21:1 During the reign of David, there was a famine for three successive years; so David sought the face of the LORD. The LORD said, “It is on account of Saul and his blood-stained house; it is because he put the Gibeonites to death.”
21:2 The king summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not a part of Israel but were survivors of the Amorites; the Israelites had sworn to spare them, but Saul in his zeal for Israel and Judah had tried to annihilate them.)
21:3 David asked the Gibeonites, “What shall I do for you? How shall I make amends so that you will bless the LORD’S inheritance?”
21:4 The Gibeonites answered him, “We have no right to demand silver or gold from Saul or his family, nor do we have the right to put anyone in Israel to death.” “What do you want me to do for you?” David asked.
21:5 They answered the king, “As for the man who destroyed us and plotted against us so that we have been decimated and have no place anywhere in Israel,
21:6 let seven of his male descendants be given to us to be killed and exposed before the LORD at Gibeah of Saul–the Lord’s chosen one.” So the king said, “I will give them to you.”
21:7 The king spared Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath before the LORD between David and Jonathan son of Saul.
21:8 But the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, the two sons of Aiah’s daughter Rizpah, whom she had borne to Saul, together with the five sons of Saul’s daughter Merab, whom she had borne to Adriel son of Barzillai the Meholathite.
21:9 He handed them over to the Gibeonites, who killed and exposed them on a hill before the LORD. All seven of them fell together; they were put to death during the first days of the harvest, just as the barley harvest was beginning.
21:10 Rizpah daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on a rock. From the beginning of the harvest till the rain poured down from the heavens on the bodies, she did not let the birds of the air touch them by day or the wild animals by night.
21:11 When David was told what Aiah’s daughter Rizpah, Saul’s concubine, had done,
21:12 he went and took the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the citizens of Jabesh Gilead. (They had taken them secretly from the public square at Beth Shan, where the Philistines had hung them after they struck Saul down on Gilboa.)
21:13 David brought the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from there, and the bones of those who had been killed and exposed were gathered up.
21:14 They buried the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan in the tomb of Saul’s father Kish, at Zela in Benjamin, and did everything the king commanded. After that, God answered prayer in behalf of the land.
21:15 Once again there was a battle between the Philistines and Israel. David went down with his men to fight against the Philistines, and he became exhausted.
21:16 And Ishbi-Benob, one of the descendants of Rapha, whose bronze spearhead weighed three hundred shekels and who was armed with a new sword, said he would kill David.
21:17 But Abishai son of Zeruiah came to David’s rescue; he struck the Philistine down and killed him. Then David’s men swore to him, saying, “Never again will you go out with us to battle, so that the lamp of Israel will not be extinguished.”
21:18 In the course of time, there was another battle with the Philistines, at Gob. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Saph, one of the descendants of Rapha.
21:19 In another battle with the Philistines at Gob, Elhanan son of Jaare-Oregim the Bethlehemite killed Goliath the Gittite, who had a spear with a shaft like a weaver’s rod.
21:20 In still another battle, which took place at Gath, there was a huge man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot–twenty-four in all. He also was descended from Rapha.
21:21 When he taunted Israel, Jonathan son of Shimeah, David’s brother, killed him.
21:22 These four were descendants of Rapha in Gath, and they fell at the hands of David and his men.
21:1 And there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David inquired of Jehovah. And Jehovah said, It is because of Saul and because of his house of bloodshed, for he put those Gibeonites to death.
21:2 So the king called for the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel but were of the remnant of the Amorites, and the children of Israel had sworn to them. But Saul had sought to slay them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah.
21:3 And David said to the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? And how shall I make expiation that you may bless the inheritance of Jehovah?
21:4 And the Gibeonites said to him, It is not a matter of silver or gold between us and Saul and his house, and it is not for us to put any man to death in Israel. And he said, Whatever you say I will do for you.
21:5 Then they said to the king, The man who consumed us and who made plans against us to destroy us so that we would not remain within any of the territory of Israel,
21:6 Let seven men from among his sons be given to us, and we will hang them unto Jehovah in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of Jehovah. And the king said, I will give them.
21:7 But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath of Jehovah that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.
21:8 So the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth; and the five sons of Merab the daughter of Saul, whom she bore to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite.
21:9 And he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites. And they hanged them on the mountain before Jehovah, and the seven perished together. And they were put to death in the days of harvest, in the first days, at the beginning of the barley harvest.
21:10 And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it on a rock for herself, from the beginning of harvest until rain from heaven fell on their bodies; and she did not allow the birds of heaven to come upon them by day or the beasts of the field by night.
21:11 And it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done.
21:12 And David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the open square of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them on the day when the Philistines slew Saul in Gilboa.
21:13 So he brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from there, and they gathered the bones of those who had been hanged.
21:14 And they buried the bones of Saul and of Jonathan his son in the land of Benjamin in Zela, in the grave of Kish his father; and they did all that the king had commanded. And God responded to the entreaty for the land after that.
21:15 And again the Philistines were at war with Israel; and David went down, and his servants with him, and fought with the Philistines. And David became faint.
21:16 And Ishbi-benob, who was one of the children of the giant and whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of bronze, was girded with new weapons; and he intended to slay David.
21:17 But Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him and struck down the Philistine and killed him. Then David’s men swore to him, saying, You shall not go forth with us again into battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel.
21:18 Then after this there was war again with the Philistines at Gob; and Sibbecai the Hushathite slew Saph, who was one of the children of the giant.
21:19 And there was war with the Philistines, again at Gob; and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim, the Bethlehemite, slew Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.
21:20 And again there was war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also had been born to the giant.
21:21 And he defied Israel; and Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, slew him.
21:22 These four had been born to the giant in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hands of his servants.