2 Samuel 23
English Standard Version
The Last Words of David
23 Now these are the last words of David:
The oracle of David, the son of Jesse,
the oracle of (A)the man who was raised on high,
(B)the anointed of the God of Jacob,
the sweet psalmist of Israel:[a]
2 (C)“The Spirit of the Lord speaks by me;
his word is on my tongue.
3 The God of Israel has spoken;
(D)the Rock of Israel has said to me:
When one rules justly over men,
ruling (E)in the fear of God,
4 he (F)dawns on them like the morning light,
like the sun shining forth on a cloudless morning,
like rain[b] that makes grass to sprout from the earth.
5 “For does not my house stand so with God?
(G)For he has made with me an everlasting covenant,
ordered in all things and secure.
For will he not cause to prosper
all my help and my desire?
6 But worthless men[c] are all like thorns that are thrown away,
for they cannot be taken with the hand;
7 but the man who touches them
arms himself with iron and the shaft of a spear,
and they are utterly consumed with fire.”[d]
David's Mighty Men
8 (H)These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: (I)Josheb-basshebeth a Tahchemonite; he was chief of the three.[e] He wielded his spear[f] against eight hundred whom he killed at one time.
9 And next to him among the three mighty men was Eleazar the son of (J)Dodo, son of (K)Ahohi. He was with David when they defied the Philistines who were gathered there for battle, and the men of Israel withdrew. 10 He rose and struck down the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clung to the sword. And the Lord brought about a great victory that day, and the men returned after him only to strip the slain.
11 And next to him was Shammah, the son of Agee the (L)Hararite. The Philistines gathered together at Lehi,[g] where there was a plot of ground full of lentils, and the men fled from the Philistines. 12 But he took his stand in the midst of the plot and defended it and struck down the Philistines, and the Lord worked a great victory.
13 And three of the thirty chief men went down and came about harvest time to David at the (M)cave of Adullam, when a band of Philistines was encamped (N)in the Valley of Rephaim. 14 David was then (O)in the stronghold, and (P)the garrison of the Philistines was then at Bethlehem. 15 And David said longingly, “Oh, that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate!” 16 Then the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate and carried and brought it to David. But he would not drink of it. He poured it out to the Lord 17 and said, “Far be it from me, O Lord, that I should do this. Shall I drink (Q)the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives?” Therefore he would not drink it. These things the three mighty men did.
18 Now Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief of the thirty.[h] And he wielded his spear against three hundred men[i] and killed them and won a name beside the three. 19 He was the most renowned of the thirty[j] and became their commander, but he did not attain to (R)the three.
20 And (S)Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was a valiant man[k] of (T)Kabzeel, a doer of great deeds. He struck down two ariels[l] of Moab. He also went down and struck down a lion in a pit on a day when snow had fallen. 21 And he struck down an Egyptian, a handsome man. The Egyptian had a spear in his hand, but Benaiah went down to him with a staff and snatched the spear out of the Egyptian's hand and killed him with his own spear. 22 These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and won a name beside the three mighty men. 23 He was renowned among the thirty, but he did not attain to the three. And David set him over his bodyguard.
24 (U)Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty; Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem, 25 (V)Shammah of Harod, Elika of Harod, 26 Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh (W)of Tekoa, 27 Abiezer (X)of Anathoth, Mebunnai (Y)the Hushathite, 28 Zalmon (Z)the Ahohite, Maharai (AA)of Netophah, 29 Heleb the son of Baanah (AB)of Netophah, Ittai the son of Ribai of (AC)Gibeah of the people of Benjamin, 30 Benaiah (AD)of Pirathon, Hiddai of the brooks of (AE)Gaash, 31 Abi-albon the Arbathite, Azmaveth of (AF)Bahurim, 32 Eliahba the Shaalbonite, the sons of Jashen, Jonathan, 33 (AG)Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Hararite, 34 Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai (AH)of Maacah, (AI)Eliam the son of (AJ)Ahithophel the Gilonite, 35 Hezro[m] (AK)of Carmel, Paarai the Arbite, 36 Igal the son of Nathan (AL)of Zobah, Bani the Gadite, 37 Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai (AM)of Beeroth, the armor-bearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah, 38 (AN)Ira the (AO)Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite, 39 (AP)Uriah the Hittite: thirty-seven in all.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 23:1 Or the favorite of the songs of Israel
- 2 Samuel 23:4 Hebrew from rain
- 2 Samuel 23:6 Hebrew worthlessness
- 2 Samuel 23:7 Hebrew consumed with fire in the sitting
- 2 Samuel 23:8 Or of the captains
- 2 Samuel 23:8 Compare 1 Chronicles 11:11; the meaning of the Hebrew expression is uncertain
- 2 Samuel 23:11 Or gathered together as a camp
- 2 Samuel 23:18 Two Hebrew manuscripts, Syriac; most Hebrew manuscripts three
- 2 Samuel 23:18 Or slain ones
- 2 Samuel 23:19 Compare 1 Chronicles 11:21; Hebrew Was he the most renowned of the three?
- 2 Samuel 23:20 Or the son of Ishhai
- 2 Samuel 23:20 The meaning of the word ariel is uncertain
- 2 Samuel 23:35 Or Hezrai
2 Samuel 23
Easy-to-Read Version
David’s Last Words
23 These are the last words of David:
“This message is from David son of Jesse.
This message is from the man God made great.
He is the king chosen by the God of Jacob,
the sweet singer of Israel.[a]
2 The Lord’s Spirit spoke through me.
His word was on my tongue.
3 The God of Israel spoke.
The Rock of Israel said to me,
‘Whoever rules people fairly,
who rules with respect for God,
4 is like the morning light at dawn,
like a morning without clouds.
He is like sunshine after a rain
that makes tender grass grow from the ground.’
5 “God made my family strong and secure.[b]
He made an agreement with me forever.
God made sure this agreement was
good and secure in every way.
So surely he will give me every victory.
He will give me everything I want!
6 “But evil people are like thorns.
People don’t hold thorns.
They throw them away.
7 If someone touches them,
it hurts like a spear made of wood and iron.
Yes, evil people are like thorns.
They will be thrown into the fire,
and they will be completely burned.”
The Three Heroes
8 These are the names of David’s special soldiers:
Josheb Basshebeth the Tahkemonite[c] was captain of the king’s special forces.[d] He used his spear to kill 800 men at one time.[e]
9 Next, there was Eleazar son of Dodai[f] who was there with David when he challenged the Philistines who had gathered for battle. The Israelites ran away, 10 but Eleazar stood and fought the Philistines until his hand became so tired that it cramped around his sword handle. The Lord won a great victory that day. The people of Israel came back, but only to take things from the dead.
11 Next there was Shammah son of Agee from Harar. The Philistines came together to fight. They fought in a field of lentils.[g] The people ran away from the Philistines. 12 But Shammah stood in the middle of the field and defended it. He defeated the Philistines. The Lord gave Israel a great victory that day.
13 Once during harvest time David was at the cave of Adullam, and three of the Thirty Heroes[h] went down to meet him there. At the same time the Philistine army was camped in the Valley of Rephaim.[i]
14 Another time David was in the fortress, and a group of Philistines soldiers was stationed in Bethlehem. 15 David was thirsty for some water from his hometown, so he said, “Oh, if only I could have some water from that well by the gate in Bethlehem.” 16 So the Three Heroes[j] fought their way through the Philistine army and got some water from the well near the city gate in Bethlehem. They took it to David, but he refused to drink it. He poured it on the ground as an offering to the Lord. 17 David said, “Lord, I cannot drink this water. It would be like drinking the blood of the men who risked their lives for me.” This is why David refused to drink the water. The Three Heroes did many brave things like that.
Other Brave Soldiers
18 Abishai was the brother of Joab son of Zeruiah. Abishai was the leader of the Three Heroes. He used his spear against 300 enemies and killed them. He became as famous as the Three. 19 Abishai was as famous as the Three Heroes. He became their leader, even though he was not one of them.
20 Then there was Benaiah son of Jehoiada, from Kabzeel. He was the son of a powerful man.[k] Benaiah did many brave things. He killed two of the best soldiers in Moab. One day when it was snowing, Benaiah went down into a hole in the ground and killed a lion. 21 Benaiah also killed a big Egyptian soldier. The Egyptian had a spear in his hand, and Benaiah only had a club. He grabbed the spear in the Egyptian’s hands and took it away from him. Then Benaiah killed the Egyptian with his own spear. 22 Benaiah son of Jehoiada did many more brave things like that. He was as famous as the Three Heroes. 23 Benaiah was even more famous than the Thirty Heroes, but he did not become a member of the Three Heroes. David made Benaiah the leader of his bodyguards.
The Thirty Heroes
24 The following men were among the Thirty Heroes:
Asahel, the brother of Joab;
Elhanan son of Dodo from Bethlehem;
25 Shammah the Harodite;
Elika the Harodite;
26 Helez the Paltite;
Ira son of Ikkesh from Tekoa;
27 Abiezer from Anathoth;
Mebunnai the Hushathite;
28 Zalmon the Ahohite;
Maharai from Netophah;
29 Heled son of Baanah from Netophah;
Ithai son of Ribai from Gibeah of Benjamin;
30 Benaiah the Pirathonite;
Hiddai from the Brooks of Gaash;
31 Abi Albon the Arbathite;
Azmaveth the Barhumite;
32 Eliahba the Shaalbonite;
the sons of Jashen;
Jonathan 33 the son of Shammah from Harar;
Ahiam son of Sharar from Harar;
34 Eliphelet son of Ahasbai the Maacathite;
Eliam son of Ahithophel the Gilonite;
35 Hezro the Carmelite;
Paarai the Arbite;
36 Igal son of Nathan of Zobah;
Bani the Gadite;
37 Zelek the Ammonite;
Naharai from Beeroth (Naharai carried the armor for Joab son of Zeruiah);
38 Ira the Ithrite;
Gareb the Ithrite;
39 and Uriah the Hittite.
There were 37 in all.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 23:1 the sweet singer of Israel Or “The most pleasant of the songs of Israel.”
- 2 Samuel 23:5 God … secure Or “Hasn’t God made my family strong?”
- 2 Samuel 23:8 Josheb Basshebeth the Tahkemonite Or “Jashobeam the Hacmonite.” See 1 Chron. 11:11.
- 2 Samuel 23:8 king’s special forces A special group of soldiers who formed three-man squads and went on special missions for the king.
- 2 Samuel 23:8 Josheb Basshebeth … time The Hebrew text here is unclear. The translation follows 1 Chron. 11:11 and the ancient Greek version.
- 2 Samuel 23:9 Eleazar son of Dodai Or “Eleazar his cousin.”
- 2 Samuel 23:11 lentils Small round beans.
- 2 Samuel 23:13 Thirty Heroes Or “the king’s special forces.” These men were David’s famous group of very brave soldiers. Also in verses 23, 24.
- 2 Samuel 23:13 three … Rephaim The Hebrew text here is hard to understand, but compare 1 Chron. 11:15.
- 2 Samuel 23:16 Three Heroes These were David’s three bravest soldiers. Also in verses 18, 22.
- 2 Samuel 23:20 powerful man That is, a man from the warrior class. He is ready to protect his people in war.
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