2 Samuel, 21

1. Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David enquired of the LORD. And the LORD answered, [It is] for Saul, and for [his] bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites.

1. There was famine during the reign of David for three consecutive years and David consulted Yahweh. The answer was, "There is bloodguilt on Saul and his family because he put the Gibeonites to death."

2. And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them; (now the Gibeonites [were] not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.)

2. The Gibeonites were not of the people of Israel but descendants of the Amorites. Although the Israelites had sworn to spare them, Saul had attempted to wipe them out on behalf of the people of Israel and Judah.

3. Wherefore David said unto the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? and wherewith shall I make the atonement, that ye may bless the inheritance of the LORD?

3. So David called the Gibeonites and asked them, "What shall I do for you? And how shall I repay you that you may bless the people of Yahweh?"

4. And the Gibeonites said unto him, We will have no silver nor gold of Saul, nor of his house; neither for us shalt thou kill any man in Israel. And he said, What ye shall say, [that] will I do for you.

4. The Gibeonites answered him, "Our quarrel with Saul and his family is not over silver or gold, nor is it our task to put any Israelite to death." The king asked again, "Tell me then what I shall do for you";

5. And they answered the king, The man that consumed us, and that devised against us [that] we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the coasts of Israel,

5. and they replied,"That man slaughtered us and planned our destruction so that we would no longer occupy any place in Israel.

6. Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, [whom] the LORD did choose. And the king said, I will give [them].

6. Surrender seven of his sons to us so that we may hang them up before Yahweh at Gibeon on the mountain of Yahweh." To this, the king said, "I will surrender them."

7. But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of the LORD'S oath that [was] between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.

7. David spared Mepibaal, son of Jonathan, Saul's son, because of the oath David and Jonathan took before Yahweh.

8. But the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bare unto Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth; and the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she brought up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite:

8. But he took the two sons of Rizpah, daughter of Aiah whom she bore to Saul - Armoni and Mepibaal; and the five sons of Merab, daughter of Saul, whom she bore to Adriel, son of Barzillai the Meholathite.

9. And he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them in the hill before the LORD: and they fell [all] seven together, and were put to death in the days of harvest, in the first [days], in the beginning of barley harvest.

9. He delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites who hanged them on the mountain of Yahweh where all seven perished together. They were put to death in the first days of harvest at the beginning of the barley harvest.

10. And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth, and spread it for her upon the rock, from the beginning of harvest until water dropped upon them out of heaven, and suffered neither the birds of the air to rest on them by day, nor the beasts of the field by night.

10. Then Rizpah, daughter of Aiah, took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until rain fell on them from the heavens. She did not allow the birds of the air to come on them by day or the beasts of the field by night.

11. And it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done.

11. When David was told what Rizpah, Aiah's daughter and Saul's concubine, had done,

12. And David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabeshgilead, which had stolen them from the street of Bethshan, where the Philistines had hanged them, when the Philistines had slain Saul in Gilboa:

12. he asked the men of Jabesh-gilead for the bones of Saul and those of his son Jonathan. (They had taken them from the wall of Bethshan where the Philistines had nailed them when they killed Saul on Gilboa.)

13. And he brought up from thence the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son; and they gathered the bones of them that were hanged.

13. So David had brought up from there the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan, and the bones of those who had been hanged were gathered.

14. And the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son buried they in the country of Benjamin in Zelah, in the sepulchre of Kish his father: and they performed all that the king commanded. And after that God was intreated for the land.

14. All of them were buried in the land of Benjamin in Zela, in the tomb of Kish their father. When all that the king had commanded was done, God had pity on the land.

15. Moreover the Philistines had yet war again with Israel; and David went down, and his servants with him, and fought against the Philistines: and David waxed faint.

15. The Philistines waged war again with Israel, and David went down together with his servants to fight against them. When David was already tired,

16. And Ishbibenob, which [was] of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose spear [weighed] three hundred [shekels] of brass in weight, he being girded with a new [sword], thought to have slain David.

16. Ishbibenob, one of the descendants of the giants whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of bronze and who had put on a new sword, thought of killing David.

17. But Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him, and smote the Philistine, and killed him. Then the men of David sware unto him, saying, Thou shalt go no more out with us to battle, that thou quench not the light of Israel.

17. But Abishai, son of Zeruiah, came to his help, attacking and killing the Philistine. Then David's men urged him, "You shall not join us anymore in battle lest the lamp of Israel be extinguished."

18. And it came to pass after this, that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Gob: then Sibbechai the Hushathite slew Saph, which [was] of the sons of the giant.

18. After this, there was more fighting with the Philistines at Gob; there Sibbecai the Hushathite, slew Saph, one of the descendants of the giants.

19. And there was again a battle in Gob with the Philistines, where Elhanan the son of Jaareoregim, a Bethlehemite, slew [the brother of] Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear [was] like a weaver's beam.

19. There was another battle with the Philistines at Gob where Elhanan, son of Jaareoregim, the Bethlehemite, slew Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was the size of a weaver's beam.

20. And there was yet a battle in Gath, where was a man of [great] stature, that had on every hand six fingers, and on every foot six toes, four and twenty in number; and he also was born to the giant.

20. In another encounter at Gath, there was a huge man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, numbering twenty-four in all. He too was a descendant of the giants.

21. And when he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea the brother of David slew him.

21. When he taunted Israel, Jonathan, son of Shimei, David's brother, slew him.

22. These four were born to the giant in Gath, and fell by the hand of David, and by the hand of his servants.

22. All four descendants of the giants fell by the hand of David and his guards.