5 Then came all the tribes of Israel to David unto Hebron, and spake, saying, Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh. ² In times past, when Saul was king over us, it was thou that leddest out and broughtest in Israel: and Jehovah said to thee, Thou shalt be shepherd of my people Israel, and thou shalt be ^[a]prince over Israel. ³ So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and king David made a covenant with them in Hebron before Jehovah: and they anointed David king over Israel. ⁴ David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. ⁵ In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months; and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty and three years over all Israel and Judah.

⁶ And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who spake unto David, saying, ^[b]Except thou take away the blind and the lame, thou shalt not come in hither; thinking, David cannot come in hither. ⁷ Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion; the same is the city of David. ⁸ And David said on that day, Whosoever smiteth the Jebusites, let him get up to the watercourse, ^[c]and smite the lame and the blind, ^[d]that are hated of David’s soul. Wherefore they say, ^[e]There are the blind and the lame; he cannot come into the house. ⁹ And David dwelt in the stronghold, and called it the city of David. And David built round about from Millo and inward. ¹⁰ And David waxed greater and greater; for Jehovah, the God of hosts, was with him.

¹¹ And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar-trees, and carpenters, and masons; and they built David a house. ¹² And David perceived that Jehovah had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for his people Israel’s sake.

¹³ And David took him more concubines and wives out of Jerusalem, after he was come from Hebron; and there were yet sons and daughters born to David. ¹⁴ And these are the names of those that were born unto him in Jerusalem: Shammua, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon, ¹⁵ and Ibhar, and Elishua, and Nepheg, and Japhia, ¹⁶ and Elishama, and ^[f]Eliada, and Eliphelet.

¹⁷ And when the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, all the Philistines went up to seek David; and David heard of it, and went down to the stronghold. ¹⁸ Now the Philistines had come and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. ¹⁹ And David inquired of Jehovah, saying, Shall I go up against the Philistines? wilt thou deliver them into my hand? And Jehovah said unto David, Go up; for I will certainly deliver the Philistines into thy hand. ²⁰ And David came to Baal-perazim, and David smote them there; and he said, Jehovah hath ^[g]broken mine enemies before me, like the breach of waters. Therefore he called the name of that place ^[h]Baal-perazim. ²¹ And they left their images there; and David and his men took them away.

²² And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. ²³ And when David inquired of Jehovah, he said, Thou shalt not go up: make a circuit behind them, and come upon them over against the ^[i]mulberry-trees. ²⁴ And it shall be, when thou hearest the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry-trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself; for then is Jehovah gone out before thee to smite the host of the Philistines. ²⁵ And David did so, as Jehovah commanded him, and smote the Philistines from ^[j]Geba until thou come to Gezer.