Bible in 90 Days Plan

¹The Philistines fought against Israel, and Israel’s men fled from them and were killed on Mount Gilboa.

²The Philistines pursued Saul and his sons and killed his sons, Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua.

³When the battle intensified against Saul, the archers found him and severely wounded him.

⁴Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and run me through with it, or these uncircumcised men will come and run me through and torture me!” But his armor-bearer would not do it because he was terrified. Then Saul took his sword and fell on it.

⁵When his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his own sword and died with him.

⁶So on that day, Saul died together with his three sons, his armor-bearer, and all his men.

⁷When the men of Israel on the other side of the valley and on the other side of the Jordan saw that Israel’s men had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned the cities and fled. So the Philistines came and settled in them.

⁸The next day when the Philistines came to strip the slain, they found Saul and his three sons dead on Mount Gilboa.

⁹They cut off Saul’s head, stripped off his armor, and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to spread the good news in the temples of their idols and among the people.

¹⁰Then they put his armor in the temple of the Ashtoreths and hung his body on the wall of Beth-shan.

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

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

¹³Afterward, they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh and fasted seven days.

¹After the death of Saul, David returned from defeating the Amalekites and stayed at Ziklag two days.

²On the third day a man with torn clothes and dust on his head came from Saul’s camp. When he came to David, he fell to the ground and paid homage.

³David asked him, “Where have you come from?” He replied to him, “I’ve escaped from the Israelite camp.”

⁴“What was the outcome? Tell me,” David asked him. “The troops fled from the battle,” he answered. “Many of the troops have fallen and are dead. Also, Saul and his son Jonathan are dead.”

⁵David asked the young man who had brought him the report, “How do you know Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?”

⁶“I happened to be on Mount Gilboa,” he replied, “and there was Saul, leaning on his spear. At that very moment the chariots and the cavalry were closing in on him.

⁷When he turned around and saw me, he called out to me, so I answered: I’m at your service.

⁸He asked me, ‘Who are you? ’ I told him: I’m an Amalekite.

⁹Then he begged me, ‘Stand over me and kill me, for I’m mortally wounded, but my life still lingers.’

¹⁰So I stood over him and killed him because I knew that after he had fallen he couldn’t survive. I took the crown that was on his head and the armband that was on his arm, and I’ve brought them here to my lord.”

¹¹Then David took hold of his clothes and tore them, and all the men with him did the same.

¹²They mourned, wept, and fasted until the evening for those who died by the sword — for Saul, his son Jonathan, the LORD’s people, and the house of Israel.

¹³David inquired of the young man who had brought him the report, “Where are you from?” “I’m the son of a resident alien,” he said. “I’m an Amalekite.”

¹⁴David questioned him, “How is it that you were not afraid to lift your hand to destroy the LORD’s anointed?”

¹⁵Then David summoned one of his servants and said, “Come here and kill him!” The servant struck him, and he died.

¹⁶For David had said to the Amalekite, “Your blood is on your own head because your own mouth testified against you by saying, ‘I killed the LORD’s anointed.’”

¹⁷David sang the following lament for Saul and his son Jonathan,

¹⁸and he ordered that the Judahites be taught The Song of the Bow. It is written in the Book of Jashar:

¹⁹The splendor of Israel lies slain on your heights. How the mighty have fallen!

²⁰Do not tell it in Gath, don’t announce it in the marketplaces of Ashkelon, or the daughters of the Philistines will rejoice, and the daughters of the uncircumcised will celebrate.

²¹Mountains of Gilboa, let no dew or rain be on you, or fields of offerings, for there the shield of the mighty was defiled  — the shield of Saul, no longer anointed with oil.

²²Jonathan’s bow never retreated, Saul’s sword never returned unstained, from the blood of the slain, from the flesh of the mighty.

²³Saul and Jonathan, loved and delightful, they were not parted in life or in death. They were swifter than eagles, stronger than lions.

²⁴Daughters of Israel, weep for Saul, who clothed you in scarlet, with luxurious things, who decked your garments with gold ornaments.

²⁵How the mighty have fallen in the thick of battle! Jonathan lies slain on your heights.

²⁶I grieve for you, Jonathan, my brother. You were such a friend to me. Your love for me was more wondrous than the love of women.

²⁷How the mighty have fallen and the weapons of war have perished!

¹Some time later, David inquired of the LORD: “Should I go to one of the towns of Judah?” The LORD answered him, “Go.” Then David asked, “Where should I go?” “To Hebron,” the LORD replied.

²So David went there with his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelite and Abigail, the widow of Nabal the Carmelite.

³In addition, David brought the men who were with him, each one with his family, and they settled in the towns near Hebron.

⁴Then the men of Judah came, and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah. They told David: “It was the men of Jabesh-gilead who buried Saul.”

⁵David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh-gilead and said to them, “The LORD bless you, because you have shown this kindness to Saul your lord when you buried him.

⁶Now, may the LORD show kindness and faithfulness to you, and I will also show the same goodness to you because you have done this deed.

⁷Therefore, be strong and valiant, for though Saul your lord is dead, the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”

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

⁹He made him king over Gilead, Asher, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin — over all Israel.

¹⁰Saul’s son Ish-bosheth was forty years old when he became king over Israel; he reigned for two years. The house of Judah, however, followed David.

¹¹The length of time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.

¹²Abner son of Ner and soldiers of Ish-bosheth son of Saul marched out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.

¹³So Joab son of Zeruiah and David’s soldiers marched out and met them by the pool of Gibeon. The two groups took up positions on opposite sides of the pool.

¹⁴Then Abner said to Joab, “Let’s have the young men get up and compete in front of us.” “Let them get up,” Joab replied.

¹⁵So they got up and were counted off — twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bosheth son of Saul, and twelve from David’s soldiers.

¹⁶Then each man grabbed his opponent by the head and thrust his sword into his opponent’s side so that they all died together. So this place, which is in Gibeon, is named Field of Blades.

¹⁷The battle that day was extremely fierce, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by David’s soldiers.

¹⁸The three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Asahel was a fast runner, like one of the wild gazelles.

¹⁹He chased Abner and did not turn to the right or the left in his pursuit of him.

²⁰Abner glanced back and said, “Is that you, Asahel?” “Yes it is,” Asahel replied.

²¹Abner said to him, “Turn to your right or left, seize one of the young soldiers, and take whatever you can get from him.” But Asahel would not stop chasing him.

²²Once again, Abner warned Asahel, “Stop chasing me. Why should I strike you to the ground? How could I ever look your brother Joab in the face?”

²³But Asahel refused to turn away, so Abner hit him in the stomach with the butt of his spear. The spear went through his body, and he fell and died right there. As they all came to the place where Asahel had fallen and died, they stopped,

²⁴but Joab and Abishai pursued Abner. By sunset, they had gone as far as the hill of Ammah, which is opposite Giah on the way to the wilderness of Gibeon.

²⁵The Benjaminites rallied to Abner; they formed a unit and took their stand on top of a hill.

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

²⁷“As God lives,” Joab replied, “if you had not spoken up, the troops wouldn’t have stopped pursuing their brothers until morning.”

²⁸Then Joab blew the ram’s horn, and all the troops stopped; they no longer pursued Israel or continued to fight.

²⁹So Abner and his men marched through the Arabah all that night. They crossed the Jordan, marched all morning, and arrived at Mahanaim.

³⁰When Joab had turned back from pursuing Abner, he gathered all the troops. In addition to Asahel, nineteen of David’s soldiers were missing,

³¹but they had killed 360 of the Benjaminites and Abner’s men.

³²Afterward, they carried Asahel to his father’s tomb in Bethlehem and buried him. Then Joab and his men marched all night and reached Hebron at dawn.

¹During the long war between the house of Saul and the house of David, David was growing stronger and the house of Saul was becoming weaker.

²Sons were born to David in Hebron: His firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam the Jezreelite;

³his second was Chileab, by Abigail, the widow of Nabal the Carmelite; the third was Absalom, son of Maacah the daughter of King Talmai of Geshur;

⁴the fourth was Adonijah, son of Haggith; the fifth was Shephatiah, son of Abital;

⁵the sixth was Ithream, by David’s wife Eglah. These were born to David in Hebron.

⁶During the war between the house of Saul and the house of David, Abner kept acquiring more power in the house of Saul.

⁷Now Saul had a concubine whose name was Rizpah daughter of Aiah, and Ish-bosheth questioned Abner, “Why did you sleep with my father’s concubine?”

⁸Abner was very angry about Ish-bosheth’s accusation. “Am I a dog’s head who belongs to Judah?” he asked. “All this time I’ve been loyal to the family of your father Saul, to his brothers, and to his friends and haven’t betrayed you to David, but now you accuse me of wrongdoing with this woman!

⁹May God punish Abner and do so severely if I don’t do for David what the LORD swore to him:

¹⁰to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul and establish the throne of David over Israel and Judah from Dan to Beer-sheba.”

¹¹Ish-bosheth did not dare respond to Abner because he was afraid of him.

¹²Abner sent messengers as his representatives to say to David, “Whose land is it? Make your covenant with me, and you can be certain I am on your side to turn all Israel over to you.”

¹³David replied, “Good, I will make a covenant with you. However, there’s one thing I require of you: You will not see my face unless you first bring Saul’s daughter Michal when you come to see me.”

¹⁴Then David sent messengers to say to Ish-bosheth son of Saul, “Give me back my wife, Michal. I was engaged to her for the price of a hundred Philistine foreskins.”

¹⁵So Ish-bosheth sent someone to take her away from her husband, Paltiel son of Laish.

¹⁶Her husband followed her, weeping all the way to Bahurim. Abner said to him, “Go back.” So he went back.

¹⁷Abner conferred with the elders of Israel: “In the past you wanted David to be king over you.

¹⁸Now take action, because the LORD has spoken concerning David: ‘Through my servant David I will save my people Israel from the power of the Philistines and the power of all Israel’s enemies.’”

¹⁹Abner also informed the Benjaminites and went to Hebron to inform David about all that was agreed on by Israel and the whole house of Benjamin.

²⁰When Abner and twenty men came to David at Hebron, David held a banquet for him and his men.

²¹Abner said to David, “Let me now go and I will gather all Israel to my lord the king. They will make a covenant with you, and you will reign over all you desire.” So David dismissed Abner, and he went in peace.

²²Just then David’s soldiers and Joab returned from a raid and brought a large amount of plundered goods with them. Abner was not with David in Hebron because David had dismissed him, and he had gone in peace.

²³When Joab and his whole army arrived, Joab was informed, “Abner son of Ner came to see the king, the king dismissed him, and he went in peace.”

²⁴Joab went to the king and said, “What have you done? Look here, Abner came to you. Why did you dismiss him? Now he’s getting away.

²⁵You know that Abner son of Ner came to deceive you and to find out about your military activities and everything you’re doing.”

²⁶Then Joab left David and sent messengers after Abner. They brought him back from the well of Sirah, but David was unaware of it.

²⁷When Abner returned to Hebron, Joab pulled him aside to the middle of the city gate, as if to speak to him privately, and there Joab stabbed him in the stomach. So Abner died in revenge for the death of Asahel, Joab’s brother.

²⁸David heard about it later and said: “I and my kingdom are forever innocent before the LORD concerning the blood of Abner son of Ner.

²⁹May it hang over Joab’s head and his father’s whole family, and may the house of Joab never be without someone who has a discharge or a skin disease, or a man who can only work a spindle, or someone who falls by the sword or starves.”

³⁰Joab and his brother Abishai killed Abner because he had put their brother Asahel to death in the battle at Gibeon.

³¹David then ordered Joab and all the people who were with him, “Tear your clothes, put on sackcloth, and mourn over Abner.” And King David walked behind the coffin.

³²When they buried Abner in Hebron, the king wept aloud at Abner’s tomb. All the people wept,

³³and the king sang a lament for Abner: Should Abner die as a fool dies?

³⁴Your hands were not bound, your feet not placed in bronze shackles. You fell like one who falls victim to criminals. And all the people wept over him even more.

³⁵Then they came to urge David to eat food while it was still day, but David took an oath: “May God punish me and do so severely if I taste bread or anything else before sunset!”

³⁶All the people took note of this, and it pleased them. In fact, everything the king did pleased them.

³⁷On that day all the troops and all Israel were convinced that the king had no part in the killing of Abner son of Ner.

³⁸Then the king said to his soldiers, “You must know that a great leader has fallen in Israel today.

³⁹As for me, even though I am the anointed king, I have little power today. These men, the sons of Zeruiah, are too fierce for me. May the LORD repay the evildoer according to his evil!”

¹When Saul’s son Ish-bosheth heard that Abner had died in Hebron, he gave up, and all Israel was dismayed.

²Saul’s son had two men who were leaders of raiding parties: one named Baanah and the other Rechab, sons of Rimmon the Beerothite of the Benjaminites. Beeroth is also considered part of Benjamin,

³and the Beerothites fled to Gittaim and still reside there as aliens today.

⁴Saul’s son Jonathan had a son whose feet were crippled. He was five years old when the report about Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel. His nanny picked him up and fled, but as she was hurrying to flee, he fell and became lame. His name was Mephibosheth.

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

⁶They entered the interior of the house as if to get wheat and stabbed him in the stomach. Then Rechab and his brother Baanah escaped.

⁷They had entered the house while Ish-bosheth was lying on his bed in his bedroom and stabbed and killed him. They removed his head, took it, and traveled by way of the Arabah all night.

⁸They brought Ish-bosheth’s head to David at Hebron and said to the king, “Here’s the head of Ish-bosheth son of Saul, your enemy who intended to take your life. Today the LORD has granted vengeance to my lord the king against Saul and his offspring.”

⁹But David answered Rechab and his brother Baanah, sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, “As the LORD lives, the one who has redeemed my life from every distress,

¹⁰when the person told me, ‘Look, Saul is dead,’ he thought he was a bearer of good news, but I seized him and put him to death at Ziklag. That was my reward to him for his news!

¹¹How much more when wicked men kill a righteous man in his own house on his own bed! So now, should I not require his blood from you and purge you from the earth?”

¹²So David gave orders to the young men, and they killed Rechab and Baanah. They cut off their hands and feet and hung their bodies by the pool in Hebron, but they took Ish-bosheth’s head and buried it in Abner’s tomb in Hebron.

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

²Even while Saul was king over us, you were the one who led us out to battle and brought us back. The LORD also said to you, ‘You will shepherd my people Israel, and you will be ruler over Israel.’”

³So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron. King David made a covenant with them at Hebron in the LORD’s presence, and they anointed David king over Israel.

⁴David was thirty years old when he began his reign; 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.

⁶The king and his men marched to Jerusalem against the Jebusites who inhabited the land. The Jebusites had said to David: “You will never get in here. Even the blind and lame can repel you” thinking, “David can’t get in here.”

⁷Yet David did capture the stronghold of Zion, that is, the city of David.

⁸He said that day, “Whoever attacks the Jebusites must go through the water shaft to reach the lame and the blind who are despised by David.” For this reason it is said, “The blind and the lame will never enter the house.”

⁹David took up residence in the stronghold, which he named the city of David. He built it up all the way around from the supporting terraces inward.

¹⁰David became more and more powerful, and the LORD God of Armies was with him.

¹¹King Hiram of Tyre sent envoys to David; he also sent cedar logs, carpenters, and stonemasons, and they built a palace for David.

¹²Then David knew that the LORD had established him as king over Israel and had exalted his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel.

¹³After he arrived from Hebron, David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, and more sons and daughters were born to him.

¹⁴These are the names of those born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon,

¹⁵Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia,

¹⁶Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet.

¹⁷When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over Israel, they all went in search of David, but he heard about it and went down to the stronghold.

¹⁸So the Philistines came and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim.

¹⁹Then David inquired of the LORD: “Should I attack the Philistines? Will you hand them over to me?” The LORD replied to David, “Attack, for I will certainly hand the Philistines over to you.”

²⁰So David went to Baal-perazim and defeated them there and said, “Like a bursting flood, the LORD has burst out against my enemies before me.” Therefore, he named that place The Lord Bursts Out.

²¹The Philistines abandoned their idols there, and David and his men carried them off.

²²The Philistines came up again and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim.

²³So David inquired of the LORD, and he answered, “Do not attack directly, but circle around behind them and come at them opposite the balsam trees.

²⁴When you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, act decisively, for then the LORD will have gone out ahead of you to strike down the army of the Philistines.”

²⁵So David did exactly as the LORD commanded him, and he struck down the Philistines all the way from Geba to Gezer.

¹David again assembled all the fit young men in Israel: thirty thousand.

²He and all his troops set out to bring the ark of God from Baale-judah. The ark bears the Name, the name of the LORD of Armies who is enthroned between the cherubim.

³They set the ark of God on a new cart and transported it from Abinadab’s house, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, sons of Abinadab, were guiding the cart

⁴and brought it with the ark of God from Abinadab’s house on the hill. Ahio walked in front of the ark.

⁵David and the whole house of Israel were dancing before the LORD with all kinds of fir wood instruments, lyres, harps, tambourines, sistrums, and cymbals.

⁶When they came to Nacon’s threshing floor, Uzzah reached out to the ark of God and took hold of it because the oxen had stumbled.

⁷Then the LORD’s anger burned against Uzzah, and God struck him dead on the spot for his irreverence, and he died there next to the ark of God.

⁸David was angry because of the LORD’s outburst against Uzzah, so he named that place Outburst Against Uzzah, as it is today.

⁹David feared the LORD that day and said, “How can the ark of the LORD ever come to me?”

¹⁰So he was not willing to bring the ark of the LORD to the city of David; instead, he diverted it to the house of Obed-edom of Gath.

¹¹The ark of the LORD remained in his house three months, and the LORD blessed Obed-edom and his whole family.

¹²It was reported to King David: “The LORD has blessed Obed-edom’s family and all that belongs to him because of the ark of God.” So David went and had the ark of God brought up from Obed-edom’s house to the city of David with rejoicing.

¹³When those carrying the ark of the LORD advanced six steps, he sacrificed an ox and a fattened calf.

¹⁴David was dancing with all his might before the LORD wearing a linen ephod.

¹⁵He and the whole house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the LORD with shouts and the sound of the ram’s horn.

¹⁶As the ark of the LORD was entering the city of David, Saul’s daughter Michal looked down from the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, and she despised him in her heart.

¹⁷They brought the ark of the LORD and set it in its place inside the tent David had pitched for it. Then David offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings in the LORD’s presence.

¹⁸When David had finished offering the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of Armies.

¹⁹Then he distributed a loaf of bread, a date cake, and a raisin cake to each one in the entire Israelite community, both men and women. Then all the people went home.

²⁰When David returned home to bless his household, Saul’s daughter Michal came out to meet him. “How the king of Israel honored himself today!” she said. “He exposed himself today in the sight of the slave girls of his subjects like a vulgar person would expose himself.”

²¹David replied to Michal, “It was before the LORD who chose me over your father and his whole family to appoint me ruler over the LORD’s people Israel. I will dance before the LORD,

²²and I will dishonor myself and humble myself even more. However, by the slave girls you spoke about, I will be honored.”

²³And Saul’s daughter Michal had no child to the day of her death.

¹When the king had settled into his palace and the LORD had given him rest on every side from all his enemies,

²the king said to the prophet Nathan, “Look, I am living in a cedar house while the ark of God sits inside tent curtains.”

³So Nathan told the king, “Go and do all that is on your mind, for the LORD is with you.”

⁴But that night the word of the LORD came to Nathan:

⁵“Go to my servant David and say, ‘This is what the LORD says: Are you to build me a house to dwell in?

⁶From the time I brought the Israelites out of Egypt until today I have not dwelt in a house; instead, I have been moving around with a tent as my dwelling.

⁷In all my journeys with all the Israelites, have I ever spoken a word to one of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, asking: Why haven’t you built me a house of cedar?’

⁸“So now this is what you are to say to my servant David: ‘This is what the LORD of Armies says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, to be ruler over my people Israel.

⁹I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have destroyed all your enemies before you. I will make a great name for you like that of the greatest on the earth.

¹⁰I will designate a place for my people Israel and plant them, so that they may live there and not be disturbed again. Evildoers will not continue to oppress them as they have done

¹¹ever since the day I ordered judges to be over my people Israel. I will give you rest from all your enemies. “‘The LORD declares to you: The LORD himself will make a house for you.

¹²When your time comes and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up after you your descendant, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.

¹³He is the one who will build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

¹⁴I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will discipline him with a rod of men and blows from mortals.

¹⁵But my faithful love will never leave him as it did when I removed it from Saul, whom I removed from before you.

¹⁶Your house and kingdom will endure before me forever, and your throne will be established forever.’”

¹⁷Nathan reported all these words and this entire vision to David.

¹⁸Then King David went in, sat in the LORD’s presence, and said, Who am I, Lord GOD, and what is my house that you have brought me this far?

¹⁹What you have done so far was a little thing to you, Lord GOD, for you have also spoken about your servant’s house in the distant future. And this is a revelation for mankind, Lord GOD.

²⁰What more can David say to you? You know your servant, Lord GOD.

²¹Because of your word and according to your will, you have revealed all these great things to your servant.

²²This is why you are great, Lord GOD. There is no one like you, and there is no God besides you, as all we have heard confirms.

²³And who is like your people Israel? God came to one nation on earth in order to redeem a people for himself, to make a name for himself, and to perform for them great and awesome acts, driving out nations and their gods before your people you redeemed for yourself from Egypt.

²⁴You established your people Israel to be your own people forever, and you, LORD, have become their God.

²⁵Now, LORD God, fulfill the promise forever that you have made to your servant and his house. Do as you have promised,

²⁶so that your name will be exalted forever, when it is said, “The LORD of Armies is God over Israel.” The house of your servant David will be established before you

²⁷since you, LORD of Armies, God of Israel, have revealed this to your servant when you said, “I will build a house for you.” Therefore, your servant has found the courage to pray this prayer to you.

²⁸Lord GOD, you are God; your words are true, and you have promised this good thing to your servant.

²⁹Now, please bless your servant’s house so that it will continue before you forever. For you, Lord GOD, have spoken, and with your blessing your servant’s house will be blessed forever.

¹After this, David defeated the Philistines, subdued them, and took Metheg-ammah from Philistine control.

²He also defeated the Moabites, and after making them lie down on the ground, he measured them off with a cord. He measured every two cord lengths of those to be put to death and one full length of those to be kept alive. So the Moabites became David’s subjects and brought tribute.

³David also defeated Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah, when he went to restore his control at the Euphrates River.

⁴David captured seventeen hundred horsemen and twenty thousand foot soldiers from him, and he hamstrung all the horses and kept a hundred chariots.

⁵When the Arameans of Damascus came to assist King Hadadezer of Zobah, David struck down twenty-two thousand Aramean men.

⁶Then he placed garrisons in Aram of Damascus, and the Arameans became David’s subjects and brought tribute. The LORD made David victorious wherever he went.

⁷David took the gold shields of Hadadezer’s officers and brought them to Jerusalem.

⁸King David also took huge quantities of bronze from Betah and Berothai, Hadadezer’s cities.

⁹When King Toi of Hamath heard that David had defeated the entire army of Hadadezer,

¹⁰he sent his son Joram to King David to greet him and to congratulate him because David had fought against Hadadezer and defeated him, for Toi and Hadadezer had fought many wars. Joram had items of silver, gold, and bronze with him.

¹¹King David also dedicated these to the LORD, along with the silver and gold he had dedicated from all the nations he had subdued  —

¹²from Edom, Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, the Amalekites, and the spoil of Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah.

¹³David made a reputation for himself when he returned from striking down eighteen thousand Edomites in Salt Valley.

¹⁴He placed garrisons throughout Edom, and all the Edomites were subject to David. The LORD made David victorious wherever he went.

¹⁵So David reigned over all Israel, administering justice and righteousness for all his people.

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

¹⁷Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Seraiah was court secretary;

¹⁸Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief officials.

¹David asked, “Is there anyone remaining from the family of Saul I can show kindness to for Jonathan’s sake?”

²There was a servant of Saul’s family named Ziba. They summoned him to David, and the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?” “I am your servant,” he replied.

³So the king asked, “Is there anyone left of Saul’s family that I can show the kindness of God to?” Ziba said to the king, “There is still Jonathan’s son who was injured in both feet.”

⁴The king asked him, “Where is he?” Ziba answered the king, “You’ll find him in Lo-debar at the house of Machir son of Ammiel.”

⁵So King David had him brought from the house of Machir son of Ammiel in Lo-debar.

⁶Mephibosheth son of Jonathan son of Saul came to David, fell facedown, and paid homage. David said, “Mephibosheth!” “I am your servant,” he replied.

⁷“Don’t be afraid,” David said to him, “since I intend to show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all your grandfather Saul’s fields, and you will always eat meals at my table.”

⁸Mephibosheth paid homage and said, “What is your servant that you take an interest in a dead dog like me?”

⁹Then the king summoned Saul’s attendant Ziba and said to him, “I have given to your master’s grandson all that belonged to Saul and his family.

¹⁰You, your sons, and your servants are to work the ground for him, and you are to bring in the crops so your master’s grandson will have food to eat. But Mephibosheth, your master’s grandson, is always to eat at my table.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

¹¹Ziba said to the king, “Your servant will do all my lord the king commands.” So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table just like one of the king’s sons.

¹²Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Mica. All those living in Ziba’s house were Mephibosheth’s servants.

¹³However, Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem because he always ate at the king’s table. His feet had been injured.

¹Some time later, the king of the Ammonites died, and his son Hanun became king in his place.

²Then David said, “I’ll show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent his emissaries to console Hanun concerning his father. However, when they arrived in the land of the Ammonites,

³the Ammonite leaders said to Hanun their lord, “Just because David has sent men with condolences for you, do you really believe he’s showing respect for your father? Instead, hasn’t David sent his emissaries in order to scout out the city, spy on it, and demolish it?”

⁴So Hanun took David’s emissaries, shaved off half their beards, cut their clothes in half at the hips, and sent them away.

⁵When this was reported to David, he sent someone to meet them, since they were deeply humiliated. The king said, “Stay in Jericho until your beards grow back; then return.”

⁶When the Ammonites realized they had become repulsive to David, they hired twenty thousand foot soldiers from the Arameans of Beth-rehob and Zobah, one thousand men from the king of Maacah, and twelve thousand men from Tob.

⁷David heard about it and sent Joab and all the elite troops.

⁸The Ammonites marched out and lined up in battle formation at the entrance to the city gate while the Arameans of Zobah and Rehob and the men of Tob and Maacah were in the field by themselves.

⁹When Joab saw that there was a battle line in front of him and another behind him, he chose some of Israel’s finest young men and lined up in formation to engage the Arameans.

¹⁰He placed the rest of the forces under the command of his brother Abishai. They lined up in formation to engage the Ammonites.

¹¹“If the Arameans are too strong for me,” Joab said, “then you will be my help. However, if the Ammonites are too strong for you, I’ll come to help you.

¹²Be strong! Let’s prove ourselves strong for our people and for the cities of our God. May the LORD’s will be done.”

¹³Joab and his troops advanced to fight against the Arameans, and they fled before him.

¹⁴When the Ammonites saw that the Arameans had fled, they too fled before Abishai and entered the city. So Joab withdrew from the attack against the Ammonites and went to Jerusalem.

¹⁵When the Arameans saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they regrouped.

¹⁶Hadadezer sent messengers to bring the Arameans who were beyond the Euphrates River, and they came to Helam with Shobach, commander of Hadadezer’s army, leading them.

¹⁷When this was reported to David, he gathered all Israel, crossed the Jordan, and went to Helam. Then the Arameans lined up to engage David in battle and fought against him.

¹⁸But the Arameans fled before Israel, and David killed seven hundred of their charioteers and forty thousand foot soldiers. He also struck down Shobach commander of their army, who died there.

¹⁹When all the kings who were Hadadezer’s subjects saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and became their subjects. After this, the Arameans were afraid to ever help the Ammonites again.

¹In the spring when kings march out to war, David sent Joab with his officers and all Israel. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah, but David remained in Jerusalem.

²One evening David got up from his bed and strolled around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing — a very beautiful woman.

³So David sent someone to inquire about her, and he said, “Isn’t this Bathsheba, daughter of Eliam and wife of Uriah the Hethite?”

⁴David sent messengers to get her, and when she came to him, he slept with her. Now she had just been purifying herself from her uncleanness. Afterward, she returned home.

⁵The woman conceived and sent word to inform David: “I am pregnant.”

⁶David sent orders to Joab: “Send me Uriah the Hethite.” So Joab sent Uriah to David.

⁷When Uriah came to him, David asked how Joab and the troops were doing and how the war was going.

⁸Then he said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.” So Uriah left the palace, and a gift from the king followed him.

⁹But Uriah slept at the door of the palace with all his master’s servants; he did not go down to his house.

¹⁰When it was reported to David, “Uriah didn’t go home,” David questioned Uriah, “Haven’t you just come from a journey? Why didn’t you go home?”

¹¹Uriah answered David, “The ark, Israel, and Judah are dwelling in tents, and my master Joab and his soldiers are camping in the open field. How can I enter my house to eat and drink and sleep with my wife? As surely as you live and by your life, I will not do this!”

¹²“Stay here today also,” David said to Uriah, “and tomorrow I will send you back.” So Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day and the next.

¹³Then David invited Uriah to eat and drink with him, and David got him drunk. He went out in the evening to lie down on his cot with his master’s servants, but he did not go home.

¹⁴The next morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah.

¹⁵In the letter he wrote: Put Uriah at the front of the fiercest fighting, then withdraw from him so that he is struck down and dies.

¹⁶When Joab was besieging the city, he put Uriah in the place where he knew the best enemy soldiers were.

¹⁷Then the men of the city came out and attacked Joab, and some of the men from David’s soldiers fell in battle; Uriah the Hethite also died.

¹⁸Joab sent someone to report to David all the details of the battle.

¹⁹He commanded the messenger, “When you’ve finished telling the king all the details of the battle —

²⁰if the king’s anger gets stirred up and he asks you, ‘Why did you get so close to the city to fight? Didn’t you realize they would shoot from the top of the wall?

²¹At Thebez, who struck Abimelech son of Jerubbesheth? Didn’t a woman drop an upper millstone on him from the top of the wall so that he died? Why did you get so close to the wall? ’ — then say, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hethite is dead also.’”

²²Then the messenger left. When he arrived, he reported to David all that Joab had sent him to tell.

²³The messenger reported to David, “The men gained the advantage over us and came out against us in the field, but we counterattacked right up to the entrance of the city gate.

²⁴However, the archers shot down on your servants from the top of the wall, and some of the king’s servants died. Your servant Uriah the Hethite is also dead.”

²⁵David told the messenger, “Say this to Joab: ‘Don’t let this matter upset you because the sword devours all alike. Intensify your fight against the city and demolish it.’ Encourage him.”

²⁶When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband Uriah had died, she mourned for him.

²⁷When the time of mourning ended, David had her brought to his house. She became his wife and bore him a son. However, the LORD considered what David had done to be evil.

¹So the LORD sent Nathan to David. When he arrived, he said to him: There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor.

²The rich man had very large flocks and herds,

³but the poor man had nothing except one small ewe lamb that he had bought. He raised her, and she grew up with him and with his children. From his meager food she would eat, from his cup she would drink, and in his arms she would sleep. She was like a daughter to him.

⁴Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man could not bring himself to take one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for his guest.

⁵David was infuriated with the man and said to Nathan: “As the LORD lives, the man who did this deserves to die!

⁶Because he has done this thing and shown no pity, he must pay four lambs for that lamb.”

⁷Nathan replied to David, “You are the man! This is what the LORD God of Israel says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I rescued you from Saul.

⁸I gave your master’s house to you and your master’s wives into your arms, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah, and if that was not enough, I would have given you even more.

⁹Why then have you despised the LORD’s command by doing what I consider evil? You struck down Uriah the Hethite with the sword and took his wife as your own wife — you murdered him with the Ammonite’s sword.

¹⁰Now therefore, the sword will never leave your house because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hethite to be your own wife.’

¹¹“This is what the LORD says, ‘I am going to bring disaster on you from your own family: I will take your wives and give them to another before your very eyes, and he will sleep with them in broad daylight.

¹²You acted in secret, but I will do this before all Israel and in broad daylight.’”

¹³David responded to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” Then Nathan replied to David, “And the LORD has taken away your sin; you will not die.

¹⁴However, because you treated the LORD with such contempt in this matter, the son born to you will die.”

¹⁵Then Nathan went home. The LORD struck the baby that Uriah’s wife had borne to David, and he became deathly ill.

¹⁶David pleaded with God for the boy. He fasted, went home, and spent the night lying on the ground.

¹⁷The elders of his house stood beside him to get him up from the ground, but he was unwilling and would not eat anything with them.

¹⁸On the seventh day the baby died. But David’s servants were afraid to tell him the baby was dead. They said, “Look, while the baby was alive, we spoke to him, and he wouldn’t listen to us. So how can we tell him the baby is dead? He may do something desperate.”

¹⁹When David saw that his servants were whispering to each other, he guessed that the baby was dead. So he asked his servants, “Is the baby dead?” “He is dead,” they replied.

²⁰Then David got up from the ground. He washed, anointed himself, changed his clothes, went to the LORD’s house, and worshiped. Then he went home and requested something to eat. So they served him food, and he ate.

²¹His servants asked him, “Why have you done this? While the baby was alive, you fasted and wept, but when he died, you got up and ate food.”

²²He answered, “While the baby was alive, I fasted and wept because I thought, ‘Who knows? The LORD may be gracious to me and let him live.’

²³But now that he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I’ll go to him, but he will never return to me.”

²⁴Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba; he went to her and slept with her. She gave birth to a son and named him Solomon. The LORD loved him,

²⁵and he sent a message through the prophet Nathan, who named him Jedidiah, because of the LORD.

²⁶Joab fought against Rabbah of the Ammonites and captured the royal fortress.

²⁷Then Joab sent messengers to David to say, “I have fought against Rabbah and have also captured its water supply.

²⁸Now therefore, assemble the rest of the troops, lay siege to the city, and capture it. Otherwise I will be the one to capture the city, and it will be named after me.”

²⁹So David assembled all the troops and went to Rabbah; he fought against it and captured it.

³⁰He took the crown from the head of their king, and it was placed on David’s head. The crown weighed seventy-five pounds of gold, and it had a precious stone in it. In addition, David took away a large quantity of plunder from the city.

³¹He removed the people who were in the city and put them to work with saws, iron picks, and iron axes, and to labor at brickmaking. He did the same to all the Ammonite cities. Then he and all his troops returned to Jerusalem.