2 Samuel 8

1 Some time later, David’s army attacked the Philistia [army] and defeated them. They took control over the entire Philistia area.

And it comes to pass afterward that David strikes the Philistines, and humbles them, and David takes the bridle of the metropolis out of the hand of the Philistines.

2 David’s army also defeated the army of the Moab people-group. David forced their soldiers to lie down on the ground [close to each other]. His men killed two out of every three of them. The [other] Moab people [were forced to] accept David as their ruler, and they were forced to give to him [every year the] payment/tax [that he demanded].

And he strikes Moab, and measures them with a line, causing them to lie down on the earth, and he measures two lines to put to death, and the fullness of the line to keep alive, and the Moabites are for servants to David, bearers of a present.

3 David’s army also defeated [the army of] Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, who ruled [the state of] Zobah [in Syria]. That happened when David went to rule again over the area at [the upper part of] the Euphrates River.

And David strikes Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah, in his going to bring back his power by the River [Euphrates];

4 David’s army captured 1,700 of Hadadezer’s soldiers who rode on horses, and 20,000 of his other soldiers. They also crippled/hamstrung most of the horses that pulled the chariots, but they left/spared enough horses to [pull] 100 chariots.

and David captures from him one thousand and seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen, and David utterly destroys the whole of the charioteers; he leaves only one hundred of their charioteers.

5 When [the army of] Syria came from Damascus [city] to help King Hadadezer’s [army], David’s soldiers killed 22,000 of them.

And Aram of Damascus comes to give help to Hadadezer king of Zobah, and David strikes twenty-two thousand men of Aram;

6 Then David stationed (groups of his soldiers/army camps) in their area, and the people of Syria were forced to accept David as their ruler, and to give to David’s government [every year] the payment/tax that he demanded. And Yahweh enabled David’s [army] to win victories wherever they went.

and David puts garrisons in Aram of Damascus, and Aram is for a servant to David, carrying a present; and YHWH saves David wherever he has gone;

7 David’s soldiers took the gold shields that were carried by Hadadezer’s officials, and brought them to Jerusalem.

and David takes the shields of gold which were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brings them to Jerusalem;

8 They also brought [to Jerusalem] a lot of bronze [that they found] in Betah and Berothai, two cities that King Hadadezer [had previously] ruled.

and from Betah, and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, King David has taken very much bronze.

9 When Toi, the king of the Hamath [city in Syria], heard that David’s [army] had defeated the entire army of King Hadadezer,

And Toi king of Hamath hears that David has struck all the force of Hadadezer,

10 he sent his son Joram to greet King David and to (congratulate him/say that he was happy) about his army defeating Hadadezer’s army, which Toi’s [army] had fought many times. Joram brought to David many items/gifts made from gold, silver, and bronze.

and Toi sends his son Joram to King David to ask of him of welfare, and to bless him (because that he has fought against Hadadezer, and strikes him, for Hadadezer had been a man of wars [with] Toi), and in his hand have been vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and vessels of bronze,

11 King David dedicated all those items to Yahweh. He also dedicated the silver and gold which his army had taken from the nations that they had conquered.

also King David sanctified them to YHWH, with the silver and the gold which he sanctified of all the nations which he subdued:

12 They had taken items from the Edom people-group and the Moab people-group, from the Ammon people-group, from the Philistia people, and from [the descendants of] Amalek, as well as from the people that Hadadezer [previously] ruled.

of Aram, and of Moab, and of the sons of Ammon, and of the Philistines, and of Amalek, and of the spoil of Hadadezer son of Rehob king of Zobah.

13 When David returned [after defeating the armies of Syria], he became more famous because his army killed 18,000 soldiers from the Edom people-group in the Salt Valley [near the Dead Sea].

And David makes a name in his turning back from his striking Aram in the Valley of Salt—eighteen thousand;

14 David stationed (groups of his soldiers/army camps) throughout the Edom area, and forced the people there to accept him as their king. Yahweh enabled David’s [army] to win battles wherever they went.

and he puts garrisons in Edom—he has put garrisons in all of Edom, and all Edom are servants to David; and YHWH saves David wherever he has gone.

15 David ruled over all the Israeli people, and he always did for them what was fair and just.

And David reigns over all Israel, and David is doing judgment and righteousness to all his people,

16 Joab was the army commander; Jehoshaphat, the son of Ahilud, was the man who reported to the people everything that David decided that they should do;

and Joab son of Zeruiah [is] over the host, and Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud [is] remembrancer,

17 Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were the priests; Seraiah was the official secretary;

and Zadok son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech son of Abiathar, [are] priests, and Seraiah [is] scribe,

18 Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was the commander of (David’s bodyguards/the men who protected the king); and David’s sons were priests (OR, his administrators/advisors).

and Benaiah son of Jehoiada [is over] both the Cherethite and the Pelethite, and the sons of David have been ministers.