Thematic Bible: King of israel


Thematic Bible



He said to him, "Thus says Yahweh: 'Because you have let the man I devoted for destruction go from [your] hand, your life shall be in place of his life and your people in place of his people.'"

You shall say to him, 'Thus says Yahweh: "Have you committed murder and also taken possession?" ' You shall also say to him, 'Thus says Yahweh: "In the place where the dogs licked the blood of Naboth, the dogs will also lick your blood." '" Then Ahab said to Elijah, "Have you found me, my enemy?" He said, "I have found you because you have sold yourself to do evil in the eyes of Yahweh. 'Look, I [am] bringing disaster on you, and I will sweep away after you. I will cut off for Ahab {every male} in Israel, bond or free. read more.
I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, {because you made me angry} and have caused Israel to sin.' Moreover, concerning Jezebel, Yahweh has said, 'The dogs will eat Jezebel in the outer rampart of Jezreel.' The one who dies for Ahab in the city, the dogs will eat; the one who dies in the open country, the birds of heaven will eat."

And he said, "Therefore, hear the word of Yahweh. I saw Yahweh sitting on his throne with all the hosts of heaven standing beside him from his right hand and from his left [hand]. And Yahweh said, 'Who will entice Ahab so that he will go up and fall at Ramoth-Gilead?' Then {this one was saying one thing and the other one was saying another}. Then a spirit came out and stood before Yahweh and said, 'I will entice him,' and Yahweh said to him, 'How?' read more.
He said, 'I will go out and I will be a false spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.' And he said, 'You shall entice and succeed, go out and do so.' So then, see that Yahweh has placed a false spirit in the mouth of all of these your prophets, and Yahweh has spoken disaster concerning you." Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah came near and slapped Micaiah on the cheek and said, "When did the Spirit of Yahweh pass from me to speak with you?" Then Micaiah said, "Behold, you [are about to] see on that day when you go {from room to room} to hide." The king of Israel said, "Take Micaiah and return him to Amon the commander of the city and to Jehoash the son of the king; and say, 'Thus says the king: "Put this [fellow in] the house of imprisonment and feed him reduced rations of food and water until I come in peace." '" Then Micaiah said, "If you indeed return in peace, then Yahweh has not spoken with me." Then he said, "Let all the peoples hear!"

All of the house of Ahab will perish, and I shall cut off {all males} from Ahab, both bond and free.

He said to Bidkar his third [servant], "Lift [him] out and throw him on the plot of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite, for remember, you and I [were] with the pair [of chariots] behind Ahab his father when Yahweh pronounced this oracle against him: '"Since I saw the blood of Naboth and the blood of his children yesterday," declares Yahweh, "I will requite it for you in this tract of land," declares Yahweh.' So then lift him out and throw him on the tract of land according to the word of Yahweh."


and did evil in the eyes of Yahweh, yet not as his father or his mother, as he removed the stone pillars of Baal that his father had made.

And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel as the house of Ahab had done, for the daughter of Ahab was his wife. And he did evil in the sight of Yahweh.

He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother was his counselor for doing wickedness. And he did evil in the eyes of Yahweh as the house of Ahab [had done], for they were his counselors to his destruction after the death of his father.

For you have observed the regulations of Omri and all the works of the house of Ahab. And you have walked in their counsels, so that I am making you a desolation and your inhabitants an object of scorn. So you will bear the scorn of my people.


But Ahab son of Omri did evil in the eyes of Yahweh more than all who were before him. {If it wasn't enough that he went} after the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he also took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal the king of the Sidonians. He went and served Baal and bowed down to him. And he built an altar to Baal in the house of Baal which he had built in Samaria. read more.
Ahab also made the sacred pole, and {he continued to provoke} Yahweh the God of Israel more than all the kings of Israel who were before him.

He said, "I did not throw Israel into confusion; rather you and the house of your father [have] by forsaking the commands of Yahweh when you went after the Baals! So then, send [word] and assemble all of Israel to me on Mount Carmel, with the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at the table of Jezebel."

Truly, there was no one like Ahab who had sold himself by doing evil in the eyes of Yahweh, whose wife Jezebel urged him on. Also, he acted very abominably by going after idols like all the Amorites had done whom Yahweh had driven out from before the {Israelites}."



When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, "[Is] this you [who] throws Israel into confusion?" He said, "I did not throw Israel into confusion; rather you and the house of your father [have] by forsaking the commands of Yahweh when you went after the Baals! So then, send [word] and assemble all of Israel to me on Mount Carmel, with the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at the table of Jezebel." read more.
So Ahab sent [word] among the {Israelites}, and he assembled the prophets to Mount Carmel. Elijah approached to all the people and said, "How long [will] you [go] limping over two opinions? If Yahweh [is] God, go after him; but if Baal, go after him." But the people did not answer him a word. Then Elijah said to the people, "I alone [am] left a prophet of Yahweh, but the prophets of Baal [are] four hundred and fifty men. Let them give us two bulls, and let them choose for themselves one bull, cut him in pieces, and put it on the wood, but don't let them start a fire on it. I will prepare the other bull and set it on the wood, but I will put no fire [on it]. Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of Yahweh, and it shall be that the god who answers by fire, he [is] God." Then all the people answered and said, "The word [is] good!" Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you [are] the majority, and call on the name of your god, but don't set fire [under it]." So they took the bull that he allowed to them, prepared it, and called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, "O Baal, answer us!" But there was no voice and there was no answer, so they limped about the altar which they had made. It happened at noon that Elijah mocked them and said, "Call out with a loud voice, for he [is] a god! Perhaps he is meditating, or {is using the bathroom}, or [is] on a journey. Perhaps he [is] asleep and must wake up!" So they called out with a loud voice, and they cut themselves with swords and with spears as was their custom, until the blood poured out over them. It happened as noon passed, they raged until the [time of] the evening offering, but there was no voice, there was no answer, and no [one] paid attention. Then Elijah said to all the people, "Come near to me," so all the people came closer to him. He repaired the altar of Yahweh [that had been] destroyed. Elijah took twelve stones according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of God came, saying, "Israel shall be your name." With them, he built an altar in the name of Yahweh, and he made a trench {which would have held} about two seahs of seed, all around the altar. And he arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces, and placed [it] on the wood. Then he said, "Fill four jars [with] water, and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood." He said, "Do [it] again!" They did [it] again. He said, "Do [it] a third time!" So they did [it] a third time. The water went all around the altar, and the trench also was filled [with] water. It happened at the offering of the [evening] oblation, Elijah the prophet went near, and he said, "O Yahweh, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel; let it be known today that you [are] God in Israel and [that] I [am] your servant and [that] I have done all of these things by your words. Answer me, O Yahweh, answer me; that this people may know that you, O Yahweh, [are] God and that you have turned their hearts back again." Then the fire of Yahweh fell, and it consumed the burnt offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust; and the water which [was] in the trench it licked up! When all the people saw, they fell on their faces and said, "Yahweh, he [is] God! Yahweh, he [is] God!" Then Elijah said to them, "Seize the prophets of Baal; don't let any man of them escape!" So they seized them, and Elijah brought them down to the wadi of Kishon and killed them there. Then Elijah said to Ahab, "Go up, eat and drink, for [there is] the sound of the noise of rain." So Ahab went up to eat and to drink while Elijah went to the top of Carmel, bent down to the earth, and put his face between his knees. Then he said to his servant, "Please go [and] look in the direction of [the] sea." So he went up and looked; then he said, "There is nothing." Then he said, "Go back," seven times. It happened that at the seventh time, he said, "Look, there is a small cloud, as [the] hand of a man, coming up from the sea." Then [Elijah] said, "Go up, say to Ahab, 'Harness [your horses] and go down, lest the rain stop you.'" {In no time} the heavens grew black [with] clouds and wind, and there was heavy rain. Ahab rode and he went to Jezreel, but the hand of Yahweh was on Elijah; he girded up his loins and ran before Ahab as one comes to Jezreel.


Ahab had seventy sons in Samaria, and Jehu wrote letters, and he sent them to Samaria to the officials of Jezreel, to the elders and to the guardians of Ahab, saying, "Now, when this letter comes to you and your master's sons [are] with you, the chariots [are] with you, the horses, a fortified city, and weapons, then you must select the best and the most suitable from the sons of your master, and you must place [him] on the throne of his father, and they must fight for the house of your masters." read more.
But they were very afraid, and they said, "Look, two kings could not stand before him; how can we stand?" So whoever was over the house, and whoever was over the city, and the elders and the guardians sent to Jehu, saying, "We [are] your servants; all that you say to us, we shall do. We shall not make anyone a king. Do [what] is good in your eyes." Then he wrote to them a second letter, saying, "If you [are] for me, and you [are] listening to my voice, take the heads of the men of the sons of your master and come to me at [this] time tomorrow at Jezreel." Now the sons of the king, seventy men, [were] with the leaders of the city who were raising them. When the letter came to them, they took the sons of the king, and they killed seventy men. Then they put their heads in baskets and sent them to him at Jezreel. Then the messenger came and told him, saying, "They have brought the heads of the king's sons," and he said, "Put them [in] two piles [at] the entrance of the gate until morning."


So Ahab slept with his ancestors, and Ahaziah his son became king in his place.


{If it wasn't enough that he went} after the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he also took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal the king of the Sidonians. He went and served Baal and bowed down to him.


Now Ahab son of Omri became king over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah. Ahab son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years.




So Ahab slept with his ancestors, and Ahaziah his son became king in his place.

Then Ahaziah son of Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, "Let my servants go with your servants in the ships," but Jehoshaphat was not willing.

Ahaziah son of Ahab became king over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. He did evil in the eyes of Yahweh, and he went in the way of his father and his mother and in the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat who caused Israel to sin. He served Baal and bowed down to him; and he provoked Yahweh the God of Israel according to all that his father did.

And afterward Jehoshaphat the king of Judah joined with Ahaziah the king of Israel, who acted wickedly. He joined with him to build ships to go to Tarshish. And they built the ships in Ezion Geber. Then Eliezer the son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, "Because of your joining with Ahaziah, Yahweh will break down your works." And the ships were destroyed and were not able to go to Tarshish.


Now Joram the son of Ahab had become king over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah. He reigned twelve years


I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, {because you made me angry} and have caused Israel to sin.'

I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah.

There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all of their days. Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah, and he built Ramah {to hinder the coming and going of anyone to Asa} king of Judah. Asa took all of the silver and gold remaining in the storerooms of the house of Yahweh and in the treasury rooms of the house of the king, and he gave them into the hand of his servants; so King Asa sent them to Ben-Hadad the son of Tabrimmon the son of Hezion, the king of Aram, who lived in Damascus, saying, read more.
"[Let there be] a covenant between me and you, between my father and your father. Look, I have sent you a gift of silver and gold. Go, break your covenant with Baasha king of Israel that he may go up [away] from me." Ben-Hadad listened to King Asa, and he sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel and he attacked Ijon, Dan, Abel-Beth-Maacah, and all of Kinnereth, in addition to all the land of Naphtali. When Baasha heard, he stopped building Ramah, and he lived in Tirzah. Then King Asa proclaimed among all of Israel that there was no one free from obligation, so they carried the stones of Ramah and its wood with which Baasha had built, and King Asa rebuilt Geba in Benjamin with them, and the Mizpah.

Baasha son of Ahijah of the house of Issachar conspired against him, and Baasha struck him down at Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines. Now Nadab and all of Israel [were] laying siege to Gibbethon, and Baasha killed him in the third year of Asa the king of Judah, and he reigned in his place. It happened that as soon as he became king, he killed all of the house of Jeroboam. There was no one left of Jeroboam who breathed, until he had destroyed him according to the word of Yahweh that he had spoken by the hand of his servant, Ahijah the Shilonite, read more.
because of the sins of Jeroboam that he had committed and that he had caused Israel to commit [and] because of his anger [with] which he had provoked Yahweh the God of Israel. Now the remainder of the acts of Nadab and all that he did, [are] they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel? There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days. In the third year of Asa king of Judah, Baasha son of Ahijah had become king over all of Israel; [he lived] in Tirzah twenty-four years. He did evil in the eyes of Yahweh, and he walked in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin that he caused Israel to commit.

The word of Yahweh came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying, "Because I exalted you from the dust and I made you a leader over my people Israel, but you have walked in the way of Jeroboam and you caused my people Israel to sin, to provoke me with their sins, I am now [about to] consume Baasha and his house. I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. read more.
Those who die for Baasha in the city, the dogs will eat; those who die for him in the field, the birds of the heavens will eat." The remainder of the acts of Baasha, what he did, and his powerful deeds, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel? Baasha slept with his ancestors and was buried in Tirzah, and Elah his son became king in his place. Moreover, the word of Yahweh came to Baasha and to his house by the hand of Jehu the son of Hanani the prophet, because of all the evil that he did in the eyes of Yahweh by provoking him with the work of his hands, by being like the house of Jeroboam; and he destroyed him.

In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Baasha the king of Israel went up against Judah. And he built Ramah in order not to allow [anyone] to go out or come in to Asa, king of Judah. Then Asa brought out silver and gold from the storehouses of the house of Yahweh and the house of the king, and he sent [them] to Ben-Hadad, king of Aram, who lived in Damascus, saying, "[There is] a covenant between me and you, [as there was] between my father and your father. Look, I am sending you silver and gold. Go, break your covenant with Baasha, king of Israel, that he might withdraw from me." read more.
And Ben-Hadad listened to King Asa, and he sent commanders of his troops that [were] with him against the cities of Israel. And they struck Ijon, Dan, Abel-Maim, and all the storage cities of Naphtali. And it happened [that] when Baasha heard [this], he stopped building Ramah and ceased his work. Then King Asa took all of Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and its timber with which Baasha had been building, and he built Geba and Mizpah with them.

Now the pit [into] which Ishmael threw all the corpses of the men whom he had killed {along with} Gedaliah [was the same one] that King Asa had made because of Baasha the king of Israel, [who was] against him. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled [it with] the slain ones.


"Look, days [are] coming," {declares} Yahweh, "when I will raise up for David a righteous branch, and he will reign [as] king, and he will achieve success, and he will do justice and righteousness in the land.

I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near; a star will go out from Jacob, and a scepter will rise from Israel; it will crush the foreheads of Moab and destroy all the children of Seth.

{His dominion will grow continually, and to peace there will be no end} on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and sustain it with justice and righteousness now and forever. The zeal of Yahweh of hosts will do this.

Do you not all know that Yahweh the God of Israel gave the kingdom to David over Israel forever, to him and to his sons [by] a covenant of salt?

Someone from Jacob will rule and will destroy a remnant from the city."

{In the manner that} I appointed judges over my people Israel, I will give you rest from all your enemies. And Yahweh declares to you that Yahweh will build a house for you. When your days [are] full and you lie down with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you who will go out from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He will build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. read more.
I will be a father to him, and he will be a son for me, whom I will punish when he does wrong, with a rod of men and with blows of the {human beings}. But my loyal love shall not depart from him as I took [it] from Saul, whom I removed from before you. Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before you; your throne shall be established forever." '"

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, from the day that I commanded judges over my people Israel. And I will subdue your enemies, and I declare to you [that] Yahweh will build for you a house. And it shall be that when your days are fulfilled to go [and sleep] with your ancestors, then I will raise up your seed after you, who will be one of your sons, and I will establish his kingdom. read more.
He himself will build for me a house, and I will establish his throne forever. I myself will be a father to him, and he himself will be a son to me. And I will not remove my steadfast love from him as I took it away from whoever was before you. And I will establish him in my house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne will be established forever." '"

'From the day that I brought my people out of the land of Egypt I did not choose a city among all the tribes of Israel to build a house in order for my name [to be] there. Nor did I choose a man to be leader over my people Israel. But I have chosen my name to be there in Jerusalem, and I have chosen David to be over my people Israel.' Now, it was in the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel. read more.
But Yahweh said to David my father, 'Because it was in your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your heart, but you yourself will not build the house, but your son who will proceed from your loins; he himself will build the house for my name.' Now Yahweh has fulfilled his word that he spoke. I have risen in the place of David my father and am seated on the throne of Israel as Yahweh has spoken. I have built the house for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel. And I have there the ark [in] which [is] the covenant of Yahweh that he {made} with the {Israelites}." Then Solomon stood before the altar of Yahweh before all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands. (For Solomon had made a platform of bronze five cubits long and five cubits wide and three cubits high, and placed it in the midst of the outer court.) And he stood upon it, then knelt down on his knees before the whole assembly of Israel and spread out his hands to heaven. And he said, "O Yahweh, God of Israel, there is none like you, a God in the heavens and on the earth, keeping the covenant and loyal love with your servants who walk before you with all their heart, that you have kept for your servant David my father what you spoke to him. You spoke with your mouth, and by your hand you have fulfilled [it] on this day. And now, O Yahweh, God of Israel, keep for your servant David, my father, what you have spoken to him, saying, '{You shall not lack} a man to sit on the throne of Israel before me, if only your sons keep their way, to walk in my law as you have walked before me.' And now, O Yahweh, God of Israel, let your word that you have spoken to your servant David be confirmed.

But Yahweh was not willing to destroy the house of David on account of the covenant that he had {made} with David and since he had promised to give a lamp to him and to his descendants {forever}.

Formerly you spoke in a vision to your faithful ones, and said, "I have bestowed help on a mighty man; I have exalted one chosen from [the] people. I have found David, my servant. With my holy oil I have anointed him, with whom my hand will be steadfast. Surely my arm will strengthen him. read more.
[The] enemy will not deceive him, and no {evil man} will afflict him. But I will crush his adversaries before him, and I will strike those who hate him. And [so] my faithfulness and my loyal love [will be] with him, and in my name his horn will rise up. And I will set his hand on the sea and his right hand on the rivers. He will call out [to] me, 'You [are] my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation.' I will also make him [the] firstborn, [the] highest of [the] kings of [the] earth. Forever I will keep my loyal love for him, and my covenant [will be] reliable for him. I will also establish his offspring forever, and his throne as [the] days of [the] heavens. If his sons forsake my law and do not walk in my judgments, if they defile my statutes and do not keep my commandments, then I will punish their transgression with rod, and their guilt with wounds. But I will not break off my loyal love from him, and I will not be false against my faithfulness. I will not defile my covenant, or alter what proceeded from my lips. Once I have sworn by my holiness, 'I will surely not lie to David, His offspring will endure forever, and his throne as the sun before me. Like [the] moon it will be steadfast forever, and [like] an enduring witness in the sky.'" Selah

then a throne shall be established in steadfast love, and one shall sit on it in faithfulness, in the tent of David, judging and seeking justice and zealous for righteousness.

And this shall happen: On that day I will call to my servant, Eliakim son of Hilkiah, and I will clothe him [with] your tunic, and I will bind your sash firmly about him, and I will put your authority into his hand, and he shall be like a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. And I will put the key of the house of David on his shoulder, and he shall open and no one [will be able to] shut; and he shall shut and no one [will be able to] open. read more.
And I will drive him in [like] a peg into a secure place, and he will become like a throne of glory to the house of his father. And they will hang all of the heaviness of his father's house on him, the offspring and the offshoot, all of the small vessels, from the {bowls to the jars}. On that day, {declares} Yahweh of hosts, the peg that was driven will move away into a secure place, and it will be cut down and fall, and the load that [was] on her will be cut off. For Yahweh has spoken.'"

In those days and in that time I will make a branch of righteousness sprout for David, and he will execute justice and righteousness in the land. In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell {safely}, and this [is] what they shall call it: "Yahweh [is] our righteousness." ' For thus says Yahweh: 'A man who sits on the throne of the house of Israel will not be cut off for David. read more.
And for the priests, a man from the Levites [who] offers burnt offerings and [who] burns grain offerings and [who] brings sacrifices will not be cut off {before me} {forever}.'" And the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah, {saying}, "Thus says Yahweh: 'If you could break my covenant [with] the day, and my covenant [with] the night, so that day and night [would] not come at their time, then my covenant could be broken with David my servant, from {having} a son who could rule on his throne, and with the Levites, the priests, my ministers. As the host of heaven cannot be counted, and the sand of the sea cannot be measured, so I will make numerous the offspring of David my servant and the Levites [who] minister [to] me.'" And the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah, {saying}, "Have you not seen how these people speak, {saying}, 'The two clans whom Yahweh chose, he has also rejected them'? Thus they spurn my people from being a nation {before them} [any] longer. Thus says Yahweh: 'If my covenant [with] day and [with] night, [the] regulations of heaven and earth, I had not established, then the offspring of Jacob and David my servant I would reject, from choosing rulers from his offspring over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; for I will restore their fortunes and I will have compassion on them.'"

This one will be great, and he will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. And he will reign over the house of Jacob {forever}, and of his kingdom there will be no end.


When your days [are] full and you lie down with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you who will go out from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He will build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be a father to him, and he will be a son for me, whom I will punish when he does wrong, with a rod of men and with blows of the {human beings}. read more.
But my loyal love shall not depart from him as I took [it] from Saul, whom I removed from before you. Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before you; your throne shall be established forever." '"

And it shall be that when your days are fulfilled to go [and sleep] with your ancestors, then I will raise up your seed after you, who will be one of your sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He himself will build for me a house, and I will establish his throne forever. I myself will be a father to him, and he himself will be a son to me. And I will not remove my steadfast love from him as I took it away from whoever was before you. read more.
And I will establish him in my house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne will be established forever." '"

And now, O Yahweh, God of Israel, keep for your servant David, my father, what you have spoken to him, saying, '{You shall not lack} a man to sit on the throne of Israel before me, if only your sons keep their way, to walk in my law as you have walked before me.'

Yet not so [is] my house with God, for he made an everlasting covenant for me, arranging everything. He has secured all my deliverance, and all my desire he will cause to happen.

"I made a covenant with my chosen one; I swore [an oath] to David my servant: 'I will establish your descendants forever, and I will build up your throne {from generation to generation}.'" Selah

Yahweh swore [in] truth to David; he will not turn back from it. "One from the fruit of your {body} I will set on your throne. If your sons will heed my covenant and my testimonies that I will teach them, their sons also forever will sit on your throne."

'After these [things] I will return and build up again the tent of David that has fallen, and the [parts] of it that had been torn down I will build up again and will restore it,

And again Isaiah says, "The root of Jesse will come, even the one who rises to rule over the Gentiles; in him the Gentiles will put their hope."


And [as] Jesus was going away from there, two blind men followed him, crying out and saying, "Have mercy on us, Son of David!"

And behold, a Canaanite woman from that district came [and] cried out, saying, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter [is] severely possessed by a demon!"

And all the crowds were amazed and began saying, "Perhaps this one is the Son of David!"

And the crowds who went ahead of him and the ones who followed were shouting, saying, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed [is] the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest [heaven]!"

And behold, [there were] two blind men sitting beside the road. [When they] heard that Jesus was passing by, they called out, saying, "Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!" And the crowd rebuked them so that they would be quiet. But they called out all the more, saying, "Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!"

saying, "What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?" They said to him, "David's."

And [when he] heard that it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" And many [people] warned him that he should be quiet. But he was crying out {even more loudly}, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"

And they told him, "Jesus the Nazarene is passing by."

And those who were in front rebuked him, that he should be silent, but he cried out {even more loudly}, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"


[Alas for those] who sing to the tune of the harp; like David they improvise on instruments of music.

Then David ordered the chiefs of the Levites to appoint their brothers [as] singers with instruments of song, musical instruments, stringed instruments, and cymbals, {raising their voices for joy}.

four thousand gatekeepers, [and] four thousand offering praise with the instruments that I have made for praise."

and his brothers Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani with the instruments of the songs of David the man of God; and Ezra the scribe [went] before them.

So David came to Saul and {entered his service}. He loved him greatly and {he became Saul's armor bearer}. Then Saul sent [word] to Jesse, saying, "Please let David stand before me, because he has found favor {in my sight}." So whenever the [evil] spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the stringed instrument and play it with his hand. Then {it would bring relief} for Saul; {he would feel better} and the evil spirit would depart from him.

And the priests stood at their posts with the Levites, with the instruments of the song of Yahweh that King David had made to give thanks to Yahweh--for his loyal love [is] everlasting--whenever David offered praise by their hand. Now the priests sounded trumpets [standing] opposite them, and all Israel stood.

When the Levites stood with the objects of David and the priests with the trumpets,


Now David was the son of an Ephrathite. This [man was] from Bethlehem of Judah, and his name was Jesse. {He had} eight sons; in the days of Saul this man was old, [yet] he [still] walked among the men.

Then Samuel said to Jesse, "{Are all the young men here}?" And he said, "The youngest still remains, but look, he [is] shepherding the flock." And Samuel said to Jesse, "Send and bring him, for we cannot {sit down} until he comes here."

Now these are the descendants of Perez: Perez fathered Hezron, and Hezron fathered Ram, and Ram fathered Amminadab, and Amminadab fathered Nahshon, and Nahshon fathered Salmon, read more.
and Salmon fathered Boaz, and Boaz fathered Obed, and Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.

The sons of Judah: Er, Onan and Shelah; [these] three were born to him from Bathshua the Canaanite. Now Er, Judah's firstborn, [was] evil in the sight of Yahweh, and he put him to death. And Tamar his daughter-in-law bore Perez and Zerah to him. The sons of Judah [were] five in all. The sons of Perez: Hezron and Hamul. read more.
The sons of Zerah: Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Dara, five in all. The son of Carmi: Achar, the troubler of Israel, who acted unfaithfully in the matter of the devoted thing. And the son of Ethan [was] Azariah. The sons of Hezron who were born to him: Jerahmeel, Ram, and Caleb. And Ram fathered Amminadab, and Amminadab fathered Nahshon, prince of the sons of Judah. And Nahshon fathered Salma, and Salma fathered Boaz. And Boaz fathered Obed, and Obed fathered Jesse. And Jesse fathered Eliab his firstborn, Abinadab the second, Shimea the third, Nethanel the fourth, Raddai the fifth, Ozem the sixth, David the seventh.

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham became the father of Isaac, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob became the father of Judah and his brothers, and Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez became the father of Hezron, and Hezron became the father of Aram, read more.
and Aram became the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon became the father of Salmon, and Salmon became the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz became the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed became the father of Jesse, and Jesse became the father of David the king. And David became the father of Solomon by the [wife] of Uriah,

the [son] of Melea, the [son] of Menna, the [son] of Mattatha, the [son] of Nathan, the [son] of David, the [son] of Jesse, the [son] of Obed, the [son] of Boaz, the [son] of Sala, the [son] of Nahshon, the [son] of Amminadab, the [son] of Admin, the [son] of Arni, the [son] of Hezron, the [son] of Perez, the [son] of Judah, read more.
the [son] of Jacob, the [son] of Isaac, the [son] of Abraham, the [son] of Terah, the [son] of Nahor, the [son] of Serug, the [son] of Reu, the [son] of Peleg, the [son] of Eber, the [son] of Shelah, the [son] of Cainan, the [son] of Arphaxad, the [son] of Shem, the [son] of Noah, the [son] of Lamech, the [son] of Methuselah, the [son] of Enoch, the [son] of Jared, the [son] of Mahalaleel, the [son] of Cainan, the [son] of Enosh, the [son] of Seth, the [son] of Adam, the [son] of God.


"The spirit of Yahweh speaks through me, and his word [is] upon my tongue. The God of Israel said to me, the rock of Israel has spoken; 'He who rules over mankind rules righteously, in the fear of God. Like the light of [the] morning when the sun rises, shining with no clouds, [bringing] vegetation from the earth apart from rain.' read more.
Yet not so [is] my house with God, for he made an everlasting covenant for me, arranging everything. He has secured all my deliverance, and all my desire he will cause to happen. But evil persons [are] like thorns cast aside; all of them, because they cannot be picked up in the hand. And if a man wants to touch them, he must use an iron instrument or the shaft of a spear; then they [are] consumed entirely with fire on the spot."

"All this [I give you] in writing; from the hand of Yahweh he instructed me [about] all the workings of this plan."

Now [while] the Pharisees were assembled, Jesus asked them, saying, "What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?" They said to him, "David's." He said to them, "How then does David, by the Spirit, call him 'Lord,' saying, read more.
'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet" '? If then David calls him 'Lord,' how is he his son?" And no one was able to answer him a word, nor did anyone dare from that day [on] to ask him any more [questions].

For David says with reference to him, 'I saw the Lord before me {continually}, for he is at my right hand so that I will not be shaken. For this [reason] my heart was glad and my tongue rejoiced greatly, furthermore also my flesh will live in hope, because you will not abandon my soul in Hades, nor will you permit your Holy One to experience decay. read more.
You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with gladness with your presence.' "Men [and] brothers, it is possible to speak with confidence to you about the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us until this day. Therefore, [because he] was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat {one of his descendants} on his throne, [by] having foreseen [this], he spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that neither was he abandoned in Hades nor did his flesh experience decay. This Jesus God raised up, of which we all are witnesses. Therefore, having been exalted to the right hand of God and having received the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father, he has poured out this that you see and hear. For David did not ascend into heaven, but he himself says, 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet." ' Therefore let all the house of Israel know beyond a doubt, that God has made him both Lord and Christ--this Jesus whom you crucified!" Now [when they] heard [this], they were pierced to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "What should we do, men [and] brothers?" And Peter [said] to them, "Repent and be baptized, each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

the one who said by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of our father David, your servant, 'Why do the nations rage, and the peoples conspire in vain?


The number of days that David was king over Hebron, over the house of Judah, [was] seven years and six months.

He reigned over Judah at Hebron [for] seven years and six months; and he reigned over all Israel and Judah at Jerusalem [for] thirty-three years.

Six were born to him in Hebron. And he reigned there seven years and six months. And he reigned thirty-three years in Jerusalem.

Then all Israel gathered to David in Hebron, saying, "Look--we are your flesh and bones. {For some time now}, even when Saul was king, you were {the one who led the army of Israel in battle}. And Yahweh your God said to you, 'You will shepherd my people Israel and will be leader over my people Israel.'" 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 these are the numbers of the chiefs of those prepared for the army who came to David at Hebron to turn the kingdom of Saul over to him according to the word of Yahweh. The sons of Judah bearing shield and spear: six thousand eight hundred armed troops. From the men of Simeon, mighty warriors of strength for war: seven thousand one hundred. read more.
From the Levites: four thousand six hundred. Jehoiada the chief officer of [the house of] Aaron, and with him, three thousand seven hundred. And Zadok, a young man, a mighty warrior of strength, and the house of his father: twenty-two commanders. From the men of Benjamin, kinsmen of Saul, three thousand, and {even still} the majority of them {remained loyal} to the house of Saul. And from the men of Ephraim: twenty thousand eight hundred mighty warriors of strength, famous men in the house of their fathers. And from the half-tribe of Manasseh: eighteen thousand who were designated by name to come to make David king. And from the men of Issachar: {men who were skilled in understanding the times} to know what Israel should do. Their chiefs [were] two hundred, and all their kinsmen [were] under their command. From Zebulun, those who went out armed, equipped for battle with all the weapons of war: fifty thousand to help David {with singleness of purpose}. From Naphtali: one thousand commanders; and [those] with them with shield and spear: thirty-seven thousand. From the Danites, [those] equipped for battle: twenty-eight thousand six hundred. And from Asher, those who went out armed [and] prepared for battle: forty thousand. And from beyond the Jordan, from the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh, with all [their] weapons of war for battle: one hundred and twenty thousand. 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 also their relatives, as far as Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, brought food on donkeys, on camels, on mules, and on oxen--provisions of flour, cakes of figs, raisin cakes, wine and oil, cattle and sheep in abundance, for [there was] great joy in Israel.

And the days that he reigned over Israel [were] forty years. In Hebron he reigned seven years, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years.


The number of days that David was king over Hebron, over the house of Judah, [was] seven years and six months.

He reigned over Judah at Hebron [for] seven years and six months; and he reigned over all Israel and Judah at Jerusalem [for] thirty-three years.

Six were born to him in Hebron. And he reigned there seven years and six months. And he reigned thirty-three years in Jerusalem.

Then all Israel gathered to David in Hebron, saying, "Look--we are your flesh and bones. {For some time now}, even when Saul was king, you were {the one who led the army of Israel in battle}. And Yahweh your God said to you, 'You will shepherd my people Israel and will be leader over my people Israel.'" 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.

It happened after this that David inquired of Yahweh, saying, "Shall I go up into one of the cities of Judah?" And Yahweh said to him, "Go up." David asked, "Where shall I go up?" And he said, "To Hebron." So David went up there {along with} his two wives, Ahinoam {from Jezreel} and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. Also, David brought up his men who [were] with him, each {with} his household, and they settled in the towns of Hebron. read more.
Then the men of Judah came, and they anointed David there as king over the house of Judah, and they told David, "The men of Jabesh-Gilead buried Saul."

The days that David reigned over Israel [were] forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.



{Yahweh forbid me} from stretching out my hand against Yahweh's anointed one! So then, please take the spear that [is] near his head and the jar of water, and let us go."

So David rebuked his men with the words and did not allow them to rise against Saul. And Saul got up from the cave, and he went on his way.

David said to Abishai and to all his servants, "Look, my son who came out of my loins [is] seeking my life. Now {as far as} [this] Benjaminite, leave him alone and let him curse, for Yahweh has spoken to him.

Then David said, "What [is] it to me or to you, sons of Zeruiah, that you should be an adversary today? [Should] anyone be put to death in Israel? Do I not know today that I [am] king over Israel?" Then the king said to Shimei, "You shall not die," and [so] the king swore to him.


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.

Then David ordered the chiefs of the Levites to appoint their brothers [as] singers with instruments of song, musical instruments, stringed instruments, and cymbals, {raising their voices for joy}. So the Levites appointed Heman son of Joel, and from his brothers, Asaph the son of Berekiah, and from the sons of Merari, their brothers, Ethan the son of Kushaiah; and with them their brothers [of] the second [rank], Zechariah the son, Jaaziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, and the gatekeepers Obed-Edom and Jeiel. read more.
Now the singers, Heman, Asaph, and Ethan, [were] to sound bronze cymbals; Zechariah, Aziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah [were to play] on harps according to Alamoth; and Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom, Jeiel, and Azaziah [were to play] lyres, directing according to the Sheminith. And Kenaniah, chief of the Levites in singing, [was to be] an instructor in singing because he understood. And Berekiah and Elkanah [were] gatekeepers for the ark. And Shebaniah, Jehoshaphat, Nethanel, Amasai, Zechariah, Benaiah, and Elizezer the priests {sounded the trumpets} before the ark of God. And Obed-Edom and Jehiah [were] gatekeepers for the ark.

Then he appointed some of the Levites as ministers before the ark of Yahweh, to invoke, thank, and praise Yahweh the God of Israel. Asaph [was] chief, and his second [was] Zechariah; Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-Edom, and Jeiel [were] on harps and lyres. And Asaph played on the cymbals. And Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests [blew] on the trumpets continually before the ark of the covenant of God.

So he left Asaph and his brothers there before the ark of the covenant of Yahweh to minister before the ark regularly {as each day required}, and [he left] Obed-Edom with his sixty-eight brothers. And Obed-Edom, the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah [were] gatekeepers. And [he left] Zadok the priest and his brothers the priests before the tabernacle of Yahweh at the high place which [was] at Gibeon read more.
to offer burnt offerings regularly to Yahweh on the altar of burnt offering, morning and evening, according to all that was written in the law of Yahweh that he commanded concerning Israel. And with them [were] Heman and Jeduthun and the remainder of those chosen, who were designated by name to give thanks to Yahweh, for his loyal love [is] everlasting. And Heman and Jeduthun with them [had] trumpets and cymbals for making music, along with instruments for the song of God. And the sons of Jeduthun [were] at the gate. Then all the people went each to his house, and David turned to bless his household.



The days of David came near [for him] to die, and he charged Solomon his son, saying, "I [am about to] go the way of all the world. Be strong and be {courageous}. You shall keep the charge of Yahweh your God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, his commandments, his judgments, and his testimonies, as are written in the law of Moses, so that you may prosper in all that you do and everywhere you turn, read more.
so that Yahweh may establish his word which he spoke concerning me, saying, 'If your sons take heed of their way, to walk before me in faithfulness, with all their heart and with all their soul, no man of yours will be cut off from the throne of Israel.'" "Moreover, you also know what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me when he dealt with the two commanders of the armies of Israel, to Abner son of Ner and to Amasa son of Jether, and he murdered them and put the blood of war in [a time of] peace. He put the blood of war on the leather belt that was on his waist and on the sandals which were on his feet. You must act according to your wisdom, but you must not let his gray hair go down to Sheol in peace. Regarding the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, you shall do loyal love and let them be among those who eat at your table, because they met me when I fled from Absalom your brother. And look, Shimei the son of Gera the son of the Benjaminite from Bahurim is with you. Now he {cursed me severely} when I went to Mahanaim, but he came down to meet me at the Jordan, so I swore to him by Yahweh, 'I surely will not kill you with the sword.' So then, do not leave him unpunished, for you [are] a wise man, and you will know what you must do to him. You must bring his grey hair down to Sheol with blood." Then David slept with his ancestors and was buried in the city of David. The days that David reigned over Israel [were] forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.

Then he called to Solomon his son and commanded him to build a house for Yahweh, the God of Israel. And David said to Solomon his son, "I myself had in my heart to build a house for the name of Yahweh my God, but it happened [that] the word of Yahweh [came] over me, saying, 'You have shed much blood and have made much war; you shall not build a house for my name because you have shed much blood upon the ground before me. read more.
Behold, a son shall be born to you; he himself will be a man of rest, and I will give rest to him from all his enemies all around, for his name will be Solomon, and peace and quietness I will give to Israel in his days. He himself will build a house for my name, and he himself will be to me a son, and I [will be] to him as a father, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.' Now, my son, Yahweh will be with you, that you may succeed and build the house of Yahweh your God as he has spoken concerning you. Only may Yahweh give to you understanding and insight that he might give you charge over Israel and the keeping of the law of Yahweh your God. Then you will prosper if you take care to do the statutes and judgments which Yahweh commanded Moses concerning Israel. Be strong and be courageous; fear not and do not be dismayed. Now see, with great effort I have made provision for the house of Yahweh: 100,000 talents of gold, 1,000,000 talents of silver, and bronze and iron [that] cannot be weighed, for there is an abundance. Also timber and stone I have provided, but to these you should add. And with you [there is] an abundance of craftsmen: stonecutters, masons, carpenters, and everyone skilled in every [kind of] craftsmanship with gold, silver, bronze, and iron without number. Arise and work! Yahweh will be with you!" And David commanded all the commanders of Israel to help Solomon his son, [saying], "Is not Yahweh your God with you? And has he [not] given you rest all around? For he has put in my hand the inhabitants of the land, and the land is subdued before Yahweh and before his people. Now set your heart and mind to seek Yahweh your Go, and arise and build the sanctuary of Yahweh God, that the ark of the covenant of Yahweh and the holy vessels of God might be brought into the house built for the name of Yahweh.



And he died in a good old age, full of days, wealth, and honor. And Solomon his son reigned in his place.

"Men [and] brothers, it is possible to speak with confidence to you about the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us until this day. Therefore, [because he] was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat {one of his descendants} on his throne,


These [are] the names of the ones born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua and Shobab and Nathan and Solomon; Ibhar and Elishua and Nepheg and Japhia; Elishama and Eliada and Eliphelet.

And these were born to him in Jerusalem: Shimea, Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon, four by Bathshua the daughter of Ammiel; then Ibhar, Elishama, Eliphelet, Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia, read more.
Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet, nine.

Now these [are] the names of the children who were [born] to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, Ibhar, Elishua, Elpelet, Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia, read more.
Elishama, Beeliada, and Eliphelet.


The king and his men went to Jerusalem, to the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land. They said to David, "You will not come here, for even the blind and the lame can turn you back, saying, 'David cannot come here.'"

And David and all Israel went to Jerusalem (that [is] Jebus). And the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, [were] there. And the inhabitants of Jebus said to David, "You will not enter here." But David captured the stronghold of Zion; that [is,] the city of David. Then David said, "Whoever strikes the Jebusites first will be chief and commander." And Joab the son of Zeruiah went up first and became chief. read more.
And David lived in the fortress. Therefore they called it the city of David. And he built the city all around from the Millo and up to the circuit. And Joab restored the remainder of the city.

Ah! Ariel, Ariel, [the] city [where] David encamped! Add year to year, let festivals recur.


So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. Then the Spirit of Yahweh rushed upon David from that day {on}. Then Samuel got up and went to Ramah.

Then Yahweh said to Samuel, "{How long} will you mourn about Saul? I have rejected him from being king over Israel! Fill up your horn [with] oil and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have chosen a king for myself among his sons."

Formerly you spoke in a vision to your faithful ones, and said, "I have bestowed help on a mighty man; I have exalted one chosen from [the] people. I have found David, my servant. With my holy oil I have anointed him, with whom my hand will be steadfast. Surely my arm will strengthen him. read more.
[The] enemy will not deceive him, and no {evil man} will afflict him. But I will crush his adversaries before him, and I will strike those who hate him. And [so] my faithfulness and my loyal love [will be] with him, and in my name his horn will rise up. And I will set his hand on the sea and his right hand on the rivers. He will call out [to] me, 'You [are] my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation.' I will also make him [the] firstborn, [the] highest of [the] kings of [the] earth. Forever I will keep my loyal love for him, and my covenant [will be] reliable for him. I will also establish his offspring forever, and his throne as [the] days of [the] heavens. If his sons forsake my law and do not walk in my judgments, if they defile my statutes and do not keep my commandments, then I will punish their transgression with rod, and their guilt with wounds. But I will not break off my loyal love from him, and I will not be false against my faithfulness. I will not defile my covenant, or alter what proceeded from my lips. Once I have sworn by my holiness, 'I will surely not lie to David, His offspring will endure forever, and his throne as the sun before me. Like [the] moon it will be steadfast forever, and [like] an enduring witness in the sky.'" Selah



And these are the numbers of the chiefs of those prepared for the army who came to David at Hebron to turn the kingdom of Saul over to him according to the word of Yahweh. The sons of Judah bearing shield and spear: six thousand eight hundred armed troops. From the men of Simeon, mighty warriors of strength for war: seven thousand one hundred. read more.
From the Levites: four thousand six hundred. Jehoiada the chief officer of [the house of] Aaron, and with him, three thousand seven hundred. And Zadok, a young man, a mighty warrior of strength, and the house of his father: twenty-two commanders. From the men of Benjamin, kinsmen of Saul, three thousand, and {even still} the majority of them {remained loyal} to the house of Saul. And from the men of Ephraim: twenty thousand eight hundred mighty warriors of strength, famous men in the house of their fathers. And from the half-tribe of Manasseh: eighteen thousand who were designated by name to come to make David king. And from the men of Issachar: {men who were skilled in understanding the times} to know what Israel should do. Their chiefs [were] two hundred, and all their kinsmen [were] under their command. From Zebulun, those who went out armed, equipped for battle with all the weapons of war: fifty thousand to help David {with singleness of purpose}. From Naphtali: one thousand commanders; and [those] with them with shield and spear: thirty-seven thousand. From the Danites, [those] equipped for battle: twenty-eight thousand six hundred. And from Asher, those who went out armed [and] prepared for battle: forty thousand. And from beyond the Jordan, from the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh, with all [their] weapons of war for battle: one hundred and twenty thousand. 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 also their relatives, as far as Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, brought food on donkeys, on camels, on mules, and on oxen--provisions of flour, cakes of figs, raisin cakes, wine and oil, cattle and sheep in abundance, for [there was] great joy in Israel.


There [was] war again for [the] Philistines with Israel, and David and his servants with him went down, and they fought [the] Philistines, and David grew weary. Now Yishbi in Nob, who [was] among the descendents of Raphah (now the weight of his spearhead [was] three hundredweight of bronze, and he [was] newly armed), said that he would kill David. But Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and he attacked the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, "You shall not go out with us any longer to the battle, so that you do not quench the lamp of Israel." read more.
It happened afterward that there [was] again battle at Gob with [the] Philistines. Then Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Saph who [was] among the descendants of the Raphah. There [was] again a battle with [the] Philistines at Gob. And Elhanan the son of Jaare-Oregim, the Bethlehemite, killed Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear [was] like the beam of a weaver. Once again there [was] battle at Gath, and there [was] {a man of great size}. The fingers of his hand and the toes of his feet [were] six and six, twenty-four in number. He [was] also born to the Raphah. He taunted Israel but Jonathan the son of Shimei, the brother of David, killed him. These four [were] born for the Raphah in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.

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. And again there was war with the Philistines. And Elhanan son of Jair struck down Lahmi, the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear [was] like a weaver's beam. And again there was war in Gath. And there was a {very tall} man [there], and {he had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in all}. He himself [was] also a descendant of the Rephaim. read more.
And he taunted Israel, but Jehonathan son of Shimea, brother of David, struck him down. These were born to the giants in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.



You rescued me from strife with people; you set me as head (over) nations. People I did not know served me;

Because on account of you I have borne reproach; disgrace has covered my face. I have become a stranger to my brothers and a foreigner to my mother's sons, because the zeal for your house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those reproaching you have fallen on me.


The days that David reigned over Israel [were] forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.

And the days that he reigned over Israel [were] forty years. In Hebron he reigned seven years, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years. And he died in a good old age, full of days, wealth, and honor. And Solomon his son reigned in his place.



Now David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. And Ahimelech came trembling to meet David, and he said to him, "Why are you alone and there are no men with you?" So David said to Ahimelech the priest, "The king charged me [with] a matter and said to me, 'No one must know anything about this matter [on] which I am sending you, [with] which I have charged you and the servants.'" So {I have arranged to meet with my servants at a certain place}. Now then, {what do you have at hand}? Give me five [loaves] of bread or {whatever is here}." read more.
The priest answered David and said, "There is no ordinary bread {here at hand}; there is only holy bread, [but] only if the young men have kept themselves from women." David answered the priest and said to him, "Indeed, women [were] held back from us {as it has been when I've gone out before}. And the things of the young men are holy when it [is] an ordinary journey. {How much more} {today} will the things be holy?" So the priest gave him [the] holy [bread], for there was no bread there except the bread of the Presence, which was removed from before Yahweh, in order to set hot bread [there] on the day when it was taken away.

So he said to them, "Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, and those with him, how he entered into the house of God and ate the bread of the presentation, which it was not permitted for him or for those with him to eat, but only for the priests?


Joab the son of Zeruiah began to count, but he did not finish. But wrath came upon Israel concerning this, and the number was not included in {the chronicles} of King David.


And he died in a good old age, full of days, wealth, and honor. And Solomon his son reigned in his place.

David [was] thirty years old when he began to reign; he reigned forty years. He reigned over Judah at Hebron [for] seven years and six months; and he reigned over all Israel and Judah at Jerusalem [for] thirty-three years.


It [was] told to King David, "Yahweh has blessed the household of Obed-Edom and all that [is] his because of the ark of God." So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the city of David with jubilation. It happened [that] when the carriers of the ark of Yahweh had marched six steps that he sacrificed an ox and a fatling. Now David [was] dancing with all [his] might before Yahweh, and David [was] wearing a linen ephod. read more.
So David and all the house of Israel [were] bringing up the ark of Yahweh with shouts of joyful acclaim and with the sound of the trumpet. It happened that when the ark of Yahweh came [into] the city of David, Michal the daughter of Saul looked down through the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before Yahweh, and she despised him in her heart.



There [was] a famine in the days of David [for] three years, year after year. And David {inquired of Yahweh}, and Yahweh said, "The bloodguilt [is] on Saul and on his household, because he killed the Gibeonites." So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites [were] not from the {Israelites}; they [were] from the remainder of the Amorites. Now the {Israelites} had sworn to them, but Saul tried to wipe them out in his zeal for the {Israelites} and Judah. So David asked the Gibeonites, "What can I do for you, and with what can I make amends that you may bless the inheritance of Yahweh?" read more.
Then the Gibeonites said to him, "{It is not a matter for us of} silver or gold with Saul or with his household. It is not for us to put to death anyone in Israel." He asked, "What [are] you saying [that] I should do for you all?" Then they said to the king, "The man who consumed us and who plotted against us [so that] we were destroyed from existing in all of the territory of Israel, let seven men from his sons be given over to us, and we will execute them before Yahweh in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen one of Yahweh." Then the king said, "I will give them over." But the king spared Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the sworn oath of Yahweh which [was] between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul. So the king took two of the sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul, namely Armoni and Mephibosheth, and five of the sons of Michal the daughter of Saul whom she had borne to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite. He gave them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they executed them on the mountain in the presence of Yahweh, and the seven fell together. Now they were put to death in the days of the harvest, at the beginning of the harvest of barley. Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took the sackcloth, and she spread it for herself on the rock at the beginning of the harvest until water gushed forth on them from heaven, but she did not allow the birds of heaven to rest on them by day nor the animals of the field by night. David [was] told about what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done. So David left and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the rulers of Jabesh Gilead, who had stolen them from the public square of Beth Shan, where [the] Philistines hung them {when} [the] Philistines killed Saul on Gilboa. He brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from there, and they gathered the bones of the executed. And they buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the land of Benjamin at Zela, in the tomb of Kish his father. They did all that the king had commanded, and afterward God was entreated for the land.


David reigned over all of Israel, and he was administering justice and righteousness for all his people.

So David reigned over all Israel, and {he administered justice} and righteousness to all his people.


David {continued growing stronger and stronger}, and Yahweh the God of hosts [was] with him.

And David {became greater and greater}. And Yahweh of hosts [was] with him.



Six were born to him in Hebron. And he reigned there seven years and six months. And he reigned thirty-three years in Jerusalem.

And sons [were] born to David in Hebron; his firstborn [was] Amnon by Ahinoam {from Jezreel}. His second [was] Kileab by Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite; the third [was] Absalom the son of Maacah, [who was] the daughter of Talmai the king of Geshur. The fourth [was] Adonijah the son of Haggith; the fifth [was] Shephatiah the son of Abital. read more.
The sixth [was] Ithream by Eglah the wife of David. These [were] born to David in Hebron.


So Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David. And he fell on his face and did obeisance. David said, "Mephibosheth," and he said, "{I am ready to serve you}."

Now, Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king; he had not taken care of his feet nor trimmed his moustache nor washed his clothes from the day the king left until the day he came back in peace. It happened that when he came to Jerusalem to meet the king, the king said to him, "Why did you not come with me, Mephibosheth?" Then he said, "My lord the king, my servant deceived me, for your servant had said, 'Let me saddle the donkey that I may ride on her and go with the king,' for your servant [is] lame. read more.
But he slandered against your servant to my lord the king. My lord the king [is] like the angel of God; {do as you see fit.}." For there [was no one] in all the house of my father {who were not doomed to death} before my lord the king, but you set your servant among those who eat at your table. Do I have any righteousness any longer except to cry out to the king?" Then the king said to him, "Why should you speak any more [about] the matter? I have decided: you and Ziba shall divide the land." Then Mephibosheth said to the king, "Let him take the whole [thing], since my lord the king has come {safely} to his house."


So Hiram, the king of Tyre, sent messengers to David, [along with] cedar trees and {craftsmen skilled in wood and in stone masonry}, and they built a house for David.

Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that they had anointed him as king in place of his father, for Hiram had always been a friend for David.


The king was upset, and he went up to the upper room of the gate and wept. He said as he went, "My son, Absalom, my son, my son, Absalom. {If only} I had died instead of you, Absalom, my son, my son."

And it was told to Joab that the king [was] weeping and he mourned over Absalom, so the victory turned to mourning on that day for all the army, because they had heard that day, "The king is grieving over his son." The army {came secretly} into the city on that day because the army was disgraced when they fled in the battle, read more.
and because the king had covered his face and cried with a loud voice, "My son, Absalom, Absalom, my son, my son."


So Hiram, the king of Tyre, sent messengers to David, [along with] cedar trees and {craftsmen skilled in wood and in stone masonry}, and they built a house for David.

And Solomon sent [word] to Huram king of Tyre, saying, "As you have dealt with David my father and sent cedar to him to build for himself a house in which to live, [please deal with me].


The fourth [was] Adonijah the son of Haggith; the fifth [was] Shephatiah the son of Abital.

Then Joab the son of Zeruiah and the servants of David went out, and they met at the pool of Gibeon. The one group sat on one side of the pool, and the other sat on the other side. Abner said to Joab, "Let the young men come up and fight in our presence." And Joab said, "Let them come up." So they came forward and passed by in number: twelve for Benjamin and for Ish-Bosheth the son of Saul, and twelve from the servants of David. read more.
Then each seized his {opponent} by the head and [each thrust] his sword in the side of his opponent, so they fell together. So they called the name of that place Helkath Hazzurim, which [is] in Gibeon. Then the battle {became increasingly fierce} on that day, and Abner and the men of Israel [were] defeated before the servants of David. The three sons of Zeruiah were there, Joab and Abishai and Asahel. Now Asahel [was] swift with his feet as one of the gazelles which [is] in the open field. So Asahel pursued Abner, and he did not turn aside to the right or to the left from going after Abner. Abner turned around and said, "[Are] you this Asahel?" And he said, "Yes." Abner said to him, "Turn aside to your right or to your left; seize for yourself one of the young men, and take his belongings for yourself." But Asahel [was] not willing to turn aside from him. So Abner said to Asahel {once again}, "{For your own sake}, turn aside {from following me}. Why should I strike you down to the ground? How could I {show my face} to Joab your brother?" But he refused to turn away, so Abner struck him in the stomach with the butt of the spear, and the spear went out of his back. He fell there and he died {on the spot}. {Then} all who came to the place where Asahel fell and died [just] stood there. So Joab and Abishai pursued Abner {when} the sun went down. And they came to the hill [country] of Ammah, which [is] {before Giah} [on] the way to the wilderness of Gibeon. The descendants of Benjamin rallied after Abner, and they became as one fighting group and stood on the top of a certain hill. Then Abner called to Joab and said, "Will [the] sword devour forever? Do you not know that [there] will be bitterness in the end? {How long} will you not tell the people to turn {away from pursuing} their brothers?" Joab said, "{As God lives}, for if you had not spoken, the people would surely have gone up in the morning, each [one of them] {from following after} his brother." Then Joab blew on the trumpet and all the people stopped, and they no longer pursued after Israel, and they did not fight with them again. Then Abner and his men went through the Arabah all that night, and they crossed over the Jordan. They went all the forenoon and came to Mahanaim. After Joab returned from [pursuing] Abner, he gathered all the people; nineteen of the servants of David [were] missing [along] with Asahel. The servants of David had killed some of the Benjaminites among the men of Abner; three hundred and sixty men had died. Then they picked up Asahel and buried him in the grave of his father, which [was at] Bethlehem. Joab and his men went all that night {[arriving] in Hebron at first light}.


Now David [was] old and full of days. And he made Solomon his son king over Israel.


{Now} in those days [the] Philistines gathered their forces for war to fight against Israel. So Achish said to David, "Certainly you realize that you must go out with me in the army, you and your men." David said to Achish, "Very well, you will know what your servant can do." Achish said to David, "Very well, I will make you {my bodyguard} for life."





So David came to Saul and {entered his service}. He loved him greatly and {he became Saul's armor bearer}. Then Saul sent [word] to Jesse, saying, "Please let David stand before me, because he has found favor {in my sight}." So whenever the [evil] spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the stringed instrument and play it with his hand. Then {it would bring relief} for Saul; {he would feel better} and the evil spirit would depart from him.


Suddenly, all the men of Israel [were] coming to the king. They said to the king, "Why have our brothers the men of Judah stolen away and brought the king and his household over the Jordan, with all the men of David?" Then all the men of Judah answered the men of Israel, "Because the king [is] my close relative! Why [are] you this angry over this matter? {Have we by any means eaten [anything] from the king? Did we take by any means anything that was not ours}?" Then the people of Israel answered the men of Judah and said, "I have {ten times as much} in the king, moreover in David I have more than you. Why did you treat me with contempt {by not giving me first chance} to bring back my king?" But the words of the men of Judah [were] fiercer than the word of the men of Israel.


So David and his men got up, about six hundred men, and went out from Keilah and wandered wherever they could go. When it was told to Saul that David had escaped from Keilah, {he stopped his pursuit}. David remained in the wilderness, in the strongholds, and in the hill country in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him {continually}, but God did not give him into his hand When David realized that Saul had gone out to seek his life, David was in the wilderness of Ziph at Horesh. read more.
So Jonathan the son of Saul got up and went to David [at] Horesh, and {encouraged him} through God. He said to him, "Do not be afraid, for the hand of my father Saul will not find you. You will be king over Israel, and {I will be second to you}. My father Saul knows [this] also." Then the two of them {made} a covenant before Yahweh. David remained at Horesh, and Jonathan went to his house. Then [the] Ziphites went up to Saul at Gibeah, saying, "[Is] not David hiding among us in the strongholds at Horesh on the hill of Hakilah, which [is] south of Jeshimon So then, O king, {whenever you want} to come down, come down, and [it will be] for us to deliver him into the hand of the king." And Saul said to them, "May you be blessed by Yahweh, for you have shown me compassion Go, please, make certain again! Find out and see {exactly where he is} and who has seen him there! For they have said to me, 'He [is] very cunning.' Look, find out all of the hiding places where he hides. Then return to me {with dependable information}, and I will go with you. And then if he [is] there in the land, then I will seek him among all the thousands of Judah." Then they got up and went to Ziph before Saul. Now David and his men [were] in the wilderness of Maon in the Arabah, to the south of Jeshimon. And Saul and his men went to seek [him], and they told David, so he went down [to] the rock and stayed in the wilderness of Maon. When Saul heard [this], he pursued David [into] the wilderness of Maon. Saul went {on one side of the mountain}, and David and his men {went on the other side of the mountain}. David was hurrying to get away from Saul, while Saul and his men [were] closing in on David and his men to capture them.


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, with all [the accounts of] his kingdom, his power, and the times that came upon him, and upon Israel, and upon all the kingdoms of the earth.


Then Saul said to David, "Here [is] my older daughter Merab. I will give her to you as [your] wife. Only be {a brave warrior} for me and fight the battles of Yahweh." For Saul thought, "My hand will not be against him, but let the hand of [the] Philistines be against him." But David said to Saul, "Who [am] I, and [who are] my relatives, the clan of my father in Israel, that I should be a son-in-law to the king?" {But} at the time Saul's daughter Merab [was] to be given to David, she was given [instead] to Adriel the Meholathite as wife. read more.
Now Saul's daughter Michal loved David, so they told Saul, and the matter {pleased him}. And Saul thought, "I will give her to him, so that she may be a snare for him and the hand of [the] Philistines may be against him." So Saul said to David, "For a second [time] you can become my son-in-law today." Then Saul commanded his servants, "Speak to David in secret, saying, 'Look, the king [is] pleased with you, and all his servants love you. So then, become a son-in-law of the king.'" And Saul's servants spoke these words {to David privately}. But David said, "[Is] it insignificant {in your sight} to become the son-in-law of the king, [as] I am a poor and lightly esteemed man?" So the servants of Saul informed him, saying, "{This is what David said}." Then Saul said, "This [is] what you must say to David: '{The king desires no bride price} except for a hundred foreskins of [the] Philistines, to avenge himself on the enemies of the king.'" (Now Saul had planned to allow David to fall by the hand of [the] Philistines.) So his servants told David these words, and the matter {pleased David} to become the son-in-law of the king [as] {the specified time had not expired}. And David got up, and he and his men went and struck down two hundred men [of the] Philistines. Then David brought their foreskins, and {they presented the full number} to become the king's son-in-law. Then Saul gave him Michal his daughter as [his] wife.


Then Nathan went to his house, and Yahweh struck the child that the wife of Uriah bore for David, and he became ill. David pleaded [with] God on behalf of the boy and David fasted. He went to spend the night and lay upon the ground. The elders of his household stood over him to lift him up from the ground, but he [was] not willing, and he did not eat [any] food with them. read more.
It happened on the seventh day that the child died, and the servants of David [were] afraid to tell him that the child [was] dead, for they said, "Look, when the child [was] alive, we spoke to him, but he would not listen to our voice. How can we tell him, 'The child [is] dead'? He may do [something] evil." When David saw that his servants [were] whispering together, he realized that the child [was] dead. Then David said to his servants, "[Is] the child dead?" And they said, "He [is] dead." David stood up from the ground and washed and anointed himself and changed his clothing. Then he went [to] the house of Yahweh and worshiped, and he went to his [own] house. He asked, so they served him food, and he ate. Then his servants said to him, "What [is] this thing that you have done? While the child [was] alive, you fasted and wept; [now] that the child has died, you get up and eat food!" He said, "When the child [was] still alive, I fasted and I wept because I thought, 'Who knows? Yahweh may have mercy on me that the child will live.' But now he [is] dead. Why [should I be] fasting? [Am] I able to return him again? I [am] going to him, but he cannot return to me."


So David left and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the rulers of Jabesh Gilead, who had stolen them from the public square of Beth Shan, where [the] Philistines hung them {when} [the] Philistines killed Saul on Gilboa. He brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from there, and they gathered the bones of the executed. And they buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the land of Benjamin at Zela, in the tomb of Kish his father. They did all that the king had commanded, and afterward God was entreated for the land.


And these are the numbers of the chiefs of those prepared for the army who came to David at Hebron to turn the kingdom of Saul over to him according to the word of Yahweh. The sons of Judah bearing shield and spear: six thousand eight hundred armed troops. From the men of Simeon, mighty warriors of strength for war: seven thousand one hundred. read more.
From the Levites: four thousand six hundred. Jehoiada the chief officer of [the house of] Aaron, and with him, three thousand seven hundred. And Zadok, a young man, a mighty warrior of strength, and the house of his father: twenty-two commanders. From the men of Benjamin, kinsmen of Saul, three thousand, and {even still} the majority of them {remained loyal} to the house of Saul. And from the men of Ephraim: twenty thousand eight hundred mighty warriors of strength, famous men in the house of their fathers. And from the half-tribe of Manasseh: eighteen thousand who were designated by name to come to make David king. And from the men of Issachar: {men who were skilled in understanding the times} to know what Israel should do. Their chiefs [were] two hundred, and all their kinsmen [were] under their command. From Zebulun, those who went out armed, equipped for battle with all the weapons of war: fifty thousand to help David {with singleness of purpose}. From Naphtali: one thousand commanders; and [those] with them with shield and spear: thirty-seven thousand. From the Danites, [those] equipped for battle: twenty-eight thousand six hundred. And from Asher, those who went out armed [and] prepared for battle: forty thousand. And from beyond the Jordan, from the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh, with all [their] weapons of war for battle: one hundred and twenty thousand. 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 also their relatives, as far as Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, brought food on donkeys, on camels, on mules, and on oxen--provisions of flour, cakes of figs, raisin cakes, wine and oil, cattle and sheep in abundance, for [there was] great joy in Israel.


Now, Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king; he had not taken care of his feet nor trimmed his moustache nor washed his clothes from the day the king left until the day he came back in peace. It happened that when he came to Jerusalem to meet the king, the king said to him, "Why did you not come with me, Mephibosheth?" Then he said, "My lord the king, my servant deceived me, for your servant had said, 'Let me saddle the donkey that I may ride on her and go with the king,' for your servant [is] lame. read more.
But he slandered against your servant to my lord the king. My lord the king [is] like the angel of God; {do as you see fit.}." For there [was no one] in all the house of my father {who were not doomed to death} before my lord the king, but you set your servant among those who eat at your table. Do I have any righteousness any longer except to cry out to the king?" Then the king said to him, "Why should you speak any more [about] the matter? I have decided: you and Ziba shall divide the land." Then Mephibosheth said to the king, "Let him take the whole [thing], since my lord the king has come {safely} to his house."


So Jonathan the son of Saul got up and went to David [at] Horesh, and {encouraged him} through God. He said to him, "Do not be afraid, for the hand of my father Saul will not find you. You will be king over Israel, and {I will be second to you}. My father Saul knows [this] also." Then the two of them {made} a covenant before Yahweh. David remained at Horesh, and Jonathan went to his house.


But a messenger came to Saul, saying, "Hurry and come, because [the] Philistines have made a raid on the land!" So Saul returned from pursuing David, and he went to confront [the] Philistines. Therefore, they called that place the Rock of Division.


When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband [was] dead, she mourned over her husband. When the mourning [was] over, David sent and brought her to his household, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing which David had done [was] evil in the eyes of Yahweh.


And Joab fought against Rabbah of the {Ammonites}, and he captured {the royal city}. Then Joab sent messengers to David and said, "We have fought against Rabbah, and we captured the city of the waters. So then, gather the remainder of the army and encamp against the city and capture it, lest I capture the city and my name be proclaimed over it." read more.
So David gathered all of the army, and he went to Rabbah and fought against it and captured it. He took the crown of their king from his head. (Now its weight [was] a talent of gold, and there [was] a precious stone [in it] and it [was] put on David's head.) He brought out the plunder of the city {in great abundance}. He also brought out the people who [were] in it and put them to the saws and to the iron picks and to the iron axes, and he sent them to the place of the brickmakers. Thus he used to do to all the cities of the {Ammonites}, and he and all of the army returned to Jerusalem.


Then the messenger came to David, saying, "The hearts of the men of Israel have gone after Absalom." Then David said to all his servants who [were] with him in Jerusalem, "Get up and let us flee, for there will be no escape for us from Absalom! Hurry to go, otherwise he will come quickly and overtake us! And he will bring disaster on us and evil! He will attack the city with the edge of the sword!" Then the servants of the king said to the king, "According to all that my lord the king chooses, {your servants are ready to act}!" read more.
The king went out with all his household {following him}, but the king left behind ten concubines to look after the house. So the king went out with all the people {following him}, and they stopped {at the last house}. All his servants [were] passing {by him}: all of the Kerethites and all of the Pelethites and all of the Gittites--six hundred men {who had followed him} from Gath--passing {before the king}. The king said to Ittai the Gittite, "Why [are] you also coming with us? Return and stay with the king, for you [are] a foreigner; moreover, you [are] an exile. {You [are] far from your place}. Yesterday when you came and {today}, I have caused you to wander by going with us. Now I [am] going to where I [am] going; return and let your brothers return. [May] loyal love and faithfulness [be] with you." But Ittai answered the king and said, "{As Yahweh lives} and {my lord the king lives}, surely in the place wherever my lord the king shall be, if for death or if for life, surely there your servant will be." Then David said to Ittai, "Go and pass over." So Ittai the Gittite passed over and all his men and all of the little children who [were] with him. All of the land [was] weeping [with] a loud voice as all the people [were] passing by and the king [was] crossing through the Wadi Kidron, and all the people [were] passing {on the road to the wilderness}. Suddenly Zadok [was] there, and all of the Levites with him, carrying the ark of the covenant of God. They set the ark of God down, and Abiathar offered sacrifices until all the people passed out of the city. The king said to Zadok, "Let the ark of God return to the city. If I find favor in the eyes of Yawheh, he will let me return and let me see him in his dwelling place. But if he says, 'I take no pleasure in you,' then {I am ready}. Let him do to me that which [is] good in his eyes. Then the king said to Zadok the priest, "[Are] you a seer? Return to the city in peace, [with] Ahimaaz your son and Jonathan the son of Abiathar, your two sons with you. See, I [am] waiting at the fords of the wilderness until a word comes from you all to inform me." So Zadok and Abiathar returned the ark of God to Jerusalem and they remained there. Now David [was] going up on the Ascent of the Olives, {weeping as he went}, with his head covered and going barefoot. All the people who [were] with him each covered their head {and wept as they went}. Now David [was] told, "Ahithophel [was] among the conspirators with Absalom." Then David said, "Please frustrate the counsel of Ahithophel, O Yahweh." It happened that as David [was] coming up to the summit where he used to worship God, suddenly Hushai the Arkite [was] there to meet him. His coat [was] torn and dirt [was] on his head. David said to him, "If you move on with me, you will be a burden to me, but if you want to return to the city and say to Absalom, 'I [am] your servant, O king. I used to be a servant of your father, but from then and now I [will be] your servant,' then you can frustrate the counsel of Ahithophel for me. [Will] not Zadok and Abiathar the priests [be] with you there? It shall be that all the words you hear from the house of the king you shall tell Zadok and Abiathar the priests. Look, there with them [are] their two sons, Ahimaaz of Zadok and Jonathan of Abiathar. You shall send to me {by means of them} all the words that you hear." So Hushai the friend of David came to the city [as] Absalom was entering Jerusalem.


After they left, they came up from the well and went and told King David. They said to David, "Set out and cross over the water quickly, for thus Ahithophel has advised against you." So David and all the people who [were] with him set out, and they crossed over the Jordan until morning light until {there was no one} missing who had not crossed over the Jordan. When Ahithophel saw that his advice [was] not followed, he saddled the donkey, and he set out and went up to his house in his city. {After he set his house in order}, he hanged himself, and he died and was buried in the tomb of his ancestors. read more.
Now David had come to Mahanaim, and Absalom had crossed over the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him. Absalom had appointed Amasa in place of Joab over the army. Now Amasa [was] the son of a man whose name [was] Ithra the Israelite, {who had married} Abigail the daughter of Nahash the sister of Zeruiah, the mother of Joab. Israel and Absalom camped [in] the land of Gilead. Just as David had arrived in Mahanaim, Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the {Ammonites} and Makir the son of Ammiel from Lo Debar and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim brought beds and basins and objects of pottery, as well as wheat, barley, flour, roasted grain, beans, lentils, honey, curds, sheep, cheese, and cattle for David and for the people who [were] with him to eat. For they had thought, "The troops [are] hungry and weary and thirsty in the wilderness."


Then Shimei the son of Gera, the son of the Benjaminite, who [was] from Bahurim quickly came down with the men of Judah to meet King David, and a thousand men [were] with him from Benjamin. Too, Ziba the servant of the household of Saul and fifteen of his sons and twenty of his servants [were] with him, and they rushed to the Jordan before the king. {The crossing took place} to bring the household of the king over and to do good in his eyes. Then Shimei the son of Gera fell before the king when he crossed over the Jordan, read more.
and he said to the king, "May not my lord hold me guilty, and may you not remember how your servant did wrong on the day that my lord the king went out from Jerusalem, by taking it to heart! For your servant knows that I have sinned; look, I have come this day [as the first] of all the house of Joseph to come down to meet my lord the king." Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah responded and said, "Because of this, should not Shimei be put to death, for he cursed the anointed one of Yahweh?" Then David said, "What [is] it to me or to you, sons of Zeruiah, that you should be an adversary today? [Should] anyone be put to death in Israel? Do I not know today that I [am] king over Israel?" Then the king said to Shimei, "You shall not die," and [so] the king swore to him.


And David said to Saul, "Your servant has been a shepherd of the flock for his father. If the lion or the bear would come and carry off a sheep from the group, I would go out after it and strike it down and rescue [the sheep] from its mouth. If it rose against me, I would grab [it] by its beard and strike it down and kill it. Your servant has struck down both the lion and the bear, and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he defied the battle lines of the living God."


David consoled Bathsheba his wife, and he went to her and slept with her. She bore a son, and he called him Solomon, and Yahweh loved him. He sent [word] by the hand of Nathan the prophet, so he called him Jedidiah because of Yahweh.


Then Barzillai the Gileadite came down from Rogelim and crossed with the king over the Jordan to escort him through the Jordan. Now Barzillai [was] very old, {eighty years old}. Now he had provided the king [with food] while he [was] staying at Mahanaim, for he [was] a very wealthy man. The king said to Barzillai, "You cross over with me, and I will provide for you [to dwell] with me in Jerusalem." read more.
Then Barzillai said to the king, "What [are] the days of the years of my life, that I should go with the king to Jerusalem? I [am] eighty years old today. Can I discern between good and bad? Or can your servant taste what I eat or what I drink? Or can I still hear the voice of singing men and women? Why should your servant be a burden any longer to my lord the king? Your servant shall go over the Jordan with the king a little way, but why should the king recompense me with this reward? Please let your servant return, and let me die in my city in the tomb of my father and my mother. Here [is] your servant Kimham; let him cross over with my lord the king, and do for him that which [is] good in your eyes." The king said, "Let Kimham go over with me, and I will do for him the good in your eyes, and all that you desire of me I will do for you." Then all the people crossed over the Jordan, and the king crossed and kissed Barzillai and blessed him; then he returned to his place. The king went over to Gilgal, and Kimham went over with him. All the people of Judah went over with the king, and half of the people of Israel too.


And David was achieving success in all his ways and Yahweh [was] with him,

Then the commanders of [the] Philistines went out [for battle], and as often as they went out, David succeeded more than all the servants of Saul, and his name became very esteemed.


So David got up and fled on that day from the presence of Saul, and he came to Achish the king of Gath. The servants of Achish said to him, "[Is] not this David the king of the land? [Is] it not for this [one] that they sang in the dances, saying, 'Saul killed his thousands, but David his ten thousands?'" {David took these words seriously} and {felt severely threatened by} Achish the king of Gath. read more.
So he changed his behavior {before them} and pretended to be mad {in their presence}. He made scratches on the doors of the gate and let his saliva run down into his beard. Then Achish said to his servants, "Look, you see a madman! Why did you bring him to me? Do I lack madmen that you have brought this one to act like a madman before me? Should this one enter my household?"


There [was] a famine in the days of David [for] three years, year after year. And David {inquired of Yahweh}, and Yahweh said, "The bloodguilt [is] on Saul and on his household, because he killed the Gibeonites." So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites [were] not from the {Israelites}; they [were] from the remainder of the Amorites. Now the {Israelites} had sworn to them, but Saul tried to wipe them out in his zeal for the {Israelites} and Judah. So David asked the Gibeonites, "What can I do for you, and with what can I make amends that you may bless the inheritance of Yahweh?" read more.
Then the Gibeonites said to him, "{It is not a matter for us of} silver or gold with Saul or with his household. It is not for us to put to death anyone in Israel." He asked, "What [are] you saying [that] I should do for you all?" Then they said to the king, "The man who consumed us and who plotted against us [so that] we were destroyed from existing in all of the territory of Israel, let seven men from his sons be given over to us, and we will execute them before Yahweh in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen one of Yahweh." Then the king said, "I will give them over." But the king spared Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the sworn oath of Yahweh which [was] between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul. So the king took two of the sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul, namely Armoni and Mephibosheth, and five of the sons of Michal the daughter of Saul whom she had borne to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite. He gave them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they executed them on the mountain in the presence of Yahweh, and the seven fell together. Now they were put to death in the days of the harvest, at the beginning of the harvest of barley. Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took the sackcloth, and she spread it for herself on the rock at the beginning of the harvest until water gushed forth on them from heaven, but she did not allow the birds of heaven to rest on them by day nor the animals of the field by night. David [was] told about what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done. So David left and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the rulers of Jabesh Gilead, who had stolen them from the public square of Beth Shan, where [the] Philistines hung them {when} [the] Philistines killed Saul on Gilboa. He brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from there, and they gathered the bones of the executed. And they buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the land of Benjamin at Zela, in the tomb of Kish his father. They did all that the king had commanded, and afterward God was entreated for the land.


Then it happened that all the people [were] disputing among all the tribes of Israel, saying, "The king delivered us from the hand of our enemies, and he saved us from the hand of [the] Philistines, but now he has fled from the land because of Absalom. Now Absalom whom we anointed [as king] over us has died in the battle; so then, why [are] you taking no action to restore the king?" Then King David sent to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, saying, "Speak to the elders of Judah: 'Why [are] you last to bring back the king to his house? The talk of all Israel has come to the king in his house. read more.
My brothers, you [are] my bones and you [are] my flesh. Why should you be the last to bring back the king?' To Amasa you shall say: '[Are] you not my bones and my flesh? {May God punish me} if you [are] not the commander of my army before me forever, in place of Joab.'" So he turned the heart of all the men of Judah as one man, and they sent [word] to the king, "Return, you and all your servants." Then the king returned and he came to the Jordan; Judah had come to Gilgal to come to meet the king, to bring the king over the Jordan.


Then the evil spirit from Yahweh came upon Saul while he was sitting in his house [with] his spear in his hand. And David [was] playing a stringed instrument in [his] hand. So Saul tried {to pin David to the wall with the spear}, but {he eluded Saul}, so that he struck the spear into the wall, and David fled and escaped that [same] night. Then Saul sent messengers to David's house to guard him and to kill him in the morning, but Michal his wife told David, saying, "If {you do not save your life} tonight, [then] tomorrow you [will be] killed!" read more.
So Michal lowered David through the window, and he went and fled and escaped. Then Michal took the household god and put it on the bed and put a quilt of goat's hair at its head and covered [it] with the clothes. And Saul sent messengers to arrest David, but she said, "He [is] ill." So Saul sent the messengers to see David, saying, "Bring him up to me in the bed, so that I can kill him." When the messengers came, {to their surprise} the idol [was] on the bed [with] the quilt of goat's hair at the head. Then Saul said to Michal, "Why have you deceived me like this and sent away my enemy, so that he escaped?" Michal said to Saul, "He said to me, 'Let me go, why should I kill you?'" So David fled and escaped, and he came to Samuel at Ramah and told him all that Saul had done to him. Then he and Samuel went and stayed in Naioth. And it was told to Saul, "David [is] in Naioth in Ramah." So Saul sent messengers to capture David. When they saw the company of the prophets prophesying and Samuel standing [as] chief over them, then the Spirit of God came upon Saul's messengers, and they also prophesied. So they told Saul, and he sent other messengers, and they also prophesied. Again Saul sent messengers a third [time], and they also prophesied. Then he also went to Ramah. When he came to the great cistern which [was] in Secu, he asked and said, "Where [are] Samuel and David?" Someone said, "Look [they are] in Naioth in Ramah." So he went there to Naioth in Ramah and the Spirit of God came upon him also, and {he walked along prophesying} until he came to Naioth in Ramah. He also stripped [off] his clothes and prophesied before Samuel. He lay naked all that day and all night. Therefore they say, "[Is] Saul also among the prophets?"


Now David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites and the Girzites and the Amalekites, for they had been living [in] the land for a long time {in the direction of} Shur and {as far as} the land of Egypt. So David struck the land and did not leave a man or a woman alive; he took the sheep, the cattle, the donkeys, the camels, and the clothing. Then he returned and came to Achish. And Achish said, "Against whom have you raided today?" David said, "Against the Negev of Judah and against the Negev of the Jerahmeelites and against the Negev of the Kenites." read more.
And David did not leave alive a man or a woman to bring [them back] to Gath, thinking, "So that they will not report about us, saying, 'David did thus and so.'" Thus was his practice all the days that he lived in the countryside of [the] Philistines. And Achish trusted David, saying, "{He has made himself utterly hated} among his people in Israel, and he will be my servant forever."


They brought the ark of Yahweh and set it in its place in the middle of the tent which David had pitched for it. Then David offered up burnt offerings and fellowship offerings in the presence of Yahweh. When David had finished from the sacrificing of the burnt offerings and the fellowship offerings, he blessed the people in the name of Yahweh of hosts. Then he distributed to all the people, to all the multitude of Israel, from man to woman, to each: one ring-shaped piece of bread, one cake of dates, and one cake of raisins; and all the people went each to his house.


When [the] Philistines heard that they had anointed David as king over Israel, all [the] Philistines went up to seek David, but David heard and went down to the stronghold.

So David did thus, just as Yahweh had commanded him, and he struck down [the] Philistines from Geba {all the way} to Gezer.


When David returned to bless his household, Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David. She said, "How the king of Israel honored himself today {by uncovering himself} before the eyes of the maids of his servants, {as the total exposure of a worthless one}." So David said to Michal, "[In the] presence of Yahweh who chose me {over} your father and {over} his household, to appoint me [as] leader over the people of Yahweh, over Israel, I have celebrated before Yahweh. I will demean myself again more than this, and I will be abased in my eyes, but with the maids whom you mentioned, with them I will be honored." read more.
So for Michal the daughter of Saul, she had no child until the day of her death.


And [after] removing him, he raised up David for their king, about whom he also said, testifying, 'I have found David the [son] of Jesse [to be] a man in accordance with my heart, who will carry out all my will.' From the descendants of this man, according to [his] promise, God brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus.


Then David sent messengers to Ish-Bosheth the son of Saul, saying, "Give [me] my wife Michal whom I betrothed to myself for a hundred foreskins of [the] Philistines." So Ish-Bosheth sent and took her from [her] husband, from Paltiel the son of Laish. But her husband went with her, {weeping all along} after her as far as Bahurim. Then Abner said to him, "Go [and] return." So he returned.


So David sent to Joab, "Send Uriah the Hittite to me." So Joab sent Uriah to David. Uriah came to him, and David asked {how Joab and the army fared and how the war was going}. David said to Uriah, "Go down to your house, and wash your feet." So Uriah went out from the king's house, and a gift from the king went out after him. read more.
But Uriah slept [at] the entrance of the king's house with all the servants of his master and did not go down to his house. They told David, "Uriah did not go down to his house." David said to Uriah, "[Are] you not coming from a journey? Why did you not go down to your house?" Uriah said to David, "The ark and Israel and Judah [are] living in the booths; and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord [are] camping on the surface of the open field; and I, shall I go to my house to eat and to drink and to sleep with my wife? [By] your life and the life of your soul, I surely will not do this thing." David said to Uriah, "Remain here {today}, and tomorrow I will send you away." So Uriah remained in Jerusalem on that day and the next. David invited him, and he ate and drank in his presence {so that he became drunk}, and he went out in the evening to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house. And it happened in the morning, David wrote a letter to Joab, and he sent it by the hand of Uriah. He had written in the letter, "Put Uriah in the front, in the face of the fiercest fighting, then draw back from behind him so that he may be struck down and die." {When Joab was besieging} the city, he put Uriah toward the place which he knew {there were valiant warriors}. The men of the city came out and fought with Joab. Some from the army from the servants of David fell; Uriah the Hittite also died. Joab sent and told David all of the news of the battle. He instructed the messenger, saying, "As you are finishing to speak all the news of the battle to the king, if the anger of the king rises and he says to you, 'Why did you go near the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from [atop] the wall? Who killed Abimelech the son of Jerub-bosheth, if not a woman who threw an upper millstone on him from [atop] the wall and he died at Thebez? Why did you go near the wall?' Then you shall say, 'Your servant Uriah the Hittite also died.'" Then the messenger left, and he came and told David all that Joab had sent him [to say]. The messenger said to David, "Because {the men overpowered us}, the men came out to us [in] the field, but {we forced them back} to the entrance of the gate. The archers shot at your servant from [atop] the wall, and some of the servants of the king died; your servant Uriah the Hittite also died." Then David said to the messenger, "Thus you shall say to Joab, '{Do not feel badly about this matter}; {now one and then another} the sword will devour. Intensify your attack on the city and overthrow it.'" And he encouraged him.


So Yahweh sent Nathan to David, and he came to him and said, "Two men were in a certain city; one [was] rich and the other [was] poor. The rich [man] had very many flocks and herds, but the poor [man] had nothing except for one small ewe lamb which he had bought. He had nurtured her, and she grew up with him and with his children together. She used to eat from his morsel and drink from his cup, and she used to lie in his lap and became like a daughter for him. read more.
And a visitor came to the rich man, but he {was reluctant} to take from his flocks or from his herds to prepare a meal for the traveler when he came to him. So he took the ewe lamb of the poor man and prepared it for the man who had come to him." Then {the anger of David was kindled} against the man, and he said to Nathan, "{As Yahweh lives}, the man who has done this {deserves to die}! He shall restore the ewe lamb fourfold because he has done this thing, and because he had no pity." Then Nathan said to him, "You [are] the man! Thus says Yahweh the God of Israel: 'I anointed you as king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. I gave you the household of your master and the women of your master into your lap. I also gave you the house of Israel and Judah; if [that had been too] little, I would have added to you {much more}. Why have you despised the word of Yahweh by doing evil in his eyes? Uriah the Hittite you have struck down with the sword, and his wife you have taken to yourself as wife! You have killed him with the sword of the {Ammonites}! So then, a sword will not turn away from your house forever, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife!' Thus says Yahweh, 'Look, I [am] going to raise up evil against you from [within] your house, and I will take your women before your eyes, and I will give them to your neighbor, and he shall sleep with your wives {in broad daylight}. Though you did this in secret, I will do this thing before all of Israel {in broad daylight}!'" Then David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against Yahweh!" Nathan said to David, "Yahweh has also forgiven your sin; you shall not die. But because you have {utterly scorned} Yahweh in this matter, the son born for you {will certainly die}."


Joab the son of Zeruiah [was] over the army, and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud [was] secretary. Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar [were] priests and Seraiah [was] scribe. Benaiah the son of Jehoiada [was over] the Kerethites and the Pelethites, and the sons of David [were] priests.


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. The leader [was] Ahiezer, then Jehoash, sons of Shemaah the Gibeonite; Jeiel and Pelet, sons of Azmaveth; Beracah; Jehu the Anathothite; read more.
Ishmaiah the Gibeonite, a mighty warrior among the thirty [who was] over the thirty; Jeremiah; Jahaziel; Johanan; Jozabad the Gederathite; Eluzai; Jerimoth; Bealiah; Shemariah; Shephatiah the Hariphite; Elkanah, Isshiah, Azarel, Joezer, and Jashobeam the Korahites; Joelah and Zebadiah, sons of Jeroham from the Gedor. 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. Ezer the chief, Obadiah second, Eliab third, Mishmannah fourth, Jeremiah fifth, Attai sixth, Eliel seventh, Jehonan eighth, Elzabad ninth, Jeremiah tenth, Macbannai eleventh. These [were] the sons of Gad, leaders of the army. The smallest one [was] as a hundred, and the greatest as a thousand. 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 some of the sons of Benjamin and [from] Judah came to the fortress, to David. And David went out {to meet them} and answered and said to them, "If you come in peace to me, to help me, {my heart will be joined with you}, but if [you come] to betray me to my adversaries, although [there is] no wrong on my hands, may the God of our fathers see and pass judgment." Then the Spirit came upon Amasai, chief of the thirty [who said]: "[We are] yours, O David! And [we are] with you, O son of Jesse! Peace! Peace to you, and peace to those who help you, for your God helps you." So David appointed them as heads of the troops. And some Manassites deserted to David when he came with the Philistines to the battle against Saul, but he did not help them, for the rulers of the Philistines sent him away upon counsel, saying, "He will desert to his master Saul at [the cost of] our heads." When he went to Ziklag some Manassites deserted to him: Adnah, Jehozabad, Jediael, Michael, Jozabad, Elihu, and Zillethai, heads of the thousands that [were] for Manasseh. 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.


Then David sang this funeral song over Saul and over Jonathan his son. And he ordered "The Bow" to be taught to the children of Judah. Look, it [is] written on the scroll of Jashar. "The glory of Israel [is] on your high places; how [the] mighty have fallen! read more.
Do not tell it in Gath; do not proclaim it in the streets of Ashkelon, lest the daughters of [the] Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised exult. O mountains of Gilboa, [let there be] no dew or rain upon you or on the fields of [grain for] offerings, for there the small shield of [the] mighty [was] defiled, the small shield of Saul [was] not anointed with oil. From the blood of [the] slain, from the fat of [the] mighty, the bow of Jonathan did not turn back, and the sword of Saul did not return {without effect}. Saul and Jonathan [were] beloved and pleasant in their lives and [were] not separated in their death. They [were] swifter than eagles, stronger than lions. O daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, the one who clothed you with crimson, the one who {adorned your clothing with golden ornaments}. How [the] mighty have fallen in the midst of the battle; Jonathan [lies] slain on your high places. {I am distressed} over you, my brother Jonathan. you [were] very dear to me; your love [was] more wonderful to me than the love of women. How [the] mighty have fallen and the weapons of warfare perished."


{Saul became very angry}, and {this saying displeased him}, and he thought, "They have attributed to David ten thousands, but to me they have attributed thousands! {What more can he have but the kingdom}?" So Saul was watching David [with suspicion] from that day onward. {On} [the] next day, the evil spirit from God rushed upon Saul, and he prophesied in the middle of the house. Now David was playing [the lyre] with his hand on [that] day {as usual}, and the spear was in Saul's hand. read more.
Then Saul hurled the spear and thought, "{I will pin David to the wall}." But David eluded him twice. {Now Saul was threatened by the presence of David} because Yahweh was with him, but had departed from Saul. So Saul removed him {from his presence}, and made him commander of a thousand, {so he marched in and out at the front of the army}. And David was achieving success in all his ways and Yahweh [was] with him, but when Saul saw that he [was] very successful, {he was severely threatened by him}. However, all of Israel and Judah [were] loving David, for he was going forth and marching ahead of them. Then Saul said to David, "Here [is] my older daughter Merab. I will give her to you as [your] wife. Only be {a brave warrior} for me and fight the battles of Yahweh." For Saul thought, "My hand will not be against him, but let the hand of [the] Philistines be against him." But David said to Saul, "Who [am] I, and [who are] my relatives, the clan of my father in Israel, that I should be a son-in-law to the king?" {But} at the time Saul's daughter Merab [was] to be given to David, she was given [instead] to Adriel the Meholathite as wife. Now Saul's daughter Michal loved David, so they told Saul, and the matter {pleased him}. And Saul thought, "I will give her to him, so that she may be a snare for him and the hand of [the] Philistines may be against him." So Saul said to David, "For a second [time] you can become my son-in-law today." Then Saul commanded his servants, "Speak to David in secret, saying, 'Look, the king [is] pleased with you, and all his servants love you. So then, become a son-in-law of the king.'" And Saul's servants spoke these words {to David privately}. But David said, "[Is] it insignificant {in your sight} to become the son-in-law of the king, [as] I am a poor and lightly esteemed man?" So the servants of Saul informed him, saying, "{This is what David said}." Then Saul said, "This [is] what you must say to David: '{The king desires no bride price} except for a hundred foreskins of [the] Philistines, to avenge himself on the enemies of the king.'" (Now Saul had planned to allow David to fall by the hand of [the] Philistines.) So his servants told David these words, and the matter {pleased David} to become the son-in-law of the king [as] {the specified time had not expired}. And David got up, and he and his men went and struck down two hundred men [of the] Philistines. Then David brought their foreskins, and {they presented the full number} to become the king's son-in-law. Then Saul gave him Michal his daughter as [his] wife. When Saul {realized} that Yahweh [was] with David and {his own daughter Michal} loved him, Saul {was threatened by David still more}, so Saul {became a perpetual enemy of David}. Then the commanders of [the] Philistines went out [for battle], and as often as they went out, David succeeded more than all the servants of Saul, and his name became very esteemed.


Joab the son of Zeruiah realized that the mind of the king [was] on Absalom. So Joab sent to Tekoa and took from there a wise woman, and he said to her, "Please pretend to mourn and put on garments of mourning. You should not anoint yourself [with] oil, and you must act like this woman who has been mourning over the dead for {a long time}. Then you must go to the king and speak to him according to this word." [Thus] Joab put the words in her mouth. read more.
So the Tekoite woman spoke to the king, and she fell on her face to the ground and did obeisance. She said, "Help me, O king!" Then the king asked her, "{What do you want}?" And she said, "Truly I [am] a widow, and my husband [is] dead. Your servant had two sons, and they both fought in the open field, and there [was] no one {to part them}. One struck the other and killed him. And look, all of the family has risen up against your servant, and they said, 'Give up the one who struck his brother, that we may kill him in exchange for the life of his brother whom he murdered. We will also wipe out the heir,' and so they would put out my embers which remain, by not preserving for my husband a name and a remnant on the face of the earth." Then the king said to the woman, "Go to your house, and I myself will give the command concerning you." The Tekoite woman said to the king, "On me, my lord the king, [is] the guilt, and on the house of my father, but the king on his throne [is] innocent." The king said, "[Whoever] has spoken to you, bring him to me, and he will not touch you again." Then she said, "Please may the king remember Yahweh your God, {to prevent the increase of blood avengers who kill}, [so that they] not wipe out my son." He said, "{As Yahweh lives}, surely not one hair shall fall from your son to the ground." The woman said, "Please let your servant speak a word to my lord the king." And he said, "Speak." The woman said, "But why have you plotted like this against the people of God? By speaking this word, he is guilty not to bring back his banished one. For {we must certainly die}, and [we are] as the waters spilled to the ground which cannot be gathered. God will not take a life but devises plans for a banished person not to be cast out from him. Now I have come to speak this word to my lord the king, because the people made me afraid, and your servant thought, 'I will speak to the king, perhaps the king will grant the request of his servant. For the king will listen, to deliver his servant from the hand of the man [who seeks] to destroy me and my son together from the inheritance of God.' Your servant also thought, 'May the word of my lord the king {bring rest}, for as an angel of God, so [is] my lord the king, {to sense what is good and what is bad}.' May Yahweh your God be with you." The king answered and said to the woman, "Please do not withhold from me a thing which I [am] about to ask you." The woman said, "Please let my lord the king speak." The king asked, "[Was] the hand of Joab with you in all of this?" The woman answered and said, "{As your soul lives}, my lord the king, surely [one cannot] go to the right or to the left from all that my lord the king has spoken. Yes, your servant Joab himself commanded me, and he put all of these words in the mouth of your servant. In order {to change the situation}, your servant Joab did this thing. But my lord [has] wisdom, as the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all that [is] on the earth." Then the king said to Joab, "Look, please, I will grant this thing. Go and bring back the young man Absalom." Joab fell with his face to the ground and did obeisance. And he blessed the king, and he said, "Today your servant knows that I have found favor in your eyes, my lord the king, [in] that the king has granted the request of his servant." Then Joab got up and went to Geshur and brought Absalom to Jerusalem. The king said, "Let him go over to his house, and he may not see my face." So Absalom went over to his house, and did not see the face of the king.


Then the king said to Amasa, "Summon for me the men of Judah [within] three days, {and be here yourself}." So Amasa went to summon Judah, but he tarried more than the appointed time which he had set for him. Then David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba the son of Bicri will do us more harm than Absalom. You take the servants of your lord and pursue after him, lest he find fortified cities for himself and escape from us." read more.
Then the men of Joab, the Kerethites and the Pelethites, and all the mighty warriors went out after him; they went out from Jerusalem to pursue after Sheba the son of Bicri. They [were] near the big rock that [is] in Gibeon, and Amasa came before them. Joab {was dressed in his military clothing}, [with] a utility belt on him and a sword strapped to his waist in its scabbard. Now he went out, and it fell out. Then Joab said to Amasa, "Is it peace, O you my brother?" Then the right hand of Joab took hold of the beard of Amasa [as if] to kiss him. Now Amasa was not on his guard against the sword that [was] in Joab's hand, and he struck him with it into the stomach, and his entrails poured out to the ground. He did not strike him again, and he died. Then Joab and Abishai his brother pursued after Sheba the son of Bicri.


Now they told David, "Look, [the] Philistines [are] fighting in Keilah and they [are] raiding the threshing floors." So David inquired of Yahweh, saying, "Shall I go and attack these Philistines?" And Yahweh said to David, "Go and attack the Philistines and save Keilah." But David's men said to him, "Look, we [are] afraid here in Judah. {How much more} [if] we go [to] Keilah to the battle lines of [the] Philistines?" read more.
So David again inquired of Yahweh, and Yahweh answered him and said, "Get up, go down [to] Keilah, for I [am] giving [the] Philistines into your hand. So David and his men went to Keilah and fought with [the] Philistines. They drove off their livestock and {dealt them a heavy blow}. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah. {Now when Abiathar the son of Ahimelech fled} to David [at] Keilah, he went down [with] an ephod in his hand. When it was told to Saul that David had gone to Keilah, Saul said, "God {has given him} into my hand, because he has shut himself in by going into a city [with] {two barred gates}. Saul then summoned all of the army for the battle, to go down [to] Keilah to lay a siege against David and his men. When David learned that Saul [was] plotting evil against him, he said to Abiathar the priest, "Bring the ephod here." And David said, "O Yahweh, God of Israel, your servant has clearly heard that Saul [is] seeking to come to Keilah to destroy the city because of me. Will the rulers of Keilah deliver me into his hand? Will Saul come down as your servant has heard? O Yahweh, God of Israel, please tell your servant!" And Yahweh said, "He will come down." Then David said, "Will the rulers of Keilah deliver me and my men into the hand of Saul?" And Yahweh said, "They will deliver [you]." So David and his men got up, about six hundred men, and went out from Keilah and wandered wherever they could go. When it was told to Saul that David had escaped from Keilah, {he stopped his pursuit}.


When they came to the threshing floor of Nakon, Uzza reached out to the ark of God and took hold of [it], because the oxen had stumbled. {Then the anger of Yahweh was kindled} against Uzza, and God struck him down there because of the indiscretion, and he died there beside the ark of God. {David was angry} because Yahweh had burst out against Uzza, and he called that place Perez-Uzza until this day. read more.
But David feared Yahweh on that day and said, "How can the ark of Yahweh come to me?" However, David [was] not willing to bring the ark of Yahweh to himself, to the city of David, so David caused it to turn [to] the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. So the ark of Yahweh remained [in] the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite [for] three months, and Yahweh blessed Obed-Edom and all his household.


But David feared Yahweh on that day and said, "How can the ark of Yahweh come to me?" However, David [was] not willing to bring the ark of Yahweh to himself, to the city of David, so David caused it to turn [to] the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. So the ark of Yahweh remained [in] the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite [for] three months, and Yahweh blessed Obed-Edom and all his household.


It happened {late one afternoon} [that] David got up from his bed and walked about on the roof of the king's house, and he saw a woman bathing on her roof. Now the woman {was very beautiful}. David sent and inquired about the woman, and [someone] said, "[Is] this not Bathsheba the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?" Then David sent messengers and took her, and she came to him, and he slept with her. (Now she had been purifying herself from her uncleanness.) And she returned to her house. read more.
The woman became pregnant, and she sent and told David, and she said, "I [am] pregnant."


{After} the death of Saul, David returned from defeating the Amalekites and he stayed at Ziklag two days. On the third day, a man came from the camp from [being with] Saul, with his clothes torn and with dirt on his head. {When he came} to David, he fell to the ground and bowed down. David said to him, "Where did you come from?" He said to him, "I have escaped from the camp of Israel." read more.
Then David said to him, "{How did things go}? Please tell me." He answered, "{When} the army fled from the battle, and many of the people fell; also, Saul and Jonathan his son died." Then David asked the young man who [was] reporting to him, "How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan died?" The young man who [was] reporting to him said, "I merely happened to be on Mount Gilboa. Here Saul [was] leaning on his spear, and look, the chariots and the horsemen [were] getting close to him. When he turned around and saw me, he called to me, and I said, 'Here I [am].' Then he said to me, 'Who [are] you?' And I said to him, 'I [am] an Amalekite.' He said to me, 'Please stand over me and kill me, for convulsions have seized me, even though my life [is still] in me.' So I stood over him and killed him, for I knew that he could not live after his falling; I took the crown that [was] on his head and [the] bracelet which [was] on his arm; and here, I have brought them to my lord. David grabbed [at] his clothes and tore them, [as did] all of the men who [were] with him. Then they mourned and wept and fasted over Saul and Jonathan his son until the evening, [as well] as over the people of Yahweh and over the house of Israel because they had fallen by the sword. Then David said to the young man who [was] reporting to him, "Where [are] you from?" And he said, "I [am] the son of an alien man. I [am] an Amalekite." David said to him, "How [is it that] you [were] not afraid to stretch out your hand to destroy Yahweh's anointed one?" Then David called to one of the young men and said to him, "Come near; strike him." So he struck him down and he died. David said to him, "Your blood [is] on your head, for your mouth has testified against you by saying, 'I killed Yahweh's anointed one!'"


{When} he finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan became attached to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his [own] soul. Saul took him on that [very] day and did not allow him to return to his father's house. Then Jonathan made a covenant with David, because he loved him as his [own] soul. read more.
Jonathan stripped off the robe {that he was wearing} and gave it to David, along with his fighting attire, and even his sword, his bow, and his belt.


Now Saul spoke to Jonathan his son and to all his servants about killing David, but Saul's son Jonathan {liked David very much}. So Jonathan informed David, saying, "My father Saul [is] trying to kill you; now please take care! In the morning you should stay in the hiding place and conceal yourself. I will go out and stand {at my father's side} in the field where you are, and I will speak about you to my father; {if I find out anything} I will tell [it] to you." read more.
So Jonathan spoke well about David to his father Saul and said to him, "The king should not sin against his servant David, because he has not sinned against you, and because his service for you [has been] very good. He put his life in his hand and attacked the Philistine, and Yahweh brought about a great victory for all of Israel, and you saw [it] and rejoiced! Now why should you sin against innocent blood by killing David without cause?" And Saul listened to the voice of Jonathan and swore, "{As Yahweh lives}, he will not be put to death!" Jonathan called to David and told him all of these words. Then Jonathan brought David to Saul and he was before him as {formerly}.



Then Joab came to the king's house and said, "Today you have humiliated the faces of all of your servants who have saved your life this day, and the life of your sons and your daughters, the life of your wives, and the life of your concubines, by loving those who hate you and hating those who love you. Indeed, you have made clear this day that you have no [regard for your] commanders or officers, for I have realized today that [were] Absalom alive, and all of us were dead, then [that would] have been right in your eyes! So then, get up and go out and {speak kindly to your servants}, for I swear by Yahweh, if you do not go out, no man will lodge this night with you, and this disaster [will be] greater for you than any disaster that has come upon you from your childhood until now!"


These [are] the last words of David, the declaration of David the son of Jesse, and the declaration of the man exalted [by] the Most High, the anointed one of the God of Jacob and the darling of the songs of Israel. "The spirit of Yahweh speaks through me, and his word [is] upon my tongue. The God of Israel said to me, the rock of Israel has spoken; 'He who rules over mankind rules righteously, in the fear of God. read more.
Like the light of [the] morning when the sun rises, shining with no clouds, [bringing] vegetation from the earth apart from rain.' Yet not so [is] my house with God, for he made an everlasting covenant for me, arranging everything. He has secured all my deliverance, and all my desire he will cause to happen. But evil persons [are] like thorns cast aside; all of them, because they cannot be picked up in the hand. And if a man wants to touch them, he must use an iron instrument or the shaft of a spear; then they [are] consumed entirely with fire on the spot."


Now a man of wickedness was found there whose name [was] Sheba the son of Bichri, a Benjaminite. He blew the horn and said, "There is no share for us in David, and there [is] no inheritance for us in the son of Jesse; each to his tents, O Israel!" Then all the men of Israel went up from [following] after David, [following instead] after Sheba the son of Bicri, but the men of Judah stuck to their king from the Jordan up to Jerusalem. David went up to his house in Jerusalem, then the king took the ten concubines whom he had left to look after the house, and he put them {under confinement}. However, he provided for them, but {he did not sleep with them}. So they were confined until the day of their death, like a lifetime of widowhood.



David again gathered all the chosen men in Israel, thirty thousand. David got up and went and all the people who [were] with him, from Baale-judah to bring up from there the ark of God which [is] called the name, the name of Yahweh of hosts, {upon which the cherubim sit}. They loaded the ark of God on a new utility cart, and they carried it from the house of Abinadab, which [was] on the hill. Now Uzza and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, [were] driving the new utility cart along. read more.
So they brought it out from the house of Abinadab, which [was] on the hill with the ark of God, and Ahio [was] going before the ark. Now David and all the house of Israel [were] dancing before Yahweh, with all kinds of [musical instruments made from] ash trees, and with zithers, harps, tambourines, sistrums, and cymbals.


To Amasa you shall say: '[Are] you not my bones and my flesh? {May God punish me} if you [are] not the commander of my army before me forever, in place of Joab.'"


One of the servants answered and said, "Look, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite [who is] skillful in playing a stringed instrument, a {brave man, a warrior, prudent in speech, and handsome}. And Yahweh [is] with him."


Now King David had become old, {advanced in years}, and they covered him with garments, but he was not warm. His servants said to him, "Let them search for a young virgin for my lord the king, and let her stand before the king. Let her be of use for him, and let her lie in your lap that my lord the king may be warm." So they sought a beautiful young woman in all the territory of Israel, and they found Abishag the Shunnamite and brought her to the king. read more.
Now the young woman was very beautiful; she was of use for the king, and she served him, but the king did not {have sexual relations with her}.


David went up from there and stayed in the strongholds of En Gedi.


And sons [were] born to David in Hebron; his firstborn [was] Amnon by Ahinoam {from Jezreel}. His second [was] Kileab by Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite; the third [was] Absalom the son of Maacah, [who was] the daughter of Talmai the king of Geshur. The fourth [was] Adonijah the son of Haggith; the fifth [was] Shephatiah the son of Abital. read more.
The sixth [was] Ithream by Eglah the wife of David. These [were] born to David in Hebron.


And the fame of David went out through all the lands. And Yahweh put the fear of him upon all the nations.


Then Samuel said to Jesse, "{Are all the young men here}?" And he said, "The youngest still remains, but look, he [is] shepherding the flock." And Samuel said to Jesse, "Send and bring him, for we cannot {sit down} until he comes here."


Then the king said to Shimei, "You shall not die," and [so] the king swore to him.


War came again, so David went out and fought against [the] Philistines and {defeated them thoroughly} so that they fled before him.


The number of days that David lived in the countryside of the Philistines [was] one year and four months.




Then the men of Judah came, and they anointed David there as king over the house of Judah, and they told David, "The men of Jabesh-Gilead buried Saul."


"Men [and] brothers, it is possible to speak with confidence to you about the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us until this day.
























In the second year of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz king of Israel, Amaziah the son of Jehoash king of Judah began to reign. He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem; and the name of his mother [was] Jehoaddin from Jerusalem. He did right in the eyes of Yahweh, only not as David his ancestor; as all which Jehoash his father had done, he did. read more.
Only the high places were not removed; the people [were] still sacrificing and offering incense on the high places. It happened that when the kingdom was firmly in his hand, he killed his servants who had killed his father the king. But the sons of the killers he did not kill, as it is written in the scroll of the law of Moses which Yahweh had commanded, saying, "Fathers should not be killed because of children, and children should not be killed because of fathers; but a man should die because of his [own] sin." He also killed ten thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt, and he seized Sela in the battle, and he called its name Jokteel, until this day. Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz the son of Jehu king of Israel, saying, "Come let us meet {face-to-face}." So Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah, saying, "The thornbush which is in Lebanon sent to the cedar which is in Lebanon, saying, 'Give your daughter to my son as wife,' but an animal of the field which [is] in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thornbush. You have indeed defeated Edom and your heart is lifted up; enjoy the honor and stay home. Why should you provoke trouble so that you fall and Judah with you?" But Amaziah would not listen, so Jehoash king of Israel went up and they met face-to-face, he and Amaziah king of Judah, at Beth-Shemesh which belongs to Judah. Judah was defeated before Israel and they fled, each to this tent. Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash, the son of Ahaziah, at Beth-Shemesh. Then they came [to] Jerusalem, and he broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the Gate of Ephraim up to the Corner Gate, four hundred cubits! He also took all of the gold and silver and all the vessels found [in] the temple of Yahweh and in the treasury rooms of the palace of the king, as well as the {hostages}; then he returned to Samaria. Now the remainder of the acts of Jehoash which he did, and his powerful [deeds], and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, [are] they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel? Then Jehoash slept with his ancestors and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel, and Jeroboam his son reigned in his place. Amaziah the son of Jehoash king of Judah lived fifteen years after the death of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz king of Israel. The remainder of the acts of Amaziah, [are] they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah? They conspired against him in Jerusalem, so he fled to Lachish. But they sent [men] after him to Lachish, and they killed him there. Then they carried him on the horses, and he was buried with his ancestors in the city of David.


He restored the boundary of Israel from Lebo-Hamath up to the sea of the Arabah, according to the word of Yahweh which he spoke by the hand of his servant Jonah the son of Amittai the prophet, who was from Gath-Hepher. For Yahweh saw that the misery of Israel was very bitter, whether bond or free, but there was no helper for Israel. Yahweh did not decree to blot out the name of Israel from under the heavens, so he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Jehoash. read more.
Now the remainder of the acts of Jeroboam, all that he did, his powerful [deeds], how he fought, and how he restored Damascus and Hamath of Judah to Israel, [are] they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?


In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Jehoash king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Jehoash king of Israel began to reign in Samaria, [reigning] forty-one years.

Then Jehoash slept with his ancestors and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel, and Jeroboam his son reigned in his place.


This is what he showed me: Behold, my Lord [was] standing beside a wall [built with] a plummet, and a plummet [was] in his hand. And Yahweh said to me, "What do you see?" And I said, "A plummet." And my Lord said, "Look, I [am] going to set a plummet in the midst of my people, Israel. I will not pass them by again. The high places of Isaac shall become desolate and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste. And I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword." read more.
Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam the king of Israel, saying, "Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The land is not able to endure all of his words. For this Amos has said, 'Jeroboam will die by the sword and Israel will certainly go into exile [away] from his land.'" And Amaziah said to Amos, " seer, go, flee to the land of Judah and earn food there and prophesy there!" But do not prophesy again at Bethel, because this [is] a sanctuary of a king and this [is] a temple of a kingdom."


But he did evil in the eyes of Yahweh; he did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat which he caused Israel to sin.


So Jeroboam slept with his ancestors the kings of Israel, and his son Zechariah became king in his place.


All of them were enrolled in [the] genealogy in the days of Jotham, king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, king of Israel.




{And they said to one another}, "Who did this thing?" So they searched and inquired, and they said, "Gideon son of Jehoash did this thing."


So he died, according to the word of Yahweh which Elijah had spoken, and Joram became king in his place in the second year of Joram the son of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, because he had no son.

Now Joram the son of Ahab had become king over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah. He reigned twelve years


Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the thirty-ninth year of Uzziah king of Judah, and he reigned {a full month} in Samaria. Then Menahem the son of Gadi came up from Tirzah, and he came [to] Samaria and struck down Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria and killed him. Then he became king in place of him. Now the remainder of the acts of Shallum, and his conspiracy which he conspired; look, they [are] written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel. read more.
At that time Menahem destroyed Tiphsah, all who [were] in it, and all its territory from Tirzah, because [it] had not opened [to him], so he destroyed it and ripped open all of its pregnant women. In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah, Menahem the son of Gadi began to reign over Israel [for] ten years in Samaria. But he did evil in the eyes of Yahweh. He did not depart all of his days from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat which he caused Israel to sin. Pul the king of Assyria came against the land, so Menahem gave a thousand talents of silver to Pul so that his hand would be with him {to strengthen his hold on the kingdom}. Menahem exacted the money from Israel, from all {the very rich}, to give to the king of Assyria fifty shekels of silver for each one. Then the king of Assyria returned and did not stay there in the land. Now the rest of the acts of Menahem, and all that he did, [are] they not written in the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel? So Menahem slept with his ancestors, and Pekahiah his son became king in his place.


Then Omri went up and all Israel with him from Gibbethon, and they besieged Tirzah. It happened that when Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went to the citadel fortress of the house of the king, and he burnt the house of the king over him with fire so that he died. [This happened] because of his sin which he committed by doing evil in the eyes of Yahweh, by going the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he did by causing Israel to sin. read more.
The remainder of the acts of Zimri and his conspiracy which he made, [are] they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel? At that time, the people of Israel were divided into two parts: half of the people went after Tibni the son of Ginath to make him king, and the other half went after Omri. The people who went after Omri overcame the people who went after Tibni the son of Ginath, so that he died and Omri became king.


In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri became king over Israel [for] twelve years. He reigned in Tirzah six years, then bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver, fortified the hill, and called the name of the city Samaria that he built after Shemer, the owner of the hill. But Omri did evil in the eyes of Yahweh more than all who were before him. read more.
He went in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat and in his sins that he caused Israel to sin by provoking Yahweh the God of Israel with their idols. The remainder of the acts of Omri that he did and his powerful deeds, are they not written in the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel? Omri slept with his ancestors, and he was buried in Samaria, and Ahab his son became king in his place.


The encamping army heard that Zimri had conspired and moreover had killed the king, so they made Omri the commander of the army of Israel king over all Israel in the camp on that day.


[Ben-Hadad] said to him, "The cities which my father took from your father I shall return. You may set up streets with stalls for yourself in Damascus just as my father set up in Samaria." [Then Ahab said], "{On these terms} I will let you go," So he made a covenant with him and let him go.


For you have observed the regulations of Omri and all the works of the house of Ahab. And you have walked in their counsels, so that I am making you a desolation and your inhabitants an object of scorn. So you will bear the scorn of my people.


So Menahem slept with his ancestors, and Pekahiah his son became king in his place. In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah the son of Menahem began to reign over Israel in Samaria [for] two years. But he did evil in the eyes of Yahweh. He did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat which he caused Israel to sin. read more.
Pekah the son of Remaliah, his captain, conspired against him, so he attacked him in Samaria in the citadel fortress of [the] palace of the king, with Argob and Arieh. With him [also were] fifty men from the children of the Gileadites, and he killed him and became king in his place. Now the remainder of the acts of Pekahiah and all that he did, look, they are written in the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel.



Then the people said to Samuel, "Who [is] the one who asked, 'Will Saul reign over us?' Give the men to us that we may kill them." But Saul said, "No one will be put to death on this day, because {today} Yahweh has provided deliverance in Israel." Then Samuel said to the people, "Come, let us go to Gilgal, and let us renew the kingship there." read more.
So all the people went to Gilgal and they made Saul king there before Yahweh in Gilgal. They sacrificed fellowship offerings there before Yahweh. Then Saul rejoiced there greatly [along with] all the men of Israel.

I gave you a king in my anger, and I took [him] in my wrath.


Now Saul [was] staying at the outskirts of Gibeah under the pomegranate tree that [was] in Migron, and the troops that [were] with him [were] about six hundred men.

They crossed over [the] pass; Geba [is] a place of overnight lodging for us. Ramah trembles; Gibeah of Saul has fled.

Then Samuel went to Ramah and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul.


And all that Samuel the seer, and Saul the son of Kish, and Abner the son of Ner, and Joab the son of Zeruiah had dedicated--all the dedicated gifts [were] under the hand of Shelomith and his brothers.

The troops took from the plunder, sheep and cattle, the best of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to Yahweh your God at Gilgal." Then Samuel said, "Is there [as much] delight for Yahweh in burnt offerings and sacrifices as [there is] in {obeying} Yahweh? Look! {To obey} [is] better than sacrifice; to give heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion [is like] the sin of divination; arrogance [is like] iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of Yahweh, he has rejected you from [being] king!" read more.
Then Saul said to Samuel, "I have sinned because I have transgressed {the commandment of Yahweh} and your words, for I feared the troops and I listened to their voice. So then, please pardon my sin and return with me {so that I can worship} Yahweh."


Now [the] Philistines assembled all their forces at Aphek, and Israel [was] encamped at the spring that [is] in Jezreel.

(Now Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him, and they had buried him in Ramah, his [own] city. And Saul had expelled the mediums and the soothsayers from the land.) Then [the] Philistines assembled and came and encamped at Shunem, so Saul assembled all Israel, and they encamped at Gilboa. When Saul saw the army of [the] Philistines, he was afraid and his heart trembled greatly. read more.
And Saul inquired of Yahweh, but Yahweh did not answer him, not by dreams or by the Urim or by the prophets. So Saul said to his servants, "Search for me {a woman who is a medium} so that I may go to her and inquire of her." His servants said to him, "Look [there is] a woman who [is] a medium in Endor." So Saul disguised himself and put on other clothes, and he went {with two of his men}. And they came to the woman [by] night and he said, "Please consult a spirit for me through {the ritual pit}, and bring up for me [the one] whom I tell you." But the woman said to him, "Look, you know what Saul did, how he exterminated the mediums and the soothsayers from the land! Why [are] you setting a trap for my life to kill me?" Then Saul swore to her by Yahweh, "{As Yahweh lives}, {you will not be punished} for this thing." So the woman asked, "Whom shall I bring up for you?" He said, "Bring up Samuel for me." When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice, and the woman said to Saul, "Why did you deceive me? You [are] Saul!" The king said to her, "Do not be afraid! What do you see?" And the woman said to Saul, "I see a god coming up from the ground!" Then he said to her, "What [is] his appearance?" She said, "An old man [is] coming up, and {he is wrapped in a robe}." Then Saul realized that it was Samuel, and he knelt [with] his face to the ground and bowed down. Then Samuel said to Saul, "Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?" And Saul said, "{I am in distress}! For [the] Philistines [are about] to make war against me, but God has turned away from me, and he does not answer me any more, not {by the prophets} or by the dreams. So I called to you to let me know what I should do." Then Samuel said, "Why do you ask me, since Yahweh has turned away from you and has become your enemy? Yahweh has done to you just as he spoke by my hand! Yahweh has torn the kingdom from your hand and has given it to your neighbor, to David. Because you {did not obey} Yahweh and did not carry out the fierce anger of his {wrath} against Amalek, therefore Yahweh has done this thing to you today. And Yahweh will also give Israel with you into the hands of [the] Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons [will be] with me, and Yahweh will also give the army of Israel into [the] hand of [the] Philistines." {Then Saul immediately fell prostrate} to the ground, and he was very afraid because of the words of Samuel; there was no more strength in him, for he had not eaten food all day and all night. Then the woman came to Saul and realized that he was absolutely terrified, so she said to him, "Look, your female servant {has obeyed you}, and I have {risked my life}. I have listened to your words that you have spoken to me. So then, you also please listen to the voice of your female servant, and let me set before you a morsel of bread, and [you] eat so that {you will have strength} in you when you go on your way." But he refused and said, "I will not eat!" However, his servants urged him, and the woman also. So he listened {to what they said}, and he got up from the ground and sat on the bed. Now the woman had a fattened bull calf in the house, {so she quickly slaughtered it} and took flour, kneaded [dough], and baked him [some] unleavened bread. She brought it before Saul and his servants, and they ate. Then they got up and went away that [very] night.


Warfare was severe against [the] Philistines all the days of Saul. Whenever Saul saw {anyone who was a mighty warrior} or {any brave man}, he {conscripted him into his service}.

Saul went up from [pursuing the] Philistines, and [the] Philistines went to their place.


He had a son whose name was Saul, a young and handsome man. There was not a man from the {Israelites} more handsome than he [was]; from his shoulders up, he was taller than all the people.

So they ran and took him from there, and when he took his stand among the people, he was taller than all the people from his shoulders and up.


So Saul said to his servants, "Please select a man {who plays a stringed instrument well} and bring [him] to me." One of the servants answered and said, "Look, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite [who is] skillful in playing a stringed instrument, a {brave man, a warrior, prudent in speech, and handsome}. And Yahweh [is] with him." So Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, "Send me David your son who [is] with the sheep." read more.
And Jesse took a donkey [loaded with] bread and a skin of wine and one {young goat} and sent [them] to Saul by the hand of David his son. So David came to Saul and {entered his service}. He loved him greatly and {he became Saul's armor bearer}. Then Saul sent [word] to Jesse, saying, "Please let David stand before me, because he has found favor {in my sight}." So whenever the [evil] spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the stringed instrument and play it with his hand. Then {it would bring relief} for Saul; {he would feel better} and the evil spirit would depart from him.


But Samuel said, "What have you done?" Saul said, "Because I saw that the army {was scattering} from me and you did not come {at the appointed time} and [that the] Philistines had gathered at Micmash, therefore I said, 'Now [the] Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not yet implored the face of Yahweh.' So I forced myself and offered the burnt offering." Then Samuel said to Saul, "You have behaved foolishly! You have not kept the command of Yahweh your God which he commanded you. For then, Yahweh would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. read more.
But now, your kingdom will not endure. Yahweh has sought for himself a man according to his [own] heart, and Yahweh has appointed him as leader over his people, because you have not kept what Yahweh commanded you."


When David finished speaking these words to Saul, Saul said, "[Is] this your voice, my son David?" And Saul lifted up his voice and wept. Then he said to David, "You are more righteous than I, for you have repaid me the good, but I have repaid you the evil. You have explained to me today that you have dealt well with me, how Yahweh delivered me into your hand but you did not kill me. read more.
For a man has found his enemy but sent him on [his] way safely. Now may Yahweh reward you with good in return for this day, for what you have done for me. So now then, look, I know that you will certainly be king and the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hand. So then, swear to me by Yahweh that you will not cut off my {descendants} after me and that you will not wipe out my name from my father's house." So David swore [this on oath] to Saul, and Saul went to his house, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.


There [was] a famine in the days of David [for] three years, year after year. And David {inquired of Yahweh}, and Yahweh said, "The bloodguilt [is] on Saul and on his household, because he killed the Gibeonites." So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites [were] not from the {Israelites}; they [were] from the remainder of the Amorites. Now the {Israelites} had sworn to them, but Saul tried to wipe them out in his zeal for the {Israelites} and Judah. So David asked the Gibeonites, "What can I do for you, and with what can I make amends that you may bless the inheritance of Yahweh?" read more.
Then the Gibeonites said to him, "{It is not a matter for us of} silver or gold with Saul or with his household. It is not for us to put to death anyone in Israel." He asked, "What [are] you saying [that] I should do for you all?" Then they said to the king, "The man who consumed us and who plotted against us [so that] we were destroyed from existing in all of the territory of Israel, let seven men from his sons be given over to us, and we will execute them before Yahweh in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen one of Yahweh." Then the king said, "I will give them over." But the king spared Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the sworn oath of Yahweh which [was] between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul. So the king took two of the sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul, namely Armoni and Mephibosheth, and five of the sons of Michal the daughter of Saul whom she had borne to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite. He gave them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they executed them on the mountain in the presence of Yahweh, and the seven fell together. Now they were put to death in the days of the harvest, at the beginning of the harvest of barley.


When Saul returned from [pursuing the] Philistines, they told him, "Look, David [is] in the wilderness of En Gedi." So Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel, and he and his men went to search [for] David {in the direction of} the Rocks of the Mountain Goats. He came to the sheep pens beside the road, and a cave [was] there. Then Saul went in {to relieve himself}. Now David and his men [were] sitting in the innermost part of the cave. read more.
And David's men said to him, "Look, today [is] the day about which Yahweh said to you, 'See, I am giving your enemy into your hand, and you can do to him {whatever seems good to you}.'" So David got up and secretly cut the hem of Saul's robe. {And then} afterward David {felt guilty}, because he had cut {the hem of Saul's robe}. He said to his men, "Far be it from me in Yahweh, that I do this thing to my lord, to Yahweh's anointed one, by stretching out my hand against him! For he [is] the anointed one of Yahweh."


{And then} afterward David {felt guilty}, because he had cut {the hem of Saul's robe}. He said to his men, "Far be it from me in Yahweh, that I do this thing to my lord, to Yahweh's anointed one, by stretching out my hand against him! For he [is] the anointed one of Yahweh." So David rebuked his men with the words and did not allow them to rise against Saul. And Saul got up from the cave, and he went on his way. read more.
Then David got up afterward and went out of the cave and called after Saul, "My lord the king!" When Saul looked after him, David knelt down [with his] face to the ground and bowed down.


So Saul died on account of his sin which he had sinned against Yahweh concerning the command of Yahweh that he did not keep. He also consulted a medium to seek [guidance].


Now there was a man from Benjamin whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a Benjaminite, {a very wealthy man}. He had a son whose name was Saul, a young and handsome man. There was not a man from the {Israelites} more handsome than he [was]; from his shoulders up, he was taller than all the people.


And Ner fathered Kish, and Kish fathered Saul, and Saul fathered Jonathan, Malchi-Shua, Abinadab, and Eshbaal.









Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him, struck him in front of the people, killed him, and reigned in his place.

Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the thirty-ninth year of Uzziah king of Judah, and he reigned {a full month} in Samaria. Then Menahem the son of Gadi came up from Tirzah, and he came [to] Samaria and struck down Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria and killed him. Then he became king in place of him. Now the remainder of the acts of Shallum, and his conspiracy which he conspired; look, they [are] written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel.


He went with Joram the son of Ahab for the battle against Hazael king of Aram at Ramoth-Gilead, and the Arameans wounded Joram.

But Joram the king had returned to heal in Jezreel from the wound which the Arameans had inflicted on him when he fought with Hazael king of Aram. Jehu said, "{If this is what you want}, do not let him go out as a fugitive from the city to go to make it known in Jezreel."


Now Jehu had come in the gate, so she said, "[Is it] peace, O Zimri, murderer of his master?"

His servant Zimri the commander of half of the chariots conspired against him. Now he had been in Tirzah drinking [himself] drunk in the house of Arza who was over the palace in Tirzah. Zimri came and struck him down and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah and became king in his place. It happened that as soon as he became king, at the moment he sat on his throne, he killed all of the house of Baasha. He left {no males} [among] his kindred or [any of] his friends. read more.
So Zimri destroyed all of the house of Baasha according to the word of Yahweh which he spoke against Baasha by the hand of Jehu the prophet because of all the sins of Baasha and the sins of Elah his son which they committed and which they caused Israel to sin by provoking Yahweh the God of Israel with their idols. The remainder of the acts of Elah and all that he did, are they not written in the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel? In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned seven days in Tirzah. Now the army was encamping against Gibbethon which belonged to the Philistines. The encamping army heard that Zimri had conspired and moreover had killed the king, so they made Omri the commander of the army of Israel king over all Israel in the camp on that day. Then Omri went up and all Israel with him from Gibbethon, and they besieged Tirzah. It happened that when Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went to the citadel fortress of the house of the king, and he burnt the house of the king over him with fire so that he died. [This happened] because of his sin which he committed by doing evil in the eyes of Yahweh, by going the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he did by causing Israel to sin. The remainder of the acts of Zimri and his conspiracy which he made, [are] they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?