2 Samuel 10:1–6

The Ammonites and Syrians Defeated

10It happened after this that the ^aking of the people of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his place. ²Then David said, “I will show ^bkindness to Hanun the son of ^cNahash, as his father showed kindness to me.”

So David sent by the hand of his servants to comfort him concerning his father. And David’s servants came into the land of the people of Ammon. ³And the princes of the people of Ammon said to Hanun their lord, “Do you think that David really honors your father because he has sent comforters to you? Has David not rather sent his servants to you to search the city, to spy it out, and to overthrow it?”

⁴Therefore Hanun took David’s servants, shaved off half of their beards, cut off their garments in the middle, ^dat their buttocks, and sent them away. ⁵When they told David, he sent to meet them, because the men were greatly ¹ashamed. And the king said, “Wait at Jericho until your beards have grown, and then return.”

⁶When the people of Ammon saw that they ^ehad made themselves repulsive to David, the people of Ammon sent and hired ^fthe Syrians of ^gBeth Rehob and the Syrians of Zoba, twenty thousand foot soldiers; and from the king of ^hMaacah one thousand men, and from ⁱIsh-Tob twelve thousand men.