1 Samuel 30:16-31 - LSB - Legacy Standard Bible

1 Samuel 30:16-31

16 So 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. 17 Then 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. 18 So David ^adelivered all that the Amalekites had taken and ¹delivered his two wives. 19 Indeed 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. 20 And 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

21 Then ^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. 22 Then 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.” 23 Then 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.” 25 So it has been from that day forward, that he made it a statute and a judgment for Israel to this day.
26 Then 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: 27 to those who were in ^aBethel, and to those who were in ^bRamoth of the ¹Negev, and to those who were in ^cJattir, 28 and to those who were in ^aAroer, and to those who were in Siphmoth, and to those who were in ^bEshtemoa, 29 and 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, 30 and to those who were in ^aHormah, and to those who were in ^bBor-ashan, and to those who were in Athach, 31 and to those who were in ^aHebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men ^bwent about.”