2 Samuel 15

⁵At that time Adonijah, David’s son by Haggith, began to exalt himself, saying, “I will be king!” And he acquired chariots and horsemen and fifty men to run ahead of him.

¹¹This is what the Lord says: ‘I will raise up adversity against you from your own house. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to another, and he will lie with them in broad daylight.

⁷Some trust in chariots and others in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.

¹¹He said, “This will be the manner of the king who will reign over you: He will take your sons and appoint them to serve his own chariots and horses, and to run in front of his chariots.

²When pride comes, disgrace follows, but with humility comes wisdom.

²⁶Solomon accumulated 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses, which he stationed in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem.

²⁷The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as abundant as sycamore in the foothills.

¹Meanwhile, Boaz went to the gate and sat down there. Soon the kinsman-redeemer of whom he had spoken came along, and Boaz said, “Come over here, my friend, and sit down.” So he went over and sat down.

¹When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people conspired against Jesus to put Him to death.

¹⁶“Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me to judge between one man and another, and I make known to them the statutes and laws of God.”

⁸So the king got up and sat in the gate, and all the people were told: “Behold, the king is sitting in the gate.” So they all came before the king. Meanwhile, the Israelites had fled, each man to his home.

¹⁴When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he asked, “What is this that you are doing for the people? Why do you sit alone as judge, with all the people standing around you from morning till evening?”

²⁶And they judged the people at all times; they would bring the difficult cases to Moses, but any minor issue they would judge themselves.

¹⁰Such punishment is specially reserved for those who indulge the corrupt desires of the flesh and despise authority. Bold and self-willed, they are unafraid to slander glorious beings.

²They lie to one another; they speak with flattering lips and a double heart.

¹¹There is a generation of those who curse their fathers and do not bless their mothers.

¹⁷Treat everyone with high regard: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king.

¹⁷As for the eye that mocks a father and scorns obedience to a mother, may the ravens of the valley pluck it out and young vultures devour it.

²The good man obtains favor from the Lord, but the Lord condemns a man who devises evil.

²⁹If only this people were under my authority, I would remove Abimelech; I would say to him, ‘Muster your army and come out!’”

⁸“When you are invited to a wedding banquet, do not sit in the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited.

⁹Then the host who invited both of you will come and tell you, ‘Give this man your seat.’ And in humiliation, you will have to take the last place.

¹⁹They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves to depravity. For a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him.

²Let another praise you, and not your own mouth—a stranger, and not your own lips.

⁶Do not exalt yourself in the presence of the king, and do not stand in the place of great men;

¹Now Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went to his mother’s brothers at Shechem and said to them and to all the clan of his mother,

²“Please ask all the leaders of Shechem, ‘Is it better for you that seventy men, all the sons of Jerubbaal, rule over you, or just one man?’ Remember that I am your own flesh and blood.”

³³So Joab went and told the king, and David summoned Absalom, who came to him and bowed facedown before him. Then the king kissed Absalom.

²⁵When he speaks graciously, do not believe him, for seven abominations fill his heart.

²¹His speech is smooth as butter, but war is in his heart. His words are softer than oil, yet they are swords unsheathed.

⁹He lies in wait like a lion in a thicket; he lurks to seize the oppressed; he catches the lowly in his net.

¹⁰They are crushed and beaten down; the helpless fall prey to his strength.

¹⁸For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.

³In their greed, these false teachers will exploit you with deceptive words. The longstanding verdict against them remains in force, and their destruction does not sleep.

⁹With his mouth the ungodly man destroys his neighbor, but through knowledge the righteous are rescued.

⁴You fast with contention and strife to strike viciously with your fist. You cannot fast as you do today and have your voice be heard on high.

²⁴And he went to the king and said, “Your servant has just hired shearers. Will the king and his servants please come with me?”

²⁵“No, my son,” the king replied, “we should not all go, or we would be a burden to you.” Although Absalom urged him, he was not willing to go, but gave him his blessing.

¹Now the Lord said to Samuel, “How long are you going to mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem, for I have selected from his sons a king for Myself.”

²“How can I go?” Samuel asked. “Saul will hear of it and kill me!” The Lord answered, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’

³⁸After Absalom had fled and gone to Geshur, he stayed there three years.

²⁷The sacrifice of the wicked is detestable—how much more so when brought with ill intent!

¹³Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let in those who wish to enter.

³⁷Now Absalom fled and went to Talmai son of Ammihud, the king of Geshur. But David mourned for his son every day.

³⁸After Absalom had fled and gone to Geshur, he stayed there three years.

²⁰Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and watch over me on this journey, and if He will provide me with food to eat and clothes to wear,

²¹so that I may return safely to my father’s house, then the Lord will be my God.

³“They bend their tongues like bows; lies prevail over truth in the land. For they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not take Me into account,” declares the Lord.

⁴“Let everyone guard against his neighbor; do not trust any brother, for every brother deals craftily, and every friend spreads slander.

¹¹And she made a vow, saying, “O Lord of Hosts, if only You will look upon the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, not forgetting Your maidservant but giving her a son, then I will dedicate him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall ever touch his head.”

²³So Joab got up, went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem.

²⁰For you have deceived yourselves by sending me to the Lord your God, saying, ‘Pray to the Lord our God on our behalf, and as for all that the Lord our God says, tell it to us and we will do it.’

³⁰Then Absalom said to his servants, “Look, Joab’s field is next to mine, and he has barley there. Go and set it on fire!” And Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.

⁵In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.

²And sons were born to David in Hebron: His firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam of Jezreel;

³his second was Chileab, by Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel; his third was Absalom, the son of Maacah daughter of King Talmai of Geshur;

³⁸All these men of war, arrayed for battle, came to Hebron fully determined to make David king over all Israel. And all the rest of the Israelites were of one mind to make David king.

¹⁰But Absalom, the man we anointed over us, has died in battle. So why do you say nothing about restoring the king?”

⁵the triumph of the wicked has been brief and the joy of the godless momentary?

⁶Though his arrogance reaches the heavens, and his head touches the clouds,

¹³As soon as you enter the city, you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. The people will not eat until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; after that, the guests will eat. Go up at once; you will find him.”

¹⁵Was that day the first time I inquired of God for him? Far be it from me! Let not the king accuse your servant or any of my father’s household, for your servant knew nothing of this whole affair—not in part or in whole.”

¹⁸For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.

¹⁹Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice over you. But I want you to be wise about what is good and innocent about what is evil.

⁵Didn’t Abraham tell me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ I have done this in the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands.”

¹⁶Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.

³Then invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you are to do. You are to anoint for Me the one I indicate.”

⁴So Samuel did what the Lord had said and went to Bethlehem. When the elders of the town met him, they trembled and asked, “Do you come in peace?”

³¹Now someone told David: “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.” So David pleaded, “O Lord, please turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness!”

⁹Even my close friend whom I trusted, the one who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.

⁵¹Goshen, Holon, and Giloh—eleven cities, along with their villages.

¹⁶They profess to know God, but by their actions they deny Him. They are detestable, disobedient, and unfit for any good deed.

¹²For it is not an enemy who insults me; that I could endure. It is not a foe who rises against me; from him I could hide.

¹³But it is you, a man like myself, my companion and close friend.

²³When Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and set out for his house in his hometown. He put his affairs in order and hanged himself. So he died and was buried in his father’s tomb.

³And when his mother’s brothers spoke all these words about him in the presence of all the leaders of Shechem, their hearts were inclined to follow Abimelech, for they said, “He is our brother.”

⁶Absalom did this to all the Israelites who came to the king for justice. In this way he stole the hearts of the men of Israel.

²²“What then should I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” Pilate asked. They all answered, “Crucify Him!”

⁹Lowborn men are but a vapor; the exalted are but a lie. Weighed on the scale, they go up; together they are but a vapor.

³⁶All the people took note and were pleased. In fact, everything the king did pleased them.

⁹The crowds that went ahead of Him and those that followed were shouting: “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Hosanna in the highest!”

⁹And all the people throughout the tribes of Israel were arguing, “The king rescued us from the hand of our enemies and delivered us from the hand of the Philistines, but now he has fled the land because of Absalom.

¹A Psalm of David, when he fled from his son Absalom. O Lord, how my foes have increased! How many rise up against me!

²Many say of me, “God will not deliver him.” Selah

¹⁸In Your good pleasure, cause Zion to prosper; build up the walls of Jerusalem.

¹¹This is what the Lord says: ‘I will raise up adversity against you from your own house. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to another, and he will lie with them in broad daylight.

¹²From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subject to violence, and the violent lay claim to it.

¹⁶So the three mighty men broke through the Philistine camp, drew water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem, and brought it back to David. But he refused to drink it; instead, he poured it out to the Lord,

¹⁷saying, “Far be it from me, O Lord, to do this! Is this not the blood of the men who risked their lives?” So he refused to drink it. Such were the exploits of the three mighty men.

²⁴A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who stays closer than a brother.

²⁸You are the ones who have stood by Me in My trials.

²⁹And I bestow on you a kingdom, just as My Father has bestowed one on Me,

⁶⁶From that time on many of His disciples turned back and no longer walked with Him.

⁶⁷So Jesus asked the Twelve, “Do you want to leave too?”

¹⁴You are My friends if you do what I command you.

²¹Ahithophel replied, “Sleep with your father’s concubines, whom he has left to take care of the palace. When all Israel hears that you have become a stench to your father, then the hands of all who are with you will be strengthened.”

²²So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and he slept with his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.

³When David returned to his palace in Jerusalem, he took the ten concubines he had left to take care of the palace, and he placed them in a house under guard. He provided for them, but he no longer slept with them. They were confined until the day of their death, living as widows.

¹A Psalm of David, when he fled from his son Absalom. O Lord, how my foes have increased! How many rise up against me!

²Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

²⁷Now let this gift your servant has brought to my lord be given to the young men who follow you.

¹¹This is what the Lord says: ‘I will raise up adversity against you from your own house. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to another, and he will lie with them in broad daylight.

¹A Psalm of David, when he fled from his son Absalom. O Lord, how my foes have increased! How many rise up against me!

²Many say of me, “God will not deliver him.” Selah

¹²You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but You brought us into abundance.

⁷I have seen slaves on horseback, while princes go on foot like slaves.

¹⁸Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were priestly leaders.

²³Now Joab was over the whole army of Israel; Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites;

¹⁴We raided the Negev of the Cherethites, the territory of Judah, and the Negev of Caleb, and we burned down Ziklag.”

⁷So Joab’s men, along with the Cherethites, the Pelethites, and all the mighty men, marched out of Jerusalem in pursuit of Sheba son of Bichri.

³⁸Then Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, along with the Cherethites and Pelethites, went down and set Solomon on King David’s mule, and they escorted him to Gihon.

¹⁷Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief officials at the king’s side.

²He sent out the troops, a third under Joab, a third under Joab’s brother Abishai son of Zeruiah, and a third under Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the troops, “I will surely march out with you as well.”

¹¹But Naomi replied, “Return home, my daughters. Why would you go with me? Are there still sons in my womb to become your husbands?

¹²Return home, my daughters. Go on, for I am too old to have another husband. Even if I thought there was hope for me to have a husband tonight and to bear sons,

¹³Then David and his men, about six hundred strong, set out and departed from Keilah, moving from place to place. When Saul was told that David had escaped from Keilah, he declined to go forth.

⁶Now may the Lord show you loving devotion and faithfulness, and I will also show you the same favor because you have done this.

³⁷They were stoned, they were sawed in two, they were put to death by the sword. They went around in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, oppressed, and mistreated.

³⁸The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and hid in caves and holes in the ground.

¹⁷For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

³He reaches down from heaven and saves me; He rebukes those who trample me. Selah God sends forth His loving devotion and His truth.

¹⁵They scavenge for food, and growl if they are not satisfied.

¹⁶But Ruth replied: “Do not urge me to leave you or to turn from following you. For wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.

¹⁷Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord punish me, and ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.”

¹⁷A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

³⁰And the mother of the boy said, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So he got up and followed her.

²⁴A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who stays closer than a brother.

²³When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced and encouraged them all to abide in the Lord with all their hearts.

¹³Then Paul answered, “Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”

²“Why do you have these?” asked the king. Ziba replied, “The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride, the bread and summer fruit are for the young men to eat, and the wine is to refresh those who become exhausted in the wilderness.”

³⁷On the day you go out and cross the Kidron Valley, know for sure that you will die; your blood will be on your own head.”

¹After Jesus had spoken these words, He went out with His disciples across the Kidron Valley, where they entered a garden.

³This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him.’”

¹⁶So the priests went inside the house of the Lord to cleanse it, and they brought out to the courtyard all the unclean things that they found in the temple of the Lord. Then the Levites took these things and carried them out to the Kidron Valley.

¹³He also removed his grandmother Maacah from her position as queen mother because she had made a detestable Asherah pole. Asa chopped down the pole and burned it in the Kidron Valley.

¹⁷Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Seraiah was the scribe;

¹⁵When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all their equipment, as soon as the camp is ready to move, the Kohathites shall come and do the carrying. But they must not touch the holy objects, or they will die. These are the transportation duties of the Kohathites regarding the Tent of Meeting.

²⁵Sheva was the scribe; Zadok and Abiathar were priests;

²⁰But one of the sons of Ahimelech son of Ahitub escaped. His name was Abiathar, and he fled to David.

³and commanded the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the Levitical priests, you are to set out from your positions and follow it.

²Then David said, “No one but the Levites may carry the ark of God, because the Lord has chosen them to carry the ark of the Lord and to minister before Him forever.”

³⁰So you are to prophesy all these words against them and say to them: ‘The Lord will roar from on high; He will raise His voice from His holy habitation. He will roar loudly over His pasture; like those who tread the grapes, He will call out with a shout against all the inhabitants of the earth.

⁸O Lord, I love the house where You dwell, the place where Your glory resides.

¹⁰For better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

³Send out Your light and Your truth; let them lead me. Let them bring me to Your holy mountain and to the place where You dwell.

⁴Then I will go to the altar of God, to God, my greatest joy. I will praise You with the harp, O God, my God.

¹³With loving devotion You will lead the people You have redeemed; with Your strength You will guide them to Your holy dwelling.

²he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.”

¹⁸So Samuel told him everything and did not hide a thing from him. “He is the Lord,” replied Eli. “Let Him do what is good in His eyes.”

²⁰He brought me out into the open; He rescued me because He delighted in me.

⁹Blessed be the Lord your God, who has delighted in you to set you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord’s eternal love for Israel, He has made you king to carry out justice and righteousness.”

⁸If the Lord delights in us, He will bring us into this land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and He will give it to us.

⁴No longer will you be called Forsaken, nor your land named Desolate; but you will be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; for the Lord will take delight in you, and your land will be His bride.

⁸Blessed be the Lord your God, who has delighted in you to set you on His throne to be king for the Lord your God. Because your God loved Israel enough to establish them forever, He has made you king over them to carry out justice and righteousness.”

¹⁷Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying at En-rogel, where a servant girl would come and pass along information to them. They in turn would go and inform King David, for they dared not be seen entering the city.

⁹(Formerly in Israel, a man on his way to inquire of God would say, “Come, let us go to the seer.” For the prophet of today was formerly called the seer.)

³⁶Indeed, their two sons, Ahimaaz son of Zadok and Jonathan son of Abiathar, are there with them. Send them to me with everything you hear.”

¹¹When David got up in the morning, the word of the Lord had come to Gad the prophet, David’s seer:

³⁴But you can thwart the counsel of Ahithophel for me if you return to the city and say to Absalom: ‘I will be your servant, my king; in the past I was your father’s servant, but now I will be your servant.’

⁵All these sons of Heman the king’s seer were given him through the promises of God to exalt him, for God had given Heman fourteen sons and three daughters.

¹⁶Now send quickly and tell David, ‘Do not spend the night at the fords of the wilderness, but be sure to cross over. Otherwise the king and all the people with him will be swallowed up.’”

²³Everyone in the countryside was weeping loudly as all the people passed by. And as the king crossed the Kidron Valley, all the people also passed toward the way of the wilderness.

²“Why do you have these?” asked the king. Ziba replied, “The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride, the bread and summer fruit are for the young men to eat, and the wine is to refresh those who become exhausted in the wilderness.”

¹Furthermore, Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Let me choose twelve thousand men and set out tonight in pursuit of David.

¹²Then Mordecai returned to the king’s gate. But Haman rushed home, with his head covered in grief.

⁴But the king covered his face and cried out at the top of his voice, “O my son Absalom! O Absalom, my son, my son!”

⁴¹As Jesus approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it

²³Your turbans will remain on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep, but you will waste away because of your sins, and you will groan among yourselves.

³⁷And as He approached the descent from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of disciples began to praise God joyfully in a loud voice for all the miracles they had seen:

³The nobles send their servants for water; they go to the cisterns, but find no water; their jars return empty. They are ashamed and humiliated; they cover their heads.

⁴The ground is cracked because no rain has fallen on the land. The farmers are ashamed; they cover their heads.

¹⁴Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than that of Ahithophel.” For the Lord had purposed to thwart the good counsel of Ahithophel in order to bring disaster on Absalom.

²³When Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and set out for his house in his hometown. He put his affairs in order and hanged himself. So he died and was buried in his father’s tomb.

⁹Even my close friend whom I trusted, the one who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.

¹⁵Such wisdom does not come from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic.

¹²He thwarts the schemes of the crafty, so that their hands find no success.

²⁰Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

²It went on from Bethel (that is, Luz) and proceeded to the border of the Archites in Ataroth.

²On the third day a man with torn clothes and dust on his head arrived from Saul’s camp. When he came to David, he fell to the ground to pay him homage.

³But You, O Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head.

⁴To the Lord I cry aloud, and He answers me from His holy mountain. Selah

¹⁶And David’s friend Hushai the Archite went to Absalom and said to him, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”

¹⁷“Is this the loyalty you show your friend?” Absalom replied. “Why did you not go with your friend?”

²⁹As He approached Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, He sent out two of His disciples,

⁷At that time on a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites.

³⁵I am now eighty years old. Can I discern what is good and what is not? Can your servant taste what he eats or drinks? Can I still hear the voice of singing men and women? Why should your servant be an added burden to my lord the king?

¹⁶And David’s friend Hushai the Archite went to Absalom and said to him, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”

¹⁷“Is this the loyalty you show your friend?” Absalom replied. “Why did you not go with your friend?”

²And you shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, except that you may carry off their plunder and livestock for yourselves. Set up an ambush behind the city.”

²⁰In fact, you arrived only yesterday; should I make you wander around with us today while I do not know where I am going? Go back and take your brothers with you. May the Lord show you loving devotion and faithfulness.”

⁵Then Absalom said, “Summon Hushai the Archite as well, and let us hear what he too has to say.”

⁶So Hushai came to Absalom, who told him, “Ahithophel has spoken this proposal. Should we carry it out? If not, what do you say?”

¹⁶Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.

¹⁵So Hushai told Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, “This is what Ahithophel has advised Absalom and the elders of Israel, and this is what I have advised.

¹⁶Now send quickly and tell David, ‘Do not spend the night at the fords of the wilderness, but be sure to cross over. Otherwise the king and all the people with him will be swallowed up.’”

¹⁷Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying at En-rogel, where a servant girl would come and pass along information to them. They in turn would go and inform King David, for they dared not be seen entering the city.

²⁷The king also said to Zadok the priest, “Are you not a seer? Return to the city in peace—you with your son Ahimaaz, and Abiathar with his son Jonathan.

¹⁹Then Ahimaaz son of Zadok said, “Please let me run and tell the king the good news that the Lord has avenged him of his enemies.”

²⁰But Joab replied, “You are not the man to take good news today. You may do it another day, but you must not do so today, because the king’s son is dead.”

³³Ahithophel was the king’s counselor. Hushai the Archite was the king’s friend.

¹⁵Then Absalom and all the men of Israel came to Jerusalem, and Ahithophel was with him.

¹⁶And David’s friend Hushai the Archite went to Absalom and said to him, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”