After all these things happened, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision. [84] God said, “Abram, don’t be afraid. I will defend you. And I will give you a great reward.”
So all the leaders of Israel came to meet with King David at Hebron. King David made an agreement with these leaders in Hebron in front of the Lord. Then the leaders anointed [22] David to be the king of Israel.
These men brought out Joash. They put the crown on Joash and gave him the agreement between the king and God. [139] Then they anointed [140] him and made him the new king. They clapped their hands and shouted, “Long live the king!”
I also told those people that God had been kind to me. I told them the things the king had said to me. Then those people answered, “Let’s start to work, now!” So we began this good work.
So all the soldiers of Jabesh went to Beth Shan. [221] They marched all night! Then they took Saul’s body off the wall at Beth Shan. They also took down the bodies of Saul’s sons. Then they took those bodies to Jabesh. There the people of Jabesh burned the bodies of Saul and his three sons.
The Israelites {that lived} on the other side of the valley saw the Israelite army running away. They saw that Saul and his sons were dead. So those Israelites left their cities and ran away. Then the Philistines came and lived in those cities.