^18:1David assembled the army that was with him. He appointed leaders of thousands and leaders of hundreds. ^18:2David then sent out the army—a third under the leadership of Joab, a third under the leadership of Joab’s brother Abishai son of Zeruiah, and a third under the leadership of Ittai the Gittite. The king said to the troops, “I too will indeed march out with you.”

^18:3But the soldiers replied,¹ “You should not do this!² For if we should have to make a rapid retreat, they won’t be too concerned about us.³ Even if half of us should die, they won’t be too concerned about us. But you⁴ are like ten thousand of us! So it is better if you remain in the city for support.” ^18:4Then the king said to them, “I will do whatever seems best to you.”

So the king stayed beside the city gate, while all the army marched out by hundreds and by thousands. ^18:5The king gave this order to Joab, Abishai, and Ittai: “For my sake deal gently with the young man Absalom.” Now the entire army was listening when the king gave all the leaders this order concerning Absalom.

^18:6Then the army marched out to the field to fight against Israel. The battle took place in the forest of Ephraim. ^18:7The army of Israel was defeated there by David’s men.⁵ The slaughter there was great that day—20,000 soldiers were killed. ^18:8The battle there was spread out over the whole area, and the forest consumed more soldiers than the sword devoured that day.

^18:9Then Absalom happened to come across David’s men. Now as Absalom was riding on his⁶ mule, it⁷ went under the branches of a large oak tree. His head got caught in the oak and he was suspended in midair,⁸ while the mule he had been riding kept going.

^18:10When one⁹ of the men saw this, he reported it to Joab saying, “I saw Absalom hanging in an oak tree. ^18:11Joab replied to the man who was telling him this, “What! You saw this? Why didn’t you strike him down right on the spot?¹⁰ I would have given you ten pieces of silver¹¹ and a commemorative belt!”¹²

^18:12The man replied to Joab, “Even if¹³ I were receiving¹⁴ a thousand pieces of silver,¹⁵ I would not strike¹⁶ the king’s son! In our very presence¹⁷ the king gave this order to you and Abishai and Ittai, ‘Protect the young man Absalom for my sake.’¹⁸^18:13If I had acted at risk of my own life¹⁹—and nothing is hidden from the king!—you would have abandoned me.”²⁰

^18:14Joab replied, “I will not wait around like this for you!” He took three spears in his hand and thrust them into the middle of Absalom while he was still alive in the middle of the oak tree.²¹^18:15Then ten soldiers who were Joab’s armor bearers struck Absalom and finished him off.

^18:16Then Joab blew the trumpet²² and the army turned back from chasing Israel, for Joab had called for the army to halt. ^18:17They took Absalom, threw him into a large pit in the forest, and stacked a huge pile of stones over him. In the meantime all the Israelite soldiers fled to their homes.²³

^18:18Prior to this²⁴ Absalom had set up a monument²⁵ and dedicated it to himself in the King’s Valley, reasoning “I have no son who will carry on my name.” He named the monument after himself, and to this day it is known as Absalom’s Memorial.

David Learns of Absalom’s Death

^18:19Then Ahimaaz the son of Zadok said, “Let me run and give the king the good news that the Lord has vindicated him before his enemies.”²⁶^18:20But Joab said to him, “You will not be a bearer of good news today. You will bear good news some other day, but not today,²⁷ for the king’s son is dead.”

^18:21Then Joab said to the Cushite, “Go and tell the king what you have seen.” After bowing to Joab, the Cushite ran off. ^18:22Ahimaaz the son of Zadok again spoke to Joab, “Whatever happens, let me go after the Cushite.” But Joab said, “Why is it that you want to go, my son? You have no good news that will bring you a reward.” ^18:23But he said,²⁸ “Whatever happens, I want to go!” So Joab²⁹ said to him, “Then go!” So Ahimaaz ran by the way of the Jordan plain, and he passed the Cushite.

^18:24Now David was sitting between the inner and outer gates,³⁰ and the watchman went up to the roof over the gate at the wall. When he looked, he saw a man running by himself. ^18:25So the watchman called out and informed the king. The king said, “If he is by himself, he brings good news.”³¹ The runner³² came ever closer.

^18:26Then the watchman saw another man running. The watchman called out to the gatekeeper, “There is another man running by himself.” The king said, “This one also is bringing good news.” ^18:27The watchman said, “It appears to me that the first runner is Ahimaaz³³ son of Zadok.” The king said, “He is a good man, and he comes with good news.”

^18:28Then Ahimaaz called out and said to the king, “Greetings!”³⁴ He bowed down before the king with his face toward the ground and said, “May the Lord your God be praised because he has defeated³⁵ the men who opposed³⁶ my lord the king!”

^18:29The king replied, “How is the young man Absalom?” Ahimaaz replied, “I saw a great deal of confusion when Joab was sending the king’s servant and me, your servant, but I don’t know what it was all about.” ^18:30The king said, “Turn aside and take your place here.” So he turned aside and waited.

^18:31Then the Cushite arrived and said,³⁷ “May my lord the king now receive the good news! The Lord has vindicated you today and delivered you from the hand of all who have rebelled against you!”³⁸^18:32The king asked the Cushite, “How is the young man Absalom?” The Cushite replied, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who have plotted against you³⁹ be like that young man!”

^{18:33 (19:1)}⁴⁰ The king then became very upset. He went up to the upper room over the gate and wept. As he went he said, “My son, Absalom! My son, my son,⁴¹ Absalom! If only I could have died in your place! Absalom, my son, my son!”⁴²

^19:1Joab was told, “The king is weeping and mourning over Absalom.” ^19:2So the victory of that day was turned to mourning as far as all the people were concerned. For the people heard on that day, “The king is grieved over his son.” ^19:3That day the people stole away to go to the city the way people who are embarrassed steal away in fleeing from battle. ^19:4The king covered his face and cried out loudly,¹ “My son, Absalom! Absalom, my son, my son!”

^19:5So Joab visited² the king at his home. He said, “Today you have embarrassed all your servants who have saved your life this day, as well as the lives of your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your concubines. ^19:6You seem to love your enemies and hate your friends! For you have as much as declared today that leaders and servants don’t matter to you. I realize now³ that if⁴ Absalom were alive and all of us were dead today,⁵ it would be all right with you. ^19:7So get up now and go out and give some encouragement to⁶ your servants. For I swear by the Lord that if you don’t go out there, not a single man will stay here with you tonight! This disaster will be worse for you than any disaster that has overtaken you from your youth right to the present time!”

^19:8So the king got up and sat at the city gate. When all the people were informed that the king was sitting at the city gate, they⁷ all came before him.

David Goes Back to Jerusalem

But the Israelite soldiers⁸ had all fled to their own homes.⁹^19:9All the people throughout all the tribes of Israel were arguing among themselves saying, “The king delivered us from the hand of our enemies. He rescued us from the hand of the Philistines, but now he has fled from the land because of Absalom. ^19:10But Absalom, whom we anointed as our king,¹⁰ has died in battle. So now why do you hesitate to bring the king back?”¹¹

^19:11Then King David sent a message to Zadok and Abiathar the priests saying, “Tell the elders of Judah, ‘Why should you delay any further in bringing the king back to his palace,¹² when everything Israel is saying has come to the king’s attention.¹³^19:12You are my brothers—my very own flesh and blood!¹⁴ Why should you delay any further in bringing the king back?’ ^19:13Say to Amasa, ‘Are you not my flesh and blood?¹⁵ God will punish me severely,¹⁶ if from this time on you are not the commander of my army in place of Joab!’ ”

^19:14He¹⁷ won over the hearts of all the men of Judah as though they were one man. Then they sent word to the king saying, “Return, you and all your servants as well.” ^19:15So the king returned and came to the Jordan River.¹⁸

Now the people of Judah¹⁹ had come to Gilgal to meet the king and to help him²⁰ cross the Jordan. ^19:16Shimei son of Gera the Benjaminite from Bahurim came down quickly with the men of Judah to meet King David. ^19:17There were a thousand men from Benjamin with him, along with Ziba the servant²¹ of Saul’s household, and with him his fifteen sons and twenty servants. They hurriedly crossed²² the Jordan within sight of the king. ^19:18They crossed at the ford in order to help the king’s household cross and to do whatever he thought appropriate.

Now after he had crossed the Jordan, Shimei son of Gera threw himself down before the king. ^19:19He said to the king, “Don’t think badly of me, my lord, and don’t recall the sin of your servant on the day when you, my lord the king, left²³ Jerusalem!²⁴ Please don’t call it to mind! ^19:20For I, your servant,²⁵ know that I sinned, and I have come today as the first of all the house of Joseph to come down to meet my lord the king.”

^19:21Abishai son of Zeruiah replied, “For this should not Shimei be put to death? After all, he cursed the Lord’s anointed!” ^19:22But David said, “What do we have in common,²⁶ you sons of Zeruiah? You are like my enemy today! Should anyone be put to death in Israel today? Don’t you realize that today I am king over Israel?” ^19:23The king said to Shimei, “You won’t die.” The king vowed an oath²⁷ concerning this.

^19:24Now Mephibosheth, Saul’s grandson,²⁸ came down to meet the king. From the day the king…

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Footnotes

1 Heb “the people said.”
2 Heb “march out.”
3 Heb “they will not place to us heart.”
4 The translation follows the (except for the Lucianic recension), Symmachus, and in reading אָתָּה (’atta, “you”) rather than עָתָּה (’atta, “now”).
5 Heb “servants” (also in v. 9).
6 Heb “the.”
7 Heb “the donkey.”
8 Heb “between the sky and the ground.”
9 4QSama lacks the word “one.”
10 Heb “Why did you not strike him down there to the ground.”
11 Heb “ten [shekels] of silver.” This would have been about 4 ounces (114 grams) of silver by weight.
12 Heb “and a girdle” (so ); “a warrior’s belt”; “a special belt”; “a hero’s belt.”
13 The translation follows the Qere and many medieval Hebrew in reading וְלוּ (vélu, “and if”) rather than וְלֹא (vélo’, “and not”).
14 Heb “weighing out in my hand.”
15 Heb “a thousand [shekels] of silver.” This would have been about 25 pounds (11.4 kg) of silver by weight.
16 Heb “extend my hand against.”
17 Heb “in our ears.”
18 The Hebrew text is very difficult here. The reads מִי (mi, “who”), apparently yielding the following sense: “Show care, whoever you might be, for the youth Absalom.” The reads li (“for me”), the Hebrew counterpart of which may also lie behind the rendering μοι (moi, “for me”). This reading seems preferable here, since it restores sense to the passage and most easily explains the rise of the variant.
19 The translation follows the Qere, many medieval Hebrew , and a number of the ancient versions in reading בְנַפְשִׁי (vénafshi, “against my life”) rather than the בְנַפְשׁוֹ (vénafsho, “against his life”).
20 Heb “stood aloof.”
21 There is a play on the word “heart” here that is difficult to reproduce in English. Literally the Hebrew text says “he took three spears in his hand and thrust them into the heart of Absalom while he was still alive in the heart of the oak tree.” This figure of speech involves the use of the same word in different senses and is known as antanaclasis. It is illustrated in the familiar saying from the time of the American Revolution: “If we don’t hang together, we will all hang separately.” The present translation understands “heart” to be used somewhat figuratively for “chest” (cf. , ), which explains why Joab’s armor bearers could still “kill” Absalom after he had been stabbed with three spears through the “heart.” Since trees do not have “chests” either, the translation uses “middle.”
22 Heb “the shophar” (the ram’s horn trumpet).
23 Heb “and all Israel fled, each to his tent.” In this context this refers to the supporters of Absalom (see vv. 6–7, 16).
24 Heb “and.” This disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) describes an occurrence that preceded the events just narrated.
25 Heb “a pillar.”
26 Heb “that the Lord has vindicated him from the hand of his enemies.”
27 Heb “but this day you will not bear good news.”
28 The words “but he said” are not in the Hebrew text. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.
29 Heb “he”; the referent (Joab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
30 Heb “the two gates.”
31 Heb “good news is in his mouth.”
32 Heb “he”; the referent (the runner) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
33 Heb “I am seeing the running of the first one like the running of Ahimaaz.”
34 Heb “Peace.”
35 Heb “delivered over.”
36 Heb “lifted their hand against.”
37 Heb “And look, the Cushite came and the Cushite said.”
38 Heb “for the Lord has vindicated you today from the hand of all those rising against you.”
39 Heb “and all those rising against you for evil.”
40 This marks the beginning of ch. 19 in the Hebrew text. Beginning with 18:33, the verse numbers through 19:43 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (), with 18:33 = 19:1 , 19:1 = 19:2 , 19:2 = 19:3 , etc., through 19:43 = 19:44 . From 20:1 the versification in the English Bible and the Hebrew Bible is again the same.
41 One medieval Hebrew , some of the , and the lack this repeated occurrence of “my son” due to haplography.
42 The Lucianic Greek recension and lack this repeated occurrence of “my son” due to haplography.
1 Heb “with a great voice.”
2 Heb “came to.”
3 Heb “today.”
4 The translation follows the Qere, 4QSama, and many medieval Hebrew in reading לוּ (lu, “if”) rather than לֹא (lo’, “not”).
5 The Lucianic Greek recension and lack “today.”
6 Heb “and speak to the heart of.”
7 Heb “all the people.”
8 The Hebrew text has simply “Israel” (see 18:16–17).
9 Heb “had fled, each to his tent.”
10 Heb “over us.”
11 The includes the following words at the end of v. 11: “And what all Israel was saying came to the king’s attention.” The words are misplaced in the from v. 12 (although the same statement appears there in the as well).
12 Heb “his house.”
13 The Hebrew text adds “to his house” (= palace), but the phrase, which also appears earlier in the verse, is probably accidentally repeated here.
14 Heb “my bone and my flesh.”
15 Heb “my bone and my flesh.”
16 Heb “Thus God will do to me and thus he will add.”
17 The referent of “he” is not entirely clear: cf. “David”; “David’s words”; , “Amasa.”
18 The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
19 The Hebrew text has simply “Judah.”
20 Heb “the king.” The pronoun (“him”) has been used in the translation to avoid redundancy.
21 Heb “youth.”
22 Heb “rushed into.”
23 Though this verb in the is 3rd person masculine singular, it should probably be read as 2nd person masculine singular. It is one of fifteen places where the Masoretes placed a dot over each of the letters of the word in question in order to call attention to their suspicion of the word. Their concern in this case apparently had to do with the fact that this verb and the two preceding verbs alternate from third person to second and back again to third. Words marked in this way in Hebrew manuscripts or printed editions are said to have puncta extrordinaria, or “extraordinary points.”
24 For location see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
25 The Hebrew text has simply “your servant.”
26 Heb “what to me and to you.”
27 Heb “swore to him.”
28 Heb “son.”