2 Samuel

23 Now these are the last words of David,—The oracle of David, son of Jesse, Yea the oracle of The man raised up on high, The Anointed of the God of Jacob, The Delight of the Songs of Israel:

2 The Spirit of Yahweh spake in me,—And his word was on my tongue;

3 Said the God of Israel, Unto me spake the Rock of Israel:—One Ruling over Men, A Righteous One ruling in the reverence of God,

4 Is even as the light of the morning when ariseth the sun,—A morning without clouds, [As] from brightness [and] from rain, the fresh shoots out of the earth.

5 When not so was my house with God, Then a covenant age-abiding he appointed me, Ordered in all things and guarded, Now that it is all my salvation and all my desire, Will he not make it shoot forth?

6 But as for the abandoned, like thorns to be tossed away are they all,—For not with the hand can they be taken;

7 But the man that would touch them, Must fence himself with iron and the shaft of a spear,—Then with fire shall they be consumed on the spot!

8 These are the names of the mighty men who belonged to David,—The president a Tachmonite head of the charioteers, the same was Adino the Eznite, for eight hundred slain at one time.

9 And after him, Eleazar son of Dodo, son of Ahohi,—in the hero-class of mighty men with David when they reproached the Philistines, they were gathered together there to battle, but the men of Israel had gone up;

10 he, however, arose and smote among the Philistines until his hand was weary and his hand clave unto his sword, so Yahweh wrought a great victory on that day,—the people coming back after him only to strip the slain.

11 And after him, Shammah son of Agee, the Hararite,—and when the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, there being at hand an allotment of field-land full of lentils, but the people having fled from the face of the Philistines,

12 then took he his stand in the midst of the allotment and defended it, and smote the Philistines,—and Yahweh wrought a great victory.

13 And three of the thirty chiefs descended, and came in, towards harvest, unto David, unto the cave of Adullam,—although a troop of Philistines were encamped in the vale of Rephaim;

14 and David then was in a stronghold,—and a garrison of Philistines was then in Bethlehem.

15 And David longed, and said,—Who will give me to drink water out of the well of Bethlehem, that is within the gate?

16 And the three mighty men brake through the camp of Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was within the gate, and bare it, and brought it in unto David,—yet would he not drink, but poured it out unto Yahweh,

17 and said—Be it far from me, O Yahweh, that I should do this! is it not the blood of the men who went with their lives [in their hands]? So he would not drink it. These things did the three mighty men.

18 And Abishai brother of Joab son of Zeruiah, he was chief of three, in that he brandished his spear against three hundred whom he slew; and he had a name among three.

19 Was he not most honourable of the three and so became their captain? Nevertheless unto the three, he attained not.

20 Benaiah also, son of Jehoiadah, son of an active man, hero of many a deed, a man of Kabzeel, he smote the two sons of Ariel of Moab, he also went down and smote a lion in the midst of a pit on a day of snow;

21 he also smote an Egyptian who was of valiant bearing, and in the hand of the Egyptian was a spear, but he went down unto him with a staff,—and wrested the spear out of the hand of the Egyptian, and slew him with his own spear.

22 These things did Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and he had a name among three mighty men.

23 He was the most honourable of thirty, although unto the three he attained not,—so David added him to his council.

24 Asahel, brother of Joab, was among the thirty,—Elhanan, son of Dodo of Bethlehem;

25 Shammah the Harodite; Elika the Harodite;

26 Helez the Paltite, Ira, son of Ikkesh, the Tekoite;

27 Abiezer the Anathothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite;

28 Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite;

29 Heleb, son of Baanah, the Netophathite,—Ittai son of Ribai of Gibeah of the sons of Benjamin;

30 Benaiah, a Pirathonite, Hiddai of the torrents of Gaash;

31 Abi-albon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite;

32 Eliahba the Shaalbonite, (Of) the sons of Jashen, Jonathan;

33 Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam, son of Sharar, the Ararite;

34 Eliphelet, son of Ahasbai, son of the Maacathite. Eliam, son of Ahithophel, the Gilonite.

35 Hezro the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite;

36 Igal son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite;

37 Zelek the Ammonite,—Naharai the Beerothite, Armour bearers to Joab son of Zeruiah;

38 Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite;

39 Uriah the Hittite, In all thirty and seven.