1 Chronicles 19:1-19
19 And after this King Nahash of the Bene-ʽAmmon died, and his son succeeded him.
2 And David thought “I will be friendly to Hanun the son of Nahash, since his father was friendly to me”; and David sent messengers to express sympathy with him at the loss of his father.
3 * And David’s officers came to Hanun in the country of the Bene-ʽAmmon to bring him expressions of sympathy; but the chiefs of the Bene-ʽAmmon said to Hanun “Do you think David is honoring your father when he sends you ambassadors of condolence? is it not for the sake of examining and exploring and spying into the country that his officers have come to you?”
4 * And Hanun took David’s officers and shaved them and cut off their habiliments in the middle, up to their hams, and sent them off, and off they went.
5 And David was told about the men, and he sent to meet them (for the men were greatly humiliated); and the king said “Stay at Jericho till your beards grow, and then come back.”
6 And the Bene-ʽAmmon saw that they were at deadly feud with David; and Hanun and the Bene-ʽAmmon sent a thousand hundred-weight of silver to hire chariots and cavalry from Mesopotamia and from Maʽacathite Syria and from Sobah,
7 and hired themselves thirty-two thousand chariots and the king of Maʽacah and his people, and they came and camped in front of Medeba; and the Bene-ʽAmmon came together out of their cities and came in for the war.
8 And David heard, and sent Joab with all the force of the champions;
9 and the Bene-ʽAmmon came out and drew up their line of battle at the city gate, and the kings who had come were by themselves in the open.
10 And Joab saw that he had the front of the battle in his front and in his rear; and he made a selection of picked men out of the whole Israelite body, and drew them up to face the Syrians,
11 and the rest of the men he put into the hands of his brother Abshai, and they formed a line to face the Bene-ʽAmmon;
12 and he said “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall be a rescue to me; and if the Bene-ʽAmmon are too strong for you, I will rescue you.
13 Hold fast, and let us do our best for our people and for the cities of our God, and Jehovah will do as he sees fit.”
14 And Joab and the troops that he had with him came on to the attack on the Syrian front, and they fled before him;
15 and the Bene-ʽAmmon saw that the Syrians had fled, and they too fled before his brother Abshai and entered the city. And Joab came to Jerusalem.
16 And the Syrians saw that they were beaten by the Israelites; and they sent messengers and called out the Syrians beyond the River, with Shophac, Hadarʽezer’s general, at their head.
17 * And David was told, and he brought together all the Israelites and crossed the Jordan and came to them and offered them battle. And David offered battle to the Syrians, and they fought him.
18 And the Syrians fled before the Israelites, and David killed of the Syrians seven thousand chariotry and forty thousand infantry, and struck dead Shophac, the general.
19 And Hadarʽezer’s subjects saw that they were beaten by the Israelites, and made peace with David and became his subjects; and the Syrians were not willing to help the Bene-ʽAmmon any longer.
Footnotes
^ 19:3 Codd. examining and laying in ruins and spying
^ 19:4 Or to their crotches
^ 19:17 Var. came to them; and David offered battle to
