2. ‘The Spirit of the Lord spoke through me;his word was on my tongue.
3. The God of Israel spoke,the Rock of Israel said to me:“When one rules over people in righteousness,when he rules in the fear of God,
4. he is like the light of morning at sunriseon a cloudless morning,like the brightness after rainthat brings grass from the earth.”
5. ‘If my house were not right with God,surely he would not have made with me an everlasting covenant,arranged and secured in every part;surely he would not bring to fruition my salvationand grant me my every desire.
6. But evil men are all to be cast aside like thorns,which are not gathered with the hand.
7. Whoever touches thornsuses a tool of iron or the shaft of a spear;they are burned up where they lie.’
8. These are the names of David’s mighty warriors:Josheb-Basshebeth, a Tahkemonite, was chief of the Three; he raised his spear against eight hundred men, whom he killed in one encounter.
9. Next to him was Eleazar son of Dodai the Ahohite. As one of the three mighty warriors, he was with David when they taunted the Philistines gathered at Pas Dammim for battle. Then the Israelites retreated,
10. but Eleazar stood his ground and struck down the Philistines till his hand grew tired and froze to the sword. The Lord brought about a great victory that day. The troops returned to Eleazar, but only to strip the dead.
11. Next to him was Shammah son of Agee the Hararite. When the Philistines banded together at a place where there was a field full of lentils, Israel’s troops fled from them.
12. But Shammah took his stand in the middle of the field. He defended it and struck the Philistines down, and the Lord brought about a great victory.
13. During harvest time, three of the thirty chief warriors came down to David at the cave of Adullam, while a band of Philistines was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim.