Tanakh, Bible & Qu'ran: The Pillars of Three Faiths. Various Authors

it out of the house of Abinadab, which was in the hill, with the ark of God, and Ahio went before the ark. ⁵And David and all the house of Israel played before the Lord with all manner of instruments made of cypress-wood, and with harps, and with psalteries, and with timbrels, and with sistra, and with cymbals.

⁶And when they came to the threshing-floor of Nacon, Uzzah put forth his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it; for the oxen stumbled. ⁷And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God. ⁸And David was displeased, because the Lord had broken forth upon Uzzah; and that place was called ³Perez-uzzah, unto this day ⁹And David was afraid of the Lord that day; and he said: 'How shall the ark of the Lord come unto me?' ¹⁰So David would not remove the ark of the Lord unto him into the city of David; but David carried it aside into the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. ¹¹And the ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite three months; and the Lord blessed Obed-edom, and all his house.

      ¹²And it was told king David, saying: 'The Lord hath blessed the house of Obed-edom, and all that pertaineth unto him, because of the ark of God.' And David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom into the city of David with joy. ¹³And it was so, that when they that bore the ark of the Lord had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fatling. ¹⁴And David danced before the Lord with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod. ¹⁵So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting, and with the sound of the horn.

      ¹⁶And it was so, as the ark of the Lord came into the city of David, that Michal the daughter of Saul looked out at the window, and saw king David leaping and dancing before the Lord; and she despised him in her heart. ¹⁷And they brought in the ark of the Lord, and set it in its place, in the midst of the tent that David had pitched for it; and David offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings before the Lord. ¹⁸And when David had made an end of offering the burnt-offering and the peace-offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hosts. ¹⁹And he dealt among all the people, even among the whole multitude of Israel, both to men and women, to every one a cake of bread, and a cake made in a pan, and a sweet cake. So all the people departed every one to his house.

      ²⁰Then David returned to bless his household. And Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David, and said: 'How did the king of Israel get him honour to-day, who uncovered himself to-day in the eyes of the handmaids of his servants, as one of the vain fellows shamelessly uncovereth himself!' ²¹And David said unto Michal: 'Before the Lord, who chose me above thy father, and above all his house, to appoint me prince over the people of the Lord, over Israel, before the Lord will I make merry. ²²And I will be yet more vile than thus, and will be base in mine own sight; and with the handmaids whom thou hast spoken of, with them will I get me honour.' ²³And Michal the daughter of Saul had no child unto the day of her death.

      7And it came to pass, when the king dwelt in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies round about, ²that the king said unto Nathan the prophet: 'See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains.' ³And Nathan said to the king: 'Go, do all that is in thy heart; for the Lord is with thee.' ⁴And it came to pass the same night, that the word of the Lord came unto Nathan, saying: ⁵'Go and tell My servant David: Thus saith the Lord: Shalt thou build Me a house for Me to dwell in? ⁶for I have not dwelt in a house since the day that I brought up the children of Israel out of Egypt, even to this day, but have walked in a tent and in a tabernacle. ⁷In all places wherein I have walked among all the children of Israel, spoke I a word with any of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to feed My people Israel, saying: Why have ye not built Me a house of cedar? ⁸Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto My servant David: Thus saith the Lord of hosts: I took thee from the sheepcote, from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be prince over My people, over Israel. ⁹And I have been with thee whithersoever thou didst go, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee; and I will make thee a great name, like unto the name of the great ones that are in the earth. ¹⁰And I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place, and be disquieted no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as at the first, ¹¹even from the day that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel; and I will cause thee to rest from all thine enemies. Moreover the Lord telleth thee that the Lord will make thee a house. ¹²When thy days are fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, that shall proceed out of thy body, and I will establish his kingdom. ¹³He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. ¹⁴I will be to him for a father, and he shall be to Me for a son; if he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men; ¹⁵but My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. ¹⁶And thy house and thy kingdom shall be made sure for ever before thee; thy throne shall be established for ever.' ¹⁷According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.

      ¹⁸Then David the king went in, and sat before the Lord; and he said: 'Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that Thou hast brought me thus far? ¹⁹And this was yet a small thing in Thine eyes, O Lord God; but Thou hast spoken also of Thy servant's house for a great while to come; and this too after the manner of great men, O Lord God. ²⁰And what can David say more unto Thee? for Thou knowest Thy servant, O Lord God. ²¹For Thy word's sake, and according to Thine own heart, hast Thou wrought all this greatness, to make Thy servant know it. ²²Therefore Thou art great, O Lord God; for there is none like Thee, neither is there any God beside Thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears. ²³And who is like Thy people, like Israel, a nation one in the earth, whom God went to redeem unto Himself for a people, and to make Him a name, and to do for Thy land great things and tremendous, even for you, [in driving out] from before Thy people, whom Thou didst redeem to Thee out of Egypt, the nations and their gods? ²⁴And Thou didst establish to Thyself Thy people Israel to be a people unto Thee for ever; and Thou, Lord, becamest their God. ²⁵And now, O Lord God, the word that Thou hast spoken concerning Thy servant, and concerning his house, confirm Thou it for ever, and do as Thou hast spoken. ²⁶And let Thy name be magnified for ever, that it may be said: The Lord of hosts is God over Israel; and the house of Thy servant David shall be established before Thee. ²⁷For Thou, O Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, hast revealed to Thy servant, saying: I will build thee a house; therefore hath Thy servant taken heart to pray this prayer unto Thee. ²⁸And now, O Lord God, Thou alone art God, and Thy words are truth, and Thou hast promised this good thing unto Thy servant; ²⁹now therefore let it please Thee to bless the house of Thy servant, that it may continue for ever before Thee; for Thou, O Lord God, hast spoken it; and through Thy blessing let the house of Thy servant be blessed for ever.'

      8And after this it came to pass, that David smote the Philistines, and subdued them; and David took Metheg-ammah out of the hand of the Philistines.

      ²And he smote Moab, and measured them with the line, making them to lie down on the ground; and he measured two lines to put to death, and one full line to keep alive. And the Moabites became servants to David, and brought presents.

      ³David smote also Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to establish his dominion at the river Euphrates. ⁴And David took from him a thousand and seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen; and David houghed all the chariot horses, but reserved of them for a hundred chariots. ⁵And when the Arameans of Damascus came to succour Hadadezer king of Zobah, David smote of the Arameans two and twenty thousand men. ⁶Then David put garrisons in Aram of Damascus; and the Arameans became servants to David, and brought presents. And the Lord gave victory to David whithersoever he went. ⁷And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem. ⁸And from Betah and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, king David took exceeding much brass.

      ⁹And