1 Samuel 30

1 Three days later David and his men arrived back in Ziklag. Some Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and burned it down.

And it came to pass when David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day, that the 'Amalekites had invaded the south, and Ziklag, and smitten Ziklag, and burnt it with fire;

2 They had captured the women and everyone else there, young and old. They hadn't killed anyone, but they took everyone with them as they left.

And had taken captive the women that were therein, both great and small: they had not slain any one, but had led them off, and gone on their way.

3 When David and his men arrived back in town, they found it burned to the ground, and their wives and children captured.

When therefore David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burnt with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, had been taken captive.

4 David and his men cried loudly until they couldn't cry any more.

And David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.

5 David's two wives had also been taken as prisoners—Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, Nabal's widow, from Carmel.

And the two wives of David were also taken captive, Achino'am the Yizre'elitess, and Abigayil the wife of Nabal the Carmelite.

6 David was in a great deal of trouble, because the men were so upset over losing their children that they began to talk of stoning him. But trusting in the Lord his God,

And David was greatly distressed; for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was imbittered, every man for his sons and for his daughters; but David fortified himself in the Lord his God.

7 David went to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, and said, “Bring me the ephod.” Abiathar brought it to him.

And David said to Ebyathar the priest, the son of Achimelech, Bring hither, I pray thee, unto me the ephod. And Ebyathar brought the ephod near unto David.

8 David asked the Lord, “Should I chase after these raiders? Will I catch up with them?” “Yes, chase after them,” the Lord replied, “for you will definitely catch up with them and rescue the prisoners.”

And David asked counsel of the Lord, saying, Shall I pursue after this troop! shall I overtake them? And he said to him, Pursue; for thou wilt surely overtake them, and certainly recover [all].

9 David and six hundred of his men set off for the Besor Valley.

So David went, he and the six hundred men that were with him, and came up to the brook Bessor, where those that were left behind stayed.

10 Two hundred of them remained behind there because they were too tired to cross the valley while David continued on with four hundred men.

But David pursued on, he and four hundred men; and there stayed behind two hundred men, who were too fatigued to go over the brook Bessor.

11 They came across an Egyptian in the countryside and they took him to David. They gave him some food to eat and water to drink.

And they found an Egyptian man in the field, and took him to David, and gave him bread, and he did eat; and they made him drink water;

12 They also gave him a piece of a fig cake and two raisins cakes. He ate them and recovered, because he hadn't had any food or water for three days and nights.

And they gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins, and he ate, and then his spirit returned to him; for he had not eaten any bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights.

13 “Whose slave are you, and where do you come from?” David asked him. “I'm an Egyptian,” he replied, “the slave of an Amalekite. My master left me behind three days ago when I got sick.

And David said unto him, To whom belongest thou? and whence art thou? And he said, I am a young Egyptian man, the servant to an 'Amalekite; and my master left me behind, because I fell sick, today three days ago.

14 We raided the Kerethites in the Negev, as well as the part that belongs to Judah, and the Negev of Caleb. We burned Ziklag too.”

We made an invasion upon the south of the Kerethites, and upon that which belongeth to Judah, and upon the south of Caleb; and Ziklag did we burn with fire.

15 “Can you lead me to these raiders?” David asked. “If you swear to me by God that you won't kill me or hand me over to my master, then I'll take you to them,” the man replied.

And David said to him, Wilt thou bring me down to this troop? And he said, Swear unto me by God, that thou wilt not kill me, and that thou wilt not surrender me into the hand of my master, and then will I bring thee down to this troop.

16 He led David to the Amalekites, where they were spread out all over the place, eating, drinking, and dancing because of the large haul of plunder they had taken from the lands of the Philistines and of Judah.

And he brought him down; and behold, they were scattered over the face of all the country, eating and drinking, and dancing for joy, because of all the great spoil which they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah.

17 David attacked them from dusk until the following evening. Nobody escaped, except for four hundred men who managed to get away, riding on camels.

And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day; and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, who rode upon camels, and fled.

18 David got back everything the Amalekites had taken, including his two wives.

And David recovered all that the 'Amalekites had taken away; and his two wives also did David rescue.

19 Everything was accounted for—all the adults and children, as well as all the plunder the Amalekites had taken. David brought everything back.

And there was nothing missing to them, from small to great, as also sons and daughters, and spoil, down to every thing that they had taken from them: the whole did David bring back.

20 He also recovered all the flocks and herds. His men drove them ahead of the other livestock, shouting, “This is David's plunder!”

And David took all the flocks and the herds: these they drove before those other cattle, and said, This is David's spoil.

21 When David got back to the two hundred men who had been too tired to continue with him from the Besor Valley, they came to meet him and the men with him. As David approached the men to greet them,

And David came to the two hundred men, who had been too fatigued to follow after David, and whom they had left to remain at the brook Bessor: and they went forth to meet David, and to meet the people that were with him; and David came near to the people, and asked them after their well-being.

22 all the unpleasant, good-for-nothing men of those who had gone with David said, “They weren't with us, so we won't share the plunder that we took, except to give them back their wives and children. They can take them and leave.”

Then exclaimed every wicked and worthless man, of those that had gone with David, and said, Because they went not with us, we will not give them aught of the spoil that we have recovered, save to every man his wife and his children, and these they may lead away, and go.

23 But David intervened, saying, “No, my brothers, you shouldn't do this with what the Lord has given us. He has protected us and handed over to us the raiders that had attacked us.

Then said David, Ye must not do so, my brethren; since the Lord hath given us this, and guarded us, and delivered the troop that came against us into our hand.

24 Who's going to listen to you when you say such things? Whatever share those who went into battle receive will be the same as those who stayed to guard the supplies.”

And who will hearken unto you in this matter? but as is the part of him that went down to the battle, so shall be the part of him that remained with the baggage: together must they share.

25 David made this the rule and regulation for Israel from that day until now.

And it happened from that day and forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel until this day.

26 When David got back to Ziklag, he sent some of the plunder to each of his friends among the elders of Judah, saying, “Here's a gift for you from the plunder of the Lord's enemies.”

And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah, to his friends, saying, Behold, here is a present for you from the spoil of the enemies of the Lord:

27 David sent it to those who lived in Bethuel, Ramoth Negev, Jattir,

To those who were in Beth-el, and to those who were in south Ramoth, and to those who were in Yattir,

28 Aroer, Siphmoth, Eshtemoa,

And to those who were in 'Aro'er, and to those who were in Siphmoth, and to those who were in Eshtemoa',

29 Racal, and the towns of the Jerahmeelites and Kenites,

And to those who were in Rachal, and to those who were in the cities of Yerach-meelites, and to those who were in the cities of the Kenites,

30 Hormah, Bor-ashan, Athach,

And to those who were in Chormah, and to those who were in Kor-'ashan, and to those who were in 'Athach,

31 Hebron—all the places David and his men had gone to.

And to those who were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men had wandered about.