And he said to me, Who art thou? And I answered him, I am an Amalekite.

Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, who clothed you in scarlet, with other delights, who put ornaments of gold upon your apparel.

Then there arose, and went over by number twelve of Benjamin, who pertained to Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, and twelve of the servants of David.

Then was Abner very wroth for the words of Ish-bosheth, and said, Am I a dog's head, who against Judah do show kindness this day to the house of Saul thy father, to his brethren, and to his friends, and have not delivered thee into the hand of David, that thou chargest me to-day with a fault concerning this woman?

And David sent messengers to Ish-bosheth, Saul's son, saying, Deliver to me my wife Michal, whom I espoused to me for a hundred foreskins of the Philistines.

And when Joab had come out from David, he sent messengers after Abner, who brought him again from the well of Sirah: but David knew it not.

And the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, went, and came about the heat of the day to the house of Ish-bosheth, who lay on a bed at noon.

And they brought the head of Ish-bosheth to David to Hebron, and said to the king, Behold the head of Ish-bosheth the son of Saul thy enemy, who sought thy life; and the LORD hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul and of his seed.

And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said to them, As the LORD liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity,

When one told me, saying, Behold, Saul is dead, (thinking to have brought good tidings,) I took hold of him, and slew him in Ziklag, who thought that I would have given him a reward for his tidings:

And the king and his men went to Jerusalem to the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land: who spoke to David, saying, Except thou shalt take away the blind and the lame, thou shalt not come in hither: thinking, David cannot come in hither.

Then David returned to bless his household. And Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David, and said, How glorious was the king of Israel to-day, who uncovered himself to-day in the eyes of the handmaids of his servants, as one of the vain fellows shamelessly uncovereth himself!

And David said to Michal, It was before the LORD, who chose me before thy father, and before all his house, to appoint me ruler over the people of the LORD, over Israel: therefore will I play before the LORD.

In all the places in which I have walked with all the children of Israel have I spoken a word with any of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to feed my people Israel, saying, Why do ye not build me a house of cedar?

But my mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee.

Then king David went in, and sat before the LORD, and he said, Who am I, O Lord GOD? and what is my house, that thou hast brought me hitherto;

And what one nation in the earth is like thy people, even like Israel, whom God went to redeem for a people to himself, and to make him a name, and to do for you great things and terrible, for thy land, before thy people which thou redeemedst to thee from Egypt, from the nations and their gods?

And the king said, Is there not yet any of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God to him? and Ziba said to the king, Jonathan hath yet a son, who is lame in his feet.

And the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew the men of seven hundred chariots of the Syrians, and forty thousand horsemen, and smote Shobach the captain of their host, who died there.

Who smote Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? did not a woman cast a piece of a millstone upon him from the wall, that he died in Thebez? why went ye nigh the wall? then say thou, Thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.

And he said, While the child was yet alive, I fasted, and wept: for I said, Who can tell whether GOD will be gracious to me, that the child may live?

And behold, the whole family hath risen against thy handmaid, and they said, Deliver him that smote his brother, that we may kill him, for the life of his brother whom he slew; and we will destroy the heir also: and so they will quench my coal which is left, and will not leave to my husband neither name nor remainder upon the earth.

And the woman said, Why then hast thou thought such a thing against the people of God? for the king doth speak this thing as one who is faulty, in that the king doth not bring home again his banished.

Absalom said moreover, Oh that I were made judge in the land, that every man who hath any suit or cause might come to me, and I would do him justice!

And the king went forth, and all his household after him. And the king left ten women who were concubines to keep the house.

And all his servants passed on by his side; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.

To whom David said, If thou shalt pass on with me, then thou wilt be a burden to me:

And the king said, What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah? so let him curse, because the LORD hath said to him, Curse David. Who shall then say, Why hast thou done so?

And David said to Abishai, and to all his servants, Behold, my son, who came forth from my bowels, seeketh my life: how much more now may this Benjaminite do it? let him alone, and let him curse; for the LORD hath bidden him.

And Hushai said to Absalom, Nay; but whom the LORD, and this people, and all the men of Israel choose, his will I be, and with him will I abide.

And again, whom should I serve? should I not serve in the presence of his son? as I have served in thy father's presence, so will I be in thy presence.

And I will bring back all the people to thee: the man whom thou seekest is as if all returned: so all the people shall be in peace.

And he also that is valiant, whose heart is as the heart of a lion, will utterly melt: for all Israel knoweth that thy father is a mighty man, and they who are with him are valiant men.

Nevertheless, a lad saw them, and told Absalom: but they went both of them away quickly, and came to the house of a man in Bahurim, who had a well in his court; into which they descended.

And Ahimaaz called, and said to the king, All is well. And he fell down to the earth upon his face before the king, and said, Blessed be the LORD thy God, who hath delivered up the men that raised their hand against my lord the king.

And Joab came into the house to the king, and said, thou hast shamed this day the faces of all thy servants, who this day have saved thy life, and the lives of thy sons and of thy daughters, and the lives of thy wives, and the lives of thy concubines;

And Absalom, whom we anointed over us, is dead in battle. Now therefore why speak ye not a word of bringing the king back?

And Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjaminite, who was of Bahurim, hasted and came down with the men of Judah to meet king David.

And David came to his house at Jerusalem; and the king took the ten women his concubines, whom he had left to keep the house, and put them in custody, and fed them, but went not in to them. So they were shut up to the day of their death, living in widowhood.

Let seven men of his sons be delivered to us, and we will hang them up to the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, whom the LORD chose. And the king said, I will give them.

But the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to 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:

And David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the street of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them, when the Philistines had slain Saul in Gilboa:

And Ishbi-benob, who was of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose spear was three hundred shekels of brass in weight, he being girded with a new sword, thought to have slain David.

And it came to pass after this, that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Gob: then Sibbechai the Hushathite slew Saph, who was of the sons of the giant.

I will call on the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from my enemies.

For who is God, save the LORD? and who is a rock, save our God?

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

These are 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 lifted up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time.

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

For the king said to Joab the captain of the host, who was with him, Go now through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, and number ye the people, that I may know the number of the people.