15After this, Absalom got a chariot and horses for himself and fifty men to run before him. ²Absalom would get up early and stand near the city gate. ⁿ Anyone who had a problem for the king to settle would come here. When someone came, Absalom would call out and say, “What city are you from?”

The person would answer, “I’m from one of the tribes of Israel.”

³Then Absalom would say, “Look, your claims are right, but the king has no one to listen to you.” ⁴Absalom would also say, “I wish someone would make me judge in this land! Then people with problems could come to me, and I could help them get justice.”

⁵People would come near Absalom to bow to him. When they did, Absalom would reach out his hand and take hold of them and kiss them. ⁶Absalom did that to all the Israelites who came to King David for decisions. In this way, Absalom stole the hearts of all Israel.

⁷After four years Absalom said to King David, “Please let me go to Hebron. I want to carry out my promise that I made to the Lord ⁸while I was living in Geshur in Aram. I said, ‘If the Lord takes me back to Jerusalem, I will worship him in Hebron.’ ”

⁹The king said, “Go in peace.”

So Absalom went to Hebron. ¹⁰But he sent secret messengers through all the tribes of Israel. They told the people, “When you hear the trumpets, say this: ‘Absalom is the king at Hebron!’ ”

¹¹Absalom had invited two hundred men to go with him. So they went from Jerusalem with him, but they didn’t know what he was planning. ¹²While Absalom was offering sacrifices, he sent for Ahithophel, one of the people who advised David, to come from his hometown of Giloh. So Absalom’s plans were working very well. More and more people began to support him.

¹³A messenger came to David, saying, “The Israelites are giving their loyalty to Absalom.”

¹⁴Then David said to all his officers who were with him in Jerusalem, “We must leave quickly! If we don’t, we won’t be able to get away from Absalom. We must hurry before he catches us and destroys us and kills the people of Jerusalem.”

¹⁵The king’s officers said to him, “We will do anything you say.”

¹⁶The king set out with everyone in his house, but he left ten slave women to take care of the palace. ¹⁷The king left with all his people following him, and they stopped at a house far away. ¹⁸All the king’s servants passed by him—the Kerethites and Pelethites, ⁿ all those from Gath, and the six hundred men who had followed him.

¹⁹The king said to Ittai, a man from Gath, “Why are you also going with us? Turn back and stay with King Absalom because you are a foreigner. This is not your homeland. ²⁰You joined me only a short time ago. Should I make you wander with us when I don’t even know where I’m going? Turn back and take your brothers with you. May kindness and loyalty be shown to you.”

²¹But Ittai said to the king, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will stay with you, whether it means life or death.”

²²David said to Ittai, “Go, march on.” So Ittai from Gath and all his people with their children marched on. ²³All the people cried loudly as everyone passed by. King David crossed the Kidron Valley, and then all the people went on to the desert. ²⁴Zadok and all the Levites with him carried the Ark of the Agreement with God. They set it down, and Abiathar offered sacrifices until all the people had left the city.

²⁵The king said to Zadok, “Take the Ark of God back into the city. If the Lord is pleased with me, he will bring me back and will let me see both it and Jerusalem again. ²⁶But if the Lord says he is not pleased with me, I am ready. He can do what he wants with me.”

²⁷The king also said to Zadok the priest, “Aren’t you a seer? Go back to the city in peace and take your son Ahimaaz and Abiathar’s son Jonathan with you. ²⁸I will wait near the crossings into the desert until I hear from you.” ²⁹So Zadok and Abiathar took the Ark of God back to Jerusalem and stayed there.

³⁰David went up the Mount of Olives, crying as he went. He covered his head and went barefoot. All the people with David covered their heads also and cried as they went. ³¹Someone told David, “Ahithophel is one of the people with Absalom who made secret plans against you.”

So David prayed, “Lord, please make Ahithophel’s advice foolish.”

³²When David reached the top of the mountain where people used to worship God, Hushai the Arkite came to meet him. Hushai’s coat was torn, and there was dirt on his head to show how sad he was. ³³David said to Hushai, “If you go with me, you will be just one more person for me to take care of. ³⁴But if you return to the city, you can make Ahithophel’s advice useless. Tell Absalom, ‘I am your servant, my king. In the past I served your father, but now I will serve you.’ ³⁵The priests Zadok and Abiathar will be with you. Tell them everything you hear in the royal palace. ³⁶Zadok’s son Ahimaaz and Abiathar’s son Jonathan are with them. Send them to tell me everything you hear.” ³⁷So David’s friend Hushai entered Jerusalem just as Absalom arrived.

Ziba Meets David

16When David had passed a short way over the top of the Mount of Olives, Ziba, Mephibosheth’s servant, met him. Ziba had a row of donkeys loaded with two hundred loaves of bread, one hundred cakes of raisins, one hundred cakes of figs, and leather bags full of wine. ²The king asked Ziba, “What are these things for?”

Ziba answered, “The donkeys are for your family to ride. The bread and cakes of figs are for the servants to eat. And the wine is for anyone to drink who might become weak in the desert.”

³The king asked, “Where is Mephibosheth?”

Ziba answered him, “Mephibosheth is staying in Jerusalem because he thinks, ‘Today the Israelites will give my father’s kingdom back to me!’ ”

⁴Then the king said to Ziba, “All right. Everything that belonged to Mephibosheth, I now give to you!”

Ziba said, “I bow to you. I hope I will always be able to please you.”

Shimei Curses David

⁵As King David came to Bahurim, a man came out and cursed him. He was from Saul’s family group, and his name was Shimei son of Gera. ⁶He threw stones at David and his officers, but the people and soldiers gathered all around David. ⁷Shimei cursed David, saying, “Get out, get out, you murderer, you troublemaker. ⁸The Lord is punishing you for the people in Saul’s family you killed! You took Saul’s place as king, but now the Lord has given the kingdom to your son Absalom! Now you are ruined because you are a murderer!”

⁹Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse you, the king? Let me go over and cut off his head!”

¹⁰But the king answered, “This does not concern you, sons of Zeruiah! If he is cursing me because the Lord told him to, who can question him?”

¹¹David also said to Abishai and all his officers, “My own son is trying to kill me! This man is a Benjaminite and has more right to kill me! Leave him alone, and let him curse me because the Lord told him to do this. ¹²Maybe the Lord will see my misery and repay me with something good for Shimei’s curses today!”

¹³So David and his men went on down the road, but Shimei followed on the nearby hillside. He kept cursing David and throwing stones and dirt at him. ¹⁴When the king and all his people arrived at the Jordan, they were very tired, so they rested there.

¹⁵Meanwhile, Absalom, Ahithophel, and all the Israelites arrived at Jerusalem. ¹⁶David’s friend Hushai the Arkite came to Absalom and said to him, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”

¹⁷Absalom asked, “Why are you not loyal to your friend David? Why didn’t you leave Jerusalem with your friend?”

¹⁸Hushai said, “I belong to the one chosen by the Lord and by these people and everyone in Israel. I will stay with you. ¹⁹In the past I served your father. So whom should I serve now? David’s son! I will serve you as I served him.”

Ahithophel’s Advice

²⁰Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Tell us what we should do.”

²¹Ahithophel said, “Your father left behind some of his slave women to take care of the palace. Have sexual relations with them. Then all Israel will hear that your father is your enemy, and all your people will be encouraged to give you more support.” ²²So they put up a tent for Absalom on the roof ⁿ of the palace where everyone in Israel could see it. And Absalom had sexual relations with his father’s slave women.

²³At that time people thought Ahithophel’s advice was as reliable as God’s own word. Both David and Absalom thought it was that reliable.

17Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Let me choose twelve thousand men and chase David tonight. ²I’ll catch him while he is tired and weak, and I’ll frighten him so all his people will run away. But I’ll kill only King David. ³Then I’ll bring everyone back to you. If the man you are looking for is dead, everyone else will return safely.” ⁴This plan seemed good to Absalom and to all the leaders of Israel.

⁵But Absalom said, “Now call Hushai the Arkite, so I can hear what he says.” ⁶When Hushai came to Absalom, Absalom said to him, “This is the plan Ahithophel gave. Should we follow it? If not, tell us.”

⁷Hushai said to Absalom, “Ahithophel’s advice is not good this time.” ⁸Hushai added, “You know your father and his men are strong. They are as angry as a bear that is robbed of its cubs. Your father is a skilled fighter. He won’t stay all night with the army. ⁹He is probably already hiding in a cave or some other place. If the first attack fails, people will hear the news and think, ‘Absalom’s followers are losing!’ ¹⁰Then even the men who are as brave as lions will be frightened, because all the Israelites know your father is a fighter. They know his men are brave!

¹¹“This is what I suggest: Gather all the Israelites from Dan to Beersheba. ⁿ There will be as many people as grains of sand by the sea. Then you yourself must go into the battle. ¹²We will go to David wherever he is hiding. We will fall on him as dew falls on the ground. We will kill him and all of his men so…

Read in Logos

This passage has been shortened. Keep reading 2 Samuel 15–18 in Logos

Footnotes

ncity gate People came here to conduct business. Public meetings and court cases were also held here.
nKerethites and Pelethites These were probably special units of the army that were responsible for the king’s safety, a kind of palace guard.
nroof In Bible times houses were built with flat roofs. The roof was used for drying things such as flax and fruit. And it was used as an extra room, as a place for worship, and as a cool place to sleep in the summer.
nDan to Beersheba Dan was the city farthest north in Israel, and Beersheba was the city farthest south. So this means all the people of Israel.