1 Samuel 16-18
GOD’S WORD Translation
David Chosen to Be King
16 The Lord asked Samuel, “How long are you going to mourn for Saul now that I have rejected him as king of Israel? Fill a flask with olive oil and go. I’m sending you to Jesse in Bethlehem because I’ve selected one of his sons to be king.”
2 “How can I go?” Samuel asked. “When Saul hears about it, he’ll kill me.”
The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I’ve come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice. I will reveal to you what you should do, and you will anoint for me the one I point out to you.”
4 Samuel did what the Lord told him. When he came to Bethlehem, the leaders of the city, trembling with fear, greeted him and said, “May peace be with you.”
5 “Greetings,” he replied, “I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Perform the ceremonies to make yourselves holy, and come with me to the sacrifice.” He performed the ceremonies for Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. 6 When they came, he saw Eliab and thought, “Certainly, here in the Lord’s presence is his anointed king.”
7 But the Lord told Samuel, “Don’t look at his appearance or how tall he is, because I have rejected him. God does not see as humans see.[a] Humans look at outward appearances, but the Lord looks into the heart.”
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab and brought him to Samuel. But Samuel said, “The Lord has not chosen this one either.”
9 Then Jesse had Shammah come to Samuel. “The Lord has not chosen this one either,” Samuel said. 10 So Jesse brought seven ⌞more⌟ of his sons to Samuel, but Samuel told Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen ⌞any of⌟ these. 11 Are these all the sons you have?”
“There’s still the youngest one,” Jesse answered. “He’s tending the sheep.”
Samuel told Jesse, “Send someone to get him. We won’t continue until he gets here.”
12 So Jesse sent for him. He had a healthy complexion, attractive eyes, and a handsome appearance. The Lord said, “Go ahead, anoint him. He is the one.” 13 Samuel took the flask of olive oil and anointed David in the presence of his brothers. The Lord’s Spirit came over David and stayed with him from that day on. Then Samuel left for Ramah.
David Plays the Lyre for Saul
14 Now, the Lord’s Spirit had left Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him. 15 Saul’s officials told him, “An evil spirit from God is tormenting you. 16 Your Majesty, why don’t you command us to look for a man who can play the lyre well? When the evil spirit from God comes to you, he’ll strum a tune, and you’ll feel better.”
17 Saul told his officials, “Please find me a man who can play well and bring him to me.”
18 One of the officials said, “I know one of Jesse’s sons from Bethlehem who can play well. He’s a courageous man and a warrior. He has a way with words, he is handsome, and the Lord is with him.”
19 Saul sent messengers to Jesse to say, “Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.”
20 Jesse took six bushels of bread, a full wineskin, and a young goat and sent them with his son David to Saul. 21 David came to Saul and served him. Saul loved him very much and made David his armorbearer. 22 Saul sent ⌞this message⌟ to Jesse, “Please let David stay with me because I have grown fond of him.”
23 Whenever God’s spirit came to Saul, David took the lyre and strummed a tune. Saul got relief ⌞from his terror⌟ and felt better, and the evil spirit left him.
David and Goliath
17 The Philistines assembled their armies for war. They assembled at Socoh, which is in Judah, and camped between Socoh and Azekah at Ephes Dammim. 2 So Saul and the army of Israel assembled and camped in the Elah Valley. They formed a battle line to fight the Philistines. 3 The Philistines were stationed on a hill on one side, and the Israelites were stationed on a hill on the other side. There was a ravine between the two of them.
4 The Philistine army’s champion came out of their camp. His name was Goliath from Gath. He was ten feet tall.[b] 5 He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he wore a bronze coat of armor scales weighing 125 pounds. 6 On his legs he had bronze shin guards and on his back a bronze javelin. 7 The shaft of his spear was like the beam used by weavers. The head of his spear was made of 15 pounds of iron. The man who carried his shield walked ahead of him.
8 Goliath stood and called to the Israelites, “Why do you form a battle line? Am I not a Philistine, and aren’t you Saul’s servants? Choose a man, and let him come down to ⌞fight⌟ me. 9 If he can fight me and kill me, then we will be your slaves. But if I overpower him and kill him, then you will be our slaves and serve us.” 10 The Philistine added, “I challenge the Israelite battle line today. Send out a man so that we can fight each other.” 11 When Saul and all the Israelites heard what this Philistine said, they were gripped with fear.
12 David was a son of a man named Jesse from the region of Ephrath and the city of Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse had eight sons, and in Saul’s day he was an old man.[c] 13 Jesse’s three oldest sons joined Saul’s army for the battle. The firstborn was Eliab, the second was Abinadab, the third was Shammah, 14 and David was the youngest. The three oldest joined Saul’s army. 15 David went back and forth from Saul’s camp to Bethlehem, where he tended his father’s flock.
16 Each morning and evening for 40 days, the Philistine came forward and made his challenge.
17 Jesse told his son David, “Take this half-bushel of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread to your brothers. Take them to your brothers in the camp right away. 18 And take these ten cheeses to the captain of the regiment. See how your brothers are doing, and bring back some news about them. 19 They, along with Saul and all the soldiers of Israel, are in the Elah Valley fighting the Philistines.”
20 David got up early in the morning and had someone else watch ⌞the sheep⌟. He took ⌞the food⌟ and went, as Jesse ordered him. He went to the camp as the army was going out to the battle line shouting their war cry. 21 Israel and the Philistines formed their battle lines facing each other. 22 David left the supplies behind in the hands of the quartermaster, ran to the battle line, and greeted his brothers. 23 While he was talking to them, the Philistine champion, Goliath from Gath, came from the battle lines of the Philistines. He repeated his words, and David heard them. 24 When all the men of Israel saw Goliath, they fled from him because they were terrified. 25 The men of Israel said, “Did you see that man coming ⌞from the Philistine lines⌟? He keeps coming to challenge Israel. The king will make the man who kills this Philistine very rich. He will give his daughter to that man to marry and elevate the social status of his family.”
26 David asked the men who were standing near him, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and gets rid of Israel’s disgrace? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should challenge the army of the living God?”
27 The soldiers repeated ⌞to David⌟ how the man who kills Goliath would be treated.
28 Eliab, David’s oldest brother, heard David talking to the men. Then Eliab became angry with David. “Why did you come here,” he asked him, “and with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know how overconfident and headstrong you are. You came here just to see the battle.”
29 “What have I done now?” David snapped at him. “Didn’t I ⌞merely⌟ ask a question?” 30 He turned to face another man and asked the same question, and the other soldiers gave him the same answer.
31 What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, who then sent for him. 32 David told Saul, “No one should be discouraged because of this. I will go and fight this Philistine.”
33 Saul responded to David, “You can’t fight this Philistine. You’re just a boy, but he’s been a warrior since he was your age.”
34 David replied to Saul, “I am a shepherd for my father’s sheep. Whenever a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, 35 I went after it, struck it, and rescued the sheep from its mouth. If it attacked me, I took hold of its mane, struck it, and killed it. 36 I have killed lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them because he has challenged the army of the living God.” 37 David added, “The Lord, who saved me from the lion and the bear, will save me from this Philistine.”
“Go,” Saul told David, “and may the Lord be with you.”
38 Saul put his battle tunic on David; he put a bronze helmet on David’s head and dressed him in armor. 39 David fastened Saul’s sword over his clothes and tried to walk, but he had never practiced doing this. “I can’t walk in these things,” David told Saul. “I’ve never had any practice doing this.” So David took all those things off.
40 He took his stick with him, picked out five smooth stones from the riverbed, and put them in his shepherd’s bag. With a sling in his hand, he approached the Philistine. 41 The Philistine, preceded by the man carrying his shield, was coming closer and closer to David. 42 When the Philistine got a good look at David, he despised him. After all, David was a young man with a healthy complexion and good looks.
43 The Philistine asked David, “Am I a dog that you come to ⌞attack⌟ me with sticks?” So the Philistine called on his gods to curse David. 44 “Come on,” the Philistine told David, “and I’ll give your body to the birds.”
45 David told the Philistine, “You come to me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of Armies, the God of the army of Israel, whom you have insulted. 46 Today the Lord will hand you over to me. I will strike you down and cut off your head. And this day I will give the dead bodies of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals. The whole world will know that Israel has a God. 47 Then everyone gathered here will know that the Lord can save without sword or spear, because the Lord determines every battle’s outcome. He will hand all of you over to us.”
48 When the Philistine moved closer in order to attack, David quickly ran toward the opposing battle line to attack the Philistine. 49 Then David reached into his bag, took out a stone, hurled it from his sling, and struck the Philistine in the forehead. The stone sank into Goliath’s forehead, and he fell to the ground on his face. 50 So using ⌞only⌟ a sling and a stone, David proved to be stronger than the Philistine. David struck down and killed the Philistine, even though David didn’t have a sword in his hand. 51 David ran and stood over the Philistine. He took Goliath’s sword, pulled it out of its sheath, and made certain the Philistine was dead by cutting off his head.
When the Philistines saw their hero had been killed, they fled. 52 Then the soldiers of Israel and Judah rose up, shouted a battle cry, and pursued the Philistines as far as Gath and to the gates of Ekron. Wounded Philistines lay on the road to Shaaraim and all the way to Gath and Ekron. 53 When the Israelites came back from their pursuit of the Philistines, they looted all the goods in the Philistine camp. 54 David took the Philistine’s head and brought it to Jerusalem, but he kept Goliath’s armor in his tent.
55 As Saul watched David going out against the Philistine, he asked Abner, the commander of the army, “Abner, whose son is this young man?”
Abner answered, “I solemnly swear, as you live, Your Majesty, I don’t know.”
56 The king said, “Find out whose son this young man is.”
57 When David returned from killing the Philistine, Abner brought him to Saul. David had the Philistine’s head in his hand.
58 Saul asked him, “Whose son are you, young man?”
“The son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem,” David answered.
David’s Love for Jonathan
18 David finished talking to Saul. After that, Jonathan became David’s closest friend. He loved David as much as ⌞he loved⌟ himself. 2 (From that day on Saul kept David ⌞as his servant⌟ and didn’t let him go back to his family.) 3 So Jonathan made a pledge of mutual loyalty with David because he loved him as much as ⌞he loved⌟ himself. 4 Jonathan took off the coat he had on and gave it to David along with his battle tunic, his sword, his bow, and his belt.
5 David was successful wherever Saul sent him. Saul put him in charge of the fighting men. This pleased all the people, including Saul’s officials.
David’s Success Makes Saul Jealous
6 As they arrived, David was returning from a campaign against the Philistines. Women from all of Israel’s cities came to meet King Saul. They sang and danced, accompanied by tambourines, joyful music, and triangles. 7 The women who were celebrating sang,
“Saul has defeated thousands
but David tens of thousands!”
8 Saul became very angry because he considered this saying to be insulting. “To David they credit tens of thousands,” he said, “but to me they credit ⌞only⌟ a few thousand. The only thing left for David is my kingdom.” 9 From that day on Saul kept an eye on David.
10 The next day an evil spirit from God seized Saul. He began to prophesy in his house while David strummed a tune on the lyre as he did every day. Now, Saul had a spear in his hand. 11 He raised the spear and thought, “I’ll nail David to the wall.” But David got away from him twice.
12 Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with David but had left Saul. 13 So he kept David away. He made David captain of a regiment. David led the troops out ⌞to battle⌟ and back again. 14 He was successful in everything he undertook because the Lord was with him. 15 Saul noticed how very successful he was and became ⌞even more⌟ afraid of him. 16 Everyone in Israel and Judah loved David, because he led them in and out ⌞of battle⌟.
17 Finally, Saul said to David, “Here is my oldest daughter Merab. I will give her to you as your wife if you prove yourself to be a warrior for me and fight the Lord’s battles.” (Saul thought, “I must not lay a hand on him. Let the Philistines do that.”)
18 “Who am I?” David asked Saul. “And how important are my relatives or my father’s family in Israel that I should be the king’s son-in-law?”
19 But when the time came to give Saul’s daughter Merab to David, she was married to Adriel from Meholah. 20 However, Saul’s daughter Michal fell in love with David. When Saul was told about it, the news pleased him. 21 Saul thought, “I’ll give her to David. She will trap him, and the Philistines will get him.” So he said to David a second time, “You will now be my son-in-law.”
22 Saul ordered his officers, “Talk to David in private. Tell him, ‘The king likes you, and all his officers are fond of you. Become the king’s son-in-law.’ ”
23 When Saul’s officers made it a point to say this, David asked, “Do you think it’s easy to become the king’s son-in-law? I am a poor and unimportant person.”
24 When the officers told Saul what David had said, 25 Saul replied, “Tell David, ‘The king doesn’t want any payment for the bride except 100 Philistine foreskins so that he can get revenge on his enemies.’ ” In this way Saul planned to have David fall into the hands of the Philistines. 26 When his officers told David this, David concluded that it was acceptable to become the king’s son-in-law. Before the time was up, 27 David and his men went out and struck down 200 Philistines. David brought the foreskins, and they counted them out for the king so that David could become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave him his daughter Michal as his wife. 28 Saul realized that the Lord was with David and that his daughter Michal loved David. 29 Then Saul was even more afraid of David, and so Saul became David’s constant enemy.
30 The Philistine generals still went out ⌞to fight Israel⌟. But whenever they went out ⌞to fight⌟, David was more successful than the rest of Saul’s officers. So David gained a good reputation.
1 Samuel 24
GOD’S WORD Translation
David Spares Saul’s Life
24 [a]When Saul came back from ⌞fighting⌟ the Philistines, he was told “Now David is in the desert near En Gedi.” 2 Then Saul took 3,000 of the best-trained men from all Israel and went to search for David and his men on the Rocks of the Wild Goats. 3 He came to some sheep pens along the road where there was a cave. Saul went into ⌞it⌟ to relieve himself while David and his men were sitting further back in the cave.
4 David’s men told him, “Today is the day the Lord referred to when he said, ‘I’m going to hand your enemy over to you. You will do to him whatever you think is right.’ ”
David quietly got up and cut off the border of Saul’s robe. 5 But afterward, David’s conscience bothered him because he had cut off the border of Saul’s robe. 6 He said to his men, “It would be unthinkable for me to raise my hand against His Majesty, the Lord’s anointed king, since he is the Lord’s anointed.” 7 So David stopped his men by saying this to them and didn’t let them attack Saul.
Saul left the cave and went out onto the road. 8 Later, David got up, left the cave, and called to Saul, “Your Majesty!” When Saul looked back, David knelt down with his face touching the ground. 9 David asked Saul, “Why do you listen to rumors that I am trying to harm you? 10 Today you saw how the Lord handed you over to me in the cave. Although I was told to kill you, I spared you, saying, ‘I will not raise my hand against Your Majesty because you are the Lord’s anointed.’ 11 My master, look at this! The border of your robe is in my hand! Since I cut off the border of your robe and didn’t kill you, you should know and be able to see I mean no harm or rebellion. I haven’t sinned against you, but you are trying to ambush me in order to take my life. 12 May the Lord decide between you and me. May the Lord take revenge on you for what you did to me. However, I will not lay a hand on you. 13 It’s like people used to say long ago, ‘Wickedness comes from wicked people.’ But I will not lay a hand on you. 14 Against whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom are you pursuing? A dead dog? One flea? 15 So the Lord must be the judge. He will decide between you and me. He will watch and take my side in ⌞this⌟ matter and set me free from you.”
16 When David finished saying this, Saul asked, “Is that you speaking, my servant David?” and Saul cried loudly. 17 He told David, “You are more righteous than I. You treated me well while I treated you badly. 18 Today you have proved how good you’ve been to me. When the Lord handed me over to you, you didn’t kill me. 19 When a person finds an enemy, does he send him away unharmed? The Lord will repay you completely for what you did for me today. 20 Now I know that you certainly will rule as king, and under your guidance the kingdom of Israel will prosper. 21 Swear an oath to the Lord for me that you will not wipe out my descendants or destroy my name in my father’s family.”
22 So David swore to Saul. Then Saul went home, and David and his men went to their fortified camp.
Footnotes
- 24:1 1 Samuel 24:1–22 in English Bibles is 1 Samuel 24:2–23 in the Hebrew Bible.
1 Samuel 31
GOD’S WORD Translation
The Death of Saul(A)
31 When the Philistines were fighting against Israel, the men of Israel fled from the Philistines and were killed in battle on Mount Gilboa. 2 The Philistines caught up to Saul and his sons. They killed Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua, Saul’s sons. 3 The heaviest fighting was against Saul. When the archers got him in their range, he was badly wounded by them.
4 Saul told his armorbearer, “Draw your sword! Stab me, or these godless men will come, stab me, and make fun of me.” But his armorbearer refused because he was terrified. So Saul took the sword and fell on it. 5 When the armorbearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword and died with him. 6 So Saul, his three sons, his armorbearer, and all his men died together that day.
7 When the people of Israel on the other side of the valley and across the Jordan River saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities. So the Philistines came to live in these cities.
8 The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the dead, they found Saul and his three sons lying on Mount Gilboa. 9 They cut off his head and stripped off his armor. Then they sent men throughout Philistine territory to tell the people this good news in their idols’ temples. 10 They put his armor in the temple of their goddesses—the Asherahs—and fastened his corpse to the wall of Beth Shan.
11 When the people living in Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 all the fighting men marched all night and took the dead bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth Shan. They came back to Jabesh and burned the bodies there. 13 They took the bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh. Then they fasted seven days.
2 Samuel 6
GOD’S WORD Translation
David Brings the Ark to Jerusalem(A)
6 David again assembled all the best soldiers in Israel, 30,000 men. 2 He and all the people with him left Baalah in Judah [a] to bring God’s ark ⌞to Jerusalem⌟. (The ark is called by the name of the Lord of Armies, who is enthroned over the angels.[b]) 3 David and his men put God’s ark on a new cart and brought it from Abinadab’s home on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, Abinadab’s sons, were guiding the new cart. 4 They brought it from Abinadab’s home, with Ahio walking ahead of the ark. 5 David and the entire nation of Israel were celebrating in the Lord’s presence with all kinds of instruments made from cypress wood [c] and with lyres, harps, tambourines, sistrums,[d] and cymbals.
6 But when they came to Nacon’s threshing floor,[e] the oxen stumbled. So Uzzah reached out for the ark of God and grabbed it. 7 The Lord became angry with Uzzah, so God killed him there for his lack of respect. He died beside the ark of God.
8 David was angry because the Lord had struck Uzzah so violently. (That place is still called Perez Uzzah [The Striking of Uzzah] today.) 9 David was afraid of the Lord that day. “How can the ark of the Lord come to my ⌞city⌟?” he asked. 10 So David wouldn’t bring the ark of the Lord with him to the City of David. Instead, he rerouted it to the home of Obed Edom, who was from Gath. 11 The ark of the Lord stayed at the home of Obed Edom from Gath for three months, and the Lord blessed Obed Edom and his whole family.
12 King David was told, “The Lord has blessed Obed Edom’s home and everything he owns because of the ark of God.” Then David joyfully went to get the ark of God from Obed Edom’s house and bring it to the City of David. 13 When those who carried the ark of the Lord had gone six steps, David sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf.
14 Wearing a linen ephod,[f] David danced in the Lord’s presence with all his might. 15 He and the entire nation of Israel brought the ark of the Lord with shouts of joy and the sounding of rams’ horns. 16 When the ark of the Lord came to the City of David, Saul’s daughter Michal looked out of a window and saw King David leaping and dancing in the Lord’s presence, so she despised him.
17 The men carrying the ark set it in its place inside the tent David had put up for it. David sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings in the Lord’s presence. 18 When David had finished sacrificing the burnt offerings and the fellowship offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of Armies. 19 He also distributed to all the people—to the whole crowd of Israelites, both men and women—one loaf of bread, one date cake, and one raisin cake. Then all the people went home.
20 When David returned to bless his family, Saul’s daughter Michal came out to meet him. “How dignified Israel’s king was today! He was exposing himself before the eyes of the slave girls of his palace staff—like a mindless fool might expose himself!”
21 David answered Michal, “⌞I didn’t dance in front of the slave girls but⌟ in front of the Lord. He chose me rather than your father or anyone in your father’s house, and he appointed me leader of Israel, the Lord’s people. I will celebrate in the Lord’s presence, 22 and I will degrade myself even more than this. Even if I am humiliated in your eyes, I will be honored by these slave girls you speak about.”
23 So Saul’s daughter Michal was childless her entire life.
Footnotes
- 6:2 Or “Baal in Judah” or “the citizens of Judah”; Dead Sea Scrolls and 1 Chronicles 13:6 “Baalah in Kiriath Jearim.”
- 6:2 Or “cherubim.”
- 6:5 Or “with all their might.” See 1 Chronicles 13:8.
- 6:5 A type of rattle used as a musical instrument.
- 6:6 A threshing floor is an outdoor area where grain is separated from its husks.
- 6:14 Ephod is a technical term for a part of the priest’s clothes. Its exact usage and shape are unknown.
2 Samuel 22
GOD’S WORD Translation
David’s Song of Deliverance(A)
22 David sang this song to the Lord when the Lord rescued him from all his enemies, especially from Saul. 2 He said,
The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my Savior,
3 my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield,
the strength of my salvation, my stronghold,
my refuge, and my Savior who saved me from violence.
4 The Lord should be praised.
I called on him, and I was saved from my enemies.
5 The waves of death had surrounded me.
The torrents of destruction had overwhelmed me.
6 The ropes of the grave had surrounded me.
The clutches of death had confronted me.
7 I called on the Lord in my distress.
I called to my God for help.
He heard my voice from his temple,
and my cry for help reached his ears.
8 Then the earth shook and quaked.
Even the foundations of the heavens trembled.
They shook violently because he was angry.
9 Smoke went up from his nostrils,
and a raging fire came out of his mouth.
Glowing coals flared up from it.
10 He spread apart the heavens
and came down with a dark cloud under his feet.
11 He rode on one of the angels [a] as he flew,
and he soared on the wings of the wind.
12 He surrounded himself with darkness.
He made the dark rain clouds his covering.
13 Out of the brightness in front of him, he made lightning.
14 The Lord thundered from heaven.
The Most High made his voice heard.
15 He shot arrows and scattered them.
He flashed streaks of lightning and threw them into confusion.
16 Then the ocean floor could be seen.
The foundations of the earth were laid bare
at the Lord’s stern warning,
at the blast of the breath from his nostrils.
17 He reached down from high above and took hold of me.
He pulled me out of the raging water.
18 He rescued me from my strong enemy
and from those who hated me,
because they were too strong for me.
19 On the day when I faced disaster, they confronted me,
but the Lord became my defense.
20 He brought me out to a wide-open place.
He rescued me because he was pleased with me.
21 The Lord rewarded me
because of my righteousness,
because my hands are clean.
He paid me back
22 because I have kept the ways of the Lord
and I have not wickedly turned away from my God,
23 because all his judgments are in front of me
and I have not turned away from his laws.
24 I was innocent as far as he was concerned.
I have kept myself from guilt.
25 The Lord paid me back
because of my righteousness,
because he can see that I am clean.
26 ⌞In dealing⌟ with faithful people you are faithful,
with innocent warriors you are innocent,
27 with pure people you are pure.
⌞In dealing⌟ with devious people you are clever.
28 You save humble people,
but your eyes bring down arrogant people.
29 O Lord, you are my lamp.
The Lord turns my darkness into light.
30 With you I can attack a line of soldiers.
With my God I can break through barricades.
31 God’s way is perfect!
The promise of the Lord has proven to be true.
He is a shield to all those who take refuge in him.
32 Who is God but the Lord?
Who is a rock other than our God?
33 God arms me with strength.[b]
His perfect way sets me free.
34 He makes my feet like those of a deer
and gives me sure footing on high places.
35 He trains my hands for battle
so that my arms can bend an ⌞archer’s⌟ bow of bronze.
36 You have given me the shield of your salvation.
Your help makes me great.
37 You make a wide path for me to walk on
so that my feet do not slip.
38 I chased my enemies and destroyed them.
I did not return until I had ended their lives.
39 I ended their lives by shattering them.
They were unable to get up.
They fell under my feet.
40 You armed me with strength for battle.
You made my opponents bow at my feet.
41 You made my enemies turn their backs to me,
and I destroyed those who hated me.
42 They looked, but there was no one to save them.
They looked to the Lord, but he did not answer them.
43 I beat them into a powder as fine as the dust on the ground.
I crushed them and stomped on them like the dirt on the streets.
44 You rescued me from my conflicts with my people.
You kept me as the leader of nations.
A people I did not know will serve me.
45 Foreigners will cringe in front of me.
As soon as they hear of me, they will obey me.
46 Foreigners will lose heart,
although they are armed in their fortifications.
47 The Lord lives!
Thanks be to my rock!
May God, the rock of my salvation, be glorified.
48 God gives me vengeance!
He brings people under my authority.
49 He frees me from my enemies.
You lift me up above my opponents.
You rescue me from violent people.
50 That is why I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the nations
and make music to praise your name.
51 He gives great victories to his king.
He shows mercy to his anointed,
to David, and to his descendant [c] forever.
1 Chronicles 17
GOD’S WORD Translation
David’s Wish to Build a House for God(A)
17 When David was living in his house, he said to the prophet Nathan, “I’m living in a house made of cedar, while the ark of the Lord’s promise is inside a tent.”
2 Nathan told David, “Do everything you have in mind, because God is with you.”
3 But that same night God spoke his word to Nathan: 4 “Say to David, my servant, ‘This is what the Lord says: You must not build this house for me to live in. 5 I haven’t lived in a house from the day I brought Israel out ⌞of Egypt⌟ to this day, but I’ve gone from tent site to tent site, moving the tent ⌞of meeting⌟ from one location ⌞to another⌟. 6 In all the places I’ve moved with all Israel, did I ever ask any of the judges of Israel whom I ordered to be shepherds of my people why they didn’t build me a house of cedar?’
7 “Now this is what you will say to my servant David: ‘This is what the Lord of Armies says: I took you from the pasture where you followed sheep so that you could be the leader of my people Israel. 8 I was with you wherever you went, and I destroyed all your enemies in front of you. I will make your name like the names of the greatest people on earth. 9 I will make a place for my people Israel and plant them there. They will live in their own place and not be troubled anymore. The wicked will no longer frighten them as they used to do 10 ever since I appointed judges to rule my people Israel. I will crush all your enemies. I even tell you that I, the Lord, will build a house for you.
11 “ ‘When the time comes for you to go and be with your ancestors, I will send one of your descendants. He will be one of your sons. I will establish his kingdom. 12 He will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. 13 I will be his Father, and he will be my Son. And I will never stop showing him my love as I did to your predecessor. 14 I will place him in my royal house forever, and his throne will be established forever.’ ”
15 Nathan told David all these words and everything he had seen.
16 Then King David went into the tent and sat in front of the Lord. “Who am I, Lord God,” he asked, “and why is my house so important that you have brought me this far? 17 And this you consider to be a small act, God. You’ve spoken about the distant future of my house. Lord God, you’ve shown me the generation of the great man.
18 “What more can I do for you in light of the honor ⌞you have given⌟ to me and since you know me so well! 19 Lord, you’ve done this great thing for my sake and your own desire. You made this great thing known to me.
20 “Lord, there is no one like you, and there is no other god except you, as we have heard with our own ears. 21 Who is like your people Israel? It is the one nation on earth that God came to free in order to make its people his own, to make your name known, and to do great and wonderful things for them. You forced the nations and their gods out of the way of your people, whom you freed from Egypt. 22 You made the people of Israel to be your people forever. And you, Lord, became their God.
23 “Now, Lord, faithfully keep the promise you made to me and my house forever. Do as you promised. 24 Your name will endure and be respected forever when ⌞people⌟ say, ‘The Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, is Israel’s God.’ And the house of David, your servant, will be established in your presence. 25 You, my God, have revealed especially to me that you will build me a house. That is why I have found ⌞the courage⌟ to pray to you.
26 “Almighty Lord, you are God. You promised me this good thing. 27 Now, you were pleased to bless my house so that it may continue in your presence forever. Indeed, you, Lord, have blessed it. It will be blessed forever.”
Psalm 59
GOD’S WORD Translation
For the choir director; al tashcheth; a miktam by David when Saul sent men to watch David’s home and kill him.
59 Rescue me from my enemies, O my God.
Protect me from those who attack me.
2 Rescue me from troublemakers.
Save me from bloodthirsty people.
3 They lie in ambush for me right here!
Fierce men attack me, O Lord,
but not because of any disobedience,
4 or any sin, or any guilt on my part.
They hurry to take positions against me.
Wake up, and help me; see ⌞for yourself⌟.
5 O Lord God of Armies, God of Israel,
arise to punish all the nations.
Have no pity on any traitors. Selah
6 They return in the evening.
They howl like dogs.
They prowl the city.
7 See what pours out of their mouths—
swords from their lips!
⌞They think,⌟ “Who will hear us?”
8 O Lord, you laugh at them.
You make fun of all the nations.
9 O my strength, I watch for you!
God is my stronghold, my merciful God!
10 God will come to meet me.
He will let me gloat over those who spy on me.
11 Do not kill them.
Otherwise, my people may forget.
Make them wander aimlessly by your power.
Bring them down, O Lord, our shield,
12 ⌞because of⌟ the sins from their mouths
and the words on their lips.
Let them be trapped by their own arrogance
because they speak curses and lies.
13 Destroy them in your rage.
Destroy them until not one of them is left.
Then they will know that God rules Jacob
to the ends of the earth. Selah
14 They return in the evening.
They howl like dogs.
They prowl the city.
15 They wander around to find something to eat.
If they are not full enough,
they will stay all night.
16 But I will sing about your strength.
In the morning I will joyfully sing about your mercy.
You have been my stronghold
and a place of safety in times of trouble.
17 O my strength, I will make music to praise you!
God is my stronghold, my merciful God!
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