1 Samuel 30

Thomson^{(i) 1} But when David and his men arrived at Sekelak, on the third day, Amelek had invaded the South, and Sekelak, and had smitten Sekelak. Though they had burned it with fire, ² yet with regard to the women, and all who were in it, they had not slain a man, or a woman, small or great, but had taken them captive, and marched off. ³ So when David and his men came to the city, and saw that it was burned with fire, and that their wives, and their sons, and their daughters were taken captive, ⁴ David and his men raised their voices, and wept till they had no more power to weep. ⁵ Now both David's wives were taken captive; both Achinaam the Jezraelitess, and Abigaia, the wife of Nabal, the Carmelite. ⁶ And David was in great distress, for the people talked of stoning him; for the soul of all the people was exasperated, every one for his sons, and his daughters. David, however, was strengthened by the Lord his God. ⁷ And David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Abimelech, Bring hither the ephod. ⁸ And David inquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I pursue this horde? Shall I overtake them? And he said to him, Pursue, for thou shalt overly take them and without fail rescue. ⁹ Then David set out, he and the six hundred men who were with him; and when they came to the brook Bosor, the reserve halted. ¹⁰ He pursued with four hundred men, and two hundred, who halted on the bank of the brook Bosor, guarded the baggage. ¹¹ And they found an Egyptian in the field, and took him, and brought him to David, and they gave him bread, and he ate, and they gave him water to drink. ¹² Then they gave him a piece of fig cake, and when he had eaten, and his spirit was come to him; for he had not tasted bread, nor drank water for three days and three nights, ¹³ David said to him, To whom dost thou belong, and whence art thou? And the Egyptian lad said, I am a servant of a man, an Amelekite. My master left me because I fell sick three days ago. ¹⁴ We made an invasion on the south of the Chelethites, and on those parts of Judea, and on the south of Chelub, and we burned Sekelak with fire. ¹⁵ Then David said to him, Wilt thou conduct me to this horde? And he said, Swear to me now by God, that thou wilt not put me to death nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will conduct thee to the horde. ¹⁶ So he conducted him thither, and behold they were spread abroad on the face of the whole land, eating and drinking, and celebrating a festival, for all the great spoil which they had taken from the country of the Philistines, and from the land of Judea. ¹⁷ And David came upon them, and smote them, from break of day till late in the evening, and part of the next day, so that not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men, who mounted camels and fled. ¹⁸ And David recovered all that the Amelekites had taken. He recovered also his two wives. ¹⁹ There was none missing among them, small or great, nor any of the spoils, nor sons nor daughters, nor any thing of what they had taken. David recovered all. ²⁰ He took also all their flocks, and herds, and drove them before the spoils. And of this prey it was said, These are David's prey. ²¹ And when David came to the two hundred that were left to follow David, and whom he had caused to halt by the brook Bosor, they came out to meet David, and to meet the people who were with him. But when David introduced them to the people, and they had saluted them; ²² all the turbulent and bad men among the warriors, who went with David, answered and said, Because they did not accompany us in the pursuit we will not give them any of the spoils which we have taken, save that every one may take his wife and children. Let them take these and depart. ²³ But David said, You must not do so, since the Lord hath given them to us and preserved us. The Lord indeed hath delivered into our hands this wandering horde, which came against us, ²⁴ who then will hearken to your words? For these are not less entitled to them than we are. For as is the share of him who goeth down to the battle, so shall be the share of him who guardeth the baggage. They shall all share alike. ²⁵ So from that day forward this was the rule, and it became a statute, and an established custom in Israel even to this day. ²⁶ And when David came to Sekelak, he sent some of the spoils to the elders of Juda, and to his friends, saying, Here are some of the spoils of the enemies of the Lord ²⁷ for those at Baithsur, and for those at South Bama, and for those at Gethor, ²⁸ and for those at Aroer, and for those at Ammadi, and for those at Saphi, and for those at Esthie, and for those at Geth, and for those at Kimath, and for those at Saphek, and for those at Themath, ²⁹ and for those at Carmel, and for those in the cities of Jeremeel, and for those in the cities of the Kenezites, ³⁰ and for those at Jerimuth, and for those at Bersabee, and for those at Nomba, ³¹ and for those at Chebron, even all the places through which David and his men had passed.