Ii Samuelis 21
1 Facta est quoque fames in diebus David tribus annis iugiter: et consuluit David oraculum Domini. Dixitque Dominus: Proper Saul, et domum eius sanguinum, quia occidit Gabaonitas.
During the time that David [ruled], there was a famine [in Israel] for three years. David prayed to Yahweh about it. And Yahweh said, “[In order for the famine to end], Saul’s family needs to be punished [MTY] because Saul killed many people from Gibeon [city].”
2 Vocatis ergo Gabaonitis rex, dixit ad eos. (Porro Gabaonitæ non erant de filiis Israel, sed reliquiæ Amorrhæorum: filii quippe Israel iuraverant eis, et voluit Saul percutere eos zelo, quasi pro filiis Israel et Iuda.)
The people of Gibeon were not Israelis; they were a small group of the Amor people-group whom the Israelis had solemnly promised to protect. But Saul had tried to kill all of them because he (was very zealous/wanted very much) to enable the people of Judah and Israel [to be the only ones living in that land]. So the king summoned the leaders of Gibeon
3 Dixit ergo David ad Gabaonitas: Quid faciam vobis? et quod erit vestri piaculum, ut benedicatis hereditati Domini?
and said to them, “What shall I do for you? How can I make amends/up for what was done to your people, in order that you will bless us who belong to Yahweh?”
4 Dixeruntque ei Gabaonitæ: Non est nobis super argento et auro quæstio, sed contra Saul, et contra domum eius: neque volumus ut interficiatur homo de Israel. Ad quos rex ait: Quid ergo vultis ut faciam vobis?
They replied, “You cannot settle our quarrel with Saul and his family by giving us silver or gold. And we do not have the right to kill any Israelis.” So David asked, “Then/So what do you say that I should do for you?”
5 Qui dixerunt regi: Virum, qui attrivit nos et oppressit inique, ita delere debemus, ut ne unus quidem residuus sit de stirpe eius in cunctis finibus Israel.
They replied, “Saul [wanted to] get rid of us. He wanted to annihilate/kill all of us, in order that none of us would live anywhere in Israel.
6 Dentur nobis septem viri de filiis eius, ut crucifigamus eos Domino in Gabaa Saul, quondam electi Domini. Et ait rex: Ego dabo.
Hand over to us seven of Saul’s descendants. We will hang them where Yahweh is worshiped in Gibeon, our town, the town where Saul, whom Yahweh previously chose to be king, lived.” The king replied, “Okay, I will hand them over to you.”
7 Pepercitque rex Miphiboseth filio Ionathæ filii Saul, propter iusiurandum Domini, quod fuerat inter David et inter Ionathan filium Saul.
The king did not hand over to them Saul’s grandson Mephibosheth, because of what he and [Mephibosheth’s father] Jonathan had solemnly promised to each other.
8 Tulit itaque rex duos filios Respha filiæ Aia, quos peperit Sauli, Armoni, et Miphiboseth: et quinque filios Michol filiæ Saul, quos genuerat Hadrieli filio Berzellai, qui fuit de Molathi,
Instead, he took Armoni and another man named Mephibosheth, the two sons that Saul’s slave wife Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah, had given birth to, and the five sons that Saul’s daughter Merab had given birth to. Merab’s husband was Adriel, the son of a man named Barzillai from Meholah [town].
9 et dedit eos in manus Gabaonitarum: qui crucifixerunt eos in monte coram Domino: et ceciderunt hi septem simul occisi in diebus messis primis, incipiente messione hordei.
David handed those men over to the men from Gibeon. Then they hanged those seven men on a hill where they worshiped Yahweh. They were all killed during the time of the year that the people started to harvest the barley.
10 Tollens autem Respha filia Aia, cilicium substravit sibi supra petram ab initio messis, donec stillaret aqua super eos de cælo: et non dimisit aves lacerare eos per diem, neque bestias per noctem.
Then Rizpah took coarse cloth made from goats’ hair, and spread it on the rock [where the corpses lay]. She stayed there from the time that people started to harvest the barley until the rains started. She did not allow any birds to come near the corpses during the day, and she did not allow any animals to come near during the night.
11 Et nunciata sunt David quæ fecerat Respha, filia Aia, concubina Saul.
When someone told David what Rizpah had done,
12 Et abiit David, et tulit ossa Saul, et ossa Ionathæ filii eius a viris Iabes Galaad, qui furati fuerant ea de platea Bethsan, in qua suspenderant eos Philisthiim cum interfecissent Saul in Gelboe:
he went with some of his servants to Jabesh in [the] Gilead [region] and got the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan. The people of Jabesh had stolen their bones from the (plaza/public square) in Beth-Shan [city], where the men from Philistia had hanged them previously, on the day that they had killed Saul and Jonathan on Gilboa [Mountain].
13 et asportavit inde ossa Saul, et ossa Ionathæ filii eius: et colligentes ossa eorum, qui affixi fuerant,
David and his men took the bones of Saul and Jonathan, and they also took the bones of the seven men [from Gibeon] whom the men from Philistia had hanged.
14 sepelierunt ea cum ossibus Saul et Ionathæ filii eius in Terra Beniamin, in latere, in sepulchro Cis patris eius: feceruntque omnia, quæ præceperat rex, et repropitiatus est Deus terræ post hæc.
They buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan in Zela [town] in the land of [the tribe of] Benjamin. Doing all that the king commanded, they buried their bones in the tomb where Saul’s father Kish [was buried]. After that, [because] God [saw that Saul’s family had been punished to pay for Saul’s murder of many people from Gibeon, he] answered the Israelis’ prayers for their land, and caused the famine to end.
15 Factum est autem rursum prælium Philisthinorum adversum Israel, et descendit David, et servi eius cum eo, et pugnabant contra Philisthiim. Deficiente autem David,
The army of Philistia again started to fight against the army of Israel. And David and his soldiers went to fight the Philistines. During the battle, David became weary.
16 Iesbibenob, qui fuit de genere arapha, cuius ferrum hastæ trecentas uncias appendebat, et accinctus erat ense novo, nisus est percutere David.
One of the Philistia men thought that he could kill David. His name was Ishbi-Benob. He was a descendant of [a group of] giants. He carried a bronze spear that weighed about (7-1/2 pounds/3-1/2 kg.), and he also had a new sword.
17 Præsidioque ei fuit Abisai filius Sarviæ, et percussum Philisthæum interfecit. Tunc iuraverunt viri David, dicentes: Iam non egredieris nobiscum in bellum, ne extinguas lucernam Israel.
But Abishai came to help David, and attacked the giant and killed him. Then David’s soldiers forced him to promise that he would not go with them into a battle again. They said to him, “[If you die, and none of your descendants become king, that would be like] [MET] extinguishing the last light in Israel.”
18 Secundum quoque bellum fuit in Gob contra Philisthæos: tunc percussit Sobochai de Husati, Saph de stirpe arapha de genere gigantum.
Some time after that, there was a battle with the army of Philistia near Gob [village]. During the battle, Sibbecai, from [the] Hushah [clan], killed Saph, one of the descendants of the Rapha giants.
19 Tertium quoque fuit bellum in Gob contra Philisthæos, in quo percussit Adeodatus filius Saltus polymitarius Bethlehemites Goliath Gethæum, cuius hastile hastæ erat quasi liciatorium texentium.
[Later] there was another battle with the army of Philistia at Gob. During that battle, Elhanan, the son of Jaare-Oregim from Bethlehem, killed [the brother of] Goliath from Gath [city]; Goliath’s spear shaft/handle was (very thick, like the bar on a weaver’s loom/over two inches thick).
20 Quartum bellum fuit in Geth: in quo vir fuit excelsus, qui senos in manibus pedibusque habebat digitos, id est viginti quattuor, et erat de origine arapha.
Later there was another battle near Gath. There was a (huge man/giant) there who liked to fight [in battles]. He had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot. He was descended from [the] Rapha [giants].
21 Et blasphemavit Israel: percussit autem eum Ionathan filius Samaa fratris David.
But when he (made fun of/ridiculed) the men in the Israeli [army], Jonathan, the son of David’s [older] brother Shimeah, killed him.
22 Hi quattuor nati sunt de arapha in Geth, et ceciderunt in manu David, et servorum eius.
Those four men were some of the descendants of the Rapha giants who had lived in Gath, who were killed [MTY] by David and his soldiers.
