1 Samuel 30

1 Three days later, when David and his men arrived at Ziklag, [they discovered that] men of the Amalek people-group had raided Ziklag and [towns in] the southern part of Judah. They had destroyed Ziklag and burned down all the buildings.

And it came to pass when David and his men had entered Sekelac on the third day, that Amalec had made an incursion upon the south, and upon Sekelac, and smitten Sekelac, and burnt it with fire.

2 They had captured the women [and the children] and everyone else, and had taken them away. But they had not killed anyone.

And as to the women and all things that were in it, great and small, they slew neither man nor woman, but carried them captives, and went on their way.

3 When David and his men came to Ziklag, they saw that the town had been burned, and that their wives and sons and daughters had been captured and taken away.

And David and his men came into the city, and, behold, it was burnt with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters were carried captive.

4 David and his men cried loudly, until [they were so weak that] they could not cry [any more].

And David and his men lifted up their voice, and wept till there was no longer any power within them to weep.

5 David’s two wives, Ahinoam and Abigail, had also been taken away.

And both the wives of David were carried captive, Achinaam, the Jezraelitess, and Abigaia the wife of Nabal the Carmelite.

6 David’s men were threatening to [kill him by] throwing stones at him, because they were very angry because their sons and daughters [had been taken away]. David was very distressed, but Yahweh his God gave him strength.

And David was greatly distressed, because the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, each for his sons and his daughters: but David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.

7 David [did not know what to do, so he] said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring to me the sacred vest.” So Abiathar brought it,

And David said to Abiathar the priest the son of Achimelech, Bring near the ephod.

8 and David asked Yahweh, “Should I [and my men] pursue the men [who took our families]? Will we [be able to] catch up to them?” Yahweh answered [by means of the stones in Abiathar’s sacred pouch], “Yes, pursue them. You will catch up to them, and you will be able to rescue [your families].”

And David enquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I pursue after this troop? shall I overtake them? and he said to him, Pursue, for thou shalt surely overtake them, and thou shalt surely rescue [the captives].

9 So David and the 600 men who were with him left, and they came to the Besor Ravine. Some of his men stayed there [with some of their supplies].

So David went, he an the six hundred men with him, an they come as far as the brook Bosor, and the superfluous ones stopped.

10 David and 400 men continued to pursue [the men who captured their families]. The other 200 men stayed there at the ravine, because they were so exhausted that they could not cross the ravine.

And he pursued them with four hundred men; and there remained behind two hundred men, who tarried on the other side of the brook Bosor.

11 [As David and the 400 men were going], they saw a man from Egypt in a field; so they took him to David. They gave the man some water to drink and some food to eat.

And they find an Egyptian in the field, and they take him, and bring him to David; and they gave him bread and he ate, and they caused him to drink water.

12 They also gave him a piece of fig cake and two clusters/packs of raisins. The man had not had anything to eat or drink for three days and nights, but [after he ate and drank] he felt refreshed.

And they gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and he ate, and his spirit was restored in him; for he had not eaten bread, and had not drunk water three days and three nights.

13 David asked him, “Who is your master? And where do you come from?” He replied, “I am from Egypt. I am a slave of a man from the Amalek people-group. Three days ago my master left me here, because I was sick [and I was not able to go with them].

And David said to him, Whose art thou? and whence art thou? and the young man the Egyptian said, I am the servant of an Amalekite; and my master left me, because I was taken ill three days ago.

14 We had raided the southern part of Judah where the Kereth people-group live, and some other towns in Judah, and the area south [of Hebron city] where the descendants of Caleb live. We also burned Ziklag [town].”

And we made an incursion on the south of the Chelethite, and on the parts of Judea, and on the south of Chelub, and we burnt Sekelac with fire.

15 David asked him, “Can you lead us to this group of raiders?” He replied, “Yes, [I will do that] if you ask God to listen while you promise that you will not kill me or give me back to my master. If you promise that, I will take you to them.”

And David said to him, Wilt thou bring me down to this troop? And he said, Swear now to me by God, that thou wilt not kill me, and that thou wilt not deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will bring thee down upon this troop.

16 [David agreed to do that, ] so the man from Egypt led David [and his men] to where the men from the Amalek people-group were. Those men were lying on the ground, eating and drinking and celebrating because of having captured many things from the Philistia and Judah areas.

So be brought him down thither, and behold, they [were] scattered abroad upon the surface of the whole land, eating and drinking, and feasting by [reason of] all the great spoils which they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Juda.

17 David [and his men] fought against them from sunset that day until the evening of the following day. Four hundred of them escaped and rode away on camels, but none of the others escaped.

And David came upon them, and smote them from the morning till the evening, and on the next day; and not one of them escaped, except four hundred young men, who were mounted on camels, and fled.

18 David rescued his two wives, and he and his men got back everything else that the men of the Amalek people-group had taken.

And David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and he rescued both his wives.

19 Nothing was missing. They took all their people back [to Ziklag]—young people and old people, [their wives], their sons and their daughters. They also recovered all the other things that the men of the Amalek people-group had taken from Ziklag.

And nothing was wanting to them of great or small, either of the spoils, or the sons and daughters, or anything that they had taken of theirs; and David recovered all.

20 They took with them the sheep and cattle that had been captured, and his men caused those animals to go in front of them, saying, “These are animals that we captured in the battle; they belong to David!”

And he took all the flocks, and the herds, and led them away before the spoils: and it was said of these spoils, These [are] the spoils of David.

21 David and his men got back to where the other 200 men were waiting, the men who did not go with David because they were very exhausted. They had stayed at Besor Ravine. [When they saw David and his men coming], they went out to greet them. And David [greeted them and] said to them, “I hope that things are going well with you!”

And David comes to the two hundred men who were left behind that they should not follow after David, and he had caused them to remain by the brook of Bosor; and they came forth to meet David, and to meet his people with him: and David drew near to the people, and they asked him how he did.

22 But some of the men who had gone with David, men who were evil and troublemakers, said, “These 200 men did not go with us. So we should not give to them any of the things that we recovered/captured. Each of them should take only his wife and children and go [back to their homes].”

Then every ill-disposed and bad man of the soldiers who had gone with David, answered and said, Because they did not pursue together with us, we will not give them of the spoils which we have recovered, only let each one lead away with him his wife and his children, and let them return.

23 David replied, “No, my fellow Israelis, it would not be right to divide up like that the things that Yahweh has allowed us to capture. Yahweh has protected us and enabled us to defeat the enemies who attacked our town.

And David said, Ye shall not do so, after the Lord has delivered [the enemy] to us, and guarded us, and the Lord has delivered into our hands the troop that came against u.

24 (Who will pay attention to you if you say things like that?/No one will pay attention to you if you say things like that.) [RHQ] The men who stayed here with our supplies will get the same amount that the men who went into the battle will get. They will all receive the same amount.”

And who will hearken to these your words? for they are not inferior to us; for according to the portion of him that went down to the battle, so shall be the portion of him that abides with the baggage; they shall share alike.

25 David made that to be a law [DOU] for the Israeli people, and that is still a law in Israel.

And it came to pass from that day forward, that it became an ordinance and a custom in Israel until this day.

26 When David [and all the others] arrived in Ziklag, David sent to his friends who were leaders in Judah some of the things that they had captured from the Amalek people-group. He said to them, “Here is a present for you. These are things that we took from Yahweh’s enemies.”

And David came to Sekelac, and sent of the spoils to the elders of Juda, and to his friends, saying, Behold [some] of the spoils of the enemies of the Lord;

27 [Here is a list of the cities and towns to whose leaders David sent gifts: ] Bethel, Ramoth in the southern part of Judah, Jattir,

to those in Baethsur, and to those in Rama of the south, and to those in Gethor.

28 Aroer, Siphmoth, Eshtemoa,

And to those in Aroer, and to those in Ammadi, and to those in Saphi, and to those in Esthie,

29 Racal, the cities where the descendants of Jehrameel lived and the cities where the Ken people-group lived,

and to those in Geth, and to those in Cimath, and to those in Saphec, and to those in Themath, and to those in Carmel, and to those in the cities of Jeremeel, and to those in the cities of the Kenezite;

30 Hormah, Bor-Ashan, Athach,

and to those in Jerimuth, and to those in Bersabee, and to those in Nombe,

31 Hebron, and all the other places where David and his men had gone [when they were hiding from Saul].

and to those in Chebron, and to all the places which David and his men had passed through.