Submit to Government

13 Let every soul be ^(A)subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. ² Therefore whoever resists ^(B)the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will ^[a]bring judgment on themselves. ³ For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? ^(C)Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. ⁴ For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. ⁵ Therefore ^(D)you must be subject, not only because of wrath ^(E)but also for conscience’ sake. ⁶ For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God’s ministers attending continually to this very thing. ^7 (F)Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.

Submission to Government^(A)

^13 (B)Therefore submit yourselves to every ^[a]ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, ¹⁴ or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. ¹⁵ For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— ^16 (C)as free, yet not ^(D)using liberty as a cloak for ^[b]vice, but as bondservants of God. ¹⁷ Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear ^(E)God. Honor the king.

Graces of the Heirs of Grace

3 Remind them ^(A)to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, ^(B)to be ready for every good work,

Obey Authorities for God’s Sake

² I say, “Keep the king’s commandment ^(A)for the sake of your oath to God. ^3 (B)Do not be hasty to go from his presence. Do not take your stand for an evil thing, for he does whatever pleases him.”

¹⁶ Now when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, saying:

So Israel departed to their tents.

David Escapes from Jerusalem

¹³ Now a messenger came to David, saying, ^(A)“The hearts of the men of Israel are ^[a]with Absalom.”

¹⁴ So David said to all his servants who were with him at Jerusalem, “Arise, and let us ^(B)flee, or we shall not escape from Absalom. Make haste to depart, lest he overtake us suddenly and bring disaster upon us, and strike the city with the edge of the sword.”

¹⁵ And the king’s servants said to the king, “We are your servants, ready to do whatever my lord the king commands.” ¹⁶ Then ^(C)the king went out with all his household after him. But the king left ^(D)ten women, concubines, to keep the house. ¹⁷ And the king went out with all the people after him, and stopped at the outskirts. ¹⁸ Then all his servants passed ^[b]before him; ^(E)and all the Cherethites, all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, ^(F)six hundred men who had followed him from Gath, passed before the king.

¹⁹ Then the king said to ^(G)Ittai the Gittite, “Why are you also going with us? Return and remain with the king. For you are a foreigner and also an exile from your own place. ²⁰ In fact, you came only yesterday. Should I make you wander up and down with us today, since I go ^(H)I know not where? Return, and take your brethren back. Mercy and truth be with you.”

²¹ But Ittai answered the king and said, ^(I)“As the Lord lives, and as my lord the king lives, surely in whatever place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also your servant will be.”

²² So David said to Ittai, “Go, and cross over.” Then Ittai the Gittite and all his men and all the little ones who were with him crossed over. ²³ And all the country wept with a loud voice, and all the people crossed over. The king himself also crossed over the Brook Kidron, and all the people crossed over toward the way of the ^(J)wilderness.

²⁴ There was ^(K)Zadok also, and all the Levites with him, bearing the ^(L)ark of the covenant of God. And they set down the ark of God, and ^(M)Abiathar went up until all the people had finished crossing over from the city. ²⁵ Then the king said to Zadok, “Carry the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the eyes of the Lord, He ^(N)will bring me back and show me both it and ^(O)His dwelling place. ²⁶ But if He says thus: ‘I have no ^(P)delight in you,’ here I am, ^(Q)let Him do to me as seems good to Him.” ²⁷ The king also said to Zadok the priest, “Are you not a ^(R)seer?^[c] Return to the city in peace, and ^(S)your two sons with you, Ahimaaz your son, and Jonathan the son of Abiathar. ²⁸ See, ^(T)I will wait in the plains of the wilderness until word comes from you to inform me.” ²⁹ Therefore Zadok and Abiathar carried the ark of God back to Jerusalem. And they remained there.

³⁰ So David went up by the Ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up; and he ^(U)had his head covered and went ^(V)barefoot. And all the people who were with him ^(W)covered their heads and went up, ^(X)weeping as they went up. ³¹ Then someone told David, saying, ^(Y)“Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.” And David said, “O Lord, I pray, ^(Z)turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness!”

³² Now it happened when David had come to the top of the mountain, where he worshiped God—there was Hushai the ^(AA)Archite coming to meet him ^(AB)with his robe torn and dust on his head. ³³ David said to him, “If you go on with me, then you will become ^(AC)a burden to me. ³⁴ But if you return to the city, and say to Absalom, ^(AD)‘I will be your servant, O king; as I was your father’s servant previously, so I will now also be your servant,’ then you may defeat the counsel of Ahithophel for me. ³⁵ And do you not have Zadok and Abiathar the priests with you there? Therefore it will be that whatever you hear from the king’s house, you shall tell to ^(AE)Zadok and Abiathar the priests. ³⁶ Indeed they have there ^(AF)with them their two sons, Ahimaaz, Zadok’s son, and Jonathan, Abiathar’s son; and by them you shall send me everything you hear.”

³⁷ So Hushai, ^(AG)David’s friend, went into the city. ^(AH)And Absalom came into Jerusalem.

⁶ And he said to his men, ^(A)“The Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, to stretch out my hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the Lord.”

¹² And when you saw that ^(A)Nahash king of the Ammonites came against you, ^(B)you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us,’ when ^(C)the Lord your God was your king.

¹³ “Now therefore, ^(D)here is the king ^(E)whom you have chosen and whom you have desired. And take note, ^(F)the Lord has set a king over you. ¹⁴ If you ^(G)fear the Lord and serve Him and obey His voice, and do not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then both you and the king who reigns over you will continue following the Lord your God. ¹⁵ However, if you do ^(H)not obey the voice of the Lord, but ^(I)rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then the hand of the Lord will be against you, as it was against your fathers.

¹⁶ “Now therefore, ^(J)stand and see this great thing which the Lord will do before your eyes: ¹⁷ Is today not the ^(K)wheat harvest? ^(L)I will call to the Lord, and He will send thunder and ^(M)rain, that you may perceive and see that ^(N)your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking a king for yourselves.”

¹⁸ So Samuel called to the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day; and ^(O)all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.

¹⁹ And all the people said to Samuel, ^(P)“Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we may not die; for we have added to all our sins the evil of asking a king for ourselves.”