2 Samuel 10 - 20:22

 

Some time later, the king of Ammon died. His son Hanun succeeded him. Then David said, "I will treat Hanun, the son of Nahash, as his father treated me," and he sent messengers to express his sympathy for the loss of his father.

When David's messengers arrived in Ammon, the Ammonite princes said to their king, "Do you think David is sending you his condolences because he wants to honor the memory of your father? His messengers are obviously spies sent to explore the city so that he can destroy it!"

Then Hanun had David's messengers arrested. He had one side of their beards shaved off and the bottoms of their clothes torn off, exposing their buttocks, and sent them away. When King David heard this, he sent the following message to the deeply humiliated men: "Stay in Jericho and do not return until your beards have grown back."

 

The Ammonites realized that they had made themselves impossible with David. So they recruited mercenaries: twenty thousand foot soldiers from the Arameans of Rechob and Zobah, a thousand from the king of Maacah, and another twelve thousand from Is-Tob.

When David heard this, he sent Joab with his elite troops. The Ammonites marched out and lined up in battle formation at the gate. The Arameans of Zobah and Rechob and the men of Is-Tob and Maacah took up positions elsewhere in the field. Joab, seeing that he was threatened on two fronts, chose the very best soldiers of Israel and deployed them against the Arameans. He placed the rest of the soldiers under the command of his brother Abishai and positioned them against the Ammonites. He said, "If the Arameans prove stronger than I, you will come to my aid, and if the Ammonites prove stronger than you, I will come to your aid. Be strong! Let us join forces for the sake of our people and the cities of our God; the LORD will do what He thinks best.'

As soon as Joab and his soldiers launched their attack, the Arameans fled. When the Ammonites saw that the Arameans had fled, they fled from Abishai and retreated into the city. Joab stopped fighting against Ammon and returned to Jerusalem.

 

The Arameans realized that they had been defeated by Israel and sought reinforcements. Hadadezer called on the Arameans who lived across the Euphrates and sent them to Chelam under the command of his commander-in-chief, Sobach.

When David heard of this, he gathered all the troops of Israel and crossed the Jordan to Chelam. The Arameans lined up against David and attacked him. The Israelites put them to flight, and David killed seven hundred Aramean charioteers and forty thousand horsemen. He also struck down and killed Commander Sobach. Hadadezer's vassals had to accept their defeat. They made peace with Israel and submitted to them. From then on, the Arameans did not dare to come to the aid of the Ammonites.

 

*

 

At the beginning of spring, the time when kings usually go to war, David again sent out the army, led by Joab and his commanders, to defeat the Ammonites and besiege Rabbah. He himself remained in Jerusalem.

One afternoon, he rose from his bed and walked back and forth on the roof of the palace. Below, he saw a woman bathing. She was very beautiful to look at. He inquired about her, and they told him, "She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite." David sent for her and slept with her. (The prescribed period of abstinence after her uncleanness had just ended.) Then she returned home.

 

Some time later, she realized she was pregnant. She sent word to David, and David sent Joab to send Uriah to him.

Uriah reported to David at Joab's command, and David asked him how Joab and the army were doing and how the war was going. Then he said, "Go home and relax." When Uriah left the palace, he received a gift from the king.

But Uriah did not go home; he stayed and slept in the gatehouse of the palace with his lord's men. When David was told that Uriah had not gone home, he said to him, "You have come from a long journey. Why did you not go home?"

Uriah replied, "The ark and the army of Israel and Judah are staying in tents, and Commander Joab and his men are camping in the open field. How can I go home to eat and drink and sleep with my wife? As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!"

David said to Uriah, "Stay here today too, and tomorrow I will send you back."

So Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day. The next day, David invited him to his table and made him drunk. Yet Uriah did not go home that evening, but lay down again with his master's men.

 

The next morning, David wrote a letter to Joab and gave it to Uriah. The letter said, "Put Uriah in the thick of the battle and do not protect him, so that he will be struck down and die."

Joab investigated where the defense was strongest and placed Uriah there. The defenders of the city made a sortie against Joab. There were casualties among David's soldiers, and Uriah was also killed.

Joab sent a report of the battle to David and instructed the messenger: "When you have told the king the whole story of the battle, and he asks you angrily, 'Why did you venture so close to the city? You knew they would shoot from the wall! Have you forgotten how Abimelech, the son of Jerubbesheth, met his end at Thebez? A woman threw a millstone on his head from the city wall, and he died. Why did you venture so close to the wall?" then you must say, 'Your commander Uriah is also dead.'"

The messenger went to David and told him everything Joab had instructed him to say. He said to David, "Our opponents were stronger than we were and made a sortie against us. We drove them back to the gate, but then the archers took aim at us from the wall and killed some of the king's soldiers. Your commander Uriah has also been killed."

David instructed the messenger to tell Joab, "Don't take it too hard; war takes its toll. Take heart! Reopen the attack on the city and raze it to the ground."

 

Uriah's wife was told that her husband had been killed, and she mourned for her husband. When the mourning period was over, David took her into his court. She became his wife and bore him a son.

 

*

 

In the eyes of the LORD, what David had done was indeed evil. He sent the prophet Nathan to David to tell him the following: "There were once two men living in the same city, one rich and one poor. The rich man had many goats, sheep, and cattle, but the poor man could afford only one little lamb. He cherished it and raised it with his children. It ate from his bread and drank from his cup and slept in his lap; he loved it like a daughter. One day, the rich man had a guest visit him. He could not bring himself to serve the traveler one of his own goats, sheep, or cattle. So he took the poor man's lamb and served it to his guest."

David was very angry with the rich man and said to Nathan, "As surely as the LORD lives, the man who did this deserves to die. He must pay four times the value of the lamb because he did this thing so heartlessly."

Then Nathan said, "You are that man! This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: I anointed you king of Israel, and I rescued you from the hand of Saul. I gave you your master's property and possessions, and I gave you your master's wives. I gave you the kingdom of Israel and Judah. If that is not enough, I will add to it. Why did you despise my commands by doing what is evil in my sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite. You took his wife and had him killed in battle against the Ammonites. Now, from now on, murder and bloodshed will spread throughout your royal house because you have despised me and taken Uriah's wife as your wife. This is what the LORD says: Your own family will become a source of misery for you. You will have to watch as I give your wives to another man, someone from your own family. He will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. You acted in secret, but I will make this happen in front of all Israel and in broad daylight.

David replied to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord."

Then Nathan said, "The LORD has forgiven you for this sin; you will not die. But because you have deeply hurt the LORD, your newborn son will die."

Then Nathan went home.

 

*

 

The LORD struck the child that Uriah's wife had borne to David with a deadly disease. David prayed to God for the boy. He fasted strictly and lay down on the ground at night. The courtiers tried to persuade him to get up from the ground, but he refused, and he would not accept any food. After seven days, the child died.

 

Psalm 51 For the choir director. A psalm of David,

when the prophet Nathan visited him after he had slept with Bathsheba.

 

Have mercy on me, God, in your faithfulness,

You are full of compassion, blot out my transgressions,

wash me clean of all my guilt,

wash me clean of my sins.

 

I know my transgressions,

I am always conscious of my sins,

against You, against You alone have I sinned,

I have done what is evil in your sight.

 

Let your judgment be just

and Your judgment pure.

I was already guilty when I was born,

already sinful when my mother conceived me,

 

but You want truth to fill me,

You teach me wisdom, deep in my heart.

Purify me with marjoram, then I will be clean,

wash me and I will be whiter than snow.

 

Let me hear joy and gladness:

You have broken me, let me also rejoice.

Close your eyes to my sins

and wipe away all my guilt.

 

Create in me a pure heart, O God,

renew my spirit, make me steadfast,

do not cast me away from your presence,

do not take your Holy Spirit from me.

 

Save me, give me the joy of old,

the strength of a strong spirit.

Then I will teach your ways to those who are lost,

and sinners will return to You.

 

You are the God who saves me,

deliver me, God, from impending death,

and I will rejoice in your righteousness.

Open my lips, Lord, and my mouth will proclaim Your praise.

 

You do not want sacrificial animals from me,

You take no pleasure in burnt offerings.

The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

 

Be gracious to Zion and prosper it,

rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.

Then you will accept the right sacrifices, sacrifices burned in their entirety,

then bulls will be laid on your altar.

 

David's servants did not dare to tell him that the child had died. They said to one another, "While the child was still alive, he would not listen to us. How can we tell him that the child has died? He will do himself harm."

David saw his servants whispering to each other. He understood that the child had died and asked them, "Is my child dead?"

"Yes, it is dead," they replied.

 

David got up from the ground, bathed, rubbed himself with oil, and changed his clothes. He went into the house of the LORD and knelt down. Then he went home and had something to eat.

His servants asked him, "How can you do this? While the child was still alive, you fasted and wept, but now that it is dead, you get up and eat." He replied, "While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, 'Who knows? Perhaps the LORD will be gracious to me and let the child live.' But now that he is dead, why should I fast? I cannot bring him back. I will go to him, but he will not return to me."

David comforted his wife Bathsheba. He slept with her, and she gave birth to a son, whom he named Solomon. The LORD loved the child and, through the prophet Nathan, gave him the name Jedidiah, meaning "beloved of the LORD."

 

*

 

Meanwhile, Joab had laid siege to the Ammonites in Rabbah. When he had surrounded the royal palace, he sent this message to David: "I am about to capture Rabbah; I have cut off its water supply. Now call the rest of the soldiers, set up camp near the city, and take it, so that the conquest of Rabbah will not be credited to me.'

David called all the soldiers, went to Rabbah, attacked the city, and captured it. He took the crown from the head of the king of the Ammonites. This crown, which was worth a talent of gold and precious stones, now rested on David's head. He carried away a great deal of plunder from the city. He also took away the inhabitants of the city and put them to work with stone saws, iron picks, and axes in quarries and brick kilns. He did the same to all the other cities of Ammon. Then David returned to Jerusalem with the entire army.

 

*

 

Some time later, the following happened. Absalom, a son of David, had a sister named Tamar. She was very beautiful. Amnon, David's eldest son, fell in love with her. He became almost sick with desire for his half-sister, who was not yet married, but he saw no opportunity to approach her.

Now Amnon was friends with his cousin Jonadab, the son of David's brother Shimeah, and Jonadab was a man of great experience. "Tell me, Amnon," he asked the king's son, "why have you been so depressed for days?"

Amnon replied, "Because I am in love with Tamar, the sister of my brother Absalom."

Jonadab advised him, "Lie down on your bed and pretend to be sick. When your father comes to see you, say to him, 'If only Tamar would come and feed me. If she would prepare something nourishing here so I can see it with my own eyes, then I will eat.'"

 

So Amnon lay down on his bed and pretended to be sick. When the king came to see him, Amnon said to him, "If only Tamar would come and prepare two cakes here. When she brings them to me, I will eat."

David immediately sent a message to Tamar: "Go quickly to Amnon and prepare something nourishing for him."

 

Tamar went to her brother Amnon's house. While he remained in bed, she made dough, kneaded it, and formed it into hearts before his eyes. When she had baked the heart-shaped cakes, she set the dish before him, but Amnon refused to eat. He sent everyone away and then said to Tamar, "Bring the cakes here and serve them to me with your own hands."

Tamar brought the heart-shaped cakes to her brother Amnon's bedroom and held them out to him. But he grabbed her and said to her, "Come, my sister, lie down with me."

"No, my brother, don't do that!" she cried. "Don't touch me! Such a disgraceful thing is not done in Israel! Think of me, what will become of me if I am robbed of my honor? And think of yourself, all Israel will speak of you with disgrace. Talk to the king first, he will surely not refuse you my hand."

But he would not listen to her, and he overpowered her, raped her, and dishonored her.

 

Immediately, a deep hatred welled up in Amnon. He hated her even more than he had loved her before. "Get up, get out!" he snapped at her.

Tamar cried out, "You can't do that! Sending me away is even worse than what you have already done to me."

But he refused to listen to her. He called his servant and said, "Get this woman out of my sight. Take her out of the house and lock the door behind her."

 

Tamar wore a multicolored robe, such as marriageable princesses wore as an outer garment. When Amnon's servant had put her out on the street and locked the door behind her, she threw dust over her head and tore her multicolored robe. She grabbed her head and ran home wailing.

There her brother Absalom asked her, "Has Amnon violated you? Be quiet, sister, he is your brother; you had better let it rest."

From then on, Tamar lived in her brother Absalom's house, cut off from life.

 

When King David heard what had happened, he was furious. Absalom did not speak to Amnon about it, there was no ill will between them, but he hated him for dishonoring his sister Tamar.

 

*

 

Two years later, Absalom invited all the king's sons to join him in Baal-Hazar, near Ephraim, for the sheep shearing festival. He went to the king and asked, "They are shearing the sheep at my place; may I and yours be our guests?"

The king replied, "No, my son, let's not do that; we would all be a burden to you."

No matter how much Absalom insisted, the king refused and was about to take his leave. Then Absalom said, "If you will not come, let my brother Amnon go with us."

"Why?" asked the king, but Absalom persisted, and finally the king sent Amnon and the other sons of the king with him.

 

Then Absalom commanded his servants, "Listen, when Amnon has had his fill of wine and I say to you, 'Kill Amnon,' then you must kill him. You have nothing to fear, for I have commanded you myself. Be strong and do not hesitate."

As soon as Absalom's servants had done to Amnon as Absalom commanded, all the king's sons rose up, jumped on their mules, and fled.

 

While they were still on their way, David heard the news that Absalom had killed all the king's sons and that not one of them had escaped. The king stood up, tore his clothes, and threw himself on the ground. The whole court stood around him with torn clothes.

Then Jonadab, the son of David's brother Shimeah, spoke up and said, "It is not true that all the boys, all your sons, have been killed, my lord and king; only Amnon is dead. From the day Amnon defiled his sister Tamar, Absalom considered it his duty to kill him. So do not take seriously the rumor that all your sons have been killed, for only Amnon is dead."

A little later, the watchman on duty reported that he saw a large crowd approaching from the mountains in the distance. Absalom had meanwhile sought refuge. Jonadab said to the king, "See, the king's sons are coming. What did I tell you?"

No sooner had he spoken than the king's sons arrived. They began to wail loudly, and the king and all his courtiers cried out in grief. Meanwhile, Absalom found refuge with Talmai, the son of Ammichur, king of Geshur, while David continued to mourn his son.

 

*

 

When Absalom had been living in Geshur for three years, where he had found refuge, King David decided to go to war against Absalom, for the mourning for Amnon's death was over.

 

Joab, the son of Zeruiah, noticed that the king was hostile toward Absalom. He sent for a wise woman from Tekoa and said to her, "Pretend to be in mourning: put on mourning clothes, do not anoint yourself with oil, and behave like a woman who has been mourning for many years. Then go to the king and say to him what I tell you." And he put the words in her mouth exactly as he wanted her to say them.

The woman from Tekoa turned to the king. She knelt, bowed deeply, and said, "My king, please help me."

The king asked what was wrong, and she said, "My lord, I am a widow; my husband has died. Once, my two sons got into a fight out in the field, and there was no one to intervene. Then one killed the other. Now the whole family has turned against me. They say, 'Hand over the fratricide to us, and we will put him to death to avenge the life of his brother, whom he killed. Even though he is the heir, we will kill him.' In this way, they will extinguish the last ember that remains to me, and then there will be nothing left on earth to remind us of my husband and his name."

"Go home in peace," said the king, "I will see to it that everything is settled."

But the woman from Tekoa insisted, "Yes, but my family and I will be blamed, my lord and king; no one will blame you or your throne."

Then the king said, "If anyone disagrees, refer them to me; I will see to it that they no longer bother you."

But the woman pleaded, "My lord and king, will you not call on the LORD your God as a witness that no further evil will be done through bloodshed and that they will not take my son's life?"

And he said, "As the LORD lives, not a hair of your son shall be harmed."

Then the woman said, "If my lord the king will allow me, I would like to say one more thing."

"Speak freely," he replied, and the woman said,

"Why then do you want to do such a thing against God's own people? If you do not bring back your exile, you are accusing yourself with this statement. For we all die; we are like water that flows into the earth when it is not collected. Would God not seek ways and means to bring the exile back? I have come to present this matter to you, my lord and king, because the people have frightened me. I thought to myself, "Let me present my case to the king; perhaps he will grant my request. The king will surely listen to me and ensure that no one drives me and my son from God's territory. I said to myself, "The king will speak the redeeming word. For you are like an angel of God, my lord and king, as you weigh the pros and cons of a matter. May the LORD your God be with you.

Then the king said to the woman, "Now I want to ask you something, and I expect an honest answer." "What do you want to know, my lord and king?" she asked, and the king said, "Does Joab have anything to do with this?" The woman replied, "As surely as you live, my lord and king, you are right. It is indeed your servant Joab who instructed me to do this. He put these words in my mouth. He did this to present the matter to you in a veiled way. You are truly as wise as an angel of God, my lord and king, as you see through everything."

The king said to Joab, "Very well, I will do as you suggest. You may bring back my son Absalom."

Joab knelt, bowed low, and thanked the king: "Now I know for sure, my lord and king, that you are well disposed toward me, because you have granted your servant's request."

 

Then he went to Geshur and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem. The king said, "Let him go straight to his house, for I will not receive him." So Absalom returned home, but the king did not receive him.

 

*

 

Now there was no man in all Israel whose appearance was as admired as Absalom's; from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head, there was nothing that marred him. When he cut his hair—he had to cut it every year, otherwise it would become too heavy—it weighed two hundred shekels according to the royal standard. Absalom had three sons and a daughter named Tamar, who grew up to be a beautiful woman.

When Absalom had lived in Jerusalem for two years without being received by the king, he called Joab to ask him to intercede with the king. But Joab refused to come. He sent for Joab again, and again he refused. Then he said to his servants, "Do you see Joab's field next door, where he has barley growing? Go and set the field on fire."

Absalom's servants did as they were commanded. Then Joab came to Absalom's house and asked him, "Why did your servants set my field on fire?"

Absalom replied, "I sent for you to ask you to go to the king and say to him on my behalf, 'Why did I ever come back from Geshur? It would have been better for me to stay there. Now I want you to receive me. If I have done anything wrong, let me be put to death.'"

Joab went to the king and told him. Then the king sent for Absalom. He knelt before the king and bowed low, and the king kissed Absalom.

 

*

 

Some time later, Absalom had a chariot made, bought horses, and hired an escort of fifty men. Every morning he would stand at the city gate. He would speak to anyone who was on his way to the king to ask for a ruling in a legal dispute. "Where are you from?" he would ask, and when the answer was, "From such and such a tribe of Israel," Absalom would say, "Listen, even if you are completely right, you will not find favor with the king."

 

And he continued, "Why am I not appointed judge of this land? I would give justice to everyone who came to me with a dispute or a legal claim."

When such a person wanted to kneel before Absalom, Absalom would spread out his arms and embrace him. In this way, he welcomed everyone from Israel who came to ask the king for a ruling, and in this way he won over the people of Israel.

 

*

 

After four years had passed, Absalom said to the king, "I ask your permission to go to Hebron and fulfill the vow I made to the LORD. While I was staying in Geshur in Aram, I promised the LORD that I would honor Him if He allowed me to return to Jerusalem."

The king replied, "Go in peace."

Absalom set out for Hebron. He sent messengers ahead to all the tribes of Israel with the message: "As soon as you hear the sound of the ram's horn, you must proclaim: 'Absalom has been proclaimed king in Hebron!'"

 

Two hundred guests from Jerusalem accompanied Absalom on his way to Hebron. They went with him unsuspectingly and in complete good faith. He also had Ahithophel, David's advisor, brought over from his home in Gilo for the sacrificial meal. More and more people joined Absalom. Thus, a widespread conspiracy arose.

 

*

 

When David received word that the people of Israel had sided with Absalom, he said to his courtiers, "Come, we must flee if we want to escape Absalom. Quickly, we must stay ahead of him, for if he overtakes us here in Jerusalem, he will slaughter us and we will be done for."

"As you wish, my lord and king," replied the courtiers. "We are at your disposal."

The king left, and his entire court followed him. However, he left ten of his concubines behind to take care of the palace.

 

The king departed, and all his soldiers followed him. They stopped at Bet-Hammerchak. After the bodyguard of Keretites and Peletites had passed the k , six hundred Gatiites who had joined him also passed by. The king said to their leader Ittai, "But you don't have to come with us, do you? Return and join the new king. After all, you are a stranger, exiled from your own home. You have only recently arrived, so I cannot expect you to go with us now. I myself do not even know where I will end up. Return and take your men with you. May the LORD treat you kindly and graciously."

But Ittai replied, "As surely as the LORD lives, and as surely as you live, my lord and king, I will follow you wherever you go, in life or in death."

"Very well," David said to Ittai, "you may come with us."

So Ittai went on, with all who were with him, men, women, and children.

 

The people wailed loudly as the army marched past. When the king crossed the Kidron and the army turned toward the desert, he saw Zadok and the Levites carrying the ark of the covenant with God. They set down the ark of God, and Abiathar offered burnt offerings until everyone from the city had passed by.

The king said to Zadok, "Take the ark of God back to the city. If the LORD is pleased with me, He will bring me back and let me see the ark in its proper place. But if the LORD rejects me, then I will accept it. He may do with me as He sees fit." He continued, “You and Abiathar may return to the city, taking your sons Ahimaaz and Jonathan with you. I will wait in the wilderness until I hear from you.”

So Zadok and Abiathar took the ark of God back to Jerusalem and remained in the city.

 

David went up the slope of the Mount of Olives. He climbed up, weeping, his head covered and his feet bare. All who went with him covered their heads and climbed up, weeping. Then David received word that Ahithophel had joined Absalom's conspiracy, and he cried out, "O LORD, thwart Ahithophel's plans!"

When David reached the place of prayer at the top of the mountain, the Arkite Hushai came to meet him. He had torn his clothes and thrown dust over his head. David said to him, "If you go with me, you will only be a burden to me. Go back to the city and say to Absalom, 'My king, I will be your servant; as I served your father in the past, so I will serve you now.' In this way, you can thwart Ahithophel's plans for me. The priests Zadok and Abiathar are also there. Whatever you hear in the palace, tell them both. They have their two sons with them, Ahimaaz and Jonathan. Let them tell me everything you hear."

Chusai, David's confidant, arrived in Jerusalem just as Absalom entered the city.

 

No sooner had David reached the top of the mountain than Ziba, Mephibosheth's servant, came to meet him with a pair of donkeys. They were loaded with two hundred loaves of bread, a hundred cakes of raisins, a hundred fresh fruits, and a bag of wine. "What do you have there?" asked the king, and Ziba said,

"The donkeys are for the royal family to ride, the bread and fruit are for the soldiers to eat, and the wine is for those who are exhausted in the desert to drink."

The king asked, "And where is the grandson of your master Saul?" Ziba replied, "He stayed in Jerusalem because, as he said, the people of Israel are restoring the kingship of his grandfather to him today."

Then the king said to Ziba, "From now on, everything that belongs to Mephibosheth is yours."

And Ziba said, "I humbly thank my lord and king for being so kind to me."

 

As soon as David arrived at Bahurim, a man from Saul's family came running up, a certain Shimei, the son of Gera. He came cursing and shouting, and although David was surrounded by his bodyguard of heroic soldiers, he pelted the king and his entourage with stones. He cursed and shouted, "Get out of here, murderer! You wretch! You have usurped Saul's throne. Now the LORD is avenging the blood of Saul and his family on you, and He is giving the kingship to Absalom, your son. That is your just reward, you murderer!"

Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, said to the king, "How dare that dog curse my lord and king? Move aside, and I'll cut off his head!"

But the king said, "What have I to do with you, sons of Zeruiah? He curses me, and so what? The LORD has inspired him to do so. Why do you ask, 'How dare he?'"

And David said to all his men, “Listen, my own son is trying to kill me. Will this descendant of Benjamin leave me alone? Let him curse, for the LORD has told him to. Perhaps the LORD will see my misery and repay me for today’s curse.”

Then David and his men set out again. Shimei continued to walk along a slightly higher ridge, cursing and ranting, throwing stones and raising clouds of dust. Finally, the king and his soldiers arrived at Ajefim, where they could rest.

 

Psalm 3 A psalm of David, fleeing from his son Absalom.

 

LORD, how numerous are my attackers,

many are attacking me,

many say of me,

'God will not save him.'

 

You, LORD, are a shield around me,

you are my glory, you uphold me.

When I call to the LORD for help,

He answers me from his holy mountain.

 

I lie down, I fall asleep

and wake up—the LORD protects me.

I do not fear the tens of thousands

who surround me on every side.

 

Arise, LORD, save me, my God,

strike my enemies in the face,

break the teeth of the lawless.

With You, LORD, is salvation,

your blessing rests upon your people.

 

*

 

Meanwhile, Absalom and his men, the army of Israel, arrived in Jerusalem. Ahithophel was also with him. Then David's confidant, Hushai, came to Absalom. "Long live the king! Long live the king!" he cried.

Absalom asked him, "Is this how a friend treats his friend? Shouldn't you have gone with your friend?"

"No," replied Ahithophel. "Whichever side the LORD and the people and the army of Israel choose, I will be on that side and remain on that side. Besides, you are his son; who else should I serve? As I served your father in the past, so I will serve you."

 

Then Absalom turned to Ahithophel and said, "Give us your advice. What should we do now?"

Ahithophel replied, "Go to the concubines your father left behind to take care of the palace. Then all Israel will know that you have dared to defy your father, and that will encourage all your supporters."

So a tent was set up for Absalom on the roof of the palace, and in the sight of all Israel, Absalom took possession of his father's concubines.

 

In those days, people took Ahithophel's advice as seriously as if they had asked God himself for a ruling; this was true of every piece of advice Ahithophel gave, both to David and to Absalom.

Ahithophel said to Absalom, "Let me choose twelve thousand men and go after David tonight. I will strike him while he is weary and discouraged, and all his soldiers will flee. I will kill only the king— —and bring the army back to you. After all, the death of the man who is trying to kill you means that the army can return. Everyone will remain unharmed."

This proposal met with the approval of Absalom and the elders of Israel. Nevertheless, Absalom also summoned the Arkite Chusai: "Let us hear what he thinks."

 

When Chusai came to Absalom, Absalom asked him, "This is Ahithophel's proposal. Should we do as he says? Or do you have a different opinion?"

Chusai replied, "This time, the advice Ahithophel has given is not good." And he continued, "You know your father and his men. You know they are heroic soldiers. Moreover, they are embittered, like a bear robbed of her cubs. Your father is also an experienced warrior. He will not spend the night with his men. He will, of course, hide somewhere in a cave or some other good place. When he attacks first, the rumor will spread that a massacre has been carried out among Absalom's supporters. Even those as brave as lions will tremble, for all Israel knows that your father is a hero and his followers are brave warriors. Therefore, I advise you to summon all the troops of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, as many men as there are grains of sand by the sea, and go to battle yourself. Wherever he is, we will find him. We will fall on him like dew on the ground. No one will be left alive, neither he nor any of his followers. And if he fortifies himself in any city, we will bring ropes from all over Israel and drag that city into the ravine until not a stone is left standing."

Absalom and the Israelites thought Hushai's advice was better than Ahithophel's. So the LORD decreed that Ahithophel's good plan of war should be thwarted, because He wanted to destroy Absalom.

 

Chusai told the priests Zadok and Abiathar what Ahithophel had advised Absalom and the elders of Israel, and what he himself had advised. Then he said, "Send word to David as quickly as possible that he should not spend the night on this side of the Jordan, but cross over immediately, or he and everyone with him will be wiped off the face of the earth."

Jonathan and Ahimaaz waited at the Rogel Spring for a slave girl to bring them the news. They would then relay it to King David. Of course, they could not show themselves in the city. But a boy saw them and told Absalom. Jonathan and Ahimaaz hurried to Bahurim. There they came upon a man who had a well in the courtyard of his house, in which they hid. His wife spread a sack over the opening of the well and scattered barley over it so that nothing could be seen.

When Absalom's men arrived at the house, they asked her, "Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?"

"They have crossed the watercourse," she replied. The men searched, but they could not find them and returned to Jerusalem. When they had gone, Jonathan and Ahimaaz climbed out of the well. They went to King David and brought him the message: "Hurry, cross the water immediately, for Ahithophel has advised to take you by surprise."

David and the people with him immediately began to cross the Jordan, and by morning everyone was on the other side of the river.

 

When Ahithophel realized that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and went home to Gilo. There he settled his affairs and then hanged himself. He was buried in his father's tomb.

 

*

 

David had advanced to Mahanaim when Absalom crossed the Jordan with the entire army of Israel. Absalom had appointed Amasa as commander-in-chief in Joab's place. Amasa was the son of the Israelite Jithra and Abigail, the daughter of Nahash and a sister of Joab's mother Zeruiah. Absalom camped with the army of Israel in Gilead.

When David arrived in Mahanaim, he was supplied by Shobi, the son of Nahash, from Rabbah, the capital of Ammon, by Machir, the son of Ammiel, from Lo-Debar, and by Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim. They brought him and his men blankets, cooking utensils, and food: wheat, barley, flour, roasted grain, beans, and lentils, as well as honey, butter, cheese, sheep, and goats. "For," they said, "you must all be exhausted in the desert, hungry and thirsty."

 

David mustered his troops and appointed commanders over units of a thousand and a hundred men. He divided the army into three parts: one third under the command of Joab, one third under the command of his brother Abishai, and one third under the command of Ittai the Gittite.

The king said to the troops, "I will go into battle with you myself."

"No, don't do that," they replied. "If we have to flee, no one will mind. Even if half of us are killed, no one will mind. But you are worth as much as ten thousand of us. Therefore, it is better that you support us from the city."

The king replied, "I will do as you think best."

 

He took his place at the gate, and the troops marched out in units of a hundred and a thousand. He commanded Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, "Do not be too harsh with my son Absalom." The whole army heard what the king commanded the commanders concerning Absalom.

 

*

 

The army went to war against Israel. A battle took place in the forests of Ephraim, where David's men defeated the army of Israel. It was a heavy battle: twenty thousand men were killed that day. The combatants were scattered throughout the area; more men were devoured by the forest than by the sword that day.

Absalom, riding on his mule, suddenly came face to face with some of David's soldiers. As the mule passed under a large terebinth tree, Absalom's hair became entangled in the branches. He remained suspended between heaven and earth, while the mule trotted on. One of the soldiers saw this and told Joab, "I saw Absalom! He's hanging from a tree!"

"What!" cried Joab. "You saw him? Why didn't you kill him right away? I would have given you ten shekels of silver and a pair of straps for it!"

But the soldier replied to Joab, "Even if you weighed a thousand shekels of silver in my hand, I would not raise my hand against the king's son. The king commanded you, Abishai, and Ittai in our presence to spare his son Absalom. Even if I had disobeyed that command, nothing is hidden from the king, and you would have been held responsible."

"On the contrary," Joab cried, "I will go first!" He grabbed three sticks and struck Absalom, who was still alive in the tree, in the chest. Ten of Joab's soldiers, his armor-bearers, surrounded Absalom and beat him until he was dead.

Then Joab blew the ram's horn to signal that the pursuit of the army of Israel should be stopped. They cut Absalom down, threw him into a deep pit on the spot, and piled a large mound of stones over him. The army of Israel fled; each returned to his own home.

 

During his lifetime, Absalom had erected a memorial stone for himself in the King's Valley. Because, as he said, he had no son to carry on his name, he named the memorial stone after himself. To this day, it is called the Monument of Absalom.

 

*

 

Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, said to Joab, "Let me be your messenger and take the good news to the king that the LORD has vindicated him and delivered him from the hands of his enemies."

Joab replied, "But you have no good news today! Another time you can bring good news, but today you have no good news, for the king's son is dead." And he commanded a Cushite to go and tell the king what he had seen. The Cushite bowed to Joab and ran away.

But Achimaas insisted: "Still, I want to be a courier. Let me go after the Nubian."

Joab asked, "Why do you want to do that, my boy, if you have no news worth telling?"

"I'm going anyway!"

"Go then," said Joab.

And Achimaäs ran away, across the plain, and caught up with the Nubian.

 

David had taken his place in the gatehouse. The guard went up to the roof of the city gate to keep watch. There he saw someone running toward him, alone. He called out to the king what he saw, and the king said, "If he is alone, he brings good news."

The courier came closer and closer. Then the guard saw another person running, and he called out to the gatekeeper, "There's another person running, also alone."

The king said, "He also brings good news."

Then the guard said, "I recognize Achimaas, the son of Zadok, by the way the first courier is running."

"He is trustworthy," said the king, "so he is surely bringing good news."

"All is well!" Ahimaaz called to the king, and he knelt, bowed low, and said, "Praise be to the LORD your God, who has delivered up those who raised their hands against the king."

"And is everything all right with my boy, with Absalom?" asked the king.

Ahimaaz replied, "When Joab sent the courier and me on our way, I saw a large crowd gathering, but I don't know exactly what was going on."

"Wait here," said the king, and Achimaas did so.

 

Then the Nubian came in. He said, "I bring you good news, my lord and king. Today the LORD has vindicated you and delivered you from the hands of those who rebelled against you."

"And is my boy, Absalom, all right?" asked the king.

The Nubian replied, "May all your enemies and all your opponents fare as your son has fared."

Then a tremor ran through the king. Wailing, he withdrew to the room above the gate: "My son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! If only I were dead instead of you! Absalom, my son, my son!"

 

*

 

Joab was told that the king was weeping and mourning for Absalom. When the army heard that the king was mourning his son, their victory celebrations turned to mourning. Like thieves in the night, the soldiers crept into the city that day, like an army ashamed of having fled the battle. The king hid his face in his hands and cried out loudly, "My son Absalom, Absalom, my son, my son!"

Then Joab went in to the king and said, "Today you have put all your soldiers to shame, even though they saved your life and the lives of your sons and daughters and your wives and concubines. You hate those who love you and love those who hate you. Today you have shown that you do not value your commanders or your men. Today I am sure that you would prefer Absalom to be alive and all of us dead. Come on, get up, go outside and encourage your men. For by the LORD, I swear to you: if you do not go outside now, there will be no man left with you tonight. And that would be worse than all the evil that has befallen you in your life so far.

The king got up and went outside. The army was told that the king had taken his place in the gateway, and the whole army came to pay their respects to the king.

 

*

 

The Israelites had fled, each to his own home. Throughout the land, among all the tribes of Israel, people were busy deliberating: "The king has freed us from the grip of our enemies; it was he who saved us from the hands of the Philistines. Now he has fled the country because of Absalom. But Absalom, whom we anointed as king, has been killed in battle. Let us therefore take action and bring the king back home.'

The king heard what the Israelites had said. So King David sent this message to the priests Zadok and Abiathar: "Tell the elders of Judah, 'Why should you be the last to bring the king back home? You are my brothers, my flesh and blood; why should you be the last to bring the king back? And to Amasa you shall say, 'Are you not my flesh and blood? From now on, you shall command my army instead of Joab, and if not, may God do to me whatever He will.'"

In this way, he won the Judeans over to his side as one man. They sent word to the king: "Return, with all your men."

 

*

 

The king set out on his return journey. When he reached the Jordan, the Judeans were waiting at Gilgal to welcome the king and accompany him across the river. Among them was Simi, the son of Gera, from Bachurim in Benjamin. He hurried to meet King David. A thousand men from Benjamin had come with him. Ziba, the servant of Saul's family, was also there with his fifteen sons and twenty servants.

Before the king had reached the bank of the Jordan, they ran into the river. They waded through the water to help the king and his court across, hoping to make a good impression on him.

 

When the king was about to cross the Jordan, Shimei fell on his knees before him and said, "My lord, please forgive me for what I did to you. I beg you, forget that I behaved badly towards you on the day you left Jerusalem, my lord and king, and do not hold it against me. I, your servant, know that I have sinned. Therefore, my lord and king, I have come to meet you today as the first of all the descendants of Joseph."

Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, spoke up and said, "Simei deserves to die, for he cursed the LORD's anointed!" But David replied, "What do I have to do with you, sons of Zeruiah? Today is not the time for you to oppose me. Today no one in Israel will be put to death, for today I know that my kingship over Israel has been restored.' And the king said to Shimei, 'You shall not die,' and he swore to him.

 

Mephibosheth, Saul's grandson, had also come to meet the king. From the day the king left until now, the day he returned unharmed, Mephibosheth had not washed his feet, trimmed his beard, or changed his clothes. When he met the king coming from Jerusalem, the king asked him, "Why did you not go with me, Mephibosheth?"

He replied, "My lord and king, my servant deceived me. You must know that I had planned to saddle my donkey and ride with you, because I am lame. Then he tricked me with his false accusation against you. But my lord and king is like an angel of God; do what you think is best. You had the power to put my whole family to death, but you took me into your court. By what right, then, should your servant complain to you now?

The king replied, "Enough of this. You and Ziba shall divide the land." Then Mephibosheth said to the king, "Now that you have returned unharmed, my lord and king, as far as I am concerned, he may have everything."

 

Barzillai the Gileadite had come from Rogelim and accompanied the king to the Jordan to see him off as he crossed the river. He was very old, about eighty years old. He had provided the king with everything he needed during his stay in Mahanaim; he was a very wealthy man.

The king said to him, "Barzillai, come with me across the river, and I will provide for you in Jerusalem."

But Barzillai replied, "I am at the end of my life. Why should I go with the king to Jerusalem? I am now eighty years old. What do I have left to enjoy in life? Can I still taste what I eat and drink? Can I still hear the voices of singers and songstresses? Why should I be a burden to you, my lord and king? I would hardly be able to cross the river with you. Why should you reward me in this way? Let your servant return, so that I may die in my own city, near the grave of my father and my mother. Take Kimham with you, my lord and king, and treat him as you see fit."

The king replied, "Kimham will go with me, and I will treat him as you see fit. I will do as you wish."

Meanwhile, the army crossed the Jordan. When it was the king's turn to cross, he thanked Barzillai and kissed him goodbye. Barzillai returned to his home, and the king continued his journey to Gilgal. Kimham went with him.

 

*

 

All the people of Judah had accompanied the king on his journey, as had half the people of Israel. The Israelites came to the king and asked him, "Why have our brothers, the Judeans, seized you and accompanied you and your retinue across the Jordan when you were already surrounded by your men?"

But the Judeans retorted, "The king is our relative! Why are you so angry? Do we receive any support from the king? Do we receive any favors from him?"

The Israelites answered, "We have ten times as much share in the kingship, and we also have more right to David than you do. Why are you so contemptuous? Were we not the first to decide to bring back our king?"

But the Judeans were stronger than the Israelites.

 

Now there was a real troublemaker among the Israelites, a certain Sheba, the son of Bichri, from the tribe of Benjamin. He blew the ram's horn and said, "What do we have to do with David? We have nothing in common with the son of Jesse! Let's break away, people of Israel!"

All the Israelites turned their backs on David and followed the Benjaminite Sheba, but the Judeans remained with their king from the Jordan to Jerusalem.

 

*

 

When King David arrived at his palace in Jerusalem, he placed the ten concubines he had left behind as guardians of his house in a separate house. He continued to provide for them, but he no longer had relations with them. They remained locked up as unmourned widows until the day they died.

 

*

 

The king said to Amasa, "Gather all the men of Judah and report back to me within three days."

Amasa set out to summon the men of Judah, but he did not return at the appointed time.

Then David said to Abishai, "Sheba, the son of Bichri, is even more dangerous to us than Absalom! Abishai, take my army under your command and pursue him before he conquers our fortified cities, for then we will be left with nothing."

Joab's men, the Kerethites and Pelethites, and all David's mighty men joined Abishai and pursued Sheba from Jerusalem.

 

At the large stone in Gibeon, they caught up with Amasa. Joab was wearing battle gear, with a belt in which his sword was tucked. When he took a step forward, the sword slipped out of its sheath. "Are you all right, Amasa?" he asked, and he grabbed him by the beard with his right hand to kiss him.

Amasa was unaware of the sword Joab held in his other hand. Joab stabbed Amasa in the stomach, so that his intestines spilled out. He did not need to stab him a second time: the wound was fatal.

Joab and his brother Abishai continued their pursuit of Sheba. One of Joab's armor-bearers stood by Amasa and cried out, "Whoever is for Joab, whoever is for David, follow Joab!"

Amasa lay on the road, convulsing in his blood. When the armor-bearer saw that the soldiers were standing still, he rolled Amasa off the road into the field and threw a cloak over him, because everyone who passed by stopped. Once Amasa was removed from the road, everyone followed Joab in pursuit of Sheba.

 

Sheba had gone through Israel to Abel-Beth-Maacah. All the Bichrites had joined him. Then Joab and his army also came to Abel-Beth-Maacah and besieged it. They built a ramp against the wall of the fortress and attacked the city wall with all their might.

Then a wise woman called out from the city, "Listen, listen! Ask Joab to come closer so that I can talk to him."

Joab came closer, and the woman asked, "Are you Joab?"

"Yes, I am," he replied.

"Listen to what I have to say," said the woman, and Joab replied,

"I am listening."

Then the woman said, "There used to be a saying: 'Whoever asks for advice in Abel will never be disappointed.' We are peaceful and faithful Israelites. But you want to wipe out a city that is like a wise mother in Israel. Why are you attacking the territory of the LORD?"

"Not at all!" Joab replied. "I have no intention of attacking your city or wiping it off the face of the earth. That is not my concern. But someone from the hill country of Ephraim—a certain Sheba, son of Bichri—has rebelled against the king, against David. Hand him over to me, and I will leave the city alone."

Then the woman said to Joab, "All right, his head will be thrown over the wall to you."

 

The woman presented her wise counsel to the people of the city, and they cut off Sheba's head and threw it to Joab. Joab blew the ram's horn, and the siege of the city was broken. The soldiers returned to their homes, and Joab returned to Jerusalem to the king.

 

*

 

Psalm 32 By David, an artful song.

 

Blessed is the man whose transgressions are forgiven,

whose sins are covered.

Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,

and no deceit is in his spirit.

 

While I kept silent, my bones wasted away,

I groaned in pain all day long.

Your hand pressed heavily upon me, day and night,

My strength melted away like in the summer heat.

 

Then I confessed my sin to You,

I did not cover up my guilt,

I said, "I confess my unfaithfulness to the LORD"—

and You forgave my sin, my guilt.

 

Let your faithful ones pray to you

when they find sin within themselves.

Then, if a flood of water comes,

it will not reach them.

 

With You I am safe, You protect me in times of need

and surround me with the joy of deliverance:

 

"I give insight and show you the way you should go.

I give advice, my eye rests on you.

Do not be foolish like horses or donkeys,

which are restrained by bit and bridle,

then no harm will befall you."

 

A wicked person suffers much,

but those who trust in the LORD are surrounded by love.

Rejoice in the LORD, you righteous, and shout for joy,

sing aloud, you who are sincere in heart.