2 Samuel 16–17

Ziba Brings Provisions

16Now David passed a little from beyond the summit, and suddenly Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth was there to meet him with a pair of saddled donkeys; on them were two hundred loaves of bread and a hundred raisin cakes, with a hundred summer fruits and a skin of wine. ²The king said to Ziba, “What do you want to accomplish by bringing these?”^a And Ziba said, “The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride on; the bread and the summer fruit are for the young men to eat, and the wine is for the faint in the wilderness to drink. ³Then the king said, “Where is the son of your lord?” And Ziba said to the king, “He is living in Jerusalem for he said, ‘Today the house of Israel shall return the kingdom of my father to me.’ ” ⁴The king said to Ziba, “Look, all that was Mephibosheth’s is yours.” Ziba said, “I hereby do obeisance; may I find favor in your eyes, my lord the king.”

Shimei Curses David

⁵King David came up to Bahurim and suddenly a man from there was coming out from the family of the house of Saul, and his name was Shimei the son of Gera. He was cursing as he came out.^{b 6}And he threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David and at all the people and at all the mighty warriors on his right and on his left. ⁷Shimei said while cursing him, “Go out, go out, you man of bloodshed,^c you man of wickedness.^{d 8}Yahweh has returned on you all the blood of the household of Saul whom you have supplanted as king,^e and Yahweh has given the kingship into the hand of Absalom your son. Look, you are in disaster for you are a man of blood.” ⁹Then Abishai the 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.” ¹⁰The king said, “What do we have in common,^f sons of Zeruiah? If^g he curses because Yahweh has said to him ‘Curse David,’ who can say, “Why have you done this?” ¹¹David said to Abishai and to all his servants, “Look, my son who came out of my loins^h is seeking my life. Now as far asⁱ this Benjaminite, leave him alone and let him curse, for Yahweh has spoken to him. ¹²Perhaps Yahweh will look in my eye^j and repay good for me in place of his curse this day. ¹³Then David and his men went on the road, with Shimei going on the side of the hill beside him, cursing as he went.^k He threw stones beside him and threw^l dust in the air. ¹⁴When the king and all of the people who were with him arrived, he was weary, so he recovered there.

Hushai Comes to Absalom

¹⁵Now Absalom and all the people, the men of Israel, had come to Jerusalem, and Ahithophel was with him. ¹⁶When Hushai the Arkite the friend of David came to Absalom, Hushai said to Absalom, “Long live the king, long live the king!” ¹⁷Absalom said to Hushai, “This is your loyal love with your friend? Why did you not go with your friend?” ¹⁸Then Hushai said to Absalom, “No, rather, whom Yahweh and this people and all the men of Israel have chosen, to him^m I will be, and with him I will remain. ¹⁹Furthermore,ⁿ for whom have I served? Is it not in the presence of his son that I have served before your father? So shall I serve you!”^{o 20}Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give your advice. What shall we do?” ²¹And Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Go to the concubines of your father whom he left behind to watch over the house, then all of Israel will hear that you made yourself odious to your father, and all of your followers will be motivated!”^{p 22}Then they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and he went in to the concubines of his father before the eyes of all Israel. ²³The counsel that Ahithophel gave in those days was regarded as when a man^q inquired of the word of God, so all the counsel of Ahithophel was esteemed both by David and by Absalom.

Hushai Frustrates the Counsel of Ahithophel

17Then Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Please let me choose twelve thousand men, and I will set out and pursue after David tonight.^{a 2}I will come upon him while he is weary and weak.^b I will startle him, and all of the people who are with him will flee. Then I will strike down the king while he is alone. ³Then I will return all the people to you; when all have returned, the man whom you are seeking will be dead,^c but all the people will be safe.” ⁴The word was right in the eyes of Absalom and in the eyes of all the elders of Israel. ⁵Then Absalom said, “Please call also for Hushai the Arkite, and let us hear what he has to say^d also.” ⁶So Hushai came to Absalom, who said to him, “Shall we do according to this word that Ahithophel has spoken? If not, then you tell us.” ⁷Then Hushai said to Absalom, “The counsel that Ahithophel gave is not good at this time.”^{e 8}Hushai continued, “You know your father and his men, that they are mighty warriors and they are enraged^f as a bear robbed of her offspring in the field. Your father is a man of war, so he will not spend the night with the troops. ⁹Now he has hidden himself in one of the caves or in one of the places. At the moment he falls on them^g the first time, whoever hears^h the report will say, ‘There has been a defeat among the people who follow after Absalom.’ ¹⁰And he is also a valiant warrior,ⁱ whose heart is like the heart of the lion. He^j will certainly melt^k with fear, for all Israel knows that your father is a mighty warrior and those who are with him are valiant warriors.^{l 11}I give the advice that all of Israel from Dan to Beersheba should be completely gathered to you, as the sand which is on the seashore for abundance, with you personally^m going into the battle. ¹²Then we will come to him in one of the places where he may be found, and we shall come upon him as the dew falls on the ground. He and all the men who are with him will not survive, not even one! ¹³Even if he withdraws to a city, all Israel will bring up ropes to that city, and they will drag him away to the valley until there is not even a pebble to be found.” ¹⁴Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Arkite is better than the advice of Ahithophel.” (Now Yahweh had ordained to frustrate the good counsel of Ahithophel in order for Yahweh to bring misery upon Absalom).

Hushai Sends Word to David

¹⁵Hushai said to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, “Thus and soⁿ Ahithophel advised Absalom and the elders of Israel, but thus and so^o I have advised. ¹⁶So then, send quickly and tell David, ‘Don’t spend the night at the fords of the wilderness! Moreover, by all means cross over lest the king and all the people who are with him be swallowed up.’ ” ¹⁷Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying at En Rogel, so a servant girl used to go and tell them, then they would go and tell King David, for they were not able to be seen coming to the city. ¹⁸But a young man saw them and told Absalom, so both of them went quickly and came to the house of a man at Bahurim. Now he had a well in his courtyard, so they went down there. ¹⁹Then the woman took and spread a covering over the opening of the well; then she spread out dried grain on it, so nothing was discovered. ²⁰When the servants of Absalom came to the woman at the house, they said, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?” And she said to them, “They crossed over the brook of water.” So they searched but could not find them, so they returned to Jerusalem. ²¹After they left, they came up from the well and went and told King David. They said to David, “Set out and cross over the water quickly, for thus Ahithophel has advised against you.” ²²So David and all the people who were with him set out, and they crossed over the Jordan until morning light until there was no one^p missing who had not crossed over the Jordan. ²³When Ahithophel saw that his advice was not followed, he saddled the donkey, and he set out and went up to his house in his city. After he set his house in order,^q he hanged himself, and he died and was buried in the tomb of his ancestors.^r

²⁴Now David had come to Mahanaim, and Absalom had crossed over the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him. ²⁵Absalom had appointed Amasa in place of Joab over the army. Now Amasa was the son of a man whose name was Ithra the Israelite, who had married^s Abigail the daughter of Nahash the sister of Zeruiah, the mother of Joab. ²⁶Israel and Absalom camped in the land of Gilead. ²⁷Just as David had arrived in Mahanaim, Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the Ammonites^t and Makir the son of Ammiel from Lo Debar and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim ²⁸brought beds and basins and objects of pottery, as well as wheat, barley, flour, roasted grain, beans, lentils, ²⁹honey, curds, sheep, cheese, and cattle for David and for the people who were with him to eat. For they had thought, “The troops are hungry and weary and thirsty in the wilderness.”