1 Samuel 29-31

English Standard Version

The Philistines Reject David

29 ^(A)Now the Philistines had gathered all their forces at ^(B)Aphek. And the Israelites were encamped by ^(C)the spring that is in ^(D)Jezreel. ² As ^(E)the lords of the Philistines were passing on by hundreds and by thousands, and David and his men were passing on in the rear ^(F)with Achish, ³ the commanders of the Philistines said, “What are these Hebrews doing here?” And Achish said to the commanders of the Philistines, “Is this not David, the servant of Saul, king of Israel, who has been with me ^(G)now for days and years, and since he deserted to me ^(H)I have found no fault in him to this day.” ⁴ But ^(I)the commanders of the Philistines were angry with him. And the commanders of the Philistines said to him, “Send the man back, that he may return ^(J)to the place to which you have assigned him. He shall not go down with us to battle, ^(K)lest in the battle he become an adversary to us. For how could this fellow reconcile himself to his lord? Would it not be with the heads of the men here? ⁵ Is not this David, of whom they sing to one another in dances,

⁶ Then Achish called David and said to him, ^(M)“As the Lord lives, you have been honest, and to me it seems right that ^(N)you should march out and in with me in the campaign. For I have found nothing wrong in you from the day of your coming to me to this day. Nevertheless, the lords do not approve of you. ⁷ So go back now; and go peaceably, that you may not displease the lords of the Philistines.” ⁸ And David said to Achish, “But what have I done? What have you found in your servant from the day I entered your service until now, that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my lord the king?” ⁹ And Achish answered David and said, “I know that you are as blameless in my sight ^(O)as an angel of God. Nevertheless, ^(P)the commanders of the Philistines have said, ‘He shall not go up with us to the battle.’ ¹⁰ Now then rise early in the morning ^(Q)with the servants of your lord who came with you, and start early in the morning, and depart as soon as you have light.” ¹¹ So David set out with his men early in the morning to return to the land of the Philistines. But the Philistines went up to ^(R)Jezreel.

David's Wives Are Captured

30 Now when David and his men came to ^(S)Ziklag on the third day, ^(T)the Amalekites had ^(U)made a raid against the Negeb and against Ziklag. They had overcome Ziklag and burned it with fire ² and taken captive the women and all^[a] who were in it, both small and great. They killed no one, but carried them off and went their way. ³ And when David and his men came to the city, they found it burned with fire, and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. ⁴ Then David and the people who were with him raised their voices and wept until they had no more strength to weep. ⁵ David's ^(V)two wives also had been taken captive, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel. ⁶ And David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke ^(W)of stoning him, because all the people were bitter in soul,^[b] each for his sons and daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.

^7 (X)And David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, “Bring me the ephod.” So Abiathar brought the ephod to David. ^8 (Y)And David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I pursue after this ^(Z)band? Shall I overtake them?” He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake ^(AA)and shall surely rescue.” ⁹ So David set out, and ^(AB)the six hundred men who were with him, and they came to the brook Besor, where those who were left behind stayed. ¹⁰ But David pursued, he and four hundred men. ^(AC)Two hundred stayed behind, who were too exhausted to cross the brook Besor.

¹¹ They found an Egyptian in the open country and brought him to David. And they gave him bread and he ate. They gave him water to drink, ¹² and they gave him a piece of a cake of figs and two clusters of raisins. And when he had eaten, ^(AD)his spirit revived, for he had not eaten bread or drunk water for three days and three nights. ¹³ And David said to him, “To whom do you belong? And where are you from?” He said, “I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite, and my master left me behind because I fell sick three days ago. ^14 (AE)We had made a raid against the Negeb of ^(AF)the Cherethites and against that which belongs to Judah and against the Negeb of Caleb, and we burned Ziklag with fire.” ¹⁵ And David said to him, “Will you take me down to this band?” And he said, “Swear to me by God that you will not kill me or deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will take you down to this ^(AG)band.”

David Defeats the Amalekites

¹⁶ And when he had taken him down, behold, they were spread abroad over all the land, eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great spoil they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah. ¹⁷ And David struck them down from twilight until the evening of the next day, and not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men, who mounted camels and fled. ^18 (AH)David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and David rescued his two wives. ¹⁹ Nothing was missing, whether small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything that had been taken. ^(AI)David brought back all. ²⁰ David also captured all the flocks and herds, and the people drove the livestock before him,^[c] and said, “This is David's spoil.”

²¹ Then David came to ^(AJ)the two hundred men who had been too exhausted to follow David, and who had been left ^(AK)at the brook Besor. And they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him. And when David came near to the people he greeted them. ²² Then all the wicked and worthless fellows among the men who had gone with David said, “Because they did not go with us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have recovered, except that each man may lead away his wife and children, and depart.” ²³ But David said, “You shall not do so, my brothers, with what the Lord has given us. He has preserved us and given into our hand the band that came against us. ²⁴ Who would listen to you in this matter? ^(AL)For as his share is who goes down into the battle, so shall his share be who stays by the baggage. They shall share alike.” ²⁵ And he made it a statute and a rule for Israel from that day forward to this day.

²⁶ When David came to Ziklag, he sent part of the spoil to his friends, the elders of Judah, saying, “Here is a present for you from the spoil of the enemies of the Lord.” ²⁷ It was for those in ^(AM)Bethel, in Ramoth of the Negeb, in ^(AN)Jattir, ²⁸ in ^(AO)Aroer, in Siphmoth, in ^(AP)Eshtemoa, ²⁹ in Racal, in the cities of ^(AQ)the Jerahmeelites, in the cities of ^(AR)the Kenites, ³⁰ in ^(AS)Hormah, in Bor-ashan, in Athach, ³¹ in ^(AT)Hebron, for all the places where David and his men had roamed.

The Death of Saul

31 ^(AU)Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before the Philistines and fell slain ^(AV)on Mount Gilboa. ² And the Philistines overtook Saul and his sons, and the Philistines struck down ^(AW)Jonathan and ^(AX)Abinadab and Malchi-shua, the sons of Saul. ^3 (AY)The battle pressed hard against Saul, and the archers found him, and he was badly wounded by the archers. ^4 (AZ)Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword, and thrust me through with it, lest these ^(BA)uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and mistreat me.” But his armor-bearer would not, ^(BB)for he feared greatly. Therefore Saul took his own sword ^(BC)and fell upon it. ⁵ And when his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell upon his sword and died with him. ⁶ Thus Saul died, and his three sons, and his armor-bearer, and all his men, on the same day together. ⁷ And when the men of Israel who were on the other side of the valley and those beyond the Jordan saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and fled. And the Philistines came and lived in them.

⁸ The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. ⁹ So they cut off his head and stripped off his armor and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines, ^(BD)to carry the good news ^(BE)to the house of their idols and to the people. ^10 (BF)They put his armor in the temple of ^(BG)Ashtaroth, and they fastened his body to the wall of ^(BH)Beth-shan. ^11 (BI)But when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, ^12 (BJ)all the valiant men arose and went all night and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan, and they came to Jabesh ^(BK)and burned them there. ¹³ And they took their bones ^(BL)and buried them under ^(BM)the tamarisk tree in Jabesh and ^(BN)fasted seven days.