2 Samuel 21
1 Once during David's reign there was a famine for three years in a row, and David asked the Lord about it. The Lord replied, “It's because Saul and his family are guilty of murdering the Gibeonites.”
And there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David inquired of Jehovah. And Jehovah said, It is for Saul, and for [his] house of blood, because he slew the Gibeonites.
2 David summoned the Gibeonites and spoke with them. The Gibeonites were not Israelites, but what was left of the Amorites. The Israelites had sworn an oath to them, but in his nationalistic passion for the Israelites and Judah, Saul had tried to wipe them out.
And the king called the Gibeonites, and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remainder of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn to them; and Saul sought to smite them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah.)
3 “What can I do for you?” David asked the Gibeonites. “How can I compensate you so that you may bless the Lord's people?”
And David said to the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? and with what shall I make atonement, that ye may bless the inheritance of Jehovah?
4 “This isn't a question of us receiving payment in silver or gold from Saul or his family,” the Gibeonites replied. “In addition we don't have the right to have anyone in Israel put to death for us.” “I'll do whatever you ask,” David answered.
And the Gibeonites said to him, As to Saul and his house, it is with us no question of receiving silver or gold, neither is it for us to have any man put to death in Israel. And he said, What ye say will I do for you.
5 They replied, “Regarding the man who destroyed us, who planned to prevent us having any place to live in the whole country of Israel,
And they said to the king, The man that consumed us, and that devised against us that we should be destroyed from remaining in all the borders of Israel,
6 have seven of Saul's male descendants be handed over to us, and we will hang them in the presence of the Lord at Gibeon of Saul, the Lord's chosen one.” “I will hand them over to you,” said the king.
let seven men of his sons be given up to us, and we will hang them up to Jehovah in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of Jehovah. And the king said, I will give [them].
7 However, the king spared Mephibosheth, son of Jonathan, son of Saul, because of the oath sworn before the Lord between David and Jonathan, son of Saul.
But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of Jehovah's oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.
8 The king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she had borne to Saul, and the five sons of Merab, the daughter of Saul, whom she had borne to Adriel, son of Barzillai the Meholathite.
And the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she had borne to Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth; and the five sons of [the sister of] Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she had borne to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite;
9 He handed them over to the Gibeonites, and they hanged them on the hill in the presence of the Lord. All seven of them died at the same time, executed at the beginning of the barley harvest.
and he gave them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them on the hill before Jehovah. And they fell all seven together, and were put to death in the first days of the harvest, in the beginning of barley harvest.
10 Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took some sackcloth and spread it out for herself on a rock. From the beginning of the harvest until the time the rains came and poured down on the bodies, she kept the birds away from them during the day and the wild animals at night.
Then Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth, and spread it for her upon the rock, from the beginning of harvest until water poured on them out of the heavens, and suffered neither the fowl of the heavens to rest on them by day, nor the beasts of the field by night.
11 When David heard what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, Saul's concubine of Saul had done,
And it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done.
12 he retrieved the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had taken them from the public square of Beth-shan where the Philistines had hung the bodies after they had killed Saul at Gilboa.
And 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 open place of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them, the day the Philistines had smitten Saul in Gilboa;
13 David had the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan brought back, and also had the bones of those who had been hanged gathered up.
and he brought up from thence the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son; and they gathered the bones of them that were hanged.
14 They buried the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan at Zela in the land of Benjamin, in the tomb of Saul's father Kish. Once they finished doing everything the king had ordered, God answered their prayers to end the famine in the land.
And they buried [them] with the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in Zela, in the sepulchre of Kish his father; and they did all that the king had commanded. And afterwards God was propitious to the land.
15 There was war once more between the Philistines and Israel. David went down with his men to fight the Philistines, and he got worn out.
And the Philistines had yet war again with Israel; and David went down, and his servants with him, and fought with the Philistines. And David was exhausted.
16 Ishbi-benob, one of the descendants of Rapha, whose bronze spear weighed three hundred shekels, and who was carrying a new sword, said he was going to kill David.
And Ishbibenob, who was of the children of Raphah — the weight of his lance was three hundred shekels of bronze, and he was girded with new [armour] — thought to smite David.
17 But Abishai, son of Zeruiah, came to his rescue, attacked the Philistine, and killed him. Then David's men swore to him, “Don't ever go out with us to battle again, so that the Israel's light isn't snuffed out!”
And Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him, and smote the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, Thou shalt go no more out with us to battle, that thou quench not the lamp of Israel.
18 Some time after this there was another battle with the Philistines at Gob. But then Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Saph, one of the descendants of Repha.
And it came to pass after this, that there was again a battle with the Philistines, at Gob; then Sibbechai the Hushathite smote Saph, who was of the children of Raphah.
19 In another battle with the Philistines at Gob, Elhanan, son of Jair, from Bethlehem, killed the brother of Goliath the Gittite. The shaft of his spear was as thick as a weaver's rod.
And there was again a battle at Gob with the Philistines; and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim, a Bethlehemite, smote Goliath the Gittite; now the shaft of his spear was like a weaver's beam.
20 In yet another battle at Gath, there was a gigantic man, who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, making twenty-four all. He too was descended from the giants.
And there was again a battle, at Gath; and there was a man [there] of great stature, that had on each hand six fingers, and on each foot six toes, four and twenty in number; and he also was born to Raphah.
21 But when he insulted Israel, Jonathan, son of Shimea, David's brother, killed him.
And he defied Israel; but Jonathan the son of Shimea David's brother smote him.
22 These four were the descendants of the giants in Gath, but they were all killed by David and his men.
These four were born to Raphah, in Gath; and they fell by the hand of David, and by the hand of his servants.
