¹² they took all their men and went to fight^(A) Ishmael son of Nethaniah. They caught up with him near the great pool^(B) in Gibeon.

¹³ Joab^(A) son of Zeruiah and David’s men went out and met them at the pool of Gibeon. One group sat down on one side of the pool and one group on the other side.

David Destroys the Amalekites

30 David and his men reached Ziklag^(A) on the third day. Now the Amalekites^(B) had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and burned^(C) it, ² and had taken captive the women and everyone else in it, both young and old. They killed none of them, but carried them off as they went on their way.

³ When David and his men reached Ziklag, they found it destroyed by fire and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive.^{(D) 4} So David and his men wept^(E) aloud until they had no strength left to weep. ⁵ David’s two wives^(F) had been captured—Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. ⁶ David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning^(G) him; each one was bitter^(H) in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength^(I) in the Lord his God.

⁷ Then David said to Abiathar^(J) the priest, the son of Ahimelek, “Bring me the ephod.^(K)” Abiathar brought it to him, ⁸ and David inquired^(L) of the Lord, “Shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them?”

“Pursue them,” he answered. “You will certainly overtake them and succeed^(M) in the rescue.^(N)”

¹⁴ When Abram heard that his relative^(A) had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained^(B) men born in his household^(C) and went in pursuit as far as Dan.^{(D) 15} During the night Abram divided his men^(E) to attack them and he routed them, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus.^{(F) 16} He recovered^(G) all the goods^(H) and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people.

¹⁸ David recovered^(A) everything the Amalekites had taken, including his two wives. ¹⁹ Nothing was missing: young or old, boy or girl, plunder or anything else they had taken. David brought everything back. ²⁰ He took all the flocks and herds, and his men drove them ahead of the other livestock, saying, “This is David’s plunder.”