21:1 And there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David sought the face of God. And God said: 'It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he put to death the Gibeonites.'

21:2 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 for the children of Israel and Judah —

21:3 and David said unto the Gibeonites: 'What shall I do for you? and wherewith shall I make amends, that ye may bless the inheritance of God?'

21:4 And the Gibeonites said unto him: 'It is no matter of silver or gold between us and Saul, or his house; neither is it for us to put any man to death in Israel.' And he said: 'What say ye that I should do for you?'

21:5 And they said unto the king: 'The man that consumed us, and that devised against us, so that we have been destroyed from remaining in any of the borders of Israel,

21:6 let compensation be given unto us for the wrong that was done, and we will bless the inheritance of God.' And the king said: 'I will give it.'

21:12 And David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the broad place of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them, in the day that the Philistines slew Saul in Gilboa;

21:13 and he brought up from thence the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son.

21:14 And they buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in Zela, in the sepulchre of Kish his father; and they performed all that the king commanded. And after that God was entreated for the land.

21:15 And the Philistines had war again with Israel; and David went down, and his servants with him, and fought against the Philistines; and David waxed faint.

21:16 And Ishbibenob, who was of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose spear was three hundred shekels of brass in weight, he being girded with new armour, thought to have slain David.

21:17 But Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him, and smote the Philistine, and killed him. Then the men of David swore unto him, saying: 'Thou shalt go no more out with us to battle, that thou quench not the lamp of Israel.'

21:18 And it came to pass after this, that there was again war with the Philistines at Gob; then Sibbecai the Hushathite slew Saph, who was of the sons of the giant.

21:19 And there was again war with the Philistines at Gob; and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim the Beth-lehemite slew Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam.

21:20 And there was again war at Gath, where was a champion, 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.

21:21 And when he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea David's brother slew him.

21:22 These four were born to the giant in Gath; and they fell by the hand of David, and by the hand of his servants.