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The Defeat and Death of Absalom

18 Then David mustered the men who were with him and set over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds.(A) And David sent forth the army: one third under the command of Joab; one third under the command of Abishai son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother; and one third under the command of Ittai the Gittite. The king said to the men, “I myself will also go out with you.”(B) But the men said, “You shall not go out. For if we flee, they will not care about us. If half of us die, they will not care about us. But you are worth ten thousand of us;[a] therefore it is better that you send us help from the city.”(C) The king said to them, “Whatever seems best to you I will do.” So the king stood at the side of the gate, while all the army marched out by hundreds and by thousands.(D) The king ordered Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.” And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders concerning Absalom.(E)

So the army went out into the field against Israel, and the battle was fought in the forest of Ephraim.(F) The men of Israel were defeated there by the servants of David, and the slaughter there was great on that day, twenty thousand men. The battle spread over the face of all the country, and the forest claimed more victims that day than the sword.

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Footnotes

  1. 18.3 Gk Vg Symmachus: Heb for now there are ten thousand such as we

The Battle Begins

18 David mustered his forces and appointed officers in charge of regiments and companies.[a] Dividing his forces into three groups, he set Joab as commander of one third of his army, Zeruiah’s son Abishai, Joab’s brother, as commander of another third, and Ittai from Gath as commander of another third. The king informed the army, “I’m going out to battle[b] with you, too.”

“No way!” his army responded. “If we have to retreat from the battle, Absalom’s men won’t care about us. Even if half of us die, they won’t care about us. But you are worth 10,000 of us. The best thing you can do for us is to remain in the city.”

So David responded, “I’ll do what you think best.” Then he stood alongside the city gate as the army went out in battle array by hundreds and thousands. As they were going out, the king ordered Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, “Treat young Absalom gently for my sake.” Everyone heard what the king had ordered his commanders about Absalom.

David’s army left for the battlefield to fight Absalom and his Israeli followers, and they also fought in the Ephraim forest, where David’s army of servants defeated the Israelis. Many died that day—20,000 men. The battle spread throughout the entire countryside, and the forest claimed more casualties that day than did the sword fighting.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 18:1 Lit. of thousands and hundreds
  2. 2 Samuel 18:2 The Heb. lacks to battle