1 Samuel 30 - 31, 1 Chronicles 9:35-10:14, James 2:14-3:18, Proverbs 23

David Strikes Down the Amalekites

30Then it happened when David and his men came to ^aZiklag on the third day, that ^bthe Amalekites had made a raid on the ¹Negev and on ^cZiklag and had struck Ziklag and burned it with fire; ²and they took captive the women and all who were in it, both small and great—^athey did not put anyone to death—and carried them off and went their way. ³Then David and his men came to the city, and behold, it was burned with fire, and their wives and their sons and their daughters had been taken captive. ⁴So David and the people who were with him ^alifted their voices and wept until there was no strength in them to weep. ⁵Now ^aDavid’s two wives had been taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. ⁶Moreover David was greatly distressed because ^athe people said to stone him, for all the people were ¹embittered, each one because of his sons and his daughters. But ^bDavid strengthened himself in Yahweh his God.

⁷Then ^aDavid said to ^bAbiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, “Please bring the ephod near to me.” So Abiathar brought the ephod near to David. ⁸^aAnd David asked of Yahweh, saying, “^bShall I pursue this band? Shall I overtake them?” And He said to him, “Pursue, for you will surely overtake them, ^cand you will surely deliver all.” ⁹So David went, ^ahe and the six hundred men who were with him, and they came to the brook Besor, where those left behind remained. ¹⁰But David pursued, he and four hundred men, for ^atwo hundred who were too exhausted to cross the brook Besor remained behind.

¹¹Then they found an Egyptian in the field and brought him to David and gave him bread, and he ate, and they provided him water to drink. ¹²And they gave him a piece of fig cake and two clusters of raisins, and he ate; ^athen his spirit ¹revived. For he had not eaten bread or drunk water for three days and three nights. ¹³And David said to him, “To whom do you belong? And where are you from?” And he said, “I am a young man of Egypt, a slave of an Amalekite; and my master forsook me when I fell sick three days ago. ¹⁴“We made a raid on ^athe ¹Negev of the Cherethites and on that which belongs to Judah and on ^bthe ²Negev of Caleb, and ^cwe burned Ziklag with fire.” ¹⁵Then David said to him, “Will you bring me down to this band?” And he said, “Swear to me by God that you will not put me to death or surrender me into the hands of my master, and I will bring you down to this band.”

¹⁶So he brought him down, and behold, they were ¹spread over all the land, ^aeating and drinking and ²celebrating because of ^ball the great spoil that they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah. ¹⁷Then David struck them ^adown from the twilight ¹until the evening of ²the next day; and not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on ^bcamels and fled. ¹⁸So David ^adelivered all that the Amalekites had taken and ¹delivered his two wives. ¹⁹Indeed nothing of theirs was missing, whether small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything that they had taken for themselves; ^aDavid brought it all back. ²⁰And David took all the sheep and the cattle which the people drove ahead of ¹the other livestock, and they said, “^aThis is David’s spoil.”

David Apportions the Spoils

²¹Then ^aDavid came to the two hundred men who were too exhausted to follow David, who had also remained at the brook Besor, and they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him, and David approached the people and greeted them. ²²Then all the evil and vile men among those who went with David said, “Because they did not go with ¹us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have delivered, except to every man his wife and his children, that they may lead them away and depart.” ²³Then David said, “You must not do so, my brothers, with what Yahweh has given us, who has kept us and given into our hand the band that came against us. ²⁴“And who will listen to you in this matter? For ^aas is the portion of the one who goes down to the battle, so shall the portion be of the one who remains by the baggage; they shall be apportioned together.” ²⁵So it has been from that day forward, that he made it a statute and a judgment for Israel to this day.

²⁶Then David came to Ziklag and sent some of the spoil to the elders of Judah, to his friends, saying, “Behold, ^aa ¹gift for you from the spoil of ^bthe enemies of Yahweh: ²⁷to those who were in ^aBethel, and to those who were in ^bRamoth of the ¹Negev, and to those who were in ^cJattir, ²⁸and to those who were in ^aAroer, and to those who were in Siphmoth, and to those who were in ^bEshtemoa, ²⁹and to those who were in Racal, and to those who were in the cities of ^athe Jerahmeelites, and to those who were in the cities of ^bthe Kenites, ³⁰and to those who were in ^aHormah, and to those who were in ^bBor-ashan, and to those who were in Athach, ³¹and to those who were in ^aHebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men ^bwent about.”

The Death of Saul and His Sons

31^aNow the Philistines were fighting against Israel, and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines and fell slain ^bon Mount Gilboa. ²And the Philistines closely pursued Saul and his sons; and the Philistines struck down ^aJonathan and Abinadab and Malchi-shua, the sons of Saul. ³^aAnd the battle became heavy against Saul, and the archers ¹hit him; and he was badly wounded by the archers. ⁴^aThen Saul said to his armor bearer, “Draw your sword and pierce me through with it, lest ^bthese uncircumcised come and pierce me through and abuse me.” But his armor bearer was not willing, for he was greatly afraid. ^cSo Saul took his sword and fell on it. ⁵Then his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, so he also fell on his sword and died with him. ⁶Thus Saul died with his three sons, his armor bearer, and all his men on that day together.

⁷Then the men of Israel who were on the other side of the valley, with those who were beyond the Jordan, saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead. So they forsook the cities and fled; and the Philistines came and lived in them.

⁸Now it happened on the ¹next day, that the Philistines came to strip the slain, and they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. ⁹Then they cut off his head and stripped off his weapons and sent them all around the land of the Philistines, ^ato proclaim the good news ^bto the house of their idols and to the people. ¹⁰And they placed his weapons in the ¹house of ^aAshtaroth and ^bfastened his body to the wall of ^cBeth-shan. ¹¹Then ^athe inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard ¹what the Philistines had done to Saul, ¹²^aso all the valiant men arose and walked all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan, and they came to Jabesh and ^bburned them there. ¹³And they took their bones and ^aburied them under ^bthe tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and ^cfasted seven days.

Generations of Saul

³⁵^aNow in Gibeon, Jeiel the father of Gibeon lived, and his wife’s name was Maacah, ³⁶and his firstborn son was Abdon, then Zur, Kish, Baal, Ner, Nadab, ³⁷Gedor, Ahio, Zechariah, and Mikloth. ³⁸Mikloth became the father of Shimeam. And they also lived with their relatives in Jerusalem opposite their other relatives. ³⁹^aNer became the father of Kish, and Kish became the father of Saul, and Saul became the father of Jonathan, Malchi-shua, Abinadab, and Eshbaal. ⁴⁰The son of Jonathan was Merib-baal, and Merib-baal became the father of Micah. ⁴¹The sons of Micah were Pithon, Melech, Tahrea, ^aand Ahaz. ⁴²Ahaz became the father of Jarah, and Jarah became the father of Alemeth, Azmaveth, and Zimri; and Zimri became the father of Moza. ⁴³Moza became the father of Binea and Rephaiah his son, Eleasah his son, Azel his son. ⁴⁴Azel had six sons, and these were their names: Azrikam, Bocheru, Ishmael, Sheariah, Obadiah, and Hanan. These were the sons of Azel.

The Death of Saul and His Sons

10^aNow the Philistines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines and fell slain on Mount Gilboa. ²And the Philistines closely pursued Saul and his sons, and the Philistines struck down Jonathan and ¹^,^aAbinadab and Malchi-shua, the sons of Saul. ³And the battle became heavy against Saul, and the archers ¹hit him; and he was wounded by the archers. ⁴Then Saul said to his armor bearer, “Draw your sword and pierce me through with it, lest these uncircumcised come and abuse me.” But his armor bearer was not willing, for he was greatly afraid. ^aSo Saul took his sword and fell on it. ⁵Then his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, so he also fell on his sword and died. ⁶^aThus Saul died with his three sons, and all those of his house died together.

⁷Then all the men of Israel who were in the valley saw that they had fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead. So they forsook their cities and fled; and the Philistines came and lived in them.

⁸Now it happened on the next day, that the Philistines came to strip the slain, and they found Saul and his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. ⁹^aSo they stripped him and took his head and his weapons and sent them all around the land of the Philistines, to proclaim the good news to their idols and to the people. ¹⁰And they placed his weapons in the house of their gods and fastened his head in the house of Dagon.

Jabesh-gilead Buries Saul

¹¹Then all Jabesh-gilead heard all that the Philistines had done to Saul, ¹²^aso all the valiant men arose and took away the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons and brought them to Jabesh, and they buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh and fasted seven days.

¹³^aThus Saul died for his unfaithfulness, which he committed against Yahweh, because of the word of Yahweh which he did not keep; and also ^bbecause he asked counsel of a medium, making inquiry of it, ¹⁴and did not inquire of Yahweh. Therefore He put him to death and ^aturned the kingdom to David the son of Jesse.

Faith and Works

¹⁴^aWhat use is it, ^bmy brothers, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can ¹that faith save him? ¹⁵^aIf a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, ¹⁶and one of you says to them, “^aGo in peace, ¹be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? ¹⁷Even so ^afaith, if it has no works, is ¹dead by itself.

¹⁸^aBut someone will say, “You have faith; and I have works. Show me your ^bfaith without the works, and I will ^cshow you my faith ^dby my works.” ¹⁹You believe that ¹^,^aGod is one. ^bYou do well; ^cthe demons also believe, and shudder. ²⁰But are you willing to recognize, ^ayou foolish fellow, that ^bfaith without works is useless? ²¹^aWas not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? ²²You see that ^afaith was working with his works, and ¹as a result of the ^bworks, faith was ²perfected. ²³And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “^aAnd Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness,” and he was called ^bthe friend of God. ²⁴You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. ²⁵And in the same way, was not ^aRahab the harlot also justified by works ^bwhen she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? ²⁶For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also ^afaith without works is dead.

The Tongue Is a Fire

3^aDo not, many of you, become teachers, ^bmy brothers, knowing that we will receive a ¹stricter judgment. ²For we all ^astumble in many ways. ^bIf anyone does not stumble in ¹what he says, he is a ^cperfect man, able to ^dbridle the entire body as well. ³Now ^aif we put the bits into the horses’ mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well. ⁴Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, they are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot wills. ⁵So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it ^aboasts of great things. ^bBehold how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! ⁶And ^athe tongue is a fire, the very world of unrighteousness; the tongue is set among our members as that which ^bdefiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our ¹existence, and is set on fire by ²^,^chell. ⁷For every kind of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. ⁸But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of ^adeadly poison. ⁹With it we bless ^aour Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, ^bwho have been made in the likeness of God. ¹⁰From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. ¹¹Does a fountain pour forth from the same opening ¹fresh and bitter water? ¹²^aCan a fig tree, my brothers, produce olives, or a vine produce figs? Nor can saltwater produce ¹fresh.

Wisdom from Above

¹³Who among you is wise and understanding? ^aLet him show by his ^bgood conduct his works in the gentleness of wisdom. ¹⁴But if you have bitter ^ajealousy and ¹selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against ^bthe truth. ¹⁵This wisdom is not coming down ^afrom above, but is ^bearthly, ¹^,^cnatural, ^ddemonic. ¹⁶For where ^ajealousy and ¹selfish ambition exist, ²there is disorder and every evil practice. ¹⁷But the wisdom ^afrom above is first ^bpure, then ^cpeaceable, ^dconsiderate, submissive, ^efull of mercy and good fruits, ^fwithout doubting, without hypocrisy. ¹⁸And the fruit of righteousness ^ais sown in peace ¹by those who make peace.

The Fear of Yahweh

23When you sit down to dine with a ruler,Understand well ¹what is before you,²So you should put a knife to your throatIf you are a ^aman of appetite.³Do not ^adesire his delicacies,For it is bread of falsehood.⁴^aDo not weary yourself to gain wealth,^bBecause of your understanding, cease!⁵Do you make your eyes fly up to see it? But it is not there!Because ^ait certainly makes itself wingsLike an eagle that flies toward the heavens.⁶^aDo not eat the bread of ¹a ^bselfish man,And do not desire his delicacies;⁷For as he ¹calculates in his soul, so he is.“Eat and drink!” he says to you,But ^ahis heart is not with you.⁸You will ^avomit up ¹the morsel you have eaten,And you will corrupt your pleasant words.⁹^aDo not speak in the ¹hearing of a fool,For he will ^bdespise the insight of your speech.¹⁰Do not move the ancient boundaryAnd do not ^acome into the fields of the orphans,¹¹For their ^aRedeemer is strong;^bHe will plead their case against you.¹²Bring your heart to disciplineAnd your ears to ¹words of knowledge.¹³^aDo not withhold discipline from the child,Although you ¹strike him with the rod, he will not die.¹⁴You shall ¹strike him with the rodAnd ^adeliver his soul from Sheol.¹⁵My son, if your heart is ^awise,My own heart also will be glad;¹⁶And my ¹inmost being will exultWhen your lips speak ^aupright things.¹⁷^aDo not let your heart be jealous of sinners,But be zealous in the ¹^,^bfear of Yahweh ²always.¹⁸Surely there is a ¹^,^afuture,And your ^bhope will not be cut off.¹⁹You, my son, listen and ^abe wise,And ^bdirect your heart in the way.²⁰Do not be with ^aheavy drinkers of wine,Or with ^bgluttonous eaters of meat;²¹For the ^aheavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty,And ^bdrowsiness will clothe them with rags.²²^aListen to your father who begot you,And ^bdo not despise your mother when she is old.²³^aBuy truth, and do not sell it,Get wisdom and discipline and understanding.²⁴The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice,And ^ahe who begets a wise son will be glad in him.²⁵Let your ^afather and your mother be glad,And let her rejoice who gave birth to you.²⁶^aGive your heart to me, my son,And let your eyes ¹^,^bdelight in my ways.²⁷For a harlot is a ^adeep pitAnd ¹a ^bforeign woman is a narrow well.²⁸Surely she ^alies in wait as a robber,And adds to the treacherous among men.²⁹Who has ^awoe? Who has sorrow?Who has contentions? Who has complaining?Who has wounds without cause?Who has redness of eyes?³⁰Those who ^alinger long over wine,Those who go to search out ^bmixed wine.³¹Do not look on the wine when it glistens red,When it ¹sparkles in the cup,When it ^agoes down smoothly;³²At the end—like a serpent it ^abites,And like a ^bviper it stings.³³Your eyes will see strange thingsAnd your heart will ^aspeak perverse things.³⁴And you will be like one who lies down in the heart of the sea,Or like one who lies down on the top of a ¹mast.³⁵“They ^astruck me, but I did not become ¹ill;They beat me, but I did not know it.When shall I awake?I will ^bseek yet another.”