2 Samuel 17
17
1And Ahithophel said unto Absalom, ‘Let me choose, I pray thee, twelve thousand men, and I arise and pursue after David to-night,
2and come upon him, and he weary and feeble-handed, and I have caused him to tremble, and all the people have fled who [are] with him, and I have smitten the king by himself,
3and I bring back all the people unto thee — as the turning back of the whole [is] the man whom thou art seeking — all the people are peace.
4And the thing is right in the eyes of Absalom, and in the eyes of all the elders of Israel.
5And Absalom saith, ‘Call, I pray thee, also for Hushai the Archite, and we hear what [is] in his mouth — even he.’
6And Hushai cometh in unto Absalom, and Absalom speaketh unto him, saying, ‘According to this word hath Ahithophel spoken; do we do his word? if not, thou — speak thou.’
7And Hushai saith unto Absalom, ‘Not good [is] the counsel that Ahithophel hath counselled at this time.’
8And Hushai saith, ‘Thou hast known thy father and his men, that they [are] heroes, and they are bitter in soul as a bereaved bear in a field, and thy father [is] a man of war, and doth not lodge with the people;
9lo, now, he is hidden in one of the pits, or in one of the places, and it hath been, at the falling among them at the commencement, that the hearer hath heard, and said, There hath been a slaughter among the people who [are] after Absalom;
10and he also, the son of valour, whose heart [is] as the heart of the lion, doth utterly melt, for all Israel doth know that thy father is a hero, and sons of valour [are] those with him.
11‘So that I have counselled: Let all Israel be diligently gathered unto thee, from Dan even unto Beer-Sheba, as the sand that [is] by the sea for multitude, and thou thyself art going in the midst;
12and we have come in unto him in one of the places where he is found, and we [are] upon him as the dew falleth on the ground, and there hath not been left of him and of all the men who [are] with him even one.
13And if unto a city he is gathered, then they have caused all Israel to bear unto that city ropes, and we have drawn it unto the brook till that there hath not been found there even a stone.’
14And Absalom saith — and all the men of Israel — ‘Better [is] the counsel of Hushai the Archite than the counsel of Ahithophel;’ and Jehovah willed to make void the good counsel of Ahithophel for the sake of Jehovah's bringing unto Absalom the evil.
15And Hushai saith unto Zadok and unto Abiathar the priests, ‘Thus and thus hath Ahithophel counselled Absalom and the elders of Israel, and thus and thus I have counselled;
16and now, send hastily, and declare to David, saying, Lodge not to-night in the plains of the wilderness, and also, certainly pass over, lest there be a swallowing up of the king and of all the people who are with him.’
17And Jonathan and Ahimaaz are standing at En-Rogel, and the maid-servant hath gone and declared to them — and they go and have declared [it] to king David — for they are not able to be seen to go in to the city.
18And a youth seeth them, and declareth to Absalom; and they go on both of them hastily, and come in unto the house of a man in Bahurim, and he hath a well in his court, and they go down there,
19and the woman taketh and spreadeth the covering over the face of the well, and spreadeth on it the ground corn, and the thing hath not been known.
20And the servants of Absalom come in unto the woman to the house, and say, ‘Where [are] Ahimaaz and Jonathan?’ and the woman saith to them, ‘They passed over the brook of water;’ and they seek, and have not found, and turn back to Jerusalem.
21And it cometh to pass, after their going on, that they come up out of the well, and go and declare to king David, and say unto David, ‘Rise ye, and pass over hastily the waters, for thus hath Ahithophel counselled against you.’
22And David riseth, and all the people who [are] with him, and they pass over the Jordan, till the light of the morning, till one hath not been lacking who hath not passed over the Jordan.
23And Ahithophel hath seen that his counsel was not done, and he saddleth the ass, and riseth and goeth unto his house, unto his city, and giveth charge unto his household, and strangleth himself, and dieth, and he is buried in the burying-place of his father.
24And David came to Mahanaim, and Absalom passed over the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him;
25and Amasa hath Absalom set instead of Joab over the host, and Amasa [is] a man's son whose name is Ithra the Israelite who hath gone in unto Abigail, daughter of Nahash, sister of Zeruiah, mother of Joab;
26and Israel encampeth with Absalom [in] the land of Gilead.
27And it cometh to pass at the coming in of David to Mahanaim, that Shobi, son of Nahash, from Rabbah of the Bene-Ammon, and Machir son of Ammiel, from Lo-Debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite, from Rogelim,
28couch, and basin, and earthen vessel, and wheat, and barley, and flour, and roasted [corn], and beans, and lentiles, and roasted [pulse],
29and honey, and butter, and sheep, and cheese of kine, have brought nigh for David, and for the people who [are] with him to eat, for they said, ‘Thy people [is] hungry, and weary, and thirsty, in the wilderness.’
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2 Samuel 17: YLT98
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2 Samuel 17
17
1Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Let me choose twelve thousand men, and I will set out in pursuit of David tonight. 2I will attack him while he is weary and discouraged,#17:2 Lit and weak of hands throw him into a panic, and all the people with him will scatter. I will strike down only the king#1Kg 22:31 3and bring all the people back to you. When everyone returns except the man you’re looking for, all#17:3 LXX reads to you as a bride returns to her husband. You seek the life of only one man, and all the people will be at peace.” 4This proposal seemed right to Absalom and all the elders of Israel.
5Then Absalom said, “Summon Hushai the Archite also. Let’s hear what he has to say as well.”
6So Hushai came to Absalom, and Absalom told him, “Ahithophel offered this proposal. Should we carry out his proposal? If not, what do you say?”
7Hushai replied to Absalom, “The advice Ahithophel has given this time is not good.” 8Hushai continued, “You know your father and his men. They are warriors and are desperate like a wild bear robbed of her cubs.#Pr 17:12; Hs 13:8 Your father is an experienced soldier who won’t spend the night with the people. 9He’s probably already hiding in one of the caves#17:9 Or pits, or ravines or some other place. If some of our troops fall#17:9 Lit And it will be when a falling on them at first, someone is sure to hear and say, ‘There’s been a slaughter among the people who follow Absalom.’ 10Then, even a brave man with the heart of a lion#Am 3:8 will lose heart#17:10 Lit melt because all Israel knows that your father and the valiant men with him are warriors. 11Instead, I advise that all Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba — as numerous as the sand by the sea#Gn 22:17 — be gathered to you and that you personally go into battle. 12Then we will attack David wherever we find him, and we will descend on him like dew on the ground. Not even one will be left—neither he nor any of the men with him. 13If he retreats to some city, all Israel will bring ropes to that city, and we will drag its stones#17:13 Lit drag it into the valley until not even a pebble can be found there.” 14Since the Lord had decreed#Pr 21:30; 1Co 1:19 that Ahithophel’s good advice be undermined#2Sm 15:31–34 in order to bring about Absalom’s ruin, Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than Ahithophel’s advice.”
David Informed of Absalom’s Plans
15Hushai then told the priests Zadok and Abiathar, “This is what#17:15 Lit “Like this and like this Ahithophel advised Absalom and the elders of Israel, and this is what#17:15 Lit and like this and like this I advised. 16Now send someone quickly and tell David, ‘Don’t spend the night at the wilderness ford,#17:16 Some Hb mss; MT reads plains but be sure to cross over the Jordan,#17:16 the Jordan supplied for clarity#2Sm 15:28 or the king and all the people with him will be devoured.’”
17Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying at En-rogel, where a servant girl would come and pass along information to them. They in turn would go and inform King David, because they dared not be seen entering the city. 18However, a young man did see them and informed Absalom. So the two left quickly and came to the house of a man in Bahurim. He had a well in his courtyard, and they climbed down into it. 19Then his wife took the cover, placed it over the mouth of the well, and scattered grain on it so nobody would know anything.
20Absalom’s servants came to the woman at the house and asked, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?”
“They passed by toward the water,”#17:20 Or brook; Hb obscure the woman replied to them. The men searched but did not find them, so they returned to Jerusalem.
21After they had gone, Ahimaaz and Jonathan climbed out of the well and went and informed King David. They told him, “Get up and immediately ford the river, for Ahithophel has given this advice against you.” 22So David and all the people with him got up and crossed the Jordan. By daybreak, there was no one who had not crossed the Jordan.
23When Ahithophel realized that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and set out for his house in his hometown. He set his house in order and hanged himself.#Mt 27:5 So he died and was buried in his father’s tomb.
24David had arrived at Mahanaim by the time Absalom crossed the Jordan with all the men of Israel. 25Now Absalom had appointed Amasa#2Sm 19:13; 20:9–12; 1Kg 2:5,32 over the army in Joab’s place. Amasa was the son of a man named Ithra#17:25 Or Jether the Israelite;#17:25 Some LXX mss read Ishmaelite#1Ch 2:13–17 Ithra had married Abigail daughter of Nahash.#17:25 Some LXX mss read Jesse Abigail was a sister to Zeruiah, Joab’s mother. 26And Israel and Absalom camped in the land of Gilead. 27When David came to Mahanaim, Shobi son of Nahash#2Sm 10:1–2 from Rabbah#2Sm 12:26–29 of the Ammonites, Machir son of Ammiel from Lo-debar,#2Sm 9:4 and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim#2Sm 19:31–32; 1Kg 2:7; Ezr 2:61 28brought beds, basins,#17:28 LXX reads brought 10 embroidered beds with double coverings, 10 vessels and pottery items. They also brought wheat, barley, flour, roasted grain, beans, lentils,#17:28 LXX, Syr; MT adds roasted grain 29honey, curds, sheep, goats, and cheese#17:29 Hb obscure from the herd for David and the people with him to eat. They had reasoned, “The people must be hungry, exhausted, and thirsty in the wilderness.”
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