Study Desk

Some Gadites defected to David at his stronghold in the desert. They were brave warriors, ready for battle and able to handle the shield and spear. Their faces were the faces of lions, and they were as swift as gazelles in the mountains.

These Gadites were army commanders; the least was a match for a hundred, and the greatest for a thousand.

Then the Spirit came upon Amasai, chief of the Thirty, and he said: "We are yours, O David! We are with you, O son of Jesse! Success, success to you, and success to those who help you, for your God will help you." So David received them and made them leaders of his raiding bands.

They helped David against raiding bands, for all of them were brave warriors, and they were commanders in his army.

These are the numbers of the men armed for battle who came to David at Hebron to turn Saul's kingdom over to him, as the LORD had said:

men of Judah, carrying shield and spear-6,800 armed for battle;

men of Simeon, warriors ready for battle-7,100;

men of Zebulun, experienced soldiers prepared for battle with every type of weapon, to help David with undivided loyalty-50,000;

men of Dan, ready for battle-28,600;

men of Asher, experienced soldiers prepared for battle-40,000;

The men spent three days there with David, eating and drinking, for their families had supplied provisions for them.

Also, their neighbors from as far away as Issachar, Zebulun and Naphtali came bringing food on donkeys, camels, mules and oxen. There were plentiful supplies of flour, fig cakes, raisin cakes, wine, oil, cattle and sheep, for there was joy in Israel.

Let us bring the ark of our God back to us, for we did not inquire of it during the reign of Saul."

The ark of God remained with the family of Obed-Edom in his house for three months, and the LORD blessed his household and everything he had.

Now Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, along with cedar logs, stonemasons and carpenters to build a palace for him.

And David knew that the LORD had established him as king over Israel and that his kingdom had been highly exalted for the sake of his people Israel.

When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over all Israel, they went up in full force to search for him, but David heard about it and went out to meet them.

After David had constructed buildings for himself in the City of David, he prepared a place for the ark of God and pitched a tent for it.

David assembled all Israel in Jerusalem to bring up the ark of the LORD to the place he had prepared for it.

He said to them, "You are the heads of the Levitical families; you and your fellow Levites are to consecrate yourselves and bring up the ark of the LORD , the God of Israel, to the place I have prepared for it.