The Famine Brings Justice
1 Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David inquired of the LORD. And the LORD answered, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites.
1 Now there was (A)a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and (B)David sought the presence of the Lord. And the Lord said, “It is for Saul and his bloody house, because he put the Gibeonites to death.”
1 During David’s reign there was a famine for three successive years, so David inquired of the Lord. The Lord answered, “It is because of the blood shed by Saul and his family when he killed the Gibeonites.”
1 One time there was a famine during David's reign that went on for three straight years. David sought the LORD, who said, "Saul and his household are guilty because he executed the Gibeonites."
2 And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them; (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.)
2 So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons of Israel but of the remnant of the Amorites, and (C)the sons of Israel (a)made a covenant with them, but Saul had sought to (b)kill them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah).
2 The Gibeonites were not Israelites but rather a remnant of the Amorites. The Israelites had taken an oath concerning them,(A) but Saul had tried to kill them in his zeal for the Israelites and Judah. So David summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them.
2 So the king called together the Gibeonites and conferred with them. Now the Gibeonites weren't part of the nation of Israel, but were the survivors from the Amorites. Although the Israelis had promised to spare them, Saul had started to execute them in his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah.
2 So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons (descendants) of Israel but of the remnant (survivors) of the Amorites. The Israelites had sworn [an oath] to [spare] them, but Saul in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah had sought to strike down the Gibeonites).
3 Wherefore David said unto the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? and wherewith shall I make the atonement, that ye may bless the inheritance of the LORD?
3 Thus David said to the Gibeonites, “What should I do for you? And how can I make atonement that you may bless (D)the inheritance of the Lord?”
3 He asked the Gibeonites, “What should I do for you? How can I make atonement so that you will bring a blessing on(a) the Lord’s inheritance?”
3 So David asked the Gibeonites, "What am I to do for you? How am I to make atonement so that you will bless the LORD's heritage?"
3 So David said to the Gibeonites, “What should I do for you? How can I make it good so that you will bless the Lord’s inheritance (Israel)?”
4 And the Gibeonites said unto him, We will have no silver nor gold of Saul, nor of his house; neither for us shalt thou kill any man in Israel. And he said, What ye shall say, that will I do for you.
4 Then the Gibeonites said to him, “(E)We have no concern of silver or gold with Saul or his house, nor is it for us to put any man to death in Israel.” And he said, “I will do for you whatever you say.”
4 The Gibeonites said to him, “We are not asking for money from(b) Saul or his family,(B) and we cannot put anyone to death in Israel.”(C)“Whatever you say, I will do for you,” he said.
4 "We're not looking for mere silver or gold to be paid by Saul or his household to us," the Gibeonites responded to him. "And it's not for us to execute anyone in Israel." In reply, David asked, "So what are you asking me to do for you?"
4 The Gibeonites said to him, “We will not accept silver or gold belonging to Saul or his household (descendants); nor is it for us to put any man to death in Israel.” David said, “I will do for you whatever you say.”
5 And they answered the king, The man that consumed us, and that devised against us that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the coasts of Israel,
5 So they said to the king, “(F)The man who consumed us and who planned (c)to exterminate us from remaining within any border of Israel,
5 They replied to the king, “As for the man who annihilated us and plotted to destroy us so we would not exist within the whole territory of Israel,
5 They told the king, "The man who consumed us, who planned our destruction intending to leave us with nothing in the territory of Israel
5 So they said to the king, “The man who consumed us and planned to exterminate us from remaining in any territory of Israel,
6 Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, whom the LORD did choose. And the king said, I will give them.
6 let seven men from his sons be given to us, and we will (d)hang them (G)before the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, (H)the chosen of the Lord.” And the king said, “I will give them.”
6 let seven of his male descendants be handed over to us so we may hang(c) them in the presence of the Lord(D) at Gibeah of Saul,(E) the Lord’s chosen.”(F)The king answered, “I will hand them over.”
6 is to have seven of his sons turned over to us. We will hang them in the presence of the LORD at Gibeah, which belonged to Saul, whom the LORD chose."
7 But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of the LORD'S oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.
7 But the king spared (I)Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, (J)because of the oath of the Lord which was between them, between David and Saul’s son Jonathan.
7 David spared Mephibosheth, the son of Saul’s son Jonathan, because of the oath of the Lord that was between David and Jonathan, Saul’s son.(G)
7 So the king answered, "I will give them." The king exempted Mephibosheth, the son of Saul's son Jonathan, because of the promise to the LORD that existed between David and Saul's son Jonathan.
7 But the king spared Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the Lord’s oath that was between David and Saul’s son Jonathan.
8 But the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bare unto Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth; and the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she brought up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite:
8 So the king took the two sons of (K)Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, Armoni and Mephibosheth whom she had borne to Saul, and the five sons of (e)(L)Merab the daughter of Saul, whom she had borne to Adriel the son of Barzillai the (M)Meholathite.
8 But the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, who were the two sons whom Rizpah(H) daughter of Aiah had borne to Saul, and the five sons whom Merab(d)(I) daughter of Saul had borne to Adriel son of Barzillai the Meholathite
8 Instead, the king arrested Aiah's daughter Rizpah's two sons Armoni and Mephibosheth, whom she had borne to Saul, and the five sons of Saul's daughter Merab, whom she had borne to Barzillai the Meholathite's son Adriel.
9 And he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them in the hill before the LORD: and they fell all seven together, and were put to death in the days of harvest, in the first days, in the beginning of barley harvest.
9 Then he gave them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they (f)hanged them in the mountain before the Lord, so that the seven of them fell together; and they were put to death in the first days of harvest at (N)the beginning of barley harvest.
9 and handed them over to the Gibeonites. They hanged(e) them on the hill in the presence of the Lord; the seven of them died together. They were executed in the first days of the harvest at the beginning of the barley harvest.(f)
9 Then he turned them over to the custody of the Gibeonites, who hanged them on the mountain in the presence of the LORD. All seven of them died at the same time. They were executed during the first days of harvest, just as the barley began to be gathered in.
9 He handed them over to the Gibeonites, and they hanged them on the hill before the Lord, and the seven died together. They were put to death in the first days of the grain harvest, the beginning of the barley harvest [in the spring].
The Burial Of Saul's Family
10 And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth, and spread it for her upon the rock, from the beginning of harvest until water dropped upon them out of heaven, and suffered neither the birds of the air to rest on them by day, nor the beasts of the field by night.
10 (O)And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until (g)it rained on them from the sky; and (P)she (h)allowed neither the birds of the sky to rest on them by day nor the beasts of the field by night.
10 Rizpah, Aiah’s daughter, took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on the rock from the beginning of the harvest(g) until the rain poured down from heaven on the bodies. She kept the birds of the sky from them by day and the wild animals by night.
10 Then Aiah's daughter Rizpah grabbed some sackcloth and spread it out for herself on the rock where her children had been hanged from the beginning of harvest until the first rain fell from the sky. She would not allow any scavenger birds to land on them during the day nor the beasts of the field to approach them at night.
10 Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest [in the spring] until [the autumn] rain fell on them; and she allowed neither the birds of the sky to rest on their bodies by day, nor the beasts of the field [to feed on them] by night.
11 And it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done.
11 When it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done,
11 When it was reported to David what Saul’s concubine Rizpah, daughter of Aiah, had done,
11 When David was informed what Rizpah, the daughter of Saul's mistress had done,
12 And David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabeshgilead, which had stolen them from the street of Bethshan, where the Philistines had hanged them, when the Philistines had slain Saul in Gilboa:
12 then David went and took (Q)the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the open square of (R)Beth-shan, (S)where the Philistines had hanged them on the day (T)the Philistines struck down Saul in Gilboa.
12 he went and got the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the leaders of Jabesh-gilead. They had stolen them from the public square of Beth-shan where the Philistines had hung the bodies the day the Philistines killed Saul at Gilboa.(J)
12 David had Saul's bones and the bones of his son Jonathan removed from the custody of certain men from Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the public square in Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them that is, back on the day when the Philistines had killed Saul on Mount Gilboa.
12 Then David went and took the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the open square of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them on the day when the Philistines had killed Saul in Gilboa.
13 And he brought up from thence the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son; and they gathered the bones of them that were hanged.
13 He brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from there, and they gathered the bones of those who had been (i)hanged.
13 David had the bones brought from there. They gathered up the bones of Saul’s family who had been hung(h)
13 He brought the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from there along with the bones of those who had been hanged,
13 He brought up the bones of Saul and of Jonathan his son from there, and they gathered the bones of those who had been hanged [with their arms and legs broken].
14 And the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son buried they in the country of Benjamin in Zelah, in the sepulchre of Kish his father: and they performed all that the king commanded. And after that God was intreated for the land.
14 They buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in (U)Zela, in the grave of Kish his father; thus they did all that the king commanded, and after that (V)God was moved by prayer for the land.
14 and buried the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan at Zela in the land of Benjamin in the tomb of Saul’s father Kish. They did everything the king commanded. After this, God answered prayer for the land.(K)
14 and they buried Saul's bones and his son Jonathan's bones in the territory of Benjamin in Zela, in the tomb of Saul's father Kish. After they had done everything that the king commanded, God responded to prayers for the land.
14 They buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in Zela, in the tomb of Kish his father; and they did all that the king commanded. After that, God was moved by prayer for the land.
Battles With The Philistines Recounted
15 Moreover the Philistines had yet war again with Israel; and David went down, and his servants with him, and fought against the Philistines: and David waxed faint.
15 Now when (W)the Philistines were at war again with Israel, David went down and his servants with him; and as they fought against the Philistines, David became weary.
15 The Philistines again waged war against Israel. David went down with his soldiers, and they fought the Philistines, but David became exhausted.
15 Afterwards, war broke out between the Philistines and Israel, so David went down to fight the Philistines. David became weary,
15 Now the Philistines were at war again with Israel. David went down with his servants, and as they fought against the Philistines, David became weary.
16 And Ishbibenob, which was of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of brass in weight, he being girded with a new sword, thought to have slain David.
16 Then Ishbi-benob, who was (X)among the descendants of the (j)giant, the weight of whose spear was three hundred shekels of bronze in weight, (k)was girded with a new sword, and he (l)intended to kill David.
16 Then Ishbi-benob, one of the descendants of the giant,(i) whose bronze spear weighed about eight pounds(j) and who wore new armor, intended to kill David.
16 and Ishbi-benob, who had been fathered by giants, said he intended to kill David. (His bronze spearhead weighed 300 shekels, and he carried state-of-the-art weaponry.)
16 Then Ishbi-benob, who was among the descendants of the giant, the weight of whose spear was three hundred shekels (six pounds) of bronze, was armed with a new sword, and he intended to kill David.
17 But Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him, and smote the Philistine, and killed him. Then the men of David sware unto him, saying, Thou shalt go no more out with us to battle, that thou quench not the light of Israel.
17 But (Y)Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and struck the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, “(Z)You shall not go out again with us to battle, so that you do not extinguish (AA)the lamp of Israel.”
17 But Abishai son of Zeruiah came to his aid, struck the Philistine, and killed him. Then David’s men swore to him: “You must never again go out with us to battle. You must not extinguish the lamp of Israel.”(L)
17 But Zeruiah's son Abishai came to David's aid, attacked the Philistine, and killed him. After this, David's army told him, "You're not going out anymore with us to battle, so Israel's beacon won't be extinguished!"
17 But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to David’s aid, and struck and killed the Philistine. Then David’s men swore to him, “You shall not go out again with us to battle, so that you do not extinguish the lamp of Israel.”
18 And it came to pass after this, that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Gob: then Sibbechai the Hushathite slew Saph, which was of the sons of the giant.
18 (AB)Now it came about after this that there was war again with the Philistines at Gob; then (AC)Sibbecai the Hushathite struck down Saph, who was among the descendants of the (m)giant.
18 After this,(M) there was another battle with the Philistines at Gob. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Saph, who was one of the descendants of the giant.(k)
18 Sometime later after this incident, there was another battle with the Philistines at Gob. Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Saph, who had been fathered by giants.
18 After this, there was war again with the Philistines at Gob (Gezer). At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Saph (Sippai), who was among the descendants of the giant.
19 And there was again a battle in Gob with the Philistines, where Elhanan the son of Jaareoregim, a Bethlehemite, slew the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam.
19 There was war with the Philistines again at Gob, and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim the Bethlehemite (n)killed (o)Goliath the Gittite, (AD)the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.
19 Once again there was a battle with the Philistines at Gob, and Elhanan son of Jaare-oregim the Bethlehemite killed(l) Goliath the Gittite. The shaft of his spear was like a weaver’s beam.(N)
19 In yet another battle at Gob, Jaare-oregim the Bethlehemite's son Elhanan killed Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear resembled that of a weaver's beam.
19 There was war with the Philistines again at Gob, and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim, a Bethlehemite, killed Goliath the Gittite, whose spear shaft was like a weaver’s beam.
20 And there was yet a battle in Gath, where was a man of great stature, that had on every hand six fingers, and on every foot six toes, four and twenty in number; and he also was born to the giant.
20 There was war at Gath again, where there was a man of great stature who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also had been born (AE)to the (p)giant.
20 At Gath there was still another battle. A huge man was there with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot—24 in all. He, too, was descended from the giant.(m)
20 Later on, there was another battle at Gath, where there was a very tall man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot 24 in number who had also been fathered by giants.
20 There was war at Gath again, where there was a man of great stature who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; he also was a descendant of the giants.
21 And when he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea the brother of David slew him.
21 When he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, struck him down.
21 When he taunted Israel, Jonathan, son of David’s brother Shimei, killed him.
21 When he defied Israel, David's brother Shimeah's son Jonathan killed him.
21 And when he taunted and defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, killed him.
22 These four were born to the giant in Gath, and fell by the hand of David, and by the hand of his servants.
22 (AF)These four were born to the (q)giant in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.
22 These four giants, who had been fathered by a giant in Gath, were killed at the hands of David and his servants.
22 These four [warriors] were descended from the giant in Gath, and they fell by the hands of David and his servants.