2 Samuel 2

⁸Let me hear Your loving devotion in the morning, for I have put my trust in You. Teach me the way I should walk, for to You I lift up my soul.

⁵Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;

⁶in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

³¹and to those in Hebron and in all the places where David and his men had roamed.

²So David inquired of the Lord, “Should I go and attack these Philistines?” And the Lord said to David, “Go and attack the Philistines and save Keilah.”

⁴Once again, David inquired of the Lord, and the Lord answered him: “Go at once to Keilah, for I will deliver the Philistines into your hand.”

²When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God.” So he named that place Mahanaim.

⁴²So Abigail hurried and got on a donkey, and attended by five of her maidens, she followed David’s messengers and became his wife.

⁴³David had also married Ahinoam of Jezreel. So she and Abigail were both his wives.

⁵David’s two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel, had been taken captive.

²⁸You are the ones who have stood by Me in My trials.

²⁹And I bestow on you a kingdom, just as My Father has bestowed one on Me,

¹Now these were the men who came to David at Ziklag, while he was still banished from the presence of Saul son of Kish (they were among the mighty men who helped him in battle;

²they were archers using both the right and left hands to sling stones and shoot arrows; and they were Saul’s kinsmen from Benjamin):

²So David set out with his six hundred men and went to Achish son of Maoch, the king of Gath.

³David and his men settled in Gath with Achish. Each man had his family with him, and David had his two wives: Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail of Carmel, the widow of Nabal.

¹On the third day David and his men arrived in Ziklag, and the Amalekites had raided the Negev, attacked Ziklag, and burned it down.

⁹So David and his six hundred men went to the Brook of Besor, where some stayed behind

¹⁰because two hundred men were too exhausted to cross the brook. But David and four hundred men continued in pursuit.

²And all who were distressed or indebted or discontented rallied around him, and he became their leader. About four hundred men were with him.

¹¹They gave them Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), with its surrounding pasturelands, in the hill country of Judah. (Arba was the father of Anak.)

¹²But they had given the fields and villages around the city to Caleb son of Jephunneh as his possession.

⁵In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.

¹¹When the people of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul,

¹²all their men of valor set out, journeyed all night, and retrieved the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth-shan. When they arrived at Jabesh, they burned the bodies there.

³So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, where King David made with them a covenant before the Lord. And they anointed him king over Israel.

¹³So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. Then Samuel set out and went to Ramah.

³So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, where David made a covenant with them before the Lord. And they anointed him king over Israel, according to the word of the Lord through Samuel.

⁴²And all the men of Judah replied to the men of Israel, “We did this because the king is our relative. Why does this anger you? Have we ever eaten at the king’s expense or received anything for ourselves?”

²¹“May you be blessed by the Lord,” replied Saul, “for you have had compassion on me.

¹⁵May you be blessed by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

²⁰Then Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed by the Lord, who has not withdrawn His kindness from the living or the dead.” Naomi continued, “The man is a close relative. He is one of our kinsman-redeemers.”

¹⁹When a man finds his enemy, does he let him go away unharmed? May the Lord reward you with good for what you have done for me this day.

¹⁰Then Boaz said, “May the Lord bless you, my daughter. You have shown more kindness now than before, because you have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor.

³²Then David said to Abigail, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you to meet me this day!

³³Blessed is your discernment, and blessed are you, because today you kept me from bloodshed and from avenging myself by my own hand.

²²Do not those who contrive evil go astray? But those who plan goodness find loving devotion and faithfulness.

⁶Then the Lord passed in front of Moses and called out: “The Lord, the Lord God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness,

⁴⁴But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

⁷Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

¹⁶May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he has often refreshed me and was unashamed of my chains.

¹⁷Indeed, when he arrived in Rome, he searched diligently until he found me.

¹⁶Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.

¹⁰Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.

¹²Be strong and let us fight bravely for our people and for the cities of our God. May the Lord do what is good in His sight.”

⁹Take courage and be men, O Philistines! Otherwise, you will serve the Hebrews just as they served you. Now be men and fight!”

¹After these events, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.”

¹²all their men of valor set out, journeyed all night, and retrieved the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth-shan. When they arrived at Jabesh, they burned the bodies there.

¹³Be on the alert. Stand firm in the faith. Be men of courage. Be strong.

⁵⁰His wife’s name was Ahinoam daughter of Ahimaaz. The name of the commander of his army was Abner, the son of Saul’s uncle Ner.

²When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God.” So he named that place Mahanaim.

⁵⁵As Saul had watched David going out to confront the Philistine, he said to Abner the commander of the army, “Abner, whose son is this young man?” “As surely as you live, O king,” Abner replied, “I do not know.”

³³Ner was the father of Kish, Kish was the father of Saul, and Saul was the father of Jonathan, Malchishua, Abinadab, and Esh-baal.

⁵Now Rechab and Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, set out and arrived at the house of Ish-bosheth in the heat of the day, while the king was taking his midday nap.

⁶They entered the interior of the house as if to get some wheat, and they stabbed him in the stomach. Then Rechab and his brother Baanah slipped away.

⁷Now Saul had a concubine named Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah. So Ish-bosheth questioned Abner, “Why did you sleep with my father’s concubine?”

⁸Abner was furious over Ish-bosheth’s accusation. “Am I the head of a dog that belongs to Judah?” he asked. “All this time I have been loyal to the house of your father Saul, to his brothers, and to his friends. I have not delivered you into the hand of David, but now you accuse me of wrongdoing with this woman!

¹Now the Reubenites and Gadites, who had very large herds and flocks, surveyed the lands of Jazer and Gilead, and they saw that the region was suitable for livestock.

²So the Gadites and Reubenites came to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the congregation, and said,

⁸Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine; Ephraim is My helmet, Judah is My scepter.

⁴⁰From the sons of Asher, according to the records of their clans and families, counting the names of all those twenty years of age or older who could serve in the army,

¹⁸Their territory included Jezreel, Chesulloth, Shunem,

³²So the Asherites lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land, because they did not drive them out.

⁸The other half of Manasseh, along with the Reubenites and Gadites, had received the inheritance Moses had given them beyond the Jordan to the east, just as Moses the servant of the Lord had assigned to them:

⁹The area from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along with the city in the middle of the valley, the whole plateau of Medeba as far as Dibon,

¹¹The length of David’s reign over Israel was forty years—seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.

⁴David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned forty years.

⁵In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.

⁴These six sons were born to David in Hebron, where he reigned seven years and six months. And David reigned in Jerusalem thirty-three years,

²⁷The length of David’s reign over Israel was forty years—seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.

⁴“Come up and help me. We will attack Gibeon, because they have made peace with Joshua and the Israelites.”

²⁵Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth,

²So Adoni-zedek and his people were greatly alarmed, because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities; it was larger than Ai, and all its men were mighty.

³But the people of Gibeon, having heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai,

¹²On the day that the Lord gave the Amorites over to the Israelites, Joshua spoke to the Lord in the presence of Israel: “O sun, stand still over Gibeon, O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.”

²When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God.” So he named that place Mahanaim.

¹⁶Their sisters were Zeruiah and Abigail. And the three sons of Zeruiah were Abishai, Joab, and Asahel.

¹⁶Joab son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder;

⁶Now David had said, “Whoever is the first to strike down a Jebusite will become chief commander.” And Joab son of Zeruiah went up first, and he became the chief.

¹⁸The three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Now Asahel was fleet of foot like a wild gazelle,

¹²they took all their men and went to fight Ishmael son of Nethaniah. And they found him near the great pool in Gibeon.

²³Now Joab was over the whole army of Israel; Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites;

¹⁷The battle that day was intense, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by the servants of David.

⁸do not bring hastily to court. Otherwise, what will you do in the end when your neighbor puts you to shame?

¹⁴To start a quarrel is to release a flood; so abandon the dispute before it breaks out.

²³The fool delights in shameful conduct, but a man of understanding has wisdom.

¹⁸Like a madman shooting firebrands and deadly arrows,

¹⁹so is the man who deceives his neighbor and says, “I was only joking!”

²⁶Then Abner called out to Joab: “Must the sword devour forever? Do you not realize that this will only end in bitterness? How long before you tell the troops to stop pursuing their brothers?”

²⁷“As surely as God lives,” Joab replied, “if you had not spoken up, the troops would have continued pursuing their brothers until morning.”

¹Now the war between the house of Saul and the house of David was protracted. And David grew stronger and stronger, while the house of Saul grew weaker and weaker.

⁸Some Gadites defected to David at his stronghold in the wilderness. They were mighty men of valor, trained for battle, experts with the shield and spear, whose faces were like the faces of lions and who were as swift as gazelles on the mountains:

¹⁹God the Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like those of a deer; He makes me walk upon the heights! For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments.

¹⁷Before the day breaks and shadows flee, turn, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of Bether.

³³He makes my feet like those of a deer and stations me upon the heights.

¹⁴Come away, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices.

²⁶Now these were the mighty men: Asahel the brother of Joab, Elhanan son of Dodo of Bethlehem,

²⁷Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your feet away from evil.

⁶Be very strong, then, so that you can keep and obey all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, not turning aside from it to the right or to the left.

²¹So Abner told him, “Turn to your right or to your left, seize one of the young men, and take his equipment for yourself.” But Asahel would not stop chasing him.

⁷Above all, be strong and very courageous. Be careful to observe all the law that My servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may prosper wherever you go.

²And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and walked in all the ways of his father David; he did not turn aside to the right or to the left.

¹⁹Then the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he went down to Ashkelon, killed thirty of their men, took their apparel, and gave their clothes to those who had solved the riddle. And burning with anger, Samson returned to his father’s house,

²⁷When Abner returned to Hebron, Joab pulled him aside into the gateway, as if to speak to him privately, and there Joab stabbed him in the stomach. So Abner died on account of the blood of Joab’s brother Asahel.

¹⁰You have indeed defeated Edom, and your heart has become proud. Glory in that and stay at home. Why should you stir up trouble so that you fall—you and Judah with you?”

¹¹But Amaziah would not listen, so Jehoash king of Israel advanced. He and King Amaziah of Judah faced each other at Beth-shemesh in Judah.

¹A man who remains stiff-necked after much reproof will suddenly be shattered beyond recovery.

¹⁰Whatever exists was named long ago, and it is known what man is; but he cannot contend with one stronger than he.

²⁷When Abner returned to Hebron, Joab pulled him aside into the gateway, as if to speak to him privately, and there Joab stabbed him in the stomach. So Abner died on account of the blood of Joab’s brother Asahel.

⁶They entered the interior of the house as if to get some wheat, and they stabbed him in the stomach. Then Rechab and his brother Baanah slipped away.

¹⁰Amasa was not on guard against the dagger in Joab’s hand, and Joab stabbed him in the stomach and spilled out his intestines on the ground. And Joab did not need to strike him again, for Amasa was dead. Then Joab and his brother Abishai pursued Sheba son of Bichri.

⁶Now the king and his men marched to Jerusalem against the Jebusites who inhabited the land. The Jebusites said to David: “You will never get in here. Even the blind and lame can repel you.” For they thought, “David cannot get in here.”

¹²But Amasa wallowed in his blood in the middle of the road, and when the man saw that all the troops were stopping there, he dragged the body off the road into a field and threw a garment over it.

¹³As soon as Amasa’s body was removed from the road, all the men went on with Joab to pursue Sheba son of Bichri.

¹⁴“Announce it in Egypt, and proclaim it in Migdol; proclaim it in Memphis and Tahpanhes: ‘Take your positions and prepare yourself, for the sword devours those around you.’

²⁶The next day he came upon two Israelites who were fighting, and he tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers. Why are you mistreating each other?’

¹⁰For that day belongs to the Lord God of Hosts, a day of vengeance against His foes. The sword will devour until it is satisfied, until it is quenched with their blood. For the Lord God of Hosts will hold a sacrifice in the land of the north by the River Euphrates.

¹⁴To start a quarrel is to release a flood; so abandon the dispute before it breaks out.

⁶A sword will flash through their cities; it will destroy the bars of their gates and consume them in their own plans.

²How long, O men, will my honor be maligned? How long will you love vanity and seek after lies? Selah

¹⁴To start a quarrel is to release a flood; so abandon the dispute before it breaks out.

²⁶Now, my lord, as surely as the Lord lives and you yourself live, since the Lord has held you back from bloodshed and from avenging yourself with your own hand, may your enemies and those who seek harm for my lord be like Nabal.

¹⁴Then Abner said to Joab, “Let us have the young men get up and compete before us.” “Let them get up,” Joab replied.

⁸do not bring hastily to court. Otherwise, what will you do in the end when your neighbor puts you to shame?

¹A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

⁷You said, ‘I will be queen forever.’ You did not take these things to heart or consider their outcome.

⁸Meanwhile, Abner son of Ner, the commander of Saul’s army, took Saul’s son Ish-bosheth, moved him to Mahanaim,

¹⁷Before the day breaks and shadows flee, turn, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of Bether.

¹¹And the king of Israel replied, “Tell him: ‘The one putting on his armor should not boast like one taking it off.’”

¹Now the war between the house of Saul and the house of David was protracted. And David grew stronger and stronger, while the house of Saul grew weaker and weaker.

¹³Jesse was the father of Eliab his firstborn; Abinadab was born second, Shimea third,

¹⁴Nethanel fourth, Raddai fifth,

⁵⁸“Whose son are you, young man?” asked Saul. “I am the son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem,” David replied.

¹Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and said, “Here we are, your own flesh and blood.

¹And Jehoshaphat rested with his fathers and was buried with them in the City of David. And his son Jehoram reigned in his place.

¹⁴And he was buried in the tomb that he had cut out for himself in the City of David. They laid him on a bier that was full of spices and various blended perfumes; then they made a great fire in his honor.

²⁹Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will be stationed in the presence of kings; he will not stand before obscure men.