12. Be strong and courageous! Let's fight hard for our people and for the cities of our God. And may the Lord's will be done!”
13. Joab and his men advanced to attack, and the Syrians fled.
14. When the Ammonites saw the Syrians running away, they fled from Abishai and retreated into the city. Then Joab turned back from fighting the Ammonites and went back to Jerusalem.
15. The Syrians realized that they had been defeated by the Israelites, so they called all their troops together.
16. King Hadadezer sent for the Syrians who were on the east side of the River Euphrates, and they came to Helam under the command of Shobach, commander of the army of King Hadadezer of Zobah.
17. When David heard of it, he gathered the Israelite troops, crossed the River Jordan, and marched to Helam, where the Syrians took up their position facing him. The fighting began,
18. and the Israelites drove the Syrian army back. David and his men killed 700 Syrian chariot drivers and 40,000 horsemen, and they wounded Shobach, the enemy commander, who died on the battlefield.
19. When the kings who were subject to Hadadezer realized that they had been defeated by the Israelites, they made peace with them and became their subjects. And the Syrians were afraid to help the Ammonites any more.