Now when David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day, the
Amalekites had made a raid against the Negeb and against Ziklag.
They had overcome Ziklag and burned it with fire and taken captive
the women and all who were in it, both small and great. They killed
no one, but carried them off and went their way. And when David and
his men came to the city, they found it burned with fire, and their
wives and sons and daughters taken captive. Then David and the
people who were with him raised their voices and wept until they
had no more strength to weep. David's two wives also had been taken
captive, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of
Carmel. And David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of
stoning him, because all the people were bitter in soul, each for
his sons and daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD
his God.

  And David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech,
“Bring me the ephod.” So Abiathar brought the ephod to David. And
David inquired of the LORD, “Shall I pursue after this band? Shall
I overtake them?” He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely
overtake and shall surely rescue.” So David set out, and the six
hundred men who were with him, and they came to the brook Besor,
where those who were left behind stayed. But David pursued, he and
four hundred men. Two hundred stayed behind, who were too exhausted
to cross the brook Besor.

  They found an Egyptian in the open country and brought him to
David. And they gave him bread and he ate. They gave him water to
drink, and they gave him a piece of a cake of figs and two clusters
of raisins. And when he had eaten, his spirit revived, for he had
not eaten bread or drunk water for three days and three nights. And
David said to him, “To whom do you belong? And where are you from?”
He said, “I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite, and
my master left me behind because I fell sick three days ago. We had
made a raid against the Negeb of the Cherethites and against that
which belongs to Judah and against the Negeb of Caleb, and we
burned Ziklag with fire.” And David said to him, “Will you take me
down to this band?” And he said, “Swear to me by God that you will
not kill me or deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will
take you down to this band.”

  And when he had taken him down, behold, they were spread abroad
over all the land, eating and drinking and dancing, because of all
the great spoil they had taken from the land of the Philistines and
from the land of Judah. And David struck them down from twilight
until the evening of the next day, and not a man of them escaped,
except four hundred young men, who mounted camels and fled. David
recovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and David rescued his
two wives. Nothing was missing, whether small or great, sons or
daughters, spoil or anything that had been taken. David brought
back all. David also captured all the flocks and herds, and the
people drove the livestock before him, and said, “This is David's
spoil.”

  Then David came to the two hundred men who had been too exhausted
to follow David, and who had been left at the brook Besor. And they
went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him.
And when David came near to the people he greeted them. Then all
the wicked and worthless fellows among the men who had gone with
David said, “Because they did not go with us, we will not give them
any of the spoil that we have recovered, except that each man may
lead away his wife and children, and depart.” But David said, “You
shall not do so, my brothers, with what the LORD has given us. He
has preserved us and given into our hand the band that came against
us. Who would listen to you in this matter? For as his share is who
goes down into the battle, so shall his share be who stays by the
baggage. They shall share alike.” And he made it a statute and a
rule for Israel from that day forward to this day.

  When David came to Ziklag, he sent part of the spoil to his
friends, the elders of Judah, saying, “Here is a present for you
from the spoil of the enemies of the LORD.” It was for those in
Bethel, in Ramoth of the Negeb, in Jattir, in Aroer, in Siphmoth,
in Eshtemoa, in Racal, in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, in the
cities of the Kenites, in Hormah, in Bor-ashan, in Athach, in
Hebron, for all the places where David and his men had roamed.

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001
by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by
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