He let no one oppress them, he disciplined kings for their sake,

He let no one oppress them; he disciplined kings for their sake,

The king settled into his palace, for the Lord gave him relief from all his enemies on all sides.

But now the Lord my God has made me secure on all fronts; there is no adversary or dangerous threat.

For David said, “The Lord God of Israel has given his people rest and has permanently settled in Jerusalem.

A long time passed after the Lord made Israel secure from all their enemies, and Joshua was very old.

These were the nations the Lord permitted to remain so he could use them to test Israel – he wanted to test all those who had not experienced battle against the Canaanites.

He built fortified cities throughout Judah, for the land was at rest and there was no war during those years; the Lord gave him peace.

When the Lord gives you relief from your suffering and anxiety, and from the hard labor which you were made to perform,

Look, the sovereign master sends a strong, powerful one. With the force of a hailstorm or a destructive windstorm, with the might of a driving, torrential rainstorm, he will knock that crown to the ground with his hand.

Now the Lord your God has made your fellow Israelites secure, just as he promised them. So now you may turn around and go to your homes in your own land which Moses the Lord’s servant assigned to you east of the Jordan.

Ahithophel replied to Absalom, “Have sex with 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.”

Then David went to his palace in Jerusalem. The king took the ten concubines he had left to care for the palace and placed them under confinement. Though he provided for their needs, he did not have sexual relations with them. They remained in confinement until the day they died, living out the rest of their lives as widows.

They also led off all the men, women, children, and royal princesses that Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard, had left with Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam and grandson of Shaphan. This included the prophet Jeremiah and Baruch son of Neriah.