 1 When David and his men had come to Ziklag on the third day, the Amalekites had invaded the south and Ziklag, and had struck Ziklag, and burned it with fire. 2 They had seized the women in it. They did not kill any, either small or great, but carried them away and went on their way. 3 David and his men came to the city, and behold, it was burned with fire, and their wives and their sons and their daughters had been taken captives. 4 David and the people with him lifted up their voices and wept until they had no more ability+ to weep. 5 David's two wives had been seized, Ahinoam of Jezreel, and Abigail, the former wife of Nabal of Carmel. 6 It greatly distressed David. The people spoke of stoning him because the soul of all the people was grieved. Each one for his sons and for his daughters. But David encouraged himself in the Lord his God. 7 David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech's son, Please bring the ephod here to me. So Abiathar brought the ephod there to David. 8 David inquired of the Lord saying, Shall I go after this troop? Shall I overtake them? He answered him, Go. For you will surely overtake and will recover all without fail. 9 So David went, he and the 600 men who were with him. They came to the brook Besor where those who were left behind stayed. 10 But David pursued, he and 400 men. 200 who were too exhausted to go over the brook Besor stayed behind. 11 They found an Egyptian in the field and brought him to David and gave him bread and he ate. Then they made him drink water. 12 They gave him a piece of a cake of figs and two clusters of raisins. When he had eaten, his spirit came again to him. For he had eaten no bread nor drunk water for three days and three nights. 13 David said to him, Whose are you? Where do you come from? He said, I am an Egyptian youth, servant to an Amalekite. My master left me because three days ago I fell sick. 14 We raided the south of the Cherethites and on that belonging to Judah and on the south of Caleb and we burned Ziklag with fire. 15 David said to him, Can you take me down to this company? 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 bring you down to this company. 16 When he had brought him down, behold, they were spread abroad on 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. 17 David struck them from the twilight even to the evening of the next day. And not a man of them escaped, except 400 young men who rode on camels and fled. 18 David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away. And David rescued his two wives. 19 Nothing was lacking to them, from the small to the great, even to sons and daughters, and from the spoil, even to all that they had taken to themselves. David recovered all. 20 David took all the flock and the herd. They drove on before those cattle and they said, This is David's spoil. 21 David came to the 200 who were too exhausted to follow David, whom they had made also to stay at the brook Besor. They went to meet David, and to meet the people with him. And David came up to the people, and greeted them. 22 Every evil and worthless man of the men who went with David said, Because they did not go with us, we will not give them from a thing the spoil that we have seized, except to every man his wife and his children. Let them take them, and go. 23 David said, My brothers, you shall not do so with what the Lord has given us. For He has protected us, and has delivered into our hand the company that came against us. 24 For who will listen to you in this matter? But as his part is that goes down to the battle, so shall be his part that stays by the stuff. They shall divide alike. 25 From that day forward he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day. 26 David came to Ziklag, and sent some of the spoil to the elders of Judah, to his friends saying, Behold, a present for you from the spoil of the enemies of the Lord; 27 to the ones in Bethel, and to the ones in Ramoth of the south, and to the ones in Jattir, 28 and to the ones in Aroer, and to the ones in Siphmoth, and to the ones in Eshtemoa, 29 and to the ones in Rachal, and to the ones in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, and to the ones in the cities of the Kenites, 30 and to the ones in Hormah, and to the ones in Chorashan, and to the ones in Athach, 31 and to the ones in Hebron, and to all the places where David had gone up and down, he and his men.
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