First Book of Chronicles 19

¹ After this, Nahash king of the Ammonites died and his son Hanun succeeded him.

² David thought, ‘I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash since his father was kind to me’. And David sent messengers with his condolences on his father’s death. But when David’s servants reached Hanun in the land of the Ammonites to present these condolences,

³ the Ammonite leaders, said to Hanun, ‘Do you imagine David means to honour your father when he sends you messengers of sympathy? On the contrary, the reason why his servants have come to you is to explore, overthrow and reconnoitre the country.’

⁴ Whereupon Hanun seized David’s servants, shaved them, cut their clothes halfway up to the buttocks, and sent them away.

⁵ David was soon told what had happened to these men; he sent someone to meet them, for the men were covered with shame. ‘Stay in Jericho’ the king said ‘until your beards have grown again, and come back then.’

⁶ The Ammonites saw that they had incurred the enmity of David, and accordingly Hanun and the Ammonites sent a thousand talents of silver to hire chariots and charioteers from the Aramaeans of Upper Mesopotamia, of Maacah and of Zobah.

⁷ They hired thirty-two thousand chariots; also the king of Maacah with his army. These came and encamped before Medeba, while the Ammonites, having left their towns and mustered, were advancing to the war.

⁸ When David heard this, he sent Joab with all the common soldiers and the champions.

⁹ The Ammonites marched out and drew up their line of battle at the approaches to the town, but the kings who had come kept their distance in the open country.

¹⁰ Joab, seeing that he had to fight on two fronts, to his front and to his rear, chose the best of Israel’s picked men and drew them up in line facing the Aramaeans.

¹¹ He entrusted the rest of the army to his brother Abishai, and drew them up in line facing the Ammonites.

¹² ‘If the Aramaeans prove too strong for me,’ he said ‘you must come to my help; if the Ammonites prove too strong for you, I will come to yours.

¹³ Take courage and stand firm for the sake of our people and the towns of our God. And may Yahweh do as he thinks right.’

¹⁴ Joab and the force with him joined battle with the Aramaeans, who fled before him.

¹⁵ When the Ammonites saw that the Aramaeans had taken flight, they too fled before Abishai, Joab’s brother, and withdrew into their town. Then Joab came back to Jerusalem.

¹⁶ Seeing that they had been defeated by Israel, the Aramaeans sent messengers and mobilised the Aramaeans from beyond the river, with Shophach, commander of Hadadezer’s army, at their head.

¹⁷ Word of this was brought to David, who mustered all Israel, crossed the Jordan, made contact with them and took up position near them. David drew up his line of battle facing the Aramaeans, who then engaged him.

¹⁸ But the Aramaeans gave ground before Israel, and David killed seven thousand of their chariot teams and forty thousand foot soldiers. He also killed Shophach their general.

¹⁹ When the vassals of Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with David and became subject to him. The Aramaeans were reluctant to give any more help to the Ammonites.