1 When David and his men had come to Ziklag on the third day, the Amalekites had made a raid on the South and on Ziklag, and had struck Ziklag and burned it with fire, 2 and had taken captive the women and all who were in it, both small and great. They didn’t kill any, but carried them off and went their way. 3 When David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters were taken captive. 4 Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voice and wept until they had no more power to weep. 5 David’s two wives were taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. 6 David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the souls of all the people were grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters; but David strengthened himself in the LORD his God. 7 David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, "Please bring the ephod here to me."
Abiathar brought the ephod to David. 8 David inquired of the LORD, saying, "If I pursue after this troop, will I overtake them?"
He answered him, "Pursue, for you will surely overtake them, and will without fail recover all."
9 So David went, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and came to the brook Besor, where those who were left behind stayed. 10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind, who were so faint that they couldn’t go over the brook Besor. 11 They found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David, and gave him bread, and he ate; and they gave him water to drink. 12 They gave him a piece of a cake of figs and two clusters of raisins. When he had eaten, his spirit came again to him; for he had eaten no bread, and drank no water for three days and three nights. 13 David asked him, "To whom do you belong? Where are you from?"
He said, "I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite; and my master left me, because three days ago I got sick. 14 We made a raid on the South of the Cherethites, and on that which belongs to Judah, and on the South of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire."
15 David said to him, "Will you bring me down to this troop?"
He said, "Swear to me by God that you will not kill me and not deliver me up into the hands of my master, and I will bring you down to this troop."
16 When he had brought him down, behold, they were spread around over all the ground, eating, drinking, and dancing, because of all the great plunder that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah. 17 David struck them from the twilight even to the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped from there, except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled. 18 David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and David rescued his two wives. 19 There was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither plunder, nor anything that they had taken. David brought them all back. 20 David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drove before those other livestock, and said, "This is David’s plunder."
21 David came to the two hundred men, who were so faint that they could not follow David, whom also they had made to stay at the brook Besor; and they went out to meet David, and to meet the people who were with him. When David came near to the people, he greeted them. 22 Then all the wicked men and worthless fellows of those who went with David answered and said, "Because they didn’t go with us, we will not give them anything of the plunder that we have recovered, except to every man his wife and his children, that he may lead them away and depart."
23 Then David said, "Do not do so, my brothers, with that which the LORD has given to us, who has preserved us, and delivered the troop that came against us into our hand. 24 Who will listen to you in this matter? For as his share is who goes down to the battle, so shall his share be who stays with the baggage. They shall share alike." 25 It was so from that day forward that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day.
26 When David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the plunder to the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying, "Behold, a present for you from the plunder of the LORD’s enemies." 27 He sent it to those who were in Bethel, to those who were in Ramoth of the South, to those who were in Jattir, 28 to those who were in Aroer, to those who were in Siphmoth, to those who were in Eshtemoa, 29 to those who were in Racal, to those who were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, to those who were in the cities of the Kenites, 30 to those who were in Hormah, to those who were in Borashan, to those who were in Athach, 31 to those who were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men used to stay.
1 Três dias mais tarde quando David, acompanhado dos seus homens, chegou a casa na cidade de Ziclague, constatou que os amalequitas tinham feito uma incursão na cidade e queimado tudo inteiramente, levando consigo mulheres e crianças. Ao olharem para aquilo, e ao darem-se conta do que acontecera às suas famílias, choraram todos dolorosamente.
5 As duas mulheres de David, Ainoã e Abigail, encontravam-se também entre as cativas.
6 David estava seriamente preocupado, porque os homens, na sua grande dor por causa dos filhos que os amalequitas lhes tinham levado, falavam até de o apedrejarem. No entanto David tomou forças no Senhor seu Deus.
7 Então disse ao sacerdote Abiatar: Traz-me aqui o éfode! E perguntou ao Senhor: Vou no encalço deles? Apanhá-los-emos? O Senhor respondeu-lhe: Vai, persegue-os; recuperarás tudo o que eles vos levaram!
9 David, mais os outros seiscentos homens, partiram atrás dos amalequitas. Quando alcançaram o ribeiro de Besor, duzentos deles estavam de tal maneira exaustos que nem conseguiram atravessá-lo; mas os outros quatrocentos prosseguiram na corrida. Pelo caminho, a certa altura encontraram um moço egípcio num campo e trouxeram-no a David. O rapaz não tinha comido nem bebido nada durante três dias e três noites; deram-lhe parte dum bolo de figos, duas mãos-cheias de uvas secas, água para beber, e depois disso recuperou as forças.
13 Quem és tu? Donde vens?, perguntou-lhe David.Sou egípcio, servo dum amalequita. O meu senhor abandonou-me há três dias porque eu estava muito doente. Vínhamos de uma incursão militar no Negueve e também no sul de Judá, e ainda na terra de Calebe; também destruímos Ziclague.
15 Podes dizer-me para onde foram eles? Se me jurares em nome de Deus que não me matas nem me entregas de novo ao meu amo, então guiar-te-ei até eles.
16 E assim levou-os ao acampamento dos amalequitas. Estavam todos espalhados numa grande área daquela terra, comendo, bebendo, dançando de alegria por causa do enorme despojo que tinham trazido da Filisteia e de Judá. David e os companheiros saltaram-lhes em cima e mataram neles durante a noite toda, mais o dia seguinte até ao anoitecer. Os únicos que conseguiram escapar foram quatrocentos rapazes que fugiram montados em camelos. David recuperou tudo o que eles tinham levado. Os homens retomaram as famílias e os haveres; David pôde libertar as suas duas mulheres. Toda a gente juntou o gado e os rebanhos, conduzindo-os diante de si e exclamavam: Este é o teu despojo, David!
21 Quando chegaram de novo ao ribeiro de Besor e se juntaram aos tais duzentos que não tinham podido continuar por se encontrarem esgotados, sem forças, David saudou-os pacificamente. Mas alguns dos que vinham com David, homens ruins, perversos, começaram a dizer: Esses não vieram connosco, não hão-de de ter parte no despojo. Que se lhes dê as mulheres e os filhos e que se vão embora.
23 Não, meus irmãos! O Senhor guardou-nos e ajudou-nos a derrotar o inimigo. Numa altura destas alguém poderia dar ouvidos a uma tal proposta? Vamos todos repartir o que obtivemos irmãmente - os que foram à batalha e os que guardaram as bagagens.
25 Foi então que David fez disso uma lei em todo o Israel, e que ainda hoje é válida.
26 Quando chegou a Ziclague enviou parte do saque aos anciãos de Judá: Isto é um presente para vocês, tirado aos inimigos do Senhor, escreveu-lhes. Estes presentes foram enviados aos anciãos das seguintes cidades onde David e os companheiros tinham estado: Betel, Sul de Ramote, Jatir, Aroer, Sifmote, Estemoa, Racal, as cidades dos jerameelitas, as cidades dos queneus, Horma, Borasã, Atace, Hebrom.