He reigned over Israel forty years; he reigned in Hebron seven years and in Jerusalem<n id="1" /> thirty-three years.

Recorded there are all the facts about his reign and accomplishments, and an account of the events that involved him, Israel, and all the neighboring kingdoms.<n id="1" />p>

Jabez called out to the God of Israel, &#8220;If only<n id="1" /> you would greatly bless me and expand my territory! May your hand be with me! Keep me from harm so I might not endure pain!&#8221;<n id="2" /> God answered his prayer.<n id="3" />p>

(His Judahite wife gave birth to Jered the father of Gedor, Heber the father of Soco, and Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah.) These were the sons of Pharaoh&#8217;s daughter Bithiah, whom Mered married.<n id="1" />p>

The men whose names are listed came during the time of King Hezekiah of Judah and attacked the Hamites&#8217; settlements,<n id="1" /> as well as the Meunites they discovered there, and they wiped them out to this very day. They dispossessed them,<n id="2" /> for they found pasture for their sheep there.

But Aaron and his descendants offered sacrifices on the altar for burnt offerings and on the altar for incense as they had been assigned to do in the most holy sanctuary.<n id="1" /> They made atonement for Israel, just as God&#8217;s servant Moses had ordered.<n id="2" />p>

They allotted these previously named cities from the territory of the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin.<n id="1" />p>

When all the Israelites who were in the valley saw that the army<n id="1" /> had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and fled. The Philistines came and occupied them.p>

This is the list of David&#8217;s warriors:<n id="1" />p> <p class="bodytext">Jashobeam, a Hacmonite, was head of the officers.<n id="2" /> He killed three hundred men with his spear in a single battle.<n id="3" />p>

So the three elite warriors<n id="1" /> broke through the Philistine forces and drew some water from the cistern in Bethlehem near the city gate. They carried it back to David, but David refused to drink it. He poured it out as a drink offering to the <sc>Lordsc>

They crossed the Jordan River<n id="1" /> in the first month,<n id="2" /> when it was overflowing its banks, and routed those living in all the valleys to the east and west.<n id="3" />p>

The ark of God remained in Obed-Edom&#8217;s house for three months; the <sc>Lordsc> blessed Obed-Edom&#8217;s family and everything that belonged to him.p>

<t /><p class="bodytext">When David had settled into his palace,<n id="1" /> he<n id="2" /> said to Nathan the prophet, &#8220;Look, I am living in a palace<n id="3" /> made from cedar, while the ark of the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s covenant is under a tent.&#8221;<n id="4" />

he sent his son Hadoram<n id="1" /> to King David to extend his best wishes<n id="2" /> and to pronounce a blessing on him for his victory over Hadadezer, for Tou had been at war with Hadadezer.<n id="3" /> He also sent various items made of gold, silver, and bronze.<n id="4" />

King David dedicated these things to the <sc>Lordsc>,<n id="1" /> along with the silver and gold which he had carried off from all the nations, including<n id="2" /> Edom,<n id="3" /> Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, and Amalek.p>

Messengers<n id="1" /> came and told David what had happened to the men, so he summoned them, for the men were thoroughly humiliated. The king said, &#8220;Stay in Jericho<n id="2" /> until your beards grow again; then you may come back.&#8221;p>

<p class="bodytext">When the Arameans realized they had been defeated by Israel, they sent for reinforcements from beyond the Euphrates River,<n id="1" /> led by Shophach the commanding general of Hadadezer&#8217;s army.<n id="2" />

He removed the city&#8217;s residents and made them do hard labor with saws, iron picks, and axes.<n id="1" /> This was his policy<n id="2" /> with all the Ammonite cities. Then David and all the army returned to Jerusalem.p>

<p class="bodytext">David said to God, &#8220;I have sinned greatly by doing this! Now, please remove the guilt of your servant, for I have acted very foolishly.&#8221;

David said to God, &#8220;Was I not the one who decided to number the army? I am the one who sinned and committed this awful deed!<n id="1" /> As for these sheep &#8211; what have they done? O <sc>Lordsc> my God, attack me and my family,<n id="2" /> but remove the plague from your people!&#8221;<n id="3" />p>