Now these are David’s last words. David the son of Isai said: The man to whom it was appointed concerning the Christ of the God of Jacob, the excellent psalmist of Israel said:

²The Spirit of the Lord hath spoken by me and his word by my tongue.

³The God of Israel said to me, the strong one of Israel spoke, the ruler of men, the just ruler in the fear of God.

⁴As the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, shineth in the morning without clouds, and as the grass springeth out of the earth by rain.

⁵Neither is my house so great with God, that he should make with me an eternal covenant, firm in all things and assured. For he is all my salvation, and all my will: neither is there ought thereof that springeth not up.

⁶But transgressors shall all of them be plucked up as thorns: which are not taken away with hands.

⁷And if a man will touch them, he must be armed with iron and with the staff of a lance: but they shall be set on fire and burnt to nothing.

⁸These are the names of the valiant men of David: Jesbaham sitting in the chair was the wisest chief among the three, he was like the most tender little worm of the wood, who killed eight hundred men at one onset.

⁹After him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, one of the three valiant men that were with David when they defied the Philistines, and they were there gathered together to battle.

¹⁰And when the men of Israel were gone away, he stood and smote the Philistines till his hand was weary, and grew stiff with the sword: and the Lord wrought a great victory that day: and the people that were fled away, returned to take spoils of them that were slain.

¹¹And after him was Semma the son of Age of Arari. And the Philistines were gathered together in a troop: for there was a field full of lentils. And when the people were fled from the face of the Philistines,

¹²He stood in the midst of the field, and defended it, and defeated the Philistines: and the Lord gave a great victory.

¹³Moreover also before this the three who were princes among the thirty, went down and came to David in the harvest time into the cave of Odollam: and the camp of the Philistines was in the valley of the giants.

¹⁴And David was then in a hold: and there was a garrison of the Philistines then in Bethlehem.

¹⁵And David longed, and said: O that some man would get me a drink of the water out of the cistern, that is in Bethlehem, by the gate.

¹⁶And the three valiant men broke through the camp of the Philistines, and drew water out of the cistern of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and brought it to David: but he would not drink, but offered it to the Lord,

¹⁷Saying: The Lord be merciful to me, that I may not do this: shall I drink the blood of these men that went, and the peril of their lives? therefore he would not drink. These things did these three mighty men.

¹⁸Abisai also the brother of Joab, the son of Sarvia, was chief among three: and he lifted up his spear against three hundred whom he slew, and he was renowned among the three,

¹⁹And the noblest of three, and was their chief, but to the three first he attained not.

²⁰And Banaias the son of Joiada a most valiant man, of great deeds, of Cabseel: he slew the two lions of Moab, and he went down, and slew a lion in the midst of a pit, in the time of snow.

²¹He also slew an Egyptian, a man worthy to be a sight, having a spear in his hand: but he went down to him with a rod, and forced the spear out of the hand of the Egyptian, and slew him with his own spear.

²²These things did Banaias the son of Joiada.

²³And he was renowned among the three valiant men, who were the most honourable among the thirty: but he attained not to the first three: and David made him of his privy council.

²⁴Asael the brother of Joab was one of the thirty, Elehanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem.

²⁵Semma of Harodi, Elica of Harodi,

²⁶Heles of Phalti, Hira the son of Acces of Thecua,

²⁷Abiezer of Anathoth, Mobonnai of Husati,

²⁸Selmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite,

²⁹Heled the son of Baana, also a Netophathite, Ithai the son of Ribai of Gabaath of the children of Benjamin,

³⁰Banaia the Pharathonite, Heddai of the torrent Gaas,

³¹Abialbon the Arbathite, Azmaveth of Beromi,

³²Eliaba of Salaboni. The sons of Jassen, Jonathan,

³³Semma of Orori, Aliam the son of Sarar the Arorite,

³⁴Eliphelet the son of Aasbai the son of Machati, Eliam the son of Achitophel the Gelonite,

³⁵Hesrai of Carmel, Pharai of Arbi,

³⁶Igaal the son of Nathan of Soba, Bonni of Gadi,

³⁷Selec of Ammoni, Naharai the Berothite, armourbearer of Joab the son of Sarvia,

³⁸Ira the Jethrite, Gareb also a Jethrite;

³⁹Urias the Hethite, thirty and seven in all.

Chapter 24

And the anger of the Lord was again kindled against Israel, and stirred up David among them, saying: Go, number Israel and Juda.

²And the king said to Joab the general of his army: Go through all the tribes of Israel from Dan to Bersabee, and number ye the people that I may know the number of them.

³And Joab said to the king: The Lord thy God increase thy people, and make them as many more as they are now, and again multiply them a hundredfold in the sight of my lord the king: but what meaneth my lord the king by this kind of thing?

⁴But the king’s words prevailed over the words of Joab, and of the captains of the army: and Joab, and the captains of the soldiers went out from the presence of the king, to number the people of Israel.

⁵And when they had passed the Jordan, they came to Aroer to the right side of the city, which is in the vale of Gad.

⁶And by Jazer they passed into Galaad, and to the lower land of Hodsi, and they came into the woodlands of Dan. And going about by Sidon,

⁷They passed near the walls of Tyre, and all the land of the Hevite, and the Chanaanite, and they came to the south of Juda into Bersabee:

⁸And having gone through the whole land, after nine months and twenty days, they came to Jerusalem.

⁹And Joab gave up the sum of the number of the people to the king, and there were found of Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men that drew the sword: and of Juda five hundred thousand fighting men.

¹⁰But David’s heart struck him, after the people were numbered: and David said to the Lord: I have sinned very much in what I have done: but I pray thee, O Lord, to take away the iniquity of thy servant, because I have done exceeding foolishly.

¹¹And David arose in the morning, and the word of the Lord came to Gad the prophet and the seer of David, saying:

¹²Go, and say to David: Thus saith the Lord: I give thee thy choice of three things, choose one of them which thou wilt, that I may do it to thee.

¹³And when Gad was come to David, he told him, saying: Either seven years of famine shall come to thee in thy land: or thou shalt flee three months before thy adversaries, and they shall pursue thee: or for three days there shall be a pestilence in thy land. Now therefore deliberate, and see what answer I shall return to him that sent me.

¹⁴And David said to Gad: I am in a great strait: but it is better that I should fall into the hands of the Lord (for his mercies are many) than into the hands of men.

¹⁵And the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel, from the morning unto the time appointed, and there died of the people from Dan to Bersabee seventy thousand men.

¹⁶And when the angel of the Lord had stretched out his hand over Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord had pity on the affliction, and said to the angel that slew the people: It is enough: now hold thy hand. And the angel of the Lord was by the thrashingfloor of Areuna the Jebusite.

¹⁷And David said to the Lord, when he saw the angel striking the people: It is I; I am he that have sinned, I have done wickedly: these that are the sheep, what have they done? let thy hand, I beseech thee, be turned against me, and against my father’s house.

¹⁸And Gad came to David that day, and said: Go up, and build an altar to the Lord in the thrashing floor of Areuna the Jebusite.

¹⁹And David went up according to the word of Gad which the Lord had commanded him.

²⁰And Areuna looked, and saw the king and his servants coming towards him:

²¹And going out he worshipped the king, bowing with his face to the earth, and said: Wherefore is my lord the king come to his servant? And David said to him: To buy the thrashingfloor of thee, and build an altar to the Lord, that the plague, which rageth among the people, may cease.

²²And Areuna said to David: Let my lord the king take, and offer, as it seemeth good to him: thou hast here oxen for a holocaust, and the wain, and the yokes of the oxen for wood.

²³All these things Areuna as a king gave to the king: and Areuna said to the king: The Lord thy God receive thy vow.

²⁴And the king answered him, and said: Nay, but I will buy it of thee, at a price, and I will not offer to the Lord my God holocausts free cost. So David bought the floor, and the oxen, for fifty sicles of silver:

²⁵And David built there an altar to the Lord, and offered holocausts and peace offerings: and the Lord became merciful to the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel.

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