1Sa 30 | NASB2020 | STEP | Then it happened , when David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day , that the Amalekites had carried out an attack on the Negev and on Ziklag , and had overthrown Ziklag and burned it with fire ;

1 Samuel 30

David’s Victory over the Amalekites

1 Then it happened, when David and his men came to ^aZiklag on the third day, that ^bthe Amalekites had carried out an attack on the ^{▼▼I.e., South country}Negev and on ^dZiklag, and had ^{▼▼Lit struck}overthrown Ziklag and burned it with fire; 2 and they took captive the women and all who were in it, from the small to the great, ^{▼▼Lit they did not kill
,} ^gwithout killing anyone, and drove them off and went their way. 3 When David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burned with fire, and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive. 4 Then David and the people who were with him ^hraised their voices and wept until there was no strength in them to weep. 5 Now ⁱDavid’s two wives had been taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess and Abigail the ^{▼▼Lit wife}widow of Nabal the Carmelite. 6 Also, David was in great distress because ^kthe people spoke of stoning him, for all the people were ^{▼▼Lit bitter of soul}embittered, each one because of his sons and his daughters. But ^mDavid felt strengthened in the Lord his God.

7 Then ⁿDavid said to ^oAbiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, “Please bring me the ephod.” So Abiathar brought the ephod to David. 8 And ^pDavid inquired of the Lord, saying, “ ^qShall I pursue this band of raiders? Will I overtake them?” And He said to him, “Pursue, for you will certainly overtake them, ^rand you will certainly rescue everyone.” 9 So David left, ^she and the six hundred men who were with him, and they came to the brook Besor, where some who were left behind stayed. 10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men, for ^ttwo hundred who were too exhausted to cross the brook Besor stayed behind.

11 Now they found an Egyptian in the field and brought him to David, and gave him bread and he ate, and they provided him water to drink. 12 They also gave him a slice of fig cake and two cakes of raisins, and he ate; ^uthen his spirit ^{▼▼Lit returned to him}revived. For he had not eaten bread or drunk water for three days and three nights. 13 Then David said to him, “To whom do you belong? And where are you from?” And he said, “I am a young man of Egypt, a servant of an Amalekite; and my master abandoned me when I became sick three days ago. 14 We carried out an attack on ^wthe ^{▼▼I.e., South country}Negev of the Cherethites, and on that which belongs to Judah, and on ^ythe ^{▼▼I.e., South country}Negev of Caleb, and ^aawe burned Ziklag with fire.” 15 Then David said to him, “Will you bring me down to this band of raiders?” And he said, “Swear to me by God that you will not kill me or hand me over to my master, and I will bring you down to this band.”

16 Now when he had brought him down, behold, they were dispersed over all the land, ^abeating and drinking and celebrating because of ^acall the great plunder that they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah. 17 And David ^{▼▼Lit struck}slaughtered them ^aefrom the twilight ^{▼▼Lit even until}until the evening of ^{▼▼Lit their}the next day; and not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on ^ahcamels and fled. 18 So David ^airecovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and ^{▼▼Lit David rescued}rescued his two wives. 19 And nothing of theirs was missing, whether small or great, sons or daughters, plunder, or anything that they had taken for themselves; ^akDavid brought it all back. 20 So David had ^{▼▼Lit taken}captured all the sheep and the cattle which the people drove ahead of ^{▼▼Lit those livestock}the other livestock, and they said, “ ^anThis is David’s plunder.”

The Plunder Is Divided

21 When ^aoDavid came to the two hundred men who were too exhausted to follow David and ^{▼▼Lit they left them}had been left behind at the brook Besor, and they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him, then David approached the people and greeted them. 22 Then all the wicked and ^{▼▼Lit sons of Belial}worthless men among those who went with David said, “Since they did not go with ^{▼▼Lit me}us, we will not give them any of the spoils that we have recovered, except to every man his wife and his children, so that they may lead them away and leave.” 23 But David said, “You must not do so, my brothers, with what the Lord has given us, for He has protected us and handed over to us the band of raiders that came against us. 24 And who will listen to you in this matter? For ^asas is the share of the one who goes down into the battle, so shall be the share of the one who stays by the baggage; they shall share alike.” 25 So it has been from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day.

26 Now when David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the spoils to the elders of Judah, to his friends, saying, “Behold, ^ata ^{▼▼Lit blessing}gift for you from the spoils of ^avthe enemies of the Lord: 27 to those who were in ^awBethel, to those who were in ^axRamoth of the ^{▼▼I.e., South country}Negev, to those who were in ^azJattir, 28 to those who were in ^baAroer, to those who were in Siphmoth, to those who were in ^bbEshtemoa, 29 to those who were in Racal, to those who were in the cities of ^bcthe Jerahmeelites, to those who were in the cities of ^bdthe Kenites, 30 to those who were in ^beHormah, to those who were in ^bfBor-ashan, to those who were in Athach, 31 to those who were in ^bgHebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men ^bhwalked.”