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Joab Puts Absalom to Death

18 Then David [a]numbered the people who were with him and (A)set over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds. And David sent the people out, (B)one-third under the hand of Joab, one-third under the hand of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, and one-third under the hand of (C)Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the people, “I myself will surely go out with you also.” But the people said, “(D)You should not go out; for if we indeed flee, they will not set their heart on us; even if half of us die, they will not set their heart on us. But now [b]you are worth ten thousand of us; so now it is better that you be ready to help us from the city.” Then the king said to them, “Whatever is good in your sight I will do.” So (E)the king stood beside the gate, and all the people went out by hundreds and thousands. Then the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.” And (F)all the people heard when the king commanded all the commanders concerning Absalom.

Then the people went out into the field to meet Israel, and the battle took place in (G)the forest of Ephraim. And the people of Israel were [c]defeated there before the servants of David, and the slaughter there that day was great, 20,000 men. And the battle there was scattered over the whole countryside, and the forest devoured more people that day than the sword devoured.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 18:1 Lit mustered
  2. 2 Samuel 18:3 As in some ancient versions; M.T. for now there are ten thousand like us
  3. 2 Samuel 18:7 Lit smitten

Absalom’s Defeat

18 David reviewed his troops and appointed commanders of hundreds and of thousands over them. He then sent out the troops, a third under Joab, a third under Joab’s brother Abishai son of Zeruiah, and a third under Ittai the Gittite. The king said to the troops, “I will also march out with you.”

“You must not go!”(A) the people pleaded. “If we have to flee, they will not pay any attention to us. Even if half of us die, they will not pay any attention to us because you are worth[a] 10,000 of us. Therefore, it is better if you support us from the city.”

“I will do whatever you think is best,” the king replied to them. So he stood beside the gate while all the troops marched out by hundreds and thousands. The king commanded Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, “Treat the young man Absalom gently for my sake.” All the people heard the king’s orders to all the commanders about Absalom.

Then David’s forces marched into the field to engage Israel in battle, which took place in the forest of Ephraim. The people of Israel were defeated by David’s soldiers, and the slaughter there was vast that day—20,000 casualties. The battle spread over the entire region, and that day the forest claimed more people than the sword.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 18:3 Some Hb mss, LXX, Vg; other Hb mss read because there would now be about