How does David recover Siceleg’s captives and settle the dispute about sharing the prey?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

After asking the Lord, he pursues with four hundred men while two hundred are too weary to cross Besor. An Egyptian guides them after receiving food and an oath of safety. David recovers everything, then rules that those at the baggage and those in battle share equally because the Lord gave and preserved them. He also sends gifts to Juda’s elders.

Chapter breakdown

David and his men reach Siceleg on the third day. The Amalecites have invaded on the south side, struck and burned Siceleg, taking the women, little and great, captive without killing anyone, and gone on their way. David’s group finds the city burned and their wives, sons and daughters captured. They raise their voices and weep until they have no more tears. David’s two wives are also captives: Achinoam the Jezrahelitess and Abigail, wife of Nabal of Carmel. David is greatly afflicted because each man is bitterly grieved for his children and the people have a mind to stone him. He takes courage in the Lord his God. He asks Abiathar the priest, son of Achimelech, for the ephod, and Abiathar brings it. David asks the Lord whether to pursue these robbers and whether he will overtake them. The Lord tells him to pursue: he will surely overtake them and recover the prey.

David goes with six hundred men to the torrent Besor. Two hundred are too weary to cross, so he pursues with four hundred. They find an Egyptian in the field, bring him to David and give bread, water, a piece of fig cake and two bunches of raisins. After eating, his spirit returns and he is refreshed: he has had no bread or water for three days and three nights. David asks whom he belongs to, where he comes from and where he is going. He says he is a young Egyptian, servant of an Amalecite whose master left him because he became sick three days ago. He says they invaded the south of Cerethi, Juda and the south of Caleb and burned Siceleg. Asked whether he can lead David to the company, he requests an oath by God that David will neither kill him nor deliver him to his master, then he will guide him. David swears.

The Egyptian brings David to the company spread out over all the ground, eating and drinking as if keeping a festival because of all the prey and spoils from the Philistines’ land and Juda. David strikes them from evening to the next evening. None escapes except four hundred young men who mount camels and flee. David recovers all the Amalecites took and rescues his two wives. Nothing is missing, small or great, sons, daughters or spoils: everything taken is recovered. He takes all the flocks and herds and has them go ahead, and the people call it David’s prey.

David returns to the two hundred too weary to follow, whom he ordered to remain at Besor. They come to meet him and his company, and he greets them peaceably. All the wicked and unjust men who went with David say those who did not come should receive none of the recovered prey, only their wives and children, be content and depart. David calls them his brethren and forbids this with what the Lord has given, saying the Lord kept them and delivered the invading robbers into their hands. He says nobody will listen to that proposal: the share of one who went to battle must equal that of one who stayed at the baggage, and they must divide alike. This is done from that day forward and later made a statute, ordinance and law in Israel.

At Siceleg, David sends presents from the prey to Juda’s elders, his neighbours, telling them to receive a blessing from the prey of the Lord’s enemies. The recipients are in Bethel, Ramoth to the south, Jether, Aroer, Sephamoth, Esthamo, Rachal, the cities of Jerameel, the cities of Ceni, Arama, the lake Asan, Athach and Hebron, and the rest in places where David had stayed with his men.

The story inside

The burned city and missing families lead to tears and a threat against David, who takes courage and consults the Lord. The promise of recovery leads to pursuit, limited by the two hundred men’s weariness. The Egyptian’s revival, account of the raids and requested oath provide the route to the feasting company. The evening-to-evening attack ends with a specific exception of four hundred escaping and a complete recovery. At Besor, the proposal to exclude the weary men is answered by David’s explanation of the Lord’s gift and preservation and an equal-share rule. The return to Siceleg then brings gifts to all the named Juda locations and former stopping places.

Lessons worth keeping

1
The inquiry precedes pursuit. David faces grief for his own wives and a threatened stoning, takes courage and asks both whether to pursue and whether he will overtake. The source reports a promise and its later recovery, not the absence of any battle casualties.
2
The Egyptian’s help has specific conditions. Food and drink revive him after three days and nights without either. His guidance follows David’s oath against killing him or returning him to his master; it is not narrated as a bargain for payment.
3
The sharing rule addresses the stated dispute. The men who fought want the weary group to have only families; David answers with the Lord’s gift, preservation and delivery of the robbers and equal shares for battle and baggage. The final gifts preserve every named recipient rather than supplying a political motive.

Test your recall

How do grief and the Lord’s answer lead to pursuit, what enables and secures the Egyptian’s guidance, and why does David reject withholding the weary men’s share?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 31499–31532
1 Kings Chapter 30 The Amalecites burn Siceleg, and carry off the prey: David pursueth after them, and recovereth all out of their hands. 30:1. Now when David and his men were come to Siceleg on the third day, the Amalecites had made an invasion on the south side upon Siceleg, and had smitten Siceleg, and burnt it with fire, 30:2. And had taken the women captives that were in it, both little and great: and they had not killed any person, but had carried them with them, and went on their way. 30:3. So when David and his men came to the city, and found it burnt with fire, and that their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives, 30:4. David and the people that were with him, lifted up their voices, and wept till they had no more tears. 30:5. For the two wives also of David were taken captives, Achinoam, the Jezrahelitess, and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel. 30:6. And David was greatly afflicted: for the people had a mind to stone him, for the soul of every man was bitterly grieved for his sons and daughters: but David took courage in the Lord his God. 30:7. And he said to Abiathar, the priest, the son of Achimelech: Bring me hither the ephod. And Abiathar brought the ephod to David. 30:8. And David consulted the Lord, saying: Shall I pursue after these robbers, and shall I overtake them, or not? And the Lord said to him: Pursue after them: for thou shalt surely overtake them and recover the prey.
Lines 31534–31559
30:9. So David went, he and the six hundred men that were with him, and they came to the torrent Besor: and some, being weary, stayed there. 30:10. But David pursued, he and four hundred men: for two hundred stayed, who, being weary, could not go over the torrent Besor. 30:11. And they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David: and they gave him bread to eat, and water to drink, 30:12. As also a piece of a cake of figs, and two bunches of raisins. And when he had eaten them, his spirit returned, and he was refreshed: for he had not eaten bread, nor drunk water, three days and three nights. 30:13. And David said to him: To whom dost thou belong; or whence dost thou come? and whither art thou going? He said: I am a young man of Egypt, the servant of an Amalecite: and my master left me, because I began to be sick three days ago. 30:14. For we made an invasion on the south side of Cerethi, and upon Juda, and upon the south of Caleb, and we burnt Siceleg with fire. 30:15. And David said to him: Canst thou bring me to this company? and he said: Swear to me by God, that thou wilt not kill me, nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will bring thee to this company. And David swore to him.
Lines 31561–31578
30:16. And when he had brought him, behold they were lying spread abroad upon all the ground, eating and drinking, and as it were keeping a festival day, for all the prey and the spoils which they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Juda. 30:17. And David slew them from the evening unto the evening of the next day, and there escaped not a man of them, but four hundred young men, who had gotten upon camels, and fled. 30:18. So David recovered all that the Amalecites had taken, and he rescued his two wives. 30:19. And there was nothing missing small or great, neither of their sons or their daughters, nor of the spoils, and whatsoever they had taken, David recovered all. 30:20. And he took all the flocks and the herds, and made them go before him: and they said: This is the prey of David.
Lines 31580–31600
30:21. And David came to the two hundred men, who, being weary, had stayed, and were not able to follow David, and he had ordered them to abide at the torrent Besor: and they came out to meet David, and the people that were with him. And David coming to the people, saluted them peaceably. 30:22. Then all the wicked and unjust men, that had gone with David, answering, said: Because they came not with us, we will not give them any thing of the prey which we have recovered: but let every man take his wife, and his children, and be contented with them, and go his way. 30:23. But David said: You shall not do so, my brethren, with these things, which the Lord hath given us, who hath kept us, and hath delivered the robbers that invaded us into our hands: 30:24. And no man shall hearken to you in this matter. But equal shall be the portion of him that went down to battle, and of him that abode at the baggage, and they shall divide alike. 30:25. And this hath been done from that day forward, and since was made a statute and an ordinance, and as a law in Israel.
Lines 31602–31621
30:26. Then David came to Siceleg, and sent presents of the prey to the ancients of Juda, his neighbours, saying: Receive a blessing of the prey of the enemies of the Lord. 30:27. To them that were in Bethel, and that were in Ramoth to the south, and to them that were in Jether. 30:28. And to them that were in Aroer, and that were in Sephamoth, and that were in Esthamo, 30:29. And that were in Rachal, and that were in the cities of Jerameel, and that were in the cities of Ceni, 30:30. And that were in Arama, and that were in the lake Asan, and that were in Athach, 30:31. And that were in Hebron, and to the rest that were in those places, in which David had abode with his men.