2 Samuel 23

1 Now these are the last words of David: David the son of Jesse saith, And the man who was raised up on high, The anointed of the God of Jacob, And the sweet psalmist of Israel saith,

Forsothe these ben the laste wordis, whiche Dauid, the sone of Ysai, seide. The man seide, to whom it is ordeyned of Crist, of the God of Jacob, the noble salm makere of Israel;

2 The Spirit of Jehovah spoke by me, And his word was on my tongue.

The spiryt of the Lord spak bi me, and his word bi my tunge.

3 The God of Israel said, The Rock of Israel spoke to me, The ruler among men shall be just, Ruling in the fear of God;

Dauid seide, God of Israel spak to me, the stronge of Israel, the `iust Lord of men, `is Lord in the drede of God.

4 And [he shall be] as the light of the morning, [like] the rising of the sun, A morning without clouds; [When] from the sunshine, after rain, The green grass springeth from the earth.

As the liyt of the morewtid, whanne the sunne risith eerli, is briyt with out cloudis; and as an erbe cometh forth of the erthe bi reynes.

5 Although my house be not so before God, Yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, Ordered in every way and sure; For [this is] all my salvation, and every desire, Although he make [it] not to grow.

And myn hows is not so greet anentis God, that he schulde make with me euerlastynge couenaunt, stidefast and maad strong in alle thingis; for al myn helthe hangith of him, and al the wille `that is, al my desir, goith in to hym, and no thing is therof, that makith not fruyt.

6 But [the sons] of Belial [are] all of them as thorns thrust away, Because they cannot be taken with hands;

Forsothe alle trespassouris schulen be drawun out as thornes, that ben not takun with hondis.

7 And the man that will touch them provideth himself with iron and the staff of a spear; And they shall be utterly burned with fire in [their] place.

And if ony man wole touche tho, he schal be armed with irun, and with tre formed in to spere; and the thornes schulen be kyndlid, and schulen be brent `til to nouyt.

8 These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: Joseb-Bassebeth, Tachkemonite the chief of the captains: he was Adino the Eznite; he [fought] against eight hundred, slain [by him] at one time.

These ben the names of the stronge men of Dauid. Dauid sittith in the chaier, the wiseste prince among thre; he is as a moost tendir worm of tree, that killide eiyte hundrid with o fersnesse.

9 And after him, Eleazar the son of Dodo the son of an Ahohite: he was one of the three mighty men with David, when they had defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone up.

Aftir hym was Eleazar, the sone of his fadirs brother Abohi; among thre stronge men, that weren with Dauid, whanne thei seiden schenschip to Filisteis, and weren gaderid thidir in to batel.

10 He arose and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clave to the sword; and Jehovah wrought a great deliverance that day; and the people returned after him only to spoil.

And whanne the men of Israel hadden stied, he stood, and smoot Filisties, til his hond failide, and was starke with the swerd. And the Lord made greet helthe in that dai; and the puple that fledde turnedc ayen to drawe awei the spuylis of slayn men.

11 And after him, Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite: the Philistines were gathered into a troop, and there was there a plot of ground full of lentils, and the people had fled before the Philistines;

And aftir hym was Semma, the sone of Age, of Arari. And Filisteis weren gaderid in the stacioun; forsothe there was a feeld ful of lente; and whanne the puple fledde fro the face of Filisteis,

12 and he stood in the midst of the plot and delivered it, and smote the Philistines, and Jehovah wrought a great deliverance.

he stood in the myddis of the feeld, and bihelde it; and he smoot Filisteis, and the Lord made greet helthe.

13 And three of the thirty chiefs went down, and came to David in the harvest time to the cave of Adullam, when the troop of the Philistines was encamped in the valley of Rephaim.

Also and thre men yeden doun bifore, that weren princes among thretti, and camen to Dauid in the tyme of reep in to the denne of Odollam. Forsothe the castels of Filisteis weren set in the valei of giauntis.

14 And David was then in the stronghold; and the Philistines' garrison was then at Bethlehem.

And Dauid was in a strong hold; sotheli the stacioun of Filisteis was thanne in Bethleem.

15 And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me to drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is in the gate!

Therfor Dauid desiride water of the lake, and seide, If ony man wolde yyue to me drynk of watir of the cisterne, which is in Bethleem, bisidis the yate.

16 And the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, which is in the gate, and took it, and brought it to David; however he would not drink of it, but poured it out to Jehovah.

Therfor thre stronge men braken in to the castels of Filisteis, and drowen watir of the cisterne of Bethleem, that was bisidis the yate, and brouyten to Dauid; and he nolde drinke,

17 And he said, Be it far from me, Jehovah, that I should do this thing! is it not the blood of the men that went at the risk of their lives? Therefore he would not drink it. These things did the three mighty men.

but offride it to the Lord, and seide, The Lord be merciful to me, that Y do not this; whether Y schal drynke the blood of these men, that yeden forth, and the perel of soulis? Therfor he nolde drynke. Thre strongeste men diden thes thingis.

18 And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was the chief of three; and he brandished his spear against three hundred and slew them; and he had a name among the three.

Also Abisay, brother of Joab, the sone of Saruye, was prince of thre; he it is that reiside his schaft ayens thre hundrid men, whiche he killide; `he was nemid among thre,

19 Was he not most honourable of three? and he was their captain; but he did not attain to the [first] three.

and was the noblere among thre, and he was the prince of hem; but he cam not to the thre firste men.

20 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, son of a valiant man, great in exploits, of Kabzeel: he it was that smote two lions of Moab; and he went down and smote a lion in the midst of a pit on a snowy day.

And Banaye, the sone of Joiada, strongeste man of grete werkis, of Capseel, he smoot twei liouns of Moab, `that is, twei knyytis hardi as liouns; and he yede doun, and smoot a lioun in the myddil cisterne in the daies of snow.

21 He also smote the Egyptian, an imposing man: and the Egyptian had a spear in his hand; and he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian's hand, and slew him with his own spear.

Also he killide a man of Egipt, a man worthi of spectacle, hauynge a spere in the hond; therfor whanne he hadde come doun with a yerde to that man, bi miyt he wrooth out the spere fro the hond of the man of Egipt, and killide hym with his owne spere.

22 These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he had a name among the three mighty men.

Banaye, sone of Joiada, dide these thingis;

23 He was honoured above the thirty, but he did not attain to the [first] three. And David set him in his council.

and he was nemyed among thre stronge men, that weren among the thretti noblere men; netheles he cam not til to the thre. And Dauid made hym a counselour of priuyte to hym silf.

24 Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty; Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem,

Asahel, the brother of Joab, was among thretti men; Eleanan, the sone of his fadris brother, of Bethleem; Semma, of Arari;

25 Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite,

Elcha, of Arodi; Helas, of Phelti;

26 Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite,

Hira, sone of Aches, of Thecua; Abiezer, of Amatoth;

27 Abiezer the Anathothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite,

Mobannoy, of Cosathi; Selmon, of Achotes;

28 Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite,

Macharai, of Nethopath;

29 Heleb the son of Baanah, the Netophathite, Ittai the son of Ribai of Gibeah of the children of Benjamin,

Heled, the sone of Baana, and he was of Netophath; Hiray, sone of Rabai, of Gebeeth, of the sones of Beniamyn; Banay, of Effrata;

30 Benaiah a Pirathonite, Hiddai of the brooks of Gaash,

Hedday, of the stronde of Gaas;

31 Abi-albon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite,

Abiadon, of Arbath; Asmaneth, of Berromy;

32 Eliahba the Shaalbonite, of the sons of Jashen, Jonathan,

Eliaba, of Sabony; sones of Assen, Jonathan, and Jasan; Semma, of Herodi;

33 Shammah the Ararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Ararite,

Hayam, sone of Sarai, of Zaroth;

34 Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai, the son of the Maachathite, Eliam the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite,

Eliphelech, sone of Saalbai, the sone of Maachati; Heliam, sone of Achitofel, of Gilo;

35 Hezrai the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite,

Esrai, of Carmele; Pharai, of Arbi;

36 Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite,

Ygaal, sone of Nathan, of Soba;

37 Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, the armour-bearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah,

Bonny, of Gaddi; Silech, of Ammony; Naarai, of Beroth, the squyer of Joab, the sone of Saruye;

38 Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite,

Haray, of Jethri; Gareb, and he was of Gethri;

39 Uriah the Hittite: thirty-seven in all.

Vrye, of Ethei; alle weren seuene and thretti men.