I Samuel 30

¹Now when David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day, the Amalekites had made an attack on the South and on Ziklag, and had overcome Ziklag and put it on fire;

²And had made the women and all who were there, small and great, prisoners: they had not put any of them to death, but had taken them all away.

³And when David and his men came to the town, they saw that it had been burned down, and their wives and their sons and daughters had been made prisoners.

⁴Then David and the people who were with him gave themselves up to weeping till they were able to go on weeping no longer.

⁵And David's two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel, had been made prisoners.

⁶And David was greatly troubled; for the people were talking of stoning him, because their hearts were bitter, every man sorrowing for his sons and his daughters: but David made himself strong in the Lord his God.

⁷And David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, Come here to me with the ephod. And Abiathar took the ephod to David.

⁸Then David, questioning the Lord, said, Am I to go after this band? will I be able to overtake them? And in answer he said, Go after them, for you will certainly overtake them, and get back everything.

⁹So David went, and his six hundred men went with him, and they came to the stream Besor.

¹⁰And David, with four hundred men, went on: but two hundred of them were overcome with weariness, and not able to go across the stream.

¹¹And in the fields they saw an Egyptian whom they took to David, and they gave him bread, and he had a meal, and they gave him water for drink;

¹²And they gave him part of a cake of figs and some dry grapes; and after the food, his spirit came back to him, for he had had no food or drink for three days and nights.

¹³And David said to him, Whose man are you and where do you come from? And he said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite; and my master went on without me because three days back I became ill.

¹⁴We made an attack on the south part of the country of the Cherethites, and on the land which is Judah's, and on the south of Caleb; and we put Ziklag on fire.

¹⁵And David said to him, Will you take me down to this band? And he said, If you give me your oath that you will not put me to death or give me up to my master, I will take you to them.

¹⁶And when he had taken him down, they saw them all, seated about on all sides, feasting and drinking among all the mass of goods which they had taken from the land of the Philistines and the land of Judah.

¹⁷And David went on fighting them from evening till the evening of the day after; and not one of them got away but only four hundred young men who went in flight on camels.

¹⁸And David got back everything the Amalekites had taken; and he got back his two wives.

¹⁹There was no loss of anything, small or great, sons or daughters or goods or anything which they had taken away: David got it all back.

²⁰And they took all the flocks and herds, and driving them in front of him, said, These are David's.

²¹And David came to the two hundred men, who because of weariness had not gone with him, but were waiting at the stream Besor: and they went out, meeting David and the people who were with him; and when they came near them, they said, How are you?

²²Then the bad and good-for-nothing men among those who went with David said, Because they did not go with us, we will give them nothing of the goods which we have got back, but only to every man his wife and children, so that he may take them and go.

²³Then David said, You are not to do this, my brothers, after what the Lord has given us, who has kept us safe and given up the band which came against us into our hands.

²⁴Who is going to give any attention to you in this question? for an equal part will be given to him who went to the fight and to him who was waiting by the goods: they are all to have the same.

²⁵And so he made it a rule and an order for Israel from that day till now.

²⁶And when David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the goods to the responsible men of Judah, and to his friends, saying, Here is an offering for you from the goods of those who were fighting against the Lord;

²⁷He sent to those who were in Beth-el, and in Ramah of the South, and in Jattir;

²⁸And to those in Arara and Eshtemoa

²⁹and Carmel and in the towns of the Jerahmeelites, and in the towns of the Kenites;

³⁰And to those who were in Hormah and in Bor-ashan and in Athach;

³¹And in Hebron, and to all the places where David and his men had been living.

I Samuel 30

¹It happened, when David and his men had come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had made a raid on the Negev, and on Ziklag, and had struck Ziklag, and burned it with fire,

²and had taken captive the women and all who were therein, both small and great. They did not kill any, but carried them off, and went their way.

³When David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captive.

⁴Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.

⁵David's two wives were taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite.

⁶David was greatly distressed; for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.

⁷David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, "Please bring me here the ephod." Abiathar brought the ephod to David.

⁸David inquired of the Lord, saying, "If I pursue after this troop, shall I overtake them?" He answered him, "Pursue; for you shall surely overtake them, and shall without fail recover all."

⁹So David went, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and came to the brook Besor, where those who were left behind stayed.

¹⁰But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind, who were so faint that they couldn't go over the brook Besor.

¹¹They found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David, and gave him bread, and he ate; and they gave him water to drink.

¹²They gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins. When he had eaten, his spirit came again to him; for he had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights.

¹³David asked him, "To whom do you belong? Where are you from?" He said, "I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite; and my master left me, because three days ago I fell sick.

¹⁴We made a raid on the South of the Kerethites, and on that which belongs to Judah, and on the Negev of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire."

¹⁵David said to him, "Will you bring me down to this troop?" He said, "Swear to me by God that you will neither kill me, nor deliver me up into the hands of my master, and I will bring you down to this troop."

¹⁶When he had brought him down, behold, they were spread around over all the ground, eating, drinking, and dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah.

¹⁷David struck them from the twilight even to the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped from there, except four hundred young men, who rode on camels and fled.

¹⁸David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken; and David rescued his two wives.

¹⁹There was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil, nor anything that they had taken to them. David brought back all.

²⁰David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drove before those other livestock, and said, "This is David's spoil."

²¹David came to the two hundred men, who were so faint that they could not follow David, whom also they had made to stay at the brook Besor; and they went forth to meet David, and to meet the people who were with him. When David came near to the people, he greeted them.

²²Then all the wicked men and base fellows, of those who went with David, answered and said, "Because they did not go with us, we will not give them anything of the spoil that we have recovered, except to every man his wife and his children, that he may lead them away, and depart."

²³Then David said, "You shall not do so, my brothers, with that which the Lord has given to us, who has preserved us, and delivered the troop that came against us into our hand.

²⁴Who will listen to you in this matter? For as his share is who goes down to the battle, so shall his share be who tarries by the baggage: they shall share alike."

²⁵It was so from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day.

²⁶When David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil to the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying, "Behold, a present for you of the spoil of the enemies of the Lord."

²⁷He sent it to those who were in Bethel, and to those who were in Ramoth of the Negev, and to those who were in Jattir,

²⁸and to those who were in Aroer, and to those who were in Siphmoth, and to those who were in Eshtemoa,

²⁹and to those who were in Racal, and to those who were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, and to those who were in the cities of the Kenites,

³⁰and to those who were in Hormah, and to those who were in Borashan, and to those who were in Athach,

³¹and to those who were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men used to stay.