1 Samuel 30:1-8

David Defeats the Amalekites

30:1 On the third day David and his men came to Ziklag. Now the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They attacked Ziklag and burned it. ¹  30:2 They took captive the women who were in it, from the youngest to the oldest, but they did not kill anyone. They simply carried them off and went on their way.

30:3 When David and his men came to the city, they found it burned. ²  Their wives, sons, and daughters had been taken captive. 30:4 Then David and the men ³  who were with him wept loudly ⁴  until they could weep no more. ⁵  30:5 David’s two wives had been taken captive – Ahinoam the Jezreelite and Abigail the Carmelite, Nabal’s widow. 30:6 David was very upset, for the men ⁶  were thinking of stoning him; ⁷  each man grieved bitterly ⁸  over his sons and daughters. But David drew strength from the Lord his God.

30:7 Then David said to the priest Abiathar son of Ahimelech, “Bring me the ephod.” So Abiathar brought the ephod to David. 30:8 David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Should I pursue this raiding band? Will I overtake them?” He said to him, “Pursue, for you will certainly overtake them and carry out a rescue!”

1 Samuel 30:18-20

30:18 David retrieved everything the Amalekites had taken; he ⁹  also rescued his two wives. 30:19 There was nothing missing, whether small or great. He retrieved sons and daughters, the plunder, and everything else they had taken. ¹⁰  David brought everything back. 30:20 David took all the flocks and herds and drove them in front of the rest of the animals. People were saying, “This is David’s plunder!”

[30:1]  ¹ tn The Hebrew text adds “with fire.”

[30:3]  ² tn Heb “and David and his men came to the city, and look, it was burned with fire.”

[30:4]  ³ tn Heb “people.”

[30:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “lifted up their voice and wept.”

[30:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “until there was no longer in them strength to weep.”

[30:6]  ⁶ tn Heb “people.”

[30:6]  ⁷ tn Heb “said to stone him.”

[30:6]  ⁸ tn Heb “for bitter was the soul of all the people, each one.”

[30:18]  ⁹ tn Heb “David.” The pronoun (“he”) has been substituted for the proper name in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[30:19]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “there was nothing missing to them, from the small even unto the great, and unto sons and daughters, and from loot even unto all which they had taken for themselves.”