¹⁷ And Absalom said to Hushai, “Is this your loyalty to your friend? ^(A)Why did you not go with your friend?”

²⁵ And when he came to Jerusalem to meet the king, the king said to him, ^(A)“Why did you not go with me, Mephibosheth?”

³² While David was coming to the summit, where God was worshiped, behold, Hushai ^(A)the Archite came to meet him ^(B)with his coat torn and ^(C)dirt on his head. ³³ David said to him, “If you go on with me, you will be ^(D)a burden to me. ³⁴ But if you return to the city and say to Absalom, ^(E)‘I will be your servant, O king; as I have been your father's servant in time past, so now I will be your servant,’ then you will defeat for me the counsel of Ahithophel. ³⁵ Are not Zadok and Abiathar the priests with you there? So whatever you hear from the king's house, ^(F)tell it to Zadok and Abiathar the priests. ³⁶ Behold, ^(G)their two sons are with them there, Ahimaaz, Zadok's son, and Jonathan, Abiathar's son, ^(H)and by them you shall send to me everything you hear.” ³⁷ So Hushai, ^(I)David's friend, came into the city, ^(J)just as Absalom was entering Jerusalem.