²⁶ Meanwhile Joab fought against Rabbah^(A) of the Ammonites and captured the royal citadel. ²⁷ Joab then sent messengers to David, saying, “I have fought against Rabbah and taken its water supply. ²⁸ Now muster the rest of the troops and besiege the city and capture it. Otherwise I will take the city, and it will be named after me.”

Psalm 20^[a]

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

²⁹ So David mustered the entire army and went to Rabbah, and attacked and captured it. ³⁰ David took the crown^(A) from their king’s^[a] head, and it was placed on his own head. It weighed a talent^[b] of gold, and it was set with precious stones. David took a great quantity of plunder from the city ³¹ and brought out the people who were there, consigning them to labor with saws and with iron picks and axes, and he made them work at brickmaking.^[c] David did this to all the Ammonite^(B) towns. Then he and his entire army returned to Jerusalem.

Psalm 21^[a]

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

David’s Victories^(A)

18 In the course of time, David defeated the Philistines and subdued them, and he took Gath and its surrounding villages from the control of the Philistines.

Wars Against the Philistines^(A)

¹⁵ Once again there was a battle between the Philistines^(B) and Israel. David went down with his men to fight against the Philistines, and he became exhausted. ¹⁶ And Ishbi-Benob, one of the descendants of Rapha, whose bronze spearhead weighed three hundred shekels^[a] and who was armed with a new sword, said he would kill David. ¹⁷ But Abishai^(C) son of Zeruiah came to David’s rescue; he struck the Philistine down and killed him. Then David’s men swore to him, saying, “Never again will you go out with us to battle, so that the lamp^(D) of Israel will not be extinguished.^(E)”

War With the Philistines^(A)

⁴ In the course of time, war broke out with the Philistines, at Gezer.^(B) At that time Sibbekai the Hushathite killed Sippai, one of the descendants of the Rephaites,^(C) and the Philistines were subjugated.

⁵ In another battle with the Philistines, Elhanan son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, who had a spear with a shaft like a weaver’s rod.^(D)

⁶ In still another battle, which took place at Gath, there was a huge man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot—twenty-four in all. He also was descended from Rapha. ⁷ When he taunted Israel, Jonathan son of Shimea, David’s brother, killed him.

⁸ These were descendants of Rapha in Gath, and they fell at the hands of David and his men.

² David also defeated the Moabites.^(A) He made them lie down on the ground and measured them off with a length of cord. Every two lengths of them were put to death, and the third length was allowed to live. So the Moabites became subject to David and brought him tribute.^(B)

³ Moreover, David defeated Hadadezer^(C) son of Rehob, king of Zobah,^(D) when he went to restore his monument at^[a] the Euphrates^(E) River. ⁴ David captured a thousand of his chariots, seven thousand charioteers^[b] and twenty thousand foot soldiers. He hamstrung^(F) all but a hundred of the chariot horses.

⁵ When the Arameans of Damascus^(G) came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck down twenty-two thousand of them. ⁶ He put garrisons^(H) in the Aramean kingdom of Damascus, and the Arameans became subject^(I) to him and brought tribute. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.^(J)

⁷ David took the gold shields^(K) that belonged to the officers of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem.

⁸ From Tebah^[a] and Kun, towns that belonged to Hadadezer, David took a great quantity of bronze, which Solomon used to make the bronze Sea,^(A) the pillars and various bronze articles.