2 Samuel 18:19–31

David Is Told of Absalom’s Death

¹⁹Then Ahimaaz son of Zadok said to Joab, “Let me run to the king with the good news that the Lord has saved him from his enemies.”

²⁰“No,” Joab said, “today you will not take any good news. Some other day you may do so, but not today, for the king’s son is dead.” ²¹Then he said to his Ethiopian^z slave, “Go and tell the king what you have seen.” The slave bowed and ran off.

²²Ahimaaz insisted, “I don’t care what happens; please let me take the news also.”

“Why do you want to do it, my son?” Joab asked. “You will get no reward for it.”

²³“Whatever happens,” Ahimaaz said again, “I want to go.”

“Then go,” Joab said. So Ahimaaz ran off down the road through the Jordan Valley, and soon he passed the slave.

²⁴David was sitting in the space between the inner and outer gates of the city. The watchman went up to the top of the wall and stood on the roof of the gateway; he looked out and saw a man running alone. ²⁵He called down and told the king, and the king said, “If he is alone, he is bringing good news.” The runner came nearer and nearer.

²⁶Then the watchman saw another man running alone, and he called down to the gatekeeper, “Look! There’s another man running!”

The king answered, “This one also is bringing good news.”

²⁷The watchman said, “I can see that the first man runs like Ahimaaz.”

“He’s a good man,” the king said, “and he is bringing good news.”

²⁸Ahimaaz called out a greeting to the king, threw himself down to the ground before him, and said, “Praise the Lord your God, who has given you victory over the men who rebelled against Your Majesty!”

²⁹“Is the young man Absalom safe?” the king asked.

Ahimaaz answered, “Sir, when your officer Joab sent me, I saw a great commotion, but I couldn’t tell what it was.”

³⁰“Stand over there,” the king said; and he went over and stood there.

³¹Then the Ethiopian^a slave arrived and said to the king, “I have good news for Your Majesty! Today the Lord has given you victory over all who rebelled against you!”