1 Samuel 30

1 And it came to pass, when Dawid and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the south, and Ziklag, and smitten Ziklag, and burned it with fire;

2 And had taken the women captives, that were therein; they slew not any, either great or small, but carried them away, and went on their way.

3 So Dawid and his men came to the city, and, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives.

4 Then Dawid and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.

5 And Dawid’s two wives were taken captives, Ahinoam the Yizreelitess, and Avigail the wife of Naval the Carmelite.

6 And Dawid was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters; but Dawid encouraged himself in יהוה his God (Elohim).

7 And Dawid said to Aviyahthar the priest (kohen), “Ahimelech’s son, please bring me hither the ephod.” And Aviyahthar brought thither the ephod to Dawid.

8 And Dawid enquired at יהוה, saying, “Shall I pursue after this troop? Shall I overtake them?” And he answered him, “Pursue, for you shalt surely overtake them, and without fail recover all.”

9 So Dawid went, he and the six hundred men that were with him, and came to the Brook Besor, where those that were left behind stayed.

10 But Dawid pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred abode behind, which were so faint that they could not go over the Brook Besor.

11 And they found an Egyptian (Mitsri) in the field, and brought him to Dawid, and gave him bread, and he did eat; and they made him drink water;

12 And they gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins; and when he had eaten, his spirit came again to him; for he had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights.

13 And Dawid said unto him, “To whom belongest you? And whence are you?” And he said, “I am a young man of Egypt (Mitsrayim), servant to an Amalekite; and my master left me, because three days agone I fell sick.

14 We made an invasion upon the south of the Cherethites, and upon the coast which belongeth to Judah (Yehudah), and upon the south of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire.”

15 And Dawid said to him, “Canst you bring me down to this company?” And he said, “Swear unto me by God (Elohim), that you wilt neither kill me, nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will bring you down to this company.”

16 And when he had brought him down, behold, they were spread abroad upon all the earth, eating and drinking, and dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah (Yehudah).

17 And Dawid smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day; and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, which rode upon camels, and fled.

18 And Dawid recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away; and Dawid rescued his two wives.

19 And there was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil, nor any thing that they had taken to them: Dawid recovered all.

20 And Dawid took all the flocks and the herds, which they drave before those other cattle, and said, “This is Dawid’s spoil.”

21 And Dawid came to the two hundred men, which were so faint that they could not follow Dawid, whom they had made also to abide at the Brook Besor; and they went forth to meet Dawid, and to meet the people that were with him; and when Dawid came near to the people, he saluted them.

22 Then answered all the wicked men and scoundrel (beliyaal) men, of those that went with Dawid, and said, “Because they went not with us, we will not give them ought of the spoil that we have recovered, save to every man his wife and his children, that they may lead them away, and depart.”

23 Then said Dawid, “You shall not do so, my brethren, with that which יהוה hath given us, who hath preserved us, and delivered the company that came against us into our hand.

24 For who will hearken unto you in this matter? But as his part is that goeth down to the battle, so shall his part be that tarrieth by the stuff; they shall part alike.”

25 And it was so from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Yisrael unto this day.

26 And when Dawid came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah (Yehudah), even to his friends, saying, “Behold a present for you of the spoil of the enemies of יהוה;”

27 To them who were in Bethel (Beit-El), and to them who were in south Ramot, and to them who were in Yattir,

28 And to them who were in Aroer, and to them who were in Siphmoth, and to them who were in Eshtemoa,

29 And to them who were in Rachal, and to them who were in the cities of the Yerachmeelites, and to them which were in the cities of the Kenites,

30 And to them who were in Hormah, and to them who were in Chorashan, and to them who were in Athach,

31 And to them who were in Hebron, and to all the places where Dawid himself and his men had frequently visited.