Ii Samuelis 2
1 Igitur post hæc consuluit David Dominum, dicens: Num ascendam in unam de civitatibus Iuda? Et ait Dominus ad eum: Ascende. Dixitque David: Quo ascendam? Et respondit ei: In Hebron.
Some time after that, David asked Yahweh, “Should I go back to [live in] one of the towns in Judah?” Yahweh replied, “Yes, go up there.” Then David asked, “To which town should I go?” Yahweh replied, “To Hebron.”
2 Ascendit ergo David, et duæ uxores eius, Achinoam Iezraelites, et Abigail uxor Nabal Carmeli:
So David went up there, taking his two wives, Ahinoam who was from Jezreel [city], and Abigail, the widow of Nabal from Carmel [city].
3 sed et viros, qui erant cum eo, duxit David singulos cum domo sua: et manserunt in oppidis Hebron.
He also took the men who had been with him, and their families. They all started to live in villages near Hebron.
4 Veneruntque viri Iuda, et unxerunt ibi David, ut regnaret super domum Iuda. Et nunciatum est David, quod viri Iabes Galaad sepelissent Saul.
Then the men of Judah came to Hebron, and [one of] them poured olive oil on David’s head [to show they were appointing him to be] [MTY] the king of the tribe [MTY] of Judah. When David found out that the people of Jabesh [town] in [the] Gilead [region] had buried Saul’s body,
5 Misit ergo David nuncios ad viros Iabes Galaad, dixitque ad eos: Benedicti vos Domino, qui fecistis misericordiam hanc cum domino vestro Saul, et sepelistis eum.
he sent messengers to the men of Jabesh to tell them this: “I desire/hope that Yahweh will bless you for having shown, by burying the body of Saul your king, that you were loyal to him.
6 Et nunc retribuet vobis quidem Dominus misericordiam et veritatem: sed et ego reddam gratiam, eo quod fecistis verbum istud.
Now I also desire/hope that Yahweh will faithfully love you and be loyal to you. And I will do good things for you because of what you have done [for Saul].
7 Confortentur manus vestræ, et estote filii fortitudinis: licet enim mortuus sit dominus vester Saul, tamen me unxit domus Iuda in regem sibi.
Now, although Saul your king is dead, be strong and courageous, like the people of Judah, who have appointed me to be their king.”
8 Abner autem filius Ner princeps exercitus Saul tulit Isboseth filium Saul, et circumduxit eum per castra,
[While this was happening], Ner’s son Abner, the commander of Saul’s army, took Saul’s son Ishbosheth and went across [the Jordan River] to Mahanaim [town].
9 regemque constituit super Galaad, et super Gessuri, et super Iezrael, et super Ephraim, et super Beniamin, et super Israel universum.
There Abner proclaimed that Ishbosheth was now the king of [the] Gilead [region] and of the tribe of Asher and the region of Jezreel and the tribes of Ephraim and Benjamin. That meant that he was the king of all of the people of Israel.
10 Quadraginta annorum erat Isboseth filius Saul cum regnare cœpisset super Israel, et duobus annis regnavit: sola autem domus Iuda sequebatur David.
Ishbosheth was 40 years old when he started to rule over the people of Israel. He ruled them for two years. But the tribe of Judah (was loyal to David/wanted David to be their king),
11 Et fuit numerus dierum, quos commoratus est David, imperans in Hebron super domum Iuda, septem annorum, et sex mensium.
and he ruled them for seven and a half years while he was living in Hebron.
12 Egressusque est Abner filius Ner, et pueri Isboseth filii Saul de castris in Gabaon.
[One day] Abner and the officials of Isbosheth went from Mahanaim [across the Jordan River] to Gibeon [city].
13 Porro Ioab filius Sarviæ, et pueri David egressi sunt, et occurrerunt eis iuxta piscinam Gabaon. Et cum in unum convenissent, e regione sederunt: hi ex una parte piscinæ, et illi ex altera.
Joab, whose mother was Zeruiah, and some of David’s officials [went from Hebron to Gibeon, and] met at the pool there. They all sat down, the one group on one side of the pool and the other group on the other side.
14 Dixitque Abner ad Ioab: Surgant pueri, et ludant coram nobis. Et respondit Ioab: Surgant.
Abner said to Joab, “Let’s tell some of our young men to fight each other!” Joab replied, “Okay!”
15 Surrexerunt ergo, et transierunt numero duodecim de Beniamin, ex parte Isboseth filii Saul, et duodecim de pueris David.
So twelve men from the tribe of Benjamin fought for Ishbosheth, against twelve of David’s soldiers.
16 Apprehensoque unusquisque capite comparis sui, defixit gladium in latus contrarii, et ceciderunt simul: vocatumque est nomen loci illius: Ager robustorum, in Gabaon.
Each of them grabbed the head of the man against whom he was fighting, and thrust his sword into that man’s side. The result was that all 24 of them fell down dead. So that area in Gibeon is now called ‘Field of Swords’.
17 Et ortum est bellum durum satis in die illa: fugatusque est Abner, et viri Israel a pueris David.
Then [the others started to fight]. It was a very fierce battle. Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by David’s soldiers.
18 Erant autem ibi tres filii Sarviæ, Ioab, et Abisai, et Asael: porro Asael cursor velocissimus fuit, quasi unus de capreis, quæ morantur in silvis.
Zeruiah’s three sons were there [on that day]: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Asahel was able to run very fast; he could run as fast as a wild gazelle/antelope.
19 Persequebatur autem Asael Abner, et non declinavit ad dextram neque ad sinistram omittens persequi Abner.
Asahel started to pursue Abner. He ran straight toward Abner, without stopping.
20 Respexit itaque Abner post tergum suum, et ait: Tune es Asael? Qui respondit: Ego sum.
Abner looked behind him, and said “Is that you, Asahel?” Asahel replied, “Yes!”
21 Dixitque ei Abner: Vade ad dexteram, sive ad sinistram, et apprehende unum de adolescentibus, et tolle tibi spolia eius. Noluit autem Asael omittere quin urgeret eum.
Abner yelled at him, “Turn to one side or the other, [and pursue someone else]!” But Asahel would not stop pursuing Abner.
22 Rursumque locutus est Abner ad Asael: recede, noli me sequi, ne compellar confodere te in terram, et levare non potero faciem meam ad Ioab fratrem tuum.
So Abner yelled at him again, “Stop (chasing after/pursuing) me! (Why should I kill you?/It would not be good for me to kill you!) [RHQ] If I did that, (how could I (face/be reconciled with) your brother Joab?/it would be very difficult for me to (face/be reconciled with) your brother Joab.) [RHQ]”
23 Qui audire contempsit, et noluit declinare: percussit ergo eum Abner aversa hasta in inguine, et transfodit, et mortuus est in eodem loco: omnesque qui transibant per locum illum, in quo ceciderat Asael, et mortuus erat, subsistebant.
But Asahel refused to stop pursuing Abner. So Abner [suddenly turned and] thrust the butt end of his spear into Asahel’s stomach. Because he thrust it very strongly, that end of the spear [went though Asahel’s body and] came out at his back, and he fell to the ground, dead. All the other soldiers who came to the place where his body was lying stopped and stood there, [stunned].
24 Persequentibus autem Ioab, et Abisai fugientem Abner, sol occubuit: et venerunt usque ad Collem aquæ ductus, qui est ex adverso vallis itineris deserti in Gabaon.
But Joab and Abishai continued to pursue Abner. At sunset they came to Ammah Hill, which is east of Giah, along the road to the desert near Gibeon.
25 Congregatique sunt filii Beniamin ad Abner: et conglobati in unum cuneum, steterunt in summitate tumuli unius.
The men from the tribe of Benjamin gathered around Abner in one group, and stood at the top of a hill.
26 Et exclamavit Abner ad Ioab, et ait: Num usque ad internecionem tuus mucro desæviet? an ignoras quod periculosa sit desperatio? usquequo non dicis populo ut omittat persequi fratres suos?
Then Abner called out to Joab, saying “Are we going to continue to fight forever [RHQ]? Do you not realize that [if we continue fighting], the result will be very bad [RHQ]? We are all descendants of Jacob. [So we should stop fighting each other] (How long will it be until you tell your soldiers to stop pursuing us?/Tell your soldiers to stop pursuing us.)” [RHQ]
27 et ait Ioab: Vivit Dominus, si locutus fuisses, mane recessisset populus persequens fratrem suum.
Joab replied, “Just as surely as God lives, if you had not said that, my soldiers would have continued pursuing your men until tomorrow morning!”
28 Insonuit ergo Ioab buccina, et stetit omnis exercitus, nec persecuti sunt ultra Israel, neque iniere certamen.
So Joab blew a trumpet [to signal that they should stop fighting]. So all his men did that. They did not pursue the soldiers of Israel any more, and they stopped fighting.
29 Abner autem et viri eius abierunt per campestria, tota nocte illa: et transierunt Iordanem, et lustrata omni Beth horon, venerunt ad castra.
That night Abner and his soldiers went through the Jordan [River] Valley. They crossed the Jordan [River] and marched all the next morning, and they finally arrived at Mahanaim.
30 Porro Ioab reversus, omisso Abner, congregavit omnem populum: et defuerunt de pueris David decem et novem viri, excepto Asaele.
Joab [and his soldiers] stopped pursuing Abner. And when he gathered all his soldiers together, he found out that in addition to Asahel, only 19 of them had been killed in the battle.
31 Servi autem David percusserunt de Beniamin, et de viris, qui erant cum Abner trecentos sexaginta, qui et mortui sunt.
But David’s soldiers had killed 360 of Abner’s men, all from the tribe of Benjamin.
32 Tuleruntque Asael, et sepelierunt eum in sepulchro patris sui in Bethlehem: et ambulaverunt tota nocte Ioab et viri qui erant cum eo, et in ipso crepusculo pervenerunt in Hebron.
[Some of Joab’s soldiers] took Asahel’s body and buried it in the tomb where his father had been buried, in Bethlehem. Then they marched all during the night, and at dawn they arrived [back home] at Hebron.
