David Defeats the Amalekites

30¹ Then it happened when David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day , that the Amalekites had made a raid on the Negev and on Ziklag , and had overthrown Ziklag and burned it with fire ; ² and they took captive the women and all who were in it, both small and great , without killing anyone , and carried them off and went their way . ³ When David and his men came to the city , behold , it was burned with fire , and their wives and their sons and their daughters had been taken captive . ⁴ Then David and the people who were with him lifted their voices and wept until e there was no strength in them to weep . ⁵ Now David's two wives had been taken captive , Ahinoam the Jezreelitess and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite . ⁶ Moreover David was greatly distressed because the people spoke of stoning him, for all the people were embittered , each one because of his sons and his daughters . But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God .

⁷ Then David said to Abiathar the priest , the son of Ahimelech , "Please bring me the ephod ." So Abiathar brought the ephod to David . ⁸ David inquired of the Lord , saying , " Shall I pursue this band ? Shall I overtake them?" And He said to him, "Pursue , for you will surely overtake them, and you will surely rescue all." ⁹ So David went , he and the six hundred men who were with him, and came to the brook Besor , where those left behind remained . ¹⁰ But David pursued , he and four hundred men , for two hundred who were too exhausted to cross the brook Besor remained behind. ¹¹ Now they found an Egyptian in the field and brought him to David , and gave him bread and he ate , and they provided him water to drink . ¹² They gave him a piece of fig cake and two clusters of raisins , and he ate ; then his spirit revived . For he had not eaten bread or drunk water for three days and three nights . ¹³ David said to him, "To whom do you belong? And where are you from?" And he said , "I am a young man of Egypt , a servant of an Amalekite ; and my master left me behind when I fell sick three days ago. ¹⁴ "We made a raid on the Negev of the Cherethites , and on that which belongs to Judah , and on the Negev of Caleb , and we burned Ziklag with fire ." ¹⁵ Then David said to him, "Will you bring me down to this band ?" And he said , "Swear to me by God that you will not kill me or deliver me into the hands of my master , and I will bring you down to this band ." ¹⁶ When he had brought him down , behold , they were spread over all the land , eating and drinking and dancing because of all the great spoil that they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah . ¹⁷ David slaughtered them from the twilight until the evening of the next day ; and not a man of them escaped , except e four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled . ¹⁸ So David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken , and rescued his two wives . ¹⁹ But nothing of theirs was missing , whether small or great , sons or daughters , spoil or anything that they had taken for themselves ; David brought it all back . ²⁰ So David had captured all the sheep and the cattle which the people drove ahead of the other livestock , and they said , " This is David's spoil ."

²¹ When David came to the two hundred men who were too exhausted to follow e David , who had also been left at the brook Besor , and they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him, then David approached the people and greeted e them. ²² Then all the wicked and worthless men among those who went with David said , "Because e they did not go with us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have recovered , except e 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 the Lord has given us, who has kept us and delivered into our hand the band that came against us. ²⁴ "And who will listen to you in this matter ? For as his share is who goes down to the battle , so shall his share be who stays by the baggage ; they shall share alike ." ²⁵ So it has been from that day forward , that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day . ²⁶ Now when David came to Ziklag , he sent some of the spoil to the elders of Judah , to his friends , saying , "Behold , a gift for you from the spoil of the enemies of the Lord : ²⁷ to those who were in Bethel , and to those who were in Ramoth of the Negev , and to those who were in Jattir , ²⁸ and to those who were in Aroer , and to those who were in Siphmoth , and to those who were in Eshtemoa , ²⁹ and to those who were in Racal , and to those who were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites , and to those who were in the cities of the Kenites , ³⁰ and to those who were in Hormah , and to those who were in Bor-ashan , and to those who were in Athach , ³¹ and to those who were in Hebron , and to all the places where e David himself and his men were accustomed to go ."

The Death of Saul and His Sons

31¹ Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel , and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines and fell slain on Mount Gilboa . ² The Philistines overtook Saul and his sons ; and the Philistines killed Jonathan and Abinadab and Malchi-shua the sons of Saul . ³ The battle went heavily against Saul , and the archers e e hit him; and he was badly wounded by the archers . ⁴ Then Saul said to his armor bearer , "Draw your sword and pierce me through with it, otherwise these uncircumcised will come and pierce me through and make sport of me." But his armor bearer would not, for he was greatly afraid . So Saul took his sword and fell on it. ⁵ When his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead , he also fell on his sword and died with him. ⁶ Thus Saul died with his three sons , his armor bearer , and all his men on that day together . ⁷ When the men of Israel who were on the other side of the valley , with those who were beyond the Jordan , saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead , they abandoned the cities and fled ; then the Philistines came and lived in them.

⁸ It came about on the next day when the Philistines came to strip the slain , that they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa . ⁹ They cut off his head and stripped off his weapons , and sent them throughout the land of the Philistines , to carry the good news to the house of their idols and to the people . ¹⁰ They put his weapons in the temple of Ashtaroth , and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan . ¹¹ Now when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead e heard what the Philistines had done to Saul , ¹² all the valiant men rose and walked all night , and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan , and they came to Jabesh and burned them there . ¹³ They took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh , and fasted seven days .

²³ And someone said to Him, "Lord , are there just a few who are being saved ?" And He said to them, ²⁴ " Strive to enter through the narrow door ; for many , I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able . ²⁵ "Once e the head of the house gets up and shuts the door , and you begin to stand outside and knock on the door , saying , ' Lord , open up to us!' then He will answer and say to you, ' I do not know where you are from.' ²⁶ "Then you will begin to say , 'We ate and drank in Your presence , and You taught in our streets '; ²⁷ and He will say , 'I tell you, I do not know where you are from; DEPART FROM ME, ALL YOU EVILDOERS .' ²⁸ " In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God , but yourselves being thrown out. ²⁹ "And they will come from east and west and from north and south , and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God . ³⁰ "And behold , some are last who will be first and some are first who will be last ."

Jesus Laments over Jerusalem

³¹ Just at that time some Pharisees approached , saying to Him, "Go away , leave here , for Herod wants to kill You." ³² And He said to them, "Go and tell that fox , 'Behold , I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow , and the third day I reach My goal .' ³³ "Nevertheless I must journey on today and tomorrow and the next day; for it cannot e be that a prophet would perish outside of Jerusalem . ³⁴ " O Jerusalem , Jerusalem , the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together , just e as a hen gathers her brood under her wings , and you would not have it! ³⁵ "Behold , your house is left to you desolate; and I say to you, you will not see Me until the time comes when you say , ' BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE Lord !' "