Chapter 30
1 When David and his men had come to Ziklag on the third day , the Amalekites had made a raid on the South and on Ziklag , and had struck Ziklag and burnt it with fire,
2 and had taken captive the women and all who were in it , both small and great . They didn’t kill any , but carried them off and went their way .
3 When David and his men came to the city , behold , it was burnt with fire; and their wives, their sons , and their daughters were taken captive .
4 Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voice and wept until they had no more power to weep .
5 David ’s two wives were taken captive , Ahinoam the Jezreelitess , and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite .
6 David was greatly distressed , for the people spoke of stoning him , because the souls of all the people were grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters ; but David strengthened himself in the LORD his God .
7 David said to Abiathar the priest , the son of Ahimelech, " Please bring the ephod here to me ." Abiathar brought the ephod to David .
8 David enquired of the LORD , saying, " If I pursue after this troop , will I overtake them ?" He answered him , " Pursue , for you will surely overtake them , and will without fail recover all ."
9 So David went , he and the six hundred men who were with him , and came to the brook Besor , where those who were left behind stayed .
10 But David pursued , he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind , who were so faint that they couldn’t go over the brook Besor .
11 They found an Egyptian in the field , and brought him to David , and gave him bread , and he ate; and they gave him water to drink .
12 They gave him a piece of a cake of figs and two clusters of raisins . When he had eaten, his spirit came again to him ; for he had eaten no bread , and drank no water for three days and three nights .
13 David asked him , " To whom do you belong? Where are you from ?" He said, " I am a young man of Egypt , servant to an Amalekite ; and my master left me , because three days ago I got sick .
14 We made a raid on the South of the Cherethites , and on that which belongs to Judah , and on the South of Caleb ; and we burnt Ziklag with fire."
15 David said to him , " Will you bring me down to this troop ?" He said, " Swear to me by God that you will not kill me and not deliver me up into the hands of my master, and I will bring you down to this troop ."
16 When he had brought him down , behold , they were spread around over all the ground , eating, drinking , and dancing , because of all the great plunder that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines , and out of the land of Judah .
17 David struck them from the twilight even to the evening of the next day . Not a man of them escaped from there , except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled .
18 David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken , and David rescued his two wives.
19 There was nothing lacking to them , neither small nor great , neither sons nor daughters , neither plunder , nor anything that they had taken . David brought them all back .
20 David took all the flocks and the herds , which they drove before those other livestock , and said, " This is David ’s plunder ."
21 David came to the two hundred men , who were so faint that they could not follow David , whom also they had made to stay at the brook Besor ; and they went out to meet David , and to meet the people who were with him . When David came near to the people , he greeted them .
22 Then all the wicked men and worthless fellows of those who went with David answered and said , " Because they didn’t go with us , we will not give them anything of the plunder that we have recovered , except to every man his wife and his children , that he may lead them away and depart ."
23 Then David said , " Do not do so , my brothers, with that which the LORD has given to us , who has preserved us , and delivered the troop that came against us into our hand .
24 Who will listen to you in this matter ? For as his share is who goes down to the battle , so shall his share be who stays with the baggage . They shall share alike ."
25 It was so from that day forward that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day .
26 When David came to Ziklag , he sent some of the plunder to the elders of Judah , even to his friends , saying, " Behold , a present for you from the plunder of the LORD ’s enemies."
27 He sent it to those who were in Bethel , to those who were in Ramoth of the South, to those who were in Jattir ,
28 to those who were in Aroer , to those who were in Siphmoth , to those who were in Eshtemoa,
29 to those who were in Racal , to those who were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites , to those who were in the cities of the Kenites ,
30 to those who were in Hormah , to those who were in Borashan, to those who were in Athach ,
31 to those who were in Hebron , and to all the places where David himself and his men used to stay.