2 Samuel 1-10

New American Standard Bible 1995

David Learns of Saul’s Death

1 Now it came about after ^(A)the death of Saul, when David had returned from ^(B)the slaughter of the Amalekites, that David remained two days in Ziklag. ² On the third day, behold, ^(C)a man came out of the camp from Saul, ^(D)with his clothes torn and ^[a]dust on his head. And it came about when he came to David that ^(E)he fell to the ground and prostrated himself. ³ Then David said to him, “From where do you come?” And he said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.” ⁴ David said to him, “^(F)How did things go? Please tell me.” And he said, “The people have fled from the battle, and also many of the people have fallen and are dead; and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also.” ⁵ So David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?” ⁶ The young man who told him said, “By chance I happened to be on ^(G)Mount Gilboa, and behold, ^(H)Saul was leaning on his spear. And behold, the chariots and the horsemen pursued him closely. ⁷ When he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. And I said, ‘Here I am.’ ⁸ He said to me, ‘Who are you?’ And I ^[b]answered him, ‘^(I)I am an Amalekite.’ ⁹ Then he said to me, ‘Please stand beside me and kill me, for agony has seized me because my ^[c]life still lingers in me.’ ¹⁰ So I stood beside him ^(J)and killed him, because I knew that he could not live after he had fallen. And ^(K)I took the crown which was on his head and the bracelet which was on his arm, and I have brought them here to my lord.”

¹¹ Then ^(L)David took hold of his clothes and tore them, and so also did all the men who were with him. ¹² They mourned and wept and ^(M)fasted until evening for Saul and his son Jonathan and for the people of the Lord and the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword. ¹³ David said to the young man who told him, “Where are you from?” And he ^[d]answered, “^(N)I am the son of an alien, an Amalekite.” ¹⁴ Then David said to him, “How is it you were not afraid ^(O)to stretch out your hand to destroy the Lord’s anointed?” ¹⁵ And David called one of the young men and said, “Go, ^[e]cut him down.” ^(P)So he struck him and he died. ¹⁶ David said to him, “^(Q)Your blood is on your head, for ^(R)your mouth has testified against you, saying, ‘I have killed the Lord’s anointed.’”

David’s Dirge for Saul and Jonathan

¹⁷ Then David ^(S)chanted with this lament over Saul and Jonathan his son, ¹⁸ and he told them to teach the sons of Judah the song of the bow; behold, it is written in ^(T)the book of Jashar.

David Made King over Judah

2 Then it came about afterwards that ^(AJ)David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go up to one of the cities of Judah?” And the Lord said to him, “Go up.” So David said, “Where shall I go up?” And He said, “^(AK)To Hebron.” ² So David went up there, and ^(AL)his two wives also, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess and Abigail the ^[g]widow of Nabal the Carmelite. ³ And ^(AM)David brought up his men who were with him, each with his household; and they lived in the cities of Hebron. ⁴ Then the men of Judah came and there ^(AN)anointed David king over the house of Judah.

And they told David, saying, “It was ^(AO)the men of Jabesh-gilead who buried Saul.” ⁵ David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh-gilead, and said to them, “^(AP)May you be blessed of the Lord because you have ^[h]shown this kindness to Saul your lord, and have buried him. ⁶ Now ^(AQ)may the Lord ^[i]show lovingkindness and truth to you; and I also will ^[j]show this goodness to you, because you have done this thing. ⁷ Now therefore, let your hands be strong and be ^[k]valiant; for Saul your lord is dead, and also the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”

Ish-bosheth Made King over Israel

⁸ But ^(AR)Abner the son of Ner, commander of Saul’s army, had taken ^[l]Ish-bosheth the son of Saul and brought him over to ^(AS)Mahanaim. ⁹ He made him king over ^(AT)Gilead, over the ^(AU)Ashurites, over ^(AV)Jezreel, over Ephraim, and over Benjamin, even over all Israel. ¹⁰ Ish-bosheth, Saul’s son, was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he was king for two years. The house of Judah, however, followed David. ^11 (AW)The ^[m]time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.

Civil War

¹² Now Abner the son of Ner, went out from Mahanaim to ^(AX)Gibeon with the servants of Ish-bosheth the son of Saul. ¹³ And ^(AY)Joab the son of Zeruiah and the servants of David went out and met ^[n]them by the pool of Gibeon; and they sat down, ^[o]one on the one side of the pool and ^[p]the other on the other side of the pool. ¹⁴ Then Abner said to Joab, “Now let the young men arise and ^[q](AZ)hold a contest before us.” And Joab said, “Let them arise.” ¹⁵ So they arose and went over by count, twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, and twelve of the servants of David. ¹⁶ Each one of them seized his ^[r]opponent by the head and thrust his sword in his ^[s]opponent’s side; so they fell down together. Therefore that place was called ^[t]Helkath-hazzurim, which is in Gibeon. ¹⁷ That day the battle was very severe, and ^(BA)Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.

¹⁸ Now ^(BB)the three sons of Zeruiah were there, Joab and Abishai and Asahel; and Asahel was ^(BC)as ^[u]swift-footed as one of the gazelles which is in the field. ¹⁹ Asahel pursued Abner and did not ^[v]turn to the right or to the left from following Abner. ²⁰ Then Abner looked behind him and said, “Is that you, Asahel?” And he answered, “It is I.” ²¹ So Abner said to him, “^[w]Turn to your right or to your left, and take hold of one of the young men for yourself, and take for yourself his spoil.” But Asahel was not willing to turn aside from following him. ²² Abner repeated again to Asahel, “Turn ^[x]aside from following me. Why should I strike you to the ground? ^(BD)How then could I lift up my face to your brother Joab?” ²³ However, he refused to turn aside; therefore Abner struck him in the belly with the butt end of the spear, so that the spear came out at his back. And he fell there and died on the spot. And it came about that all who came to the place where ^(BE)Asahel had fallen and died, stood still.

²⁴ But Joab and Abishai pursued Abner, and when the sun was going down, they came to the hill of Ammah, which is in front of Giah by the way of the wilderness of Gibeon. ²⁵ The sons of Benjamin gathered together behind Abner and became one band, and they stood on the top of a certain 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 end? How long will you ^[y]refrain from telling the people to turn back from following their brothers?” ²⁷ Joab said, “As God lives, if you had not spoken, surely then the people would have gone away in the morning, each from following his brother.” ²⁸ So Joab blew the trumpet; and all the people halted and pursued Israel no longer, ^(BF)nor did they continue to fight anymore. ²⁹ Abner and his men then went through the Arabah all that night; so they crossed the Jordan, walked all morning, and came to ^(BG)Mahanaim.

³⁰ Then Joab returned from following Abner; when he had gathered all the people together, ^[z]nineteen of David’s servants besides Asahel were missing. ³¹ But the servants of David had struck down many of Benjamin and Abner’s men, so that three hundred and sixty men died. ³² And they took up Asahel and buried him ^(BH)in his father’s tomb which was in Bethlehem. Then Joab and his men went all night until the day ^[aa]dawned at Hebron.

The House of David Strengthened

3 Now ^(BI)there was a long war between the house of Saul and the house of David; and David grew steadily stronger, but the house of Saul grew weaker continually.

^2 (BJ)Sons were born to David at Hebron: his firstborn was Amnon, by ^(BK)Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; ³ and his second, Chileab, by Abigail the ^[ab]widow of Nabal the Carmelite; and the third, Absalom the son of ^(BL)Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, king of ^(BM)Geshur; ⁴ and the fourth, ^(BN)Adonijah the son of Haggith; and the fifth, Shephatiah the son of Abital; ⁵ and the sixth, Ithream, by David’s wife Eglah. These were born to David at Hebron.

Abner Joins David

⁶ It came about while there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David that ^(BO)Abner was making himself strong in the house of Saul. ⁷ Now Saul had a concubine whose name was ^(BP)Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah; and ^[ac]Ish-bosheth said to Abner, “Why have you gone in to my father’s concubine?” ⁸ Then Abner was very angry over the words of Ish-bosheth and said, “^(BQ)Am I a dog’s head that belongs to Judah? Today I show kindness to the house of Saul your father, to his brothers and to his friends, and have not delivered you into the hands of David; and yet today you charge me with a guilt concerning the woman. ^9 (BR)May God do so to Abner, and more also, if ^(BS)as the Lord has sworn to David, I do not accomplish this for him, ^10 (BT)to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul and to establish the throne of David over Israel and over Judah, ^(BU)from Dan even to Beersheba.” ¹¹ And he could no longer answer Abner a word, because he was afraid of him.

¹² Then Abner sent messengers to David in his place, saying, “Whose is the land? Make your covenant with me, and behold, my hand shall be with you to bring all Israel over to you.” ¹³ He said, “Good! I will make a covenant with you, but I demand one thing of you, ^[ad]namely, ^(BV)you shall not see my face unless you ^(BW)first bring Michal, Saul’s daughter, when you come to see ^[ae]me.” ¹⁴ So David sent messengers to Ish-bosheth, Saul’s son, saying, “Give me my wife Michal, to whom I was betrothed ^(BX)for a hundred foreskins of the Philistines.” ¹⁵ Ish-bosheth sent and took her from her husband, from ^[af]Paltiel the son of Laish. ¹⁶ But her husband went with her, weeping as he went, and followed her as far as ^(BY)Bahurim. Then Abner said to him, “Go, return.” So he returned.

¹⁷ Now Abner had ^[ag]consultation with ^(BZ)the elders of Israel, saying, “In times past you were seeking for David to be king over you. ¹⁸ Now then, do it! For the Lord has spoken of David, saying, ‘^(CA)By the hand of My servant David ^[ah]I will save My people Israel from the hand of the Philistines and from the hand of all their enemies.’” ¹⁹ Abner also spoke in the hearing of Benjamin; and in addition Abner went to speak in the hearing of David in Hebron all that seemed good to Israel and to ^(CB)the whole house of Benjamin.

²⁰ Then Abner and twenty men with him came to David at Hebron. And David made a feast for Abner and the men who were with him. ²¹ Abner said to David, “Let me arise and go and ^(CC)gather all Israel to my lord the king, that they may make a covenant with you, and that ^(CD)you may be king over all that your soul desires.” So David sent Abner away, and he went in peace.

²² And behold, ^(CE)the servants of David and Joab came from a raid and brought much spoil with them; but Abner was not with David in Hebron, for he had sent him away, and he had gone in peace. ²³ When Joab and all the army that was with him arrived, they told Joab, saying, “Abner the son of Ner came to the king, and he has sent him away, and he has gone in peace.” ²⁴ Then Joab came to the king and said, “What have you done? Behold, Abner came to you; why then have you sent him away and he is already gone? ²⁵ You know Abner the son of Ner, that he came to deceive you and to learn of ^(CF)your going out and coming in and to find out all that you are doing.”

Joab Murders Abner

²⁶ When Joab came out from David, he sent messengers after Abner, and they brought him back from the well of Sirah; but David did not know it. ²⁷ So when Abner returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside into the middle of the gate to speak with him privately, and there ^(CG)he struck him in the belly so that he died on account of the blood of Asahel his brother. ²⁸ Afterward when David heard it, he said, “I and my kingdom are innocent before the Lord forever of the blood of Abner the son of Ner. ^29 (CH)May it ^[ai]fall on the head of Joab and on all his father’s house; and may there not fail from the house of Joab ^(CI)one who has a discharge, or who is a leper, or who takes hold of a distaff, or who falls by the sword, or who lacks bread.” ³⁰ So Joab and Abishai his brother killed Abner ^(CJ)because he had put their brother Asahel to death in the battle at Gibeon.

David Mourns Abner

³¹ Then David said to Joab and to all the people who were with him, “^(CK)Tear your clothes and gird on sackcloth and lament before Abner.” And King David walked behind the bier. ³² Thus they buried Abner in Hebron; and the king lifted up his voice and wept at ^(CL)the grave of Abner, and all the people wept. ^33 (CM)The king chanted a lament for Abner and said,

And all the people wept again over him. ³⁵ Then all the people came ^(CN)to ^[ak]persuade David to eat bread while it was still day; but David vowed, saying, “^(CO)May God do so to me, and more also, if I taste bread or anything else ^(CP)before the sun goes down.” ³⁶ Now all the people took note of it, and it ^[al]pleased them, just as everything the king did ^[am]pleased all the people. ³⁷ So all the people and all Israel understood that day that it had not been the will of the king to put Abner the son of Ner to death. ³⁸ Then the king said to his servants, “Do you not know that a prince and a great man has fallen this day in Israel? ³⁹ I am ^(CQ)weak today, though anointed king; and these men ^(CR)the sons of Zeruiah are too difficult for me. ^(CS)May the Lord repay the evildoer according to his evil.”

Ish-bosheth Murdered

4 Now when ^[an]Ish-bosheth, Saul’s son, heard that ^(CT)Abner had died in Hebron, ^[ao](CU)he lost courage, and all Israel was disturbed. ² Saul’s son had two men who were commanders of bands: the name of the one was Baanah and the name of the other Rechab, sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, of the sons of Benjamin (for ^(CV)Beeroth is also considered ^(CW)part of Benjamin, ³ and the Beerothites fled to ^(CX)Gittaim and have been aliens there until this day).

⁴ Now ^(CY)Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son crippled in his feet. He was five years old when the ^(CZ)report of Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel, and his nurse took him up and fled. And it happened that in her hurry to flee, he fell and became lame. And his name was ^[ap](DA)Mephibosheth.

⁵ So the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, departed and came to the house of ^(DB)Ish-bosheth in the heat of the day while he was taking his midday rest. ^6 [aq]They came to the middle of the house as ^[ar]if to get wheat, and ^(DC)they struck him in the belly; and Rechab and Baanah his brother escaped. ⁷ Now when they came into the house, as he was lying on his bed in his bedroom, they struck him and killed him and beheaded him. And they took his head and ^[as](DD)traveled by way of the Arabah all night. ⁸ Then they brought the head of Ish-bosheth to David at Hebron and said to the king, “Behold, the head of Ish-bosheth ^(DE)the son of Saul, your enemy, who sought your life; thus the Lord has given my lord the king vengeance this day on Saul and his ^[at]descendants.”

⁹ David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said to them, “As the Lord lives, ^(DF)who has redeemed my life from all distress, ^10 (DG)when one told me, saying, ‘Behold, Saul is dead,’ and ^[au]thought he was bringing good news, I seized him and killed him in Ziklag, which was the reward I gave him for his news. ¹¹ How much more, when wicked men have killed a righteous man in his own house on his bed, shall I not now ^(DH)require his blood from your hand and ^[av]destroy you from the earth?” ¹² Then ^(DI)David commanded the young men, and they killed them and cut off their hands and feet and hung them up beside the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-bosheth ^(DJ)and buried it in the grave of Abner in Hebron.

David King over All Israel

5 ^(DK)Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and ^[aw]said, “Behold, we are ^(DL)your bone and your flesh. ² Previously, when Saul was king over us, ^(DM)you were the one who led Israel out and in. And the Lord said to you, ‘^(DN)You will shepherd My people Israel, and you will be ^(DO)a ruler over Israel.’” ³ So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David ^(DP)made a covenant with them before the Lord at Hebron; then ^(DQ)they anointed David king over Israel. ⁴ David was ^(DR)thirty years old when he became king, and ^(DS)he reigned forty years. ⁵ At Hebron ^(DT)he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.

^6 (DU)Now the king and his men went to ^(DV)Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, and they said to ^[ax]David, “You shall not come in here, but the blind and lame will turn you away”; ^[ay]thinking, “David cannot enter here.” ⁷ Nevertheless, David captured the stronghold of Zion, that is ^(DW)the city of David. ⁸ David said on that day, “Whoever would strike the Jebusites, let him reach the lame and the blind, who are hated by David’s soul, through the water tunnel.” Therefore they say, “The blind or the lame shall not come into the house.” ⁹ So David lived in the stronghold and called it ^(DX)the city of David. And David built all around from the ^[az](DY)Millo and inward. ^10 (DZ)David became greater and greater, for the Lord God of hosts was with him.

^11 (EA)Then Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David with cedar trees and carpenters and stonemasons; and ^(EB)they built a house for David. ¹² And David realized that the Lord had established him as king over Israel, and that He had exalted his kingdom for the sake of His people Israel.

¹³ Meanwhile ^(EC)David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, after he came from Hebron; and more sons and daughters were born to David. ¹⁴ Now ^(ED)these are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, ¹⁵ Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, ¹⁶ Elishama, Eliada and Eliphelet.

War with the Philistines

¹⁷ When the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, ^(EE)all the Philistines went up to seek out David; and when David heard of it, he went down to the ^(EF)stronghold. ¹⁸ Now the Philistines came and spread themselves out in ^(EG)the valley of Rephaim. ¹⁹ Then ^(EH)David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You give them into my hand?” And ^(EI)the Lord said to David, “Go up, for I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand.” ²⁰ So David came to ^(EJ)Baal-perazim and ^[ba]defeated them there; and he said, “The Lord has broken through my enemies before me like the breakthrough of waters.” Therefore he named that place ^[bb]Baal-perazim. ²¹ They abandoned their idols there, so ^(EK)David and his men carried them away.

²² Now ^(EL)the Philistines came up once again and spread themselves out in the valley of Rephaim. ²³ When ^(EM)David inquired of the Lord, He said, “You shall not go directly up; circle around behind them and come at them in front of the ^[bc]balsam trees. ²⁴ It shall be, when ^(EN)you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the ^[bd]balsam trees, then you shall act promptly, for then ^(EO)the Lord will have gone out before you to strike the army of the Philistines.” ²⁵ Then David did so, just as the Lord had commanded him, and struck down the Philistines from ^[be](EP)Geba ^[bf]as far as ^(EQ)Gezer.

Peril in Moving the Ark

6 ^(ER)Now David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. ² And David arose and went with all the people who were with him to ^[bg](ES)Baale-judah, to bring up from there the ark of God which is called by the ^(ET)Name, the very name of the Lord of hosts who ^(EU)is ^[bh]enthroned above the cherubim. ³ They ^[bi]placed the ark of God on ^(EV)a new cart that they might bring it from the house of Abinadab which was on the hill; and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were leading the new cart. ⁴ So ^(EW)they brought it with the ark of God from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Ahio was walking ahead of the ark. ⁵ Meanwhile, David and all the house of Israel ^(EX)were celebrating before the Lord ^(EY)with all kinds of instruments made of ^[bj]fir wood, and with lyres, harps, tambourines, castanets and cymbals.

⁶ But when they came to the ^(EZ)threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah ^(FA)reached out toward the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen nearly upset it. ⁷ And the anger of the Lord burned against Uzzah, and ^(FB)God struck him down there for ^[bk]his irreverence; and he died there by the ark of God. ⁸ David became angry because ^[bl]of the Lord’s outburst against Uzzah, and that place is called ^[bm]Perez-uzzah to this day. ⁹ So ^(FC)David was afraid of the Lord that day; and he said, “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?” ¹⁰ And David was unwilling to move the ark of the Lord into the city of David with him; but David took it aside to the house of ^(FD)Obed-edom the Gittite. ¹¹ Thus the ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite three months, and the Lord ^(FE)blessed Obed-edom and all his household.

The Ark Is Brought to Jerusalem

¹² Now it was told King David, saying, “The Lord has blessed the house of Obed-edom and all that belongs to him, on account of the ark of God.” ^(FF)David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom into ^(FG)the city of David with gladness. ¹³ And so it was, that when the ^(FH)bearers of the ark of the Lord had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ^(FI)ox and a fatling. ¹⁴ And ^(FJ)David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, and David was ^[bn](FK)wearing a linen ephod. ¹⁵ So David and all the house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouting and the sound of the trumpet.

¹⁶ Then it happened as the ark of the Lord came into the city of David that ^(FL)Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord; and she despised him in her heart.

¹⁷ So they brought in the ark of the Lord and set it ^(FM)in its place inside the tent which David had pitched for it; and ^(FN)David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord. ¹⁸ When David had finished offering the burnt offering and the peace offering, ^(FO)he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hosts. ¹⁹ Further, he distributed to all the people, to all the multitude of Israel, both to men and women, a cake of bread and one of dates and one of raisins to each one. Then all the people departed each to his house.

²⁰ But when David returned to bless his household, Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David and said, “How the king of Israel distinguished himself today! ^(FP)He uncovered himself today in the eyes of his servants’ maids as one of the ^(FQ)foolish ones shamelessly uncovers himself!” ²¹ So David said to Michal, “^(FR)It was before the Lord, who chose me above your father and above all his house, to appoint me ruler over the people of the Lord, over Israel; therefore I will celebrate before the Lord. ²² I will be more lightly esteemed than this and will be humble in my own eyes, but with the maids of whom you have spoken, with them I will be distinguished.” ²³ Michal the daughter of Saul had no child to the day of her death.

David Plans to Build a Temple

7 ^(FS)Now it came about when the king lived in his house, and the Lord had given him rest on every side from all his enemies, ² that the king said to ^(FT)Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in ^(FU)a house of cedar, but the ark of God ^(FV)dwells within tent curtains.” ³ Nathan said to the king, “^(FW)Go, do all that is in your mind, for the Lord is with you.”

⁴ But in the same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying, ⁵ “Go and say to My servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord, “^(FX)Are you the one who should build Me a house to dwell in? ⁶ For ^(FY)I have not dwelt in a house since the day I brought up the sons of Israel from Egypt, even to this day; but I have been moving about ^(FZ)in a tent, even in a ^[bo]tabernacle. ^7 (GA)Wherever I have gone with all the sons of Israel, did I speak a word with one of the tribes of Israel, ^(GB)which I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?’”’

God’s Covenant with David

⁸ “Now therefore, thus you shall say to My servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “^(GC)I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, ^(GD)to be ruler over My people Israel. ^9 (GE)I have been with you wherever you have gone and ^(GF)have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make you a great name, like the names of the great men who are on the earth. ¹⁰ I will also appoint a place for My people Israel and ^(GG)will plant them, that they may live in their own place and not be disturbed again, ^(GH)nor will the ^[bp]wicked afflict them any more as formerly, ¹¹ even ^(GI)from the day that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel; and ^(GJ)I will give you rest from all your enemies. The Lord also declares to you that ^(GK)the Lord will make a house for you. ^12 (GL)When your days are complete and you ^(GM)lie down with your fathers, ^(GN)I will raise up your ^[bq]descendant after you, who will come forth from ^[br]you, and I will establish his kingdom. ^13 (GO)He shall build a house for My name, and ^(GP)I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. ^14 (GQ)I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; ^(GR)when he commits iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men, ¹⁵ but My lovingkindness shall not depart from him, ^(GS)as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. ^16 (GT)Your house and your kingdom shall endure before ^[bs]Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.”’” ¹⁷ In accordance with all these words and all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.

David’s Prayer

¹⁸ Then David the king went in and sat before the Lord, and he said, “^(GU)Who am I, O Lord ^[bt]God, and what is my house, that You have brought me this far? ¹⁹ And yet this was insignificant in Your eyes, O Lord God, ^(GV)for You have spoken also of the house of Your servant concerning the distant future. And ^(GW)this is the ^[bu]custom of man, O Lord God. ²⁰ Again what more can David say to You? For ^(GX)You know Your servant, O Lord God! ^21 (GY)For the sake of Your word, and according to Your own heart, You have done all this greatness to let Your servant know. ²² For this reason ^(GZ)You are great, O Lord God; for ^(HA)there is none like You, and there is no God besides You, ^(HB)according to all that we have heard with our ears. ²³ And ^(HC)what one nation on the earth is like Your people Israel, whom God went to redeem for Himself as a people and to make a name for Himself, and ^(HD)to do a great thing for You and awesome things for Your land, before ^(HE)Your people whom ^(HF)You have redeemed for Yourself from Egypt, from nations and their gods? ²⁴ For ^(HG)You have established for Yourself Your people Israel as Your own people forever, and ^(HH)You, O Lord, have become their God. ²⁵ Now therefore, O Lord God, the word that You have spoken concerning Your servant and his house, confirm it forever, and do as You have spoken, ^26 (HI)that Your name may be magnified forever, by saying, ‘The Lord of hosts is God over Israel’; and may the house of Your servant David be established before You. ²⁷ For You, O Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, have ^[bv]made a revelation to Your servant, saying, ‘^(HJ)I will build you a house’; therefore Your servant has found ^[bw]courage to pray this prayer to You. ²⁸ Now, O Lord God, You are God, and ^(HK)Your words are truth, and You have ^[bx]promised this good thing to Your servant. ²⁹ Now therefore, may it please You to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue forever before You. For You, O Lord God, have spoken; and ^(HL)with Your blessing may the house of Your servant be blessed forever.”

David’s Triumphs

8 ^(HM)Now after this it came about that David ^[by]defeated the Philistines and subdued them; and David took ^[bz]control of the chief city from the hand of the Philistines.

^2 (HN)He ^[ca]defeated ^(HO)Moab, and measured them with the line, making them lie down on the ground; and he measured two lines to put to death and one full line to keep alive. And ^(HP)the Moabites became servants to David, ^(HQ)bringing tribute.

³ Then David ^[cb]defeated ^(HR)Hadadezer, the son of Rehob king of Zobah, as ^(HS)he went to restore his ^[cc]rule at the ^[cd]River. ⁴ David captured from him 1,700 horsemen and 20,000 foot soldiers; and David ^(HT)hamstrung the chariot horses, but reserved enough of them for 100 chariots. ⁵ When ^(HU)the Arameans of Damascus came to help Hadadezer, king of Zobah, David ^[ce]killed 22,000 Arameans. ⁶ Then David put garrisons among the Arameans of Damascus, and ^(HV)the Arameans became servants to David, bringing tribute. And ^(HW)the Lord helped David wherever he went. ⁷ David took the shields of gold which were ^[cf]carried by the servants of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem. ⁸ From ^[cg]Betah and from ^(HX)Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, King David took a very large amount of bronze.

⁹ Now when Toi king of ^(HY)Hamath heard that David had ^[ch]defeated all the army of Hadadezer, ¹⁰ Toi sent ^[ci]Joram his son to King David to ^[cj]greet him and bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and ^[ck]defeated him; for Hadadezer ^[cl]had been at war with Toi. And ^[cm]Joram brought with him articles of silver, of gold and of bronze. ¹¹ King David also ^(HZ)dedicated these to the Lord, with the silver and gold that he had dedicated from all the nations which he had subdued: ¹² from ^[cn]Aram and ^(IA)Moab and ^(IB)the sons of Ammon and ^(IC)the Philistines and ^(ID)Amalek, and from the spoil of Hadadezer, son of Rehob, king of Zobah.

¹³ So ^(IE)David made a name for himself when he returned from ^[co]killing 18,000 ^[cp]Arameans in ^(IF)the Valley of Salt. ¹⁴ He put garrisons in Edom. In all Edom he put garrisons, and ^(IG)all the Edomites became servants to David. And ^(IH)the Lord helped David wherever he went.

¹⁵ So David reigned over all Israel; and David ^[cq]administered justice and righteousness for all his people. ^16 (II)Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army, and ^(IJ)Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was ^(IK)recorder. ^17 (IL)Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were ^(IM)priests, and Seraiah was ^(IN)secretary. ^18 (IO)Benaiah the son of Jehoiada ^[cr]was over the ^(IP)Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were ^[cs](IQ)chief ministers.

David’s Kindness to Mephibosheth

9 Then David said, “Is there yet ^[ct]anyone left of the house of Saul, ^(IR)that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” ² Now there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba, and they called him to David; and the king said to him, “Are you ^(IS)Ziba?” And he said, “I am your servant.” ³ The king said, “Is there not yet anyone of the house of Saul to whom I may show the ^(IT)kindness of God?” And Ziba said to the king, “^(IU)There is still a son of Jonathan who is crippled in both feet.” ⁴ So the king said to him, “Where is he?” And Ziba said to the king, “Behold, he is ^(IV)in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel in Lo-debar.” ⁵ Then King David sent and brought him from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar. ^6 (IW)Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, came to David and ^(IX)fell on his face and prostrated himself. And David said, “Mephibosheth.” And he said, “Here is your servant!” ⁷ David said to him, “Do not fear, for ^(IY)I will surely show kindness to you for the sake of your father Jonathan, and ^(IZ)will restore to you all the ^[cu]land of your ^[cv]grandfather Saul; and ^(JA)you shall ^[cw]eat at my table regularly.” ⁸ Again he prostrated himself and said, “What is your servant, that you should regard ^(JB)a dead dog like me?”

⁹ Then the king called Saul’s servant Ziba and said to him, “^(JC)All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s ^[cx]grandson. ¹⁰ You and your sons and your servants shall cultivate the land for him, and you shall bring in the produce so that your master’s grandson may have food; nevertheless ^(JD)Mephibosheth your master’s grandson ^(JE)shall ^[cy]eat at my table regularly.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. ¹¹ Then Ziba said to the king, “According ^(JF)to all that my lord the king commands his servant so your servant will do.” So Mephibosheth ate at ^[cz]David’s table as one of the king’s sons. ¹² Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Mica. And all who lived in the house of Ziba were servants to Mephibosheth. ¹³ So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for ^(JG)he ate at the king’s table regularly. Now ^(JH)he was lame in both feet.

Ammon and Aram Defeated

10 ^(JI)Now it happened afterwards that ^(JJ)the king of the Ammonites died, and Hanun his son became king in his place. ² Then David said, “I will show kindness to Hanun the son of ^(JK)Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent ^[da]some of his servants to console him concerning his father. But when David’s servants came to the land of the Ammonites, ³ the princes of the Ammonites said to Hanun their lord, “^[db]Do you think that David is honoring your father because he has sent consolers to you? ^(JL)Has David not sent his servants to you in order to search the city, to spy it out and overthrow it?” ⁴ So Hanun took David’s servants and ^(JM)shaved off half of their beards, and ^(JN)cut off their garments in the middle as far as their hips, and sent them away. ⁵ When they told it to David, he sent to meet them, for the men were greatly humiliated. And the king said, “^[dc]Stay at Jericho until your beards grow, and then return.”

⁶ Now when the sons of Ammon saw that ^(JO)they had become odious to David, the sons of Ammon sent and ^(JP)hired the Arameans of ^(JQ)Beth-rehob and the ^(JR)Arameans of Zobah, 20,000 foot soldiers, and the king of ^(JS)Maacah with 1,000 men, and the men of Tob with 12,000 men. ⁷ When David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the army, the mighty men. ⁸ The sons of Ammon came out and drew up in battle array ^(JT)at the entrance of the ^[dd]city, while the Arameans of Zobah and of Rehob and the men of ^(JU)Tob and Maacah were by themselves in the field.

⁹ Now when Joab saw that ^[de]the battle was set against him in front and in the rear, he selected from all the choice men of Israel, and arrayed them against the Arameans. ¹⁰ But the remainder of the people he placed in the hand of Abishai his brother, and he arrayed them against the sons of Ammon. ¹¹ He said, “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the sons of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will come to help you. ^12 (JV)Be strong, and let us show ourselves courageous for the sake of our people and for the cities of our God; and ^(JW)may the Lord do what is good in His sight.” ¹³ So Joab and the people who were with him drew near to the battle against the Arameans, and ^(JX)they fled before him. ¹⁴ When the sons of Ammon saw that the Arameans fled, they also fled before Abishai and entered the city. ^(JY)Then Joab returned from fighting against the sons of Ammon and came to Jerusalem.

¹⁵ When the Arameans saw that they had been ^[df]defeated by Israel, they gathered themselves together. ^16 (JZ)And Hadadezer sent and brought out the Arameans who were beyond the ^[dg]River, and they came to Helam; and ^(KA)Shobach the commander of the army of Hadadezer ^[dh]led them. ¹⁷ Now when it was told David, he gathered all Israel together and crossed the Jordan, and came to Helam. And the Arameans arrayed themselves to meet David and fought against him. ¹⁸ But the Arameans fled before Israel, and David killed ^(KB)700 charioteers of the Arameans and 40,000 horsemen and struck down Shobach the commander of their army, and he died there. ¹⁹ When all the kings, servants of Hadadezer, saw that they were ^[di]defeated by Israel, ^(KC)they made peace with Israel and served them. So the Arameans feared to help the sons of Ammon anymore.