Chronological Plan

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.

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

²Even previously when Saul was king, you were leading Israel out to battle and bringing us back. The LORD your God also said to you, ‘You will shepherd my people Israel, and you will be ruler over my people Israel.’”

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

⁴David and all Israel marched to Jerusalem (that is, Jebus); the Jebusites who inhabited the land were there.

⁵The inhabitants of Jebus said to David, “You will never get in here.” Yet David did capture the stronghold of Zion, that is, the city of David.

⁶David said, “Whoever is the first to kill a Jebusite will become chief commander.” Joab son of Zeruiah went up first, so he became the chief.

⁷Then David took up residence in the stronghold; therefore, it was called the city of David.

⁸He built up the city all the way around, from the supporting terraces to the surrounding parts, and Joab restored the rest of the city.

⁹David steadily grew more powerful, and the LORD of Armies was with him.

¹⁰The following were the chiefs of David’s warriors who, together with all Israel, strongly supported him in his reign to make him king according to the LORD’s word about Israel.

¹¹This is the list of David’s warriors: Jashobeam son of Hachmoni was chief of the Thirty; he wielded his spear against three hundred and killed them at one time.

¹²After him, Eleazar son of Dodo the Ahohite was one of the three warriors.

¹³He was with David at Pas-dammim when the Philistines had gathered there for battle. There was a portion of a field full of barley, where the troops had fled from the Philistines.

¹⁴But Eleazar and David took their stand in the middle of the field and defended it. They killed the Philistines, and the LORD gave them a great victory.

¹⁵Three of the thirty chief men went down to David, to the rock at the cave of Adullam, while the Philistine army was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim.

¹⁶At that time David was in the stronghold, and a Philistine garrison was at Bethlehem.

¹⁷David was extremely thirsty and said, “If only someone would bring me water to drink from the well at the city gate of Bethlehem!”

¹⁸So the Three broke through the Philistine camp and drew water from the well at the gate of Bethlehem. They brought it back to David, but he refused to drink it. Instead, he poured it out to the LORD.

¹⁹David said, “I would never do such a thing in the presence of my God! How can I drink the blood of these men who risked their lives?” For they brought it at the risk of their lives. So he would not drink it. Such were the exploits of the three warriors.

²⁰Abishai, Joab’s brother, was the leader of the Three. He raised his spear against three hundred men and killed them, gaining a reputation among the Three.

²¹He was more honored than the Three and became their commander even though he did not become one of the Three.

²²Benaiah son of Jehoiada was the son of a brave man from Kabzeel, a man of many exploits. Benaiah killed two sons of Ariel of Moab, and he went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion.

²³He also killed an Egyptian who was seven and a half feet tall. Even though the Egyptian had a spear in his hand like a weaver’s beam, Benaiah went down to him with a club, snatched the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and then killed him with his own spear.

²⁴These were the exploits of Benaiah son of Jehoiada, who had a reputation among the three warriors.

²⁵He was the most honored of the Thirty, but he did not become one of the Three. David put him in charge of his bodyguard.

²⁶The best soldiers were Joab’s brother Asahel, Elhanan son of Dodo of Bethlehem,

²⁷Shammoth the Harorite, Helez the Pelonite,

²⁸Ira son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, Abiezer the Anathothite,

²⁹Sibbecai the Hushathite, Ilai the Ahohite,

³⁰Maharai the Netophathite, Heled son of Baanah the Netophathite,

³¹Ithai son of Ribai from Gibeah of the Benjaminites, Benaiah the Pirathonite,

³²Hurai from the wadis of Gaash, Abiel the Arbathite,

³³Azmaveth the Baharumite, Eliahba the Shaalbonite,

³⁴the sons of Hashem the Gizonite, Jonathan son of Shagee the Hararite,

³⁵Ahiam son of Sachar the Hararite, Eliphal son of Ur,

³⁶Hepher the Mecherathite, Ahijah the Pelonite,

³⁷Hezro the Carmelite, Naarai son of Ezbai,

³⁸Joel the brother of Nathan, Mibhar son of Hagri,

³⁹Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, the armor-bearer for Joab son of Zeruiah,

⁴⁰Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite,

⁴¹Uriah the Hethite, Zabad son of Ahlai,

⁴²Adina son of Shiza the Reubenite, chief of the Reubenites, and thirty with him,

⁴³Hanan son of Maacah, Joshaphat the Mithnite,

⁴⁴Uzzia the Ashterathite, Shama and Jeiel the sons of Hotham the Aroerite,

⁴⁵Jediael son of Shimri and his brother Joha the Tizite,

⁴⁶Eliel the Mahavite, Jeribai and Joshaviah, the sons of Elnaam, Ithmah the Moabite,

⁴⁷Eliel, Obed, and Jaasiel the Mezobaite.

¹The following were the men who came to David at Ziklag while he was still banned from the presence of Saul son of Kish. They were among the warriors who helped him in battle.

²They were archers who could use either the right or left hand, both to sling stones and shoot arrows from a bow. They were Saul’s relatives from Benjamin:

³Their chief was Ahiezer son of Shemaah the Gibeathite. Then there was his brother Joash; Jeziel and Pelet sons of Azmaveth; Beracah, Jehu the Anathothite;

⁴Ishmaiah the Gibeonite, a warrior among the Thirty and a leader over the Thirty; Jeremiah, Jahaziel, Johanan, Jozabad the Gederathite;

⁵Eluzai, Jerimoth, Bealiah, Shemariah, Shephatiah the Haruphite;

⁶Elkanah, Isshiah, Azarel, Joezer, and Jashobeam, the Korahites;

⁷and Joelah and Zebadiah, the sons of Jeroham from Gedor.

⁸Some Gadites defected to David at his stronghold in the desert. They were valiant warriors, trained for battle, expert with shield and spear. Their faces were like the faces of lions, and they were as swift as gazelles on the mountains.

⁹Ezer was the chief, Obadiah second, Eliab third,

¹⁰Mishmannah fourth, Jeremiah fifth,

¹¹Attai sixth, Eliel seventh,

¹²Johanan eighth, Elzabad ninth,

¹³Jeremiah tenth, and Machbannai eleventh.

¹⁴These Gadites were army commanders; the least of them was a match for a hundred, and the greatest of them for a thousand.

¹⁵These are the men who crossed the Jordan in the first month when it was overflowing all its banks, and put to flight all those in the valleys to the east and to the west.

¹⁶Other Benjaminites and men from Judah also went to David at the stronghold.

¹⁷David went out to meet them and said to them, “If you have come in peace to help me, my heart will be united with you, but if you have come to betray me to my enemies even though my hands have done no wrong, may the God of our ancestors look on it and judge.”

¹⁸Then the Spirit enveloped Amasai, chief of the Thirty, and he said: We are yours, David, we are with you, son of Jesse! Peace, peace to you, and peace to him who helps you, for your God helps you. So David received them and made them leaders of his troops.

¹⁹Some Manassites defected to David when he went with the Philistines to fight against Saul. However, they did not help the Philistines because the Philistine rulers sent David away after a discussion. They said, “It will be our heads if he defects to his master Saul.”

²⁰When David went to Ziklag, some men from Manasseh defected to him: Adnah, Jozabad, Jediael, Michael, Jozabad, Elihu, and Zillethai, chiefs of thousands in Manasseh.

²¹They helped David against the raiders, for they were all valiant warriors and commanders in the army.

²²At that time, men came day after day to help David until there was a great army, like an army of God.

²³The numbers of the armed troops who came to David at Hebron to turn Saul’s kingdom over to him, according to the LORD’s word, were as follows:

²⁴From the Judahites: 6,800 armed troops bearing shields and spears.

²⁵From the Simeonites: 7,100 valiant warriors ready for war.

²⁶From the Levites: 4,600

²⁷in addition to Jehoiada, leader of the house of Aaron, with 3,700 men;

²⁸and Zadok, a young valiant warrior, with 22 commanders from his father’s family.

²⁹From the Benjaminites, the relatives of Saul: 3,000 (up to that time the majority of the Benjaminites maintained their allegiance to the house of Saul).

³⁰From the Ephraimites: 20,800 valiant warriors who were famous men in their ancestral families.

³¹From half the tribe of Manasseh: 18,000 designated by name to come and make David king.

³²From the Issacharites, who understood the times and knew what Israel should do: 200 chiefs with all their relatives under their command.

³³From Zebulun: 50,000 who could serve in the army, trained for battle with all kinds of weapons of war, with one purpose to help David.

³⁴From Naphtali: 1,000 commanders accompanied by 37,000 men with shield and spear.

³⁵From the Danites: 28,600 trained for battle.

³⁶From Asher: 40,000 who could serve in the army, trained for battle.

³⁷From across the Jordan — from the Reubenites, Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh: 120,000 men equipped with all the military weapons of war.

³⁸All these warriors, lined up in battle formation, came to Hebron wholeheartedly determined to make David king over all Israel. All the rest of Israel was also of one mind to make David king.

³⁹They spent three days there eating and drinking with David, for their relatives had provided for them.

⁴⁰In addition, their neighbors from as far away as Issachar, Zebulun, and Naphtali came and brought food on donkeys, camels, mules, and oxen — abundant provisions of flour, fig cakes, raisins, wine and oil, herds, and flocks. Indeed, there was joy in Israel.