2 Samuel 16

¹⁸Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five butchered sheep, five seahs of roasted grain, a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs. She loaded them on donkeys

³²When David came to the summit, where he used to worship God, Hushai the Archite was there to meet him with his robe torn and dust on his head.

³Then you will go on from there until you come to the Oak of Tabor. Three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there, one carrying three young goats, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine.

¹⁰As for me, I will stay in Mizpah to represent you before the Chaldeans who come to us. As for you, gather wine grapes, summer fruit, and oil, place them in your storage jars, and live in the cities you have taken.”

⁴⁰And their neighbors from as far away as Issachar, Zebulun, and Naphtali came bringing food on donkeys, camels, mules, and oxen—abundant supplies of flour, fig cakes and raisin cakes, wine and oil, oxen and sheep. Indeed, there was joy in Israel.

¹This is what the Lord God showed me: I saw a basket of summer fruit.

²⁹honey, curds, sheep, and cheese from the herd for David and his people to eat. For they said, “The people have become hungry, exhausted, and thirsty in the wilderness.”

⁴He had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys. And they had thirty towns in the land of Gilead, which to this day are called Havvoth-jair.

¹⁰You who ride white donkeys, who sit on saddle blankets, and you who travel the road, ponder

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.

¹⁸When your people ask you, ‘Won’t you explain to us what you mean by these?’

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

⁹Then the king summoned Saul’s servant Ziba and said to him, “I have given to your master’s grandson all that belonged to Saul and to all his house.

¹⁰You and your sons and servants are to work the ground for him and bring in the harvest, so that your master’s grandson may have food to eat. But Mephibosheth, your master’s grandson, is always to eat at my table.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

³who has no slander on his tongue, who does no harm to his neighbor, who casts no scorn on his friend,

¹⁸You have removed my beloved and my friend; darkness is my closest companion.

²⁴Then Mephibosheth, Saul’s grandson, went down to meet the king. He had not cared for his feet or trimmed his mustache or washed his clothes from the day the king had left until the day he returned safely.

²⁵And he came from Jerusalem to meet the king, who asked him, “Mephibosheth, why did you not go with me?”

¹⁹Such is the fate of all who are greedy, whose unjust gain takes the lives of its possessors.

²⁸A lying witness will perish, but the man who listens to truth will speak forever.

¹³He who answers a matter before he hears it—this is folly and disgrace to him.

¹⁷The first to state his case seems right until another comes and cross-examines him.

⁸Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the righteous.

²Even zeal is no good without knowledge, and he who hurries his footsteps misses the mark.

¹⁵A lone witness is not sufficient to establish any wrongdoing or sin against a man, regardless of what offense he may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

²²Joab fell facedown in homage and blessed the king. “Today,” said Joab, “your servant knows that he has found favor in your eyes, my lord the king, because the king has granted his request.”

¹⁶Her husband followed her, weeping all the way to Bahurim. Then Abner said to him, “Go back.” So he returned home.

⁴³“Am I a dog,” he said to David, “that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

⁸Keep an eye on Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite from Bahurim who is with you. He called down bitter curses against me on the day I went to Mahanaim, but when he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the Lord: ‘I will never put you to the sword.’

⁹Now therefore, do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man. You know what you ought to do to him to bring his gray head down to Sheol in blood.”

²⁸You must not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.

³⁶Then the king summoned Shimei and said to him, “Build a house for yourself in Jerusalem and live there, but do not go anywhere else.

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.”

¹⁸But a young man did see them and told Absalom. So the two left quickly and came to the house of a man in Bahurim. He had a well in his courtyard, and they climbed down into it.

¹³that wicked men have arisen from among you and have led the people of their city astray, saying, “Let us go and serve other gods” (which you have not known),

¹⁰But seat two scoundrels opposite him and have them testify, ‘You have cursed both God and the king!’ Then take him out and stone him to death.”

¹²Now the sons of Eli were wicked men; they had no regard for the Lord

¹⁷Now consider carefully what you must do, because disaster looms over our master and all his household. For he is such a scoundrel that nobody can speak to him!”

³⁷So on that day all the troops and all Israel were convinced that the king had no part in the murder of Abner son of Ner.

¹⁵In the letter he wrote: “Put Uriah at the front of the fiercest battle; then withdraw from him, so that he may be struck down and killed.”

¹⁶So as Joab besieged the city, he assigned Uriah to a place where he knew the strongest enemy soldiers were.

¹⁶For David had said to the Amalekite, “Your blood be on your own head because your own mouth has testified against you, saying, ‘I killed the Lord’s anointed.’”

²⁸Afterward, David heard about this and said, “I and my kingdom are forever guiltless before the Lord concerning the blood of Abner son of Ner.

²⁹May it whirl over the head of Joab and over the entire house of his father, and may the house of Joab never be without one having a discharge or skin disease, or one who leans on a staff or falls by the sword or lacks food.”

³²The Lord will bring his bloodshed back upon his own head, for without the knowledge of my father David he struck down two men more righteous and better than he when he put to the sword Abner son of Ner, commander of Israel’s army, and Amasa son of Jether, commander of Judah’s army.

³³Their blood will come back upon the heads of Joab and his descendants forever; but for David, his descendants, his house, and his throne, there shall be peace from the Lord forever.”

⁵⁶In this way God repaid the wickedness that Abimelech had done to his father in murdering his seventy brothers.

⁵⁷And God also brought all the wickedness of the men of Shechem back upon their own heads. So the curse of Jotham son of Jerubbaal came upon them.

²⁴in order that the crime against the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might come to justice and their blood be avenged on their brother Abimelech and on the leaders of Shechem, who had helped him murder his brothers.

⁹And he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them on the hill before the Lord. So all seven of them fell together; they were put to death in the first days of the harvest, at the beginning of the barley harvest.

²⁸You must not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.

⁸Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog like me?”

¹⁴Against whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom are you pursuing? A dead dog? A flea?

⁸Abner was furious over Ish-bosheth’s accusation. “Am I the head of a dog that belongs to Judah?” he asked. “All this time I have been loyal to the house of your father Saul, to his brothers, and to his friends. I have not delivered you into the hand of David, but now you accuse me of wrongdoing with this woman!

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

³⁰(Joab and his brother Abishai murdered Abner because he had killed their brother Asahel in the battle at Gibeon.)

²²And David replied, “Sons of Zeruiah, what have I to do with you, that you should be my adversaries today? Should any man be put to death in Israel today? Am I not indeed aware that today I am king over Israel?”

²⁰But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to Him who formed it, “Why did You make me like this?”

¹¹“Put your sword back in its sheath!” Jesus said to Peter. “Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given Me?”

²³When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.

²⁰As for you, what you intended against me for evil, God intended for good, in order to accomplish a day like this—to preserve the lives of many people.

³⁹And I am weak this day, though anointed as king, and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, are too fierce for me. May the Lord repay the evildoer according to his evil!”

²¹and the Lord sent an angel who annihilated every mighty man of valor and every leader and commander in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he withdrew to his own land in disgrace. And when he entered the temple of his god, some of his own sons struck him down with the sword.

²⁵I also gave them over to statutes that were not good and ordinances by which they could not live.

⁹But if the prophet is enticed to speak a message, then it was I the Lord who enticed him, and I will stretch out My hand against him and destroy him from among My people Israel.

⁵Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger; the staff in their hands is My wrath.

⁶I will send him against a godless nation; I will dispatch him against a people destined for My rage, to take spoils and seize plunder, and to trample them down like clay in the streets.

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.

¹²You have acted in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’”

⁵And now, do not be distressed or angry with yourselves that you sold me into this place, because it was to save lives that God sent me before you.

⁵Yet the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam, and the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves you.

¹⁰Our fathers disciplined us for a short time as they thought best, but God disciplines us for our good, so that we may share in His holiness.

¹⁸Consider my affliction and trouble, and take away all my sins.

²⁸And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.

²⁴So God heard their groaning, and He remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

²⁵God saw the Israelites and took notice.

¹¹Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.

¹²Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you.

²³Then he called two of his centurions and said, “Prepare two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea in the third hour of the night.

³⁷So David’s friend Hushai arrived in Jerusalem just as Absalom was entering the city.

¹²While Absalom was offering the sacrifices, he sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David’s counselor, to come from his hometown of Giloh. So the conspiracy gained strength, and Absalom’s following kept increasing.

¹²Then Jehoiada brought out the king’s son, put the crown on him, presented him with the Testimony, and proclaimed him king. They anointed him, and the people clapped their hands and declared, “Long live the king!”

²⁴Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see the one the Lord has chosen? There is no one like him among all the people.” And all the people shouted, “Long live the king!”

²⁵For today he has gone down and sacrificed an abundance of oxen, fattened calves, and sheep, and has invited all the sons of the king, the commanders of the army, and Abiathar the priest. And behold, they are eating and drinking before him, saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’

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!”

³⁷So David’s friend Hushai arrived in Jerusalem just as Absalom was entering the city.

³⁴There Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet are to anoint him king over Israel. You are to blow the ram’s horn and declare, ‘Long live King Solomon!’

²⁵And he came from Jerusalem to meet the king, who asked him, “Mephibosheth, why did you not go with me?”

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

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

⁶Is this how you repay the Lord, O foolish and senseless people? Is He not your Father and Creator? Has He not made you and established you?

³²When David came to the summit, where he used to worship God, Hushai the Archite was there to meet him with his robe torn and dust on his head.

³³David said to him, “If you go on with me, you will be a burden to me.

¹³So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. Then Samuel set out and went to Ramah.

¹Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and said, “Here we are, your own flesh and blood.

²Even in times past, while Saul was king over us, you were the one who led Israel out and brought them back. And to you the Lord said, ‘You will shepherd My people Israel, and you will be ruler over them.’”

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.’

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

²David replied, “Then you will come to know what your servant can do.” “Very well,” said Achish. “I will make you my bodyguard for life.”

¹³The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray.

⁸“But what have I done?” David replied. “What have you found against your servant, from the day I came to you until today, to keep me from going along to fight against the enemies of my lord the king?”

²The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together, against the Lord and against His Anointed One:

²³On their release, Peter and John returned to their own people and reported everything that the chief priests and elders had said to them.

²⁴When the believers heard this, they lifted up their voices to God with one accord. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “You made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them.

³⁰There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel that can prevail against the Lord.

¹⁵Woe to those who dig deep to hide their plans from the Lord. In darkness they do their works and say, “Who sees us, and who will know?”

¹²The wicked scheme against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them,

¹³but the Lord laughs, seeing that their day is coming.

¹⁰Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase even more; and if a war breaks out, they may join our enemies, fight against us, and leave the country.”

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.

¹⁶Then the king set out, and his entire household followed him. But he left behind ten concubines to take care of the palace.

⁷Now then, be strong and courageous, for though Saul your lord is dead, the house of Judah has anointed me as their king.”

⁸You must not have sexual relations with your father’s wife; it would dishonor your father.

¹³As you have been a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save you, and you will be a blessing. Do not be afraid; let your hands be strong.”

¹⁷Adonijah replied, “Please speak to King Solomon, since he will not turn you down. Let him give me Abishag the Shunammite as my wife.”

¹⁶Then the king set out, and his entire household followed him. But he left behind ten concubines to take care of the palace.

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.

¹²You have acted in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before 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.

⁶Just then an Israelite man brought to his family a Midianite woman in the sight of Moses and the whole congregation of Israel while they were weeping at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

³Therefore the showers have been withheld, and no spring rains have fallen. Yet you have the brazen look of a prostitute; you refuse to be ashamed.

¹²Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they will collapse, says the Lord.

¹²While Absalom was offering the sacrifices, he sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David’s counselor, to come from his hometown of Giloh. So the conspiracy gained strength, and Absalom’s following kept increasing.

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.

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.

¹⁹For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.”

²⁰And again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.”

⁷The Law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is trustworthy, making wise the simple.

²²“For My people are fools; they have not known Me. They are foolish children, without understanding. They are skilled in doing evil, but they know not how to do good.”