<p class="bodytext">When he came from Jerusalem to meet the king, the king asked him, &#8220;Why didn&#8217;t you go with me, Mephibosheth?&#8221;

When the king crossed over to Gilgal, Kimham<n id="1" /> crossed over with him. Now all the soldiers<n id="2" /> of Judah along with half of the soldiers of Israel had helped the king cross over.<n id="3" />p>

<t /><p class="bodytext">Another battle was fought between the Philistines and Israel. So David went down with his soldiers<n id="1" /> and fought the Philistines. David became exhausted.

<p class="bodytext">Later there was another battle with the Philistines, this time in Gob. On that occasion Sibbekai the Hushathite killed Saph, who was one of the descendants of Rapha.

On the third day a man arrived from the camp of Saul with his clothes torn and dirt on his head.<n id="1" /> When he approached David, the man<n id="2" /> threw himself to the ground.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="bodytext">Then Abner sent messengers<n id="1" /> to David saying, &#8220;To whom does the land belong? Make an agreement<n id="2" /> with me, and I will do whatever I can<n id="3" /> to cause all Israel to turn to you.&#8221;

The king asked, &#8220;Is there not someone left from Saul&#8217;s family,<n id="1" /> that I may extend God&#8217;s kindness to him?&#8221; Ziba said to the king, &#8220;One of Jonathan&#8217;s sons is left; both of his feet are crippled.&#8221;

<p class="bodytext">David said to him, &#8220;Don&#8217;t be afraid, because I will certainly extend kindness to you for the sake of Jonathan your father. You will be a regular guest at my table.&#8221;<n id="1" />

David said, &#8220;I will express my loyalty<n id="1" /> to Hanun son of Nahash just as his father was loyal<n id="2" /> to me.&#8221; So David sent his servants with a message expressing sympathy over his father&#8217;s death.<n id="3" /> When David&#8217;s servants entered the land of the Ammonites,

<t /><p class="bodytext">In the spring of the year, at the time when kings<n id="1" /> normally conduct wars,<n id="2" /> David sent out Joab with his officers<n id="3" /> and the entire Israelite army.<n id="4" /> They defeated the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed behind in Jerusalem.<n id="5" />

This is what the <sc>Lordsc> says: &#8216;I am about to bring disaster on you<n id="1" /> from inside your own household!<n id="2" /> Right before your eyes I will take your wives and hand them over to your companion.<n id="3" /> He will have sexual relations with<n id="4" /> your wives in broad daylight!<n id="5" />

<p class="bodytext">Her brother Absalom said to her, &#8220;Was Amnon your brother with you? Now be quiet, my sister. He is your brother. Don&#8217;t take it so seriously!&#8221;<n id="1" /> Tamar, devastated, lived in the house of her brother Absalom.p>

But Absalom said nothing to Amnon, either bad or good, yet Absalom hated Amnon because he had humiliated his sister Tamar.p>

So your servant said, &#8216;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 <sc>Lordsc> your God be with you!&#8217;&#8221;p>

<p class="bodytext">Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite, &#8220;Why should you come with us? Go back and stay with the new<n id="1" /> king, for you are a foreigner and an exile from your own country.<n id="2" />

David then sent out the army &#8211; a third under the leadership of Joab, a third under the leadership of Joab&#8217;s brother Abishai son of Zeruiah, and a third under the leadership of Ittai the Gittite. The king said to the troops, &#8220;I too will indeed march out with you.&#8221;p>

There were a thousand men from Benjamin with him, along with Ziba the servant<n id="1" /> of Saul&#8217;s household, and with him his fifteen sons and twenty servants. They hurriedly crossed<n id="2" /> the Jordan within sight of the king.

<p class="bodytext">Then all the men of Israel began coming to the king. They asked the king, &#8220;Why did our brothers, the men of Judah, sneak the king away and help the king and his household cross the Jordan &#8211; and not only him but all of David&#8217;s men as well?&#8221;p> <p class="bodytext">

<p class="bodytext">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.<n id="1" />p>

Yet another battle occurred with the Philistines in Gob. On that occasion Elhanan the son of Jair<n id="1" /> the Bethlehemite killed the brother of Goliath the Gittite,<n id="2" /> the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver&#8217;s beam.