David and Bathsheba

11 It was spring. It was the time when kings go off to war. So David sent Joab out with the king’s special troops and the whole army of Israel. They destroyed the Ammonites. They marched to the city of Rabbah. They surrounded it and got ready to attack it. But David remained in Jerusalem.

² One evening David got up from his bed. He walked around on the roof of his palace. From the roof he saw a woman taking a bath. She was very beautiful. ³ David sent a messenger to find out who she was. The messenger returned and said, “She is Bathsheba. She’s the daughter of Eliam. She’s the wife of Uriah. He’s a Hittite.” ⁴ Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him. And he slept with her. Then she went back home. All of that took place after she had already made herself “clean” from her monthly period. ⁵ Later, Bathsheba found out she was pregnant. She sent a message to David. She said, “I’m pregnant.”

⁶ So David sent a message to Joab. David said, “Send me Uriah, the Hittite.” Joab sent him to David. ⁷ Uriah came to David. David asked him how Joab and the soldiers were doing. He also asked him how the war was going. ⁸ David said to Uriah, “Go home and enjoy some time with your wife.” So Uriah left the palace. Then the king sent him a gift. ⁹ But Uriah didn’t go home. Instead, he slept at the entrance to the palace. He stayed there with all his master’s servants.

¹⁰ David was told, “Uriah didn’t go home.” So he sent for Uriah. David said to him, “You have been away for a long time. Why didn’t you go home?”

¹¹ Uriah said to David, “The ark and the army of Israel and Judah are out there in tents. My commander Joab and your special troops are camped in the open country. How could I go to my house to eat and drink? How could I go there and sleep with my wife? I could never do a thing like that. And that’s just as sure as you are alive!”

¹² Then David said to him, “Stay here one more day. Tomorrow I’ll send you back to the battle.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next. ¹³ David invited Uriah to eat and drink with him. David got him drunk. But Uriah still didn’t go home. In the evening he went out and slept on his mat. He stayed there among his master’s servants.

¹⁴ The next morning David wrote a letter to Joab. He sent it along with Uriah. ¹⁵ In it he wrote, “Put Uriah out in front. That’s where the fighting is the heaviest. Then pull your men back from him. When you do, the Ammonites will strike him down and kill him.”

¹⁶ So Joab attacked the city. He put Uriah at a place where he knew the strongest enemy fighters were. ¹⁷ The troops came out of the city. They fought against Joab. Some of the men in David’s army were killed. Uriah, the Hittite, also died.

¹⁸ Joab sent David a full report of the battle. ¹⁹ He told the messenger, “Tell the king everything that happened in the battle. When you are finished, ²⁰ his anger might explode. He might ask you, ‘Why did you go so close to the city to fight against it? Didn’t you know that the enemy soldiers would shoot arrows down from the wall? ²¹ Don’t you remember how Abimelek, the son of Jerub-Besheth, was killed? A woman dropped a large millstone on him from the wall. That’s how he died in Thebez. So why did you go so close to the wall?’ If the king asks you that, tell him, ‘And your servant Uriah, the Hittite, is also dead.’ ”

²² The messenger started out for Jerusalem. When he arrived there, he told David everything Joab had sent him to say. ²³ The messenger said to David, “The men in the city were more powerful than we were. They came out to fight against us in the open. But we drove them back to the entrance of the city gate. ²⁴ Then those who were armed with bows shot arrows at us from the wall. Some of your special troops were killed. Your servant Uriah, the Hittite, is also dead.”

²⁵ David told the messenger, “Tell Joab, ‘Don’t get upset over what happened. Swords kill one person as well as another. So keep on attacking the city. Destroy it.’ Tell that to Joab. It will cheer him up.”

²⁶ Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead. She mourned over him. ²⁷ When her time of sadness was over, David had her brought to his house. She became his wife. And she had a son by him. But the Lord wasn’t pleased with what David had done.

Nathan Tells David He Has Sinned

12 The Lord sent the prophet Nathan to David. When Nathan came to him, he said, “Two men lived in the same town. One was rich. The other was poor. ² The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle. ³ But all the poor man had was one little female lamb. He had bought it. He raised it. It grew up with him and his children. It shared his food. It drank from his cup. It even slept in his arms. It was just like a daughter to him.

⁴ “One day a traveler came to the rich man. The rich man wanted to prepare a meal for him. But he didn’t want to kill one of his own sheep or cattle. Instead, he took the little female lamb that belonged to the poor man. Then the rich man cooked it for the traveler who had come to him.”

⁵ David was very angry with the rich man. He said to Nathan, “The man who did this must die! And that’s just as sure as the Lord is alive. ⁶ The man must pay back four times as much as that lamb was worth. How could he do such a thing? And he wasn’t even sorry he had done it.”

⁷ Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! The Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘I anointed you king over Israel. I saved you from Saul. ⁸ I gave you everything that belonged to your master Saul. I even put his wives into your arms. I made you king over all the people of Israel and Judah. And if all of that had not been enough for you, I would have given you even more. ⁹ Why did you turn your back on what I told you to do? You did what is evil in my sight. You made sure that Uriah, the Hittite, would be killed in battle. You took his wife to be your own. You let the men of Ammon kill him with their swords. ¹⁰ So time after time members of your own royal house will be killed with swords. That’s because you turned your back on me. You took the wife of Uriah, the Hittite, to be your own.’

¹¹ “The Lord also says, ‘I am going to bring trouble on you. It will come from your own family. I will take your wives away. Your own eyes will see it. I will give your wives to a man who is close to you. He will sleep with them in the middle of the day. ¹² You committed your sins in secret. But I will make sure that the man commits his sin in the middle of the day. Everyone in Israel will see it.’ ”

¹³ Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”

Nathan replied, “The Lord has taken away your sin. You aren’t going to die. ¹⁴ But you have dared to show great disrespect for the Lord. So the son who has been born to you will die.”

¹⁵ Nathan went home. Then the Lord made David’s child very sick. That was the child David had by Uriah’s wife. ¹⁶ David begged God to heal the child. David didn’t eat anything. He spent his nights lying on the ground. He put on the rough clothes people wear when they’re sad. ¹⁷ His most trusted servants stood beside him. They wanted him to get up from the ground. But he refused to do it. And he wouldn’t eat any food with them.

¹⁸ On the seventh day the child died. David’s attendants were afraid to tell him the child was dead. They thought, “While the child was still alive, we spoke to David. But he wouldn’t listen to us. So how can we now tell him the child is dead? He might do something terrible to himself.”

¹⁹ David saw that his attendants were whispering to one another. Then he realized the child was dead. “Has the child died?” he asked.

“Yes,” they replied. “He’s dead.”

²⁰ Then David got up from the ground. After he washed himself, he put on lotions. He changed his clothes. He went into the house of the Lord and worshiped him. Then he went to his own house. He asked for some food. They served it to him. And he ate it.

²¹ His attendants asked him, “Why are you acting like this? While the child was still alive, you wouldn’t eat anything. You cried a lot. But now that the child is dead, you get up and eat!”

²² He answered, “While the child was still alive, I didn’t eat anything. And I cried a lot. I thought, ‘Who knows? The Lord might have mercy on me. He might let the child live.’ ²³ But now he’s dead. So why should I continue to go without food? Can I bring him back to life again? Someday I’ll go to him. But he won’t return to me.”

²⁴ Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba. He went to her and slept with her. Some time later she had a son. He was given the name Solomon. The Lord loved him. ²⁵ So the Lord sent a message through Nathan the prophet. The Lord said, “Name the boy Jedidiah.”

²⁶ During that time, Joab fought against Rabbah. It was the royal city of the Ammonites. It had high walls around it. Joab was about to capture it. ²⁷ He sent messengers to David. He told them to say, “I have fought against Rabbah. I’ve taken control of its water supply. ²⁸ So bring the rest of the troops together. Surround the city and get ready to attack it. Then capture it. If you don’t, I’ll capture it myself. Then it will be named after me.”

²⁹ So David brought together the whole army and went to Rabbah. He attacked it and captured it. ³⁰ David took the gold crown off the head of the king of Ammon. Then the crown was placed on David’s head. The crown weighed 75 pounds. It had jewels in it. David took a huge amount of goods from the city. ³¹ He brought out the people who were there. He made them work with saws and iron picks and axes. He forced them to make bricks. David did that to all the towns in Ammon. Then he and his entire army returned to Jerusalem.

Amnon and Tamar

13 Some time later, David’s son Amnon fell in love with Tamar. She was the beautiful sister of Absalom. He was another one of David’s sons.

² Amnon wanted his sister Tamar so much that it made him sick. She was a virgin, and it seemed impossible for him to do what he wanted with her.

³ Amnon had an adviser named Jonadab. He was the son of David’s brother Shimeah. Jonadab was a very clever man. ⁴ He asked Amnon, “You are the king’s son, aren’t you? So why do you look so worn out every morning? Won’t you tell me?”

Amnon answered, “I’m in love with Tamar. She’s the sister of my brother Absalom.”

⁵ “Go to bed,” Jonadab said. “Pretend to be sick. Your father will come to see you. When he does, tell him, ‘I would like my sister Tamar to come and give me something to eat. Let her prepare the food right here in front of me where I can watch her. Then she can feed it to me.’ ”

⁶ So Amnon went to bed. He pretended to be sick. The king came to see him. Amnon said to him, “I would like my sister Tamar to come here. I want to watch her make some special bread. Then she can feed it to me.”

⁷ David sent a message to Tamar at the palace. He said, “Go to your brother Amnon’s house. Prepare some food for him.” ⁸ So Tamar went to the house of her brother Amnon. He was lying in bed. She got some dough and mixed it. She shaped the bread right there in front of him. And she baked it. ⁹ Then she took the bread out of the pan and served it to him. But he refused to eat it.

“Send everyone out of here,” Amnon said. So everyone left him. ¹⁰ Then he said to Tamar, “Bring the food here into my bedroom. Please feed it to me.” So Tamar picked up the bread she had prepared. She brought it to her brother Amnon in his bedroom. ¹¹ She took it to him so he could eat it. But he grabbed her. He said, “My sister, come to bed with me.”

¹² “No, my brother!” she said to him. “Don’t force me! An evil thing like that should never be done in Israel! Don’t do it! ¹³ What about me? How could I ever get rid of my shame? And what about you? You would be as foolish as any evil person in Israel. Please speak to the king. He won’t keep me from marrying you.” ¹⁴ But Amnon refused to listen to her. He was stronger than she was. So he raped her.

¹⁵ Then Amnon hated Tamar very much. In fact, he hated her more than he had loved her before. He said to her, “Get up! Get out!”

¹⁶ “No!” she said to him. “Don’t send me away. That would be worse than what you have already done to me.”

But he refused to listen to her. ¹⁷ He sent for his personal servant. He said, “Get this woman out of my sight. Lock the door behind her.” ¹⁸ So his servant threw her out. Then he locked the door behind her. Tamar was wearing a beautiful robe. It was the kind of robe the virgin daughters of the king wore. ¹⁹ She put ashes on her head. She tore the beautiful robe she was wearing. She put her hands on her head and went away. She was weeping out loud as she went.

²⁰ When her brother Absalom saw her, he spoke to her. He said, “Has Amnon, that brother of yours, forced you to go to bed with him? My sister, don’t let it upset you. Don’t let it bother you. He’s your brother.” After that, Tamar lived in her brother Absalom’s house. She was very lonely.

²¹ King David heard about everything that had happened. So he became very angry. ²² And Absalom never said a word of any kind to Amnon. He hated Amnon because he had brought shame on his sister Tamar.

Absalom Kills Amnon

²³ Two years later, Absalom invited all the king’s sons to come to Baal Hazor. It was near the border of Ephraim. The workers who clipped the wool off Absalom’s sheep were there. ²⁴ Absalom went to the king. He said, “I’ve had my workers come to clip the wool. Will you and your attendants please join me?”

²⁵ “No, my son,” the king replied. “All of us shouldn’t go. It would be too much trouble for you.” Although Absalom begged him, the king still refused to go. But he gave Absalom his blessing.

²⁶ Then Absalom said, “If you won’t come, please let my brother Amnon come with us.”

The king asked him, “Why should he go with you?” ²⁷ But Absalom begged him. So the king sent Amnon with him. He also sent the rest of his sons.

²⁸ Absalom ordered his men, “Listen! When Amnon has had too much wine to drink, I’ll say to you, ‘Strike Amnon down.’ When I do, kill him. Don’t be afraid. I’ve given you an order, haven’t I? Be strong and brave.” ²⁹ So Absalom’s men killed Amnon, just as Absalom had ordered. Then all the king’s sons got on their mules and rode away.

³⁰ While they were on their way, a report came to David. It said, “Absalom has struck down all your sons. Not one of them is left alive.” ³¹ The king stood up and tore his clothes. Then he lay down on the ground. All his attendants stood near him. They had also torn their clothes.

³² Jonadab, the son of David’s brother Shimeah, spoke up. He said, “You shouldn’t think that all the princes have been killed. The only one who is dead is Amnon. Absalom had planned to kill him ever since the day Amnon raped his sister Tamar. ³³ You are my king and master. You shouldn’t be concerned about this report. It’s not true that all your sons are dead. The only one who is dead is Amnon.”

³⁴ While all of that was taking place, Absalom ran away.

The man on guard duty at Jerusalem looked up. He saw many people coming on the road west of him. They were coming down the side of the hill. He went and spoke to the king. He said, “I see men coming down the road from Horonaim. They are coming down the side of the hill.”

³⁵ Jonadab said to the king, “See, your sons are coming. It has happened just as I said it would.”

³⁶ As he finished speaking, the king’s sons came in. They were weeping out loud. The king and all his attendants were also weeping very bitterly.

³⁷ When Absalom ran away, he went to Talmai, the son of Ammihud. Talmai was king of Geshur. King David mourned many days for his son Amnon.

³⁸ So Absalom ran away and went to Geshur. He stayed there for three years. ³⁹ After some time the king got over his sorrow because of Amnon’s death. Then King David longed to go to Absalom.

Absalom Makes Secret Plans Against David

15 Some time later, Absalom got a chariot and horses for himself. He also got 50 men to run in front of him. ² He would get up early. He would stand by the side of the road that led to the city gate. Sometimes a person would come with a case for the king to decide. Then Absalom would call out to him, “What town are you from?” He would answer, “I’m from one of the tribes of Israel.” ³ Absalom would say, “Look, your claims are based on the law. So you have every right to make them. But the king doesn’t have anyone here who can listen to your case.” ⁴ Absalom would continue, “I wish I were appointed judge in the land! Then anyone who has a case or a claim could come to me. I would make sure they are treated fairly.”

⁵ Sometimes people would approach Absalom and bow down to him. Then he would reach out his hand. He would take hold of them and kiss them. ⁶ Absalom did that to all the Israelites who came to the king with their cases or claims. That’s why the hearts of the people were turned toward him.

⁷ After Absalom had lived in Jerusalem for four years, he went and spoke to the king. He said, “Let me go to Hebron. I want to keep a promise I made to the Lord. ⁸ When I was living at Geshur in Aram, I made a promise. I said, ‘If the Lord takes me back to Jerusalem, I’ll go to Hebron and worship him there.’ ”

⁹ The king said to him, “Go in peace.” So he went to Hebron.

¹⁰ Then Absalom sent messengers secretly to all the tribes of Israel. They said, “Listen for the sound of trumpets. As soon as you hear them, say, ‘Absalom has become king in Hebron.’ ” ¹¹ Absalom had taken 200 men from Jerusalem with him to Hebron. He had invited them to be his guests. They went without having any idea what was going to happen. ¹² While Absalom was offering sacrifices, he sent for Ahithophel. Ahithophel was David’s adviser. He came to Absalom from Giloh, his hometown. The number of people who followed Absalom kept growing. So he became more and more able to carry out his plans against David.

David Runs Away From Absalom

¹³ A messenger came and spoke to David. He told him, “The hearts of the Israelites are turned toward Absalom.”

¹⁴ Then David spoke to all his officials who were with him in Jerusalem. He said, “Come on! We have to leave right away! If we don’t, none of us will escape from Absalom. He’ll move quickly to catch up with us. He’ll destroy us. His men will kill everyone in the city with their swords.”

¹⁵ The king’s officials answered him, “You are our king and master. We’re ready to do anything you want.”

¹⁶ The king started out. Everyone in his whole family went with him. But he left ten concubines behind to take care of the palace. ¹⁷ So the king and all those with him left. They stopped at the edge of the city. ¹⁸ All of David’s officials marched past him. All the Kerethites and Pelethites marched along with them. And all of the 600 men who had come with him from Gath marched in front of him.

¹⁹ The king spoke to Ittai. He was from Gath. The king said to him, “Why do you want to come along with us? Go back. Stay with King Absalom. You are an outsider. You left your own country. ²⁰ You came to join me only a short time ago. So why should I make you wander around with us now? I don’t even know where I’m going. So go on back. Take your people with you. And may the Lord be kind and faithful to you.”

²¹ But Ittai replied to the king, “You are my king and master. I want to be where you are. It doesn’t matter whether I live or die. And that’s just as sure as the Lord and you are alive.”

²² David said to Ittai, “Go ahead then. Keep marching with my men.” So Ittai, the Gittite, kept marching. All his men and their families marched with him.

²³ All the people in the countryside wept out loud as David and all his followers passed by. The king went across the Kidron Valley. He and all the people with him moved on toward the desert.

²⁴ Zadok also went with them. Some of the Levites went with him. They were carrying the ark of the covenant of God. They set down the ark. Abiathar offered sacrifices until all the people had left the city.

²⁵ Then the king said to Zadok, “Take the ark of God back into the city. If the Lord is pleased with me, he’ll bring me back. He’ll let me see the ark again. He’ll also let me see Jerusalem again. That’s the place where he lives. ²⁶ But suppose he says, ‘I am not pleased with you.’ Then I accept that. Let him do to me what he thinks is best.”

²⁷ The king said again to Zadok the priest, “Do you understand? Go back to the city with my blessing. Take your son Ahimaaz with you. Also take Abiathar and his son Jonathan with you. ²⁸ I’ll wait at the place in the desert where we can go across the Jordan River. I’ll wait there until you send word to let me know what’s happening.” ²⁹ So Zadok and Abiathar took the ark of God back to Jerusalem. They stayed there.

³⁰ But David went on up the Mount of Olives. He was weeping as he went. His head was covered, and he was barefoot. All the people with him covered their heads too. And they were weeping as they went up. ³¹ David had been told, “Ahithophel, along with Absalom, is one of the people making secret plans against you.” So David prayed, “Lord, make Ahithophel’s advice look foolish.”

³² David arrived at the top of the Mount of Olives. That’s where people used to worship God. Hushai, the Arkite, was there to meet him. His robe was torn. There was dust on his head. ³³ David said to him, “If you go with me, you will be too much trouble for me. ³⁴ So return to the city. Say to Absalom, ‘Your Majesty, I’ll be your servant. In the past, I was your father’s servant. But now I’ll be your servant.’ If you do that, you can help me by making sure Ahithophel’s advice fails. ³⁵ Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, will be there with you. Tell them everything you hear in the king’s palace. ³⁶ They have their sons Ahimaaz and Jonathan there with them. Send them to tell me everything you hear.”

³⁷ So David’s trusted friend Hushai went to Jerusalem. He arrived just as Absalom was entering the city.

18 David brought together the men with him. He appointed commanders of thousands over some of them. He appointed commanders of hundreds over the others. ² Then David sent out his troops in military groups. One group was under the command of Joab. Another was under Joab’s brother Abishai, the son of Zeruiah. The last was under Ittai, the Gittite. The king told the troops, “You can be sure that I myself will march out with you.”

³ But the men said, “You must not march out. If we are forced to run away, our enemies won’t care about us. Even if half of us die, they won’t care. But you are worth 10,000 of us. So it would be better for you to stay here in the city. Then you can send us help if we need it.”

⁴ The king said, “I’ll do what you think is best.”

So the king stood beside the city gate. His whole army marched out in groups of hundreds and groups of thousands. ⁵ The king gave an order to Joab, Abishai and Ittai. He commanded them, “Be gentle with the young man Absalom. Do it for me.” All the troops heard the king give the commanders that order about Absalom.

⁶ David’s army marched out of the city to fight against Israel. The battle took place in the forest of Ephraim. ⁷ There David’s men won the battle over Israel’s army. A huge number of men were wounded or killed that day. The total number was 20,000. ⁸ The fighting spread out over the whole countryside. But more men were killed in the forest that day than out in the open.

⁹ Absalom happened to come across some of David’s men. He was riding his mule. The mule went under the thick branches of a large oak tree. Absalom’s hair got caught in the tree. He was left hanging in the air. The mule he was riding kept on going.

¹⁰ One of David’s men saw what had happened. He told Joab, “I just saw Absalom hanging in an oak tree.”

¹¹ Joab said to the man, “What! You saw him? Why didn’t you strike him down right there? Then I would have had to give you four ounces of silver and a soldier’s belt.”

¹² But the man replied, “I wouldn’t do anything to hurt the king’s son. I wouldn’t do it even for 25 pounds of silver. We heard the king’s command to you and Abishai and Ittai. He said, ‘Be careful not to hurt the young man Absalom. Do it for me.’ ¹³ Suppose I had put my life in danger by killing him. The king would have found out about it. Nothing is hidden from him. And you wouldn’t have stood up for me.”

¹⁴ Joab said, “I’m not going to waste any more time on you.” So he got three javelins. Then he went over and plunged them into Absalom’s heart. He did it while Absalom was still hanging there alive in the oak tree. ¹⁵ Ten of the men carrying Joab’s armor surrounded Absalom. They struck him and killed him.

¹⁶ Then Joab blew his trumpet. He ordered his troops to stop chasing Israel’s army. ¹⁷ Joab’s men threw Absalom into a big pit in the forest. They covered him with a large pile of rocks. While all of that was going on, all the Israelites ran back to their homes.

¹⁸ Earlier in his life Absalom had set up a pillar in the King’s Valley. He had put it up as a monument to himself. He thought, “I don’t have a son to carry on the memory of my name.” So he named the pillar after himself. It is still called Absalom’s Monument to this day.

David Mourns Over Absalom

¹⁹ Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, said to Joab, “Let me run and take the news to the king. Let me tell him that the Lord has shown that David is in the right. The Lord has done this by saving David from his enemies.”

²⁰ “I don’t want you to take the news to the king today,” Joab told him. “You can do it some other time. But you must not do it today, because the king’s son is dead.”

²¹ Then Joab said to a man from Cush, “Go. Tell the king what you have seen.” The man bowed down in front of Joab. Then he ran off.

²² Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, spoke again to Joab. He said, “I don’t care what happens to me. Please let me run behind the man from Cush.”

But Joab replied, “My son, why do you want to go? You don’t have any news that will bring you a reward.”

²³ He said, “I don’t care what happens. I want to run.”

So Joab said, “Run!” Then Ahimaaz ran across the plain of the Jordan River. As he ran, he passed the man from Cush.

²⁴ David was sitting in the area between the inner and outer gates of the city. The man on guard duty went up to the roof over the entrance of the gate by the wall. As he looked out, he saw someone running alone. ²⁵ The guard called out to the king and reported it.

The king said, “If the runner is alone, he must be bringing good news.” The runner came closer and closer.

²⁶ Then the man on guard duty saw another runner. He called out to the man guarding the gate. He said, “Look! There’s another man running alone!”

The king said, “He must be bringing good news too.”

²⁷ The man on guard duty said, “I can see that the first one runs like Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok.”

“He’s a good man,” the king said. “He’s bringing good news.”

²⁸ Then Ahimaaz called out to the king, “Everything’s all right!” He bowed down in front of the king with his face toward the ground. He said, “You are my king and master. Give praise to the Lord your God! He has handed over to you those who lifted their hands to kill you.”

²⁹ The king asked, “Is the young man Absalom safe?”

Ahimaaz answered, “I saw total disorder. I saw it just as Joab was about to send the king’s servant and me to you. But I don’t know what it was all about.”

³⁰ The king said, “Stand over there and wait.” So he stepped over to one side and stood there.

³¹ Then the man from Cush arrived. He said, “You are my king and master. I’m bringing you some good news. The Lord has shown that you are in the right. He has done this by rescuing you today from all those trying to kill you.”

³² The king asked the man from Cush, “Is the young man Absalom safe?”

The man replied, “King David, may your enemies be like that young man. May all those who rise up to harm you be like him.”

³³ The king was very upset. He went up to the room over the entrance of the gate and wept. As he went, he said, “My son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! I wish I had died instead of you. Absalom! My son, my son!”