2 Samuel 15
15
1And it cometh to pass afterwards, that Absalom prepareth for himself a chariot, and horses, and fifty men are running before him;
2and Absalom hath risen early, and stood by the side of the way of the gate, and it cometh to pass, every man who hath a pleading to come unto the king for judgment, that Absalom calleth unto him, and saith, ‘Of what city [art] thou?’ and he saith, ‘Of one of the tribes of Israel [is] thy servant.’
3And Absalom saith unto him, ‘See, thy matters [are] good and straightforward — and there is none hearkening to thee from the king.’
4And Absalom saith, ‘Who doth make me a judge in the land, that unto me doth come every man who hath a plea and judgment? — then I have declared him righteous.’
5And it hath come to pass, in the drawing nearing of any one to bow himself to him, that he hath put forth his hand, and laid hold on him, and given a kiss to him;
6and Absalom doth according to this thing to all Israel who come in for judgment unto the king, and Absalom stealeth the heart of the men of Israel.
7And it cometh to pass, at the end of forty years, that Absalom saith unto the king, ‘Let me go, I pray thee, and I complete my vow, that I vowed to Jehovah in Hebron,
8for a vow hath thy servant vowed in my dwelling in Geshur, in Aram, saying, If Jehovah doth certainly bring me back to Jerusalem, then I have served Jehovah.’
9And the king saith to him, ‘Go in peace;’ and he riseth and goeth to Hebron,
10and Absalom sendeth spies through all the tribes of Israel, saying, ‘At your hearing the voice of the trumpet, then ye have said, Absalom hath reigned in Hebron.’
11And with Absalom have gone two hundred men, out of Jerusalem, invited ones, and they are going in their simplicity, and have not known anything;
12and Absalom sendeth Ahithophel the Gilonite, a counsellor of David, out of his city, out of Gilo, in his sacrificing sacrifices; and the conspiracy is strong, and the people are going and increasing with Absalom.
13And he who is declaring tidings cometh in unto David, saying, ‘The heart of the men of Israel hath been after Absalom.’
14And David saith to all his servants who [are] with him in Jerusalem, ‘Rise, and we flee, for we have no escape from the face of Absalom; haste to go, lest he hasten, and have overtaken us, and forced on us evil, and smitten the city by the mouth of the sword.’
15And the servants of the king say unto the king, ‘According to all that my lord the king chooseth — lo, thy servants [do].’
16And the king goeth out, and all his household at his feet, and the king leaveth ten women — concubines — to keep the house.
17And the king goeth out, and all the people at his feet, and they stand still at the farthest off house.
18And all his servants are passing on at his side, and all the Cherethite, and all the Pelethite, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who came at his feet from Gath, are passing on at the front of the king.
19And the king saith unto Ittai the Gittite, ‘Why dost thou go — thou also — with us? turn back — and abide with the king, for thou [art] a stranger, and also an exile thou — to thy place.
20Yesterday [is] thy coming in, and to-day I move thee to go with us, and I am going on that which I am going! — turn back, and take back thy brethren with thee, — kindness and truth.’
21And Ittai answereth the king and saith, ‘Jehovah liveth, and my lord the king liveth, surely in the place where my lord the king is — if for death, if for life, surely there is thy servant.’
22And David saith unto Ittai, ‘Go and pass over;’ and Ittai the Gittite passeth over, and all his men, and all the infants who [are] with him.
23And all the land are weeping — a great voice, and all the people are passing over; and the king is passing over through the brook Kidron, and all the people are passing over on the front of the way of the wilderness;
24and lo, also Zadok, and all the Levites with him, bearing the ark of the covenant of God, and they make the ark of God firm, and Abiathar goeth up, till the completion of all the people to pass over out of the city.
25And the king saith to Zadok, ‘Take back the ark of God to the city; if I find grace in the eyes of Jehovah, then He hath brought me back, and shewn me it and His habitation;
26and if thus He say, I have not delighted in thee; here [am] I, He doth to me as [is] good in His eyes.’
27And the king saith unto Zadok the priest, ‘Art thou a seer? turn back to the city in peace, and Ahimaaz thy son, and Jonathan son of Abiathar, your two sons with you;
28see ye, I am tarrying in the plains of the wilderness till the coming in of a word from you to declare to me.’
29And Zadok taketh back — and Abiathar — the ark of God to Jerusalem, and they abide there.
30And David is going up in the ascent of the olives, going up and weeping, and he hath the head covered, and he is going barefooted, and all the people who [are] with him have covered each his head, and have gone up, going up and weeping;
31and David declared, saying, ‘Ahithophel [is] among the conspirators with Absalom;’ and David saith, ‘Make foolish, I pray Thee, the counsel of Ahithophel, O Jehovah.’
32And it cometh to pass, David hath come unto the top, where he boweth himself to God, and lo, to meet him [is] Hushai the Archite, his coat rent, and earth on his head;
33and David saith to him, ‘If thou hast passed on with me then thou hast been on me for a burden,
34and if to the city thou dost turn back, and hast said to Absalom, Thy servant I am, O king; servant of thy father I [am] also hitherto, and now, I [am] also thy servant; then thou hast made void for me the counsel of Ahithophel;
35and are there not with thee there Zadok and Abiathar the priests? and it hath been, the whole of the matter that thou hearest from the house of the king thou dost declare to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests.
36Lo, there with them [are] their two sons, Ahimaaz to Zadok, and Jonathan to Abiathar, and ye have sent by their hand unto me anything that ye hear.’
37And Hushai, David's friend, cometh in to the city, and Absalom cometh in to Jerusalem.
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2 Samuel 15: YLT98
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2 Samuel 15
15
Absalom’s Revolt
1After this, Absalom got himself a chariot, horses, and fifty men to run before him.#1Sm 8:11; 1Kg 1:5 2He would get up early and stand beside the road leading to the city gate.#Ru 4:1–11; 2Sm 19:8; Jb 29:7 Whenever anyone had a grievance to bring before the king for settlement, Absalom called out to him and asked, “What city are you from?” If he replied, “Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel,” 3Absalom said to him, “Look, your claims are good and right, but the king does not have anyone to listen to you.” 4He added, “If only someone would appoint me judge in the land. Then anyone who had a grievance or dispute could come to me, and I would make sure he received justice.” 5When a person approached to pay homage to him, Absalom reached out his hand, took hold of him, and kissed him.#Gn 29:13; Ex 18:7; 1Sm 10:1; 2Sm 19:39 6Absalom did this to all the Israelites who came to the king for a settlement. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.
7When four#15:7 Some LXX mss, Syr, Vg; other LXX mss, MT read 40 years had passed, Absalom said to the king, “Please let me go to Hebron to fulfill a vow I made to the Lord. 8For your servant made a vow when I lived in Geshur of Aram,#2Sm 13:37–38 saying, ‘If the Lord really brings me back to Jerusalem, I will worship the Lord in Hebron.’”#15:8 Some LXX mss; MT omits in Hebron#Gn 28:20–21; 1Sm 1:11
9“Go in peace,” the king said to him.#Ex 4:18; Jdg 18:6; 1Sm 1:17; 2Kg 5:19; Lk 7:50; 8:48 So he went to Hebron.
10Then Absalom sent agents throughout the tribes of Israel with this message: “When you hear the sound of the ram’s horn,#2Sm 6:15; 1Kg 1:41; Jr 4:19,21; 6:17; 42:14; Am 2:2 you are to say, ‘Absalom has become king in Hebron!’” #1Kg 1:11,18,33–34; 2Kg 9:13
11Two hundred men from Jerusalem went with Absalom. They had been invited and were going innocently, for they did not know the whole situation. 12While he was offering the sacrifices, Absalom sent for David’s adviser Ahithophel the Gilonite,#1Ch 27:33; Ps 41:9; 55:12–14 from his city of Giloh. So the conspiracy grew strong, and the people supporting Absalom continued to increase.
13Then an informer came to David and reported, “The hearts of the men of Israel are with Absalom.”
14David said to all the servants with him in Jerusalem, “Get up. We have to flee, or we will not escape from Absalom!#Ps 3 Leave quickly, or he will overtake us quickly, heap disaster on us, and strike the city with the edge of the sword.”
15The king’s servants said to the king, “Whatever my lord the king decides, we are your servants.” 16Then the king set out, and his entire household followed him. But he left behind ten concubines to take care of the palace. 17So the king set out, and all the people followed him. They stopped at the last house 18while all his servants marched past him. Then all the Cherethites, the Pelethites, and the people of Gath — six hundred men who came with him from there#1Sm 27:2–7 — marched past the king.
19The king said to Ittai of Gath,#2Sm 18:2 “Why are you also going with us? Go back and stay with the new king since you’re both a foreigner and an exile from your homeland. 20Besides, you only arrived yesterday; should I make you wander around with us today while I go wherever I can? Go back and take your brothers with you. May the Lord show you#15:20 LXX; MT omits Lit May the Lord show you kindness and faithfulness.”
21But in response, Ittai vowed to the king, “As the Lord lives and as my lord the king lives, wherever my lord the king is, whether it means life or death, your servant will be there!” #Ru 1:16
22“March on,” David replied to Ittai. So Ittai of Gath marched past with all his men and the dependents who were with him. 23Everyone in the countryside was weeping loudly while all the people were marching out of the city. As the king was crossing the Kidron Valley, all the people were marching past on the road that leads to the wilderness.
24Zadok was also there, and all the Levites with him were carrying the ark of the covenant of God. They set the ark of God down, and Abiathar offered sacrifices#15:24 Or Abiathar went up until the people had finished marching past.#2Sm 8:17; 20:25 25Then the king instructed Zadok, “Return the ark of God to the city.#1Sm 4:3 If I find favor with the Lord, he will bring me back and allow me to see both it and its#15:25 Or his dwelling place.#Ps 43:3 26However, if he should say, ‘I do not delight in you,’ then here I am — he can do with me whatever pleases him.”#15:26 Lit me what is good in his eyes#1Sm 3:18
27The king also said to the priest Zadok,#2Sm 8:17; 20:25–26; 1Kg 1:7–8 “Look,#15:27 LXX; MT reads “Are you a seer? return to the city in peace and your two sons with you: your son Ahimaaz and Abiathar’s son Jonathan. 28Remember, I’ll wait at the fords#15:28 Alt Hb tradition reads plains of the wilderness until word comes from you to inform me.” 29So Zadok and Abiathar returned the ark of God to Jerusalem and stayed there.
30David was climbing the slope of the Mount of Olives,#Zch 14:4; Mt 21:1; 24:3; 26:30; Ac 1:12 weeping as he ascended. His head was covered,#Est 6:12; Jr 14:3–4 and he was walking barefoot.#Jb 12:17,19; Is 20:2–4; Mc 1:8 All of the people with him covered their heads and went up, weeping as they ascended.
31Then someone reported to David, “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.”
“Lord,” David pleaded, “please turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness!” #2Sm 16:21; 17:14,23
32When David came to the summit where he used to worship God, Hushai the Archite#Jos 16:2 was there to meet him with his robe torn and dust on his head. 33David said to him, “If you go away with me, you’ll be a burden to me, 34but if you return to the city and tell Absalom, ‘I will be your servant, Your Majesty! Previously, I was your father’s servant, but now I will be your servant,’ then you can counteract Ahithophel’s counsel for me. 35Won’t the priests Zadok and Abiathar be there with you? Report everything you hear from the palace to the priests Zadok and Abiathar. 36Take note: their two sons are there with them—Zadok’s son Ahimaaz and Abiathar’s son Jonathan. Send them to tell me everything you hear.” 37So Hushai,#1Ch 27:33 David’s personal adviser, entered Jerusalem just as Absalom was entering the city.
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