2 Samuel 16–17

Mephibosheth’s Servant

16When ^aDavid was a little past the top of the mountain, there was ^bZiba the servant of Mephibosheth, who met him with a couple of saddled donkeys, and on them two hundred loaves of bread, one hundred clusters of raisins, one hundred summer fruits, and a skin of wine. ²And the king said to Ziba, “What do you mean to do with these?”

So Ziba said, “The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride on, the bread and summer fruit for the young men to eat, and the wine for ^cthose who are faint in the wilderness to drink.”

³Then the king said, “And where is your ^dmaster’s son?”

^eAnd Ziba said to the king, “Indeed he is staying in Jerusalem, for he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will restore the kingdom of my father to me.’ ”

⁴So the king said to Ziba, “Here, all that belongs to Mephibosheth is yours.”

And Ziba said, “I humbly bow before you, that I may find favor in your sight, my lord, O king!”

Shimei Curses David

⁵Now when King David came to ^fBahurim, there was a man from the family of the house of Saul, whose name was ^gShimei the son of Gera, coming from there. He came out, cursing continuously as he came. ⁶And he threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David. And all the people and all the mighty men were on his right hand and on his left. ⁷Also Shimei said thus when he cursed: “Come out! Come out! You ¹bloodthirsty man, ^hyou ²rogue! ⁸The Lord has ⁱbrought upon you all ^jthe blood of the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned; and the Lord has delivered the kingdom into the hand of Absalom your son. So now you are caught in your own evil, because you are a ³bloodthirsty man!”

⁹Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this ^kdead dog ^lcurse my lord the king? Please, let me go over and take off his head!”

¹⁰But the king said, ^m“What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? So let him curse, because ⁿthe Lord has said to him, ‘Curse David.’ ^oWho then shall say, ‘Why have you done so?’ ”

¹¹And David said to Abishai and all his servants, “See how ^pmy son who ^qcame from my own body seeks my life. How much more now may this Benjamite? Let him alone, and let him curse; for so the Lord has ordered him. ¹²It may be that the Lord will look on ⁴my affliction, and that the Lord will ^rrepay me with ^sgood for his cursing this day.” ¹³And as David and his men went along the road, Shimei went along the hillside opposite him and cursed as he went, threw stones at him and ⁵kicked up dust. ¹⁴Now the king and all the people who were with him became weary; so they refreshed themselves there.

The Advice of Ahithophel

¹⁵Meanwhile ^tAbsalom and all the people, the men of Israel, came to Jerusalem; and Ahithophel was with him. ¹⁶And so it was, when Hushai the Archite, ^uDavid’s friend, came to Absalom, that ^vHushai said to Absalom, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”

¹⁷So Absalom said to Hushai, “Is this your loyalty to your friend? ^wWhy did you not go with your friend?”

¹⁸And Hushai said to Absalom, “No, but whom the Lord and this people and all the men of Israel choose, his I will be, and with him I will remain. ¹⁹“Furthermore, ^xwhom should I serve? Should I not serve in the presence of his son? As I have served in your father’s presence, so will I be in your presence.”

²⁰Then Absalom said to ^yAhithophel, “Give advice as to what we should do.”

²¹And Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Go in to your father’s ^zconcubines, whom he has left to keep the house; and all Israel will hear that you ^aare abhorred by your father. Then ^bthe hands of all who are with you will be strong.” ²²So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the top of the house, and Absalom went in to his father’s concubines ^cin the sight of all Israel.

²³Now the advice of Ahithophel, which he gave in those days, was as if one had inquired at the oracle of God. So was all the advice of Ahithophel ^dboth with David and with Absalom.

17Moreover Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Now let me choose twelve thousand men, and I will arise and pursue David tonight. ²I will come upon him while he is ^aweary and weak, and make him ¹afraid. And all the people who are with him will flee, and I will ^bstrike only the king. ³Then I will bring back all the people to you. When all return except the man whom you seek, all the people will be at peace.” ⁴And the saying pleased Absalom and all the ^celders of Israel.

The Advice of Hushai

⁵Then Absalom said, “Now call Hushai the Archite also, and let us hear what he ^dsays too.” ⁶And when Hushai came to Absalom, Absalom spoke to him, saying, “Ahithophel has spoken in this manner. Shall we do as he says? If not, speak up.”

⁷So Hushai said to Absalom: “The advice that Ahithophel has given is not good at this time. ⁸“For,” said Hushai, “you know your father and his men, that they are mighty men, and they are enraged in their minds, like ^ea bear robbed of her cubs in the field; and your father is a man of war, and will not camp with the people. ⁹Surely by now he is hidden in some pit, or in some other place. And it will be, when some of them are overthrown at the first, that whoever hears it will say, ‘There is a slaughter among the people who follow Absalom.’ ¹⁰And even he who is valiant, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, will ^fmelt completely. For all Israel knows that your father is a mighty man, and those who are with him are valiant men. ¹¹Therefore I advise that all Israel be fully gathered to you, ^gfrom Dan to Beersheba, ^hlike the sand that is by the sea for multitude, and that you go to battle in person. ¹²So we will come upon him in some place where he may be found, and we will fall on him as the dew falls on the ground. And of him and all the men who are with him there shall not be left so much as one. ¹³Moreover, if he has withdrawn into a city, then all Israel shall bring ropes to that city; and we will ⁱpull it into the river, until there is not one small stone found there.”

¹⁴So Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than the advice of Ahithophel.” For ^jthe Lord had purposed to defeat the good advice of Ahithophel, to the intent that the Lord might bring disaster on Absalom.

Hushai Warns David to Escape

^15kThen Hushai said to Zadok and Abiathar the priests, “Thus and so Ahithophel advised Absalom and the elders of Israel, and thus and so I have advised. ¹⁶Now therefore, send quickly and tell David, saying, ‘Do not spend this night ^lin the plains of the wilderness, but speedily cross over, lest the king and all the people who are with him be swallowed up.’ ” ^17mNow Jonathan and Ahimaaz ⁿstayed at ^oEn Rogel, for they dared not be seen coming into the city; so a female servant would come and tell them, and they would go and tell King David. ¹⁸Nevertheless a lad saw them, and told Absalom. But both of them went away quickly and came to a man’s house ^pin Bahurim, who had a well in his court; and they went down into it. ^19qThen the woman took and spread a covering over the well’s mouth, and spread ground grain on it; and the thing was not known. ²⁰And when Absalom’s servants came to the woman at the house, they said, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?”

So ^rthe woman said to them, “They have gone over the water brook.”

And when they had searched and could not find them, they returned to Jerusalem. ²¹Now it came to pass, after they had departed, that they came up out of the well and went and told King David, and said to David, ^s“Arise and cross over the water quickly. For thus has Ahithophel advised against you.” ²²So David and all the people who were with him arose and crossed over the Jordan. By morning light not one of them was left who had not gone over the Jordan.

²³Now when Ahithophel saw that his advice was not followed, he saddled a donkey, and arose and went home to ^this house, to his city. Then he ²put his ^uhousehold in order, and ^vhanged himself, and died; and he was buried in his father’s tomb.

²⁴Then David went to ^wMahanaim. And Absalom crossed over the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him. ²⁵And Absalom made ^xAmasa captain of the army instead of Joab. This Amasa was the son of a man whose name was ³Jithra, an ⁴Israelite, who had gone in to ^yAbigail the daughter of Nahash, sister of Zeruiah, Joab’s mother. ²⁶So Israel and Absalom encamped in the land of Gilead.

²⁷Now it happened, when David had come to Mahanaim, that ^zShobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the people of Ammon, ^aMachir the son of Ammiel from Lo Debar, and ^bBarzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim, ²⁸brought beds and basins, earthen vessels and wheat, barley and flour, parched grain and beans, lentils and parched seeds, ²⁹honey and curds, sheep and cheese of the herd, for David and the people who were with him to eat. For they said, “The people are hungry and weary and thirsty ^cin the wilderness.”