Your house and your kingdom will stand before me permanently; your dynasty will be permanent.’”

David took the golden shields that belonged to Hadadezer’s servants and brought them to Jerusalem.

David reigned over all Israel; he guaranteed justice for all his people.

Benaiah son of Jehoida supervised the Kerithites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were priests.

Later the king of the Ammonites died and his son Hanun succeeded him.

In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah.

Jonadab said to the king, “Look! The king’s sons have come! It’s just as I said!”

Some time later Absalom managed to acquire a chariot and horses, as well as fifty men to serve as his royal guard.

When someone approached to bow before him, Absalom would extend his hand and embrace him and kiss him.

Then a messenger came to David and reported, “The men of Israel are loyal to Absalom!”

David said to him, “If you leave with me you will be a burden to me.

Then the army marched out to the field to fight against Israel. The battle took place in the forest of Ephraim.

You are my brothers – my very own flesh and blood! Why should you delay any further in bringing the king back?’

From the three he was given honor and he became their officer, even though he was not one of the three.

When David got up the next morning, the Lord had already spoken to Gad the prophet, David’s seer:

On the third day a man arrived from the camp of Saul with his clothes torn and dirt on his head. When he approached David, the man threw himself to the ground.

Now Saul’s son Jonathan had a son who was crippled in both feet. He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan arrived from Jezreel. His nurse picked him up and fled, but in her haste to get away, he fell and was injured. Mephibosheth was his name.

So your servant said, ‘May the word of my lord the king be my security, for my lord the king is like the angel of God when it comes to deciding between right and wrong! May the Lord your God be with you!’”

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, there I will be as well!”

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, whoever hears about it will say, ‘Absalom’s army has been slaughtered!’