1 Then there fell a hunger in the days of David: three years, year by year. And David enquired of the LORD. And the LORD answered, "It is for Saul's sake and the house of blood, because he slew the Gibeonites."
2 And the king called the Gibeonites and spake unto them. Now these Gibeonites are not of the children of Israel, but a remnant of the Amorites - and the children of Israel sware unto them. And yet Saul sought to slay them, for a zeal that he had to the children of Israel and of Judah.
3 Wherefore David said unto them, "What shall I do for you? and wherewith shall I content you that ye may bless the inheritance of the LORD?"
4 And the Gibeonites said unto him, "We have no matter of silver or of gold with Saul or with his house: neither have we any man that we would kill in Israel." Then he said, "What say ye that I shall do for you?"
5 And they said unto the king, "The man that consumed and imagined to bring us to nought, him we ought to destroy, that nought of him continue in any of the coasts of Israel.
6 Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, that we may hang them up unto the LORD, in Gibeah of Saul the LORD's elect." And David said, "I will give them you."
7 But the king had compassion on Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the LORD's oath that was between them: that is to say, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.
8 But he took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah which she bare unto Saul, Armoni and Miphiyboseth, and the five sons of Merab the daughter of Saul which she bare to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite,
9 and delivered them unto the hands of the Gibeonites, which hanged them in the hill before the LORD. And they fell all seven together in the first days of harvest: even in the beginning of barley harvest.
10 And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it under her upon the rock, even from the beginning of harvest until rain dropped upon them out of heaven, and suffered neither the birds of the air to fall on them by day nor beasts of the field by night.
11 And when it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah the concubine of Saul had done,
12 he went and took the bones of Saul, and of Jonathan his son, and of the men of Jabesh in Gilead, which they had stolen from the street of Bet-Shean, where the Philistines had hanged them in the days when the Philistines had slain Saul in Gilboa.
13 And he brought thence the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son, and they fetched away the bones of them that were hanged,
14 and buried them with the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin, in Zela, in the sepulchre of Kish his father. And when they had performed all that the king commanded, God was then at one with the land.
15 And the Philistines had yet again war with Israel. And David went down, and his servants with him, and fought with the Philistines.
16 And David waxed fainty, and Ishbi of Nob one of the sons of the Giants whose spear head weighed three hundredth sicles of brass, and was girded with a new sword, thought to have slain David.
17 But Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him and smote the Philistine and killed him. Then the servants of David sware unto him, saying, "Thou shalt go no more out with us to battle, that the light of Israel be not put out."
18 And there was yet, after this, battle with the Philistines at Nob, in which Sibbecai the Hushathite slew Saph of the sons of Haraphah.
19 And there was yet the third battle in Gob, with the Philistines, where Elhanan the son of the Jair slew Lahmi, the brother of Goliath the Gittite: the staff of whose spear was as great as a weaver's cloth beam.