Passage Resources Hebrew/Greek Your Content
Previous Next
Add parallel Print Page Options
Close NLT

1 Samuel 30
New Living Translation

David Destroys the Amalekites

30 Three days later, when David and his men arrived home at their town of Ziklag, they found that the Amalekites had made a raid into the Negev and Ziklag; they had crushed Ziklag and burned it to the ground. 2 They had carried off the women and children and everyone else but without killing anyone.

3 When David and his men saw the ruins and realized what had happened to their families, 4 they wept until they could weep no more. 5 David’s two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal from Carmel, were among those captured. 6 David was now in great danger because all his men were very bitter about losing their sons and daughters, and they began to talk of stoning him. But David found strength in the Lord his God.

7 Then he said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring me the ephod!” So Abiathar brought it. 8 Then David asked the Lord, “Should I chase after this band of raiders? Will I catch them?”

And the Lord told him, “Yes, go after them. You will surely recover everything that was taken from you!”

9 So David and his 600 men set out, and they came to the brook Besor. 10 But 200 of the men were too exhausted to cross the brook, so David continued the pursuit with 400 men.

11 Along the way they found an Egyptian man in a field and brought him to David. They gave him some bread to eat and water to drink. 12 They also gave him part of a fig cake and two clusters of raisins, for he hadn’t had anything to eat or drink for three days and nights. Before long his strength returned.

13 “To whom do you belong, and where do you come from?” David asked him.

“I am an Egyptian—the slave of an Amalekite,” he replied. “My master abandoned me three days ago because I was sick. 14 We were on our way back from raiding the Kerethites in the Negev, the territory of Judah, and the land of Caleb, and we had just burned Ziklag.”

15 “Will you lead me to this band of raiders?” David asked.

The young man replied, “If you take an oath in God’s name that you will not kill me or give me back to my master, then I will guide you to them.”

16 So he led David to them, and they found the Amalekites spread out across the fields, eating and drinking and dancing with joy because of the vast amount of plunder they had taken from the Philistines and the land of Judah. 17 David and his men rushed in among them and slaughtered them throughout that night and the entire next day until evening. None of the Amalekites escaped except 400 young men who fled on camels. 18 David got back everything the Amalekites had taken, and he rescued his two wives. 19 Nothing was missing: small or great, son or daughter, nor anything else that had been taken. David brought everything back. 20 He also recovered all the flocks and herds, and his men drove them ahead of the other livestock. “This plunder belongs to David!” they said.

21 Then David returned to the brook Besor and met up with the 200 men who had been left behind because they were too exhausted to go with him. They went out to meet David and his men, and David greeted them joyfully. 22 But some evil troublemakers among David’s men said, “They didn’t go with us, so they can’t have any of the plunder we recovered. Give them their wives and children, and tell them to be gone.”

23 But David said, “No, my brothers! Don’t be selfish with what the Lord has given us. He has kept us safe and helped us defeat the band of raiders that attacked us. 24 Who will listen when you talk like this? We share and share alike—those who go to battle and those who guard the equipment.” 25 From then on David made this a decree and regulation for Israel, and it is still followed today.

26 When he arrived at Ziklag, David sent part of the plunder to the elders of Judah, who were his friends. “Here is a present for you, taken from the Lord’s enemies,” he said.

27 The gifts were sent to the people of the following towns David had visited: Bethel, Ramoth-negev, Jattir, 28 Aroer, Siphmoth, Eshtemoa, 29 Racal,[a] the towns of the Jerahmeelites, the towns of the Kenites, 30 Hormah, Bor-ashan, Athach, 31 Hebron, and all the other places David and his men had visited.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 30:29 Greek version reads Carmel.
Close LSB

1 Samuel 30
Legacy Standard Bible

David Strikes Down the Amalekites

30 Then it happened when David and his men came to (A)Ziklag on the third day, that (B)the Amalekites had made a raid on the [a]Negev and on (C)Ziklag and had struck Ziklag and burned it with fire; 2 and they took captive the women and all who were in it, both small and great—(D)they did not put anyone to death—and carried them off and went their way. 3 Then David and his men came to the city, and behold, it was burned with fire, and their wives and their sons and their daughters had been taken captive. 4 So David and the people who were with him (E)lifted their voices and wept until there was no strength in them to weep. 5 Now (F)David’s two wives had been taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess and Abigail the [b]widow of Nabal the Carmelite. 6 Moreover David was greatly distressed because (G)the people said to stone him, for all the people were [c]embittered, each one because of his sons and his daughters. But (H)David strengthened himself in Yahweh his God.

7 Then (I)David said to (J)Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, “Please bring the ephod near to me.” So Abiathar brought the ephod near to David. 8 (K)And David asked of Yahweh, saying, “(L)Shall I pursue this band? Shall I overtake them?” And He said to him, “Pursue, for you will surely overtake them, (M)and you will surely deliver all.” 9 So David went, (N)he and the six hundred men who were with him, and they came to the brook Besor, where those left behind remained. 10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men, for (O)two hundred who were too exhausted to cross the brook Besor remained behind.

11 Then they found an Egyptian in the field and brought him to David and gave him bread, and he ate, and they provided him water to drink. 12 And they gave him a piece of fig cake and two clusters of raisins, and he ate; (P)then his spirit [d]revived. For he had not eaten bread or drunk water for three days and three nights. 13 And David said to him, “To whom do you belong? And where are you from?” And he said, “I am a young man of Egypt, a slave of an Amalekite; and my master forsook me when I fell sick three days ago. 14 We made a raid on (Q)the [e]Negev of the Cherethites and on that which belongs to Judah and on (R)the [f]Negev of Caleb, and (S)we burned Ziklag with fire.” 15 Then David said to him, “Will you bring me down to this band?” And he said, “Swear to me by God that you will not put me to death or surrender me into the hands of my master, and I will bring you down to this band.”

16 So he brought him down, and behold, they were [g]spread over all the land, (T)eating and drinking and [h]celebrating because of (U)all the great spoil that they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah. 17 Then David struck them (V)down from the twilight [i]until the evening of [j]the next day; and not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on (W)camels and fled. 18 So David (X)delivered all that the Amalekites had taken and [k]delivered his two wives. 19 Indeed nothing of theirs was missing, whether small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything that they had taken for themselves; (Y)David brought it all back. 20 And David took all the sheep and the cattle which the people drove ahead of [l]the other livestock, and they said, “(Z)This is David’s spoil.”

David Apportions the Spoils

21 Then (AA)David came to the two hundred men who were too exhausted to follow David, who had also remained at the brook Besor, and they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him, and David approached the people and greeted them. 22 Then all the evil and vile men among those who went with David said, “Because they did not go with [m]us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have delivered, except to every man his wife and his children, that they may lead them away and depart.” 23 Then David said, “You must not do so, my brothers, with what Yahweh has given us, who has kept us and given into our hand the band that came against us. 24 And who will listen to you in this matter? For (AB)as is the portion of the one who goes down to the battle, so shall the portion be of the one who remains by the baggage; they shall be apportioned together.” 25 So it has been from that day forward, that he made it a statute and a judgment for Israel to this day.

26 Then David came to Ziklag and sent some of the spoil to the elders of Judah, to his friends, saying, “Behold, (AC)a [n]gift for you from the spoil of (AD)the enemies of Yahweh: 27 to those who were in (AE)Bethel, and to those who were in (AF)Ramoth of the [o]Negev, and to those who were in (AG)Jattir, 28 and to those who were in (AH)Aroer, and to those who were in Siphmoth, and to those who were in (AI)Eshtemoa, 29 and to those who were in Racal, and to those who were in the cities of (AJ)the Jerahmeelites, and to those who were in the cities of (AK)the Kenites, 30 and to those who were in (AL)Hormah, and to those who were in (AM)Bor-ashan, and to those who were in Athach, 31 and to those who were in (AN)Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men (AO)went about.”

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 30:1 South country
  2. 1 Samuel 30:5 Lit wife
  3. 1 Samuel 30:6 Lit bitter in soul
  4. 1 Samuel 30:12 Lit returned to him
  5. 1 Samuel 30:14 South country
  6. 1 Samuel 30:14 South country
  7. 1 Samuel 30:16 Lit left
  8. 1 Samuel 30:16 Lit keeping a pilgrim-feast
  9. 1 Samuel 30:17 Lit even until
  10. 1 Samuel 30:17 Lit their
  11. 1 Samuel 30:18 Or David rescued
  12. 1 Samuel 30:20 Lit those livestock
  13. 1 Samuel 30:22 Lit me
  14. 1 Samuel 30:26 Lit blessing
  15. 1 Samuel 30:27 South country
Next
1 Samuel 29
1 Samuel 31
Next
dropdown
New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.


Legacy Standard Bible (LSB)

Legacy Standard Bible Copyright ©2021 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org For Permission to Quote Information visit https://www.LSBible.org.