David becomes king over Israel

5 All the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and said, ‘We are your own flesh and blood. ² In the past, while Saul was king over us, you were the one who led Israel on their military campaigns. And the Lord said to you, “You shall shepherd my people Israel, and you shall become their ruler.”’

³ When all the elders of Israel had come to King David at Hebron, the king made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord, and they anointed David king over Israel.

⁴ David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned for forty years. ⁵ In Hebron he reigned over Judah for seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah for thirty-three years.

⁹ David then took up residence in the fortress and called it the City of David. He built up the area around it, from the terraces^[a] inwards. ¹⁰ And he became more and more powerful, because the Lord God Almighty was with him.