29:2 And the lords of the Philistines passed on by hundreds, and by
thousands: but David and his men passed on in the rereward with
Achish.
29:3 Then said the princes of the Philistines, What do these Hebrews
here? And Achish said unto the princes of the Philistines, Is not
this David, the servant of Saul the king of Israel, which hath been
with me these days, or these years, and I have found no fault in him
since he fell unto me unto this day? 29:4 And the princes of the
Philistines were wroth with him; and the princes of the Philistines
said unto him, Make this fellow return, that he may go again to his
place which thou hast appointed him, and let him not go down with us
to battle, lest in the battle he be an adversary to us: for wherewith
should he reconcile himself unto his master? should it not be with the
heads of these men? 29:5 Is not this David, of whom they sang one to
another in dances, saying, Saul slew his thousands, and David his ten
thousands? 29:6 Then Achish called David, and said unto him, Surely,
as the LORD liveth, thou hast been upright, and thy going out and thy
coming in with me in the host is good in my sight: for I have not
found evil in thee since the day of thy coming unto me unto this day:
nevertheless the lords favour thee not.
29:7 Wherefore now return, and go in peace, that thou displease not
the lords of the Philistines.
29:8 And David said unto Achish, But what have I done? and what hast
thou found in thy servant so long as I have been with thee unto this
day, that I may not go fight against the enemies of my lord the king?
29:9 And Achish answered and said to David, I know that thou art good
in my sight, as an angel of God: notwithstanding the princes of the
Philistines have said, He shall not go up with us to the battle.
29:10 Wherefore now rise up early in the morning with thy master's
servants that are come with thee: and as soon as ye be up early in the
morning, and have light, depart.
29:11 So David and his men rose up early to depart in the morning, to
return into the land of the Philistines. And the Philistines went up
to Jezreel.
30:1 And it came to pass, when David 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; 30:2 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.
30:3 So David 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.
30:4 Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their
voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.
30:5 And David's two wives were taken captives, Ahinoam the
Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite.
30:6 And David 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 David encouraged himself in the LORD
his God.
30:7 And David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech's son, I pray
thee, bring me hither the ephod. And Abiathar brought thither the
ephod to David.
30:8 And David enquired at the LORD, saying, Shall I pursue after this
troop? shall I overtake them? And he answered him, Pursue: for thou
shalt surely overtake them, and without fail recover all.
30:9 So David went, he and the six hundred men that were with him, and
came to the brook Besor, where those that were left behind stayed.
30:10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men: for two hundred
abode behind, which were so faint that they could not go over the
brook Besor.
30:11 And they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to
David, and gave him bread, and he did eat; and they made him drink
water; 30:12 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.
30:13 And David said unto him, To whom belongest thou? and whence art
thou? And he said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite;
and my master left me, because three days agone I fell sick.
30:14 We made an invasion upon the south of the Cherethites, and upon
the coast which belongeth to Judah, and upon the south of Caleb; and
we burned Ziklag with fire.
30:15 And David said to him, Canst thou bring me down to this company?
And he said, Swear unto me by God, that thou wilt neither kill me, nor
deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will bring thee down to
this company.
30:16 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.
30:17 And David 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.
30:18 And David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away:
and David rescued his two wives.
30:19 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: David recovered all.
30:20 And David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drave
before those other cattle, and said, This is David's spoil.
30:21 And David came to the two hundred men, which were so faint that
they could not follow David, whom they had made also to abide at the
brook Besor: and they went forth to meet David, and to meet the people
that were with him: and when David came near to the people, he saluted
them.
30:22 Then answered all the wicked men and men of Belial, of those
that went with David, 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.
30:23 Then said David, Ye shall not do so, my brethren, with that
which the LORD hath given us, who hath preserved us, and delivered the
company that came against us into our hand.
30:24 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.
30:25 And it was so from that day forward, that he made it a statute
and an ordinance for Israel unto this day.
30:26 And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the
elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying, Behold a present for you
of the spoil of the enemies of the LORD; 30:27 To them which were in
Bethel, and to them which were in south Ramoth, and to them which were
in Jattir, 30:28 And to them which were in Aroer, and to them which
were in Siphmoth, and to them which were in Eshtemoa, 30:29 And to
them which were in Rachal, and to them which were in the cities of the
Jerahmeelites, and to them which were in the cities of the Kenites,
30:30 And to them which were in Hormah, and to them which were in
Chorashan, and to them which were in Athach, 30:31 And to them which
were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men