^{1 Ref} It happened, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had made a raid on the South, and on Ziklag, and had struck Ziklag, and burned it with fire,

^{2 Ref} and had taken captive the women [and all] who were therein, both small and great: they didn't kill any, but carried them off, and went their way.

^{3 Ref} When David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captive.

^{4 Ref} Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.

^{5 Ref} David's two wives were taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite.

^{6 Ref} David was greatly distressed; for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David strengthened himself in Yahweh his God.

^{7 Ref} David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, Please bring me here the ephod. Abiathar brought there the ephod to David.

^{8 Ref} David inquired of Yahweh, saying, If I pursue after this troop, shall I overtake them? He answered him, Pursue; for you shall surely overtake [them], and shall without fail recover [all].

^{9 Ref} So David went, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and came to the brook Besor, where those who were left behind stayed.

^{10 Ref} But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind, who were so faint that they couldn't go over the brook Besor.

^{11 Ref} They found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David, and gave him bread, and he ate; and they gave him water to drink.

^{12 Ref} They gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins: and when he had eaten, his spirit came again to him; for he had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights.

^{13 Ref} David said to him, To whom belong you? and whence are you? He said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite; and my master left me, because three days ago I fell sick.

^{14 Ref} We made a raid on the South of the Cherethites, and on that which belongs to Judah, and on the South of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire.

^{15 Ref} David said to him, Will you bring me down to this troop? He said, Swear to me by God, that you will neither kill me, nor deliver me up into the hands of my master, and I will bring you down to this troop.

^{16 Ref} When he had brought him down, behold, they were spread abroad over all the ground, eating and drinking, and dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah.

^{17 Ref} David struck them from the twilight even to the evening of the next day: and there not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men, who rode on camels and fled.