1 Chronicles 11:11–31

¹¹This is a list of David’s warriors:

Jashobeam was from the Hacmonite people. He was the head of the Three, ⁿ David’s most powerful soldiers. He used his spear to fight three hundred men at one time, and he killed them all.

¹²Next was Eleazar, one of the Three. Eleazar was Dodai’s son from the Ahohite people. ¹³Eleazar was with David at Pas Dammim when the Philistines came there to fight. There was a field of barley at that place. The Israelites ran away from the Philistines, ¹⁴but they stopped in the middle of that field and fought for it and killed the Philistines. The Lord gave them a great victory.

¹⁵Once, three of the Thirty, David’s chief soldiers, came down to him at the rock by the cave near Adullam. At the same time the Philistine army had camped in the Valley of Rephaim.

¹⁶At that time David was in a stronghold, and some of the Philistines were in Bethlehem. ¹⁷David had a strong desire for some water. He said, “Oh, I wish someone would get me water from the well near the city gate of Bethlehem!” ¹⁸So the Three broke through the Philistine army and took water from the well near the city gate in Bethlehem. Then they brought it to David, but he refused to drink it. He poured it out before the Lord, ¹⁹saying, “May God keep me from drinking this water! It would be like drinking the blood of the men who risked their lives to bring it to me!” So David refused to drink it.

These were the brave things that the three warriors did.

²⁰Abishai brother of Joab was the captain of the Three. Abishai fought three hundred soldiers with his spear and killed them. He became as famous as the Three ²¹and was more honored than the Three. He became their commander even though he was not one of them.

²²Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a brave fighter from Kabzeel who did mighty things. He killed two of the best warriors from Moab. He also went down into a pit and killed a lion on a snowy day. ²³Benaiah killed an Egyptian who was about seven and one-half feet tall and had a spear as large as a weaver’s rod. Benaiah had a club, but he grabbed the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear. ²⁴These were the things Benaiah son of Jehoiada did. He was as famous as the Three. ²⁵He received more honor than the Thirty, but he did not become a member of the Three. David made him leader of his bodyguards.

The Thirty Chief Soldiers

²⁶These were also mighty warriors:

Asahel brother of Joab;

Elhanan son of Dodo from Bethlehem;

²⁷Shammoth the Harorite;

Helez the Pelonite;

²⁸Ira son of Ikkesh from Tekoa;

Abiezer the Anathothite;

²⁹Sibbecai the Hushathite;

Ilai the Ahohite;

³⁰Maharai the Netophathite;

Heled son of Baanah the Netophathite;

³¹Ithai son of Ribai from Gibeah in Benjamin;

Benaiah the Pirathonite;