2 Samuel 21
1 There was a famine in David's time for three years in a row, and David sought the face of Yahweh. So Yahweh said, “This famine is on you because of Saul and his murderous family, because he put the Gibeonites to death.”
And there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David sought the face of the Lord. And the Lord said, [There is] guilt upon Saul and his house because of his bloody murder, whereby he killed the Gabaonites.
2 Now the Gibeonites were not from the people of Israel; they were from what remained of the Amorites. The people of Israel had sworn not to kill them, but Saul tried to kill them all anyway in his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah.
And King David called the Gabaonites, and said to them; —(now the Gabaonites are not the children of Israel, but [are] of the remnant of the Amorite, and the children of Israel had sworn to them: but Saul sought to strike them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Juda.)
3 So King David called together the Gibeonites and said to them, “What should I do for you? How can I make atonement, so that you may bless the people of Yahweh, who inherit his goodness and promises?”
And David said to the Gabaonites, What shall I do to you? and wherewithal shall I make atonement, that you may bless the inheritance of the Lord?
4 The Gibeonites responded to him, “It is not a matter of silver or gold between us and Saul or his family. In the same way it is not for us to put to death any man in Israel.” David replied, “What are you saying that I should do for you?”
And the Gabaonites said to him, We have no [question about] silver or gold with Saul and with his house; and there is no man for us to put to death in Israel.
5 They answered the king, “The man who tried to kill us all, who schemed against us, so that we are now destroyed and have no place within the borders of Israel—
And he said, What say you? speak, and I will do it for you. And they said to the king, The man who would have made an end of us, and persecuted us, who plotted against us to destroy us, let us utterly destroy him, so that he shall have no standing in all the coasts of Israel.
6 let seven men from his descendants be handed over to us, and we will hang them before Yahweh in Gibeah of Saul, the one chosen by Yahweh.” So the king said, “I will give them to you.”
Let one give us seven men of his sons, and let us hang them up in the sun to the Lord in Gabaon of Saul, as chosen out for the Lord. And the king said, I will give [them].
7 But the king spared Mephibosheth son of Jonathan son of Saul, because of Yahweh's oath between them, between David and Jonathan son of Saul.
But the king spared Memphibosthe son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of the oath of the Lord that was between them, even between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.
8 But the king took the two sons of Rizpah daughter of Aiah, sons whom she bore to Saul—the two sons were named Armoni and Mephibosheth; and David also took the five sons of Merab daughter of Saul, whom she bore to Adriel son of Barzillai the Meholathite.
And the king took the two sons of Respha the daughter of Aia, whom she bore to Saul, Hermonoi and Memphibosthe, and the five sons of Michol daughter of Saul, whom she bore to Esdriel son of Berzelli the Moulathite.
9 He handed them over into the hands of the Gibeonites. They hanged them on the mountain before Yahweh, and they died all seven together. They were put to death during the time of harvest, during the first days at the beginning of barley harvest.
And he gave them into the hand of the Gabaonites, and they hanged them up to the sun in the mountain before the lord: and they fell, even the seven together: moreover they were put to death in the days of harvest at the commencement, in the beginning of barley harvest.
10 Then Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah, took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the mountain beside the dead bodies, from the beginning of harvest until the rain poured down on them from the sky. She did not allow the birds of the sky to disturb the bodies by day or the wild animals by night.
And Respha the daughter of Aia took sackcloth, and fixed it for herself on the rock in the beginning of barley harvest, until water dropped upon them out of heaven: and she did not suffer the birds of the air to rest upon them by day, nor the beasts of the field by night.
11 It was told to David what Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah, the slave wife of Saul, had done.
And it was told David what Respha the daughter of Aia the concubine of Saul had done, [and they were faint, and Dan, the son of Joa of the offspring of the giants overtook them.]
12 So David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabesh Gilead, who had stolen them from the public square of Beth Shan, where the Philistines had hanged them, after the Philistines had killed Saul in Gilboa.
And David went and took the bones of Saul, and the bones of Jonathan his son, from the men of the sons of Jabis Galaad, who stole them from the street of Baethsan; for the Philistines set them there in the day in which the Philistines struck Saul in Gelbue.
13 David took away from there the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son, and they gathered the bones of the seven men who had been hanged, as well.
And he carried up thence the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son, and gathered the bones of them that had been hanged.
14 They buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in Zela, in the tomb of Kish his father. They performed all that the king commanded. After that God answered their prayers for the land.
And they buried the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son, and the bones of them that had been hanged, in the land of Benjamin in the hill, in the sepulchre of Cis his father; and they did all things that the king commanded: and after this God listened to [the prayers of] the land.
15 Then the Philistines went to war again with Israel. So David went down with his army and fought against the Philistines. David was overcome with battle fatigue.
And there was yet war between the Philistines and Israel: and David went down and his servants with him, and they fought with the Philistines, and David went.
16 Ishbi-Benob, a descendant of the giants, whose bronze spear weighed three hundred shekels, and who was armed with a new sword, intended to kill David.
And Jesbi, who was of the progeny of Rapha, and the head of whose spear [was] three hundred shekels of brass in weight, who also was girded with a club, even he thought to strike David.
17 But Abishai son of Zeruiah rescued David, attacked the Philistine, and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, “You must not go to battle anymore with us, so that you do not put out the lamp of Israel.”
And Abessa the son of Saruia helped him and struck the Philistine, and killed him. Then the men of David swore, saying, You shall not any longer go out with us to battle, and you shall not quench the lamp of Israel.
18 It came about after this that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Gob, when Sibbekai the Hushathite killed Saph, who was one of the descendants of the Rephaim.
And after this there was a battle again with the Philistines in Geth: then Sebocha the Astatothite killed Seph of the progeny of Rapha.
19 It came about again in a battle with the Philistines at Gob, that Elhanan son of Jair the Bethlehemite killed Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam.
And there was a battle in Rom with the Philistines; and Eleanan son of Ariorgim the Bethleemite killed Goliath the Gittite; and the staff of his spear [was] as a weaver's beam.
20 It came about in another battle at Gath that there was a man of great height who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number. He also was descended from the Rephaim.
And there was yet a battle in Geth: and there was a man of stature, and the fingers of his hands and the toes of his feet [were] six on each, four and twenty in number: and he also was born to Rapha.
21 When he taunted Israel, Jonathan son of Shimeah, David's brother, killed him.
And he defied Israel, and Jonathan son of Semei brother of David, struck him.
22 These were descendants of the Rephaim of Gath, and they were killed by the hand of David and by the hand of his soldiers.
These four were born descendants of the giants in Geth, the family of Rapha; and they fell by the hand of David, and by the hand of his servants.
