Hushai’s Counsel

17 Furthermore, Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Please let me choose twelve thousand men and let me set out and pursue David tonight. ^2 (A)And I will ^[a]attack him while he is weary and ^[b]exhausted and startle him, so that all the people who are with him will flee. Then ^(B)I will strike and kill the king when he is alone, ³ and I will bring all the people back to you. ^[c]The return of everyone depends on the man whom you are seeking; then all the people will be at ^(C)peace.” ⁴ And the ^[d]plan pleased Absalom and all the elders of Israel.

⁵ Nevertheless, Absalom said, “Now call ^(D)Hushai the Archite also, and let’s hear what ^[e]he has to say.” ⁶ When Hushai had come to Absalom, Absalom said to ^[f]him, “Ahithophel has ^[g]proposed this plan. Should we ^[h]carry out his plan? If not, say so yourself.” ⁷ So Hushai said to Absalom, “^(E)This time the advice that Ahithophel has ^[i]given is not good.” ⁸ Then Hushai said, “You yourself know your father and his men, that they are warriors and they are ^[j]fierce, ^(F)like a bear deprived of her cubs in the field. And your father is an ^[k]expert in warfare, and he will not spend the night with the people. ⁹ Behold, he has now hidden himself in one of the ravines, or in another place; and it will be that when he falls on them at the first attack, whoever hears it will say, ‘There has been a slaughter among the people who follow Absalom!’ ¹⁰ And even the one who is valiant, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, ^(G)will completely despair; for all Israel knows that your father is a mighty man, and those who are with him are valiant men. ¹¹ But I advise that all Israel be fully gathered to you, ^(H)from Dan even to Beersheba, ^(I)like the sand that is by the sea in abundance; and that ^[l]you personally go into battle. ¹² Then we will come to him in one of the places where he can be found, and we will ^[m]fall on him ^(J)just as the dew falls on the ground; and of him and of all the men who are with him, not even one will be left. ¹³ And if he withdraws into a city, then all Israel shall bring ropes to that city, and we will ^(K)drag it into the ^[n]valley until not even a pebble is found there.” ¹⁴ Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than the advice of Ahithophel.” For ^(L)the Lord had ordained to foil the good advice of Ahithophel, in order for the Lord to bring disaster on Absalom.

Hushai’s Warning Saves David

¹⁵ Then ^(M)Hushai said to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, “^[o]This is what Ahithophel advised Absalom and the elders of Israel to do, and ^[p]this is what I have advised. ¹⁶ Now then, send a messenger quickly and tell David, saying, ‘^(N)Do not spend the night at the river crossing places of the wilderness, but by all means cross over, or else the king and all the people who are with him will be ^[q]destroyed.’” ^17 (O)Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying at ^(P)En-rogel, and a female servant would go and inform them, and they would go and inform King David, for they could not allow themselves to be seen entering the city. ¹⁸ But a boy did see them, and he told Absalom; so the two of them left quickly and came to the house of a man ^(Q)in Bahurim, who had a well in his courtyard, and they went down ^[r]into it. ¹⁹ And ^(R)the woman ^[s]took a cover and spread it over the well’s mouth and scattered barley meal on it, so that nothing was known. ²⁰ Then Absalom’s servants came to the woman at the house and said, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?” And ^(S)the woman said to them, “They have crossed the brook of water.” And when they searched and did not find them, they returned to Jerusalem.

²¹ It came about after they had departed, that they came up out of the well and went and reported to King David; and they said to David, “^(T)Set out and cross over the water quickly, because this is what Ahithophel has advised against you.” ²² Then David and all the people who were with him set out and crossed the Jordan; by ^[t]dawn not even one remained who had not crossed the Jordan.

²³ Now when Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been ^[u]followed, he saddled his donkey and set out and went to his home, to ^(U)his city, and ^[v](V)set his house in order, and ^(W)hanged himself; so he died and was buried in his father’s grave.

Paul’s Use of Freedom

9 Am I not ^(A)free? Am I not an ^(B)apostle? Have I not ^(C)seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not ^(D)my work in the Lord? ² If I am not an apostle to others, at least I am to you; for you are the ^(E)seal of my ^(F)apostleship in the Lord.

³ My defense to those who examine me is this: ^4 [a](G)Do we not have a right to eat and drink? ^5 [b](H)Do we not have a right to take along a ^[c]believing wife, even as the rest of the apostles and the ^(I)brothers of the Lord, and ^[d](J)Cephas? ⁶ Or do only ^[e](K)Barnabas and I have no right to refrain from ^[f]working? ⁷ Who at any time serves ^(L)as a soldier at his own expense? Who ^(M)plants a vineyard and does not eat its fruit? Or who tends a flock and does not ^[g]consume some of the milk of the flock?

⁸ I am not just asserting these things ^(N)according to human judgment, am I? Or does the Law not say these things as well? ⁹ For it is written in the Law of Moses: “^(O)You shall not muzzle the ox while it is threshing.” God is not concerned about ^(P)oxen, is He? ¹⁰ Or is He speaking entirely for our sake? Yes, it was written ^(Q)for our sake, because ^(R)the plowman ought to plow in hope, and the thresher to thresh in hope of sharing in the crops. ^11 (S)If we sowed spiritual things in you, is it too much if we reap material things from you? ¹² If others share the right over you, do we not more? Nevertheless, we ^(T)did not use this right, but we endure all things ^(U)so that we will cause no hindrance to the ^(V)gospel of Christ. ^13 (W)Do you not know that those who ^(X)perform sacred services eat the food of the temple, and those who attend regularly to the altar have their share ^[h]from the altar? ¹⁴ So also ^(Y)the Lord directed those who proclaim the ^(Z)gospel to ^(AA)get their living from the gospel.

¹⁵ But I have ^(AB)used none of these things. And I have not written these things so that it will be done so in my case; for it would be better for me to die than that. No one shall make ^(AC)my boast an empty one! ¹⁶ For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast about, for ^(AD)I am under compulsion; for woe to me if I do not preach ^(AE)the gospel. ¹⁷ For if I do this voluntarily, I have a ^(AF)reward; but if against my will, I have been entrusted with a ^(AG)commission nonetheless. ¹⁸ What, then, is my ^(AH)reward? That, when I preach the gospel, I may offer the gospel ^(AI)without charge, so as ^(AJ)not to make full use of my right in the gospel.

¹⁹ For though I am ^(AK)free from all people, I have made myself ^(AL)a slave to all, so that I may ^(AM)gain more. ^20 (AN)To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might gain Jews; to those who are under the Law, I became as one under the Law, though ^(AO)not being under the Law myself, so that I might gain those who are under the Law; ²¹ to those who are ^(AP)without the Law, I became ^(AQ)as one without the Law, though not being without the law of God but ^(AR)under the law of Christ, so that I might gain those who are without the Law. ²² To the ^(AS)weak I became weak, that I might gain the weak; I have become ^(AT)all things to all people, ^(AU)so that I may by all means save some. ²³ I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it.

^24 (AV)Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives ^(AW)the prize? ^(AX)Run in such a way that you may win. ²⁵ Everyone who ^(AY)competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. So they do it to obtain a perishable ^(AZ)wreath, but we an imperishable. ²⁶ Therefore I ^(BA)run in such a way as not to run aimlessly; I box in such a way, as ^[i]to avoid ^(BB)hitting air; ²⁷ but I strictly discipline ^(BC)my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.

²⁴ Then David came to ^(A)Mahanaim. And Absalom crossed the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him. ²⁵ Absalom put ^(B)Amasa ^[a]in command of the army in place of Joab. Now Amasa was the son of a man whose name was ^[b]Ithra the Israelite, who ^[c]had relations with Abigail the daughter of ^(C)Nahash, sister of Zeruiah, Joab’s mother. ²⁶ And Israel and Absalom camped in the land of Gilead.

²⁷ Now when David had come to Mahanaim, Shobi ^(D)the son of Nahash from ^(E)Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, ^(F)Machir the son of Ammiel from Lo-debar, and ^(G)Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim, ²⁸ brought ^(H)beds, basins, pottery, wheat, barley, flour, roasted grain, beans, lentils, roasted seeds, ²⁹ honey, curds, sheep, and cheese of the herd, for David and the people who were with him, ^(I)to eat. For they said, “The people are hungry and exhausted and thirsty in the wilderness.”

Absalom Killed

18 Then David ^[d]took a count of the people who were with him and ^(J)appointed over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds. ² And David sent the people out, ^(K)a third ^[e]under the command of Joab, a third ^[f]under the command of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, and a third ^[g]under the command of ^(L)Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the people, “I myself will certainly go out with you also.” ³ But the people said, “^(M)You should not go out; for if in fact we flee, they will not care about us; and if half of us die, they will not care about us. But ^[h]you are ^[i]worth ten thousand of us; so now it is better that you will be ready to help us from the city.” ⁴ Then the king said to them, “Whatever seems best to you I will do.” So ^(N)the king stood beside the gate, and all the people went out by hundreds and thousands. ⁵ But the king commanded Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, saying, “Deal gently with the young man Absalom for my sake.” And ^(O)all the people heard when the king commanded all the commanders regarding Absalom.

⁶ Then the people went out to the field against Israel, and the battle took place in ^(P)the forest of Ephraim. ⁷ The people of Israel were ^[j]defeated there by the servants of David, and the slaughter there that day was great, twenty thousand men. ⁸ For the battle there was spread over the whole countryside, and the forest devoured more people that day than the sword devoured.

⁹ Now Absalom encountered the servants of David. Absalom was riding on his mule, and the mule went under the branches of a massive oak. Then ^(Q)his head caught firmly in the oak, and he was ^[k]left hanging between the sky and earth, while the mule that was under him kept going. ¹⁰ When a certain man saw him, he informed Joab and said, “Behold, I saw Absalom hanging in an oak.” ¹¹ Then Joab said to the man who had informed him, “So behold, you saw him! Why then did you not strike him there to the ground? And it would have been ^[l]my duty to give you ten pieces of silver and a belt.” ¹² But the man said to Joab, “Even if I were to ^[m]receive a thousand pieces of silver in my hand, I would not put out my hand against the king’s son; for ^(R)in our hearing the king commanded you, Abishai, and Ittai, saying, ‘^[n]Protect the young man Absalom for me!’ ¹³ Otherwise, if I had dealt treacherously against ^[o]his life (and ^(S)there is nothing hidden from the king), then you yourself would have ^[p]avoided me.” ¹⁴ Then Joab said, “I will not ^[q]waste time here with you.” ^(T)So he took three spears in his hand and thrust them through the heart of Absalom while he was still alive in the ^[r]midst of the oak. ¹⁵ And ten young men who carried Joab’s armor gathered around and struck Absalom and killed him.

¹⁶ Then ^(U)Joab blew the trumpet, and the people returned from pursuing Israel, for Joab restrained the people. ¹⁷ And they took Absalom and threw him into ^[s]a deep pit in the forest, and ^(V)erected over him a very large pile of stones. And ^(W)all Israel fled, each to his own tent. ¹⁸ Now Absalom in his lifetime had taken and ^(X)set up for himself a memorial stone, which is in ^(Y)the King’s Valley, for he said, “^(Z)I have no son to ^[t]continue my name.” So he named the memorial stone after his own name, and it is called Absalom’s Monument to this day.

Be in Readiness

³⁵ “^[a](A)Be prepared, and keep your ^(B)lamps lit. ³⁶ You are also to be like people who are waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door for him when he comes and knocks. ³⁷ Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find ^(C)on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that ^(D)he will ^[b]prepare himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and he will come up and serve them. ^38 (E)Whether he comes in the ^[c]second watch, or even in the ^[d]third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.

³⁹ “^(F)But ^[e]be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have allowed his house to be ^(G)broken into. ^40 (H)You too, be ready; because the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not think He will.”

⁴¹ Peter said, “Lord, are You telling this parable to us, or ^(I)to everyone else as well?” ⁴² And ^(J)the Lord said, “^(K)Who then is the faithful and sensible ^(L)steward, whom his master will put in charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time? ⁴³ Blessed is that ^(M)slave whom his ^[f]master finds so doing when he comes. ⁴⁴ Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. ⁴⁵ But if that slave says in his heart, ‘My master will take a long time to come,’ and he begins to beat the other slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk; ⁴⁶ then the master of that slave will come on a day that he does not expect, and at an hour that he does not know, and will ^[g]cut him in two, and assign ^[h]him a place with the unbelievers. ⁴⁷ And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not get ready or act in accordance with his will, will ^(N)receive many blows, ⁴⁸ but the one who did not ^(O)know it, and committed acts deserving of ^[i]a beating, will receive only a few blows. ^(P)From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.

Christ Divides People

⁴⁹ “I ^[j]have come to cast fire upon the earth; and ^[k]how I wish it were already kindled! ⁵⁰ But I have a ^(Q)baptism ^[l]to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished! ^51 (R)Do you think that I came to provide peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division; ⁵² for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three. ⁵³ They will be divided, ^(S)father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”