And Meonothai fathered Ophrah; and Seraiah fathered Joab, the father of Ge-Harashim, because they [were] craftsmen.

These [were] the potters and inhabitants of Netaim and Gederah. They lived there with the king in his service.

And they lived in Beersheba, Moladah, Hazar Shual,

and all their villages that surrounding these cities as far as Baal. These [were] their settlements, and they kept a genealogical record for them.

And they went to the entrance of Gedor, up to the east side of the valley, to seek pasture for their flocks.

And they found fertile and good pasture, and the land [was] very broad, quiet, and at ease, for the former inhabitants there [were] from Ham.

These, mentioned by name, came in the days of Hezekiah, king of Judah, and attacked their tents and the Meunites who were found there. And they devoted them to destruction to this day, and they settled among them because [there was] pasture there for their flocks.

And they destroyed the remainder of the Amalekites who had escaped, and they have lived there to this day.

And in the days of Saul they made war against the Hagrites, and they fell into their hand. And they lived in their tents in all the region east of Gilead.

And they lived in Gilead, in Bashan, and in {its towns}, and in all the pasturelands of Sharon to their limits.

And they made war against the Hagrites, Jetur, Naphish, and Nodab.

And they were helped against them, and the Hagrites and all who [were] with them were given into their hand, for they cried out to God in the battle, and he responded to their prayer because they trusted in him.

And they captured their livestock: fifty thousand of their camels; two hundred and fifty thousand sheep; two thousand donkeys; and one hundred thousand men alive.

For many [were] slain because the war was of God. And they lived under them until the exile.

And the sons of the half-tribe of Manasseh lived in the land from Bashan to Baal-Hermon, Senir, and Mount Hermon. They [were] numerous.

But they transgressed against the God of their ancestors and prostituted themselves after the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God had destroyed before them.

They were ministering with song before the tabernacle of the tent of assembly until Solomon built the temple of Yahweh in Jerusalem. And they stood according to their order with respect to their duty.

and they gave to them Hebron in the land of Judah and its surrounding pasturelands,

but the fields of the city and its villages they gave to Caleb the son of Jephunneh.

To the sons of Aaron they gave the cities of refuge: Hebron, Libnah with its pasturelands, Jattir, Eshtemoa with its pasturelands,

And they gave by lot out of the tribe of Judah, out of the tribe of Simeon, and out of the tribe of Benjamin these cities that are mentioned by name.

And they gave them the cities of refuge: Shechem with its pasturelands in the hill country of Ephraim, Gezer with its pasturelands,

And in addition to them, according to their generations, according to the house of their fathers, [were] troops of the army for war: thirty-six thousand. For {they had} many wives and sons.

Zabad his son, Shuthelah his son, and Ezer and Elead. And the men of Gath who were born in the land killed them because they came down to take their livestock.

And these [are] the sons of Ehud (these were heads of the {families} for the inhabitants of Geba, and they took them away to Manahath):

and Beriah and Shema who [were] the heads of the {families} of the inhabitants of Aijalon (they themselves chased away the inhabitants of Gath).

And the sons of Ulam were men [who were] mighty warriors, bowmen, and [they had] many sons and grandsons, one hundred and fifty. All these were Benjaminites.

So all Israel was enrolled in genealogy. And behold, they were written in the book of the kings of Israel. And Judah was taken away to Babylon on account of their sin.

until then they [were] gatekeepers at the gate of the king on the east [side] toward the camps of the Levites.

All of them were chosen as gatekeepers at the entrances, two hundred and twelve. They were enrolled by genealogies in their villages. They [were] established [by] David and Samuel the seer on account of their faithfulness.

So they and their sons [were] over the gates of the house of Yahweh at the house of the tent as guards.

For the four mighty gatekeepers, they who [were] Levites, {were entrusted} and [were] over the chambers and over the storerooms of the house of God.

And they lodged all around the house of God, for upon them [was] a responsibility. And {they had charge of opening [the house of God] every morning}.

And some of them [were] over the utensils of the service, for {they count them} [when] they are brought in and {they count them} [when] they are brought out.

Now these [were] the singers; the heads of the {families} of the Levites [were] in the chambers free from other service, for day and night [they were] over them on the service.

And Mikloth fathered Shimeam. And they also lived nearby their brothers in Jerusalem with their brothers.

Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and every Israelite fled away from before the Philistines. And they fell slain upon Mount Gilboa.

And when all the men of Israel who [were] in the valley saw that they had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and fled. Then the Philistines came and dwelled in them.

And it happened [that] on the next day when the Philistines came to strip the dead, they found Saul and his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa.

And they stripped him and took his head and his weapons, and they sent [them] throughout the land of the Philistines to bring news to their idols and the nation.

And they put his weapons in the temple of their gods, and they fastened his skull to the temple of Dagon.

every strong man arose and took the dead body of Saul and the dead bodies of his sons and brought them to Jabesh. And they buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh and fasted seven days.

Then all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and David made a covenant with them at Hebron in the presence of Yahweh. And they anointed David as king over Israel according to the word of Yahweh by the hand of Samuel.

And David lived in the fortress. Therefore they called it the city of David.

But they took their stand in the middle of the plot and defended it. And they killed the Philistines. And Yahweh saved [them] [with] a great victory.

And he said, "Far be it from me [that] I would do this before my God. Shall I drink the lifeblood of these men? For {at the risk of their lives} they brought it." And he was not willing to drink it. These things the three mighty men did.

Now these are the ones who came to David at Ziklag while he was still shut up because {of Saul}, the son of Kish. And they [were] the mighty warriors helping [with] the war.

[They were] armed with [the] bow, [able to shoot] right-handed or left-handed, [slinging] stones or [shooting] arrows with the bow; [they were] kinsmen of Saul from Benjamin.

And from the Gadites, valiant mighty warriors, {soldiers fit for war}, expert with shield and spear, defected to David at the fortress toward the wilderness. And {they had faces like lions} [and were] swift as gazelles upon the mountains.

These [were] they who crossed the Jordan in the first month, when it was filled over its banks. And they put to flight all [who were in] the valley to the east and to the west.

And they themselves helped David against the troops, for all of them [were] mighty men of strength and were commanders in the army.

{Day in and day out} they came to David to help him until [there was] a great army, like the army of God.

All these [were] men of war arrayed in battle line {with a whole heart}. They came to Hebron to make David king over all Israel. Likewise, all the rest of Israel [had] one heart to make David king.

And they were there with David three days, eating and drinking, for their kinsmen were prepared for them.

And David said to all the assembly of Israel, "{If it seems good to you} and before Yahweh our God, {let us send word abroad} to our brothers who remain in all the land of Israel and [to] the priests and Levites with them in the cities with their pasturelands that they might be gathered to us.

And they carried the ark of God upon a new cart from the house of Abinadab, and Uzza and Ahio were driving the cart.

And when they came to the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzza reached out his hand to hold the ark because the cattle had stumbled.

And he went up to Baal-Perazim, and David struck them there. And David said, "God has burst out against my enemies by my hand like waters burst out." Therefore they will call the name of this place Baal-Perazim.

And they abandoned their gods there. And David commanded, and they were burnt with fire.

And David did as God commanded him, and they struck the camp of the Philistines from Gibeon to Gezer.

And it happened [that] when God helped the Levites carrying the ark of the covenant of Yahweh, they sacrificed seven bulls and seven rams.

And they brought the ark of God and set it inside the tent that David had pitched for it. And they offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings before God.

when they wandered from nation to nation, and from one kingdom to another people,

And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and I will plant them, and they shall dwell in their place and be in anguish no longer. And wicked men will no longer wear them down as before,

And they went and told David concerning the men, and he inquired of them, for the men were very disgraced. And the king said, "Dwell in Jericho until your beards grow out; then return."

And when the {Ammonites} saw that they made themselves odious to David, Hanun and the {Ammonites} sent one thousand talents of silver to hire for themselves horses and chariots from Aram-Naharaim, Aram-Maacah, and Zobah.

And they hired for themselves thirty-two thousand chariots and the king of Maacah and his people, and they came and encamped before Medeba. And the {Ammonites} were gathered from their cities and came to the battle.

And the remainder of the people he put in the hand of Abishai his brother, and they were arranged to meet the {Ammonites}.

And Joab and the people who [were] with him drew near before Aram for battle, and they fled before him.

And when the {Ammonites} saw that Aram had fled, they also fled before Abishai his brother, and they came to the city. Then Joab came to Jerusalem.

And when Aram saw that they were defeated before Israel, they sent messengers and brought out Aram, who [was from] beyond the Euphrates, with Shophach the commander of the army of Hadadezer before them.

And when it was told to David, he gathered all Israel and crossed the Jordan. And he came to them and was arrayed against them. Then David was arrayed to meet Aram in battle, and they fought with him.

And when the servants of Hadadezer saw that they were defeated before Israel, they made peace with David and became servants to him. So Aram was no longer willing to help the {Ammonites}.

And after this there arose a war in Gezer with the Philistines. Then Sibbecai the Hushathite struck down Sippai, one of the descendants of the Rephaim. And they were subdued.

These were born to the giants in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.

But Joab said, "May Yahweh add to the people a hundred times what they are! Are they not, O my lord the king, all of them the king's servants? Why does my lord seek this? Why would he bring guilt to Israel?"

Then David said to God, "Was it not I [who] gave a command to count the people? Now I [am] he who has sinned, and I have certainly done wickedness, but these sheep, what have they done? O Yahweh, my God, please let your hand be against me and against the house of my father, but against your people, [let there be] no plague."

Then David came to Ornan, and Ornan looked and saw David. And he went out from the threshing floor, and they bowed down to David, faces to the ground.

And Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the second, but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons. They were enrolled as one for the house of a father.

For by the last words of David, they [are] the number of the sons of Levi, from twenty years old and above.

And [they were] to stand {every morning}, thanking and praising Yahweh, and likewise in the evening,

And they shall keep the responsibility of the tent of assembly, the responsibility of the sanctified objects, and the responsibility of the sons of Aaron, their brothers, to serve the house of Yahweh.

And Nadab and Abihu died before their father, and {they had no sons}, so Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests.

And more sons of Eleazar were found as heads of the men than the sons of Ithamar, so they divided them to the sons of Eleazar [to be] sixteen heads over the house of the fathers, and to the sons of Ithamar over the house of the fathers [were] eight [heads].

They divided them by lot {all alike}, for they were commanders of the sanctuary and commanders of God from among the sons of Eleazar and the sons of Ithamar.

And they cast lots [for] responsibilities {on the principle of small and great alike}, teacher with student.

And to Shemaiah his son were sons born who [were] rulers in the house of their father, for they [were] mighty warriors of ability.

All these from the sons of Obed-Edom, they and their sons, and their brothers [were] men of ability with strength for service; sixty-two of Obed-Edom.

And they cast lots, small and great alike, by their fathers' houses, {for their gates}.

And the lot fell to the east to Shelemiah. As for Zechariah his son, {a wise counselor}, they cast lots. And his lot came out for the north.

From the battles and from the spoil they had dedicated [these things] to strengthen the house of Yahweh.

For the Hebronites: Jeriah the chief of the Hebronites for the genealogy for the {families}. (In the fortieth year of the reign of David they were examined, and there was found among them mighty warriors of strength at Jazer in Gilead.)

And they gave for the service of the house of God five thousand talents and ten thousand darics of gold, ten thousand talents of silver, eighteen thousand talents of bronze, and one hundred thousand talents of iron.

And the people rejoiced over their freewill offering, for with a whole heart they had willingly offered to Yahweh, and King David also rejoiced with great joy.

And David said to all the assembly, "Bless Yahweh your God!" And all the assembly blessed Yahweh, the God of their ancestors. And they bowed down and prostrated themselves before Yahweh and the king.

And they offered sacrifices to Yahweh, and on that next day they offered burnt offerings to Yahweh: one thousand bulls, one thousand rams, one thousand lambs, with their libations and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel.

And they ate and drank before Yahweh on that day with great joy. And they made Solomon the son of David king the second time, and they anointed [him] commander for Yahweh, and Zadok the priest.

Now the words of King David, [from] the first to the last, see, they are written among the words of Samuel the seer, and among the words of Nathan the prophet, and among the words of Gad the seer,