Historical

18 After this, David defeated the Philistines and subdued them, and took Gath and its towns out of the hand of the Philistines. ² He defeated Moab; and the Moabites became servants to David and brought tribute.

³ David defeated Hadadezer king of Zobah, toward Hamath, as he went to establish his dominion by the river Euphrates. ⁴ David took from him one thousand chariots, seven thousand horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen; and David hamstrung all the chariot horses, but reserved of them enough for one hundred chariots. ⁵ When the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck twenty-two thousand men of the Syrians. ⁶ Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus; and the Syrians became servants to David and brought tribute. Yahweh gave victory to David wherever he went. ⁷ David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem. ⁸ From Tibhath and from Cun, cities of Hadadezer, David took very much bronze, with which Solomon made the bronze sea, the pillars, and the vessels of bronze.

⁹ When Tou king of Hamath heard that David had struck all the army of Hadadezer king of Zobah, ¹⁰ he sent Hadoram his son to King David to greet him and to bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and struck him (for Hadadezer had wars with Tou); and he had with him all kinds of vessels of gold and silver and bronze. ¹¹ King David also dedicated these to Yahweh, with the silver and the gold that he carried away from all the nations: from Edom, from Moab, from the children of Ammon, from the Philistines, and from Amalek.

¹² Moreover Abishai the son of Zeruiah struck eighteen thousand of the Edomites in the Valley of Salt. ¹³ He put garrisons in Edom; and all the Edomites became servants to David. Yahweh gave victory to David wherever he went.

¹⁴ David reigned over all Israel; and he executed justice and righteousness for all his people. ¹⁵ Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder; ¹⁶ Zadok the son of Ahitub and Abimelech the son of Abiathar were priests; Shavsha was scribe; ¹⁷ and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and the sons of David were chief officials serving the king.

19 After this, Nahash the king of the children of Ammon died, and his son reigned in his place. ² David said, “I will show kindness to Hanun the son of Nahash, because his father showed kindness to me.”

So David sent messengers to comfort him concerning his father. David’s servants came into the land of the children of Ammon to Hanun to comfort him. ³ But the princes of the children of Ammon said to Hanun, “Do you think that David honors your father, in that he has sent comforters to you? Haven’t his servants come to you to search, to overthrow, and to spy out the land?” ⁴ So Hanun took David’s servants, shaved them, and cut off their garments in the middle at their buttocks, and sent them away. ⁵ Then some people went and told David how the men were treated. He sent to meet them; for the men were greatly humiliated. The king said, “Stay at Jericho until your beards have grown, and then return.”

⁶ When the children of Ammon saw that they had made themselves odious to David, Hanun and the children of Ammon sent one thousand talents^[a] of silver to hire chariots and horsemen out of Mesopotamia, out of Aram-maacah, and out of Zobah. ⁷ So they hired for themselves thirty-two thousand chariots, and the king of Maacah with his people, who came and encamped near Medeba. The children of Ammon gathered themselves together from their cities, and came to battle. ⁸ When David heard of it, he sent Joab with all the army of the mighty men. ⁹ The children of Ammon came out, and put the battle in array at the gate of the city; and the kings who had come were by themselves in the field.

¹⁰ Now when Joab saw that the battle was set against him before and behind, he chose some of all the choice men of Israel, and put them in array against the Syrians. ¹¹ The rest of the people he committed into the hand of Abishai his brother; and they put themselves in array against the children of Ammon. ¹² He said, “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you are to help me; but if the children of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will help you. ¹³ Be courageous, and let’s be strong for our people and for the cities of our God. May Yahweh do that which seems good to him.”

¹⁴ So Joab and the people who were with him came near to the front of the Syrians to the battle; and they fled before him. ¹⁵ When the children of Ammon saw that the Syrians had fled, they likewise fled before Abishai his brother, and entered into the city. Then Joab came to Jerusalem.

¹⁶ When the Syrians saw that they were defeated by Israel, they sent messengers and called out the Syrians who were beyond the River,^[b] with Shophach the captain of the army of Hadadezer leading them. ¹⁷ David was told that, so he gathered all Israel together, passed over the Jordan, came to them, and set the battle in array against them. So when David had put the battle in array against the Syrians, they fought with him. ¹⁸ The Syrians fled before Israel; and David killed of the Syrian men seven thousand charioteers and forty thousand footmen, and also killed Shophach the captain of the army. ¹⁹ When the servants of Hadadezer saw that they were defeated by Israel, they made peace with David and served him. The Syrians would not help the children of Ammon any more.

20 At the time of the return of the year, at the time when kings go out, Joab led out the army and wasted the country of the children of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem. Joab struck Rabbah, and overthrew it. ² David took the crown of their king from off his head, and found it to weigh a talent of gold,^[c] and there were precious stones in it. It was set on David’s head, and he brought very much plunder out of the city. ³ He brought out the people who were in it, and had them cut with saws, with iron picks, and with axes. David did so to all the cities of the children of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

⁴ After this, war arose at Gezer with the Philistines. Then Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Sippai, of the sons of the giant; and they were subdued.

⁵ Again there was war with the Philistines; and Elhanan the son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. ⁶ There was again war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had twenty-four fingers and toes, six on each hand and six on each foot; and he also was born to the giant. ⁷ When he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea, David’s brother, killed him. ⁸ These were born to the giant in Gath; and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.