The Reign of David

And the Philistines have fought with Israel, and the men of Israel flee from the face of the Philistines, and fall wounded in mount Gilboa,

and the Philistines pursue after Saul, and after his sons, and the Philistines smite Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchi-Shua, sons of Saul.

And the battle is heavy on Saul, and those shooting with the bow find him, and he is wounded by those shooting,

and Saul saith unto the bearer of his weapons, `Draw thy sword, and pierce me with it, lest these uncircumcised come--and have abused me.' And the bearer of his weapons hath not been willing, for he feareth exceedingly, and Saul taketh the sword, and falleth upon it;

and the bearer of his weapons seeth that Saul is dead, and falleth, he also, on the sword, and dieth;

and Saul dieth, and his three sons, and all his house--together they died.

And all the men of Israel who are in the valley see that they have fled, and that Saul and his sons have died, and they forsake their cities and flee, and the Philistines come and dwell in them.

And it cometh to pass, on the morrow, that the Philistines come to strip the wounded, and find Saul and his sons fallen in mount Gilboa,

and strip him, and bear away his head, and his weapons, and send into the land of the Philistines round about to proclaim tidings to their idols and the people,

and put his weapons in the house of their gods, and his skull they have fixed in the house of Dagon.

And all Jabesh-Gilead hear of all that the Philistines have done to Saul,

and all the men of valour rise and bear away the body of Saul, and the bodies of his sons, and bring them in to Jabesh, and bury their bones under the oak in Jabesh, and fast seven days.

And Saul dieth because of his trespass that he trespassed against Jehovah, against the word of Jehovah that he kept not, and also for asking at a familiar spirit--to inquire, --

and he inquired not at Jehovah, and He putteth him to death, and turneth round the kingdom to David son of Jesse.

And gathered are all Israel unto David to Hebron, saying, `Lo, thy bone and thy flesh are we;

even in time past, even in Saul's being king, it is thou who art taking out and bringing in Israel, and Jehovah thy God saith to thee: Thou dost feed My people Israel, and thou art leader over My people Israel.'

And all the elders of Israel come in unto the king to Hebron, and David maketh with them a covenant in Hebron before Jehovah, and they anoint David for king over Israel, according to the word of Jehovah by the hand of Samuel.

And David goeth, and all Israel, to Jerusalem--it is Jebus--and there the Jebusite, the inhabitants of the land.

And the inhabitants of Jebus say to David, `Thou dost not come in hither;' and David captureth the fortress of Zion--it is the city of David.

And David saith, `Whoever smiteth the Jebusite first doth become head and prince;' and go up first doth Joab son of Zeruiah and becometh head.

And David dwelleth in the fortress, therefore they have called it, `City of David;'

and he buildeth the city round about, from Millo, and unto the circumference, and Joab restoreth the rest of the city.

And David goeth, going on and becoming great, and Jehovah of Hosts is with him.

And these are heads of the mighty ones whom David hath, who are strengthening themselves with him in his kingdom, with all Israel, to cause him to reign, according to the word of Jehovah, over Israel.

And this is an account of the mighty ones whom David hath: Jashobeam son of a Hachmonite is head of the thirty; he is lifting up his spear against three hundred--wounded, at one time.