2 Samuel 21:1–22:51
1 Now there was aa famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and bDavid sought the presence of the Lord. And the Lord said, “It is for Saul and his bloody house, because he put the Gibeonites to death.”
2 So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons of Israel but of the remnant of the Amorites, and athe sons of Israel 1made a covenant with them, but Saul had sought to 2kill them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah).
3 Thus David said to the Gibeonites, “What should I do for you? And how can I make atonement that you may bless athe inheritance of the Lord?”
4 Then the Gibeonites said to him, “aWe have no concern of silver or gold with Saul or his house, nor is it for us to put any man to death in Israel.” And he said, “I will do for you whatever you say.”
5 So they said to the king, “aThe man who consumed us and who planned 1to exterminate us from remaining within any border of Israel,
6 let seven men from his sons be given to us, and we will 1hang them abefore the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, bthe chosen of the Lord.” And the king said, “I will give them.”
7 But the king spared aMephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, bbecause of the oath of the Lord which was between them, between David and Saul’s son Jonathan.
8 So the king took the two sons of aRizpah the daughter of Aiah, Armoni and Mephibosheth whom she had borne to Saul, and the five sons of 1bMerab the daughter of Saul, whom she had borne to Adriel the son of Barzillai the cMeholathite.
9 Then he gave them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they 1hanged them in the mountain before the Lord, so that the seven of them fell together; and they were put to death in the first days of harvest at athe beginning of barley harvest.
10 aAnd Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until 1it rained on them from the sky; and bshe 2allowed neither the birds of the sky to rest on them by day nor the beasts of the field by night.
11 When it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done,
12 then David went and took athe bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the open square of bBeth-shan, cwhere the Philistines had hanged them on the day dthe Philistines struck down Saul in Gilboa.
13 He brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from there, and they gathered the bones of those who had been 1hanged.
14 They buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in aZela, in the grave of Kish his father; thus they did all that the king commanded, and after that bGod was moved by prayer for the land.
15 Now when athe Philistines were at war again with Israel, David went down and his servants with him; and as they fought against the Philistines, David became weary.
16 Then Ishbi-benob, who was aamong the descendants of the 1giant, the weight of whose spear was three hundred shekels of bronze in weight, 2was girded with a new sword, and he 3intended to kill David.
17 But aAbishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and struck the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, “bYou shall not go out again with us to battle, so that you do not extinguish cthe lamp of Israel.”
18 aNow it came about after this that there was war again with the Philistines at Gob; then bSibbecai the Hushathite struck down Saph, who was among the descendants of the 1giant.
19 There was war with the Philistines again at Gob, and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim the Bethlehemite 1killed 2Goliath the Gittite, athe shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.
20 There was war at Gath again, where there was a man of great stature who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also had been born ato the 1giant.
21 When he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, struck him down.
22 aThese four were born to the 1giant in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.
1 aAnd David spoke bthe words of this song to the Lord in the day that the Lord delivered him from the 1hand of all his enemies and from the 1hand of Saul.
“aThe Lord is my 1rock and my fortress and my deliverer;
3 1aMy God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
My bshield and cthe horn of my salvation, my stronghold and dmy refuge;
My savior, You save me from violence.
4 “I call upon the Lord, awho is worthy to be praised,
And I am saved from my enemies.
5 “For athe waves of death encompassed me;
bThe torrents of 1destruction 2overwhelmed me;
6 aThe cords of 1Sheol surrounded me;
The snares of death confronted me.
7 “aIn my distress I called upon the Lord,
Yes, I 1cried to my God;
And from His temple He heard my voice,
And my cry for help came into His ears.
8 “Then athe earth shook and quaked,
bThe foundations of heaven were trembling
And were shaken, because He was angry.
9 “Smoke went up 1out of His nostrils,
aFire from His mouth devoured;
bCoals were kindled by it.
10 “He bowed the heavens also, and came down
With athick darkness under His feet.
11 “aAnd He rode on a cherub and flew;
And He 1appeared on bthe wings of the wind.
12 “aAnd He made darkness 1canopies around Him,
A mass of waters, thick clouds of the sky.
13 “From the brightness before Him
aCoals of fire were kindled.
14 “aThe Lord thundered from heaven,
And the Most High uttered His voice.
15 “aAnd He sent out arrows, and scattered them,
Lightning, and 1routed them.
16 “Then the channels of the sea appeared,
The foundations of the world were 1laid bare
By the rebuke of the Lord,
aAt the blast of the breath of His nostrils.
17 “aHe sent from on high, He took me;
bHe drew me out of many waters.
18 “He delivered me from my strong enemy,
From those who hated me, for they were too strong for me.
19 “They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
aBut the Lord was my support.
20 “aHe also brought me forth into a broad place;
He rescued me, bbecause He delighted in me.
21 “aThe Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness;
bAccording to the cleanness of my hands He has recompensed me.
22 “aFor I have kept the ways of the Lord,
And have not acted wickedly against my God.
23 “aFor all His ordinances were before me,
And as for His statutes, I did not depart from 1them.
24 “aI was also 1blameless toward Him,
And I kept myself from my iniquity.
25 “aTherefore the Lord has recompensed me according to my righteousness,
According to my cleanness before His eyes.
26 “aWith the 1kind You show Yourself 1kind,
With the 2blameless You show Yourself 2blameless;
27 aWith the pure You show Yourself pure,
bAnd with the perverted You show Yourself 1astute.
28 “aAnd You save an afflicted people;
bBut Your eyes are on the haughty whom You abase.
29 “aFor You are my lamp, O Lord;
And the Lord illumines my darkness.
30 “aFor by You I can 1run upon a troop;
By my God I can leap over a wall.
31 “aAs for God, His way is 1blameless;
bThe word of the Lord is tested;
cHe is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.
32 “aFor who is God, besides the Lord?
bAnd who is a rock, besides our God?
33 “aGod is my strong fortress;
And He 1sets the 2blameless in 3His way.
34 “aHe makes 1my feet like hinds’ feet,
bAnd sets me on my high places.
35 “aHe trains my hands for battle,
bSo that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
36 “You have also given me athe shield of Your salvation,
And Your 1help makes me great.
37 “aYou enlarge my steps under me,
And my 1feet have not slipped.
38 “I pursued my enemies and adestroyed them,
And I did not turn back until they were consumed.
39 “And I have devoured them and shattered them, so that they did not rise;
And athey fell under my feet.
40 “For You have girded me with strength for battle;
You have 1subdued under me athose who rose up against me.
41 “You have also amade my enemies turn their backs to me,
And I 1destroyed those who hated me.
42 “aThey looked, but there was none to save;
bEven to the Lord, but He did not answer them.
43 “aThen I pulverized them as the dust of the earth;
bI crushed and stamped them as the mire of the streets.
44 “aYou have also delivered me from the contentions of my people;
bYou have kept me as head of the nations;
cA people whom I have not known serve me.
45 “aForeigners pretend obedience to me;
As soon as they hear, they obey me.
46 “Foreigners 1lose heart,
aAnd 2come trembling out of their 3fortresses.
47 “The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock;
And exalted be 1aGod, the rock of my salvation,
48 aThe God who executes vengeance for me,
bAnd brings down peoples under me,
49 Who also brings me out from my enemies;
You even lift me above athose who rise up against me;
bYou rescue me from the violent man.
50 “aTherefore I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the nations,
And I will sing praises to Your name.
51 “aHe is a tower of 1deliverance to His king,
And bshows lovingkindness to His anointed,