²And on the third day, there appeared a man who came out of Saul’s camp, with his garments rent, and dust strewed on his head: and when he came to David, he fell upon his face, and adored.

³And David said to him: From whence comest thou? And he said to him: I am fled out of the camp of Israel.

⁴And David said unto him: What is the matter that is come to pass? tell me: He said: The people are fled from the battle, and many of the people are fallen and dead: moreover Saul and Jonathan his son are slain.

⁵And David said to the young man that told him: How knowest thou that Saul and Jonathan his son, are dead?

⁶And the young man that told him, said: I came by chance upon mount Gelboe, and Saul leaned upon his spear: and the chariots and horsemen drew nigh unto him,

⁷And looking behind him, and seeing me, he called me. And I answered, Here am I.

⁸And he said to me: Who art thou? And I said to him: I am an Amalecite.

⁹And he said to me: Stand over me, and kill me: for anguish is come upon me, and as yet my whole life is in me.

¹⁰So standing over him, I killed him: for I knew that he could not live after the fall: and I took the diadem that was on his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them hither to thee, my lord.

¹¹Then David took hold of his garments and rent them, and likewise all the men that were with him.

¹²And they mourned, and wept, and fasted until evening for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the people of the Lord, and for the house of Israel, because they were fallen by the sword.

¹³And David said to the young man that told him: Whence art thou? He answered: I am the son of a stranger of Amalec.

¹⁴David said to him: Why didst thou not fear to put out thy hand to kill the Lord’s anointed?

¹⁵And David calling one of his servants, said: Go near and fall upon him. And he struck him so that he died.

¹⁶And David said to him: Thy blood be upon thy own head: for thy own mouth hath spoken against thee, saying: I have slain the Lord’s anointed.

¹⁷And David made this kind of lamentation over Saul, and over Jonathan his son.

¹⁸(Also he commanded that they should teach the children of Juda the use of the bow, as it is written in the book of the just.) And he said: Consider, O Israel, for them that are dead, wounded on thy high places.

¹⁹The illustrious of Israel are slain upon thy mountains: how are the valiant fallen?

²⁰Tell it not in Geth, publish it not in the streets of Ascalon: lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.

²¹Ye mountains of Gelboe, let neither dew, nor rain come upon you, neither be they fields of firstfruits: for there was cast away the shield of the valiant, the shield of Saul as though he had not been anointed with oil.

²²From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the valiant, the arrow of Jonathan never turned back, and the sword of Saul did not return empty.

²³Saul and Jonathan, lovely, and comely in their life, even in death they were not divided: they were swifter than eagles, stronger than lions.

²⁴Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, who clothed you with scarlet in delights, who gave ornaments of gold for your attire.

²⁵How are the valiant fallen in battle? Jonathan slain in the high places?

²⁶I grieve for thee, my brother Jonathan: exceeding beautiful, and amiable to me above the love of women. As the mother loveth her only son, so did I love thee.

²⁷How are the valiant fallen, and the weapons of war perished?

Chapter 2

And after these things David consulted the Lord, saying: Shall I go up into one of the cities of Juda? And the Lord said to him: Go up. And David said: Whither shall I go up? And he answered him: Into Hebron.

²So David went up, and his two wives Achinoam the Jezrahelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal of Carmel:

³And the men also that were with him, David brought up every man with his household: and they abode in the towns of Hebron.

⁴And the men of Juda came, and anointed David there, to be king over the house of Juda. And it was told David that the men of Jabes Galaad had buried Saul.

⁵David therefore sent messengers to the men of Jabes Galaad, and said to them: Blessed be you to the Lord, who have shewn this mercy to your master Saul, and have buried him.

⁶And now the Lord surely will render you mercy and truth, and I also will requite you for this good turn, because you have done this thing.

⁷Let your hands be strengthened, and be ye men of valour: for although your master Saul be dead, yet the house of Juda hath anointed me to be their king.

⁸But Abner the son of Ner, general of Saul’s army, took Isboseth the son of Saul, and led him about through the camp,

⁹And made him king over Galaad, and over Gessuri, and over Jezrahel, and over Ephraim, and over Benjamin, and over all Israel.

¹⁰Isboseth the son of Saul was forty years old when he began to reign over Israel, and he reigned two years; and only the house of Juda followed David.

¹¹And the number of the days that David abode, reigning in Hebron over the house of Juda, was seven years and six months.

¹²And Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Isboseth the son of Saul, went out from the camp to Gabaon.

¹³And Joab the son of Sarvia, and the servants of David went out, and met them by the pool of Gabaon. And when they were come together, they sat down over against one another: the one on the one side of the pool, and the other on the other side.

¹⁴And Abner said to Joab: Let the young men rise, and play before us. And Joab answered: Let them rise.

¹⁵Then there arose and went over twelve in number of Benjamin, of the part of Isboseth the son of Saul, and twelve of the servants of David.

¹⁶And every one catching his fellow by the head, thrust his sword into the side of his adversary, and they fell down together: and the name of the place was called: The field of the valiant, in Gabaon.

¹⁷And there was a very fierce battle that day: and Abner was put to flight, with the men of Israel, by the servants of David.

¹⁸And there were the three sons of Sarvia there, Joab, and Abisai, and Asael: now Asael was a most swift runner, like one of the roes that abide in the woods.

¹⁹And Asael pursued after Abner, and turned not to the right hand nor to the left from following Abner.

²⁰And Abner looked behind him, and said: Art thou Asael? And he answered: I am.

²¹And Abner said to him: Go to the right hand or to the left, and lay hold on one of the young men and take thee his spoils. But Asael would not leave off following him close.

²²And again Abner said to Asael: Go off, and do not follow me, lest I be obliged to stab thee to the ground, and I shall not be able to hold up my face to Joab thy brother.

²³But he refused to hearken to him, and would not turn aside: wherefore Abner struck him with his spear with a back stroke in the groin, and thrust him through, and he died upon the spot: and all that came to the place where Asael fell down and died stood still.

²⁴Now while Joab and Abisai pursued after Abner, the sun went down: and they came as far as the hill of the aqueduct, that lieth over against the valley by the way of the wilderness in Gabaon.

²⁵And the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together to Abner: and being joined in one body, they stood on the top of a hill.

²⁶And Abner cried out to Joab, and said: Shall thy sword rage unto utter destruction? knowest thou not that it is dangerous to drive people to despair? how long dost thou defer to bid the people cease from pursuing after their brethren?

²⁷And Joab said: As the Lord liveth, if thou hadst spoke sooner, even in the morning the people should have retired from pursuing after their brethren.

²⁸Then Joab sounded the trumpet, and all the army stood still, and did not pursue after Israel any farther, nor fight any more.

²⁹And Abner and his men walked all that night through the plains: and they passed the Jordan, and having gone through all Beth-horon, came to the camp.

³⁰And Joab returning, after he had left Abner, assembled all the people: and there were wanting of David’s servants nineteen men, beside Asael.

³¹But the servants of David had killed of Benjamin, and of the men that were with Abner, three hundred and sixty, who all died.

³²And they took Asael, and buried him in the sepulchre of his father in Bethlehem and Joab, and the men that were with him, marched all the night, and they came to Hebron at break of day.

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