Ii Samuelis 2
1 Igitur post hæc consuluit David Dominum, dicens: Num ascendam in unam de civitatibus Juda? Et ait Dominus ad eum: Ascende. Dixitque David: Quo ascendam? Et respondit ei: In Hebron.
Now after this, David, questioning the Lord, said, Am I to go up into any of the towns of Judah? And the Lord said to him, Go up. And David said, Where am I to go? And he said, To Hebron.
2 Ascendit ergo David, et duæ uxores ejus, Achinoam Jezraëlites, et Abigail uxor Nabal Carmeli:
So David went there, taking with him his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel, and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel.
3 sed et viros, qui erant cum eo, duxit David singulos cum domo sua: et manserunt in oppidis Hebron.
And David took all his men with him, every man with his family: and they were living in the towns round Hebron.
4 Veneruntque viri Juda, et unxerunt ibi David ut regnaret super domum Juda. Et nuntiatum est David quod viri Jabes Galaad sepelissent Saul.
And the men of Judah came there, and with the holy oil made David king over the people of Judah. And word came to David that it was the men of Jabesh-gilead who put Saul's body in its last resting-place.
5 Misit ergo David nuntios ad viros Jabes Galaad, dixitque ad eos: Benedicti vos Domino, qui fecistis misericordiam hanc cum domino vestro Saul, et sepelistis eum.
And David sent to the men of Jabesh-gilead and said to them, May the Lord give you his blessing, because you have done this kind act to Saul your lord, and have put his body to rest!
6 Et nunc retribuet vobis quidem Dominus misericordiam et veritatem: sed et ego reddam gratiam, eo quod fecistis verbum istud.
May the Lord be good and true to you: and I myself will see that your kind act is rewarded, because you have done this thing.
7 Confortentur manus vestræ, et estote filii fortitudinis: licet enim mortuus sit dominus vester Saul, tamen me unxit domus Juda in regem sibi.
Then let your hands be strong, and have no fear: though Saul your lord is dead, the people of Judah have made me their king.
8 Abner autem filius Ner, princeps exercitus Saul, tulit Isboseth filium Saul, et circumduxit eum per castra,
Now Abner, the son of Ner, captain of Saul's army, had taken Saul's son Ish-bosheth over to Mahanaim,
9 regemque constituit super Galaad, et super Gessuri, et super Jezraël, et super Ephraim, et super Benjamin, et super Israël universum.
And made him king over Gilead and the Asherites and over Jezreel and Ephraim and Benjamin, that is, over all Israel.
10 Quadraginta annorum erat Isboseth filius Saul cum regnare cœpisset super Israël, et duobus annis regnavit: sola autem domus Juda sequebatur David.
(Saul's son Ish-bosheth was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he was ruler for two years.) But Judah was on the side of David.
11 Et fuit numerus dierum quos commoratus est David imperans in Hebron super domum Juda, septem annorum et sex mensium.
And the time when David was king in Hebron over the people of Judah was seven years and six months.
12 Egressusque est Abner filius Ner, et pueri Isboseth filii Saul, de castris in Gabaon.
And Abner, the son of Ner, with the servants of Saul's son Ish-bosheth, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.
13 Porro Joab filius Sarviæ, et pueri David, egressi sunt, et occurrerunt eis juxta piscinam Gabaon. Et cum in unum convenissent, e regione sederunt: hi ex una parte piscinæ, et illi ex altera.
And Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and the servants of David, went out and came face to face with them by the pool of Gibeon; and they took up their position, facing one another on opposite sides of the pool.
14 Dixitque Abner ad Joab: Surgant pueri, et ludant coram nobis. Et respondit Joab: Surgant.
And Abner said to Joab, Let the young men give a test of their strength before us. And Joab said, Let them do so.
15 Surrexerunt ergo, et transierunt numero duodecim de Benjamin, ex parte Isboseth filii Saul, et duodecim de pueris David.
So they got up and went over by number: twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bosheth and twelve of the servants of David.
16 Apprehensoque unusquisque capite comparis sui, defixit gladium in latus contrarii, et ceciderunt simul: vocatumque est nomen loci illius: Ager robustorum, in Gabaon.
And every one got the other by the head, driving his sword into the other's side, so they all went down together: and that place was named the Field of Sides, and it is in Gibeon.
17 Et ortum est bellum durum satis in die illa: fugatusque est Abner et viri Israël a pueris David.
And there was hard fighting that day; and Abner and the men of Israel gave way before the servants of David.
18 Erant autem ibi tres filii Sarviæ, Joab, et Abisai, et Asaël: porro Asaël cursor velocissimus fuit, quasi unus de capreis quæ morantur in silvis.
There were three sons of Zeruiah there, Joab and Abishai and Asahel: and Asahel was as quick-footed as a roe of the fields.
19 Persequebatur autem Asaël Abner, et non declinavit ad dextram neque ad sinistram omittens persequi Abner.
Asahel went running after Abner, not turning to the right or to the left.
20 Respexit itaque Abner post tergum suum, et ait: Tune es Asaël? Qui respondit: Ego sum.
Then Abner, looking back, said, Is it you, Asahel? And he said, It is I.
21 Dixitque ei Abner: Vade ad dexteram, sive ad sinistram, et apprehende unum de adolescentibus, et tolle tibi spolia ejus. Noluit autem Asaël omittere quin urgeret eum.
And Abner said, Then go to the right or to the left and put your hands on one of the fighting-men and take his arms. But Asahel would not be turned away from going after Abner.
22 Rursumque locutus est Abner ad Asaël: Recede, noli me sequi, ne compellar confodere te in terram, et levare non potero faciem meam ad Joab fratrem tuum.
Then again Abner said to Asahel, Go to one side, do not keep on coming after me: why will you make me put an end to you? for then I will be shamed before your brother Joab.
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 Asaël et mortuus erat, subsistebant.
But still he did not go to one side: so Abner gave him a back blow in the stomach with his spear, so that the spear came out at his back; and he went down on the earth, wounded to death: and all those who came to the place where Asahel went down dead, came to a stop.
24 Persequentibus autem Joab et Abisai fugientem Abner, sol occubuit: et venerunt usque ad collem aquæductus, qui est ex adverso vallis itineris deserti in Gabaon.
But Joab and Abishai went after Abner: and the sun went down when they came to the hill of Ammah, which is to the east of the road through the waste land of Geba.
25 Congregatique sunt filii Benjamin ad Abner: et conglobati in unum cuneum, steterunt in summitate tumuli unius.
And the men of Benjamin came together after Abner in one band, and took their places on the top of a hill.
26 Et exclamavit Abner ad Joab, 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 crying out to Joab, Abner said, Are fighting and destruction to go on for ever? do you not see that the end will only be bitter? how long will it be before you send the people back and make them give up attacking their countrymen?
27 Et ait Joab: Vivit Dominus, si locutus fuisses, mane recessisset populus persequens fratrem suum.
And Joab said, By the living God, if you had not given the word, the people would have gone on attacking their countrymen till the morning.
28 Insonuit ergo Joab buccina, et stetit omnis exercitus, nec persecuti sunt ultra Israël, neque iniere certamen.
So Joab had a horn sounded, and all the people came to a stop, and gave up going after Israel and fighting them.
29 Abner autem et viri ejus abierunt per campestria, tota nocte illa: et transierunt Jordanem, et lustrata omni Beth-horon, venerunt ad castra.
And all that night Abner and his men went through the Arabah; they went over Jordan and through all Bithron and came to Mahanaim.
30 Porro Joab reversus, omisso Abner, congregavit omnem populum: et defuerunt de pueris David decem et novem viri, excepto Asaële.
And Joab came back from fighting Abner: and when he had got all his men together, it was seen that nineteen of David's men, in addition to Asahel, were not with them.
31 Servi autem David percusserunt de Benjamin, et de viris qui erant cum Abner, trecentos sexaginta, qui et mortui sunt.
But David's men had put to death three hundred and sixty of the men of Benjamin and of Abner's men
32 Tuleruntque Asaël, et sepelierunt eum in sepulchro patris sui in Bethlehem: et ambulaverunt tota nocte Joab et viri qui erant cum eo, et in ipso crepusculo pervenerunt in Hebron.
And they took Asahel's body and put it in the last resting-place of his father in Beth-lehem. And Joab and his men, travelling all night, came to Hebron at dawn.
