1Sa 21:4 And the priest, answering David, said, I have no common bread here but there is holy bread; if only the young men have kept themselves from women.
1Sa 21:5 And David in answer said to the priest, Certainly women have been kept from us; and as has been done before when I have gone out the arms of the young men were made holy, even though it was a common journey; how much more today will their arms be made holy.
1Sa 21:6 So the priest gave him the holy bread: there was no other, only the holy bread which had been taken from before the Lord, so that new bread might be put in its place on the day when it was taken away.
1Sa 21:7 Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, kept back before the Lord; his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the strongest of Saul's runners.
1Sa 21:8 And David said to Ahimelech, Have you no sword or spear with you here? for I have come without my sword and other arms, because the king's business had to be done quickly.
1Sa 21:9 And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you put to death in the valley of Elah, is here folded in a cloth at the back of the ephod: take that, if you will, for there is no other sword here. And David said, there is no other sword like that; give it to me.
1Sa 21:10 Then David got up and went in flight that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish, the king of Gath.
1Sa 21:11 And the servants of Achish said to him, Is not this David, the king of the land? did they not make songs about him in their dances, saying, Saul has put to death thousands, and David tens of thousands?
1Sa 21:12 And David took these words to heart, fearing Achish, the king of Gath.
1Sa 21:13 So changing his behaviour before them, he made it seem as if he was off his head, hammering on the doors of the town, and letting the water from his mouth go down his chin.
1Sa 21:14 Then Achish said to his servants, Look! the man is clearly off his head; why have you let him come before me?
1Sa 21:15 Are there not enough unbalanced men about me, that you have let this person come and do such tricks before me? is such a man to come into my house?
1Sa 22:1 So David went away from there and took cover in a strong place at Adullam; and his brothers and all his father's people, hearing of it, went down to him there.
1Sa 22:2 And everyone who was in trouble, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul, came together to him, and he became captain over them: about four hundred men were joined to him.
1Sa 22:3 And from there David went to Mizpeh in the land of Moab: and he said to the king of Moab, Let my father and mother come and make their living-place with you till it is clear to me what God will do for me.
1Sa 22:4 And he took them to the king of Moab and they went on living with him while David was in his safe place.
1Sa 22:5 And the prophet Gad said to David, Do not go on living in this place but go into the land of Judah. Then David went away and came to the woodland of Hereth.
1Sa 22:6 And news was given to Saul that David had been seen, and the men who were with him: now Saul was in Gibeah, seated under the tree in the high place, with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were in their places before him.
1Sa 22:7 Then Saul said to his servants who were there about him, Give ear now, you Benjamites; will the son of Jesse give to every one of you fields and vine-gardens, will he make you all captains of hundreds and captains of thousands;
1Sa 22:8 That all of you have made designs against me, and not one of you gave me word when my son made an agreement with the son of Jesse, and not one of you has pity for me or has made my eyes open to the fact that my servant has been moved by my son against me, as at this day?
1Sa 22:9 Then Doeg, the Edomite, who was by the side of the servants of Saul, in answer said, I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub.
1Sa 22:10 And he got directions from the Lord for him, and gave him food, and put in his hand the sword of Goliath the Philistine.
1Sa 22:11 Then the king sent for Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and for all the men of his father's family who were priests in Nob: and they all came to the king.
1Sa 22:12 And Saul said, Give ear now, O son of Ahitub. And answering he said, Here I am, my lord.
1Sa 22:13 And Saul said to him, Why have you made designs against me with the son of Jesse, giving him food and a sword and getting directions from the Lord for him, and helping him to take up arms against me, and to be on the watch to make a secret attack on me as he is doing now?
1Sa 22:14 Then Ahimelech answering said to the king, Who among all your servants is so true to you as David, who is the king's son-in-law, and is a captain of your armed men, and has a place of honour in your house?
1Sa 22:15 Is this the first time I have got directions from God for him? Far be the thought! let the king make no such statement against his servant or my father's family, for your servant has no knowledge, great or small, of this thing.
1Sa 22:16 And the king said, You will certainly be put to death, Ahimelech, you and all your father's family.
1Sa 22:17 Then the king said to the runners who were waiting near him, Put the priests of the Lord to death; because they are on David's side, and having knowledge of his flight, did not give me word of it. But the king's servants would not put out their hands to make an attack on the Lord's priests.
1Sa 22:18 Then the king said to Doeg, You are to put the priests to death. And Doeg the Edomite, turning on the priests and attacking them, put to death that day eighty-five men who took up the ephod.
1Sa 22:19 And Nob, the town of the priests, he put to the sword, all the men and women, children and babies at the breast, and oxen and asses and sheep.
1Sa 22:20 And Abiathar, one of the sons of Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub, got away and went in flight after David;
1Sa 22:21 And gave him the news of how Saul had put to death the Lord's priests.
1Sa 22:22 And David said to Abiathar, I was certain that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would take the news to Saul: I am responsible for the lives of all your father's family.
1Sa 22:23 Keep here with me and have no fear; for he who has designs on my life has designs on yours: but with me you will be safe.
1Sa 23:1 And they sent word to David, saying, The Philistines are fighting against Keilah and taking the grain from the grain-floors.
1Sa 23:2 So David, questioning the Lord, said, Am I to go and make an attack on these Philistines? And the Lord said to David, Go and make an attack on the Philistines so that Keilah may be kept from falling into their hands.
1Sa 23:3 And David's men said to him, Even here in Judah we are full of fear: how much more then if we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?
1Sa 23:4 Then David put the question to the Lord again, and the Lord answering said, Up! go down to Keilah; for I will give the Philistines into your hands.
1Sa 23:5 So David and his men went to Keilah, and had a fight with the Philistines, and took away their cattle, and put them to the sword with great destruction. So David was the saviour of the people of Keilah.
1Sa 23:6 Now when Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech, went in flight to David, he came down to Keilah with the ephod in his hand.
1Sa 23:7 And news was given to Saul that David had come to Keilah. And Saul said, Now God has given him into my hands; for by going into a walled town with locked doors, he has let himself be shut in.
1Sa 23:8 And Saul sent for all the people to come to the fight, and go down to Keilah to make an attack on David and his men.
1Sa 23:9 And it was clear to David that Saul had evil designs against him, and he said to Abiathar the priest, Come here with the ephod.
1Sa 23:10 Then David said, O Lord, the God of Israel, news has been given to your servant that it is Saul's purpose to come to Keilah and send destruction on the town because of me.
1Sa 23:11 And now, is it true, as they have said to me, that Saul is coming? O Lord, the God of Israel, give ear to your servant, and say if these things are so. And the Lord said, He is coming down.
1Sa 23:12 Then David said, Will the men of Keilah give me and my men up to Saul? and the Lord said, They will give you up.
1Sa 23:13 Then David and his men, about six hundred of them, went out of Keilah, and got away wherever they were able to go. And Saul, hearing that David had got away from Keilah, did not go there.
1Sa 23:14 And David kept in the waste land, in safe places, waiting in the hill-country in the waste land of Ziph. And Saul was searching for him every day, but God did not give him up into his hands.
1Sa 23:15 And David was full of fear, in the knowledge that Saul had come out to take his life; and David was in the waste land of Ziph, in Horesh.
1Sa 23:16 And Saul's son Jonathan went to David in Horesh, and made his hands strong in God;
1Sa 23:17 And said to him, Have no fear, for Saul my father will not get you into his power; and you will be king of Israel, and I will be by your side, and my father Saul is certain of this.
1Sa 23:18 And the two of them made an agreement before the Lord: and David went on living in Horesh, and Jonathan went back to his house.
1Sa 23:19 Then the Ziphites came up to Gibeah to see Saul, and said, Is not David living secretly among us in the strong places in Horesh, in the hill of Hachilah to the south of the waste land?
1Sa 23:20 So now, O king, have your soul's desire and come down, and we, for our part, will give him up into the king's hands.
1Sa 23:21 And Saul said, The Lord's blessing will be yours, for you have had pity on me.
1Sa 23:22 Go now, and take more steps, and see where he is living: for they say that he is expert in deceit.
1Sa 23:23 So take care to get knowledge of all the secret places where he is taking cover, and be certain to come back to me, and I will go with you: and without doubt, if he is anywhere in the land, I will get him, among all the families of Judah.
1Sa 23:24 And they went back and came to Ziph before Saul: but David and his men were in the waste land of Maon, in the dry land south of the waste land.
1Sa 23:25 And Saul and his men went in search of him. And David had word of it, so he came down to the rock in the waste land of Maon. And Saul, hearing of this, went after David into the waste land of Maon.
1Sa 23:26 And Saul and his men went on one side of the mountain, and David and his men went on the other: and David's purpose was to get away as quickly as possible, for fear of Saul; for Saul and his men were making a circle round David and his men in order to take them.
1Sa 23:27 But a man came to Saul saying, Be quick and come; for the Philistines have made an attack on the land.
1Sa 23:28 So turning back from going after David, Saul went against the Philistines: so that place was named Sela-hammah-lekoth.
1Sa 23:29 And from there, David went up and took cover in the safe place of En-gedi.
1Sa 24:1 Now when Saul came back from fighting the Philistines, news was given him that David was in the waste land of En-gedi.
1Sa 24:2 Then Saul took three thousand of the best men out of all Israel, and went in search of David and his men on the rocks of the mountain goats.
1Sa 24:3 And on the way he came to a place where sheep were kept, where there was a hollow in the rock; and Saul went in for a private purpose. Now David and his men were in the deepest part of the hollow.
1Sa 24:4 And David's men said to him, Now is the time when the Lord says to you, I will give up your hater into your hands to do with him whatever seems good to you. Then David, getting up, took the skirt of Saul's robe in his hand, cutting off the end of it without his knowledge.
1Sa 24:5 And later, David was full of regret for cutting off Saul's skirt.
1Sa 24:6 And David said to his men, Before the Lord, never let it be said that my hand was lifted up against my lord, the man of the Lord's selection, for the Lord's holy oil has been put on him.
1Sa 24:7 So with these words David kept his servants back, and did not let them make an attack on Saul. And Saul got up and went on his way.
1Sa 24:8 And after that David came out of the hollow rock, and crying after Saul said, My lord the king. And when Saul gave a look back, David went down on his face and gave him honour.
1Sa 24:9 And David said to Saul, Why do you give any attention to those who say that it is my desire to do you wrong?
1Sa 24:10 Look! you have seen today how the Lord gave you up into my hands even now in the hollow of the rocks: and some would have had me put you to death, but I had pity on you: for I said, Never will my hand be lifted up against my lord, who has been marked with the holy oil.
1Sa 24:11 And see, my father, see the skirt of your robe in my hand: for the fact that I took off the skirt of your robe and did not put you to death is witness that I have no evil purpose, and I have done you no wrong, though you are waiting for my life to take it.
1Sa 24:12 May the Lord be judge between me and you, and may the Lord give me my rights against you, but my hand will never be lifted up against you.
1Sa 24:13 There is an old saying, From the evil-doer comes evil: but my hand will never be lifted up against you.
1Sa 24:14 After whom has the king of Israel come out? for whom are you searching? for a dead dog, an insect.
1Sa 24:15 So let the Lord be judge, and give a decision between me and you, and see and give support to my cause, and keep me from falling into your hands.
1Sa 24:16 Now when David had said these words to Saul, Saul said, Is this your voice, David, my son? And Saul was overcome with weeping.
1Sa 24:17 And he said to David, You are right and I am wrong: for you have given me back good, but I have given you evil.
1Sa 24:18 And you have made clear to me how good you have been to me today: because, when the Lord gave me up into your hands, you did not put me to death.
1Sa 24:19 If a man comes across his hater, will he let him get away safe? so may you be rewarded by the Lord for what you have done for me today.
1Sa 24:20 And now I am certain that you will be king, and that the kingdom of Israel will be made strong under your authority.
1Sa 24:21 So give me your oath by the Lord, that you will not put an end to my seed after me or let my name be cut off from my father's family.
1Sa 24:22 And David gave Saul his oath. And Saul went back to his house; but David and his men went up to their safe place.
1Sa 25:1 And death came to Samuel; and all Israel came together, weeping for him, and put his body in its resting-place in his house at Ramah. Then David went down to the waste land of Maon.
1Sa 25:2 Now there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel; he was a great man and had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats: and he was cutting the wool of his sheep in Carmel.
1Sa 25:3 Now this man was named Nabal, and his wife's name was Abigail: she was a woman of good sense and pleasing looks: but the man was cruel and evil in his ways; he was of the family of Caleb.
1Sa 25:4 And David had word in the waste land that Nabal was cutting the wool of his sheep.
1Sa 25:5 And David sent ten young men, and said to them, Go up to Carmel and go to Nabal, and say kind words to him in my name;
1Sa 25:6 And say this to my brother, May all be well for you: peace be to you and your house and all you have.
1Sa 25:7 I have had word that you have wool-cutters: now the keepers of your sheep have been with us, and we have done them no evil, and taken nothing of theirs while they were in Carmel.
1Sa 25:8 If your young men are questioned they will say the same thing. So now, let my young men have grace in your eyes, for we are come at a good time; please give anything you may have by you to your servants and to your son David.
1Sa 25:9 And when David's young men came, they said all this to Nabal, in David's name, and said nothing more.
1Sa 25:10 And Nabal gave them his answer and said, Who is David? who is the son of Jesse? there are a number of servants in these days running away from their masters.
1Sa 25:11 Am I to take my bread and my wine and the meat I have got ready for my wool-cutters and give it to men coming from I have no idea where?
1Sa 25:12 So David's young men, turning away, went back and gave him an account of everything he had said.
1Sa 25:13 And David said to his men, Put on your swords, every one of you. And every man put on his sword; and David did the same; and about four hundred men went up with David, and two hundred kept watch over their goods.
1Sa 25:14 But one of the young men said to Nabal's wife Abigail, David sent men from the waste land to say kind words to our master, and he gave them a rough answer.
1Sa 25:15 But these men have been very good to us; they did us no wrong and nothing of ours was touched while we were with them in the fields:
1Sa 25:16 But day and night they were like a wall round us while we were with them, looking after the sheep.
1Sa 25:17 So now, give thought to what you are going to do; for evil is in store for our master and all his house: for he is such a good-for-nothing person that it is not possible to say anything to him.
1Sa 25:18 Then Abigail quickly took two hundred cakes of bread and two skins full of wine and five sheep ready for cooking and five measures of dry grain and a hundred parcels of dry grapes and two hundred cakes of figs, and put them on asses.
1Sa 25:19 And she said to her young men, Go on in front of me and I will come after you. But she said nothing to her husband Nabal.
1Sa 25:20 Now while she was going down under cover of the mountain on her ass, David and his men came down against her, and suddenly she came face to face with them.
1Sa 25:21 Now David had said, What was the use of my taking care of this man's goods in the waste land, so that there was no loss of anything which was his? he has only given me back evil for good.
1Sa 25:22 May God's punishment be on David, if when morning comes there is so much as one male of his people still living.
1Sa 25:23 And when Abigail saw David, she quickly got off her ass, falling down on her face before him.
1Sa 25:24 And falling at his feet she said, May the wrong be on me, my lord, on me: let your servant say a word to you, and give ear to the words of your servant.
1Sa 25:25 Let my lord give no attention to Nabal, that good-for-nothing: for as his name is, so is he, a man without sense: but I, your servant, did not see the young men whom my lord sent.
1Sa 25:26 So now, my lord, by the living God and by your living soul, seeing that the Lord has kept you from the crime of blood and from taking into your hands the punishment for your wrongs, may all your haters, and those who would do evil to my lord, be like Nabal.
1Sa 25:27 And let this offering, which your servant gives to my lord, be given to the young men who are with my lord.
1Sa 25:28 And may the sin of your servant have forgiveness: for the Lord will certainly make your family strong, because my lord is fighting in the Lord's war; and no evil will be seen in you all your days.
1Sa 25:29 And though a man has taken up arms against you, putting your life in danger, still the soul of my lord will be kept safe among the band of the living with the Lord your God; and the souls of those who are against you he will send violently away from him, like stones from a bag.
1Sa 25:30 And when the Lord has done for my lord all those good things which he has said he will do for you, and has made you a ruler over Israel;
1Sa 25:31 Then you will have no cause for grief, and my lord's heart will not be troubled because you have taken life without cause and have yourself given punishment for your wrongs: and when the Lord has been good to you, then give a thought to your servant.
1Sa 25:32 And David said to Abigail, May the Lord, the God of Israel, be praised, who sent you to me today:
1Sa 25:33 A blessing on your good sense and on you, who have kept me today from the crime of blood and from taking into my hands the punishment for my wrongs.
1Sa 25:34 For truly, by the living Lord, the God of Israel, who has kept me from doing you evil, if you had not been so quick in coming to me and meeting me, by dawn there would not have been in Nabal's house so much as one male living.
1Sa 25:35 Then David took from her hands her offering: and he said to her, Go back to your house in peace; see, I have given ear to your voice, and taken your offering with respect.
1Sa 25:36 And Abigail went back to Nabal; and he was feasting in his house like a king; and Nabal's heart was full of joy, for he had taken much wine; so she said nothing to him till dawn came.
1Sa 25:37 And in the morning, when the effect of the wine was gone, Nabal's wife gave him an account of all these things, and all the heart went out of him, and he became like stone.
1Sa 25:38 And about ten days after, the Lord sent disease on Nabal and death came to him.
1Sa 25:39 And David, hearing that Nabal was dead, said, May the Lord be praised, who has taken up my cause against Nabal for the shame which he put on me, and has kept back his servant from evil, and has sent on Nabal's head the reward of his evil-doing. And David sent word to Abigail, desiring to take her as his wife.
1Sa 25:40 And when David's servants came to Carmel, to Abigail, they said to her, David has sent us to you to take you to him as his wife.
1Sa 25:41 And she got up, and going down on her face to the earth, said, See, I am ready to be a servant-girl, washing the feet of the servants of my lord.
1Sa 25:42 Then Abigail got up quickly and went on her ass, with five of her young women, after the men whom David had sent; and she became David's wife.
1Sa 25:43 And David had taken Ahinoam of Jezreel, to be his wife; these two were his wives.
1Sa 25:44 Now Saul had given his daughter Michal, David's wife, to Palti the son of Laish of Gallim.
1Sa 26:1 And the Ziphites came to Saul at Gibeah, and said, Is not David waiting secretly near us in the hill of Hachilah, before the waste land?
1Sa 26:2 Then Saul went down to the waste land of Ziph, taking with him three thousand of the best men of Israel, to make search for David in the waste land of Ziph.
1Sa 26:3 And Saul put up his tents on the hill of Hachilah, which is in front of the waste land on the road. But David was in the waste land, and he saw that Saul was coming after him.
1Sa 26:4 And so David sent out watchers, and got word from them that Saul was certainly coming.
1Sa 26:5 And David got up and came to the place where Saul's tents were: and David had a view of the place where Saul was sleeping with Abner, the son of Ner, the captain of his army: and Saul was sleeping inside the ring of carts, and the tents of the people were all round him.
1Sa 26:6 Then David said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, brother of Joab, Who will go down with me to the tents of Saul? And Abishai said, I will go down with you.
1Sa 26:7 So David and Abishai came down to the army by night: and Saul was sleeping inside the ring of carts with his spear planted in the earth by his head: and Abner and the people were sleeping round him.
1Sa 26:8 Then Abishai said to David, God has given up your hater into your hands today; now let me give him one blow through to the earth with his spear, and there will be no need to give him a second.
1Sa 26:9 And David said to Abishai Do not put him to death; for who, without sin, may put out his hand against the man on whom the Lord has put the holy oil?
1Sa 26:10 And David said, By the living Lord, the Lord will send destruction on him; the natural day of his death will come, or he will go into the fight and come to his end.
1Sa 26:11 Never will my hand be stretched out against the man marked with the holy oil; but take the spear which is by his head and the vessel of water, and let us go.
1Sa 26:12 So David took the spear and the vessel of water from Saul's head; and they got away without any man seeing them, or being conscious of their coming, or awaking; for they were all sleeping because a deep sleep from the Lord had come on them.
1Sa 26:13 Then David went over to the other side, and took his place on the top of a mountain some distance away, with a great space between them;
1Sa 26:14 And crying out to the people and to Abner, the son of Ner, David said, Have you no answer to give, Abner? Then Abner said, Who is that crying out to the king?
1Sa 26:15 And David said to Abner, Are you not a man of war? is there any other like you in Israel? why then have you not kept watch over your lord the king? for one of the people came in to put the king your lord to death.
1Sa 26:16 What you have done is not good. By the living Lord, death is the right fate for you, because you have not kept watch over your lord, the man on whom the Lord has put the holy oil. Now see, where is the king's spear, and the vessel of water which was by his head?
1Sa 26:17 And Saul, conscious that the voice was David's, said, Is that your voice, David, my son? And David said, It is my voice, O my lord king.
1Sa 26:18 And he said, Why does my lord go armed against his servant? what have I done? or what evil is there in me?
1Sa 26:19 Let my lord the king give ear now to the words of his servant. If it is the Lord who is moving you against me, let him take an offering: but if it is the children of men, may they be cursed before the Lord, for driving me out today and keeping me from my place in the heritage of the Lord, saying, Go, be the servant of other gods.
1Sa 26:20 Then do not let my blood be drained out on the earth away from the face of the Lord: for the king of Israel has come out to take my life, like one going after birds in the mountains.
1Sa 26:21 Then Saul said, I have done wrong: come back to me, David my son: I will do you no more wrong, because my life was dear to you today truly, I have been foolish and my error is very great.
1Sa 26:22 Then David said, Here is the king's spear! let one of the young men come over and get it.
1Sa 26:23 And the Lord will give to every man the reward of his righteousness and his faith: because the Lord gave you into my hands today, and I would not put out my hand against the man who has been marked with the holy oil.
1Sa 26:24 And so, as your life was dear to me today, may my life be dear to the Lord, and may he make me free from all my troubles.
1Sa 26:25 Then Saul said to David, May a blessing be on you, David, my son; you will do great things and without doubt you will overcome. Then David went on his way, and Saul went back to his place.
1Sa 27:1 And David said to himself, Some day death will come to me by the hand of Saul: the only thing for me to do is to get away into the land of the Philistines; then Saul will give up hope of taking me in any part of the land of Israel: and so I may be able to get away from him.
1Sa 27:2 So David and the six hundred men who were with him went over to Achish, the son of Maoch, king of Gath.
1Sa 27:3 And David and his men were living with Achish at Gath; every man had his family with him, and David had his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel, and Abigail of Carmel, who had been the wife of Nabal.
1Sa 27:4 And Saul, hearing that David had gone to Gath, went after him no longer.
1Sa 27:5 Then David said to Achish, If now I have grace in your eyes, let me have a place in one of the smaller towns of your land, to be my living-place; for it is not right for your servant to be living with you in the king's town.
1Sa 27:6 So Achish straight away gave him Ziklag: and for that reason Ziklag has been the property of the kings of Judah to this day.
1Sa 27:7 And David was living in the land of the Philistines for the space of a year and four months.
1Sa 27:8 And David and his men went up and made attacks on the Geshurites and the Girzites and the Amalekites; for these were the people who were living in the land from Telam on the way to Shur, as far as Egypt.
1Sa 27:9 And David again and again made attacks on the land till not a man or a woman was still living; and he took away the sheep and the oxen and the asses and the camels and the clothing; and he came back to Achish.
1Sa 27:10 And every time Achish said, Where have you been fighting today? David said, Against the South of Judah and the South of the Jerahmeelites and the South of the Kenites.
1Sa 27:11 Not one living man or woman did David ever take back with him to Gath, fearing that they might give an account of what had taken place, and say, This is what David did, and so has he been doing all the time while he has been living in the land of the Philistines.
1Sa 27:12 And Achish had belief in what David said, saying, He has made himself hated by all his people Israel, and so he will be my servant for ever.
1Sa 28:1 Now in those days the Philistines got their forces together to make war on Israel. And Achish said to David, Certainly you and your men are to go out with me to the fight.
1Sa 28:2 And David said to Achish, You will see now what your servant will do. And Achish said to David, Then I will make you keeper of my head for ever.
1Sa 28:3 Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel, after weeping for him, had put his body in its last resting-place in Ramah, his town. And Saul had put away from the land all those who had control of spirits and who made use of secret arts.
1Sa 28:4 And the Philistines came together and put their forces in position in Shunem; and Saul got all Israel together and they took up their positions in Gilboa.
1Sa 28:5 And when Saul saw the Philistine army he was troubled, and his heart was moved with fear.
1Sa 28:6 And when Saul went for directions to the Lord, the Lord gave him no answer, by a dream or by the Urim or by the prophets.
1Sa 28:7 Then Saul said to his servants, Get me a woman who has control of a spirit so that I may go to her and get directions. And his servants said to him, There is such a woman at En-dor.
1Sa 28:8 So Saul, putting on other clothing, so that he might not be seen to be the king, took two men with him and went to the woman by night; and he said, Now, with the help of the spirit which you have, make the person whose name I will give you come up.
1Sa 28:9 And the woman said to him, But you have knowledge of what Saul has done, how he has put away out of the land those who have control of spirits and the users of secret arts: why would you, by a trick, put me in danger of death?
1Sa 28:10 And Saul made an oath to her by the Lord, saying, By the living Lord, no punishment will come to you for this.
1Sa 28:11 Then the woman said, Who am I to let you see? And he said, Make Samuel come up for me.
1Sa 28:12 And the woman saw that it was Saul, and she gave a loud cry, and said to Saul, Why have you made use of deceit? for you are Saul.
1Sa 28:13 And the king said to her, Have no fear: what do you see? And the woman said to Saul, I see a god coming up out of the earth.
1Sa 28:14 And he said to her, What is his form? And she said, It is an old man coming up covered with a robe. And Saul saw that it was Samuel, and with his face bent down to the earth he gave him honour.
1Sa 28:15 And Samuel said to Saul, Why have you made me come up, troubling my rest? And Saul in answer said, I am in great danger; for the Philistines are making war on me, and God has gone away from me and will no longer give me any answer, by the prophets or by dreams: so I have sent for you to make clear to me what I am to do.
1Sa 28:16 And Samuel said, Why do you put your questions to me, seeing that God has gone away from you and is on the side of him who is against you?
1Sa 28:17 And the Lord himself has done what I said: the Lord has taken the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbour David;
1Sa 28:18 Because you did not do what the Lord said, and did not give effect to his burning wrath against Amalek. So the Lord has done this thing to you today.
1Sa 28:19 And more than this, the Lord will give Israel up with you into the hands of the Philistines: and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me: and the Lord will give up the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.
1Sa 28:20 Then Saul went down flat on the earth, and was full of fear because of Samuel's words: and there was no strength in him, for he had taken no food all that day or all that night.
1Sa 28:21 And the woman came to Saul and saw that he was in great trouble, and said to him, See now, your servant has given ear to your words, and I have put my life in danger by doing what you said.
1Sa 28:22 So now, give ear to the voice of your servant, and let me give you a little bread; and take some food to give you strength when you go on your way.
1Sa 28:23 But he would not, saying, I have no desire for food. But his servants, together with the woman, made him take food, and he gave way to them. So he got up from the earth, and took his seat on the bed.
1Sa 28:24 And the woman had in the house a young cow, made fat for food; and she put it to death straight away; and she took meal and got it mixed and made unleavened bread;
1Sa 28:25 And she put it before Saul and his servants, and they had a meal. Then they got up and went away the same night.
1Sa 29:1 Now the Philistines got all their army together at Aphek: and the Israelites put their forces in position by the fountain in Jezreel.
1Sa 29:2 And the lords of the Philistines went on with their hundreds and their thousands, and David and his men came after with Achish.
1Sa 29:3 Then the rulers of the Philistines said, What are these Hebrews doing here? And Achish said to the rulers of the Philistines, Is this not David, the servant of Saul the king of Israel, who has been with me for a year or two, and I have never seen any wrong in him from the time when he came to me till now?
1Sa 29:4 But the rulers of the Philistines were angry with him, and said to him, Make the man go back to the place you have given him; do not let him go down with us to the fight, or he may be turned against us and be false to us: for how will this man make peace with his lord? will it not be with the heads of these men?
1Sa 29:5 Is this not David, who was named in their songs, when in the dance they said to one another, Saul has put to death thousands, and David tens of thousands?
1Sa 29:6 Then Achish sent for David and said to him, By the living Lord, you are upright, and everything you have done with me in the army has been pleasing to me: I have seen no evil in you from the day when you came to me till now: but still, the lords are not pleased with you.
1Sa 29:7 So now go back, and go in peace, so that you do not make the lords of the Philistines angry.
1Sa 29:8 And David said to Achish, But what have I done? what have you seen in your servant while I have been with you till this day, that I may not go and take up arms against those who are now making war on my lord the king?
1Sa 29:9 And Achish in answer said, It is true that in my eyes you are good, like an angel of God: but still, the rulers of the Philistines have said, He is not to go up with us to the fight.
1Sa 29:10 So get up early in the morning, with the servants of your lord who are with you, and go to the place I have given you, and have no evil design in your heart, for you are good in my eyes; but when there is light enough in the morning, go away.
1Sa 29:11 So David and his men got up early in the morning to go back to the land of the Philistines. And the Philistines went up to Jezreel.
1Sa 30:1 Now when David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day, the Amalekites had made an attack on the South and on Ziklag, and had overcome Ziklag and put it on fire;
1Sa 30:2 And had made the women and all who were there, small and great, prisoners: they had not put any of them to death, but had taken them all away.
1Sa 30:3 And when David and his men came to the town, they saw that it had been burned down, and their wives and their sons and daughters had been made prisoners.
1Sa 30:4 Then David and the people who were with him gave themselves up to weeping till they were able to go on weeping no longer.
1Sa 30:5 And David's two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel, had been made prisoners.
1Sa 30:6 And David was greatly troubled; for the people were talking of stoning him, because their hearts were bitter, every man sorrowing for his sons and his daughters: but David made himself strong in the Lord his God.
1Sa 30:7 And David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, Come here to me with the ephod. And Abiathar took the ephod to David.
1Sa 30:8 Then David, questioning the Lord, said, Am I to go after this band? will I be able to overtake them? And in answer he said, Go after them, for you will certainly overtake them, and get back everything.
1Sa 30:9 So David went, and his six hundred men went with him, and they came to the stream Besor.
1Sa 30:10 And David, with four hundred men, went on: but two hundred of them were overcome with weariness, and not able to go across the stream.
1Sa 30:11 And in the fields they saw an Egyptian whom they took to David, and they gave him bread, and he had a meal, and they gave him water for drink;
1Sa 30:12 And they gave him part of a cake of figs and some dry grapes; and after the food, his spirit came back to him, for he had had no food or drink for three days and nights.
1Sa 30:13 And David said to him, Whose man are you and where do you come from? And he said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite; and my master went on without me because three days back I became ill.
1Sa 30:14 We made an attack on the south part of the country of the Cherethites, and on the land which is Judah's, and on the south of Caleb; and we put Ziklag on fire.
1Sa 30:15 And David said to him, Will you take me down to this band? And he said, If you give me your oath that you will not put me to death or give me up to my master, I will take you to them.
1Sa 30:16 And when he had taken him down, they saw them all, seated about on all sides, feasting and drinking among all the mass of goods which they had taken from the land of the Philistines and the land of Judah.
1Sa 30:17 And David went on fighting them from evening till the evening of the day after; and not one of them got away but only four hundred young men who went in flight on camels.
1Sa 30:18 And David got back everything the Amalekites had taken; and he got back his two wives.
1Sa 30:19 There was no loss of anything, small or great, sons or daughters or goods or anything which they had taken away: David got it all back.
1Sa 30:20 And they took all the flocks and herds, and driving them in front of him, said, These are David's.
1Sa 30:21 And David came to the two hundred men, who because of weariness had not gone with him, but were waiting at the stream Besor: and they went out, meeting David and the people who were with him; and when they came near them, they said, How are you?
1Sa 30:22 Then the bad and good-for-nothing men among those who went with David said, Because they did not go with us, we will give them nothing of the goods which we have got back, but only to every man his wife and children, so that he may take them and go.
1Sa 30:23 Then David said, You are not to do this, my brothers, after what the Lord has given us, who has kept us safe and given up the band which came against us into our hands.
1Sa 30:24 Who is going to give any attention to you in this question? for an equal part will be given to him who went to the fight and to him who was waiting by the goods: they are all to have the same.
1Sa 30:25 And so he made it a rule and an order for Israel from that day till now.
1Sa 30:26 And when David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the goods to the responsible men of Judah, and to his friends, saying, Here is an offering for you from the goods of those who were fighting against the Lord;
1Sa 30:27 He sent to those who were in Beth-el, and in Ramah of the South, and in Jattir;
1Sa 30:28 And to those in Arara and Eshtemoa
1Sa 30:29 and Carmel and in the towns of the Jerahmeelites, and in the towns of the Kenites;
1Sa 30:30 And to those who were in Hormah and in Bor-ashan and in Athach;
1Sa 30:31 And in Hebron, and to all the places where David and his men had been living.
1Sa 31:1 Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel: and the men of Israel went in flight before the Philistines, falling down wounded in Mount Gilboa.
1Sa 31:2 And the Philistines overtook Saul and his sons; and they put to death Jonathan and Abinadab and Malchi-shua, the sons of Saul.
1Sa 31:3 And the fight was going badly for Saul, and the archers came across him, and he was wounded by the archers.
1Sa 31:4 Then Saul said to the servant who had the care of his arms, Take out your sword and put it through me, before these men without circumcision come and make sport of me. But his servant, full of fear, would not do so. Then Saul took out his sword, and falling on it, put an end to himself.
1Sa 31:5 And when his servant saw that Saul was dead, he did the same, and was united with him in death.
1Sa 31:6 So death overtook Saul and his three sons and his servant on the same day.
1Sa 31:7 And when the men of Israel across the valley and on the other side of Jordan saw that the army of Israel was in flight and that Saul and his sons were dead, they came out of their towns and went in flight; and the Philistines came and took them for themselves.
1Sa 31:8 Now on the day after, when the Philistines came to take their goods from the dead, they saw Saul and his three sons dead on the earth in Mount Gilboa.
1Sa 31:9 And cutting off his head and taking away his war-dress, they sent word into the land of the Philistines round about, to take the news to their gods and to the people.
1Sa 31:10 His war-dress they put in the house of Astarte; and his body was fixed on the wall of Beth-shan.
1Sa 31:11 And when the people of Jabesh-gilead had news of what the Philistines had done to Saul,
1Sa 31:12 All the fighting men got up and, travelling all night, took Saul's body and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan; and they came to Jabesh and had them burned there.
1Sa 31:13 And their bones they put in the earth under a tree in Jabesh; and for seven days they took no food.
2Sa 1:1 Now after the death of Saul, when David, having come back from the destruction of the Amalekites, had been in Ziklag for two days;
2Sa 1:2 On the third day a man came from Saul's tents, with his clothing out of order and earth on his head: and when he came to David, he went down on the earth and gave him honour.
2Sa 1:3 And David said to him, Where have you come from? And he said, I have come in flight from the tents of Israel.
2Sa 1:4 And David said to him, How did things go? Give me the news. And in answer he said, The people have gone in flight from the fight, and a great number of them are dead; and Saul and his son Jonathan are dead.
2Sa 1:5 And David said to the young man who gave him the news, Why are you certain that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?
2Sa 1:6 And the young man said, I came by chance to Mount Gilboa, and I saw Saul supporting himself on his spear; and the war-carriages and horsemen overtook him.
2Sa 1:7 And looking back, he saw me and gave a cry to me. And answering him I said, Here am I.
2Sa 1:8 And he said to me, Who are you? And I said, I am an Amalekite.
2Sa 1:9 Then he said to me, Come here to my side, and put me to death, for the pain of death has me in its grip but my life is still strong in me.
2Sa 1:10 So I put my foot on him and gave him his death-blow, because I was certain that he would not go on living after his fall: and I took the crown from his head and the band from his arm, and I have them here for my lord.
2Sa 1:11 Then David gave way to bitter grief, and so did all the men who were with him:
2Sa 1:12 And till evening they gave themselves to sorrow and weeping, and took no food, weeping for Saul and for Jonathan, his son, and for the people of the Lord and for the men of Israel; because they had come to their end by the sword.
2Sa 1:13 And David said to the young man who had given him the news, Where do you come from? And he said, I am the son of a man from a strange land; I am an Amalekite.
2Sa 1:14 And David said to him, Had you no fear of stretching out your hand to put to death the one marked with the holy oil?
2Sa 1:15 And David sent for one of his young men and said, Go near and put an end to him. And he put him to death.
2Sa 1:16 And David said to him, May your blood be on your head; for your mouth has given witness against you, saying, I have put to death the man marked with the holy oil.
2Sa 1:17 Then David made this song of grief for Saul and Jonathan, his son:
2Sa 1:18 (It is recorded in the book of Jashar for teaching to the sons of Judah) and he said:
2Sa 1:19 The glory, O Israel, is dead on your high places! How have the great ones been made low!
2Sa 1:20 Give no news of it in Gath, let it not be said in the streets of Ashkelon; or the daughters of the Philistines will be glad, the daughters of men without circumcision will be uplifted in joy.
2Sa 1:21 O mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew or rain on you, you fields of death: for there the arms of the strong have been shamed, the arms of Saul, as if he had not been marked with the holy oil.
2Sa 1:22 From the blood of the dead, from the fat of the strong, the bow of Jonathan was not turned back, the sword of Saul did not come back unused.
2Sa 1:23 Saul and Jonathan were loved and pleasing; in their lives and in their death they were not parted; they went more quickly than eagles, they were stronger than lions.
2Sa 1:24 O daughters of Israel, have sorrow for Saul, by whom you were delicately clothed in robes of red, with ornaments of gold on your dresses.
2Sa 1:25 How have the great ones been made low in the fight! Jonathan is dead on your high places.
2Sa 1:26 I am full of grief for you, my brother Jonathan: very dear have you been to me: your love for me was a wonder, greater than the love of women.
2Sa 1:27 How have the great ones been made low, and the arms of war broken!
2Sa 2:1 Now after this, David, questioning the Lord, said, Am I to go up into any of the towns of Judah? And the Lord said to him, Go up. And David said, Where am I to go? And he said, To Hebron.
2Sa 2:2 So David went there, taking with him his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel, and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel.
2Sa 2:3 And David took all his men with him, every man with his family: and they were living in the towns round Hebron.
2Sa 2:4 And the men of Judah came there, and with the holy oil made David king over the people of Judah. And word came to David that it was the men of Jabesh-gilead who put Saul's body in its last resting-place.
2Sa 2:5 And David sent to the men of Jabesh-gilead and said to them, May the Lord give you his blessing, because you have done this kind act to Saul your lord, and have put his body to rest!
2Sa 2:6 May the Lord be good and true to you: and I myself will see that your kind act is rewarded, because you have done this thing.
2Sa 2:7 Then let your hands be strong, and have no fear: though Saul your lord is dead, the people of Judah have made me their king.
2Sa 2:8 Now Abner, the son of Ner, captain of Saul's army, had taken Saul's son Ish-bosheth over to Mahanaim,
2Sa 2:9 And made him king over Gilead and the Asherites and over Jezreel and Ephraim and Benjamin, that is, over all Israel.
2Sa 2:10 (Saul's son Ish-bosheth was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he was ruler for two years.) But Judah was on the side of David.
2Sa 2:11 And the time when David was king in Hebron over the people of Judah was seven years and six months.
2Sa 2:12 And Abner, the son of Ner, with the servants of Saul's son Ish-bosheth, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.
2Sa 2:13 And Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and the servants of David, went out and came face to face with them by the pool of Gibeon; and they took up their position, facing one another on opposite sides of the pool.
2Sa 2:14 And Abner said to Joab, Let the young men give a test of their strength before us. And Joab said, Let them do so.
2Sa 2:15 So they got up and went over by number: twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bosheth and twelve of the servants of David.
2Sa 2:16 And every one got the other by the head, driving his sword into the other's side, so they all went down together: and that place was named the Field of Sides, and it is in Gibeon.
2Sa 2:17 And there was hard fighting that day; and Abner and the men of Israel gave way before the servants of David.
2Sa 2:18 There were three sons of Zeruiah there, Joab and Abishai and Asahel: and Asahel was as quick-footed as a roe of the fields.
2Sa 2:19 Asahel went running after Abner, not turning to the right or to the left.
2Sa 2:20 Then Abner, looking back, said, Is it you, Asahel? And he said, It is I.
2Sa 2:21 And Abner said, Then go to the right or to the left and put your hands on one of the fighting-men and take his arms. But Asahel would not be turned away from going after Abner.
2Sa 2:22 Then again Abner said to Asahel, Go to one side, do not keep on coming after me: why will you make me put an end to you? for then I will be shamed before your brother Joab.
2Sa 2:23 But still he did not go to one side: so Abner gave him a back blow in the stomach with his spear, so that the spear came out at his back; and he went down on the earth, wounded to death: and all those who came to the place where Asahel went down dead, came to a stop.
2Sa 2:24 But Joab and Abishai went after Abner: and the sun went down when they came to the hill of Ammah, which is to the east of the road through the waste land of Geba.
2Sa 2:25 And the men of Benjamin came together after Abner in one band, and took their places on the top of a hill.
2Sa 2:26 Then crying out to Joab, Abner said, Are fighting and destruction to go on for ever? do you not see that the end will only be bitter? how long will it be before you send the people back and make them give up attacking their countrymen?
2Sa 2:27 And Joab said, By the living God, if you had not given the word, the people would have gone on attacking their countrymen till the morning.
2Sa 2:28 So Joab had a horn sounded, and all the people came to a stop, and gave up going after Israel and fighting them.
2Sa 2:29 And all that night Abner and his men went through the Arabah; they went over Jordan and through all Bithron and came to Mahanaim.
2Sa 2:30 And Joab came back from fighting Abner: and when he had got all his men together, it was seen that nineteen of David's men, in addition to Asahel, were not with them.
2Sa 2:31 But David's men had put to death three hundred and sixty of the men of Benjamin and of Abner's men
2Sa 2:32 And they took Asahel's body and put it in the last resting-place of his father in Beth-lehem. And Joab and his men, travelling all night, came to Hebron at dawn.
2Sa 3:1 Now there was a long war between Saul's people and David's people; and David became stronger and stronger, but those on Saul's side became more and more feeble.
2Sa 3:2 While David was in Hebron he became the father of sons: the oldest was Amnon, son of Ahinoam of Jezreel;
2Sa 3:3 And the second, Chileab, whose mother was Abigail, the wife of Nabal the Carmelite; and the third, Absalom, son of Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur;
2Sa 3:4 And the fourth, Adonijah, the son of Haggith; and the fifth, Shephatiah, the son of Abital;
2Sa 3:5 And the sixth, Ithream, whose mother was David's wife Eglah. These were the sons of David, whose birth took place in Hebron.
2Sa 3:6 Now while there was war between Saul's people and David's people, Abner was making himself strong among the supporters of Saul.
2Sa 3:7 Now Saul had among his wives a woman named Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah: and Ish-bosheth said to Abner, Why have you taken my father's wife?
2Sa 3:8 And Abner was very angry at the words of Ish-bosheth, and he said, Am I a dog's head of Judah? I am this day doing all in my power for the cause of your father Saul and for his brothers and his friends, and have not given you up into the hands of David, and now you say I have done wrong with a woman.
2Sa 3:9 May God's punishment be on Abner, if I do not for David as the Lord in his oath has said,
2Sa 3:10 And if I do not take away the kingdom from the family of Saul and make David ruler over Israel and Judah from Dan as far as Beer-sheba!
2Sa 3:11 And so great was Ish-bosheth's fear of Abner that he was not able to say a word in answer.
2Sa 3:12 And Abner sent men to David at Hebron, saying, Make an agreement with me, and I will give you my support in getting all Israel on your side.
2Sa 3:13 And he said, It is well; I will make an agreement with you, but on one condition, which is, that when you come before me, Saul's daughter Michal is to come with you; till she comes you will not see my face.
2Sa 3:14 And David sent men to Saul's son Ish-bosheth, saying, Give me back Michal, my wife, whom I made mine for the price of the private parts of a hundred Philistines.
2Sa 3:15 So Ish-bosheth sent and took her from her husband Paltiel, the son of Laish.
2Sa 3:16 And her husband went with her as far as Bahurim, weeping while he went. Then Abner said to him, Go back. And he went back.
2Sa 3:17 Then Abner had a talk with the chief men of Israel, saying, In the past it was your desire to make David your king: so now, do it:
2Sa 3:18 For the Lord has said of David, By the hand of my servant David I will make my people Israel safe from the Philistines, and from all who are against them.
2Sa 3:19 And Abner said the same things to Benjamin: and he went to David in Hebron to make clear to him what seemed good to Israel and to all the people of Benjamin.
2Sa 3:20 So Abner, with twenty men, came to Hebron, to David. And David made a feast for Abner and the men who were with him.
2Sa 3:21 And Abner said to David, Now I will go, and make all Israel come to my lord the king, so that they may make an agreement with you, and your kingdom may be as wide as your heart's desire. Then David sent Abner away and he went in peace.
2Sa 3:22 Now the servants of David and Joab had been out attacking a band of armed men, and they came back with a great store of goods taken in the fight: but Abner was no longer in Hebron with David, for he had sent him away and he had gone in peace.
2Sa 3:23 When Joab and his men came, news was given them that Abner, the son of Ner, had come to the king, who had let him go away again in peace.
2Sa 3:24 Then Joab came to the king, and said, What have you done? when Abner came to you why did you send him away and let him go?
2Sa 3:25 Is it not clear to you that Abner, the son of Ner, came with deceit to get knowledge of your going out and your coming in and of all you are doing?
2Sa 3:26 And when Joab had come out from David, he sent men after Abner, and they overtook him at the water-spring of Sirah, and made him come back with them: but David had no knowledge of it.
2Sa 3:27 And when Abner was back in Hebron, Joab took him on one side by the doorway of the town to have a word with him quietly, and there he gave him a wound in the stomach, causing his death in payment for the death of his brother Asahel.
2Sa 3:28 And when David had word of it he said, May I and my kingdom be clear for ever in the eyes of the Lord from the blood of Abner, the son of Ner:
2Sa 3:29 May it come on the head of Joab and all his father's family: among the men of Joab's family may there ever be some who are diseased or lepers, or who do the work of women, or are put to the sword, or are wasted from need of food!
2Sa 3:30 So Joab and Abishai his brother put Abner to death, because he had put to death their brother Asahel in the fight at Gibeon.
2Sa 3:31 And David said to Joab and all the people who were with him, Go in grief and put haircloth about you, in sorrow for Abner. And King David went after the dead body.
2Sa 3:32 And they put Abner's body to rest in Hebron; and the king and all the people were weeping loudly by the resting-place of Abner's body.
2Sa 3:33 And the king made a song of grief for Abner and said, Was the death of Abner to be like the death of a foolish man?
2Sa 3:34 Your hands were free, your feet were not chained: like the downfall of a man before evil men, so was your fall. And the weeping of the people over him went on again.
2Sa 3:35 And the people came to make David take food, while it was still day, but David with an oath said, May God's punishment be on me if I take a taste of bread or any other thing till the sun has gone down!
2Sa 3:36 And all the people took note of it and were pleased: like everything the king did, it was pleasing to the people.
2Sa 3:37 So it was clear to Israel and to all the people on that day that the king was not responsible for the death of Abner, the son of Ner.
2Sa 3:38 And the king said to his servants, Do you not see that a chief and a great man has come to his end today in Israel?
2Sa 3:39 While I, though I am crowned king, have little strength, and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, are out of my control: may the Lord give to the evil-doer the reward of his evil-doing!
2Sa 4:1 And when Saul's son Ish-bosheth had news that Abner was dead in Hebron, his hands became feeble, and all the Israelites were troubled.
2Sa 4:2 And Saul's son had two men, captains of bands, one named Baanah and the other Rechab, sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, of the tribe of Benjamin; (for Beeroth was at one time taken to be part of Benjamin:
2Sa 4:3 But the people of Beeroth had gone in flight to Gittaim, where they have been living to this day.)
2Sa 4:4 Now Jonathan, Saul's son, had a son whose feet were damaged. He was five years old when news of the death of Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel, and the woman who took care of him took him up and went in flight: and while she was getting him away as quickly as she was able, he had a fall and his feet were damaged. His name was Mephibosheth.
2Sa 4:5 And Rechab and Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, went out and came to the house of Ish-bosheth in the heat of the day, when he was resting in the middle of the day. Now the woman who kept the door was cleaning grain, and sleep overcame her.
2Sa 4:6 And Rechab and his brother Baanah got in without being seen.
2Sa 4:7 And when they came into the house, Ish-bosheth was stretched on his bed in his bedroom; and they made an attack on him and put him to death, and, cutting off his head, they took it with them and went by the road through the Arabah all night.
2Sa 4:8 And they took the head of Ish-bosheth to David in Hebron, and said to the king, Here is the head of Ish-bosheth, the son of Saul your hater, who would have taken your life; the Lord has taken payment for the wrongs of my lord the king from Saul and his seed today.
2Sa 4:9 And David made answer to Rechab and his brother Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said to them, By the living Lord, who has kept me safe from all my trouble,
2Sa 4:10 When one came to me with the news of Saul's death, in the belief that it would be good news, I took him and put him to death in Ziklag, which was the reward I gave him for his news:
2Sa 4:11 How much more, when evil men have put an upright person to death, in his house, sleeping on his bed, will I take payment from you for his blood, and have you cut off from the earth?
2Sa 4:12 And David gave orders to his young men and they put them to death, cutting off their hands and their feet and hanging them up by the side of the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-bosheth and put it in its last resting-place with Abner's body in Hebron.
2Sa 5:1 Then all the tribes of Israel came to David in Hebron and said, Truly, we are your bone and your flesh.
2Sa 5:2 In the past when Saul was king over us, it was you who went at the head of Israel when they went out or came in: and the Lord said to you, You are to be the keeper of my people Israel and their ruler.
2Sa 5:3 So all the responsible men of Israel came to the king at Hebron; and King David made an agreement with them in Hebron before the Lord: and they put the holy oil on David and made him king over Israel.
2Sa 5:4 David was thirty years old when he became king, and he was king for forty years,
2Sa 5:5 Ruling over Judah in Hebron for seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem, over all Israel and Judah, for thirty-three years.
2Sa 5:6 And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the people of the land: and they said to David, You will not come in here, but the blind and the feeble-footed will keep you out; for they said, David will not be able to come in here.
2Sa 5:7 But David took the strong place of Zion, which is the town of David.
2Sa 5:8 And that day David said, Whoever makes an attack on the Jebusites, let him go up by the water-pipe, and put to death all the blind and feeble-footed who are hated by David. And this is why they say, The blind and feeble-footed may not come into the house.
2Sa 5:9 So David took the strong tower for his living-place, naming it the town of David. And David took in hand the building of the town all round, starting from the Millo.
2Sa 5:10 And David became greater and greater; for the Lord, the God of armies, was with him.
2Sa 5:11 And Hiram, king of Tyre, sent men to David, with cedar-trees and woodworkers and stoneworkers: and they made David a house.
2Sa 5:12 And David saw that the Lord had made his position safe as king over Israel, and that he had made his kingdom great because of his people Israel.
2Sa 5:13 And David took more women and wives in Jerusalem, after he had come from Hebron: and he had more sons and daughters.
2Sa 5:14 These are the names of those whose birth took place in Jerusalem: Shammua and Shobab and Nathan and Solomon
2Sa 5:15 And Ibhar and Elishua and Nepheg and Japhia
2Sa 5:16 And Elishama and Eliada and Eliphelet.
2Sa 5:17 And when the Philistines had news that David had been made king over Israel, they all went up in search of David; and David, hearing of it, went down to the strong place.
2Sa 5:18 And when the Philistines came, they went in every direction in the valley of Rephaim.
2Sa 5:19 And David, desiring directions from the Lord, said, Am I to go up against the Philistines? will you give them up into my hands? And the Lord said, Go up, for I will certainly give up the Philistines into your hands.
2Sa 5:20 And David went to Baal-perazim, and overcame them there; and he said, The Lord has let the forces fighting against me be broken before me as a wall is broken by rushing waters. So that place was named Baal-perazim.
2Sa 5:21 And the Philistines, when they went in flight, did not take their images with them, and David and his men took them away.
2Sa 5:22 And the Philistines came up again, and went in every direction in the valley of Rephaim.
2Sa 5:23 And when David went for directions to the Lord, he said, You are not to go up against them in front; but make a circle round them from the back and come on them opposite the spice-trees.
2Sa 5:24 Then at the sound of footsteps in the tops of the trees, go forward quickly, for the Lord has gone out before you to overcome the army of the Philistines.
2Sa 5:25 And David did as the Lord had said; and he overcame the Philistines, attacking them from Gibeon to near Gezer.
2Sa 6:1 And David got together all the fighting-men of Israel to the number of thirty thousand;
2Sa 6:2 And David, and all the people who were with him, went to Baal of Judah to get the ark of God, over which the holy name is named, the name of the Lord of armies, whose place is between the winged ones.
2Sa 6:3 And they put the ark of God on a new cart and took it out of the house of Abinadab which was on the hill: and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were the drivers of the cart.
2Sa 6:4 And Uzzah went by the side of the ark, while Ahio went before it.
2Sa 6:5 And David and all the men of Israel made melody before the Lord with all their power, with songs and with corded instruments and instruments of brass.
2Sa 6:6 And when they came to Nacon's grain-floor, Uzzah put his hand on the ark of God to keep it safe in its place, for the oxen were out of control.
2Sa 6:7 And the wrath of the Lord, burning against Uzzah, sent destruction on him because he had put his hand on the ark, and death came to him there by the ark of God.
2Sa 6:8 And David was angry because of the Lord's outburst of wrath against Uzzah: and he gave that place the name Perez-uzzah, which is its name to this day.
2Sa 6:9 And such was David's fear of the Lord that day, that he said, How may I let the ark of God come to me?
2Sa 6:10 So David did not let the ark of the Lord come back to him to the town of David: but had it turned away and put into the house of Obed-edom the Gittite.
2Sa 6:11 And the ark of the Lord was in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite for three months: and the Lord sent a blessing on Obed-edom and all his family.
2Sa 6:12 And they said to King David, The blessing of the Lord is on the family of Obed-edom and on all he has, because of the ark of God. And David went and took the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom into the town of David with joy.
2Sa 6:13 And when those who were lifting the ark of the Lord had gone six steps, he made an offering of an ox and a fat young beast.
2Sa 6:14 And David, clothed in a linen ephod, was dancing before the Lord with all his strength.
2Sa 6:15 So David and all the men of Israel took up the ark of the Lord with cries of joy and sounding of horns.
2Sa 6:16 And when the ark of the Lord came into the town of David, Michal, Saul's daughter, looking out of the window, saw King David dancing and jumping before the Lord; and to her mind he seemed foolish.
2Sa 6:17 And they took in the ark of the Lord, and put it in its place inside the tent which David had put up for it: and David made burned offerings and peace-offerings to the Lord.
2Sa 6:18 And after David had made the burned offerings and the peace-offerings, he gave the people a blessing in the name of the Lord of armies.
2Sa 6:19 And he gave to every man and woman among all the people, among all the masses of Israel, a cake of bread and a measure of wine and a cake of dry grapes. Then all the people went away, every man to his house.
2Sa 6:20 Then David came back to give a blessing to his family. And Michal, Saul's daughter, came out to him and said, How full of glory was the king of Israel today, who let himself be seen uncovered by his servant-girls like a foolish person uncovering himself without shame!
2Sa 6:21 And David said to Michal, I was dancing before the Lord, who put me over your father and all his sons, to make me a ruler over the people of the Lord, over his people Israel: and I will go on playing before the Lord;
2Sa 6:22 And I will do even worse than this, and make myself even lower in your eyes: but the servant-girls of whom you were talking will give me honour.
2Sa 6:23 And Michal, Saul's daughter, had no child till the day of her death.
2Sa 7:1 Now when the king was living in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from war on every side;
2Sa 7:2 The king said to Nathan the prophet, See now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God is housed inside the curtains of a tent.
2Sa 7:3 And Nathan said to the king, Go and do whatever is in your heart; for the Lord is with you.
2Sa 7:4 Now that night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying,
2Sa 7:5 Go and say to my servant David, The Lord says, Are you to be the builder of a house, a living-place for me?
2Sa 7:6 For from the day when I took the children of Israel up out of Egypt till this day, I have had no house, but have gone from place to place in a tent.
2Sa 7:7 In all the places where I went with all the children of Israel, did I ever say to any of the judges of Israel, to whom I gave the care of my people Israel, Why have you not made me a house of cedar?
2Sa 7:8 Then say these words to my servant David, The Lord of armies says, I took you from the fields, from keeping the sheep, so that you might be a ruler over my people, over my people Israel:
2Sa 7:9 And I have been with you wherever you went, cutting off before you all those who were against you; and I will make your name great, like the name of the greatest ones of the earth.
2Sa 7:10 And I will make a resting-place for my people Israel, planting them there, so that they may be living in the place which is theirs, and never again be moved; and never again will they be troubled by evil men as they were at the first,
2Sa 7:11 From the time when I put judges over my people Israel; and I will give you peace from all who are against you. And the Lord says to you that he will make you the head of a line of kings.
2Sa 7:12 And when the time comes for you to go to rest with your fathers, I will put in your place your seed after you, the offspring of your body, and I will make his kingdom strong.
2Sa 7:13 He will be the builder of a house for my name, and I will make the seat of his authority certain for ever.
2Sa 7:14 I will be to him a father and he will be to me a son: if he does wrong, I will give him punishment with the rod of men and with the blows of the children of men;
2Sa 7:15 But my mercy will not be taken away from him, as I took it from him who was before you.
2Sa 7:16 And your family and your kingdom will keep their place before me for ever: the seat of your authority will never be overturned.
2Sa 7:17 So Nathan gave David an account of all these words and this vision.
2Sa 7:18 Then David the king went in and took his seat before the Lord, and said, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my family, that you have been my guide till now?
2Sa 7:19 And this was only a small thing to you, O Lord God; but your words have even been about the far-off future of your servant's family, O Lord God!
2Sa 7:20 What more may David say to you? for you have knowledge of your servant, O Lord God.
2Sa 7:21 Because of your word and from your heart, you have done all this great work, and let your servant see it.
2Sa 7:22 Truly you are great, O Lord God: there is no one like you and no other God but you, as is clear from everything which has come to our ears.
2Sa 7:23 And what other nation in the earth, like your people Israel, did a god go out to take for himself, to be his people, and to make a name for himself, and to do great and strange things for them, driving out a nation and its gods from before his people?
2Sa 7:24 But you took and made strong for yourself your people Israel, to be your people for ever; and you, Lord, became their God.
2Sa 7:25 And now, O Lord God, may the word which you have said about your servant and about his family, be made certain for ever, and may you do as you have said!
2Sa 7:26 And let your name be made great for ever, and let men say, The Lord of armies is God over Israel: and let the family of David your servant be made strong before you!
2Sa 7:27 For you, O Lord of armies, the God of Israel, have clearly said to your servant, I will make you the head of a family of kings: and so it has come into your servant's heart to make this prayer to you.
2Sa 7:28 And now, O Lord God, you are God and your words are true and you have said you will give your servant this good thing;
2Sa 7:29 So may it be your pleasure to give your blessing to the family of your servant, so that it may go on for ever before you: (for you, O Lord God, have said it,) and may your blessing be on your servant's family line for ever!
2Sa 8:1 And it came about after this that David made an attack on the Philistines and overcame them; and David took the authority of the mother-town from the hands of the Philistines.
2Sa 8:2 And he overcame the Moabites, and he had them measured with a line when they were stretched out on the earth; marking out two lines for death and one full line for life. So the Moabites became servants to David and gave him offerings.
2Sa 8:3 And David overcame Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, when he went to make his power seen by the River.
2Sa 8:4 And David took from him one thousand, seven hundred horsemen and twenty thousand footmen: and David had the leg-muscles of the horses cut, only keeping enough of them for a hundred war-carriages.
2Sa 8:5 And when the Aramaeans of Damascus came to the help of Hadadezer, king of Zobah, David put to the sword twenty-two thousand of the Aramaeans.
2Sa 8:6 And David put armed forces in Aram of Damascus: and the Aramaeans became servants to David and gave him offerings. And the Lord made David overcome wherever he went.
2Sa 8:7 And David took their gold body-covers from the servants of Hadadezer and took them to Jerusalem.
2Sa 8:8 And from Tebah and Berothai, towns of Hadadezer, King David took a great store of brass.
2Sa 8:9 And when Tou, king of Hamath, had news that David had overcome all the army of Hadadezer,
2Sa 8:10 He sent his son Hadoram to David, with words of peace and blessing, because he had overcome Hadadezer in the fight, for Hadadezer had wars with Tou; and Hadoram took with him vessels of silver and gold and brass:
2Sa 8:11 These King David made holy to the Lord, together with the silver and gold which he had taken from the nations he had overcome--
2Sa 8:12 The nations of Edom and Moab, and the children of Ammon and the Philistines and the Amalekites and the goods he had taken from Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, king of Zobah.
2Sa 8:13 And David got great honour for himself, when he came back, by the destruction of Edom in the valley of Salt, to the number of eighteen thousand men.
2Sa 8:14 And he put armed forces in Edom; all through Edom he had armed forces stationed, and all the Edomites became servants to David. And the Lord made David overcome wherever he went.
2Sa 8:15 And David was king over all Israel, judging and giving right decisions for all his people.
2Sa 8:16 And Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief of the army; and Jehoshaphat, the son of Ahilud, was keeper of the records;
2Sa 8:17 And Zadok and Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub, were priests; and Seraiah was the scribe;
2Sa 8:18 And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were priests.
2Sa 9:1 And David said, Is there still anyone of Saul's family living, so that I may be a friend to him, because of Jonathan?
2Sa 9:2 Now there was of Saul's people a servant named Ziba, and they sent him to David; and the king said to him, Are you Ziba? And he said, I am.
2Sa 9:3 And the king said, Is there anyone of Saul's family still living, to whom I may be a friend in God's name? And Ziba said, There is a son of Jonathan, whose feet are damaged.
2Sa 9:4 And the king said to him, Where is he? And Ziba said to the king, He is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar.
2Sa 9:5 Then King David sent, and had him taken from Lo-debar, from the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel.
2Sa 9:6 And Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, came to David, and falling down on his face, gave him honour. And David said, Mephibosheth. And answering he said, Your servant is here.
2Sa 9:7 And David said to him, Have no fear: for truly I will be good to you, because of your father Jonathan, and I will give back to you all the land which was Saul's; and you will have a place at my table at all times.
2Sa 9:8 And he went down on his face before the king, and said, What is your servant, for you to take note of a dead dog such as I am?
2Sa 9:9 Then the king sent for Ziba, Saul's servant, and said to him, All the property of Saul and of his family I have given to your master's son.
2Sa 9:10 And you and your sons and your servants are to take care of the land for him, and get in the fruit of it, so that your master's son may have food: but Mephibosheth, your master's son, will have a place at my table at all times. Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.
2Sa 9:11 Then Ziba said to the king, Every order which you have given to your servant will be done. As for Mephibosheth, he had a place at David's table, like one of the king's sons.
2Sa 9:12 And Mephibosheth had a young son named Mica. And all the people living in the house of Ziba were servants to Mephibosheth.
2Sa 9:13 So Mephibosheth went on living in Jerusalem; for he took all his meals at the king's table; and he had not the use of his feet.
2Sa 10:1 Now after this, death came to the king of the children of Ammon, and Hanun, his son, became king in his place.
2Sa 10:2 And David said, I will be a friend to Hanun, the son of Nahash, as his father was a friend to me. So David sent his servants, to give him words of comfort on account of his father. And David's servants came into the land of the children of Ammon.
2Sa 10:3 But the chiefs of the children of Ammon said to Hanun their lord, Does it seem to you that David is honouring your father by sending comforters to you? has he not sent his servants to go through the town and make secret observation of it, and overcome it?
2Sa 10:4 So Hanun took David's servants, and after cutting off half the hair on their chins, and cutting off the skirts of their robes up to the middle, he sent them away.
2Sa 10:5 When David had news of it, he sent men out with the purpose of meeting them on their way, for the men were greatly shamed: and the king said, Go to Jericho till your hair is long again, and then come back.
2Sa 10:6 And when the children of Ammon saw that they had made themselves hated by David, they sent to the Aramaeans of Beth-rehob and Zobah, and got for payment twenty thousand footmen, and they got from the king of Maacah a thousand men, and from Tob twelve thousand.
2Sa 10:7 And hearing of this, David sent Joab and all the army and the best fighting-men.
2Sa 10:8 And the children of Ammon came out and put their forces in position at the way into the town: and the Aramaeans of Zobah and of Rehob, with the men of Tob and Maacah, were by themselves in the field.
2Sa 10:9 Now when Joab saw that their forces were in position against him in front and at his back, he took the best of the men of Israel and put them in line against the Aramaeans;
2Sa 10:10 And the rest of the people he put in position against the children of Ammon, with Abishai, his brother, at their head.
2Sa 10:11 And he said, If the Aramaeans are stronger and get the better of me, then you are to come to my help; but if the children of Ammon get the better of you, I will come to your help.
2Sa 10:12 Take heart, and let us be strong for our people and for the towns of our God, and may the Lord do what seems good to him.
2Sa 10:13 Then Joab and the people with him went forward to the fight against the Aramaeans, and they went in flight before him.
2Sa 10:14 And when the children of Ammon saw the flight of the Aramaeans, they themselves went in flight from Abishai, and came into the town. So Joab went back from fighting the children of Ammon and came to Jerusalem.
2Sa 10:15 And when the Aramaeans saw that Israel had overcome them, they got themselves together.
2Sa 10:16 And Hadadezer sent for the Aramaeans who were on the other side of the River: and they came to Helam, with Shobach, the captain of Hadadezer's army, at their head.
2Sa 10:17 And word of this was given to David: and he got all Israel together and went over Jordan and came to Helam. And the Aramaeans put their forces in position against David, and made an attack on him.
2Sa 10:18 And the Aramaeans went in flight before Israel; and David put to the sword the men of seven hundred Aramaean war-carriages and forty thousand footmen, and Shobach, the captain of the army, was wounded, and came to his death there.
2Sa 10:19 And when all the kings who were servants of Hadadezer saw that they were overcome by Israel, they made peace with Israel and became their servants. So the Aramaeans, in fear, gave no more help to the children of Ammon.
2Sa 11:1 Now in the spring, at the time when kings go out to war, David sent Joab and his servants and all Israel with him; and they made waste the land of the children of Ammon, and took up their position before Rabbah, shutting it in. But David was still at Jerusalem.
2Sa 11:2 Now one evening, David got up from his bed, and while he was walking on the roof of the king's house, he saw from there a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful.
2Sa 11:3 And David sent to get knowledge who the woman was. And one said, Is this not Bath-sheba, the daughter of Eliam and wife of Uriah the Hittite?
2Sa 11:4 And David sent and took her; and she came to him, and he took her to his bed: (for she had been made clean;) then she went back to her house.
2Sa 11:5 And the woman became with child; and she sent word to David that she was with child.
2Sa 11:6 And David sent to Joab saying, Send Uriah the Hittite to me. And Joab sent Uriah to David.
2Sa 11:7 And when Uriah came to him, David put questions to him about how Joab and the people were, and how the war was going.
2Sa 11:8 And David said to Uriah, Go down to your house and let your feet be washed. And Uriah went away from the king's house, and an offering from the king was sent after him.
2Sa 11:9 But Uriah took his rest at the door of the king's house, with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house.
2Sa 11:10 And when word was given to David that Uriah had not gone down to his house, David said to Uriah, Have you not come from a journey? why did you not go down to your house?
2Sa 11:11 And Uriah said to David, Israel and Judah with the ark are living in tents, and my lord Joab and the other servants of my lord are sleeping in the open field; and am I to go to my house and take food and drink, and go to bed with my wife? By the living Lord, and by the life of your soul, I will not do such a thing.
2Sa 11:12 And David said to Uriah, Be here today, and after that I will let you go. So Uriah was in Jerusalem that day and the day after.
2Sa 11:13 And when David sent for him, he took meat and drink with him, and David made him the worse for drink: and when evening came, he went to rest on his bed with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house.
2Sa 11:14 Now in the morning, David gave Uriah a letter to take to Joab.
2Sa 11:15 And in the letter he said, Take care to put Uriah in the very front of the line, where the fighting is most violent, and go back from him, so that he may be overcome and put to death.
2Sa 11:16 So while Joab was watching the town, he put Uriah in the place where it was clear to him the best fighters were.
2Sa 11:17 And the men of the town went out and had a fight with Joab: and a number of David's men came to their death in the fight, and with them Uriah the Hittite.
2Sa 11:18 Then Joab sent David news of everything which had taken place in the war:
2Sa 11:19 And he gave orders to the man who took the news, saying, After you have given the king all the news about the war,
2Sa 11:20 If the king is angry and says, Why did you go so near the town for the fight? was it not certain that their archers would be on the wall?
2Sa 11:21 Who put Abimelech, the son of Jerubbaal, to death? did not a woman send a great stone down on him from the wall, putting him to death at Thebez? why did you go so near the wall? Then say to him, Your servant Uriah the Hittite is among the dead.
2Sa 11:22 So the man went, and came to David, and gave him all the news which Joab had sent him to give; then David was angry with Joab and said, Why did you go so near the town for the fight? was it not certain that their archers would be on the wall? who put Abimelech, the son of Jerubbaal, to death? did not a woman send a great stone down on him from the wall, putting him to death at Thebez? why did you go so near the wall?
2Sa 11:23 And the man said to David, Truly the men got the better of us, and came out against us into the open country, but we sent them back to the very doors of the town.
2Sa 11:24 And the archers sent their arrows at your servants from the wall, and some of the king's servants are dead, and among them is your servant Uriah the Hittite.
2Sa 11:25 Then David said to the man, Go and say to Joab, Do not let this be a grief to you; for one man may come to his death by the sword like another: put up an even stronger fight against the town, and take it: and do you put heart into him.
2Sa 11:26 And when the wife of Uriah had news that her husband was dead, she gave herself up to weeping for him.
2Sa 11:27 And when the days of weeping were past, David sent for her, and took her into his house, and she became his wife and gave him a son. But the Lord was not pleased with the thing David had done.
2Sa 12:1 And the Lord sent Nathan to David. And Nathan came to him and said, There were two men in the same town: one a man of great wealth, and the other a poor man.
2Sa 12:2 The man of wealth had great numbers of flocks and herds;
2Sa 12:3 But the poor man had only one little she-lamb, which he had got and taken care of: from its birth it had been with him like one of his children; his meat was its food, and from his cup it took its drink, resting in his arms, and it was like a daughter to him.
2Sa 12:4 Now a traveller came to the house of the man of wealth, but he would not take anything from his flock or his herd to make a meal for the traveller who had come to him, but he took the poor man's lamb and made it ready for the man who had come.
2Sa 12:5 And David was full of wrath against that man; and he said to Nathan, By the living Lord, death is the right punishment for the man who has done this:
2Sa 12:6 And he will have to give back four times the value of the lamb, because he has done this and because he had no pity.
2Sa 12:7 And Nathan said to David, You are that man. The Lord God of Israel says, I made you king over Israel, putting holy oil on you, and I kept you safe from the hands of Saul;
2Sa 12:8 I gave you your master's daughter and your master's wives for yourself, and I gave you the daughters of Israel and Judah; and if that had not been enough, I would have given you such and such things.
2Sa 12:9 Why then have you had no respect for the word of the Lord, doing what is evil in his eyes? You have put Uriah the Hittite to death with the sword, and have taken his wife to be your wife; you have put him to death with the sword of the children of Ammon.
2Sa 12:10 So now the sword will never be turned away from your family; because you have had no respect for me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.
2Sa 12:11 The Lord says, From those of your family I will send evil against you, and before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to your neighbour, and he will take your wives to his bed by the light of this sun.
2Sa 12:12 You did it secretly; but I will do this thing before all Israel and in the light of the sun.
2Sa 12:13 And David said to Nathan, Great is my sin against the Lord. And Nathan said to David, The Lord has put away your sin; death will not come on you.
2Sa 12:14 But still, because you have had no respect for the Lord, death will certainly overtake the child who has newly come to birth.
2Sa 12:15 Then Nathan went back to his house. And the hand of the Lord was on David's son, the child of Uriah's wife, and it became very ill.
2Sa 12:16 So David made prayer to God for the child; and he took no food day after day, and went in and, stretching himself out on the earth, was there all night.
2Sa 12:17 And the chief men of his house got up and went to his side to make him get up from the earth, but he would not; and he would not take food with them.
2Sa 12:18 And then on the seventh day the child's death took place. And David's servants were in fear of giving him the news of the child's death: for they said, Truly, while the child was still living he gave no attention when we said anything to him: what will he do to himself if we give him word that the child is dead?
2Sa 12:19 But when David saw that his servants were talking together quietly, he was certain that the child was dead: and he said to his servants, Is the child dead? and they said, He is.
2Sa 12:20 Then David got up from the earth, and after washing and rubbing himself with oil and changing his clothing, he went into the house of the Lord and gave worship: then he went back to his house, and at his order they put food before him and he had a meal.
2Sa 12:21 Then his servants said to him, Why have you been acting in this way? you were weeping and going without food while the child was still living; but when the child was dead, you got up and had a meal.
2Sa 12:22 And he said, While the child was still living I went without food and gave myself up to weeping: for I said, Who is able to say that the Lord will not have mercy on me and give the child life?
2Sa 12:23 But now that the child is dead there is no reason for me to go without food; am I able to make him come back to life? I will go to him, but he will never come back to me.
2Sa 12:24 And David gave comfort to his wife Bath-sheba, and he went in to her and had connection with her: and she had a son to whom she gave the name Solomon. And he was dear to the Lord.
2Sa 12:25 And he sent word by Nathan the prophet, who gave him the name Jedidiah, by the word of the Lord.
2Sa 12:26 Now Joab was fighting against Rabbah, in the land of the children of Ammon, and he took the water-town.
2Sa 12:27 And Joab sent men to David, saying, I have made war against Rabbah and have taken the water-town.
2Sa 12:28 So now, get the rest of the people together, and put them in position against the town and take it, for if I take it, it will be named after my name.
2Sa 12:29 Then David got all the people together and went to Rabbah and made war on it and took it.
2Sa 12:30 And he took the crown of Milcom from his head; the weight of it was a talent of gold, and in it were stones of great price; and it was put on David's head. And he took a great store of goods from the town.
2Sa 12:31 And he took the people out of the town and put them to work with wood-cutting instruments, and iron grain-crushers, and iron axes, and at brick-making: this he did to all the towns of the children of Ammon. Then David and all the people went back to Jerusalem.
2Sa 13:1 Now after this, it came about that Absalom, David's son, had a beautiful sister, whose name was Tamar; and David's son Amnon was in love with her.
2Sa 13:2 And he was so deeply in love that he became ill because of his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin, and so it seemed hard to Amnon to do anything to her.
2Sa 13:3 But Amnon had a friend whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimeah, David's brother: and Jonadab was a very wise man.
2Sa 13:4 And he said to him, O son of the king, why are you getting thinner day by day? will you not say what your trouble is? And Amnon said to him, I am in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister.
2Sa 13:5 Then Jonadab said to him, Go to your bed, and let it seem that you are ill: and when your father comes to see you, say to him, Let my sister Tamar come and give me bread, and get the food ready before my eyes, so that I may see it and take it from her hand.
2Sa 13:6 So Amnon went to bed and made himself seem ill: and when the king came to see him, Amnon said to the king, Please let my sister Tamar come and make me one or two cakes before my eyes, so that I may take food from her hand.
2Sa 13:7 Then David sent to the house for Tamar and said, Go now to your brother Amnon's house and get a meal for him.
2Sa 13:8 So Tamar went to her brother Amnon's house; and he was in bed. And she took paste and made cakes before his eyes, cooking them over the fire.
2Sa 13:9 And she took the cooking-pot, and put the cakes before him, but he would not take them. And Amnon said, Let everyone go away from me. So they all went out.
2Sa 13:10 Then Amnon said to Tamar, Take the food and come into my bedroom, so that I may take it from your hand. So Tamar took the cakes she had made and went with them into her brother Amnon's bedroom.
2Sa 13:11 And when she took them to give them to him, he put his arms round her and said, Come to bed, my sister.
2Sa 13:12 And answering him, she said, O my brother, do not put shame on me; it is not right for such a thing to be done in Israel: do not this evil thing.
2Sa 13:13 What will become of me in my shame? and as for you, you will be looked down on with disgust by all Israel. Now then, go and make your request to the king, for he will not keep me from you.
2Sa 13:14 But he would not give attention to what she said: but being stronger than she, he took her by force, and had connection with her.
2Sa 13:15 Then Amnon was full of hate for her, hating her with a hate greater than his earlier love for her. And he said to her, Get up and be gone.
2Sa 13:16 And she said to him, Not so, my brother, for this great wrong in sending me away is worse than what you did to me before. But he gave no attention to her.
2Sa 13:17 Then he gave a cry to the servant who was waiting on him and said, Put this woman out, and let the door be locked after her.
2Sa 13:18 Now she had on a long robe, such as in past times the king's virgin daughters were dressed in. Then the servant put her out, locking the door after her.
2Sa 13:19 And Tamar, in her grief, put dust on her head; and she put her hand on her head and went away crying loudly.
2Sa 13:20 And her brother Absalom said to her, Has your brother Amnon been with you? but now, let there be an end to your crying, my sister: he is your brother, do not take this thing to heart. So Tamar went on living uncomforted in her brother's house.
2Sa 13:21 But when King David had news of all these things he was very angry; but he did not make trouble for Amnon his son, for he was dear to David, being his oldest son.
2Sa 13:22 But Absalom said nothing to his brother Amnon, good or bad: for he was full of hate for him, because he had taken his sister Tamar by force.
2Sa 13:23 Now after two full years, Absalom had men cutting the wool of his sheep in Baal-hazor, which is near Ephraim: and he sent for all the king's sons to come to his feast.
2Sa 13:24 And Absalom came to the king and said, See now, your servant is cutting the wool of his sheep; will the king and his servants be pleased to come?
2Sa 13:25 And the king said to Absalom, No, my son, let us not all go, or the number will be over-great for you. And he made his request again, but he would not go, but he gave him his blessing.
2Sa 13:26 Then Absalom said, If you will not go, then let my brother Amnon go with us. And the king said to him, Is there any reason for him to go with you?
2Sa 13:27 But Absalom went on requesting him till he let Amnon and all the king's sons go with him. And Absalom made a great feast like a feast for a king.
2Sa 13:28 Now Absalom had given orders to his servants, saying, Now take note when Amnon's heart is glad with wine; and when I say to you, Make an attack on Amnon, then put him to death without fear: have I not given you orders? be strong and without fear.
2Sa 13:29 So Absalom's servants did to Amnon as Absalom had given them orders. Then all the king's sons got up, and every man got on his beast and went in flight.
2Sa 13:30 Now while they were on their way, news was given to David that Absalom had put to death all the sons of the king and that not one of them was still living.
2Sa 13:31 Then the king got up in great grief, stretching himself out on the earth: and all his servants were by his side, with their clothing parted.
2Sa 13:32 And Jonadab, the son of Shimeah, David's brother, said, Let not my lord have the idea that all the sons of the king have been put to death; for only Amnon is dead: this has been purposed by Absalom from the day when he took his sister Tamar by force.
2Sa 13:33 So now, let not my lord the king take this thing to heart, with the idea that all the king's sons are dead: for only Amnon is dead.
2Sa 13:34 But Absalom went in flight. And the young man who kept the watch, lifting up his eyes, saw that a great band of people was coming down the slope by the way of the Horons; and the watchman came and gave word to the king, saying, I saw men coming down by the way of the Horons, from the hillside.
2Sa 13:35 And Jonadab said to the king, See, the king's sons are coming; as your servant said, so it is.
2Sa 13:36 And while he was talking, the king's sons came, with weeping and loud cries: and the king and all his servants were weeping bitterly.
2Sa 13:37 So Absalom went in flight and came to Talmai, the son of Ammihud, the king of Geshur, where he was for three years.
2Sa 13:38 And the king was sorrowing for his son all the time.
2Sa 13:39 And the heart of David was wasted with desire for Absalom: for he was comforted for the death of Amnon.
2Sa 14:1 Now it was clear to Joab, the son of Zeruiah, that the king's heart was turning to Absalom.
2Sa 14:2 And Joab sent to Tekoa and got from there a wise woman, and said to her, Now make yourself seem like one given up to grief, and put on the clothing of sorrow, not using any sweet oil for your body, but looking like one who for a long time has been weeping for the dead:
2Sa 14:3 And come to the king and say these words to him. So Joab gave her words to say.
2Sa 14:4 And the woman of Tekoa came to the king, and falling on her face, gave him honour and said, Give me help, O king.
2Sa 14:5 And the king said to her, What is your trouble? And her answer was, Truly I am a widow, and my husband is dead.
2Sa 14:6 And I had two sons, and the two of them had a fight in the field, and there was no one to come between them, and one with a blow put the other to death.
2Sa 14:7 And now all the family is turned against me, your servant, saying, Give up him who was the cause of his brother's death, so that we may put him to death in payment for the life of his brother, whose life he took; and we will put an end to the one who will get the heritage: so they will put out my last burning coal, and my husband will have no name or offspring on the face of the earth.
2Sa 14:8 And the king said to the woman, Go to your house and I will give orders about this.
2Sa 14:9 And the woman of Tekoa said to the king, My lord, O king, may the sin be on me and on my family, and may the king and the seat of his kingdom be clear of sin!
2Sa 14:10 And the king said, If anyone says anything to you, make him come to me, and he will do you no more damage.
2Sa 14:11 Then she said, Let the king keep in mind the Lord your God, so that he who gives punishment for blood may be kept back from further destruction and that no one may send death on my son. And he said, By the living Lord, not a hair of your son's head will come to the earth.
2Sa 14:12 Then the woman said, Will the king let his servant say one word more? And he said, Say on.
2Sa 14:13 And the woman said, Why have you had such a thought about the people of God? (for in saying these very words the king has put himself in the wrong because he has not taken back the one whom he sent far away.)
2Sa 14:14 For death comes to us all, and we are like water drained out on the earth, which it is not possible to take up again; and God will not take away the life of the man whose purpose is that he who has been sent away may not be completely cut off from him.
2Sa 14:15 And now it is my fear of the people which has made me come to say these words to my lord the king: and your servant said, I will put my cause before the king, and it may be that he will give effect to my request.
2Sa 14:16 For the king will give ear, and take his servant out of the power of the man whose purpose is the destruction of me and my son together from the heritage of God.
2Sa 14:17 Then your servant said, May the word of my lord the king give me peace! for my lord the king is as the angel of God in his hearing of good and bad: and may the Lord your God be with you!
2Sa 14:18 Then the king said to the woman, Now give me an answer to the question I am going to put to you; keep nothing back. And the woman said, Let my lord the king say on.
2Sa 14:19 And the king said, Is not the hand of Joab with you in all this? And the woman in answer said, By the life of your soul, my lord the king, it is not possible for anyone to go to the right hand or to the left from anything said by the king: your servant Joab gave me orders, and put all these words in my mouth:
2Sa 14:20 This he did, hoping that the face of this business might be changed: and my lord is wise, with the wisdom of the angel of God, having knowledge of everything on earth.
2Sa 14:21 And the king said to Joab, See now, I will do this thing: go then and Come back with the young man Absalom.
2Sa 14:22 Then Joab, falling down on his face on the earth, gave the king honour and blessing; and Joab said, Today it is clear to your servant that I have grace in your eyes, my lord king, because the king has given effect to the request of his servant.
2Sa 14:23 So Joab got up and went to Geshur and came back again to Jerusalem with Absalom.
2Sa 14:24 And the king said, Let him go to his house, but let him not see my face. So Absalom went back to his house and did not see the face of the king.
2Sa 14:25 Now in all Israel there was no one so greatly to be praised for his beautiful form as Absalom: from his feet to the crown of his head he was completely beautiful.
2Sa 14:26 And when he had his hair cut, (which he did at the end of every year, because of the weight of his hair;) the weight of the hair was two hundred shekels by the king's weight.
2Sa 14:27 And Absalom was the father of three sons and of one daughter named Tamar, who was very beautiful.
2Sa 14:28 For two full years Absalom was living in Jerusalem without ever seeing the face of the king.
2Sa 14:29 Then Absalom sent for Joab to send him to the king, but he would not come to him: and he sent again a second time, but he would not come.
2Sa 14:30 So he said to his servants, See, Joab's field is near mine, and he has barley in it; go and put it on fire. And Absalom's servants put the field on fire.
2Sa 14:31 Then Joab came to Absalom in his house and said to him, Why have your servants put my field on fire?
2Sa 14:32 And Absalom's answer was, See, I sent to you saying, Come here, so that I may send you to the king to say, Why have I come back from Geshur? it would be better for me to be there still: let me now see the king's face, and if there is any sin in me, let him put me to death.
2Sa 14:33 So Joab went to the king and said these words to him: and when the king had sent for him, Absalom came, and went down on his face on the earth before the king: and the king gave him a kiss.
2Sa 15:1 Now after this, Absalom got for himself a carriage and horses, and fifty runners to go before him.
2Sa 15:2 And Absalom got up early, morning after morning, and took his place at the side of the public meeting-place: and when any man had a cause which had to come to the king to be judged, then Absalom, crying out to him, said, What is your town? and he would say, Your servant is of one of the tribes of Israel.
2Sa 15:3 And Absalom would say to him, See, your cause is true and right; but no man has been named by the king to give you a hearing.
2Sa 15:4 And more than this, Absalom said, If only I was made judge in the land, so that every man who has any cause or question might come to me, and I would give a right decision for him!
2Sa 15:5 And if any man came near to give him honour, he took him by the hand and gave him a kiss.
2Sa 15:6 And this Absalom did to everyone in Israel who came to the king to have his cause judged: so Absalom, like a thief, took away the hearts of the men of Israel.
2Sa 15:7 Now at the end of four years, Absalom said to the king, Let me go to Hebron and give effect to the oath which I made to the Lord:
2Sa 15:8 For while I was living in Geshur in Aram, your servant made an oath, saying, If ever the Lord lets me come back to Jerusalem, I will give him worship in Hebron.
2Sa 15:9 And the king said to him, Go in peace. So he got up and went to Hebron.
2Sa 15:10 But Absalom at the same time sent watchers through all the tribes of Israel to say, At the sound of the horn you are to say, Absalom is king in Hebron.
2Sa 15:11 And with Absalom, at his request, went two hundred men from Jerusalem, who were completely unconscious of his designs.
2Sa 15:12 And Absalom sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, one of David's helpers, from Giloh his town, while he was making the offerings. And the design against David became strong, for more and more people were joined to Absalom.
2Sa 15:13 And one came to David and said, The hearts of the men of Israel have gone after Absalom.
2Sa 15:14 And David said to all his servants who were with him at Jerusalem, Come, let us go in flight, or not one of us will be safe from Absalom: let us go without loss of time, or he will overtake us quickly and send evil on us, and put the town to the sword.
2Sa 15:15 And the king's servants said to the king, See, your servants are ready to do whatever the king says is to be done.
2Sa 15:16 So the king went out, taking with him all the people of his house, but for ten of his women, who were to take care of the house.
2Sa 15:17 And the king went out, and all his servants went after him, and made a stop at the Far House.
2Sa 15:18 And all the people went on by his side; and all the Cherethites and all the Pelethites and all the men of Ittai of Gath, six hundred men who came after him from Gath, went on before the king.
2Sa 15:19 Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite, Why are you coming with us? go back and keep with the king: for you are a man of another country, you are far from the land of your birth.
2Sa 15:20 It was only yesterday you came to us; why then am I to make you go up and down with us? for I have to go where I may; go back then, and take your countrymen with you, and may the Lord's mercy and good faith be with you.
2Sa 15:21 And Ittai the Gittite in answer said, By the living Lord, and by the life of my lord the king, in whatever place my lord the king may be, for life or death, there will your servant be.
2Sa 15:22 And David said to Ittai, Go forward, then. And Ittai the Gittite went on, with all his men and all the little ones he had with him.
2Sa 15:23 And there was great weeping in all the country when all the people went through; and the king himself was waiting in the Kidron valley and all the people went by him in the direction of the olive-tree on the edge of the waste land.
2Sa 15:24 Then Zadok came, and Abiathar, and with them the ark of God's agreement: and they put down the ark of God, till all the people from the town had gone by.
2Sa 15:25 And the king said to Zadok, Take the ark of God back into the town: if I have grace in the eyes of the Lord, he will let me come back and see it and his House again:
2Sa 15:26 But if he says, I have no delight in you: then, here I am; let him do to me what seems good to him.
2Sa 15:27 The king said further to Zadok the priest, See, you and Abiathar are to go back to the town in peace, with your two sons, Ahimaaz, your son, and Jonathan, the son of Abiathar.
2Sa 15:28 See, I will be waiting at the way across the river, in the waste land, till I get news from you.
2Sa 15:29 So Zadok and Abiathar took the ark of God back to Jerusalem, and did not go away from there.
2Sa 15:30 And David went up the slopes of the Mount of Olives weeping all the way, with his head covered and no shoes on his feet: and all the people who were with him, covering their heads, went up weeping.
2Sa 15:31 And word came to David, saying, Ahithophel is among those who are joined to Absalom. And David said, O Lord, let the wisdom of Ahithophel be made foolish.
2Sa 15:32 Now when David had come to the top of the slope, where they gave worship to God, Hushai the Archite came to him in great grief with dust on his head:
2Sa 15:33 David said to him, If you go on with me, you will be a trouble to me:
2Sa 15:34 But if you go back to the town and say to Absalom, I will be your servant, O king; as in the past I have been your father's servant, so now I will be yours: then you will be able to keep Ahithophel's designs against me from being put into effect.
2Sa 15:35 And have you not there Zadok and Abiathar the priests? so whatever comes to your ears from the king's house, give word of it to Zadok and Abiathar the priests.
2Sa 15:36 See, they have with them their two sons, Ahimaaz, Zadok's son, and Jonathan, the son of Abiathar; by them you may send word to me of everything which comes to your ears.
2Sa 15:37 So Hushai, David's friend, went into the town, and Absalom came to Jerusalem.
2Sa 16:1 And when David had gone a little way past the top of the slope, Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth, came to him, with two asses on which were two hundred cakes of bread and a hundred stems of dry grapes and a hundred summer fruits and a skin of wine.
2Sa 16:2 And David said to Ziba, What is your reason for this? And Ziba said, The asses are for the use of the king's people, and the bread and the fruit are food for the young men; and the wine is for drink for those who are overcome by weariness in the waste land.
2Sa 16:3 And the king said, And where is your master's son? And Ziba said, He is still at Jerusalem: for he said, Today Israel will give back to me the kingdom of my father.
2Sa 16:4 Then the king said to Ziba, Truly everything which was Mephibosheth's is yours. And Ziba said, I give honour to my lord, may I have grace in your eyes, my lord, O king!
2Sa 16:5 And when King David came to Bahurim, a man of Saul's family named Shimei, the son of Gera, came out from there, calling curses after him.
2Sa 16:6 And he sent stones at David and at all the king's servants and at all the people and at all the men of war by his side, on the right hand and on the left.
2Sa 16:7 And Shimei said, with curses, Be gone, be gone, you man of blood, you good-for-nothing:
2Sa 16:8 The Lord has sent punishment on you for all the blood of the family of Saul, whose kingdom you have taken; and the Lord has given the kingdom to Absalom, your son: now you yourself are taken in your evil, because you are a man of blood.
2Sa 16:9 Then Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, said to the king, Is this dead dog to go on cursing my lord the king? let me go over and take off his head.
2Sa 16:10 And the king said, What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? Let him go on cursing, for the Lord has said, Put a curse on David, and who then may say, Why have you done so?
2Sa 16:11 And David said to Abishai and to all his servants, You see how my son, the offspring of my body, has made designs against my life: how much more then may this Benjamite do so? Let him be, and let him go on cursing; for the Lord has given him orders.
2Sa 16:12 It may be that the Lord will take note of my wrongs, and give me back good in answer to his cursing of me today.
2Sa 16:13 So David and his men went on their way: and Shimei went by the hillside parallel with them, cursing and sending stones and dust at him.
2Sa 16:14 And the king and his people came tired to Jordan, and took their rest there.
2Sa 16:15 And Absalom and the men of Israel came to Jerusalem, and Ahithophel was with him.
2Sa 16:16 Then Hushai the Archite, David's friend, came to Absalom and said, Long life to the king, long life to the king!
2Sa 16:17 And Absalom said, Is this your love for your friend? why did you not go with your friend?
2Sa 16:18 And Hushai said to Absalom, Not so; I am for that man whom the Lord and this people and all the men of Israel have taken as king, and I will take my place with him.
2Sa 16:19 And more than this! where is my place as a servant? is it not before his son? as I have been your father's servant, so will I be yours.
2Sa 16:20 Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, Give your opinion now, what are we to do?
2Sa 16:21 And Ahithophel said to Absalom, Go in to your father's women who are here looking after his house; then all Israel will have the news that you are hated by your father, and the hands of your supporters will be strong.
2Sa 16:22 So they put up the tent for Absalom on the top of the house, and Absalom went in to his father's women before the eyes of all Israel.
2Sa 16:23 In those days the opinions of Ahithophel were valued as highly as if through him a man might get direction from God; so were they valued by David as much as by Absalom.
2Sa 17:1 Then Ahithophel said to Absalom, Let me take out twelve thousand men and this very night I will go after David:
2Sa 17:2 And I will come up with him when he is tired and feeble, and make him full of fear: and all the people with him will go in flight; and I will make an attack on the king only:
2Sa 17:3 And I will make all the people come back to you as a bride comes back to her husband: it is the life of only one man you are going after; so all the people will be at peace.
2Sa 17:4 And the saying was pleasing to Absalom and to the responsible men of Israel.
2Sa 17:5 Then Absalom said, Now send for Hushai the Archite, and let us give ear to what he has to say.
2Sa 17:6 And when Hushai came, Absalom said to him, This is what Ahithophel has said: are we to do as he says? if not, what is your suggestion?
2Sa 17:7 And Hushai said to Absalom, Ahithophel's idea is not a good one at this time.
2Sa 17:8 Hushai said further, You have knowledge of your father and his men, that they are men of war, and that their feelings are bitter, like those of a bear in the field whose young ones have been taken from her: and your father is a man of war, and will not take his night's rest with the people;
2Sa 17:9 But he will certainly have taken cover now in some hole or secret place; and if some of our people, at the first attack, are overcome, then any hearing of it will say, There is destruction among the people who are on Absalom's side.
2Sa 17:10 Then even the strongest, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, will become like water; for all Israel is conscious that your father is a man of war, and those who are with him are strong and without fear.
2Sa 17:11 But my suggestion is that all Israel, from Dan as far as Beer-sheba, comes together to you, a great army like the sands of the sea in number; and that you yourself go out among them.
2Sa 17:12 Then we will come on him in some place, wherever he may be, falling on him as the dew comes on the earth: and of him and all the men who are with him not one will get away with his life.
2Sa 17:13 And if he has gone into some town, then let all Israel take strong cords to that town, and we will have it pulled into the valley, till not one small stone is to be seen there.
2Sa 17:14 Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, Hushai's suggestion is better than that of Ahithophel. For it was the purpose of the Lord to make the wise designs of Ahithophel without effect, so that the Lord might send evil on Absalom.
2Sa 17:15 Then Hushai said to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, This is the suggestion made by Ahithophel to Absalom and the responsible men of Israel, and this is what I said to them.
2Sa 17:16 So now send the news quickly to David, and say, Do not take your night's rest by the way across the river to the waste land, but be certain to go over; or the king and all the people with him will come to destruction.
2Sa 17:17 Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz were waiting by En-rogel; and a servant-girl went from time to time and gave them news and they went with the news to King David, for it was not wise for them to let themselves be seen coming into the town.
2Sa 17:18 But a boy saw them, and gave word of it to Absalom: so the two of them went away quickly, and came to the house of a man in Bahurim who had a water-hole in his garden, and they went down into it.
2Sa 17:19 And a woman put a cover over the hole, and put crushed grain on top of it, and no one had any knowledge of it.
2Sa 17:20 And Absalom's servants came to the woman at the house and said, Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan? And the woman said to them, They have gone from here to the stream. And after searching for them, and seeing nothing of them, they went back to Jerusalem.
2Sa 17:21 Then after the servants had gone away, they came up out of the water-hole and went to give King David the news; and they said, Get up and go quickly over the water, for such and such are Ahithophel's designs against you.
2Sa 17:22 So David and all the people who were with him went up over Jordan: when dawn came, every one of them had gone over Jordan.
2Sa 17:23 Now when Ahithophel saw that his suggestion was not acted on, he got his ass ready, and went back to his house, to the town where he came from, and having put his house in order, he put himself to death by hanging; so he came to his end and was put in the resting-place of his father.
2Sa 17:24 And David came to Mahanaim. And Absalom, with all the men of Israel, went over Jordan.
2Sa 17:25 And Absalom put Amasa at the head of the army in place of Joab. Now Amasa was the son of a man named Ithra the Ishmaelite, who had been the lover of Abigail, the daughter of Jesse, sister of Zeruiah, Joab's mother.
2Sa 17:26 And Israel and Absalom put up their tents in the land of Gilead.
2Sa 17:27 Now when David had come to Mahanaim, Shobi, the son of Nahash of Rabbah, the Ammonite, and Machir, the son of Ammiel of Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite of Rogelim,
2Sa 17:28 Came with beds and basins and pots, and grain and meal, and all sorts of dry foods,
2Sa 17:29 And honey and butter and sheep and milk-cheeses, for David and his people: for they said, This people is in the waste land, needing food and drink and rest.
2Sa 18:1 And David had the people who were with him numbered, and he put over them captains of thousands and captains of hundreds.
2Sa 18:2 And David sent the people out, a third of them under the orders of Joab, and a third under the orders of Abishai, son of Zeruiah, Joab's brother, and a third under Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the people, And I myself will certainly go out with you.
2Sa 18:3 But the people said, It is better for you not to go out: for if we are put to flight, they will not give a thought to us, and if death overtakes half of us, it will be nothing to them: but you are of more value than ten thousand of us: so it is better for you to be ready to come to our help from this town.
2Sa 18:4 And the king said to them, I will do whatever seems best to you. So the king took his place by the door of the town, and all the people went out by hundreds and by thousands.
2Sa 18:5 And the king gave orders to Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Because of me, be gentle to the young man Absalom. And this order about Absalom was given in the hearing of all the people.
2Sa 18:6 So the people went out into the field against Israel, and the fight took place in the woods of Ephraim.
2Sa 18:7 And the people of Israel were overcome there by the servants of David, and there was a great destruction that day, and twenty thousand men were put to the sword.
2Sa 18:8 And the fighting went on over all the face of the country: and the woods were responsible for more deaths than the sword.
2Sa 18:9 And Absalom came across some of David's men. And Absalom was seated on his mule, and the mule went under the thick branches of a great tree, and his head became fixed in the tree and he was lifted up between earth and heaven, and the beast under him went on.
2Sa 18:10 And a certain man saw it and said to Joab, I saw Absalom hanging in a tree.
2Sa 18:11 And Joab said to the man who had given him the news, If you saw this, why did you not put your sword through him, and I would have given you ten bits of silver and a band for your robe?
2Sa 18:12 And the man said to Joab, Even if you gave me a thousand bits of silver, I would not put out my hand against the king's son: for in our hearing the king gave orders to you and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Take care that the young man Absalom is not touched.
2Sa 18:13 And if I had falsely put him to death (and nothing may be kept secret from the king), you would have had nothing to do with me.
2Sa 18:14 Then Joab said, I would have made it safe for you. And he took three spears in his hand, and put them through Absalom's heart, while he was still living, in the branches of the tree.
2Sa 18:15 And ten young men, servants of Joab, came round Absalom and put an end to him.
2Sa 18:16 And Joab had the horn sounded, and the people came back from going after Israel, for Joab kept them back.
2Sa 18:17 And they took Absalom's body and put it into a great hole in the wood, and put a great mass of stones over it: and every man of Israel went in flight to his tent.
2Sa 18:18 Now Absalom, before his death, had put up for himself a pillar in the king's valley, naming it after himself; for he said, I have no son to keep my name in memory: and to this day it is named Absalom's pillar.
2Sa 18:19 Then Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, said, Let me go and give the king news of how the Lord has done right in his cause against those who took up arms against him.
2Sa 18:20 And Joab said, You will take no news today; another day you may give him the news, but you will take no news today, because the king's son is dead.
2Sa 18:21 Then Joab said to the Cushite, Go and give the king word of what you have seen. And the Cushite, making a sign of respect to Joab, went off running.
2Sa 18:22 Then Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, said to Joab again, Whatever may come of it, let me go after the Cushite. And Joab said, Why have you a desire to go, my son, seeing that you will get no reward for your news?
2Sa 18:23 Whatever may come of it, he said, I will go. Then he said to him, Go. So Ahimaaz went running by the lowland road and overtook the Cushite.
2Sa 18:24 Now David was seated between the two town doors; and the watchman went up to the roof of the doorways, on the wall, and, lifting up his eyes, saw a man running by himself.
2Sa 18:25 And the watchman gave news of it to the king. And the king said, If he is coming by himself, then he has news. And the man was travelling quickly, and came near.
2Sa 18:26 Then the watchman saw another man running: and crying out in the direction of the door he said, Here is another man running by himself. And the king said, He, like the other, comes with news.
2Sa 18:27 And the watchman said, It seems to me that the running of the first is like the running of Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok. And the king said, He is a good man, and his news will be good.
2Sa 18:28 And Ahimaaz, crying out to the king, said, It is well. And falling down before the king, with his face to the earth, he said, May the Lord your God be praised, who has given up the men who took up arms against my lord the king!
2Sa 18:29 And the king said, Is it well with the young man Absalom? And Ahimaaz said in answer, When Joab sent me, your servant, I saw a great outcry going on, but I had no knowledge of what it was.
2Sa 18:30 And the king said, Get back and take your place here. So turning to one side, he took his place there.
2Sa 18:31 And then the Cushite came and said, I have news for my lord the king: today the Lord has done right in your cause against all those who took up arms against you.
2Sa 18:32 And the king said to the Cushite, Is the young man Absalom safe? And the Cushite said in answer, May all the king's haters and those who do evil against the king, be as that young man is!
2Sa 18:33 Then the king was much moved, and went up into the room over the door, weeping, and saying, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! if only my life might have been given for yours, O Absalom, my son, my son!
2Sa 19:1 And word was given to Joab that the king was weeping and sorrowing for Absalom.
2Sa 19:2 And the salvation of that day was changed to sorrow for all the people: for it was said to the people, The king is in bitter grief for his son.
2Sa 19:3 And the people made their way back to the town quietly and secretly, as those who are shamed go secretly when they go in flight from the war.
2Sa 19:4 But the king, covering his face, gave a great cry, O my son Absalom, O Absalom, my son, my son!
2Sa 19:5 And Joab came into the house to the king and said, Today you have put to shame the faces of all your servants who even now have kept you and your sons and your daughters and your wives and all your women safe from death;
2Sa 19:6 For your haters, it seems, are dear to you, and your friends are hated. For you have made it clear that captains and servants are nothing to you: and now I see that if Absalom was living and we had all been dead today, it would have been right in your eyes.
2Sa 19:7 So get up now, and go out and say some kind words to your servants; for, by the Lord, I give you my oath, that if you do not go out, not one of them will keep with you tonight; and that will be worse for you than all the evil which has overtaken you from your earliest years.
2Sa 19:8 Then the king got up and took his seat near the town-door. And word was given to all the people that the king was in the public place: and all the people came before the king. Now all the men of Israel had gone back in flight to their tents.
2Sa 19:9 And through all the tribes of Israel the people were having arguments, saying, The king made us safe from the hands of those who were against us and made us free from the hands of the Philistines; and now he has gone in flight from the land, because of Absalom.
2Sa 19:10 And Absalom, whom we made a ruler over us, is dead in the fight. So now why do you say nothing about getting the king back? And word of what all Israel was saying came to the king.
2Sa 19:11 And King David sent word to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, Say to the responsible men of Judah, Why are you the last to take steps to get the king back to his house?
2Sa 19:12 You are my brothers, my bone and my flesh; why are you the last to get the king back again?
2Sa 19:13 And say to Amasa, Are you not my bone and my flesh? May God's punishment be on me, if I do not make you chief of the army before me at all times in place of Joab!
2Sa 19:14 And the hearts of the men of Judah were moved like one man; so that they sent to the king, saying, Come back, with all your servants.
2Sa 19:15 So the king came back, and came as far as Jordan. And Judah came to Gilgal, meeting the king there, to take him back with them over Jordan.
2Sa 19:16 And Shimei, the son of Gera, the Benjamite from Bahurim, got up quickly and went down with the men of Judah for the purpose of meeting King David;
2Sa 19:17 And with him a thousand men of Benjamin, and Ziba, the servant of Saul, with his fifteen sons and twenty servants, came rushing to Jordan before the king,
2Sa 19:18 And kept going across the river to take the people of the king's house over, and to do whatever was desired by the king. And Shimei, the son of Gera, went down on his face in the dust before the king, when he was about to go over Jordan,
2Sa 19:19 And said to him, Let me not be judged as a sinner in your eyes, O my lord, and do not keep in mind the wrong I did on the day when my lord the king went out of Jerusalem, or take it to heart.
2Sa 19:20 For your servant is conscious of his sin: and so, as you see, I have come today, the first of all the sons of Joseph, for the purpose of meeting my lord the king.
2Sa 19:21 But Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, said, Is not death the right fate for Shimei, because he has been cursing the one marked by the holy oil?
2Sa 19:22 And David said, What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah, that you put yourselves against me today? is it right for any man in Israel to be put to death today? for I am certain today that I am king in Israel.
2Sa 19:23 So the king said to Shimei, You will not be put to death. And the king gave him his oath.
2Sa 19:24 And Mephibosheth, the son of Saul's son, came down for the purpose of meeting the king; his feet had not been cared for or his hair cut or his clothing washed from the day when the king went away till the day when he came back in peace.
2Sa 19:25 Now when he had come from Jerusalem to see the king, the king said to him, Why did you not come with me, Mephibosheth?
2Sa 19:26 And he said in answer, Because of the deceit of my servant, my lord king: for I, your servant, said to him, You are to make ready an ass and on it I will go with the king, for your servant has not the use of his feet.
2Sa 19:27 He has given you a false account of me: but my lord the king is like the angel of God: do then whatever seems good to you.
2Sa 19:28 For all my father's family were only dead men before my lord the king: and still you put your servant among those whose place is at the king's table. What right then have I to say anything more to the king?
2Sa 19:29 And the king said, Say nothing more about these things. I say, Let there be a division of the land between Ziba and you.
2Sa 19:30 And Mephibosheth said, Let him take it all, now that my lord the king has come back to his house in peace!
2Sa 19:31 And Barzillai the Gileadite came down from Rogelim; and he went on as far as Jordan with the king to take him across Jordan.
2Sa 19:32 Now Barzillai was a very old man, as much as eighty years old: and he had given the king everything he had need of, while he was at Mahanaim, for he was a very great man.
2Sa 19:33 And the king said to Barzillai, Come over with me, and I will take care of you in Jerusalem.
2Sa 19:34 And Barzillai said to the king, How much of my life is still before me, for me to go up to Jerusalem with the king?
2Sa 19:35 I am now eighty years old: good and bad are the same to me; have meat and drink any taste for me now? am I able to take pleasure in the voices of men or women in song? why then am I to be a trouble to my lord the king?
2Sa 19:36 Your servant's desire was only to take the king over Jordan; why is the king to give me such a reward?
2Sa 19:37 Let your servant now go back again, so that when death comes to me, it may be in my town and by the resting-place of my father and mother. But here is your servant Chimham: let him go with my lord the king, and do for him what seems good to you.
2Sa 19:38 And the king said in answer, Let Chimham go over with me, and I will do for him whatever seems good to you: and whatever your desire is, I will do it for you.
2Sa 19:39 Then all the people went over Jordan, and the king went over: and the king gave Barzillai a kiss, with his blessing; and he went back to his place.
2Sa 19:40 So the king went over to Gilgal, and Chimham went with him: and all the people of Judah, as well as half the people of Israel, took