab the son of Zeruiah, and the servants of David, went out and met them by ^(BA)the pool of Gibeon. So they sat down, one on one side of the pool and the other on the other side of the pool. ¹⁴ Then Abner said to Joab, “Let the young men now arise and compete before us.”

And Joab said, “Let them arise.”

¹⁵ So they arose and went over by number, twelve from Benjamin, followers of Ishbosheth the son of Saul, and twelve from the servants of David. ¹⁶ And each one grasped his opponent by the head and thrust his sword in his opponent’s side; so they fell down together. Therefore that place was called ^[g]the Field of Sharp Swords, which is in Gibeon. ¹⁷ So there was a very fierce battle that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.

¹⁸ Now the ^(BB)three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab and Abishai and Asahel. And Asahel was ^(BC)as fleet of foot ^(BD)as a wild gazelle. ¹⁹ So Asahel pursued Abner, and in going he did not turn to the right hand or to the left from following Abner.

²⁰ Then Abner looked behind him and said, “Are you Asahel?”

He answered, “I am.”

²¹ And Abner said to him, “Turn aside to your right hand or to your left, and lay hold on one of the young men and take his armor for yourself.” But Asahel would not turn aside from following him. ²² So Abner said again to Asahel, “Turn aside from following me. Why should I strike you to the ground? How then could I face your brother Joab?” ²³ However, he refused to turn aside. Therefore Abner struck him ^(BE)in the stomach with the blunt end of the spear, so that the spear came out of his back; and he fell down there and died on the spot. So it was that as many as came to the place where Asahel fell down and died, stood ^(BF)still.

²⁴ Joab and Abishai also pursued Abner. And the sun was going down when they came to the hill of Ammah, which is before Giah by the road to the Wilderness of Gibeon. ²⁵ Now the children of Benjamin gathered together behind Abner and became ^[h]a unit, and took their stand on top of a hill. ²⁶ Then Abner called to Joab and said, “Shall the sword devour forever? Do you not know that it will be bitter in the latter end? How long will it be then until you tell the people to return from pursuing their brethren?”

²⁷ And Joab said, “As God lives, ^[i]unless ^(BG)you had spoken, surely then by morning all the people would have given up pursuing their brethren.” ²⁸ So Joab blew a trumpet; and all the people stood still and did not pursue Israel anymore, nor did they fight anymore. ²⁹ Then Abner and his men went on all that night through the plain, crossed over the Jordan, and went through all Bithron; and they came to Mahanaim.

³⁰ So Joab returned from pursuing Abner. And when he had gathered all the people together, there were missing of David’s servants nineteen men and Asahel. ³¹ But the servants of David had struck down, of Benjamin and Abner’s men, three hundred and sixty men who died. ³² Then they took up Asahel and buried him in his father’s tomb, which was in ^(BH)Bethlehem. And Joab and his men went all night, and they came to Hebron at daybreak.