1 Chronicles — Chapter 12

1Now these are they that came to David to Ziklag, while he yet kept himself close because of Saul the son of Kish: and they were among the mighty men, helpers of the war.

2They were armed with bows, and could use both the right hand and the left in hurling stones and shooting arrows out of a bow, even of Saul’s brethren of Benjamin.

3The chief was Ahiezer, then Joash, the sons of Shemaah the Gibeathite; and Jeziel, and Pelet, the sons of Azmaveth; and Berachah, and Jehu the Antothite,

4And Ismaiah the Gibeonite, a mighty man among the thirty, and over the thirty; and Jeremiah, and Jahaziel, and Johanan, and Josabad the Gederathite,

5Eluzai, and Jerimoth, and Bealiah, and Shemariah, and Shephatiah the Haruphite,

6Elkanah, and Jesiah, and Azareel, and Joezer, and Jashobeam, the Korhites,

7And Joelah, and Zebadiah, the sons of Jeroham of Gedor.

8And of the Gadites there separated themselves unto David into the hold to the wilderness men of might, and men of war fit for the battle, that could handle shield and buckler, whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as the roes upon the mountains;

9Ezer the first, Obadiah the second, Eliab the third,

10Mishmannah the fourth, Jeremiah the fifth,

11Attai the sixth, Eliel the seventh,

12Johanan the eighth, Elzabad the ninth,

13Jeremiah the tenth, Machbanai the eleventh.

14These were of the sons of Gad, captains of the host: one of the least was over an hundred, and the greatest over a thousand.

15These are they that went over Jordan in the first month, when it had overflown all his banks; and they put to flight all them of the valleys, both toward the east, and toward the west.

16And there came of the children of Benjamin and Judah to the hold unto David.

17And David went out to meet them, and answered and said unto them, If ye be come peaceably unto me to help me, mine heart shall be knit unto you: but if ye be come to betray me to mine enemies, seeing there is no wrong in mine hands, the God of our fathers look thereon, and rebuke it.

18Then the spirit came upon Amasai, who was chief of the captains, and he said, Thine are we, David, and on thy side, thou son of Jesse: peace, peace be unto thee, and peace be to thine helpers; for thy God helpeth thee. Then David received them, and made them captains of the band.

19And there fell some of Manasseh to David, when he came with the Philistines against Saul to battle: but they helped them not: for the lords of the Philistines upon advisement sent him away, saying, He will fall to his master Saul to the jeopardy of our heads.

20As he went to Ziklag, there fell to him of Manasseh, Adnah, and Jozabad, and Jediael, and Michael, and Jozabad, and Elihu, and Zilthai, captains of the thousands that were of Manasseh.

21And they helped David against the band of the rovers: for they were all mighty men of valour, and were captains in the host.

22For at that time day by day there came to David to help him, until it was a great host, like the host of God.

23And these are the numbers of the bands that were ready armed to the war, and came to David to Hebron, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of the LORD.

24The children of Judah that bare shield and spear were six thousand and eight hundred, ready armed to the war.

25Of the children of Simeon, mighty men of valour for the war, seven thousand and one hundred.

26Of the children of Levi four thousand and six hundred.

27And Jehoiada was the leader of the Aaronites, and with him were three thousand and seven hundred;

28And Zadok, a young man mighty of valour, and of his father’s house twenty and two captains.

29And of the children of Benjamin, the kindred of Saul, three thousand: for hitherto the greatest part of them had kept the ward of the house of Saul.

30And of the children of Ephraim twenty thousand and eight hundred, mighty men of valour, famous throughout the house of their fathers.

31And of the half tribe of Manasseh eighteen thousand, which were expressed by name, to come and make David king.

32And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do; the heads of them were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their commandment.

33Of Zebulun, such as went forth to battle, expert in war, with all instruments of war, fifty thousand, which could keep rank: they were not of double heart.

34And of Naphtali a thousand captains, and with them with shield and spear thirty and seven thousand.

35And of the Danites expert in war twenty and eight thousand and six hundred.

36And of Asher, such as went forth to battle, expert in war, forty thousand.

37And on the other side of Jordan, of the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and of the half tribe of Manasseh, with all manner of instruments of war for the battle, an hundred and twenty thousand.

38All these men of war, that could keep rank, came with a perfect heart to Hebron, to make David king over all Israel: and all the rest also of Israel were of one heart to make David king.

39And there they were with David three days, eating and drinking: for their brethren had prepared for them.

40Moreover they that were nigh them, even unto Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, brought bread on asses, and on camels, and on mules, and on oxen, and meat, meal, cakes of figs, and bunches of raisins, and wine, and oil, and oxen, and sheep abundantly: for there was joy in Israel.

1Now these are they that came to David to Ziklag, while he yet kept himself close because of Saul the son of Kish; and they were among the mighty men, his helpers in war.

2They were armed with bows, and could use both the right hand and the left in slinging stones and in shooting arrows from the bow: they were of Saul`s brethren of Benjamin.

3The chief was Ahiezer; then Joash, the sons of Shemaah the Gibeathite, and Jeziel, and Pelet, the sons of Azmaveth, and Beracah, and Jehu the Anathothite,

4and Ishmaiah the Gibeonite, a mighty man among the thirty, and over the thirty, and Jeremiah, and Jahaziel, and Johanan, and Jozabad the Gederathite,

5Eluzai, and Jerimoth, and Bealiah, and Shemariah, and Shephatiah the Haruphite,

6Elkanah, and Isshiah, and Azarel, and Joezer, and Jashobeam, the Korahites,

7and Joelah, and Zebadiah, the sons of Jeroham of Gedor.

8And of the Gadites there separated themselves unto David to the stronghold in the wilderness, mighty men of valor, men trained for war, that could handle shield and spear; whose faces were like the faces of lions, and they were as swift as the roes upon the mountains;

9Ezer the chief, Obadiah the second, Eliab the third,

10Mishmannah the fourth, Jeremiah the fifth,

11Attai the sixth, Eliel the seventh,

12Johanan the eighth, Elzabad the ninth,

13Jeremiah the tenth, Machbannai the eleventh.

14These of the sons of Gad were captains of the host: he that was least was equal to a hundred, and the greatest to a thousand.

15These are they that went over the Jordan in the first month, when it had overflowed all its banks; and they put to flight all them of the valleys, both toward the east, and toward the west.

16And there came of the children of Benjamin and Judah to the stronghold unto David.

17And David went out to meet them, and answered and said unto them, If ye be come peaceably unto me to help me, my heart shall be knit unto you; but if [ye be come] to betray me to mine adversaries, seeing there is no wrong in my hands, the God of our fathers look thereon, and rebuke it.

18Then the Spirit came upon Amasai, who was chief of the thirty, [and he said], Thine are we, David, and on thy side, thou son of Jesse: peace, peace be unto thee, and peace be to thy helpers; for thy God helpeth thee. Then David received them, and made them captains of the band.

19Of Manasseh also there fell away some to David, when he came with the Philistines against Saul to battle: but they helped them not; for the lords of the Philistines upon advisement sent him away, saying, He will fall away to his master Saul to the jeopardy of our heads.

20As he went to Ziklag, there fell to him of Manasseh, Adnah, and Jozabad, and Jediael, and Michael, and Jozabad, and Elihu, and Zillethai, captains of thousands that were of Manasseh.

21And they helped David against the band of rovers: for they were all mighty men of valor, and were captains in the host.

22For from day to day men came to David to help him, until there was a great host, like the host of God.

23And these are the numbers of the heads of them that were armed for war, who came to David to Hebron, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of Jehovah.

24The children of Judah that bare shield and spear were six thousand and eight hundred, armed for war.

25Of the children of Simeon, mighty men of valor for the war, seven thousand and one hundred.

26Of the children of Levi four thousand and six hundred.

27And Jehoiada was the leader of [the house of] Aaron; and with him were three thousand and seven hundred,

28and Zadok, a young man mighty of valor, and of his father`s house twenty and two captains.

29And of the children of Benjamin, the brethren of Saul, three thousand: for hitherto the greatest part of them had kept their allegiance to the house of Saul.

30And of the children of Ephraim twenty thousand and eight hundred, mighty men of valor, famous men in their fathers` houses.

31And of the half-tribe of Manasseh eighteen thousand, who were mentioned by name, to come and make David king.

32And of the children of Issachar, men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, the heads of them were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their commandment.

33Of Zebulun, such as were able to go out in the host, that could set the battle in array, with all manner of instruments of war, fifty thousand, and that could order [the battle array, and were] not of double heart.

34And of Naphtali a thousand captains, and with them with shield and spear thirty and seven thousand.

35And of the Danites that could set the battle in array, twenty and eight thousand and six hundred.

36And of Asher, such as were able to go out in the host, that could set the battle in array, forty thousand.

37And on the other side of the Jordan, of the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and of the half-tribe of Manasseh, with all manner of instruments of war for the battle, a hundred and twenty thousand.

38All these being men of war, that could order the battle array, came with a perfect heart to Hebron, to make David king over all Israel: and all the rest also of Israel were of one heart to make David king.

39And they were there with David three days, eating and drinking; for their brethren had made preparation for them.

40Moreover they that were nigh unto them, [even] as far as Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, brought bread on asses, and on camels, and on mules, and on oxen, victuals of meal, cakes of figs, and clusters of raisins, and wine, and oil, and oxen, and sheep in abundance: for there was joy in Israel.

1These were the men who joined David in Ziklag, when he was banished from the presence of Saul son of Kish. (They were among the warriors who assisted him in battle.

2They were armed with bows and could shoot arrows or sling stones right- or left-handed. They were fellow tribesmen of Saul from Benjamin.) These were:

3Ahiezer, the leader, and Joash, the sons of Shemaah the Gibeathite; Jeziel and Pelet, the sons of Azmaveth; Berachah, Jehu the Anathothite,

4Ishmaiah the Gibeonite, one of the thirty warriors and their leader, (12:5) Jeremiah, Jahaziel, Johanan, Jozabad the Gederathite,

5(12:6) Eluzai, Jerimoth, Bealiah, Shemariah, Shephatiah the Haruphite,

6Elkanah, Isshiah, Azarel, Joezer, and Jashobeam, who were Korahites,

7and Joelah and Zebadiah, the sons of Jeroham from Gedor.

8Some of the Gadites joined David at the stronghold in the wilderness. They were warriors who were trained for battle; they carried shields and spears. They were as fierce as lions and could run as quickly as gazelles across the hills.

9Ezer was the leader, Obadiah the second-in-command, Eliab the third,

10Mishmannah the fourth, Jeremiah the fifth,

11Attai the sixth, Eliel the seventh,

12Johanan the eighth, Elzabad the ninth,

13Jeremiah the tenth, and Machbannai the eleventh.

14These Gadites were military leaders; the least led a hundred men, the greatest a thousand.

15They crossed the Jordan River in the first month, when it was overflowing its banks, and routed those living in all the valleys to the east and west.

16Some from Benjamin and Judah also came to David’s stronghold.

17David went out to meet them and said, “If you come to me in peace and want to help me, then I will make an alliance with you. But if you come to betray me to my enemies when I have not harmed you, may the God of our ancestors take notice and judge!”

18But a spirit empowered Amasai, the leader of the group of warriors known as the Thirty, and he said: “We are yours, O David! We support you, O son of Jesse! May you greatly prosper. May those who help you prosper. Indeed your God helps you!”So David accepted them and made them leaders of raiding bands.

19Some men from Manasseh joined David when he went with the Philistines to fight against Saul. (But in the end they did not help the Philistines because, after taking counsel, the Philistine lords sent David away, saying, “It would be disastrous for us if he deserts to his master Saul.”)

20When David went to Ziklag, the men of Manasseh who joined him were Adnach, Jozabad, Jediael, Michael, Jozabad, Elihu, and Zillethai, leaders of 1,000 soldiers each in the tribe of Manasseh.

21They helped David fight against raiding bands, for all of them were warriors and leaders in the army.

22Each day men came to help David until his army became very large.

23The following is a record of the armed warriors who came with their leaders and joined David in Hebron in order to make David king in Saul’s place, in accordance with the Lord’s decree:

24From Judah came 6,800 trained warriors carrying shields and spears.

25From Simeon there were 7,100 warriors.

26From Levi there were 4,600.

27Jehoiada, the leader of Aaron’s descendants, brought 3,700 men with him,

28along with Zadok, a young warrior, and 22 leaders from his family.

29From Benjamin, Saul’s tribe, there were 3,000, most of whom, up to that time, had been loyal to Saul.

30From Ephraim there were 20,800 warriors, who had brought fame to their families.

31From the half-tribe of Manasseh there were 18,000 who had been designated by name to come and make David king.

32From Issachar there were 200 leaders and all their relatives at their command—they understood the times and knew what Israel should do.

33From Zebulun there were 50,000 warriors who were prepared for battle, equipped with all kinds of weapons, and ready to give their undivided loyalty.

34From Naphtali there were 1,000 officers, along with 37,000 men carrying shields and spears.

35From Dan there were 28,600 men prepared for battle.

36From Asher there were 40,000 warriors prepared for battle.

37From the other side of the Jordan, from Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, there were 120,000 men armed with all kinds of weapons.

38All these men were warriors who were ready to march. They came to Hebron to make David king over all Israel by acclamation; all the rest of the Israelites also were in agreement that David should become king.

39They spent three days feasting there with David, for their relatives had given them provisions.

40Also their neighbors, from as far away as Issachar, Zebulun, and Naphtali, were bringing food on donkeys, camels, mules, and oxen. There were large supplies of flour, fig cakes, raisins, wine, olive oil, beef, and lamb, for Israel was celebrating.

1Now these are those who came to David to Ziklag, while he was a fugitive from Saul the son of Kish. They were among the mighty men, his helpers in war.

2They were armed with bows, and could use both the right hand and the left in slinging stones and in shooting arrows from the bow. They were of Saul’s relatives of the tribe of Benjamin.

3The chief was Ahiezer, then Joash, the sons of Shemaah the Gibeathite; Jeziel and Pelet, the sons of Azmaveth; Beracah; Jehu the Anathothite;

4Ishmaiah the Gibeonite, a mighty man among the thirty and a leader of the thirty; Jeremiah; Jahaziel; Johanan; Jozabad the Gederathite;

5Eluzai; Jerimoth; Bealiah; Shemariah; Shephatiah the Haruphite;

6Elkanah, Isshiah Azarel, Joezer, and Jashobeam, the Korahites;

7and Joelah and Zebadiah, the sons of Jeroham of Gedor.

8Some Gadites joined David in the stronghold in the wilderness, mighty men of valor, men trained for war, who could handle shield and spear; whose faces were like the faces of lions, and they were as swift as the gazelles on the mountains:

9Ezer the chief, Obadiah the second, Eliab the third,

10Mishmannah the fourth, Jeremiah the fifth,

11Attai the sixth, Eliel the seventh,

12Johanan the eighth, Elzabad the ninth,

13Jeremiah the tenth, and Machbannai the eleventh.

14These of the sons of Gad were captains of the army: he who was least was equal to one hundred, and the greatest to one thousand.

15These are those who went over the Jordan in the first month, when it had overflowed all its banks; and they put to flight all who lived in the valleys, both toward the east and toward the west.

16Some of the children of Benjamin and Judah came to the stronghold to David.

17David went out to meet them, and answered them, “If you have come peaceably to me to help me, my heart will be united with you; but if you have come to betray me to my adversaries, since there is no wrong in my hands, may the God of our fathers see this and rebuke it.”

18Then the Spirit came on Amasai, who was chief of the thirty, and he said, “We are yours, David, and on your side, you son of Jesse. Peace, peace be to you, and peace be to your helpers; for your God helps you.” Then David received them, and made them captains of the band.

19Some of Manasseh also joined David, when he came with the Philistines against Saul to battle; but they didn’t help them; for the lords of the Philistines sent him away after consultation, saying, “He will desert to his master Saul to the jeopardy of our heads.”

20As he went to Ziklag, some from Manasseh joined him: Adnah, Jozabad, Jediael, Michael, Jozabad, Elihu, and Zillethai, captains of thousands who were of Manasseh.

21They helped David against the band of rovers; for they were all mighty men of valor, and were captains in the army.

22For from day to day men came to David to help him, until there was a great army, like God’s army.

23These are the numbers of the heads of those who were armed for war, who came to David to Hebron, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to Yahweh’s word.

24The children of Judah who bore shield and spear were six thousand eight hundred, armed for war.

25Of the children of Simeon, mighty men of valor for the war, seven thousand one hundred.

26Of the children of Levi four thousand six hundred.

27Jehoiada was the leader of the household of Aaron; and with him were three thousand seven hundred,

28and Zadok, a young man mighty of valor, and of his father’s house twenty-two captains.

29Of the children of Benjamin, Saul’s relatives, three thousand: for until then, the greatest part of them had kept their allegiance to Saul’s house.

30Of the children of Ephraim twenty thousand eight hundred, mighty men of valor, famous men in their fathers’ houses.

31Of the half-tribe of Manasseh eighteen thousand, who were mentioned by name, to come and make David king.

32Of the children of Issachar, men who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, their heads were two hundred; and all their brothers were at their command.

33Of Zebulun, such as were able to go out in the army, who could set the battle in array, with all kinds of instruments of war, fifty thousand, and who could command and were not of double heart.

34Of Naphtali one thousand captains, and with them with shield and spear thirty-seven thousand.

35Of the Danites who could set the battle in array, twenty-eight thousand six hundred.

36Of Asher, such as were able to go out in the army, who could set the battle in array, forty thousand.

37On the other side of the Jordan, of the Reubenites, the Gadites, and of the half-tribe of Manasseh, with all kinds of instruments of war for the battle, one hundred twenty thousand.

38All these were men of war, who could order the battle array, and came with a perfect heart to Hebron, to make David king over all Israel; and all the rest also of Israel were of one heart to make David king.

39They were there with David three days, eating and drinking; for their brothers had supplied provisions for them.

40Moreover those who were near to them, as far as Issachar, Zebulun, and Naphtali, brought bread on donkeys, on camels, on mules, and on oxen: supplies of flour, cakes of figs, clusters of raisins, wine, oil, cattle, and sheep in abundance; for there was joy in Israel.