Absalom Killed

18 Then David mustered the men who were with him and set over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds. ² And David sent out the army, one third under the command of Joab, one third under the command of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab's brother, and one third under the command of ^(A)Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the men, “I myself will also go out with you.” ^3 (B)But the men said, “You shall not go out. For if we flee, they will not care about us. If half of us die, they will not care about us. But you are worth ten thousand of us. Therefore it is better that you send us help from the city.” ⁴ The king said to them, “Whatever seems best to you I will do.” So the king stood at the side of the gate, while all the army marched out by hundreds and by thousands. ⁵ And the king ordered Joab and Abishai and Ittai, “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.” ^(C)And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders about Absalom.

⁶ So the army went out into the field against Israel, and the battle was fought in the ^(D)forest of Ephraim. ⁷ And the men of Israel were defeated there by the servants of David, and the loss there was great on that day, twenty thousand men. ⁸ The battle spread over the face of all the country, and the forest devoured more people that day than the sword.

⁹ And Absalom happened to meet the servants of David. Absalom was riding on his mule, and the mule went under the thick branches of a great oak,^{[a] (E)}and his head caught fast in the oak, and he was suspended between heaven and earth, while the mule that was under him went on. ¹⁰ And a certain man saw it and told Joab, “Behold, I saw Absalom hanging in an oak.” ¹¹ Joab said to the man who told him, “What, you saw him! Why then did you not strike him there to the ground? I would have been glad to give you ten pieces of silver and a belt.” ¹² But the man said to Joab, “Even if I felt in my hand the weight of a thousand pieces of silver, I would not reach out my hand against the king's son, for ^(F)in our hearing the king commanded you and Abishai and Ittai, ‘For my sake protect the young man Absalom.’ ¹³ On the other hand, if I had dealt treacherously against his life^[b] (and there is nothing hidden from the king), then you yourself would have stood aloof.” ¹⁴ Joab said, “I will not waste time like this with you.” And he took three javelins in his hand and thrust them into the heart of Absalom while he was still alive in the oak. ¹⁵ And ten young men, Joab's armor-bearers, surrounded Absalom and struck him and killed him.

¹⁶ Then Joab blew the trumpet, and the troops came back from pursuing Israel, for Joab restrained them. ¹⁷ And they took Absalom and threw him into a great pit in the forest and raised over him ^(G)a very great heap of stones. And all Israel ^(H)fled every one to his own home. ¹⁸ Now Absalom in his lifetime had taken and set up for himself ^(I)the pillar that is in ^(J)the King's Valley, for he said, ^(K)“I have no son to keep my name in remembrance.” He called the pillar after his own name, and it is called Absalom's monument^[c] to this day.

David Hears of Absalom's Death

¹⁹ Then Ahimaaz the son of Zadok said, ^(L)“Let me run and carry news to the king that ^(M)the Lord has delivered him from the hand of his enemies.” ²⁰ And Joab said to him, “You are not to carry news today. You may carry news another day, but today you shall carry no news, because the king's son is dead.” ²¹ Then Joab said to the Cushite, “Go, tell the king what you have seen.” The Cushite bowed before Joab, and ran. ²² Then Ahimaaz the son of Zadok said again to Joab, “Come what may, let me also run after the Cushite.” And Joab said, “Why will you run, my son, seeing that you will have no reward for the news?” ²³ “Come what may,” he said, “I will run.” So he said to him, “Run.” Then Ahimaaz ran by the way of ^(N)the plain, and outran the Cushite.

²⁴ Now David ^(O)was sitting between the two gates, and ^(P)the watchman went up to the roof of the gate by the wall, and when he lifted up his eyes and looked, he saw a man running alone. ²⁵ The watchman called out and told the king. And the king said, “If he is alone, there is news in his mouth.” And he drew nearer and nearer. ²⁶ The watchman saw another man running. And the watchman called to the gate and said, “See, another man running alone!” The king said, “He also brings news.” ²⁷ The watchman said, “I think the running of the first is ^(Q)like the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zadok.” And the king said, ^(R)“He is a good man and comes with good news.”

²⁸ Then Ahimaaz cried out to the king, “All is well.” And he bowed before the king with his face to the earth and said, ^(S)“Blessed be the Lord your God, who has delivered up the men who raised their hand against my lord the king.” ²⁹ And the king said, ^(T)“Is it well with the young man Absalom?” Ahimaaz answered, “When Joab sent the king's servant, your servant, I saw a great commotion, but I do not know what it was.” ³⁰ And the king said, “Turn aside and stand here.” So he turned aside and stood still.

David's Grief

³¹ And behold, the Cushite came, and the Cushite said, “Good news for my lord the king! For ^(U)the Lord has delivered you this day from the hand of all who rose up against you.” ³² The king said to the Cushite, ^(V)“Is it well with the young man Absalom?” And the Cushite answered, ^(W)“May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up against you for evil be like that young man.” ^33 [d] And the king was deeply moved and went up ^(X)to the chamber over the gate and wept. And as he went, he said, ^(Y)“O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!”

I Will Be Their God; They Shall Be My People

¹⁵ The word of the Lord came to me: ^16 (A)“Son of man, ^(B)take a stick^[a] and write on it, ‘For ^(C)Judah, and ^(D)the people of Israel associated with him’; then take another stick and write on it, ‘For ^(E)Joseph (the stick of ^(F)Ephraim) and all the house of Israel associated with him.’ ¹⁷ And ^(G)join them one to another into one stick, that ^(H)they may become ^(I)one in your hand. ¹⁸ And when ^(J)your people say to you, ^(K)‘Will you not tell us what you mean by these?’ ¹⁹ say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am about to take ^(L)the stick of Joseph (that is in the hand of Ephraim) and the tribes of Israel associated with him. And I will join with it the ^(M)stick of Judah,^[b] and ^(N)make them one stick, ^(O)that they may be one in my hand. ²⁰ When the sticks on which you write are in your hand ^(P)before their eyes, ²¹ then say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, ^(Q)I will take the people of Israel from the nations among which they have gone, and will gather them from all around, and ^(R)bring them to their own land. ²² And ^(S)I will make them one nation in the land, on ^(T)the mountains of Israel. And ^(U)one king shall be king over them all, and they shall be no longer ^(V)two nations, and no longer divided into two kingdoms. ^23 (W)They shall not ^(X)defile themselves anymore ^(Y)with their idols and their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions. But ^(Z)I will save them from all the backslidings^[c] in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them; and ^(AA)they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

²⁴ “My servant ^(AB)David ^(AC)shall be king over them, and they shall all have ^(AD)one shepherd. ^(AE)They shall walk in my rules and be careful to obey my statutes. ^25 (AF)They shall dwell in the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children's children shall dwell there ^(AG)forever, and David my servant shall be their prince ^(AH)forever. ^26 (AI)I will make a covenant of peace with them. It shall be ^(AJ)an everlasting covenant with them. And I will set them in their land^[d] and ^(AK)multiply them, and will ^(AL)set my sanctuary in their midst forevermore. ^27 (AM)My dwelling place shall be with them, ^(AN)and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. ²⁸ Then ^(AO)the nations will know that ^(AP)I am the Lord who sanctifies Israel, when ^(AQ)my sanctuary is in their midst forevermore.”

The Jerusalem Council

15 ^(A)But some men came down from Judea and were teaching ^(B)the brothers, “Unless you are ^(C)circumcised ^(D)according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” ² And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and ^(E)debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and ^(F)some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to ^(G)the apostles and the elders about this question. ³ So, ^(H)being sent on their way by the church, they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, ^(I)describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and ^(J)brought great joy to all ^(K)the brothers.^{[a] 4 (L)}When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and ^(M)the apostles and the elders, and ^(N)they declared all that God had done with them. ⁵ But some believers who belonged to ^(O)the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, ^(P)“It is necessary ^(Q)to circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses.”

^6 (R)The ^(S)apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this matter. ⁷ And after there had been much ^(T)debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, ^(U)that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear ^(V)the word of ^(W)the gospel and believe. ⁸ And God, ^(X)who knows the heart, ^(Y)bore witness to them, ^(Z)by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, ⁹ and ^(AA)he made no distinction between us and them, ^(AB)having cleansed their hearts ^(AC)by faith. ¹⁰ Now, therefore, why ^(AD)are you putting God to the test ^(AE)by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples ^(AF)that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? ¹¹ But we ^(AG)believe that we will be ^(AH)saved through ^(AI)the grace of the Lord Jesus, ^(AJ)just as they will.”

¹² And all the assembly fell silent, and they listened to Barnabas and Paul ^(AK)as they related what signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles. ¹³ After they finished speaking, ^(AL)James replied, “Brothers, listen to me. ^14 (AM)Simeon has related how God first visited the Gentiles, to take from them ^(AN)a people for his name. ¹⁵ And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written,

¹⁹ Therefore ^(AS)my judgment is that we should not trouble those of the Gentiles who ^(AT)turn to God, ²⁰ but should write to them ^(AU)to abstain from ^(AV)the things polluted by idols, and from ^(AW)sexual immorality, and from ^(AX)what has been strangled, and from ^(AY)blood. ²¹ For from ancient generations Moses has had in every city those who proclaim him, ^(AZ)for he is read every Sabbath in the synagogues.”

The Council's Letter to Gentile Believers

²² Then it seemed good to ^(BA)the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They sent Judas called ^(BB)Barsabbas, and ^(BC)Silas, leading men among ^(BD)the brothers, ²³ with the following letter: ^(BE)“The brothers, both ^(BF)the apostles and the elders, to the brothers^[c] who are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, ^(BG)greetings. ²⁴ Since we have heard that ^(BH)some persons have gone out from us and ^(BI)troubled you^[d] with words, unsettling your minds, although we gave them no instructions, ²⁵ it has seemed good to us, having come ^(BJ)to one accord, to choose men and send them to you with our ^(BK)beloved Barnabas and Paul, ^26 (BL)men who have ^(BM)risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. ²⁷ We have therefore sent ^(BN)Judas and Silas, who themselves will tell you the same things by word of mouth. ²⁸ For it has seemed good ^(BO)to the Holy Spirit and ^(BP)to us ^(BQ)to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements: ^29 (BR)that you abstain from ^(BS)what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.”

³⁰ So when they were sent off, they went down to Antioch, and having gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter. ³¹ And when they had read it, they rejoiced because of its encouragement.

The High Priestly Prayer

17 When Jesus had spoken these words, ^(A)he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, ^(B)the hour has come; ^(C)glorify your Son that the Son may ^(D)glorify you, ² since ^(E)you have given him authority over all flesh, ^(F)to give eternal life to all ^(G)whom you have given him. ^3 (H)And this is eternal life, ^(I)that they know you, ^(J)the only ^(K)true God, and ^(L)Jesus Christ whom you have sent. ⁴ I ^(M)glorified you on earth, ^(N)having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. ⁵ And now, Father, ^(O)glorify me in your own presence with the glory ^(P)that I had with you ^(Q)before the world existed.

^6 (R)“I have manifested your name to the people ^(S)whom you gave me out of the world. ^(T)Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. ⁷ Now they know that everything ^(U)that you have given me is from you. ⁸ For I have given them ^(V)the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that ^(W)I came from you; and ^(X)they have believed that you sent me. ⁹ I am praying for them. ^(Y)I am not praying for the world but for those ^(Z)whom you have given me, for ^(AA)they are yours. ^10 (AB)All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and ^(AC)I am glorified in them. ¹¹ And I am no longer in the world, but ^(AD)they are in the world, and ^(AE)I am coming to you. ^(AF)Holy Father, ^(AG)keep them in your name, ^(AH)which you have given me, ^(AI)that they may be one, ^(AJ)even as we are one. ^12 (AK)While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have ^(AL)guarded them, and ^(AM)not one of them has been lost except ^(AN)the son of destruction, ^(AO)that the Scripture might be fulfilled. ¹³ But now ^(AP)I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have ^(AQ)my joy fulfilled in themselves. ^14 (AR)I have given them your word, and ^(AS)the world has hated them ^(AT)because they are not of the world, ^(AU)just as I am not of the world. ¹⁵ I ^(AV)do not ask that you ^(AW)take them out of the world, but that you ^(AX)keep them from ^(AY)the evil one.^{[a] 16 (AZ)}They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. ^17 (BA)Sanctify them^[b] in the truth; ^(BB)your word is truth. ^18 (BC)As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. ¹⁹ And ^(BD)for their sake ^(BE)I consecrate myself,^[c] that they also ^(BF)may be sanctified^[d] in truth.

²⁰ “I do not ^(BG)ask for these only, but also for those ^(BH)who will believe in me through their word, ^21 (BI)that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that ^(BJ)they also may be in ^(BK)us, so that the world ^(BL)may believe that you have sent me. ^22 (BM)The glory that you have given me ^(BN)I have given to them, ^(BO)that they may be one even as we are one, ^23 (BP)I in them and you in me, ^(BQ)that they may become perfectly one, ^(BR)so that the world may know that you sent me and ^(BS)loved them even as ^(BT)you loved me. ²⁴ Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be ^(BU)with me ^(BV)where I am, ^(BW)to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me ^(BX)before the foundation of the world. ^25 (BY)O righteous Father, even though ^(BZ)the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. ^26 (CA)I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love ^(CB)with which you have loved me may be in them, and ^(CC)I in them.”