2 Samuel — Chapter 23

1Now these be the last words of David. David the son of Jesse said, and the man who was raised up on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel, said,

2The Spirit of the LORD spake by me, and his word was in my tongue.

3The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me, He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.

4And he shall be as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds; as the tender grass springing out of the earth by clear shining after rain.

5Although my house be not so with God; yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things, and sure: for this is all my salvation, and all my desire, although he make it not to grow.

6But the sons of Belial shall be all of them as thorns thrust away, because they cannot be taken with hands:

7But the man that shall touch them must be fenced with iron and the staff of a spear; and they shall be utterly burned with fire in the same place.

8These be the names of the mighty men whom David had: The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite: he lift up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time.

9And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away:

10He arose, and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clave unto the sword: and the LORD wrought a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to spoil.

11And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a piece of ground full of lentiles: and the people fled from the Philistines.

12But he stood in the midst of the ground, and defended it, and slew the Philistines: and the LORD wrought a great victory.

13And three of the thirty chief went down, and came to David in the harvest time unto the cave of Adullam: and the troop of the Philistines pitched in the valley of Rephaim.

14And David was then in an hold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Bethlehem.

15And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate!

16And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the LORD.

17And he said, Be it far from me, O LORD, that I should do this: is not this the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives? therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mighty men.

18And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief among three. And he lifted up his spear against three hundred, and slew them, and had the name among three.

19Was he not most honourable of three? therefore he was their captain: howbeit he attained not unto the first three.

20And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man, of Kabzeel, who had done many acts, he slew two lionlike men of Moab: he went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow:

21And he slew an Egyptian, a goodly man: and the Egyptian had a spear in his hand; but he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and slew him with his own spear.

22These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and had the name among three mighty men.

23He was more honourable than the thirty, but he attained not to the first three. And David set him over his guard.

24Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty; Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem,

25Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite,

26Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite,

27Abiezer the Anethothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite,

28Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite,

29Heleb the son of Baanah, a Netophathite, Ittai the son of Ribai out of Gibeah of the children of Benjamin,

30Benaiah the Pirathonite, Hiddai of the brooks of Gaash,

31Abi-albon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite,

32Eliahba the Shaalbonite, of the sons of Jashen, Jonathan,

33Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Hararite,

34Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai, the son of the Maachathite, Eliam the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite,

35Hezrai the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite,

36Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite,

37Zelek the Ammonite, Nahari the Beerothite, armourbearer to Joab the son of Zeruiah,

38Ira an Ithrite, Gareb an Ithrite,

39Uriah the Hittite: thirty and seven in all.

1Now these are the last words of David. David the son of Jesse saith, And the man who was raised on high saith, The anointed of the God of Jacob, And the sweet psalmist of Israel:

2The Spirit of Jehovah spake by me, And his word was upon my tongue.

3The God of Israel said, The Rock of Israel spake to me: One that ruleth over men righteously, That ruleth in the fear of God,

4[He shall be] as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, A morning without clouds, [When] the tender grass [springeth] out of the earth, Through clear shining after rain.

5Verily my house is not so with God; Yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, Ordered in all things, and sure: For it is all my salvation, and all [my] desire, Although he maketh it not to grow.

6But the ungodly shall be all of them as thorns to be thrust away, Because they cannot be taken with the hand

7But the man that toucheth them Must be armed with iron and the staff of a spear: And they shall be utterly burned with fire in [their] place

8These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: Josheb-basshebeth a Tahchemonite, chief of the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite, against eight hundred slain at one time.

9And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodai the son of an Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away.

10He arose, and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clave unto the sword; and Jehovah wrought a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to take spoil.

11And after him was Shammah the son of Agee a Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a plot of ground full of lentils; and the people fled from the Philistines.

12But he stood in the midst of the plot, and defended it, and slew the Philistines; and Jehovah wrought a great victory.

13And three of the thirty chief men went down, and came to David in the harvest time unto the cave of Adullam; and the troop of the Philistines was encamped in the valley of Rephaim.

14And David was then in the stronghold; and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Beth-lehem.

15And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me water to drink of the well of Beth-lehem, which is by the gate!

16And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Beth-lehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: but he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto Jehovah.

17And he said, Be it far from me, O Jehovah, that I should do this: [shall I drink] the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives? therefore he would not drink it. These things did the three mighty men.

18And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief of the three. And he lifted up his spear against three hundred and slew them, and had a name among the three.

19Was he not most honorable of the three? therefore he was made their captain: howbeit he attained not unto the [first] three.

20And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, who had done mighty deeds, he slew the two [sons of] Ariel of Moab: he went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow.

21And he slew an Egyptian, a goodly man: and the Egyptian had a spear in his hand; but he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian`s hand, and slew him with his own spear.

22These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and had a name among the three mighty men.

23He was more honorable than the thirty, but he attained not to the [first] three. And David set him over his guard.

24Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty; Elhanan the son of Dodo of Beth-lehem,

25Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite,

26Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite,

27Abiezer the Anathothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite,

28Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite,

29Heleb the son of Baanah the Netophathite, Ittai the son of Ribai of Gibeah of the children of Benjamin,

30Benaiah a Pirathonite, Hiddai of the brooks of Gaash.

31Abialbon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite,

32Eliahba the Shaalbonite, the sons of Jashen, Jonathan,

33Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Ararite,

34Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai, the son of the Maacathite, Eliam the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite,

35Hezro the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite,

36Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite,

37Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, armorbearers to Joab the son of Zeruiah,

38Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite,

39Uriah the Hittite: thirty and seven in all.

1These are the final words of David: “The oracle of David son of Jesse, the oracle of the man raised up as the ruler chosen by the God of Jacob, Israel’s beloved singer of songs:

2The Lord’s Spirit spoke through me; his word was on my tongue.

3The God of Israel spoke, the Protector of Israel spoke to me. The one who rules fairly among men, the one who rules in the fear of God,

4is like the light of morning when the sun comes up, a morning in which there are no clouds. He is like the brightness after rain that produces grass from the earth.

5My dynasty is approved by God, for he has made a perpetual covenant with me, arranged in all its particulars and secured. He always delivers me, and brings all I desire to fruition.

6But evil people are like thorns— all of them are tossed away, for they cannot be held in the hand.

7The one who touches them must use an iron instrument or the wooden shaft of a spear. They are completely burned up right where they lie!”

8These are the names of David’s warriors:Josheb Basshebeth, a Tahkemonite, was head of the officers. He killed 800 men with his spear in one battle.

9Next in command was Eleazar son of Dodo, the son of Ahohi. He was one of the three warriors who were with David when they defied the Philistines who were assembled there for battle. When the men of Israel retreated,

10he stood his ground and fought the Philistines until his hand grew so tired that it seemed stuck to his sword. The Lord gave a great victory on that day. When the army returned to him, the only thing left to do was to plunder the corpses.

11Next in command was Shammah son of Agee the Hararite. When the Philistines assembled at Lehi, where there happened to be an area of a field that was full of lentils, the army retreated before the Philistines.

12But he made a stand in the middle of that area. He defended it and defeated the Philistines; the Lord gave them a great victory.

13At the time of the harvest three of the thirty leaders went down to David at the cave of Adullam. A band of Philistines was camped in the valley of Rephaim.

14David was in the stronghold at the time, while a Philistine garrison was in Bethlehem.

15David was thirsty and said, “How I wish someone would give me some water to drink from the cistern in Bethlehem near the gate!”

16So the three elite warriors broke through the Philistine forces and drew some water from the cistern in Bethlehem near the gate. They carried it back to David, but he refused to drink it. He poured it out as a drink offering to the Lord

17and said, “O Lord, I will not do this! It is equivalent to the blood of the men who risked their lives by going.” So he refused to drink it. Such were the exploits of the three elite warriors.

18Abishai son of Zeruiah, the brother of Joab, was head of the three. He killed 300 men with his spear and gained fame among the three.

19From the three he was given honor and he became their officer, even though he was not one of the three.

20Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a brave warrior from Kabzeel who performed great exploits. He struck down the two sons of Ariel of Moab. He also went down and killed a lion in a cistern on a snowy day.

21He also killed an impressive-looking Egyptian. The Egyptian wielded a spear, while Benaiah attacked him with a club. He grabbed the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear.

22Such were the exploits of Benaiah son of Jehoiada, who gained fame among the three elite warriors.

23He received honor from the 30 warriors, though he was not one of the three elite warriors. David put him in charge of his bodyguard.

24Included with the 30 were the following: Asahel the brother of Joab, Elhanan son of Dodo from Bethlehem,

25Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite,

26Helez the Paltite, Ira son of Ikkesh from Tekoa,

27Abiezer the Anathothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite,

28Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite,

29Heled son of Baanah the Netophathite, Ittai son of Ribai from Gibeah in Benjamin,

30Benaiah the Pirathonite, Hiddai from the wadis of Gaash,

31Abi-Albon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite,

32Eliahba the Shaalbonite, the sons of Jashen, Jonathan

33son of Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam son of Sharar the Hararite,

34Eliphelet son of Ahasbai the Maacathite, Eliam son of Ahithophel the Gilonite,

35Hezrai the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite,

36Igal son of Nathan from Zobah, Bani the Gadite,

37Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite (the armor-bearer of Joab son of Zeruiah),

38Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite,

39and Uriah the Hittite. Altogether there were 37.

1Now these are the last words of David. David the son of Jesse says, the man who was raised on high says, the anointed of the God of Jacob, the sweet psalmist of Israel:

2“Yahweh’s Spirit spoke by me. His word was on my tongue.

3The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me, ‘One who rules over men righteously, who rules in the fear of God,

4shall be as the light of the morning, when the sun rises, a morning without clouds, when the tender grass springs out of the earth, through clear shining after rain.’

5Isn’t my house so with God? Yet he has made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things, and sure, for it is all my salvation, and all my desire, although he doesn’t make it grow.

6But all the ungodly will be as thorns to be thrust away, because they can’t be taken with the hand,

7But the man who touches them must be armed with iron and the staff of a spear. They will be utterly burned with fire in their place.”

8These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: Josheb Basshebeth a Tahchemonite, chief of the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite, against eight hundred slain at one time.

9After him was Eleazar the son of Dodai the son of an Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines who were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel had gone away.

10He arose and struck the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand froze to the sword; and Yahweh worked a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to take plunder.

11After him was Shammah the son of Agee a Hararite. The Philistines had gathered together into a troop, where there was a plot of ground full of lentils; and the people fled from the Philistines.

12But he stood in the middle of the plot and defended it, and killed the Philistines; and Yahweh worked a great victory.

13Three of the thirty chief men went down, and came to David in the harvest time to the cave of Adullam; and the troop of the Philistines was encamped in the valley of Rephaim.

14David was then in the stronghold; and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Bethlehem.

15David longed, and said, “Oh that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate!”

16The three mighty men broke through the army of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate, and took it and brought it to David; but he would not drink of it, but poured it out to Yahweh.

17He said, “Be it far from me, Yahweh, that I should do this! Isn’t this the blood of the men who risked their lives to go?” Therefore he would not drink it. The three mighty men did these things.

18Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief of the three. He lifted up his spear against three hundred and killed them, and had a name among the three.

19Wasn’t he most honorable of the three? therefore he was made their captain. However he wasn’t included as one of the three.

20Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, who had done mighty deeds, killed the two sons of Ariel of Moab. He also went down and killed a lion in the middle of a pit in a time of snow.

21He killed a huge Egyptian, and the Egyptian had a spear in his hand; but he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and killed him with his own spear.

22Benaiah the son of Jehoiada did these things, and had a name among the three mighty men.

23He was more honorable than the thirty, but he didn’t attain to the three. David set him over his guard.

24Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty: Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem,

25Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite,

26Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite,

27Abiezer the Anathothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite,

28Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite,

29Heleb the son of Baanah the Netophathite, Ittai the son of Ribai of Gibeah of the children of Benjamin,

30Benaiah a Pirathonite, Hiddai of the brooks of Gaash.

31Abialbon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite,

32Eliahba the Shaalbonite, the sons of Jashen, Jonathan,

33Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Ararite,

34Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai, the son of the Maacathite, Eliam the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite,

35Hezro the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite,

36Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite,

37Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, armor bearers to Joab the son of Zeruiah,

38Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite,

39and Uriah the Hittite: thirty-seven in all.