¹² “But if you turn away and ally yourselves with the survivors of these nations that remain among you and if you intermarry with them^(A) and associate with them,^{(B) 13} then you may be sure that the Lord your God will no longer drive out^(C) these nations before you. Instead, they will become snares^(D) and traps for you, whips on your backs and thorns in your eyes,^(E) until you perish from this good land,^(F) which the Lord your God has given you.

⁵⁵ “‘But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land, those you allow to remain will become barbs in your eyes and thorns^(A) in your sides. They will give you trouble in the land where you will live.

³⁷ Absalom fled and went to Talmai^(A) son of Ammihud, the king of Geshur. But King David mourned many days for his son.

³⁸ After Absalom fled and went to Geshur, he stayed there three years.

The Angel of the Lord at Bokim

2 The angel of the Lord^(A) went up from Gilgal^(B) to Bokim^(C) and said, “I brought you up out of Egypt^(D) and led you into the land I swore to give to your ancestors.^(E) I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you,^{(F) 2} and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land,^(G) but you shall break down their altars.^(H)’ Yet you have disobeyed^(I) me. Why have you done this? ³ And I have also said, ‘I will not drive them out before you;^(J) they will become traps^(K) for you, and their gods will become snares^(L) to you.’”