Read the Modern Pastor’s Version

After the death of the king of the children of Ammon, his son Hanun took over in his place.

David wanted to show kindness to Hanun just as his father Nahash had shown kindness to him. So he sent a group of servants to comfort Hanun about his father's passing. David's servants entered the land of the children of Ammon.

But when they arrived, the princes of the children of Ammon told Hanun that David was actually sending spies to investigate and prepare for an attack on their city. They thought this was a sign of disrespect from David.

Hanun took offense at this perceived slight and had David's servants punished by shaving off half their beards and cutting their garments in two before sending them away. When David heard about this, he instructed his servants to wait until their beards grew back before returning to him.

The children of Ammon saw how they had offended David and decided to form an alliance with the Syrians from Beth Rehob, Zoba, Ishtob, and Maacah. They also enlisted the help of the king of Maacah's thousand men and twelve thousand soldiers from Tob.

When David heard about this new threat, he sent his trusted general Joab along with a large army of mighty warriors to face them.

The children of Ammon lined up for battle at the entrance to their city gate, while the Syrians took positions in the nearby field. When Joab saw that they had him surrounded, he chose a select group of Israel's best fighters and arrayed them against the Syrians.

Joab instructed Abishai, his brother, to lead the rest of the army against the children of Ammon. He told Abishai that if the Syrians proved too strong for them, the other army would come to their aid; but if the Ammonites were more powerful, Joab would send help when needed.

Joab and his men advanced to battle, and the Syrians fled before them. Seeing this, the children of Ammon also retreated back into their city. When Joab returned to Jerusalem, he found that the Syrians had regrouped and were preparing for another fight.

Hadarezer, the king who led the Syrians, gathered a large army from beyond the river and marched on Israel. He set up camp at Helam, where his commander Shobach was leading the troops.

When David heard about this new threat, he rallied all of Israel and crossed the Jordan River to face the Syrians. The two armies clashed, and the Syrians fled in disarray. David's men killed seven hundred chariots and forty thousand Syrian horsemen. They also defeated their commander Shobach, who died on the battlefield.

When the other kings who were vassals to Hadarezer saw how they had been defeated by Israel, they submitted to Israel's rule and no longer dared to support the children of Ammon.