2 Samuel 16:15-17:23
Expanded Bible
15 Meanwhile, Absalom, Ahithophel, and all the ·Israelites [L people/army of Israel] arrived at Jerusalem. 16 David’s friend Hushai the Arkite came to Absalom and said to him, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”
17 Absalom asked, “·Why are you not loyal [L Is this the love/loyalty you show] to your friend David? Why didn’t you leave Jerusalem with your friend?”
18 Hushai said, “I belong to the one chosen by the Lord and by these people and everyone in Israel. I will stay with ·you [L him]. 19 In the past I served your father. So whom should I serve now? David’s son! I will serve you as I served him.”
Ahithophel’s Advice
20 Absalom said to Ahithophel, “·Tell [L Advise; Counsel] us what we should do.”
21 Ahithophel said, “Your father left behind some of his ·slave women [L concubines; C secondary wives; 3:7] to take care of the palace. ·Have sexual relations with [Sleep with; L Go into] them. Then all Israel will hear that ·your father is your enemy [L you have gravely insulted/made yourself odious to your father], and all ·your people [Israel; or those who support you] will be ·encouraged to give you more [stronger in their] support.” 22 So they put up a tent for Absalom on the roof [C the flat roofs of Israelite houses were used for living space] of ·his palace [L the king’s house] where everyone in Israel could see it. And Absalom ·had sexual relations with [slept with; L went in to] his father’s ·slave women [concubines].
23 At that time people thought Ahithophel’s advice was as ·reliable as God’s own word [L if one consulted a word/message/oracle from God]. Both David and Absalom thought ·it was that reliable [so].
17 Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Let me choose twelve thousand men and chase David tonight. 2 I’ll catch him while he is tired and ·weak [discouraged], and I’ll ·frighten [terrorize] him so all his ·people [troops] will run away. But I’ll ·kill [strike down] only King David. 3 Then I’ll bring everyone back to you [L as a bride returns to her husband].[a] ·If the man you are looking for is dead [Since you seek the life of only one man], everyone else will ·return safely [be at peace].” 4 This plan ·seemed good to [pleased] Absalom and to all the ·leaders [elders] of Israel.
5 But Absalom said, “Now call Hushai the Arkite, so I can hear what he says.” 6 When Hushai came to Absalom, Absalom said to him, “This is the plan Ahithophel gave. Should we follow it? If not, ·tell us [give us your view].”
7 Hushai said to Absalom, “Ahithophel’s advice is not good this time.” 8 Hushai added, “You know your father and his men are ·strong [L mighty fighters/warriors]. They are as ·angry [fierce] as a bear that is robbed of its cubs. Your father is a ·skilled [experienced; expert] ·fighter [in war]. He won’t stay all night with the ·army [troops]. 9 He is probably already hiding in a cave or ·some other place [L pit; hollow]. ·If the first attack fails [L When some of our men fall at the first attack], people will hear the news and think, ‘Absalom’s followers are ·losing [being slaughtered]!’ 10 Then even the men who are ·as brave as lions [L valiant, with the heart of a lion] will ·be frightened [L melt/be paralyzed with fear], because all the Israelites know your father is a ·fighter [L mighty warrior]. They know his men are brave!
11 “This is what I ·suggest [advise; counsel]: Gather all the Israelites from Dan to Beersheba [C in the far north and south of Israel]. There will be as many people as grains of sand by the sea. Then you ·yourself must go [personally lead them] into the battle. 12 We will ·go to [attack; come at] David wherever he is hiding. We will fall on him as dew falls on the ground. ·We will kill him and all of his men so that no one [L Neither he nor any of his men] will be left alive. 13 If David ·escapes [withdraws] into a city, all the Israelites will bring ropes to that city and pull it into the valley. Not ·a stone will be left [a pebble will be found there]!”
14 Absalom and all the Israelites said, “The ·advice [counsel] of Hushai the Arkite is better than ·that [the counsel] of Ahithophel.” (The Lord had ·planned [determined; resolved; ordained] to ·destroy [thwart; defeat; frustrate] the good ·advice [counsel] of Ahithophel so the Lord could bring ·disaster [calamity; ruin] on Absalom.)
15 Hushai told Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, what Ahithophel had ·suggested [advised; counseled] to Absalom and the elders of Israel. He also reported to them what he himself had ·suggested [advised; counseled]. Hushai said, 16 “Quickly! Send a message to David. Tell him not to stay tonight at the ·crossings into the desert [fords in the wilderness] but to cross over the Jordan River at once. ·If he crosses the river, he and all his people won’t be destroyed [L Otherwise the king and everyone with him will be swallowed up].”
17 Jonathan and Ahimaaz were waiting at En Rogel. They did not want to ·be [risk being] seen going into the city, so a servant girl would go out to them and give them messages. Then Jonathan and Ahimaaz would go and tell King David.
18 But a ·boy [lad; young man] saw Jonathan and Ahimaaz and told Absalom. So Jonathan and Ahimaaz left quickly and went to a man’s house in Bahurim. He had a well in his courtyard, and they climbed down into it. 19 The man’s wife spread a ·sheet [covering] over the opening of the well and ·covered [scattered] it with grain. ·No one could tell that anyone was hiding there [L Nothing was known].
20 Absalom’s ·servants [men] came to the woman at the house and asked, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?”
She said to them, “They have already crossed the brook.”
Absalom’s ·servants [men] then went to ·look [search] for Jonathan and Ahimaaz, but they could not find them. So they went back to Jerusalem.
21 After ·Absalom’s servants [they] left, Jonathan and Ahimaaz climbed out of the well and went to tell King David. They said, “Hurry, cross over the ·river [water]! Ahithophel has ·said [advised; counseled] these things against you!” 22 So David and all his people crossed the Jordan River. By dawn, everyone had crossed the Jordan.
23 When Ahithophel saw that the Israelites did not ·accept his advice [follow his counsel], he saddled his donkey and went to his hometown. He ·left orders for his family and property [set his affairs/house in order], and then he hanged himself. He died and was buried in his father’s tomb.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 17:3 as a bride returns to her husband Some Greek copies read “as a bride returns to her husband.” Hebrew copies read “like the return of the whole is the man you seek.”
2 Samuel 16:15-17:23
Amplified Bible
Absalom Enters Jerusalem
15 Then Absalom and all the people, the men of Israel, entered Jerusalem, and Ahithophel with him. 16 Now it happened when Hushai the Archite, David’s friend, came to Absalom, Hushai said to him, “Long live the king! Long live the king!” 17 Absalom said to Hushai, “Is this your loyalty to your friend? Why did you not go with your friend?” 18 Hushai said to Absalom, “No! For whomever the Lord and this people and all the men of Israel have chosen [as king], I will be his, and I will remain with him. 19 Besides, whom should I serve? Should I not serve in the presence of David’s son? As I have served in your father’s presence, so I shall serve in your presence.”
20 Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give me your advice. What should we do?” 21 Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Go in to your father’s [a]concubines, whom he has left behind to take care of the house; then all Israel will hear that you have made yourself odious to your father. Then the hands of all who are with you will be strengthened [by your boldness and audacity].” 22 So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof [of the king’s palace], and [b]Absalom went in to his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.(A) 23 The advice of Ahithophel, which he gave in those days, was as if a man had consulted the word of God; that is how all Ahithophel’s counsel was regarded by both David and Absalom.
Hushai’s Counsel
17 Then, Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Please let me choose 12,000 men, and I will set out and pursue David tonight. 2 I will [c]strike while he is weary and [d]exhausted, and terrify him; and all the people with him will flee [in terror]. Then I will attack the king alone, 3 and I will bring all the people [who follow David] back to you. [e]The return of everyone depends on the [death of the] man you are seeking; then all the people will be at peace [and accept you as king].” 4 So the plan [f]pleased Absalom and all the elders of Israel.
5 Nevertheless, Absalom said, “Now call Hushai the Archite also, and let us hear what he has to say.” 6 When Hushai came to Absalom, Absalom said to him, “Ahithophel has advised this [plan of action]. Should we do what he says? If not, you speak [and explain why not].” 7 So Hushai said to Absalom, “Ahithophel has not given good advice this time.” 8 And Hushai said, “You know your father and his men, that they are brave men, and they are [g]enraged and fierce, like a bear deprived of her cubs in the field. Your father is a [shrewd] man of war, and will not spend the night with the people [knowing that you seek his life]. 9 Behold, he has hidden himself [even] now in one of the ravines or in another place; and when some of [h]your troops fall at the first attack, whoever hears about it will say, ‘There has been a defeat among the people who follow Absalom.’ 10 And even the one who is brave, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, will completely lose heart and melt away; for all Israel knows that your father is a mighty man, and that those who are with him are brave men. 11 But I advise that all [the men of] Israel be summoned to you, from Dan [in the north] to Beersheba [in the south], like the sand that is by the sea in abundance, and that you personally go into battle. 12 So shall we come upon David in one of the places where he can be found, and we will fall on him as the dew falls [unseen and unheard] on the ground; and of him and of all the men who are with him, not even one will be left. 13 If he retreats into a city, then all Israel shall bring ropes to that city, and we will drag it into the ravine until not even a pebble [of it] is found there.” 14 Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than that of Ahithophel.” For the Lord had ordained to thwart the good advice of Ahithophel, so that the Lord could bring disaster upon Absalom.
Hushai’s Warning Saves David
15 Then Hushai said to Zadok and Abiathar the priests, “This is the advice that Ahithophel gave to Absalom and the elders of Israel, and this is the advice that I have given. 16 Now then, send word quickly and tell David, ‘Do not spend the night at the [i]fords [on the west side of the Jordan] in the wilderness, but by all means cross over [to the east side of the river], or else the king and all the people with him will be destroyed [if Ahithophel is allowed by Absalom to lead an attack].’” 17 Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz [the priests’ sons] were staying at [j]En-rogel, and a maidservant [appearing to go for water] would go and tell them [what was happening], and they would go [secretly] and inform King David; for they could not [allow themselves to] be seen coming into the city [of Jerusalem]. 18 But a boy saw them and told Absalom; so the two of them left quickly and came to the house of a man in Bahurim, who had a well in his courtyard, and [with his permission] they went down into it. 19 And the woman [of the house] took a covering and spread it over the mouth of the well and scattered grain on it; so nothing was discovered. 20 Then Absalom’s servants came to the woman at the house and asked, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?” And the woman said to them, “They have crossed over the brook.” When they searched and could not find them, they returned to Jerusalem.
21 After they left, Jonathan and Ahimaaz came up out of the well and went and informed King David, and said to David, “Arise and cross over the [k]Jordan River quickly, for Ahithophel has advised [an attack] against you.” 22 Then David and all the people who were with him departed and crossed over the Jordan. By daybreak, not even one was left who had not crossed the Jordan.
23 Now when Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and set out and went to his home, to his city. Then he put his household in order, and hanged himself. So he died and was buried in the tomb of his father.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 16:21 See note Gen 22:24.
- 2 Samuel 16:22 This outrageous act was an assumption of absolute power, and signified an irreversible break in Absalom’s relationship with his father. Nathan the prophet had prophesied that David would be publicly humiliated in this way.
- 2 Samuel 17:2 Lit come upon him.
- 2 Samuel 17:2 Lit slack of hands.
- 2 Samuel 17:3 Lit Like the return of the whole is the man whom you are seeking.
- 2 Samuel 17:4 Lit was pleasing in the eyes of.
- 2 Samuel 17:8 Lit bitter of soul.
- 2 Samuel 17:9 Lit them.
- 2 Samuel 17:16 I.e. narrow or shallow places where a river may be crossed by wading.
- 2 Samuel 17:17 I.e. a spring in the Kidron Valley just outside Jerusalem.
- 2 Samuel 17:21 Lit water.
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