Discovery Box2 Samuel 15:1--20:26
Context15:1 Some time later Absalom managed to acquire 1 a chariot and horses, as well as fifty men to serve as his royal guard. 2 15:2 Now Absalom used to get up early and stand beside the road that led to the city gate. Whenever anyone came by who had a complaint to bring to the king for arbitration, Absalom would call out to him, “What city are you from?” The person would answer, “I, your servant, 3 am from one of the tribes of Israel.” 15:3 Absalom would then say to him, “Look, your claims are legitimate and appropriate. 4 But there is no representative of the king who will listen to you.” 15:4 Absalom would then say, “If only they would make me 5 a judge in the land! Then everyone who had a judicial complaint 6 could come to me and I would make sure he receives a just settlement.”
15:5 When someone approached to bow before him, Absalom 7 would extend his hand and embrace him and kiss him. 15:6 Absalom acted this way toward everyone in Israel who came to the king for justice. In this way Absalom won the loyalty 8 of the citizens 9 of Israel.
15:7 After four 10 years Absalom said to the king, “Let me go and repay my vow that I made to the Lord while I was in Hebron. 15:8 For I made this vow 11 when I was living in Geshur in Aram: ‘If the Lord really does allow me to return to Jerusalem, 12 I will serve the Lord.’” 15:9 The king replied to him, “Go in peace.” So Absalom 13 got up and went to Hebron.
15:10 Then Absalom sent spies through all the tribes of Israel who said, “When you hear the sound of the horn, you may assume 14 that Absalom rules in Hebron.” 15:11 Now two hundred men had gone with Absalom from Jerusalem. Since they were invited, they went naively and were unaware of what Absalom was planning. 15 15:12 While he was offering sacrifices, Absalom sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David’s adviser, 16 to come from his city, Giloh. 17 The conspiracy was gaining momentum, and the people were starting to side with Absalom.
15:13 Then a messenger came to David and reported, “The men of Israel are loyal to Absalom!” 18 15:14 So David said to all his servants who were with him in Jerusalem, 19 “Come on! 20 Let’s escape! 21 Otherwise no one will be delivered from Absalom! Go immediately, or else he will quickly overtake us and bring 22 disaster on us and kill the city’s residents with the sword.” 23 15:15 The king’s servants replied to the king, “We will do whatever our lord the king decides.” 24
15:16 So the king and all the members of his royal court 25 set out on foot, though the king left behind ten concubines 26 to attend to the palace. 15:17 The king and all the people set out on foot, pausing 27 at a spot 28 some distance away. 15:18 All his servants were leaving with him, 29 along with all the Kerethites, all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites – some six hundred men who had come on foot from Gath. They were leaving with 30 the king.
15:19 Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite, “Why should you come with us? Go back and stay with the new 31 king, for you are a foreigner and an exile from your own country. 32 15:20 It seems like you arrived just yesterday. Today should I make you wander around by going with us? I go where I must go. But as for you, go back and take your men 33 with you. May genuine loyal love 34 protect 35 you!”
15:21 But Ittai replied to the king, “As surely as the Lord lives and as my lord the king lives, wherever my lord the king is, whether dead or alive, 36 there I 37 will be as well!” 15:22 So David said to Ittai, “Come along then.” 38 So Ittai the Gittite went along, 39 accompanied by all his men and all the dependents 40 who were with him.
15:23 All the land was weeping loudly 41 as all these people were leaving. 42 As the king was crossing over the Kidron Valley, all the people were leaving 43 on the road that leads to the desert. 15:24 Zadok and all the Levites who were with him were carrying the ark of the covenant of God. When they positioned the ark of God, Abiathar offered sacrifices until all the people had finished leaving 44 the city.
15:25 Then the king said to Zadok, “Take the ark of God back to the city. If I find favor in the Lord’s sight he will bring me back and enable me to see both it and his dwelling place again. 15:26 However, if he should say, ‘I do not take pleasure in you,’ then he will deal with me in a way that he considers appropriate.” 45
15:27 The king said to Zadok the priest, “Are you a seer? 46 Go back to the city in peace! Your son Ahimaaz and Abiathar’s son Jonathan may go with you and Abiathar. 47 15:28 Look, I will be waiting at the fords of the desert until word from you 48 reaches me.” 15:29 So Zadok and Abiathar took the ark of God back to Jerusalem and remained there.
15:30 As David was going up the Mount of Olives, he was weeping as he went; his head was covered and his feet were bare. All the people who were with him also had their heads covered and were weeping as they went up. 15:31 Now David 49 had been told, “Ahithophel has sided with the conspirators who are with Absalom. So David prayed, 50 “Make the advice of Ahithophel foolish, O Lord!”
15:32 When David reached the summit, where he used to worship God, Hushai the Arkite met him with his clothes torn and dirt on his head. 15:33 David said to him, “If you leave 51 with me you will be a burden to me. 15:34 But you will be able to counter the advice of Ahithophel if you go back to the city and say to Absalom, ‘I will be your servant, O king! Previously I was your father’s servant, and now I will be your servant.’ 15:35 Zadok and Abiathar the priests will be there with you. 52 Everything you hear in the king’s palace 53 you must tell Zadok and Abiathar the priests. 15:36 Furthermore, their two sons are there with them, Zadok’s son Ahimaaz and Abiathar’s son Jonathan. You must send them to me with any information you hear.” 54
15:37 So David’s friend Hushai arrived in the city, just as Absalom was entering Jerusalem.
16:1 When David had gone a short way beyond the summit, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth was there to meet him. He had a couple of donkeys that were saddled, and on them were two hundred loaves of bread, a hundred raisin cakes, a hundred baskets of summer fruit, 55 and a container of wine.
16:2 The king asked Ziba, “Why did you bring these things?” 56 Ziba replied, “The donkeys are for the king’s family to ride on, the loaves of bread 57 and the summer fruit are for the attendants to eat, and the wine is for those who get exhausted in the desert.” 58 16:3 The king asked, “Where is your master’s grandson?” 59 Ziba replied to the king, “He remains in Jerusalem, 60 for he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will give back to me my grandfather’s 61 kingdom.’” 16:4 The king said to Ziba, “Everything that was Mephibosheth’s now belongs to you.” Ziba replied, “I bow before you. May I find favor in your sight, my lord the king.”
16:5 Then King David reached 62 Bahurim. There a man from Saul’s extended family named Shimei son of Gera came out, yelling curses as he approached. 63 16:6 He threw stones at David and all of King David’s servants, as well as all the people and the soldiers who were on his right and on his left. 16:7 As he yelled curses, Shimei said, “Leave! Leave! You man of bloodshed, you wicked man! 64 16:8 The Lord has punished you for 65 all the spilled blood of the house of Saul, in whose place you rule. Now the Lord has given the kingdom into the hand of your son Absalom. Disaster has overtaken you, for you are a man of bloodshed!”
16:9 Then Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and cut off his head!” 16:10 But the king said, “What do we have in common, 66 you sons of Zeruiah? If he curses because the Lord has said to him, ‘Curse David!’, who can say to him, ‘Why have you done this?’” 16:11 Then David said to Abishai and to all his servants, “My own son, my very own flesh and blood, 67 is trying to take my life. So also now this Benjaminite! Leave him alone so that he can curse, for the Lord has spoken to him. 16:12 Perhaps the Lord will notice my affliction 68 and this day grant me good in place of his curse.” 69
16:13 So David and his men went on their way. But Shimei kept going along the side of the hill opposite him, yelling curses as he threw stones and dirt at them. 70 16:14 The king and all the people who were with him arrived exhausted at their destination, where David 71 refreshed himself.
16:15 Now when Absalom and all the men 72 of Israel arrived in Jerusalem, 73 Ahithophel was with him. 16:16 When David’s friend Hushai the Arkite came to Absalom, Hushai said to him, 74 “Long live the king! Long live the king!”
16:17 Absalom said to Hushai, “Do you call this loyalty to your friend? Why didn’t you go with your friend?” 16:18 Hushai replied to Absalom, “No, I will be loyal to the one whom the Lord, these people, and all the men of Israel have chosen. 75 16:19 Moreover, whom should I serve? Should it not be his son? Just as I served your father, so I will serve you.” 76
16:20 Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give us your advice. What should we do?” 16:21 Ahithophel replied to Absalom, “Have sex with 77 your father’s concubines whom he left to care for the palace. All Israel will hear that you have made yourself repulsive to your father. Then your followers will be motivated to support you.” 78 16:22 So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, 79 and Absalom had sex with 80 his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.
16:23 In those days Ahithophel’s advice was considered as valuable as a prophetic revelation. 81 Both David and Absalom highly regarded the advice of Ahithophel. 82
17:1 Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Let me pick out twelve thousand men. Then I will go and pursue David this very night. 17:2 When I catch up with 83 him he will be exhausted and worn out. 84 I will rout him, and the entire army that is with him will flee. I will kill only the king 17:3 and will bring the entire army back to you. In exchange for the life of the man you are seeking, you will get back everyone. 85 The entire army will return unharmed.” 86
17:4 This seemed like a good idea to Absalom and to all the leaders 87 of Israel. 17:5 But Absalom said, “Call for 88 Hushai the Arkite, and let’s hear what he has to say.” 89 17:6 So Hushai came to Absalom. Absalom said to him, “Here is what Ahithophel has advised. Should we follow his advice? If not, what would you recommend?”
17:7 Hushai replied to Absalom, “Ahithophel’s advice is not sound this time.” 90 17:8 Hushai went on to say, “You know your father and his men – they are soldiers and are as dangerous as a bear out in the wild that has been robbed of her cubs. 91 Your father is an experienced soldier; he will not stay overnight with the army. 17:9 At this very moment he is hiding out in one of the caves or in some other similar place. If it should turn out that he attacks our troops first, 92 whoever hears about it will say, ‘Absalom’s army has been slaughtered!’ 17:10 If that happens even the bravest soldier – one who is lion-hearted – will virtually melt away. For all Israel knows that your father is a warrior and that those who are with him are brave. 17:11 My advice therefore is this: Let all Israel from Dan to Beer Sheba – in number like the sand by the sea! – be mustered to you, and you lead them personally into battle. 17:12 We will come against him wherever he happens to be found. We will descend on him like the dew falls on the ground. Neither he nor any of the men who are with him will be spared alive – not one of them! 17:13 If he regroups in a city, all Israel will take up ropes to that city and drag it down to the valley, so that not a single pebble will be left there!”
17:14 Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Arkite sounds better than the advice of Ahithophel.” Now the Lord had decided 93 to frustrate the sound advice of Ahithophel, so that the Lord could bring disaster on Absalom.
17:15 Then Hushai reported to Zadok and Abiathar the priests, “Here is what Ahithophel has advised Absalom and the leaders 94 of Israel to do, and here is what I have advised. 17:16 Now send word quickly to David and warn him, 95 “Don’t spend the night at the fords of the desert 96 tonight. Instead, be sure you cross over, 97 or else the king and everyone who is with him may be overwhelmed.” 98
17:17 Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying in En Rogel. A female servant would go and inform them, and they would then go and inform King David. It was not advisable for them to be seen going into the city. 17:18 But a young man saw them on one occasion and informed Absalom. So the two of them quickly departed and went to the house of a man in Bahurim. There was a well in his courtyard, and they got down in it. 17:19 His wife then took the covering and spread it over the top of the well and scattered some grain over it. No one was aware of what she had done.
17:20 When the servants of Absalom approached the woman at her home, they asked, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?” The woman replied to them, “They crossed over the stream.” Absalom’s men 99 searched but did not find them, so they returned to Jerusalem. 100
17:21 After the men had left, Ahimaaz and Jonathan 101 climbed out of the well. Then they left and informed King David. They advised David, “Get up and cross the stream 102 quickly, for Ahithophel has devised a plan to catch you.” 103 17:22 So David and all the people who were with him got up and crossed the Jordan River. 104 By dawn there was not one person left who had not crossed the Jordan.
17:23 When Ahithophel realized that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and returned to his house in his hometown. After setting his household in order, he hanged himself. So he died and was buried in the grave 105 of his father.
17:24 Meanwhile David had gone to Mahanaim, while Absalom and all the men of Israel had crossed the Jordan River. 17:25 Absalom had made Amasa general in command of the army in place of Joab. (Now Amasa was the son of an Israelite man named Jether, who had married 106 Abigail the daughter of Nahash and sister of Zeruiah, Joab’s mother.) 17:26 The army of Israel 107 and Absalom camped in the land of Gilead.
17:27 When David came to Mahanaim, Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the Ammonites, Makir the son of Ammiel from Lo Debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim 17:28 brought bedding, basins, and pottery utensils. They also brought food for David and all who were with him, including wheat, barley, flour, roasted grain, beans, lentils, 108 17:29 honey, curds, flocks, and cheese. 109 For they said, “The people are no doubt hungry, tired, and thirsty there in the desert.” 110
18:1 David assembled the army that was with him. He appointed leaders of thousands and leaders of hundreds. 18:2 David then sent out the army – a third under the leadership of Joab, a third under the leadership of Joab’s brother Abishai son of Zeruiah, and a third under the leadership of Ittai the Gittite. The king said to the troops, “I too will indeed march out with you.”
18:3 But the soldiers replied, 111 “You should not do this! 112 For if we should have to make a rapid retreat, they won’t be too concerned about us. 113 Even if half of us should die, they won’t be too concerned about us. But you 114 are like ten thousand of us! So it is better if you remain in the city for support.” 18:4 Then the king said to them, “I will do whatever seems best to you.”
So the king stayed beside the city gate, while all the army marched out by hundreds and by thousands. 18:5 The king gave this order to Joab, Abishai, and Ittai: “For my sake deal gently with the young man Absalom.” Now the entire army was listening when the king gave all the leaders this order concerning Absalom.
18:6 Then the army marched out to the field to fight against Israel. The battle took place in the forest of Ephraim. 18:7 The army of Israel was defeated there by David’s men. 115 The slaughter there was great that day – 20,000 soldiers were killed. 18:8 The battle there was spread out over the whole area, and the forest consumed more soldiers than the sword devoured that day.
18:9 Then Absalom happened to come across David’s men. Now as Absalom was riding on his 116 mule, it 117 went under the branches of a large oak tree. His head got caught in the oak and he was suspended in midair, 118 while the mule he had been riding kept going.
18:10 When one 119 of the men saw this, he reported it to Joab saying, “I saw Absalom hanging in an oak tree. 18:11 Joab replied to the man who was telling him this, “What! You saw this? Why didn’t you strike him down right on the spot? 120 I would have given you ten pieces of silver 121 and a commemorative belt!” 122
18:12 The man replied to Joab, “Even if 123 I were receiving 124 a thousand pieces of silver, 125 I would not strike 126 the king’s son! In our very presence 127 the king gave this order to you and Abishai and Ittai, ‘Protect the young man Absalom for my sake.’ 128 18:13 If I had acted at risk of my own life 129 – and nothing is hidden from the king! – you would have abandoned me.” 130
18:14 Joab replied, “I will not wait around like this for you!” He took three spears in his hand and thrust them into the middle of Absalom while he was still alive in the middle of the oak tree. 131 18:15 Then ten soldiers who were Joab’s armor bearers struck Absalom and finished him off.
18:16 Then Joab blew the trumpet 132 and the army turned back from chasing Israel, for Joab had called for the army to halt. 18:17 They took Absalom, threw him into a large pit in the forest, and stacked a huge pile of stones over him. In the meantime all the Israelite soldiers fled to their homes. 133
18:18 Prior to this 134 Absalom had set up a monument 135 and dedicated it to himself in the King’s Valley, reasoning “I have no son who will carry on my name.” He named the monument after himself, and to this day it is known as Absalom’s Memorial.
18:19 Then Ahimaaz the son of Zadok said, “Let me run and give the king the good news that the Lord has vindicated him before his enemies.” 136 18:20 But Joab said to him, “You will not be a bearer of good news today. You will bear good news some other day, but not today, 137 for the king’s son is dead.”
18:21 Then Joab said to the Cushite, “Go and tell the king what you have seen.” After bowing to Joab, the Cushite ran off. 18:22 Ahimaaz the son of Zadok again spoke to Joab, “Whatever happens, let me go after the Cushite.” But Joab said, “Why is it that you want to go, my son? You have no good news that will bring you a reward.” 18:23 But he said, 138 “Whatever happens, I want to go!” So Joab 139 said to him, “Then go!” So Ahimaaz ran by the way of the Jordan plain, and he passed the Cushite.
18:24 Now David was sitting between the inner and outer gates, 140 and the watchman went up to the roof over the gate at the wall. When he looked, he saw a man running by himself. 18:25 So the watchman called out and informed the king. The king said, “If he is by himself, he brings good news.” 141 The runner 142 came ever closer.
18:26 Then the watchman saw another man running. The watchman called out to the gatekeeper, “There is another man running by himself.” The king said, “This one also is bringing good news.” 18:27 The watchman said, “It appears to me that the first runner is Ahimaaz 143 son of Zadok.” The king said, “He is a good man, and he comes with good news.”
18:28 Then Ahimaaz called out and said to the king, “Greetings!” 144 He bowed down before the king with his face toward the ground and said, “May the Lord your God be praised because he has defeated 145 the men who opposed 146 my lord the king!”
18:29 The king replied, “How is the young man Absalom?” Ahimaaz replied, “I saw a great deal of confusion when Joab was sending the king’s servant and me, your servant, but I don’t know what it was all about.” 18:30 The king said, “Turn aside and take your place here.” So he turned aside and waited.
18:31 Then the Cushite arrived and said, 147 “May my lord the king now receive the good news! The Lord has vindicated you today and delivered you from the hand of all who have rebelled against you!” 148 18:32 The king asked the Cushite, “How is the young man Absalom?” The Cushite replied, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who have plotted against you 149 be like that young man!”
18:33 (19:1) 150 The king then became very upset. He went up to the upper room over the gate and wept. As he went he said, “My son, Absalom! My son, my son, 151 Absalom! If only I could have died in your place! Absalom, my son, my son!” 152
19:1 (19:2) Joab was told, “The king is weeping and mourning over Absalom.” 19:2 So the victory of that day was turned to mourning as far as all the people were concerned. For the people heard on that day, “The king is grieved over his son.” 19:3 That day the people stole away to go to the city the way people who are embarrassed steal away in fleeing from battle. 19:4 The king covered his face and cried out loudly, 153 “My son, Absalom! Absalom, my son, my son!”
19:5 So Joab visited 154 the king at his home. He said, “Today you have embarrassed all your servants who have saved your life this day, as well as the lives of your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your concubines. 19:6 You seem to love your enemies and hate your friends! For you have as much as declared today that leaders and servants don’t matter to you. I realize now 155 that if 156 Absalom were alive and all of us were dead today, 157 it would be all right with you. 19:7 So get up now and go out and give some encouragement to 158 your servants. For I swear by the Lord that if you don’t go out there, not a single man will stay here with you tonight! This disaster will be worse for you than any disaster that has overtaken you from your youth right to the present time!”
19:8 So the king got up and sat at the city gate. When all the people were informed that the king was sitting at the city gate, they 159 all came before him.
But the Israelite soldiers 160 had all fled to their own homes. 161 19:9 All the people throughout all the tribes of Israel were arguing among themselves saying, “The king delivered us from the hand of our enemies. He rescued us from the hand of the Philistines, but now he has fled from the land because of Absalom. 19:10 But Absalom, whom we anointed as our king, 162 has died in battle. So now why do you hesitate to bring the king back?” 163
19:11 Then King David sent a message to Zadok and Abiathar the priests saying, “Tell the elders of Judah, ‘Why should you delay any further in bringing the king back to his palace, 164 when everything Israel is saying has come to the king’s attention. 165 19:12 You are my brothers – my very own flesh and blood! 166 Why should you delay any further in bringing the king back?’ 19:13 Say to Amasa, ‘Are you not my flesh and blood? 167 God will punish me severely, 168 if from this time on you are not the commander of my army in place of Joab!’”
19:14 He 169 won over the hearts of all the men of Judah as though they were one man. Then they sent word to the king saying, “Return, you and all your servants as well.” 19:15 So the king returned and came to the Jordan River. 170
Now the people of Judah 171 had come to Gilgal to meet the king and to help him 172 cross the Jordan. 19:16 Shimei son of Gera the Benjaminite from Bahurim came down quickly with the men of Judah to meet King David. 19:17 There were a thousand men from Benjamin with him, along with Ziba the servant 173 of Saul’s household, and with him his fifteen sons and twenty servants. They hurriedly crossed 174 the Jordan within sight of the king. 19:18 They crossed at the ford in order to help the king’s household cross and to do whatever he thought appropriate.
Now after he had crossed the Jordan, Shimei son of Gera threw himself down before the king. 19:19 He said to the king, “Don’t think badly of me, my lord, and don’t recall the sin of your servant on the day when you, my lord the king, left 175 Jerusalem! 176 Please don’t call it to mind! 19:20 For I, your servant, 177 know that I sinned, and I have come today as the first of all the house of Joseph to come down to meet my lord the king.”
19:21 Abishai son of Zeruiah replied, “For this should not Shimei be put to death? After all, he cursed the Lord’s anointed!” 19:22 But David said, “What do we have in common, 178 you sons of Zeruiah? You are like my enemy today! Should anyone be put to death in Israel today? Don’t you realize that today I am king over Israel?” 19:23 The king said to Shimei, “You won’t die.” The king vowed an oath 179 concerning this.
19:24 Now Mephibosheth, Saul’s grandson, 180 came down to meet the king. From the day the king had left until the day he safely 181 returned, Mephibosheth 182 had not cared for his feet 183 nor trimmed 184 his mustache nor washed his clothes.
19:25 When he came from Jerusalem to meet the king, the king asked him, “Why didn’t you go with me, Mephibosheth?” 19:26 He replied, “My lord the king, my servant deceived me! I 185 said, ‘Let me get my donkey saddled so that I can ride on it and go with the king,’ for I 186 am lame. 19:27 But my servant 187 has slandered me 188 to my lord the king. But my lord the king is like an angel of God. Do whatever seems appropriate to you. 19:28 After all, there was no one in the entire house of my grandfather 189 who did not deserve death from my lord the king. But instead you allowed me to eat at your own table! 190 What further claim do I have to ask 191 the king for anything?”
19:29 Then the king replied to him, “Why should you continue speaking like this? You and Ziba will inherit the field together.” 19:30 Mephibosheth said to the king, “Let him have 192 the whole thing! My lord the king has returned safely 193 to his house!”
19:31 Now when Barzillai the Gileadite had come down from Rogelim, he crossed the Jordan with the king so he could send him on his way from there. 194 19:32 But Barzillai was very old – eighty years old, in fact – and he had taken care of the king when he stayed in Mahanaim, for he was a very rich 195 man. 19:33 So the king said to Barzillai, “Cross over with me, and I will take care of you while you are with me in Jerusalem.”
19:34 Barzillai replied to the king, “How many days do I have left to my life, that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem? 19:35 I am presently eighty years old. Am I able to discern good and bad? Can I 196 taste what I eat and drink? Am I still able to hear the voices of male and female singers? Why should I 197 continue to be a burden to my lord the king? 19:36 I will cross the Jordan with the king and go a short distance. 198 Why should the king reward me in this way? 19:37 Let me 199 return so that I may die in my own city near the grave of my father and my mother. But look, here is your servant Kimham. Let him cross over with my lord the king. Do for him whatever seems appropriate to you.”
19:38 The king replied, “Kimham will cross over with me, and I will do for him whatever I deem appropriate. And whatever you choose, I will do for you.”
19:39 So all the people crossed the Jordan, as did the king. After the king had kissed him and blessed him, Barzillai returned to his home. 200 19:40 When the king crossed over to Gilgal, Kimham 201 crossed over with him. Now all the soldiers 202 of Judah along with half of the soldiers of Israel had helped the king cross over. 203
19:41 Then all the men of Israel began coming to the king. They asked the king, “Why did our brothers, the men of Judah, sneak the king away and help the king and his household cross the Jordan – and not only him but all of David’s men as well?”
19:42 All the men of Judah replied to the men of Israel, “Because the king is our close relative! Why are you so upset about this? Have we eaten at the king’s expense? 204 Or have we misappropriated anything for our own use?” 19:43 The men of Israel replied to the men of Judah, “We have ten shares in the king, and we have a greater claim on David than you do! Why do you want 205 to curse us? Weren’t we the first to suggest bringing back our king?” But the comments of the men of Judah were more severe than those of the men of Israel.
20:1 Now a wicked man 206 named Sheba son of Bicri, a Benjaminite, 207 happened to be there. He blew the trumpet 208 and said,
“We have no share in David;
we have no inheritance in this son of Jesse!
Every man go home, 209 O Israel!”
20:2 So all the men of Israel deserted 210 David and followed Sheba son of Bicri. But the men of Judah stuck by their king all the way from the Jordan River 211 to Jerusalem. 212
20:3 Then David went to his palace 213 in Jerusalem. The king took the ten concubines he had left to care for the palace and placed them under confinement. 214 Though he provided for their needs, he did not have sexual relations with them. 215 They remained in confinement until the day they died, living out the rest of their lives as widows.
20:4 Then the king said to Amasa, “Call the men of Judah together for me in three days, 216 and you be present here with them too.” 20:5 So Amasa went out to call Judah together. But in doing so he took longer than the time that the king had allotted him.
20:6 Then David said to Abishai, “Now Sheba son of Bicri will cause greater disaster for us than Absalom did! Take your lord’s servants and pursue him. Otherwise he will secure 217 fortified cities for himself and get away from us.” 20:7 So Joab’s men, accompanied by the Kerethites, the Pelethites, and all the warriors, left Jerusalem to pursue Sheba son of Bicri.
20:8 When they were near the big rock that is in Gibeon, Amasa came to them. Now Joab was dressed in military attire and had a dagger in its sheath belted to his waist. When he advanced, it fell out. 218
20:9 Joab said to Amasa, “How are you, my brother?” With his right hand Joab took hold of Amasa’s beard as if to greet him with a kiss. 20:10 Amasa did not protect himself from the knife in Joab’s other hand, and Joab 219 stabbed him in the abdomen, causing Amasa’s 220 intestines to spill out on the ground. There was no need to stab him again; the first blow was fatal. 221 Then Joab and his brother Abishai pursued Sheba son of Bicri.
20:11 One of Joab’s soldiers who stood over Amasa said, “Whoever is for 222 Joab and whoever is for David, follow Joab!” 20:12 Amasa was squirming in his own blood in the middle of the path, and this man had noticed that all the soldiers stopped. Having noticed that everyone who came across Amasa 223 stopped, the man 224 pulled him 225 away from the path and into the field and threw a garment over him. 20:13 Once he had removed Amasa 226 from the path, everyone followed Joab to pursue Sheba son of Bicri.
20:14 Sheba 227 traveled through all the tribes of Israel to Abel of 228 Beth Maacah and all the Berite region. When they had assembled, 229 they too joined him. 20:15 So Joab’s men 230 came and laid siege against him in Abel of Beth Maacah. They prepared a siege ramp outside the city which stood against its outer rampart. As all of Joab’s soldiers were trying to break through 231 the wall so that it would collapse, 20:16 a wise woman called out from the city, “Listen up! Listen up! Tell Joab, ‘Come near so that I may speak to you.’”
20:17 When he approached her, the woman asked, “Are you Joab?” He replied, “I am.” She said to him, “Listen to the words of your servant.” He said, “Go ahead. I’m listening.” 20:18 She said, “In the past they would always say, ‘Let them inquire in Abel,’ and that is how they settled things. 20:19 I represent the peaceful and the faithful in Israel. You are attempting to destroy an important city 232 in Israel. Why should you swallow up the Lord’s inheritance?”
20:20 Joab answered, “Get serious! 233 I don’t want to swallow up or destroy anything! 20:21 That’s not the way things are. There is a man from the hill country of Ephraim named Sheba son of Bicri. He has rebelled 234 against King David. Give me just this one man, and I will leave the city.” The woman said to Joab, “This very minute 235 his head will be thrown over the wall to you!”
20:22 Then the woman went to all the people with her wise advice and they cut off Sheba’s head and threw it out to Joab. Joab 236 blew the trumpet, and his men 237 dispersed from the city, each going to his own home. 238 Joab returned to the king in Jerusalem.
20:23 Now Joab was the general in command of all the army of Israel. Benaiah the son of Jehoida was over the Kerethites and the Perethites. 20:24 Adoniram 239 was supervisor of the work crews. 240 Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the secretary. 20:25 Sheva was the scribe, and Zadok and Abiathar were the priests. 20:26 Ira the Jairite was David’s personal priest. 241
[15:1] 1 tn Heb “acquired for himself.”
[15:1] 2 tn Heb “to run ahead of him.”
[15:2] 3 tn Heb “your servant.” So also in vv. 8, 15, 21.
[15:3] 4 tn Heb “good and straight.”
[15:4] 5 tn Heb “Who will make me?”
[15:4] 6 tn Heb “a complaint and a judgment.” The expression is a hendiadys.
[15:5] 7 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Absalom) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[15:6] 8 tn Heb “stole the heart.”
[15:7] 10 tc The MT has here “forty,” but this is presumably a scribal error for “four.” The context will not tolerate a period of forty years prior to the rebellion of Absalom. The Lucianic Greek recension (τέσσαρα ἔτη, tessara ete), the Syriac Peshitta (’arba’ sanin), and Vulgate (post quattuor autem annos) in fact have the expected reading “four years.” Most English translations follow the versions in reading “four” here, although some (e.g. KJV, ASV, NASB, NKJV), following the MT, read “forty.”
[15:8] 11 tn Heb “for your servant vowed a vow.” The formal court style of referring to one’s self in third person (“your servant”) has been translated here as first person for clarity.
[15:8] 12 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[15:9] 13 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Absalom) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[15:11] 15 tn Heb “being invited and going naively and they did not know anything.”
[15:12] 16 tn Traditionally, “counselor,” but this term is more often associated with psychological counseling today, so “adviser” was used in the translation instead.
[15:12] 17 tn Heb “Absalom sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, the adviser of David, from his city, from Giloh, while he was sacrificing.” It is not entirely clear who (Absalom or Ahithophel) was offering the sacrifices.
[15:13] 18 tn Heb “the heart of the men of Israel is with Absalom.”
[15:14] 19 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[15:14] 21 tn Heb “let’s flee.”
[15:14] 23 tn Heb “and strike the city with the edge of the sword.”
[15:15] 24 tn Heb “according to all that my lord the king will choose, behold your servants!”
[15:16] 25 tn Heb “and all his house.”
[15:16] 26 tn Heb “women, concubines.”
[15:17] 27 tn Heb “and they stood.”
[15:18] 29 tn Heb “crossing over near his hand.”
[15:18] 30 tn Heb “crossing over near the face of.”
[15:19] 31 tn The word “new” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation to make it clear that David refers to Absalom, not himself.
[15:20] 33 tn Heb “brothers,” but see v. 22.
[15:20] 34 tn Heb “loyal love and truth.” The expression is a hendiadys.
[15:21] 36 tn Heb “whether for death or for life.”
[15:21] 37 tn Heb “your servant.”
[15:22] 38 tn Heb “Come and cross over.”
[15:22] 39 tn Heb “crossed over.”
[15:22] 40 tn Heb “all the little ones.”
[15:23] 41 tn Heb “with a great voice.”
[15:23] 42 tn Heb “crossing over.”
[15:23] 43 tn Heb “crossing near the face of.”
[15:24] 44 tn Heb “crossing from.”
[15:26] 45 tn Heb “as [is] good in his eyes.”
[15:27] 46 tn The Greek tradition understands the Hebrew word as an imperative (“see”). Most Greek
[15:27] 47 tn Heb “And Ahimaaz your son, and Jonathan the son of Abiathar, two of your sons, with you.” The pronominal suffix on the last word is plural, referring to Zadok and Abiathar.
[15:28] 48 tn The pronoun is plural, referring to Zadok and Abiathar.
[15:31] 49 tc The translation follows 4QSama, part of the Greek tradition, the Syriac Peshitta, Targum, and Vulgate uldavid in reading “and to David,” rather than MT וְדָוִד (vÿdavid, “and David”). As Driver points out, the Hebrew verb הִגִּיד (higgid, “he related”) never uses the accusative for the person to whom something is told (S. R. Driver, Notes on the Hebrew Text and the Topography of the Books of Samuel, 316).
[15:33] 51 tn Heb “cross over.”
[15:35] 52 tn Heb “Will not Zadok and Abiathar the priests be there with you?” The rhetorical question draws attention to the fact that Hushai will not be alone.
[15:35] 53 tn Heb “from the house of the king.”
[15:36] 54 tn Heb “and you must send by their hand to me every word which you hear.” Both of the second person verb forms are plural with Zadok, Abiathar, and Hushai being the understood subjects.
[16:1] 55 tn Heb “a hundred summer fruit.”
[16:2] 56 tn Heb “What are these to you?”
[16:2] 57 tc The translation follows the Qere and many medieval Hebrew
[16:2] 58 tn The Hebrew text adds “to drink.”
[16:3] 60 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[16:3] 61 tn Heb “my father’s.”
[16:5] 62 tn Heb “came to.” The form of the verb in the MT is odd. Some prefer to read וַיַּבֹא (vayyavo’), preterite with vav consecutive) rather than וּבָא (uva’), apparently perfect with vav), but this is probably an instance where the narrative offline vÿqatal construction introduces a new scene.
[16:5] 63 tn Heb “And look, from there a man was coming out from the clan of the house of Saul and his name was Shimei son of Gera, continually going out and cursing.”
[16:7] 64 tn Heb “man of worthlessness.”
[16:8] 65 tn Heb “has brought back upon you.”
[16:10] 66 tn Heb “What to me and to you?”
[16:11] 67 tn Heb “who came out from my entrails.” David’s point is that is his own son, his child whom he himself had fathered, was now wanting to kill him.
[16:12] 68 tc The Hebrew text is difficult here. It is probably preferable to read with the LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate בְּעוֹנִי (bÿ’onyi, “on my affliction”) rather than the Kethib of the MT בָּעַוֹנִי (ba’avoni, “on my wrongdoing”). While this Kethib reading is understandable as an objective genitive (i.e., “the wrong perpetrated upon me”), it does not conform to normal Hebrew idiom for this idea. The Qere of the MT בְּעֵינֵי (bÿ’eni, “on my eyes”), usually taken as synecdoche to mean “my tears,” does not commend itself as a likely meaning. The Hebrew word is one of the so-called tiqqune sopherim, or “emendations of the scribes.”
[16:12] 69 tn Heb “and the
[16:13] 70 tn Heb “and he cursed and threw stones, opposite him, pelting [them] with dirt.” The offline vÿqatal construction in the last clause indicates an action that was complementary to the action described in the preceding clause. He simultaneously threw stones and dirt.
[16:14] 71 tn Heb “he”; the referent (David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[16:15] 72 tn Heb “and all the people, the men of Israel.”
[16:15] 73 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[16:16] 74 tn Heb “to Absalom.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun “him” in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[16:18] 75 tn Heb “No for with the one whom the
[16:19] 76 tn Heb “Just as I served before your father, so I will be before you.”
[16:21] 77 tn Heb “go to”; NAB “have (+ sexual NCV) relations with”; TEV “have intercourse with”; NLT “Go and sleep with.”
[16:21] 78 tn Heb “and the hands of all who are with you will be strengthened.”
[16:22] 79 sn That is, on top of the flat roof of the palace, so it would be visible to the public.
[16:22] 80 tn Heb “went to”; NAB “he visited his father’s concubines”; NIV “lay with his father’s concubines”; TEV “went in and had intercourse with.”
[16:23] 81 tn Heb “And the advice of Ahithophel which he advised in those days was as when one inquires of the word of God.”
[16:23] 82 tn Heb “So was all the advice of Ahithophel, also to David, also to Absalom.”
[17:2] 83 tn Heb “and I will come upon him.”
[17:2] 84 tn Heb “exhausted and slack of hands.”
[17:3] 85 tc Heb “like the returning of all, the man whom you are seeking.” The LXX reads differently: “And I will return all the people to you the way a bride returns to her husband, except for the life of the one man whom you are seeking.” The other early versions also struggled with this verse. Modern translations are divided as well: the NAB, NRSV, REB, and NLT follow the LXX, while the NASB and NIV follow the Hebrew text.
[17:3] 86 tn Heb “all of the people will be safe.”
[17:5] 88 tc In the MT the verb is singular, but in the LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate it is plural.
[17:5] 89 tn Heb “what is in his mouth.”
[17:7] 90 tn Heb “Not good is the advice which Ahithophel has advised at this time.”
[17:8] 91 tc The LXX (with the exception of the recensions of Origen and Lucian) repeats the description as follows: “Just as a female bear bereft of cubs in a field.”
[17:9] 92 tn Heb “that he falls on them [i.e., Absalom’s troops] at the first [encounter]; or “that some of them [i.e., Absalom’s troops] fall at the first [encounter].”
[17:14] 93 tn Heb “commanded.”
[17:16] 95 tn Heb “send quickly and tell David saying.”
[17:16] 96 tn Or “wilderness” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV, TEV).
[17:16] 97 tn That is, “cross over the Jordan River.”
[17:16] 98 tn Heb “swallowed up.”
[17:20] 99 tn Heb “they”; the referents (Absalom’s men) have been specified in the translation for clarity.
[17:20] 100 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[17:21] 101 tn Heb “they”; the referents (Ahimaaz and Jonathan) have been specified in the translation for clarity.
[17:21] 102 tn Heb “the water.”
[17:21] 103 tn Heb “for thus Ahithophel has devised against you.” The expression “thus” is narrative shorthand, referring to the plan outlined by Ahithophel (see vv. 1-3). The men would surely have outlined the plan in as much detail as they had been given by the messenger.
[17:22] 104 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text here or in v. 24, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[17:23] 105 tc The Greek recensions of Origen and Lucian have here “house” for “grave.”
[17:26] 107 tn Heb “and Israel.”
[17:28] 108 tc The MT adds “roasted grain” וְקָלִי (vÿqali) at the end of v. 28, apparently accidentally repeating the word from its earlier occurrence in this verse. With the LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and an Old Latin
[17:29] 109 tn Heb “cheese of the herd,” probably referring to cheese from cow’s milk (rather than goat’s milk).
[17:29] 110 tn Or “wilderness” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV, TEV, NLT).
[18:3] 111 tn Heb “the people said.”
[18:3] 112 tn Heb “march out.”
[18:3] 113 tn Heb “they will not place to us heart.”
[18:3] 114 tc The translation follows the LXX (except for the Lucianic recension), Symmachus, and Vulgate in reading אָתָּה (’atta, “you”) rather than MT עָתָּה (’atta, “now”).
[18:7] 115 tn Heb “servants” (also in v. 9).
[18:9] 117 tn Heb “the donkey.”
[18:9] 118 tn Heb “between the sky and the ground.”
[18:10] 119 tc 4QSama lacks the word “one.”
[18:11] 120 tn Heb “Why did you not strike him down there to the ground.”
[18:11] 121 tn Heb “ten [shekels] of silver.” This would have been about 4 ounces (114 grams) of silver by weight.
[18:11] 122 tn Heb “and a girdle” (so KJV); NIV “a warrior’s belt”; CEV “a special belt”; NLT “a hero’s belt.”
[18:12] 123 tc The translation follows the Qere and many medieval Hebrew
[18:12] 124 tn Heb “weighing out in my hand.”
[18:12] 125 tn Heb “a thousand [shekels] of silver.” This would have been about 25 pounds (11.4 kg) of silver by weight.
[18:12] 126 tn Heb “extend my hand against.”
[18:12] 127 tn Heb “in our ears.”
[18:12] 128 tc The Hebrew text is very difficult here. The MT reads מִי (mi, “who”), apparently yielding the following sense: “Show care, whoever you might be, for the youth Absalom.” The Syriac Peshitta reads li (“for me”), the Hebrew counterpart of which may also lie behind the LXX rendering μοι (moi, “for me”). This reading seems preferable here, since it restores sense to the passage and most easily explains the rise of the variant.
[18:13] 129 tc The translation follows the Qere, many medieval Hebrew
[18:13] 130 tn Heb “stood aloof.”
[18:14] 131 tn There is a play on the word “heart” here that is difficult to reproduce in English. Literally the Hebrew text says “he took three spears in his hand and thrust them into the heart of Absalom while he was still alive in the heart of the oak tree.” This figure of speech involves the use of the same word in different senses and is known as antanaclasis. It is illustrated in the familiar saying from the time of the American Revolution: “If we don’t hang together, we will all hang separately.” The present translation understands “heart” to be used somewhat figuratively for “chest” (cf. TEV, CEV), which explains why Joab’s armor bearers could still “kill” Absalom after he had been stabbed with three spears through the “heart.” Since trees do not have “chests” either, the translation uses “middle.”
[18:16] 132 tn Heb “the shophar” (the ram’s horn trumpet).
[18:17] 133 tn Heb “and all Israel fled, each to his tent.” In this context this refers to the supporters of Absalom (see vv. 6-7, 16).
[18:18] 134 tn Heb “and.” This disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) describes an occurrence that preceded the events just narrated.
[18:18] 135 tn Heb “a pillar.”
[18:19] 136 tn Heb “that the
[18:20] 137 tn Heb “but this day you will not bear good news.”
[18:23] 138 tn The words “but he said” are not in the Hebrew text. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.
[18:23] 139 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[18:24] 140 tn Heb “the two gates.”
[18:25] 141 tn Heb “good news is in his mouth.”
[18:25] 142 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the runner) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[18:27] 143 tn Heb “I am seeing the running of the first one like the running of Ahimaaz.”
[18:28] 145 tn Heb “delivered over.”
[18:28] 146 tn Heb “lifted their hand against.”
[18:31] 147 tn Heb “And look, the Cushite came and the Cushite said.”
[18:31] 148 tn Heb “for the
[18:32] 149 tn Heb “and all those rising against you for evil.”
[18:33] 150 sn This marks the beginning of ch. 19 in the Hebrew text. Beginning with 18:33, the verse numbers through 19:43 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 18:33 ET = 19:1 HT, 19:1 ET = 19:2 HT, 19:2 ET = 19:3 HT, etc., through 19:43 ET = 19:44 HT. From 20:1 the versification in the English Bible and the Hebrew Bible is again the same.
[18:33] 151 tc One medieval Hebrew
[18:33] 152 tc The Lucianic Greek recension and Syriac Peshitta lack this repeated occurrence of “my son” due to haplography.
[19:4] 153 tn Heb “with a great voice.”
[19:6] 156 tc The translation follows the Qere, 4QSama, and many medieval Hebrew
[19:6] 157 tc The Lucianic Greek recension and Syriac Peshitta lack “today.”
[19:7] 158 tn Heb “and speak to the heart of.”
[19:8] 159 tn Heb “all the people.”
[19:8] 160 tn The Hebrew text has simply “Israel” (see 18:16-17).
[19:8] 161 tn Heb “had fled, each to his tent.”
[19:10] 163 tc The LXX includes the following words at the end of v. 11: “And what all Israel was saying came to the king’s attention.” The words are misplaced in the LXX from v. 12 (although the same statement appears there in the LXX as well).
[19:11] 164 tn Heb “his house.”
[19:11] 165 tc The Hebrew text adds “to his house” (= palace), but the phrase, which also appears earlier in the verse, is probably accidentally repeated here.
[19:12] 166 tn Heb “my bone and my flesh.”
[19:13] 167 tn Heb “my bone and my flesh.”
[19:13] 168 tn Heb “Thus God will do to me and thus he will add.”
[19:14] 169 tn The referent of “he” is not entirely clear: cf. NCV “David”; TEV “David’s words”; NRSV, NLT “Amasa.”
[19:15] 170 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[19:15] 171 tn The Hebrew text has simply “Judah.”
[19:15] 172 tn Heb “the king.” The pronoun (“him”) has been used in the translation to avoid redundancy.
[19:17] 174 tn Heb “rushed into.”
[19:19] 175 tn Though this verb in the MT is 3rd person masculine singular, it should probably be read as 2nd person masculine singular. It is one of fifteen places where the Masoretes placed a dot over each of the letters of the word in question in order to call attention to their suspicion of the word. Their concern in this case apparently had to do with the fact that this verb and the two preceding verbs alternate from third person to second and back again to third. Words marked in this way in Hebrew manuscripts or printed editions are said to have puncta extrordinaria, or “extraordinary points.”
[19:19] 176 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[19:20] 177 tn The Hebrew text has simply “your servant.”
[19:22] 178 tn Heb “what to me and to you.”
[19:23] 179 tn Heb “swore to him.”
[19:24] 181 tn Heb “in peace.” So also in v. 31.
[19:24] 182 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Mephibosheth) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[19:24] 183 tn Heb “done his feet.”
[19:26] 185 tn Heb “your servant.”
[19:26] 186 tn Heb “your servant.”
[19:27] 187 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the servant) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[19:27] 188 tn Heb “your servant.”
[19:28] 190 tn Heb “and you placed your servant among those who eat at your table.”
[19:28] 191 tn Heb “to cry out to.”
[19:30] 193 tn Heb “in peace.”
[19:31] 194 tc The MT reading אֶת־בַיַּרְדֵּן (’et-vayyarden, “in the Jordan”) is odd syntactically. The use of the preposition after the object marker אֶת (’et) is difficult to explain. Graphic confusion is likely in the MT; the translation assumes the reading מִיַּרְדֵּן (miyyarden, “from the Jordan”). Another possibility is to read the definite article on the front of “Jordan” (הַיַּרְדֵּן, hayyarden; “the Jordan”).
[19:35] 196 tn Heb “your servant.”
[19:35] 197 tn Heb “your servant.”
[19:36] 198 tn Heb “Like a little your servant will cross the Jordan with the king.”
[19:37] 199 tn Heb “your servant.”
[19:39] 200 tn Heb “to his place.”
[19:40] 201 tn The MT in this instance alone spells the name with final ן (nun, “Kimhan”) rather than as elsewhere with final ם (mem, “Kimham”). As in most other translations, the conventional spelling (with ם) has been used here to avoid confusion.
[19:40] 203 tc The translation follows the Qere and many medieval Hebrew
[19:42] 204 tn Heb “from the king.”
[19:43] 205 tn The translation understands the verb in a desiderative sense, indicating the desire but not necessarily the completed action of the party in question. It is possible, however, that the verb should be given the more common sense of accomplished action, in which case it means here “Why have you cursed us?”
[20:1] 206 tn Heb “a man of worthlessness.”
[20:1] 207 tn The expression used here יְמִינִי (yÿmini) is a short form of the more common “Benjamin.” It appears elsewhere in 1 Sam 9:4 and Esth 2:5. Cf. 1 Sam 9:1.
[20:1] 208 tn Heb “the shophar” (the ram’s horn trumpet). So also v. 22.
[20:1] 209 tc The MT reads לְאֹהָלָיו (lÿ’ohalav, “to his tents”). For a similar idiom, see 19:9. An ancient scribal tradition understands the reading to be לְאלֹהָיו (le’lohav, “to his gods”). The word is a tiqqun sopherim, and the scribes indicate that they changed the word from “gods” to “tents” so as to soften its theological implications. In a consonantal Hebrew text the change involved only the metathesis of two letters.
[20:2] 210 tn Heb “went up from after.”
[20:2] 211 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[20:2] 212 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[20:3] 214 tn Heb “and he placed them in a guarded house.”
[20:3] 215 tn Heb “he did not come to them”; NAB “has no further relations with them”; NIV “did not lie with them”; TEV “did not have intercourse with them”; NLT “would no longer sleep with them.”
[20:4] 216 tn The present translation follows the Masoretic accentuation, with the major mark of disjunction (i.e., the atnach) placed at the word “days.” However, some scholars have suggested moving the atnach to “Judah” a couple of words earlier. This would yield the following sense: “Three days, and you be present here with them.” The difference in meaning is slight, and the MT is acceptable as it stands.
[20:6] 217 tn Heb “find.” The perfect verbal form is unexpected with the preceding word “otherwise.” We should probably read instead the imperfect. Although it is possible to understand the perfect here as indicating that the feared result is thought of as already having taken place (cf. BDB 814 s.v. פֶּן 2), it is more likely that the perfect is simply the result of scribal error. In this context the imperfect would be more consistent with the following verb וְהִצִּיל (vÿhitsil, “and he will get away”).
[20:8] 218 sn The significance of the statement it fell out here is unclear. If the dagger fell out of its sheath before Joab got to Amasa, how then did he kill him? Josephus, Ant. 7.11.7 (7.284), suggested that as Joab approached Amasa he deliberately caused the dagger to fall to the ground at an opportune moment as though by accident. When he bent over and picked it up, he then stabbed Amasa with it. Others have tried to make a case for thinking that two swords are referred to – the one that fell out and another that Joab kept concealed until the last moment. But nothing in the text clearly supports this view. Perhaps Josephus’ understanding is best, but it is by no means obvious in the text either.
[20:10] 219 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[20:10] 220 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Amasa) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[20:10] 221 tn Heb “and he did not repeat concerning him, and he died.”
[20:11] 222 tn Heb “takes delight in.”
[20:12] 223 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Amasa) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[20:12] 224 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the man who spoke up in v. 11) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[20:12] 225 tn Heb “Amasa.” For stylistic reasons the name has been replaced by the pronoun (“him”) in the translation.
[20:13] 226 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Amasa) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[20:14] 227 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Sheba) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[20:14] 228 tc In keeping with the form of the name in v. 15, the translation deletes the “and” found in the MT.
[20:14] 229 tc The translation follows the Qere, many medieval Hebrew
[20:15] 230 tn Heb “they.” The following context makes it clear that this refers to Joab and his army.
[20:15] 231 tc The LXX has here ἐνοοῦσαν (enoousan, “were devising”), which apparently presupposes the Hebrew word מַחֲשָׁבִים (makhashavim) rather than the MT מַשְׁחִיתִם (mashkhitim, “were destroying”). With a number of other scholars Driver thinks that the Greek variant may preserve the original reading, but this seems to be an unnecessary conclusion (but see S. R. Driver, Notes on the Hebrew Text and the Topography of the Books of Samuel, 346).
[20:19] 232 tn Heb “a city and a mother.” The expression is a hendiadys, meaning that this city was an important one in Israel and had smaller cities dependent on it.
[20:20] 233 tn Heb “Far be it, far be it from me.” The expression is clearly emphatic, as may be seen in part by the repetition. P. K. McCarter, however, understands it to be coarser than the translation adopted here. He renders it as “I’ll be damned if…” (II Samuel [AB], 426, 429), which (while it is not a literal translation) may not be too far removed from the way a soldier might have expressed himself.
[20:21] 234 tn Heb “lifted his hand.”
[20:22] 236 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[20:22] 237 tn Heb “they”; the referent (Joab’s men) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[20:22] 238 tn Heb “his tents.”
[20:24] 239 tn Heb “Adoram” (so KJV, NAB, NRSV, CEV), but see 1 Kgs 4:6; 5:14.
[20:24] 240 tn Heb “was over the forced labor.”
[20:26] 241 tn Heb “priest for David.” KJV (“a chief ruler about David”) and ASV (“chief minister unto David”) regarded this office as political.
