Day 105 of 365

¹Now these are those who came to David to Ziklag, while he yet kept himself close because of Saul the son of Kish; and they were among the mighty men, his helpers in war.

²They were armed with bows, and could use both the right hand and the left in slinging stones and in shooting arrows from the bow: they were of Saul's brothers of Benjamin.

³The chief was Ahiezer; then Joash, the sons of Shemaah the Gibeathite, and Jeziel, and Pelet, the sons of Azmaveth, and Beracah, and Jehu the Anathothite,

⁴and Ishmaiah the Gibeonite, a mighty man among the thirty, and over the thirty, and Jeremiah, and Jahaziel, and Johanan, and Jozabad the Gederathite,

⁵Eluzai, and Jerimoth, and Bealiah, and Shemariah, and Shephatiah the Haruphite,

⁶Elkanah, and Isshiah, and Azarel, and Joezer, and Jashobeam, the Korahites,

⁷and Joelah, and Zebadiah, the sons of Jeroham of Gedor.

⁸Of the Gadites there separated themselves to David to the stronghold in the wilderness, mighty men of valor, men trained for war, that could handle shield and spear; whose faces were like the faces of lions, and they were as swift as the roes on the mountains;

⁹Ezer the chief, Obadiah the second, Eliab the third,

¹⁰Mishmannah the fourth, Jeremiah the fifth,

¹¹Attai the sixth, Eliel the seventh,

¹²Johanan the eighth, Elzabad the ninth,

¹³Jeremiah the tenth, Machbannai the eleventh.

¹⁴These of the sons of Gad were captains of the army: he who was least was equal to one hundred, and the greatest to one thousand.

¹⁵These are those who went over the Jordan in the first month, when it had overflowed all its banks; and they put to flight all them of the valleys, both toward the east, and toward the west.

¹⁶There came of the children of Benjamin and Judah to the stronghold to David.

¹⁷David went out to meet them, and answered them, "If you have come peaceably to me to help me, my heart shall be knit to you; but if you have come to betray me to my adversaries, since there is no wrong in my hands, may the God of our fathers look thereon, and rebuke it."

¹⁸Then the Spirit came on Amasai, who was chief of the thirty, and he said, "We are yours, David, and on your side, you son of Jesse: peace, peace be to you, and peace be to your helpers; for your God helps you." Then David received them, and made them captains of the band.

¹⁹Of Manasseh also there fell away some to David, when he came with the Philistines against Saul to battle; but they did not help them; for the lords of the Philistines sent him away after consultation, saying, "He will fall away to his master Saul to the jeopardy of our heads."

²⁰As he went to Ziklag, there fell to him of Manasseh, Adnah, and Jozabad, and Jediael, and Michael, and Jozabad, and Elihu, and Zillethai, captains of thousands who were of Manasseh.

²¹They helped David against the band of rovers: for they were all mighty men of valor, and were captains in the army.

²²For from day to day men came to David to help him, until there was a great army, like the army of God.

²³These are the numbers of the heads of those who were armed for war, who came to David to Hebron, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of the Lord.

²⁴The children of Judah who bore shield and spear were six thousand and eight hundred, armed for war.

²⁵Of the children of Simeon, mighty men of valor for the war, seven thousand and one hundred.

²⁶Of the children of Levi four thousand and six hundred.

²⁷Jehoiada was the leader of the household of Aaron; and with him were three thousand and seven hundred,

²⁸and Zadok, a young man mighty of valor, and of his father's house twenty-two captains.

²⁹Of the children of Benjamin, the brothers of Saul, three thousand: for hitherto the greatest part of them had kept their allegiance to the house of Saul.

³⁰Of the children of Ephraim twenty thousand eight hundred, mighty men of valor, famous men in their fathers' houses.

³¹Of the half-tribe of Manasseh eighteen thousand, who were mentioned by name, to come and make David king.

³²Of the children of Issachar, men who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, their heads were two hundred; and all their brothers were at their commandment.

³³Of Zebulun, such as were able to go out in the army, who could set the battle in array, with all kinds of instruments of war, fifty thousand, and who could command and were not of double heart.

³⁴Of Naphtali one thousand captains, and with them with shield and spear thirty-seven thousand.

³⁵Of the Danites who could set the battle in array, twenty-eight thousand six hundred.

³⁶Of Asher, such as were able to go out in the army, who could set the battle in array, forty thousand.

³⁷On the other side of the Jordan, of the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and of the half-tribe of Manasseh, with all kinds of instruments of war for the battle, one hundred twenty thousand.

³⁸All these being men of war, who could order the battle array, came with a perfect heart to Hebron, to make David king over all Israel: and all the rest also of Israel were of one heart to make David king.

³⁹They were there with David three days, eating and drinking; for their brothers had made preparation for them.

⁴⁰Moreover those who were near to them, as far as Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, brought bread on donkeys, and on camels, and on mules, and on oxen, food of meal, cakes of figs, and clusters of raisins, and wine, and oil, and cattle, and sheep in abundance: for there was joy in Israel.

¹David consulted with the captains of thousands and of hundreds, even with every leader.

²David said to all the assembly of Israel, "If it seems good to you, and if it is of the Lord our God, let us send abroad everywhere to our brothers who are left in all the land of Israel, with whom the priests and Levites are in their cities that have suburbs, that they may gather themselves to us;

³and let us bring again the ark of our God to us. For we did not seek it in the days of Saul."

⁴All the assembly said that they would do so; for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people.

⁵So David assembled all Israel together, from the Shihor the brook of Egypt even to the entrance of Hamath, to bring the ark of God from Kiriath Jearim.

⁶David went up, and all Israel, to Baalah, that is, to Kiriath Jearim, which belonged to Judah, to bring up from there the ark of God the Lord that sits above the cherubim, that is called by the Name.

⁷They carried the ark of God on a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab: and Uzza and Ahio drove the cart.

⁸David and all Israel played before God with all their might, even with songs, and with harps, and with stringed instruments, and with tambourines, and with cymbals, and with trumpets.

⁹When they came to the threshing floor of Chidon, Uzza put forth his hand to hold the ark; for the oxen stumbled.

¹⁰The anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzza, and he struck him, because he put forth his hand to the ark; and there he died before God.

¹¹David was displeased, because the Lord had broken forth on Uzza; and he called that place Perez Uzza, to this day.

¹²David was afraid of God that day, saying, "How shall I bring the ark of God home to me?"

¹³So David did not move the ark to him into the city of David, but carried it aside into the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite.

¹⁴The ark of God remained with the family of Obed-Edom in his house three months: and the Lord blessed the house of Obed-Edom, and all that he had.

¹Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and masons, and carpenters, to build him a house.

²David perceived that the Lord had established him king over Israel; for his kingdom was exalted on high, for his people Israel's sake.

³David took more wives at Jerusalem; and David became the father of more sons and daughters.

⁴These are the names of the children whom he had in Jerusalem: Shammua, and Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon,

⁵and Ibhar, and Elishua, and Elpelet,

⁶and Nogah, and Nepheg, and Japhia,

⁷and Elishama, and Beeliada, and Eliphelet.

⁸When the Philistines heard that David was anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up to seek David: and David heard of it, and went out against them.

⁹Now the Philistines had come and made a raid in the valley of Rephaim.

¹⁰David inquired of God, saying, "Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you deliver them into my hand?" The Lord said to him, "Go up; for I will deliver them into your hand."

¹¹So they came up to Baal Perazim, and David struck them there; and David said, God has broken my enemies by my hand, like the breach of waters. Therefore they called the name of that place Baal Perazim.

¹²They left their gods there; and David gave commandment, and they were burned with fire.

¹³The Philistines yet again made a raid in the valley.

¹⁴David inquired again of God; and God said to him, "You shall not go up after them. Turn away from them, and come on them over against the mulberry trees.

¹⁵It shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then you shall go out to battle; for God has gone out before you to strike the army of the Philistines."

¹⁶David did as God commanded him: and they struck the army of the Philistines from Gibeon even to Gezer.

¹⁷The fame of David went out into all lands; and the Lord brought the fear of him on all nations.

¹David made him houses in the city of David; and he prepared a place for the ark of God, and pitched for it a tent.

²Then David said, "No one ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites. For the Lord has chosen them to carry the ark of God, and to minister to him forever."

³David assembled all Israel at Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the Lord to its place, which he had prepared for it.

⁴David gathered together the sons of Aaron, and the Levites:

⁵of the sons of Kohath, Uriel the chief, and his brothers one hundred twenty;

⁶of the sons of Merari, Asaiah the chief, and his brothers two hundred twenty;

⁷of the sons of Gershom, Joel the chief, and his brothers one hundred thirty;

⁸of the sons of Elizaphan, Shemaiah the chief, and his brothers two hundred;

⁹of the sons of Hebron, Eliel the chief, and his brothers eighty;

¹⁰of the sons of Uzziel, Amminadab the chief, and his brothers one hundred twelve.

¹¹David called for Zadok and Abiathar the priests, and for the Levites, for Uriel, Asaiah, and Joel, Shemaiah, and Eliel, and Amminadab,

¹²and said to them, "You are the heads of the fathers' households of the Levites. Sanctify yourselves, both you and your brothers, that you may bring up the ark of the Lord, the God of Israel, to the place that I have prepared for it.

¹³For because you did not carry it at first, the Lord our God made an outbreak against us, because we did not seek him according to the ordinance."

¹⁴So the priests and the Levites sanctified themselves to bring up the ark of the Lord, the God of Israel.

¹⁵The children of the Levites bore the ark of God on their shoulders with the poles thereon, as Moses commanded according to the word of the Lord.

¹⁶David spoke to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brothers the singers, with instruments of music, stringed instruments and harps and cymbals, sounding aloud and lifting up the voice with joy.

¹⁷So the Levites appointed Heman the son of Joel; and of his brothers, Asaph the son of Berechiah; and of the sons of Merari their brothers, Ethan the son of Kushaiah;

¹⁸and with them their brothers of the second degree, Zechariah, Ben, and Jaaziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Unni, Eliab, and Benaiah, and Maaseiah, and Mattithiah, and Eliphelehu, and Mikneiah, and Obed-Edom, and Jeiel, the doorkeepers.

¹⁹So the singers, Heman, Asaph, and Ethan, were given cymbals of brass to sound aloud;

²⁰and Zechariah, and Aziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Unni, and Eliab, and Maaseiah, and Benaiah, with stringed instruments set to Alamoth;

²¹and Mattithiah, and Eliphelehu, and Mikneiah, and Obed-Edom, and Jeiel, and Azaziah, with harps tuned to the eight-stringed lyre, to lead.

²²Chenaniah, chief of the Levites, was over the song: he instructed about the song, because he was skillful.

²³Berechiah and Elkanah were doorkeepers for the ark.

²⁴Shebaniah, and Joshaphat, and Nethanel, and Amasai, and Zechariah, and Benaiah, and Eliezer, the priests, blew the trumpets before the ark of God: and Obed-Edom and Jehiah were doorkeepers for the ark.

²⁵So David, and the elders of Israel, and the captains over thousands, went to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the house of Obed-Edom with joy.

²⁶It happened, when God helped the Levites who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord, that they sacrificed seven bulls and seven rams.

²⁷David was clothed with a robe of fine linen, and all the Levites who bore the ark, and the singers, and Chenaniah the master of the song with the singers: and David had on him an ephod of linen.

²⁸Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the Lord with shouting, and with sound of the cornet, and with trumpets, and with cymbals, sounding aloud with stringed instruments and harps.

²⁹It happened, as the ark of the covenant of the Lord came to the city of David, that Michal the daughter of Saul looked out at the window, and saw king David dancing and playing; and she despised him in her heart.