Beginning
16 David moved a little beyond the summit. There Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth, met him with a string of saddled donkeys. On them there were two hundred loaves of bread, one hundred cakes of raisins, one hundred cakes of summer fruit, and a container[a] of wine.
2 The king said to Ziba, “Why do you have these?”
Ziba said, “The donkeys are for the household of the king to ride on. The bread and fruit are for the young men to eat. The wine is to provide something to drink for those who become exhausted in the wilderness.”
3 The king said, “So where is the grandson of your master?”
Ziba said to the king, “Well, he is staying in Jerusalem because he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will return the kingdom of my grandfather to me.’”
4 The king said to Ziba, “All right then. Everything that was Mephibosheth’s belongs to you.”
Ziba said, “I bow down before you. May I find favor in your sight, my lord the king.”
5 King David came to Bahurim. There he was confronted by a man from the family of the house of Saul. His name was Shimei son of Gera. He was rushing out and calling down curses. 6 He threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David, as well as at all the people and all the warriors on David’s right and on his left. 7 This is what Shimei said as he cursed: “Get out! Get out, you bloody, worthless man! 8 The Lord has avenged upon you all the blood of the house of Saul, whom you replaced as king. The Lord has given the kingdom into the hand of your son Absalom. Just look at you now, sunk in disaster, because you are a bloody man.”
9 Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Please let me go over and take off his head.”
10 The king said, “What do you and I have in common, you sons of Zeruiah? If he is cursing because the Lord has told him, ‘Curse David,’ then who can say, ‘Why have you done this?’” 11 Then David said to Abishai and to all his followers, “Listen to me! My son, who came from my own body, is seeking my life. How much more now, this Benjaminite! Leave him alone. Let him curse. Perhaps the Lord has told him to do so. 12 Perhaps the Lord will look on my misery and will return something good to me in exchange for his cursing this day.”
13 So David and his men kept traveling down the road, and Shimei kept following along, on the side of the hill opposite him, walking along, cursing, throwing stones, and flinging dirt at him.
14 The king and all the people who were with him traveled until they became exhausted, and then they stopped in order to recover.
Absalom’s Plans
15 Absalom and all the people, the men of Israel, arrived at Jerusalem. Ahithophel was with him.
16 When Hushai the Arkite, David’s confidant, came to Absalom, Hushai said to Absalom, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”
17 Absalom said to Hushai, “Is this your loyalty for your friend? Why didn’t you go with your friend?”
18 Hushai said to Absalom, “No. The person who has been chosen by the Lord, by this people, and by all the men of Israel—this is the one with whom I will be and with whom I will remain. 19 Besides, whom should I serve if not the king’s son? As I have served your father, so I will serve you.”
20 Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give us your advice. What should we do?”
21 Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Go to your father’s concubines, whom he has left to watch over the palace. Let all Israel hear that you have become disgusting to your father, so that the hands of all who are with you may be strengthened.”
22 So they pitched a tent on the roof for Absalom, and Absalom went to[b] his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.
23 In those days the advice that Ahithophel gave was viewed as if it had come from God. All the advice of Ahithophel was viewed that way, both by David and also by Absalom.
17 Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Let me choose twelve thousand men. I will set out to pursue David tonight. 2 I will come upon him when he is tired and weak and cause him to panic. All the people with him will flee. Then I will strike down only the king. 3 I will bring back the rest of the people to you. The life of the man whom you are seeking will gain the return of all of them.[c] All the rest of the people will be safe.” 4 Ahithophel’s plan seemed good to all the elders of Israel.
5 But Absalom said, “Call Hushai the Arkite. We should also hear what he has to say.” 6 So Hushai came to Absalom, and Absalom said to him, “This is what Ahithophel has said. Shall we do it? If you disagree, speak up.”
7 Hushai said to Absalom, “This time the advice Ahithophel has given is not good.” 8 Hushai continued, “You know your father and his men. They are fierce warriors, like an enraged bear in the open country who has lost her cubs. Your father is a fighter. He will not spend the night with the people. 9 Certainly, by now he has hidden himself in one of the caves or in some other place. What if he attacks and some of our men fall first? Whoever hears about it will say, ‘There has been a slaughter among the followers of Absalom.’ 10 Even the very brave, whose hearts are like the heart of a lion, will melt with fear, because all Israel knows that your father is a fierce warrior, and that those who are with him are brave men. 11 So, I advise you to gather all Israel to you from Dan to Beersheba, as many as the sand beside the sea, and that you personally lead them into battle. 12 We should attack the king in whatever place he is found. We will come down on him like the dew that falls upon the ground. There will not even be one survivor from him and from all the men with him. 13 If he withdraws into a city, all Israel should bring ropes to that city. We will drag it into the valley until there will not be even one pebble found there.”
14 Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Arkite is better than the advice of Ahithophel.”
The Lord had arranged to defeat the good advice of Ahithophel, so that the Lord could bring disaster upon Absalom.
15 Then Hushai told Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, “This is what Ahithophel advised Absalom and the elders of Israel. But this is what I have advised. 16 Now send a message quickly and tell David, ‘Do not stay tonight at the fords in the wilderness. Also, be sure to cross over the river, or the king and all the people who are with him will be swallowed up.’”
17 Jonathan and Ahima’az were to wait at En Rogel because they could not risk being seen going into the city. A female servant was to go out and inform them. Then they could go and tell King David. 18 However, a young man saw them and told Absalom. So the two of them quickly went to the house of a man at Bahurim. He had a well in his courtyard, and they climbed down into it. 19 His wife took a cover, spread it over the mouth of the well, and scattered grain on it. Nobody knew that she did it.
20 Absalom’s servants came to the woman at the house and said, “Where are Ahima’az and Jonathan?”
The woman said to them, “They have passed by toward the river.”[d] Absalom’s servants pursued them but did not find them, so they returned to Jerusalem.
21 When they left, Ahima’az and Jonathan climbed out of the well. They went and reported to King David, and they said to him, “Get up and cross over the river quickly because this is what Ahithophel advised against you.” 22 So David and all the people who were with him set out and crossed the Jordan, beginning at the first light of day and continuing until everyone had crossed over the Jordan.
23 When Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey, set out, went to his house in his hometown, and set his household in order. Then he hanged himself. He died, and he was buried in the tomb of his father.
24 David went to Mahanaim, and Absalom crossed over the Jordan with all the men of Israel. 25 Absalom had put Amasa in command of the army instead of Joab. (Amasa was the son of a man named Ithra, an Ishmaelite[e] who had gone to Abigal,[f] the daughter of Nahash, the sister of Zeruiah, the mother of Joab.)
26 Israel and Absalom set up camp in the land of Gilead.
27 When David came to Mahanaim, Shobi son of Nahash from Rabbah of the Ammonites, Makir son of Ammiel from Lo Debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim 28 brought beds, basins, pottery, wheat, barley, flour, roasted grain, beans, lentils,[g] 29 honey, cheese curds, sheep, and cheese from cow’s milk for David and for the people with him to eat, because they said, “The people are hungry, tired, and thirsty in the wilderness.”
The Battle
18 David organized the troops who were with him. He appointed leaders over units of a thousand and units of a hundred. 2 Then David sent the troops out: one third under the command of Joab; one third under the command of Abishai, who was the son of Zeruiah and the brother of Joab; and one third under the command of Ittai from Gath.
The king said to the troops, “I myself will definitely also go with you.”
3 But the troops said, “You will not go, because if we flee, they will not target us. Even if half of us die, they will not target us, for there are ten thousand others like us. No. It is better now that you support us from the city.”
4 So the king said to them, “Whatever seems best to you, I will do.”
The king stood beside the city gate. All the troops marched out by units of a hundred and a thousand. 5 The king gave orders to Joab, Abishai, and Ittai: “For my sake, act gently with the young man Absalom.” All the troops heard the king giving orders to the leaders concerning Absalom.
6 The troops went out into the countryside to confront Israel. The battle took place in the Forest of Ephraim. 7 The men of Israel were defeated there by the followers of David. There was a great slaughter there on that day—twenty thousand. 8 The battle was spread over the entire area. The forest devoured more people than the sword did on that day.
9 Absalom encountered the forces of David. As Absalom was riding on his mule, the mule went under the thick branches of a large terebinth tree, and Absalom’s head caught in the terebinth. He was caught between heaven and earth, and the mule he was riding kept going.
10 A man noticed Absalom and told Joab, “Listen! I saw Absalom hanging in a terebinth tree!” 11 Joab said to the man who had told him, “What! You saw him! Why didn’t you strike him to the ground right there? Then I would have given you ten shekels of silver and a belt.”
12 But the man said to Joab, “Even if I had one thousand shekels of silver weighed out into my hands, I would not reach my hand out against the king’s son. We heard the king command you, Abishai, and Ittai, ‘Watch out for the young man Absalom for me.’ 13 If I had acted irresponsibly with my life[h]—and nothing is hidden from the king—you would not have stood by me.”
14 Joab said, “I will not waste time with you like this.” He took three small spears in his hand, and he hurled them into Absalom’s heart while he was still alive in the middle of the terebinth tree. 15 Ten young men, the ones carrying Joab’s armor and weapons, surrounded Absalom and struck and killed him.
16 Then Joab blew the ram’s horn, and the people turned back from pursuing Israel, because Joab restrained them. 17 They took Absalom and threw him into a large pit in the forest. They raised a huge pile of stones over him.
All Israel fled, everyone to his own tent.[i]
18 During his lifetime Absalom had set up a monument for himself in the Valley of the King, because he said, “I do not have a son to keep my name alive in people’s memory.” He named the monument after himself, and it is called Absalom’s Monument to this day.
19 Ahima’az son of Zadok said, “Let me run and carry the good news to the king that the Lord has delivered him from the power of his enemies.”
20 But Joab said to him, “You are not the man to carry the news today. You may carry the news some other day, but today you should not carry the news, because the king’s son is dead.”
21 Joab then told a Cushite, “Go, tell the king what you saw.”
The Cushite bowed down to Joab and then set out running.
22 But Ahima’az son of Zadok said to Joab again, “No matter what, I really want to run behind the Cushite.”
Joab said, “Why do you want to do this? My son, there is no good news that will bring you any gain for running.” 23 But Ahima’az said, “No matter what, let me run.” So Joab said to him “All right, run then.” Ahima’az ran on the road that followed the plain, and he passed the Cushite.
24 David was sitting between the inner and outer gates of the city. The watchman went up onto the roof of the gatehouse next to the wall. While he was standing watch, he saw a man running all by himself. 25 The watchman called out and told the king. The king said, “If he is alone, he is bringing good news.” The man kept coming and got closer.
26 Then the watchman saw another man running. The watchman called down to the gatekeeper, “Look! There is another man running all by himself!”
The king said, “This one also is bringing good news.” 27 The watchman said, “The way the first man is running looks like the way Ahima’az son of Zadok runs.” The king said, “He is a good man. He is coming with good news.”
28 Ahima’az called out to the king, “Peace.” Then he bowed down to the king with his face to the ground and said, “Blessed is the Lord your God, who delivered up the men who raised their hand against my lord the king.”
29 The king asked, “Is the young man Absalom safe?”
Ahima’az said, “I saw a great uproar at the time when Joab sent the other servant of the king and me, your servant. I do not know what it was about.”
30 The king said, “Step aside. Stay here.” So he stepped aside and just stood there.
31 The Cushite arrived and said, “There is good news for my lord the king, because the Lord has delivered you this day from the power of all who rose up against you.”
32 The king asked the Cushite, “Is the young man Absalom safe?”
The Cushite said, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up against you with evil intentions be like that young man.”
33 The king was shocked. He went up to the room over the gatehouse. As he was going, he wept and said, “My son Absalom, my son, my son! O Absalom, I wish I had died instead of you. O Absalom, my son, my son.”
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.