2 Samuel 19:8–15

David Restored as King

⁸So the king arose and sat in the gate. When they told all the people, saying, “Behold, the king is ^asitting in the gate,” then all the people came before the king.

Now ^bIsrael had fled, each to his tent.

⁹All the people were quarreling throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, “^aThe king delivered us from the ¹hand of our enemies and ^bsaved us from the hand of the Philistines, but now ^che has fled out of the land from Absalom.

¹⁰“However, Absalom, whom we anointed over us, has died in battle. Now then, why are you silent about bringing the king back?”

¹¹Then King David sent to ^aZadok and Abiathar the priests, saying, “Speak to the elders of Judah, saying, ‘Why are you the last to bring the king back to his house, since the word of all Israel has come to the king, even to his house?

¹²‘You are my brothers; ^ayou are my bone and my flesh. Why then should you be the last to bring back the king?’

¹³“Say to ^aAmasa, ‘Are you not my bone and my flesh? ^bMay God do so to me, and more also, if you will not be ^ccommander of the army before me continually ^din place of Joab.’ ”

¹⁴Thus he turned the hearts of all the men of Judah ^aas one man, so that they sent word to the king, saying, “Return, you and all your servants.”

¹⁵The king then returned and came as far as the Jordan. And Judah came to ^aGilgal in order to go to meet the king, to bring the king across the Jordan.