1 Samuel 30
International Standard Version
Trouble on David’s Return to Ziklag
30 When David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day, the Amalekites had raided the Negev[a] and Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and set it on fire. 2 They took the women in it captive, from young to old.[b] They did not kill anyone. Instead, they carried them off and went on their way. 3 David and his men came to the town, and it had been burned down. Their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive. 4 Then David and the people who were with him lifted their voices and cried until they had no more strength left to cry. 5 David’s two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, Nabal’s former[c] wife, had been captured. 6 David was in great danger[d] because all the people were bitter because of their sons and daughters, and they were talking about stoning him. But David found strength[e] in the Lord his God.
David Pursues the Amalekites
7 David told Ahimelech’s son Abiathar the priest, “Bring me the ephod.”[f] So Abiathar brought the ephod to David. 8 David inquired of the Lord: “Shall I pursue this raiding party?[g] Will I overtake them?”
The Lord[h] told David,[i] “Pursue them! You will definitely overtake them and rescue the captives.”[j] 9 So David and 600 men who were with him set out. They came to the Wadi[k] Besor where those who were left behind stayed. 10 David and 400 men continued the pursuit,[l] while the 200 men who were too exhausted to cross over the Wadi[m] Besor remained there.[n]
An Egyptian Leads David to the Amalekites
11 They found an Egyptian man in the field, and they took him to David. They gave him food to eat and provided water for him. 12 They gave him part of a fig cake and two bunches of raisins. After he had eaten, he revived,[o] since he had neither eaten food nor had he drunk water for three days and three nights. 13 David told him, “To whom do you belong and where are you from?”
The Egyptian[p] replied, “I’m a young Egyptian man, the slave of an Amalekite man. My master abandoned me, because I got sick three days ago. 14 We raided the Negev[q] of the Cherethites, the territory that belongs to Judah,[r] and the Negev[s] of Caleb, and we set Ziklag on fire.”
15 David asked him, “Will you take me to this raiding party?”[t]
He said, “Swear to me by God that you won’t kill me or turn me over to my master, and I’ll take you to the raiding party.”[u]
David Defeats the Amalekites
16 The Egyptian[v] led him to the camp,[w] and there the Amalekites[x] were spread out over the whole area, eating, drinking, and celebrating with the great amount of spoil they had taken from the territory belonging to the Philistines and to Judah. 17 David struck them down from twilight until the evening of the next day, and not one of them escaped except for 400 young men who mounted camels and fled. 18 David rescued everyone whom the Amalekites[y] had captured, including[z] his two wives. 19 Nothing of theirs was missing, whether small or large, sons or daughters, spoil, or anything that they had taken for themselves—David brought back everything. 20 David took all the rest of[aa] the sheep and cattle, driving them ahead of their rescued livestock.[ab] People said about all this,[ac] “This is David’s spoil.”
David Divides the Spoil
21 David came to the 200 men who were too exhausted to follow him[ad] and who had been left at the Wadi[ae] Besor. They came out to meet David and the people who were with him. As David approached the people, he asked them how they were doing.[af] 22 At this point, all the wicked and worthless men of the group who had gone with David answered, “Because they didn’t go with us, we won’t give them any of the spoil that we recovered, except that each person may take his wife and his children and go.”
23 David said, “No, you won’t do this, my brothers, with what the Lord has given us. He guarded us and gave the raiding party[ag] that came against us into our hand. 24 Who will listen to you in this matter? Indeed, the share of those who went down into battle and the share of those who stayed with the supplies will be the same. They’ll share alike.” 25 From that day forward he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel, and it remains[ah] to this present[ai] day.
David Shares the Spoil with the People of Judah
26 David came to Ziklag, and he sent some of the spoil to the elders of Judah, and to his friends, telling them, “Look, this is a gift for you from the spoil of the enemies of the Lord 27 in Bethel, Ramoth-negev, Jattir, 28 Aroer, Siphmoth, Eshtemoa, 29 Rachal, in the Jerahmeelite towns, in the Kenite towns, 30 in Hormah, Bor-ashan, Athach, 31 Hebron, and for all those places where David and his men had frequented.”
Read full chapterNotas al pie
- 1 Samuel 30:1 I.e. the southern region of Israel; cf. Josh 10:40
- 1 Samuel 30:2 Lit. from small to great
- 1 Samuel 30:5 The Heb. lacks former
- 1 Samuel 30:6 Or greatly distressed
- 1 Samuel 30:6 Or strengthened himself
- 1 Samuel 30:7 The ephod was a type of vest worn by the priest and was used to determine God’s will.
- 1 Samuel 30:8 Or band
- 1 Samuel 30:8 Lit. He
- 1 Samuel 30:8 Lit. him
- 1 Samuel 30:8 Lit. and you will definitely rescue
- 1 Samuel 30:9 I.e. a seasonal stream or river that channels water during rain seasons but is dry at other times
- 1 Samuel 30:10 Lit. pursued
- 1 Samuel 30:10 I.e. a seasonal stream or river that channels water during rain seasons but is dry at other times
- 1 Samuel 30:10 The Heb. lacks there
- 1 Samuel 30:12 Lit. his spirit revived
- 1 Samuel 30:13 Lit. He
- 1 Samuel 30:14 Or the southern region
- 1 Samuel 30:14 Lit. what belongs to Judah
- 1 Samuel 30:14 Or the southern region
- 1 Samuel 30:15 Or band
- 1 Samuel 30:15 Or band
- 1 Samuel 30:16 Lit. He
- 1 Samuel 30:16 Lit. him down
- 1 Samuel 30:16 Lit. they
- 1 Samuel 30:18 Lit. whom Amalek; i.e., those who lived in the town of Amalek
- 1 Samuel 30:18 Lit. captured, and David rescued
- 1 Samuel 30:20 The Heb. lacks the rest of
- 1 Samuel 30:20 Lit. ahead of those livestock
- 1 Samuel 30:20 Lit. about them
- 1 Samuel 30:21 Lit. David
- 1 Samuel 30:21 I.e. a seasonal stream or river that channels water during rain seasons but is dry at other times
- 1 Samuel 30:21 Or he greeted them
- 1 Samuel 30:23 Or band
- 1 Samuel 30:25 The Heb. lacks and it remains
- 1 Samuel 30:25 The Heb. lacks present
1 Samuel 30
Lexham English Bible
David Recovers His Loved Ones
30 Now[a] when David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day, the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. When they attacked Ziklag, they burned it with fire. 2 They took captive the women[b] who were in it, from the youngest to the oldest.[c] They did not kill anyone, but carried them off and went on their way. 3 When David and his men came to the city, they saw,[d] and 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 raised their voices and wept until there was not enough strength in them to weep. 5 Two of David’s wives had been taken captive. Ahinoam from Jezreel[e] and Abigail, the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. 6 And David was in a very precarious situation,[f] for the people spoke of stoning him, for the souls of all the people were bitter, each one over his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in Yahweh his God.
7 Then David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, “Please bring the ephod here for me.” So Abiathar brought the ephod to David. 8 And David inquired of Yahweh, saying, “Should I pursue after this band of raiders? Will I overtake them?” He said to him, “Pursue them, for you will certainly overtake them, and you will certainly rescue them.” 9 So David went, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and they came to the Wadi[g] Besor, but the rest remained. 10 David pursued, he and four hundred men; but two hundred men stayed because they were too exhausted to pass over the Wadi Besor.
11 Then they found an Egyptian man in the open country and brought him to David, and they gave him food and he ate; they also gave him water. 12 They gave him a slice of fig cake and two raisin cakes; he ate and this revived him,[h] because he had not eaten food or drunk water for three days and three nights. 13 Then David said to him, “To whom do you belong,[i] and from where are you? The young man said, “I am an Egyptian young man, a servant of an Amalekite man, but my master abandoned me because I became ill three days ago. 14 We raided the Negev of the Kerethites and that which belongs to Judah and then the Negev of Caleb, and we burned Ziklag with fire.” 15 So David asked him, “Will you take me down to this band of raiders?” He said, “Swear to me by God that you will not kill me and that you will not deliver me into my master’s hand! Then I will take you down to this band.” 16 So he took him down, and there they were,[j] spread out over the surface of all the land, eating and drinking and dancing because of all of the abundant plunder 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[k] four hundred young men who rode off on camels and fled. 18 So David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken; David also rescued his two wives. 19 None of theirs was missing from the smallest to the greatest,[l] even sons and daughters, from the plunder up to everything they had taken for themselves; David brought back everything. 20 And David took all of the sheep,[m] and the cattle they drove along in front of that livestock, and they said, “This is David’s plunder.”
21 Then David came to the two hundred men who had been too exhausted to follow[n] David; they had left them behind at the Wadi[o] Besor. They went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him. David came near with the people and asked them how they were doing.[p] 22 Then all the corrupt and useless men among the men who went with David reacted and said, “Because they did not go with us, we will not give them anything from the plunder which we recovered, except[q] each man may take his own wife and children. They must take them along and go!” 23 But David said to them, “You should not do so, my brothers, with what Yahweh has given to us! He has preserved us and has given the raiding band that came against us into our hand. 24 And who would listen to you regarding this matter? For as the share of the one who went down into the battle, so the share of the one who remained with the baggage will be. They will share alike.” 25 So[r] from that day and beyond, he made it a rule and a regulation for Israel until this day.
26 Then David came to Ziklag, and he sent some of the plunder to the elders of Judah, to his friends, saying, “Here is[s] a gift for you from the plunder of the enemies of Yahweh!” 27 It was for those in Bethel, for those in Ramoth of the Negev, for those in Jattir, 28 for those in Aroer, for those in Siphmoth, for those in Eshtemoa, 29 for those in Racal, for those in the towns of the Jerahmeelites, for those in the towns of the Kenites, 30 for those in Hormah, for those in Bor Ashan, for those in Athach, 31 for those in Hebron, and for all the places where David and his men had roamed.[t]
Read full chapterNotas al pie
- 1 Samuel 30:1 Literally “And it happened”
- 1 Samuel 30:2 LXX adds “and all”
- 1 Samuel 30:2 Literally “from small and up to great”
- 1 Samuel 30:3 Literally “and look”
- 1 Samuel 30:5 Literally “the Jezreelitess”
- 1 Samuel 30:6 Literally “it was very pressed for David”
- 1 Samuel 30:9 A valley that is usually dry but contains a stream during the rainy season
- 1 Samuel 30:12 Literally “his spirit returned to him”
- 1 Samuel 30:13 Literally “To whom are you”
- 1 Samuel 30:16 Literally “look”
- 1 Samuel 30:17 Literally “but if”
- 1 Samuel 30:19 Literally “from the small and up to the great”
- 1 Samuel 30:20 Hebrew “flock,” referring to either sheep or goats or both
- 1 Samuel 30:21 Literally “who were exhausted from going after”
- 1 Samuel 30:21 A valley that is usually dry but contains a stream during the rainy season
- 1 Samuel 30:21 Literally “asked for them as far as peace”
- 1 Samuel 30:22 Literally “but if”
- 1 Samuel 30:25 Or “And”
- 1 Samuel 30:26 Literally “Look”
- 1 Samuel 30:31 Literally “where David had gone about there, he and his men”
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