1   Then ^note all Israel ^note gathered themselues to Dauid vnto Hebron, saying, Beholde, we are thy bones and thy flesh.

2   And in time past, euen when Saul was King, thou leddest Israel out & in: and the Lord thy God sayde vnto thee, Thou shalt feede my people Israel, and thou shalt be captaine ouer my people Israel.

3   So came all the Elders of Israel to the King to Hebron, & Dauid made a couenant with them in Hebron before the Lord. And they anoynted Dauid King ouer Israel, ^note according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Samuel.

4   ¶2; And Dauid and all Israel went to Ierusalem, which is Iebus, where were the Iebusites, the inhabitants of the land.

5   And the inhabitants of Iebus said to Dauid, Thou shalt not come in hither. Neuertheles Dauid tooke the towre of Zion, which is the city of Dauid.

6   And Dauid sayd, ^note Whosoeuer smiteth the Dauids worthies. Iebusites first, shalbe the chiefe and captaine. So Ioab the sonne of Zeruiah went first vp, and was captaine.

7   And Dauid dwelt in the tower: therefore they called it the citie of Dauid.

8    ^noteAnd he built the citie on euery side, from Millo euen round about, and Ioab repaired the rest of the citie.

9   And Dauid prospered, and grewe: for the Lord of hostes was with him.

10   ¶2; ^note These also are the chiefe of the valiant men that were with Dauid, & ioyned their force with him in his kingdome with al Israel, to make him King ouer Israel, according to the worde of the Lorde.

11   And this is the nomber of the valiant men whome Dauid had, Iashobeam the sonne of Hachmoni, the ^note chiefe among thirtie: he lift vp his speare against three hundreth, whom he slewe at one time.

12   And after him was Eleazar the sonne of ^note Dodo the Ahohite, which was one of the three valiant men.

13   He was with Dauid at Pas-dammim, and there the Philistims were gathered together to battel: and there was a parcell of ground full of barley, & the people fled before the Philistims.

14   And they stood in the middes of the field, ^note and saued it, and slewe the Philistims: so the Lord gaue a great victorie.

15   ¶2; And three of the ^note thirtie captaines went to a rocke to Dauid, into the caue of Adullam. And the armie of the Philistims camped in the valley of Rephaim.

16   And when Dauid was in the hold, the Philistims garison was at Beth-lehem.

17   And Dauid longed, and said, ^note Oh, that one would giue me to drinke of the water of the well of Beth-lehem that is at the gate.

18   Then these three brake thorowe the hoste of the Philistims, and drewe water out of the wel of Beth-lehem that was by the gate, and tooke it and brought it to Dauid: but Dauid would not drinke of it, but powred it for an oblation to the Lord,

19   And said, Let not my God suffer me to do this: should I drinke the ^note blood of these mens liues? for they haue brought it with the ieopardie of their liues: therefore he would not drinke it: these things did these three mightie men.

20   ¶2; And Abishai the brother of Ioab, he was chiefe of the three, & he lift vp his speare against three hundreth, and slew them, and had the name among the three.

21   Among the three he was more honourable then the two, and he was their captaine: ^note but he attained not vnto the first three.

22   Benaiah the sonne of Iehoiada (the sonne of a valiant man) which had done many actes, and was of Kabzeel, he slewe two ^note strong men of Moab: he went downe also and slewe a lion in the middes of a pit in time of snowe.

23   And he slewe an Egyptian, a man of great stature, euen fiue cubites long, and in the Egyptians hand was a speare like a weauers beame: and he went downe to him with a staffe, and plucked the speare out of the Egyptians hand, and slewe him with his owne speare.

24   These things did Benaiah þe; sonne of Iehoiada, & had the name among the three worthies.

Dauids valiant men.

25   Behold, he was honourable among thirtie, but he attained not vnto the ^note first three. ^noteAnd Dauid made him of his counsell.

26   ¶2; These also were valiant men of warre, Asahel the brother of Ioab, Elhanan the sonne of Dodo of Beth-lehem,

27    ^noteShammoth the Harodite, Helez the Pelonite,

28   Ira the sonne of Ikkesh the Tekoite, Abiezer the Antothite,

29    ^noteSibbecai the Husathite, Ilai the Ahohite,

30   Maharai the Netophathite, Heled þe; sonne of Baanah the Netophathite,

31   Ithai the sonne of Ribai of Gibeah of the children of Beniamin, Benaiah the Pirathonite,

32   Hurai of the riuers of Gaash, Abiel the Arbathite,

33   Azmaueth the Baharumite, Elihaba the Shaalbonite,

34   The sonnes of Hashem the Gizonite, Ionathan the sonne of Shageh the Harite,

35   Ahiam the sonne of Sacar the Hararite, Eliphal the sonne of Vr,

36   Hepher the Mecherathite, Ahiiah the Pelonite,

37   Hezro the Carmelite, Naarai the sonne of Ezbai,

38   Ioel the brother of Nathan, Mibhar the sonne of Haggeri,

39   Zelek the Ammonite, Nahrai the Berothite, the armour bearer of Ioab, the sonne of Zeruiah,

40   Ira the Ithrite, Garib the Ithrite,

41   Vriah the Hittite, Zabad the sonne of Ahlai,

42   Adina the sonne of Shiza the Reubenite, a captaine of the Reubenites, and thirtie with him,

43   Hanan the sonne of Maachah, and Ioshaphat the Mithnite,

44   Vzia the Ashterathite, Shama and Ieiel the sonnes of Otham the Aroerite,

45   Iediael the sonne of Shimri, and Ioha his brother the Tizite,

46   Eliel the Mahauite, and Ieribai and Ioshauiah the sonnes of Elnaam, and Ithmah the Moabite,

47   Eliel and Obed, and Iaasiel the Mesobaite.

Previous section

Next section