1 Chronicles 11:1–47

¹In time all the Israelites collected themselves together to David at He′bron, saying: “Look! We are your bone and your flesh.²Both yesterday and previously, even while Saul happened to be king, you were the one leading Israel out and bringing it in; and Jehovah your God proceeded to say to you, ‘You yourself will shepherd my people Israel, and you yourself will become leader over my people Israel.’”³So all the older men of Israel came to the king at He′bron and David concluded a covenant with them in He′bron before Jehovah; after which they anointed David as king over Israel, according to Jehovah’s word by means of Samuel.

⁴Later David and all Israel went to Jerusalem, that is to say, Je′bus, where the Jeb′u‧sites were the inhabitants of the land.⁵And the inhabitants of Je′bus began to say to David: “You will not come in here.” Just the same, David proceeded to capture the stronghold of Zion, that is to say, the City of David.⁶So David said: “Anyone striking the Jeb′u‧sites first, he will become head and prince.” And Jo′ab the son of Ze‧ru′iah got to go up first, and he came to be head.⁷And David took up dwelling in the place difficult to approach. That is why they called it the City of David.⁸And he began to build the city all around, from the Mound even to the parts round about, but Jo′ab himself brought to life the rest of the city.⁹And David went on getting greater and greater, for Jehovah of armies was with him.

¹⁰Now these are the heads of the mighty men that belonged to David, holding strongly with him in his kingship together with all Israel, to make him king according to Jehovah’s word concerning Israel.¹¹And this is the list of the mighty men that belonged to David: Ja‧sho′be‧am the son of a Hach′mon‧ite, the head of the three. He was brandishing his spear over three hundred slain at one time.¹²And after him there was El‧e‧a′zar the son of Do′do the A‧ho′hite. He was among the three mighty men.¹³He it was that happened to be with David at Pas‐dam′mim, where the Phi‧lis′tines had gathered themselves together for war. Now there happened to be a tract of the field full of barley, and the people, for their part, had fled because of the Phi‧lis′tines.¹⁴But he took his stand in the middle of the tract and delivered it, and kept striking down the Phi‧lis′tines, so that Jehovah saved with a great salvation.

¹⁵And three of the thirty head ones proceeded to go down to the rock, to David at the cave of A‧dul′lam, while a camp of the Phi‧lis′tines was camping in the low plain of Reph′a‧im.¹⁶And David was then in the place hard to approach; and a garrison of the Phi‧lis′tines was then in Beth′le‧hem.¹⁷After a while David showed his craving and said: “O that I might have a drink of the water from the cistern of Beth′le‧hem, which is at the gate!”¹⁸At that the three forced their way into the camp of the Phi‧lis′tines and drew water from the cistern of Beth′le‧hem, which is at the gate, and came carrying and bringing it to David. And David did not consent to drink it, but poured it out to Jehovah.¹⁹And he went on to say: “It is unthinkable on my part, as regards my God, to do this! Is it the blood of these men that I should drink at the risk of their souls? For it was at the risk of their souls that they brought it.” And he did not consent to drink it. These are the things that the three mighty men did.

²⁰As for A‧bish′ai the brother of Jo′ab, he himself became head of the three; and he was brandishing his spear over three hundred slain, and he had a reputation like the three.²¹Of the three he was more distinguished than the two others, and he came to be a chief to them; and yet he did not come up to the [first] three.

²²As for Be‧nai′ah the son of Je‧hoi′a‧da, the son of a valiant man, who did many deeds in Kab′ze‧el, he himself struck down the two [sons] of Ar′i‧el of Mo′ab; and he himself descended and struck down a lion inside a waterpit in the day of snowfall.²³And he it was that struck down the Egyptian man, a man of extraordinary size, of five cubits. And in the hand of the Egyptian there was a spear like the beam of loom workers; yet he went on down to him with a rod and snatched the spear away from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear.²⁴These things Be‧nai′ah the son of Je‧hoi′a‧da did, and he had a name among the three mighty men.²⁵Although he was more distinguished than the thirty, yet to the rank of the [first] three he did not come. However, David put him over his own bodyguard.

²⁶As for the mighty men of the military forces, there were As′a‧hel the brother of Jo′ab, El‧ha′nan the son of Do′do of Beth′le‧hem,²⁷Sham′moth the Ha′ro‧rite, He′lez the Pel′o‧nite,²⁸I′ra the son of Ik′kesh the Te‧ko′ite, Abi‐e′zer the An′a‧thoth‧ite,²⁹Sib′be‧cai the Hu′shath‧ite, I′lai the A‧ho′hite,³⁰Ma′ha‧rai the Ne‧toph′a‧thite, He′led the son of Ba′a‧nah the Ne‧toph′a‧thite,³¹I′thai the son of Ri′bai of Gib′e‧ah of the sons of Benjamin, Be‧nai′ah the Pir′a‧thon‧ite,³²Hu′rai from the torrent valleys of Ga′ash, A‧bi′el the Ar′bath‧ite,³³Az′ma‧veth the Ba‧ha′rum‧ite, E‧li′ah‧ba the Sha‧al′bo‧nite,³⁴the sons of Ha′shem the Gi′zo‧nite, Jon′a‧than the son of Sha′gee the Har′a‧rite,³⁵A‧hi′am the son of Sa′car the Har′a‧rite, E‧li′phal the son of Ur,³⁶He′pher the Me‧che′rath‧ite, A‧hi′jah the Pel′o‧nite,³⁷Hez′ro the Car′mel‧ite, Na′a‧rai the son of Ez′bai,³⁸Joel the brother of Nathan, Mib′har the son of Hag′ri,³⁹Ze′lek the Am′mon‧ite, Na′ha‧rai the Be‧roth′ite, the armor‐bearer of Jo′ab the son of Ze‧ru′iah,⁴⁰I′ra the Ith′rite, Ga′reb the Ith′rite,⁴¹U‧ri′ah the Hit′tite, Za′bad the son of Ah′lai,⁴²Ad′i‧na the son of Shi′za the Reu′ben‧ite, a head of the Reu′ben‧ites, by whom there were thirty;⁴³Ha′nan the son of Ma′a‧cah, and Josh′a‧phat the Mith′nite,⁴⁴Uz‧zi′a the Ash′te‧rath‧ite, Sha′ma and Je‧i′el, the sons of Ho′tham the A‧ro′er‧ite,⁴⁵Je‧di′a‧el the son of Shim′ri, and Jo′ha his brother the Ti′zite,⁴⁶E′li‧el the Ma′ha‧vite, and Jer′i‧bai and Josh‧a‧vi′ah the sons of El′na‧am, and Ith′mah the Mo′ab‧ite.⁴⁷E′li‧el and O′bed and Ja‧a‧si′el the Me‧zo′ba‧ite.