The Capture of Rabbah

1In the spring, ¹⁷¹at the time when kings march out to war, Joab led out the army and ravaged the land of the Ammonites. He came to Rabbah and besieged it, but David remained in Jerusalem. And Joab attacked Rabbah and demolished it.

2Then David took the crown from the head of their king. ¹⁷²It was found to weigh a talent of gold ¹⁷³and was set with precious stones, and it was placed on David’s head. And David took a great amount of plunder from the city.

3David brought out the people who were there and put them to work ¹⁷⁴with saws, iron picks, and axes. And he did the same to all the Ammonite cities. Then David and all his troops returned to Jerusalem.

Battles against the Philistines

4Some time later, war broke out with the Philistines at Gezer. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Sippai, ¹⁷⁵a descendant of the Rephaim, ¹⁷⁶and the Philistines were subdued.

5Once again there was a battle with the Philistines, and Elhanan son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother ¹⁷⁷of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.

6And there was also a battle at Gath, where there was a man of great stature with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot—twenty-four in all. He too was descended from Rapha,

7and when he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son of David’s brother Shimei killed him.

8So these descendants of Rapha in Gath fell at the hands of David and his servants.