¹ Then came all the tribes of Israel to David to Hebron, and spoke, saying, "Behold, we are your bone and your flesh.

² In times past, when Saul was king over us, it was you who led out and brought in Israel. Yahweh said to you, 'You shall be shepherd of my people Israel, and you shall be prince over Israel.'"

³ So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and king David made a covenant with them in Hebron before Yahweh; and they anointed David king over Israel.

⁴ David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.

⁵ In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months; and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.

⁶ The king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who spoke to David, saying, "Unless you take away the blind and the lame, you shall not come in here;" thinking, "David can't come in here."

⁷ Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion; the same is the city of David.

⁸ David said on that day, "Whoever strikes the Jebusites, let him get up to the watercourse, and strike the lame and the blind, who are hated by David's soul." Therefore they say, "The blind and the lame can't come into the house."

⁹ David lived in the stronghold, and called it the city of David. David built around from Millo and inward.

¹⁰ David grew greater and greater; for Yahweh, the God of Armies, was with him.

¹¹ Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters, and masons; and they built David a house.

¹² David perceived that Yahweh had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for his people Israel's sake.

¹³ David took him more concubines and wives out of Jerusalem, after he was come from Hebron; and there were yet sons and daughters born to David.

¹⁴ These are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon,

¹⁵ and Ibhar, and Elishua, and Nepheg, and Japhia,

¹⁶ and Elishama, and Eliada, and Eliphelet.

¹⁷ When the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, all the Philistines went up to seek David; and David heard of it, and went down to the stronghold.

¹⁸ Now the Philistines had come and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.

¹⁹ David inquired of Yahweh, saying, "Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you deliver them into my hand?" Yahweh said to David, "go up; for I will certainly deliver the Philistines into your hand."

²⁰ David came to Baal Perazim, and David struck them there; and he said, "Yahweh has broken my enemies before me, like the breach of waters." Therefore he called the name of that place Baal Perazim.

²¹ They left their images there; and David and his men took them away.

²² The Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.

²³ When David inquired of Yahweh, he said, "You shall not go up. Circle around behind them, and attack them over against the mulberry trees.

²⁴ It shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then you shall stir yourself up; for then Yahweh has gone out before you to strike the army of the Philistines."

²⁵ David did so, as Yahweh commanded him, and struck the Philistines from Geba until you come to Gezer.

¹ It happened after the death of Joshua, the children of Israel asked of Yahweh, saying, "Who should go up for us first against the Canaanites, to fight against them?"

² Yahweh said, "Judah shall go up. Behold, I have delivered the land into his hand."

³ Judah said to Simeon his brother, "Come up with me into my lot, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I likewise will go with you into your lot." So Simeon went with him.

⁴ Judah went up; and Yahweh delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand: and they struck of them in Bezek ten thousand men.

⁵ They found Adoni-Bezek in Bezek; and they fought against him, and they struck the Canaanites and the Perizzites.

⁶ But Adoni-Bezek fled; and they pursued after him, and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his great toes.

⁷ Adoni-Bezek said, "Seventy kings, having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered [their food] under my table: as I have done, so God has requited me." They brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.

⁸ The children of Judah fought against Jerusalem, and took it, and struck it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire.

⁹ Afterward the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who lived in the hill country, and in the South, and in the lowland.

¹⁰ Judah went against the Canaanites who lived in Hebron (now the name of Hebron before was Kiriath Arba); and they struck Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai.

¹¹ From there he went against the inhabitants of Debir. (Now the name of Debir before was Kiriath Sepher.)

¹² Caleb said, "He who strikes Kiriath Sepher, and takes it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter as wife."

¹³ Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother, took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter as wife.

¹⁴ It happened, when she came [to him], that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she alighted from off her donkey; and Caleb said to her, "What would you like?"

¹⁵ She said to him, "Give me a blessing; for that you have set me in the land of the South, Give me also springs of water." Then Caleb gave her the upper springs and the lower springs.

¹⁶ The children of the Kenite, Moses' brother-in-law, went up out of the city of palm trees with the children of Judah into the wilderness of Judah, which is in the south of Arad; and they went and lived with the people.

¹⁷ Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they struck the Canaanites who inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. The name of the city was called Hormah.

¹⁸ Also Judah took Gaza with its border, and Ashkelon with its border, and Ekron with its border.

¹⁹ Yahweh was with Judah; and drove out [the inhabitants of] the hill country; for he could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron.

²⁰ They gave Hebron to Caleb, as Moses had spoken: and he drove out there the three sons of Anak.

²¹ The children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who inhabited Jerusalem; but the Jebusites dwell with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.

²² The house of Joseph, they also went up against Bethel; and Yahweh was with them.

²³ The house of Joseph sent to spy out Bethel. (Now the name of the city before was Luz.)

²⁴ The watchers saw a man come forth out of the city, and they said to him, "Please show us the entrance into the city, and we will deal kindly with you."

²⁵ He showed them the entrance into the city; and they struck the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the man go and all his family.

²⁶ The man went into the land of the Hittites, and built a city, and called its name Luz, which is its name to this day.

²⁷ Manasseh did not drive out [the inhabitants of] Beth Shean and its towns, nor [of] Taanach and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Dor and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Ibleam and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Megiddo and its towns; but the Canaanites would dwell in that land.

²⁸ It happened, when Israel had grown strong, that they put the Canaanites to forced labor, and did not utterly drive them out.

²⁹ Ephraim didn't drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer; but the Canaanites lived in Gezer among them.

³⁰ Zebulun didn't drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites lived among them, and became subject to forced labor.

³¹ Asher didn't drive out the inhabitants of Acco, nor the inhabitants of Sidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob;

³² but the Asherites lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; for they did not drive them out.

³³ Naphtali didn't drive out the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh, nor the inhabitants of Beth Anath; but he lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh and of Beth Anath became subject to forced labor.

³⁴ The Amorites forced the children of Dan into the hill country; for they would not allow them to come down to the valley;

³⁵ but the Amorites would dwell in Mount Heres, in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim: yet the hand of the house of Joseph prevailed, so that they became subject to forced labor.

³⁶ The border of the Amorites was from the ascent of Akrabbim, from the rock, and upward.