1 Samuel 30:1–19

Now when David and his men were come to Siceleg on the third day, the Amalecites had made an invasion on the south side upon Siceleg, and had smitten Siceleg, and burnt it with fire,

²And had taken the women captives that were in it, both little and great: and they had not killed any person, but had carried them with them, and went on their way.

³So when David and his men came to the city, and found it burnt with fire, and that their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives,

⁴David and the people that were with him, lifted up their voices, and wept till they had no more tears.

⁵For the two wives also of David were taken captives, Achinoam, the Jezrahelitess, and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel.

⁶And David was greatly afflicted: for the people had a mind to stone him, for the soul of every man was bitterly grieved for his sons and daughters: but David took courage in the Lord his God.

⁷And he said to Abiathar, the priest, the son of Achimelech: Bring me hither the ephod. And Abiathar brought the ephod to David.

⁸And David consulted the Lord, saying: Shall I pursue after these robbers, and shall I overtake them, or not? And the Lord said to him: Pursue after them: for thou shalt surely overtake them and recover the prey.

⁹So David went, he and the six hundred men that were with him, and they came to the torrent Besor: and some, being weary, stayed there.

¹⁰But David pursued, he and four hundred men: for two hundred stayed, who, being weary, could not go over the torrent Besor.

¹¹And they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David: and they gave him bread to eat, and water to drink,

¹²As also a piece of a cake of figs, and two bunches of raisins. And when he had eaten them, his spirit returned, and he was refreshed: for he had not eaten bread, nor drunk water, three days and three nights.

¹³And David said to him: To whom dost thou belong; or whence dost thou come? and whither art thou going? He said: I am a young man of Egypt, the servant of an Amalecite: and my master left me, because I began to be sick three days ago.

¹⁴For we made an invasion on the south side of Cerethi, and upon Juda, and upon the south of Caleb, and we burnt Siceleg with fire.

¹⁵And David said to him: Canst thou bring me to this company? and he said: Swear to me by God, that thou wilt not kill me, nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will bring thee to this company. And David swore to him.

¹⁶And when he had brought him, behold they were lying spread abroad upon all the ground, eating and drinking, and as it were keeping a festival day, for all the prey and the spoils which they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Juda.

¹⁷And David slew them from the evening unto the evening of the next day, and there escaped not a man of them, but four hundred young men, who had gotten upon camels, and fled.

¹⁸So David recovered all that the Amalecites had taken, and he rescued his two wives.

¹⁹And there was nothing missing small or great, neither of their sons or their daughters, nor of the spoils, and whatsoever they had taken, David recovered all.