1 Samuel 30

1When David and his men arrived at Ziklag on the third day, the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag, struck Ziklag, and burned it with fire.

2They captured the women who were there, from youngest to oldest; they killed no one, but drove them off and went on their way.

3David and his men came to the city, and there it was, burned with fire; their wives, their sons, and their daughters were taken captive.

4David and the people who were with him raised their voices and wept until they had no strength left to weep.

5David's two wives were taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite.

6David was greatly distressed because the people talked of stoning him, since the soul of all the people was bitter, every man over his sons and his daughters, but David strengthened himself in Yahweh his God.

7David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech's son, "Please bring the ephod to me." Abiathar brought the ephod to David.

8David asked Yahweh, saying, "Shall I pursue this band? Shall I overtake them?" He answered him, "Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and shall surely rescue."

9David went, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and they arrived at the Besor brook, where those left behind stayed.

10David himself pursued with four hundred men, while two hundred remained behind, too exhausted to cross the brook Besor.

11They found an Egyptian man in the field, brought him to David, gave him bread, and he ate; they also gave him water to drink.

12They gave him a piece of pressed figs and two raisin cakes, and when he ate, his spirit returned to him; for he had eaten no bread nor drunk water for three days and three nights.

13David said to him, “Whose are you? Where do you come from?” He said, “I am a young Egyptian man, servant to an Amalekite man, and my master forsook me because I fell sick three days ago.”

14We raided the south of the Cherethites and what belonged to Judah and the south of Caleb, and we burned Ziklag with fire.

15David said to him, "Will you lead me down to this band?" He said, "Swear to me by God that you will not kill me or hand me over into the control of my master, and I will lead you down to this band."

16When he brought him down, there they lay spread across the entire countryside, eating, drinking, and dancing over all the abundant plunder they had seized from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah.

17David struck them from twilight until the evening of the next day, and no man escaped from them except four hundred young men who rode camels and fled.

18David rescued all that the Amalekites had taken, and David rescued his two wives.

19Nothing was missing for them, whether young or old, sons or daughters, spoil or anything they had taken for themselves. David brought everything back.

20David took all the flocks and cattle, which they drove ahead of the other livestock, and they said, "This is David's plunder."

21David came to the two hundred men who had grown weary from following after him, whom they had left at the Besor brook; they went out to meet David and the people who were with him, and when David drew near to the people he inquired about their welfare.

22Then all the wicked and worthless men among those who went with David answered and said, "Because they did not go with us, we will not give them any of the plunder we recovered, except each man's wife and his children, so they may lead them away and depart."

23David said, "You must not do so, my brothers, with what Yahweh has given us, who kept us safe and delivered into our hand the band that came against us."

24Who will listen to you about this thing? For the share of whoever goes down to battle equals the share of whoever stays by the supplies; they shall divide alike.

25It was from that day forward that he appointed it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day.

26David came to Ziklag and sent portions of the plunder to Judah's elders, his companions, saying, "See, a gift for you from the plunder of Yahweh's enemies."

27To those in Bethel, and to those in Ramoth of the Negev, and to those in Jattir,

28and to those in Aroer, and to those in Siphmoth, and to those in Eshtemoa,

29and to those in Rachal, and to those in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, and to those in the cities of the Kenites.

30and to those in Hormah, and to those in Chorashan, and to those in Athach,

31and to those in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men had walked about there.