1 Chronicles 12:1-17

New International Version

Warriors Join David

12 These were the men who came to David at Ziklag,^(A) while he was banished from the presence of Saul son of Kish (they were among the warriors who helped him in battle; ² they were armed with bows and were able to shoot arrows or to sling stones right-handed or left-handed;^(B) they were relatives of Saul^(C) from the tribe of Benjamin):

⁸ Some Gadites^(F) defected to David at his stronghold in the wilderness. They were brave warriors, ready for battle and able to handle the shield and spear. Their faces were the faces of lions,^(G) and they were as swift as gazelles^(H) in the mountains.

¹⁴ These Gadites were army commanders; the least was a match for a hundred,^(I) and the greatest for a thousand.^{(J) 15} It was they who crossed the Jordan in the first month when it was overflowing all its banks,^(K) and they put to flight everyone living in the valleys, to the east and to the west.

¹⁶ Other Benjamites^(L) and some men from Judah also came to David in his stronghold. ¹⁷ David went out to meet them and said to them, “If you have come to me in peace to help me, I am ready for you to join me. But if you have come to betray me to my enemies when my hands are free from violence, may the God of our ancestors see it and judge you.”