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2 Samuel 18:19-33
Lexham English Bible

19 Now Ahimaaz the son of Zadok said, “Please let me run and bring the good news to the king that Yahweh has vindicated him from the hand of his enemies.” 20 Joab said to him, “You will not be a man bringing[a] good news this day! You may bring good news on another day, but today you will not be bringing good news because the king’s son is dead.” 21 Then Joab said to the Cushite, “Go, tell the king what you have seen”; then the Cushite bowed down to Joab and ran off. 22 Then Ahimaaz the son of Zadok again said to Joab, “Come what may,[b] please let me also run after the Cushite.” Joab asked, “Why are you wanting to run, my son, when for you there is no messenger’s reward?”[c] 23 “Come what may,[d] I want to run.” He said to him, “Run,” so Ahimaaz ran on the road on the plain, and he passed the Cushite.

24 Now David was sitting between the two gates, and the sentinel went up to the roof of the gate by the wall and he lifted up his eyes and watched, and look, a man was running by himself. 25 The sentry called and told the king, and the king said, “If he is alone, good news is in his mouth.” He kept coming closer.[e] 26 Then the sentinel saw another man running, so the sentinel called to the gatekeeper and said, “Look, a man running alone.” The king said, “This one also is bringing good news.” 27 The sentinel said, “I am seeing that the running of the first is like the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zakok.” The king said, “He is a good man; he will come, for good news.” 28 Then Ahimaaz called and said to the king, “Peace.” He bowed down to the king with his face to the ground, and he said, “May Yahweh your God be blessed, who has delivered the men who raised their hand against my lord the king.” 29 The king said, “Is it peace for the young man Absalom?” Ahimaaz said, “I saw the great commotion when Joab the servant of the king sent your servant, but I do not know what it was all about.” 30 Then the king said, “Turn aside, take your place here,” so he turned aside and waited. 31 Suddenly the Cushite arrived and said, “May my lord the king receive the good news, for Yahweh has vindicated you today from the power of all who stood up against you.” 32 The king said to the Cushite, “Is it peace for the young man Absalom?” Then the Cushite answered, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up against you to harm you[f] be like the young man!” 33 [g] The king was upset, and he went up to the upper room of the gate and wept. He said as he went, “My son, Absalom, my son, my son, Absalom. If only[h] I had died instead of you, Absalom, my son, my son.”

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 18:20 Literally “for upon”
  2. 2 Samuel 18:22 Literally “And let it happen what”
  3. 2 Samuel 18:22 Literally “and for you there is no good news finding”
  4. 2 Samuel 18:23 Literally “And let it happen what”
  5. 2 Samuel 18:25 Literally “And he came, coming and near”
  6. 2 Samuel 18:32 Literally “for evil”
  7. 2 Samuel 18:33 2 Samuel 18:33–19:43 in the English Bible is 19:1–44 in the Hebrew Bible
  8. 2 Samuel 18:33 Literally “Who would grant my dying in place of you”
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2 Samuel 18:19-33
New English Translation

David Learns of Absalom’s Death

19 Then Ahimaaz the son of Zadok said, “Let me run and give the king the good news that the Lord has vindicated him before his enemies.”[a] 20 But Joab said to him, “You will not be a bearer of good news today. You will bear good news some other day, but not today,[b] for the king’s son is dead.”

21 Then Joab said to the Cushite, “Go and tell the king what you have seen.” After bowing to Joab, the Cushite ran off. 22 Ahimaaz the son of Zadok again spoke to Joab, “Whatever happens, let me go after the Cushite.” But Joab said, “Why is it that you want to go, my son? You have no good news that will bring you a reward.” 23 But he said,[c] “Whatever happens, I want to go!” So Joab[d] said to him, “Then go!” So Ahimaaz ran by the way of the Jordan plain, and he passed the Cushite.

24 Now David was sitting between the inner and outer gates,[e] and the watchman went up to the roof over the gate at the wall. When he looked, he saw a man running by himself. 25 So the watchman called out and informed the king. The king said, “If he is by himself, he brings good news.”[f] The runner[g] came ever closer.

26 Then the watchman saw another man running. The watchman called out to the gatekeeper, “There is another man running by himself.” The king said, “This one also is bringing good news.” 27 The watchman said, “It appears to me that the first runner is Ahimaaz[h] son of Zadok.” The king said, “He is a good man, and he comes with good news.”

28 Then Ahimaaz called out and said to the king, “Greetings!”[i] He bowed down before the king with his face toward the ground and said, “May the Lord your God be praised because he has defeated[j] the men who opposed[k] my lord the king!”

29 The king replied, “How is the young man Absalom?” Ahimaaz replied, “I saw a great deal of confusion when Joab was sending the king’s servant and me, your servant, but I don’t know what it was all about.” 30 The king said, “Turn aside and take your place here.” So he turned aside and waited.

31 Then the Cushite arrived and said,[l] “May my lord the king now receive the good news! The Lord has vindicated you today and delivered you from the hand of all who have rebelled against you!”[m] 32 The king asked the Cushite, “How is the young man Absalom?” The Cushite replied, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who have plotted against you[n] be like that young man!”

33 (19:1)[o] The king then became very upset. He went up to the upper room over the gate and wept. As he went he said, “My son, Absalom! My son, my son,[p] Absalom! If only I could have died in your place! Absalom, my son, my son!”[q]

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 18:19 tn Heb “that the Lord has vindicated him from the hand of his enemies.”
  2. 2 Samuel 18:20 tn Heb “but this day you will not bear good news.”
  3. 2 Samuel 18:23 tn The words “but he said” are not in the Hebrew text. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.
  4. 2 Samuel 18:23 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  5. 2 Samuel 18:24 tn Heb “the two gates.”
  6. 2 Samuel 18:25 tn Heb “good news is in his mouth.”
  7. 2 Samuel 18:25 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the runner) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  8. 2 Samuel 18:27 tn Heb “I am seeing the running of the first one like the running of Ahimaaz.”
  9. 2 Samuel 18:28 tn Heb “Peace.”
  10. 2 Samuel 18:28 tn Heb “delivered over.”
  11. 2 Samuel 18:28 tn Heb “lifted their hand against.”
  12. 2 Samuel 18:31 tn Heb “And look, the Cushite came and the Cushite said.”
  13. 2 Samuel 18:31 tn Heb “for the Lord has vindicated you today from the hand of all those rising against you.”
  14. 2 Samuel 18:32 tn Heb “and all those rising against you for evil.”
  15. 2 Samuel 18:33 sn This marks the beginning of ch. 19 in the Hebrew text. Beginning with 18:33, the verse numbers through 19:43 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 18:33 ET = 19:1 HT, 19:1 ET = 19:2 HT, 19:2 ET = 19:3 HT, etc., through 19:43 ET = 19:44 HT. From 20:1 the versification in the English Bible and the Hebrew Bible is again the same.
  16. 2 Samuel 18:33 tc One medieval Hebrew ms, some mss of the LXX, and the Vulgate lack this repeated occurrence of “my son” due to haplography.
  17. 2 Samuel 18:33 tc The Lucianic Greek recension and Syriac Peshitta lack this repeated occurrence of “my son” due to haplography.
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