1 Some time later the king of the children of Ammon died, and his son Hanun became king after him.
2 David said, "I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me." So David sent his servants to comfort him over his father, and David's servants came to the land of the children of Ammon.
3 But the princes of the children of Ammon said to their lord Hanun, "Do you really think David is honoring your father by sending you comforters? Has David not sent his servants to you to explore the city and spy it out and overthrow it?"
4 So Hanun seized David's servants, shaved off half of each one's beard, cut their garments off in the middle at the hips, and sent them away.
5 David was told, and he sent men to meet them, since they were greatly ashamed. The king said, "Stay at Jericho until your beards grow back, and then come back."
6 The children of Ammon saw that they had made themselves a stench to David, so the children of Ammon sent and hired the Syrians of Beth-rehob and the Syrians of Zobah, twenty thousand foot soldiers, the king of Maacah with a thousand men, and twelve thousand men from Tob.
7 David heard of it and sent Joab with the whole army of mighty men.
8 The children of Ammon came out and formed their battle line at the entrance of the gate, while the Syrians of Zobah and Rehob and the men of Tob and Maacah were off by themselves in the open field.
9 Joab saw that the battle lines faced him front and rear, so he picked some of Israel's best men and formed them up to face the Syrians.
10 The rest of the troops he put under the command of his brother Abishai, who formed them up to face the children of Ammon.
11 Joab said, "If the Syrians prove too strong for me, you must come to my rescue; and if the children of Ammon prove too strong for you, I will come to rescue you.
12 Be strong, and let us be courageous for our people and for the cities of our God. The LORD will do what seems good to him."
13 Joab and the troops with him advanced to fight the Syrians, and they fled from him.
14 When the children of Ammon saw that the Syrians had fled, they too fled from Abishai and went into the city. So Joab came back from the children of Ammon and went to Jerusalem.
15 The Syrians saw that they had been beaten by Israel, and they regrouped.
16 Hadadezer sent for the Syrians across the River and brought them out, and they came to Helam, led by Shobach, commander of Hadadezer's army.
17 David was told, and he gathered all Israel, crossed the Jordan and came to Helam. The Syrians formed their line against David and fought him.
18 The Syrians fled before Israel, and David killed seven hundred Syrian charioteers and forty thousand horsemen; he also struck down Shobach their army commander, who died there.
19 All the kings who were subject to Hadadezer saw that they had been beaten by Israel, and they made peace with Israel and became subject to them. The Syrians were afraid to help the children of Ammon any more.