16. Other men from the tribes of Benjamin and Judah also came to David at the fortress.
17. David went out to meet them and said, “If you have come in peace to help me, I welcome you. Join me. But if you have come to spy on me when I have done nothing wrong, may the God of our ancestors see what you did and punish you.”
18. Amasai was the leader of the Thirty Heroes. Then the Spirit came on Amasai, and he said, “We are yours, David! We are with you, son of Jesse. Peace, peace to you. Peace to those who help you, because your God helps you.” So David welcomed these men into his group and put them in charge of the troops.
19. Some of the men from the tribe of Manasseh also joined David. They joined him when he went with the Philistines to fight Saul. But David and his men did not really help the Philistines. The Philistine leaders talked about David helping them, but then they decided to send him away. They said, “If David goes back to his master Saul, our heads will be cut off!”
20. These were the men from Manasseh who joined David when he went to the town of Ziklag: Adnah, Jozabad, Jediael, Michael, Jozabad, Elihu, and Zillethai. All of them were generals from the tribe of Manasseh.
21. They helped David fight against bad men who were going around the country and stealing things from people. All these men of Manasseh were brave soldiers. They became leaders in David’s army.
22. More and more men came every day to help David. So he had a large and powerful army.
23. These are the numbers of the men who came to David at the town of Hebron. These men were ready for war. They came to give Saul’s kingdom to David. That is what the Lord said would happen. This is their number:
24. From the tribe of Judah there were 6800 men ready for war. They carried shields and spears.
25. From the tribe of Simeon there were 7100 men. They were brave soldiers ready for war.
26. From the tribe of Levi there were 4600 men.