3. The God of Israel spoke,the protector of Israel spoke to me.The one who rules fairly among men,the one who rules in the fear of God,
4. is like the light of morning when the sun comes up,a morning in which there are no clouds.He is like the brightness after rainthat produces grass from the earth.
5. My dynasty is approved by God,for he has made a perpetual covenant with me,arranged in all its particulars and secured.He always delivers me,and brings all I desire to fruition.
6. But evil people are like thorns – all of them are tossed away,for they cannot be held in the hand.
7. The one who touches themmust use an iron instrumentor the wooden shaft of a spear.They are completely burned up right where they lie!”
8. These are the names of David’s warriors:Josheb-Basshebeth, a Tahkemonite, was head of the officers. He killed eight hundred men with his spear in one battle.
9. Next in command was Eleazar son of Dodo, the son of Ahohi. He was one of the three warriors who were with David when they defied the Philistines who were assembled there for battle. When the men of Israel retreated,
10. he stood his ground and fought the Philistines until his hand grew so tired that it seemed stuck to his sword. The Lord gave a great victory on that day. When the army returned to him, the only thing left to do was to plunder the corpses.
11. Next in command was Shammah son of Agee the Hararite. When the Philistines assembled at Lehi, where there happened to be an area of a field that was full of lentils, the army retreated before the Philistines.
12. But he made a stand in the middle of that area. He defended it and defeated the Philistines; the Lord gave them a great victory.
13. At the time of the harvest three of the thirty leaders went down to David at the cave of Adullam. A band of Philistines was camped in the valley of Rephaim.
14. David was in the stronghold at the time, while a Philistine garrison was in Bethlehem.
15. David was thirsty and said, “How I wish someone would give me some water to drink from the cistern in Bethlehem near the gate!”