He told them: “You are the leaders of the Levites’ families. You and your relatives must consecrate yourselves and bring the ark of the Lord God of Israel up to the place I have prepared for it.

But a spirit ¹  empowered ²  Amasai, the leader of the thirty warriors, and he said: ³  “We are yours, O David! We support ⁴  you, O son of Jesse! May you greatly prosper! ⁵  May those who help you prosper! ⁶  Indeed ⁷  your God helps you!” So David accepted them and made them leaders of raiding bands.

David said to his son Solomon: “Be strong and brave! Do it! Don’t be afraid and don’t panic! ¹  For the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not leave you or abandon you before all the work for the service of the Lord’s temple is finished.

When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed ¹  king of all Israel, all the Philistines marched up to confront him. ²  When David heard about it, he marched out against ³  them.

He gave him the regulations ¹  for the divisions of priests and Levites, for all the assigned responsibilities within the Lord’s temple, and for all the items used in the service of the Lord’s temple.

and for the refined gold of the incense altar. He gave him ¹  the blueprint for the seat ²  of the gold cherubim that spread their wings ³  and provide shelter for the ark of the Lord’s covenant.

The third army commander, assigned the third month, was Benaiah son of Jehoiada the priest. He was the leader of his division, which consisted of 24,000 men.

So the God of Israel stirred up ¹  King Pul of Assyria (that is, King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria), ²  and he carried away the Reubenites, Gadites, and half-tribe of Manasseh and took them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river of Gozan, where they remain to this very day.

Saul told his armor bearer, “Draw your sword and stab me with it. Otherwise these uncircumcised people will come and torture me.” ¹  But his armor bearer refused to do it, because he was very afraid. So Saul took the sword and fell on it.

So the three elite warriors 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 Lord

So David again asked God what he should do. ¹  This time ²  God told him, “Don’t march up after them; circle around them and come against them in front of the trees. ³ 

So Hanun seized David’s servants and shaved their beards off. ¹  He cut off the lower part of their robes so that their buttocks were exposed ²  and then sent them away.

From the sons of Jeduthun: ¹  Gedaliah, Zeri, ²  Jeshaiah, ³  Hashabiah, and Mattithiah – six in all, ⁴  under supervision of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied as he played a harp, giving thanks and praise to the Lord.

In the spring, at the time when kings normally conduct wars, ¹  Joab led the army into battle and devastated the land of the Ammonites. He went and besieged Rabbah, while David stayed in Jerusalem. Joab defeated Rabbah and tore it down.

Ornan told David, “You can have it! ¹  My master, the king, may do what he wants. ²  Look, I am giving you the oxen for burnt sacrifices, the threshing sledges for wood, and the wheat for an offering. I give it all to you.”

David said, “My son Solomon is just an inexperienced young man, ¹  and the temple to be built for the Lord must be especially magnificent so it will become famous and be considered splendid by all the nations. ²  Therefore I will make preparations for its construction.” So David made extensive preparations before he died.

The Lord ordered the messenger ¹  to put his sword back into its sheath.

Cush was the father of Nimrod, who established himself as a mighty warrior on earth. ¹ 

David ¹  assembled all the leaders of Israel, along with the priests and the Levites.

and his son Beerah, whom King Tiglath-pileser ¹  of Assyria carried into exile. Beerah ²  was the tribal leader of Reuben.