2 Samuel 15

1 And it comes to pass afterward that Absalom prepares a chariot and horses for himself, and fifty men are running before him;

Now after this, Absalom got for himself a carriage and horses, and fifty runners to go before him.

2 and Absalom has risen early, and stood by the side of the way of the gate, and it comes to pass, every man who has a pleading to come to the king for judgment, that Absalom calls to him and says, “Of what city [are] you?” And he says, “Your servant [is] of one of the tribes of Israel.”

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.

3 And Absalom says to him, “See, your matters [are] good and straightforward—and there is none listening to you from the king.”

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.

4 And Absalom says, “Who makes me judge in the land, that every man who has a plea and judgment comes to me? Then I have declared him righteous.”

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!

5 And it has come to pass, in the drawing near of anyone to bow himself to him, that he has put forth his hand, and laid hold on him, and given a kiss to him;

And if any man came near to give him honour, he took him by the hand and gave him a kiss.

6 and Absalom does according to this thing to all Israel who come in for judgment to the king, and Absalom steals the heart of the men of Israel.

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.

7 And it comes to pass, at the end of forty years, that Absalom says to the king, “Please let me go, and I complete my vow that I vowed to YHWH in Hebron,

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:

8 for your servant has vowed a vow in my dwelling in Geshur, in Aram, saying, If YHWH certainly brings me back to Jerusalem, then I have served YHWH.”

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.

9 And the king says to him, “Go in peace”; and he rises and goes to Hebron,

And the king said to him, Go in peace. So he got up and went to Hebron.

10 and Absalom sends spies through all the tribes of Israel, saying, “At your hearing the voice of the horn, then you have said, Absalom has reigned in Hebron.”

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.

11 And two hundred men have gone with Absalom out of Jerusalem, invited ones, and they are going in their simplicity, and have not known anything;

And with Absalom, at his request, went two hundred men from Jerusalem, who were completely unconscious of his designs.

12 and Absalom sends Ahithophel the Gilonite, a counselor of David, out of his city, out of Gilo, in his sacrificing sacrifices; and the conspiracy is strong, and the people are going and increasing with Absalom.

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.

13 And he who is declaring tidings comes to David, saying, “The heart of the men of Israel has been after Absalom.”

And one came to David and said, The hearts of the men of Israel have gone after Absalom.

14 And David says to all his servants who [are] with him in Jerusalem, “Rise, and we flee, for we have no escape from the face of Absalom; hurry to go, lest he hurries, and has overtaken us, and forced evil on us, and struck the city by the mouth of the sword.”

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.

15 And the servants of the king say to the king, “According to all that my lord the king chooses—behold, your servants do.”

And the king's servants said to the king, See, your servants are ready to do whatever the king says is to be done.

16 And the king goes out, and all his household at his feet, and the king leaves ten women—concubines—to keep the house.

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.

17 And the king goes out, and all the people at his feet, and they stand still at the farthest off house.

And the king went out, and all his servants went after him, and made a stop at the Far House.

18 And all his servants are passing on at his side, and all the Cherethite, and all the Pelethite, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who came at his feet from Gath, are passing on at the front of the king.

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.

19 And the king says to Ittai the Gittite, “Why do you go—you also—with us? Return and abide with the king, for you [are] a stranger, and also an exile, you—to your place.

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.

20 Your coming in [was only] yesterday, and should I move you to go with us today, since I am going over [to] where [I do not know where] I am going? Return, and take your brothers back. Kindness and truth [be] with you.”

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.

21 And Ittai answers the king and says, “YHWH lives, and my lord the king lives, surely in the place where my lord the king is—if for death, if for life, surely your servant is there.”

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.

22 And David says to Ittai, “Go and pass over”; and Ittai the Gittite passes over, and all his men, and all the infants who [are] with him.

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.

23 And all the land is weeping [with] a great voice, and all the people are passing over; and the king is passing over through the Brook of Kidron, and all the people are passing over on the front of the way of the wilderness;

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.

24 and behold, also Zadok, and all the Levites with him, are carrying the Ark of the Covenant of God, and they make the Ark of God firm, and Abiathar goes up, until the completion of all the people to pass over out of the city.

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.

25 And the king says to Zadok, “Take back the Ark of God to the city; if I find grace in the eyes of YHWH, then He has brought me back, and shown me it and His habitation;

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:

26 and if thus He says, I have not delighted in you; here I [am], He does to me as [is] good in His eyes.”

But if he says, I have no delight in you: then, here I am; let him do to me what seems good to him.

27 And the king says to Zadok the priest, “Are you a seer? Return to the city in peace, and your son Ahimaaz, and Jonathan son of Abiathar, your two sons with you;

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.

28 see, I am lingering in the plains of the wilderness until the coming in of a word from you to declare to me.”

See, I will be waiting at the way across the river, in the waste land, till I get news from you.

29 And Zadok takes back—and Abiathar—the Ark of God to Jerusalem, and they abide there.

So Zadok and Abiathar took the ark of God back to Jerusalem, and did not go away from there.

30 And David is going up in the ascent of the [Mount of] Olives, going up and weeping, and he has the head covered, and he is going barefooted, and all the people who [are] with him have each covered his head, and have gone up, going up and weeping;

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.

31 and David declared, saying, “Ahithophel [is] among the conspirators with Absalom”; and David says, “Please make the counsel of Ahithophel foolish, O YHWH.”

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.

32 And it comes to pass, David has come to the top, where he bows himself to God, and behold, Hushai the Archite [is there] to meet him, [with] his coat torn, and earth on his head;

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:

33 and David says to him, “If you have passed on with me then you have been for a burden on me,

David said to him, If you go on with me, you will be a trouble to me:

34 and if you return to the city and have said to Absalom, I am your servant, O king; I [am] also servant of your father until now, and presently, I [am] also your servant; then you have made void the counsel of Ahithophel for me;

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.

35 and are Zadok and Abiathar the priests not with you there? And it has been, the whole of the matter that you hear from the house of the king you declare to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests.

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.

36 Behold, their two sons [are] there with them: Ahimaaz to Zadok, and Jonathan to Abiathar, and you have sent to me by their hand anything that you hear.”

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.

37 And Hushai, David’s friend, comes to the city, and Absalom comes to Jerusalem.

So Hushai, David's friend, went into the town, and Absalom came to Jerusalem.