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¹ And it comes to pass after this, that Nahash king of the sons of Ammon dies, and his son reigns in his stead,² and David says, "I do kindness with Hanun son of Nahash, for his father did kindness with me"; and David sends messengers to comfort him concerning his father. And the servants of David come to the land of the sons of Ammon, to Hanun, to comfort him,³ and the heads of the sons of Ammon say to Hanun, "Is David honoring your father in your eyes because he has sent comforters to you? Have his servants not come to you in order to search, and to overthrow, and to spy out the land?"⁴ And Hanun takes the servants of David and shaves them, and cuts their long robes in the midst, to the buttocks, and sends them away.⁵ And [some] go and declare to David concerning the men, and he sends to meet them—for the men have been greatly ashamed—and the king says, "Dwell in Jericho until your beard is grown, then you have returned."

⁶ And the sons of Ammon see that they have made themselves abhorred by David, and Hanun and the sons of Ammon send one thousand talents of silver, to hire for themselves, from Aram-Naharaim, and from Aram-Maachah, and from Zobah, chariots and horsemen;⁷ and they hire for themselves thirty-two thousand chariots, and the king of Maachah and his people, and they come in and encamp before Medeba, and the sons of Ammon have been gathered out of their cities, and come to the battle.⁸ And David hears, and sends Joab, and all the host of the mighty men,⁹ and the sons of Ammon come out and set in array [for] battle at the opening of the city, and the kings who have come [are] by themselves in the field.¹⁰ And Joab sees that the front of the battle has been to him, before and behind, and he chooses out of all the choice in Israel, and sets in array to meet Aram,¹¹ and he has given the remnant of the people into the hand of his brother Abishai, and they set in array to meet the sons of Ammon.¹² And he says, "If Aram is stronger than me, then you have been for salvation to me; and if the sons of Ammon are stronger than you, then I have saved you;¹³ be strong, and we strengthen ourselves, for our people, and for the cities of our God, and YHWH does that which is good in His eyes."¹⁴ And Joab draws near, and the people who [are] with him, before Aram to battle, and they flee from his face;¹⁵ and the sons of Ammon have seen that Aram has fled, and they flee—they also—from the face of his brother Abishai, and go into the city. And Joab comes to Jerusalem.¹⁶ And Aram sees that they have been struck before Israel, and send messengers, and bring out Aram that [is] beyond the River, and Shophach head of the host of Hadarezer [is] before them.¹⁷ And it is declared to David, and he gathers all Israel, and passes over the Jordan, and comes to them, and sets in array against them; indeed, David sets in array [for] battle to meet Aram, and they fight with him;¹⁸ and Aram flees from the face of Israel, and David slays seven thousand charioteers and forty thousand footmen of Aram, and he has put Shophach head of the host to death.¹⁹ And the servants of Hadarezer see that they have been struck before Israel, and they make peace with David and serve him, and Aram has not been willing to help the sons of Ammon anymore.