to himself to the city of David, but carried it aside into the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. 14. And the 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.

1.

CHAP. XIV.

1 Hiram's kindness to David; 2 His felicity.

NOW

TOW Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and timber of cedars, with masons and carpenters to build him a house.

2. And David perceived that the LORD had confirmed him king over Israel; for his kingdom was lifted up on high, because of his people Israel.

3. And David took more wives at Jerusalem: and David begat more sons and daughters.

4. Now these are the names of his children which he had in Jerusalem; Shammua, and Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon,

5. And Ibhar, and Elishua, and Elpalet, 6. And Nogah, and Nepheg, and Japhia, 7. And Elishama, and Beeliada, and Eliphalet.

8. And when 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. 9. And the Philistines came and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.

10. And David inquired of God, saying, Shall I go up against the Philistines? and wilt thou deliver them into my hand? And the LORD said unto him, Go up; for I will deliver them into thy hand.

11. So they came up to Baal-perazim, and David smote them there. Then David said, God hath broken in upon mine enemies by my hand, like the breaking forth of waters: therefore they called the name of that place Baal-perazim.

12. And when they had left their gods there, David gave a commandment, and they were burnt with fire.

13. And the Philistines yet again spread themselves abroad in the valley.

14. Therefore David inquired again of God and God said unto him, Go not up after them; turn away from them, and come upon them over against the mulberry-trees. 15. And it shall be, when thou shalt hear a sound of going in the tops of the mulberrytrees, that then thou shalt go out to battle: for God is gone forth before thee to smite the host of the Philistines.

16. David therefore did as God commanded him: and they smote the host of the Philistines from Gibeon even to Gazer.

17. And the fame of David went out into all lands; and the LORD brought the fear of him upon all nations.

CHAP. XV.

1 David ordereth the priests and Levites to bring the ark from Obed-edom: 25 He performeth the solemnity thereof with great joy: 29 Michal despiseth him.

1.

A city of Davinade him houses in the city of David, and prepared a place for the ark of God, and pitched for it a tent. 2. Then David said, None ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites: for them hath the LORD chosen to carry the ark of God, and to minister unto him for ever.

3. And David gathered all Israel together to Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the LORD unto his place which he had prepared for it. 4. And David assembled the children of Aaron, and the Levites:

5. Of the sons of Kohath; Uriel the chief, and his brethren, a hundred and twenty.

6. Of the sons of Merari; Asaiah the chief, and his brethren, two hundred and twenty. 7. Of the sons of Gershom; Joel the chief, and his brethren, a hundred and thirty.

8. Of the sons of Elizaphan; Shemaiah the chief, and his brethren, two hundred. 9. Of the sons of Hebron; Eliel the chief, and his brethren, fourscore.

10. Of the sons of Uzziel; Amminadab the chief, and his brethren, a hundred and twelve.

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

12. And said unto them, Ye are the chief of the fathers of the Levites; sanctify yourselves, both ye, and your brethren, that ye may bring up the ark of the LORD God of Israel unto the place that I have prepared for it.

13. For because ye did it not at the first, the LORD our God made a breach upon us, for that we sought him not after the due order.

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

15. And the children of the Levites bare the ark of God upon their shoulders, with the staves thereon, as Moses commanded, according to the word of the LORD.

16. And David spake to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brethren to be the singers with instruments of music, psalteries, and harps, and cymbals, sounding, by lifting up the voice with joy.

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

18. And with them their brethren of the second degree, Zechariah, Ben, and Jaaziel,

26. For all the gods of the people are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.

CHAP. XVII.

1 Nathan promiseth David a blessing. 16 David's prayer.

28. Give unto the LORD, ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength.

29. Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.

30. Fear before him, all the earth: the world also shall be stable, that it be not moved.

31. Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice: and let men say among the nations, The LORD reigneth.

32. Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; let the fields rejoice, and all that is therein. 33. Then shall the trees of the wood sing out at the presence of the LORD, because he cometh to judge the earth.

34. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

35. And say ye, Save us, O God of our salvation, and gather us together, and deliver us from the heathen, that we may give thanks to thy holy name, and glory in thy praise.

36. Blessed be the LORD God of Israel for ever and ever. And all the people said, Amen, and praised the LORD.

37. So he left there, before the ark of the covenant of the LORD, Asaph and his brethren, to minister before the ark continually, as every day's work required :

38. And Obed-edom, with their brethren, threescore and eight; Obed-edom also, the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah, to be porters: 39. And Zadok the priest, and his brethren the priests, before the tabernacle of the LORD in the high place that was at Gibeon,

40. To offer burnt-offerings unto the LORD upon the altar of the burnt-offering continually, morning and evening, and to do according to all that is written in the law of the LORD, which he commanded Israel:

41. And with them Heman and Jeduthun, and the rest that were chosen, who were expressed by name, to give thanks to the LORD, because his mercy endureth for ever:

42. And with them Heman and Jeduthun, with trumpets and cymbals for those that should make a sound, and with musical instruments of God. And the sons of Jeduthun were porters.

43. And all the people departed, every man to his house: and David returned to bless his house.

his house, that said to Nathan the prophet, Lo, I dwell in a house of cedars, but the ark of the covenant of the LORD remaineth under curtains.

2. Then Nathan said unto David, Do all that is in thy heart; for God is with thee. 3.. And it came to pass the same night, that the word of God came to Nathan, saying,

4. Go and tell David my servant, Thus saith the LORD, Thou shalt not build me a house to dwell in :

5. For I have not dwelt in a house since the day that I brought up Israel unto this day; but have gone from tent to tent, and from one tabernacle to another.

6. Wheresoever I have walked with all Israel, spake I a word to any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to feed my people, saying, Why have ye not built me a house of cedars?

7. Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I took thee from the sheepcote, even from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be ruler over my people Israel;

8. And I have been with thee whithersoever thou hast walked, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee, and have made thee a name like the name of the great men that are in the earth.

9. Also I will ordain a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, and they shall dwell in their place, and shall be moved no more; neither shall the children of wickedness waste them any more, as at the beginning,

10. And since the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel. Moreover, I will subdue all thine enemies. Furthermore I tell thee, that the LORD will build thee a house.

11. And it shall come to pass, when thy days be expired, that thou must go to be with thy fathers, that I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall be of thy sons; and I will stablish his kingdom.

12. He shall build me a house, and I will stablish his throne for ever.

13. I will be his father, and he shall be my son; and I will not take my mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before thee:

14. But I will settle him in my house and in my kingdom for ever; and his throne shall be established for evermore.

15. According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.

16. And David the king came and sat before the LORD, and said, Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my house, that thou hast brought me hitherto ?

17. And yet this was a small thing in thine eyes, O God; for thou hast also spoken of thy servant's house for a great while to come, and hast regarded me according to the estate of a man of high degree, O LORD God.

18. What can David speak more to thee for the honour of thy servant? for thou knowest thy servant.

19. O LORD, for thy servant's sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou done all this greatness, in making known all these great things.

20. O LORD, there is none like thee, neither is there any God besides thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears.

21. And what one nation in the earth is like thy people Israel, whom God went to redeem to be his own people, to make thee a name of greatness and terribleness, by driving out nations from before thy people, whom thou hast redeemed out of Egypt?

22. For thy people Israel didst thou make thine own people for ever; and thou, LORD, becamest their God.

23. Therefore now, LORD, let the thing that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant, and concerning his house, be established for ever, and do as thou hast said.

24. Let it even be established, that thy name may be magnified for ever, saying, The LORD of hosts is the God of Israel, even a God to Israel: and let the house of David thy servant be established before thee. 25. For thou, O my God, hast told thy servant that thou wilt build him a house; therefore thy servant hath found in his heart to pray before thee.

26. And now, LORD, thou art God, and hast promised this goodness unto thy servant; 27. Now, therefore, let it please thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may be before thee for ever: for thou blessest, Ŏ LORD, and it shall be blessed for ever.

CHAP. XVIII.

David subdueth the Philistines and the Moabites.

1. NOW • Drifter the the Philistiness, and TOW after this it came to pass, that subdued them, and took Gath and her towns out of the hand of the Philistines.

2. And he smote Moab: and the Moabites became David's servants, and brought gifts. 3. And David smote Hadarezer king of

and twenty thousand footmen: David also houghed all the chariot-horses, but reserved of them a hundred chariots.

5. And when the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadarezer king of Zobah, David slew of the Syrians two and twenty thousand men.

6. Then David put garrisons in Syriadamascus; and the Syrians became David's servants, and brought gifts. Thus the LORD preserved David whithersoever he went.

7. And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadarezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.

8. Likewise from Tibhath, and from Chun, cities of Hadarezer, brought David very much brass, wherewith Solomon made the brazen sea, and the pillars, and the vessels of brass.

9. ¶ Now when Tou king of Hamath heard how David had smitten all the host of Hadarezer king of Zobah,

10. He sent Hadoram his son to king David, to inquire of his welfare, and to congratulate him, because he had fought against Hadarezer, and smitten him; (for Hadarezer had war with Tou;) and with him all manner of vessels of gold and silver and brass.

11. Them also king David dedicated unto the LORD, with the silver and the gold that he brought from all these nations; from Edom and from Moab, and from the children of Ammon, and from the Philistines, and from Amalek.

12. Moreover Abishai the son of Zeruiah slew of the Edomites, in the valley of Salt, eighteen thousand.

13. And he put garrisons in Edom; and all the Edomites became David's servants. Thus the LORD preserved David whithersoever he went.

14. So David reigned over all Israel, and executed judgment and justice among all his people.

15. And Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the host; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, recorder.

16. And Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Abimelech the son of Abiathar, were the priests; and Shavsha was scribe;

17. And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and the sons of David were chief about the king. CHAP. XIX.

David sendeth messengers to comfort Hanun the son of

1.

Nahash.

blish his dominion by the river Euphrates. 4. And David took from him a thousand chariots, and seven thousand horsemen,

Nahash the king of the children of Ammon died, and his son reigned in his stead. 2. And David said, I will show kindness

unto Hanun the son of Nahash, because his father showed kindness to me. And David sent messengers to comfort him concerning his father. So the servants of David came into the land of the children of Ammon to Hanun, to comfort him.

3. But the princes of the children of Ammon said to Hanun, Thinkest thou that David doth honour thy father, that he hath sent comforters unto thee? are not his servants come unto thee for to search, and to overthrow, and to spy out the land?

4. Wherefore Hanun took David's servants, and shaved them, and cut off their garments in the midst, hard by their buttocks, and sent them away.

5. Then there went certain, and told David how the men were served. And he sent to meet them; (for the men were greatly ashamed.) And the king said, Tarry at Jericho until your beards be grown, and then

return.

6. And when the children of Ammon saw that they had made themselves odious to David, Hanun and the children of Ammon sent a thousand talents of silver to hire them chariots and horsemen out of Mesopotamia, and out of Syria-maachah, and out of Zobah.

7. So they hired thirty and two thousand chariots, and the king of Maachah and his people, who came and pitched before Medeba. And the children of Ammon gathered themselves together from their cities, and came to battle.

8. And when David heard of it, he sent Joab, and all the host of the mighty men.

9. And the children of Ammon came out, and put the battle in array before the gate of the city; and the kings that were come were by themselves in the field.

10. Now when Joab saw that the battle was set against him before and behind, he chose out of all the choice of Israel, and put them in array against the Syrians.

11. And the rest of the people he delivered unto the hand of Abishai his brother, and they set themselves in array against the children of Ammon.

12. And he said, If the Syrians be too strong for me, then thou shalt help me but if the children of Ammon be too strong for thee, then I will help thee.

13. Be of good courage, and let us behave ourselves valiantly for our people, and for the cities of our God; and let the LORD do that which is good in his sight.

14. So Joab, and the people that were with him, drew nigh before the Syrians unto the battle; and they fled before him.

15. And when the children of Ammon

saw that the Syrians were fled, they likewise fled before Abishai his brother, and entered into the city. Then Joab came to Jerusalem.

16. And when the Syrians saw that they were put to the worse before Israel, they sent messengers, and drew forth the Syrians that were beyond the river; and Shophach, the captain of the host of Hadarezer, went before them.

17. And it was told David; and he gathered all Israel, and passed over Jordan, and came upon them, and set the battle in array against them. So when David had put the battle in array against the Syrians, they fought with him.

18. But the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew of the Syrians seven thousand men which fought in chariots, and forty thousand footmen, and killed Shophach the captain of the host.

19. And when the servants of Hadarezer saw that they were put to the worse before Israel, they made peace with David, and became his servants; neither would the Syrians help the children of Ammon any more. CHAP. XX.

Rabbah is besieged by Joab, and spoiled by David.

1. AND it came to pass, that after the year was expired, at the time that kings go out to battle, Joab led forth the power of the army, and wasted the country of the children of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah; (but David tarried at Jerusalem.) And Joab smote Rabbah, and destroyed it.

2. Ånd David took the crown of their king from off his head, and found it to weigh a talent of gold, and there were precious stones in it and it was set upon David's head: and he brought also exceeding much spoil out of the city.

3. And he brought out the people that were in it, and cut them with saws, and with harrows of iron, and with axes: even so dealt David with all the cities of the children of Ammon. And David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

4. ¶ And it came to pass after this, that there arose war at Gezer with the Philistines, at which time Sibbecai the Hushathite slew Sippai, that was of the children of the giant: and they were subdued.

5. And there was war again with the Philistines; and Elhanan the son of Jair slew Lahmi, the brother of Goliath the Gittite, whose spear's staff was like a weaver's beam.

6. And yet again there was war at Gath, where was a man of great stature, whose fingers and toes were four and twenty, six