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, ¹  am from one of the tribes of Israel.”

They had entered ¹  the house while Ish-bosheth ²  was resting on his bed in his bedroom. They mortally wounded him ³  and then cut off his head. ⁴  Taking his head, ⁵  they traveled on the way of the Arabah all that night.

The waves of death engulfed me; the currents ¹  of chaos ²  overwhelmed me. ³ 

As he yelled curses, Shimei said, “Leave! Leave! You man of bloodshed, you wicked man! ¹ 

So Joab and Abishai chased Abner. At sunset they came to the hill of Ammah near Giah on the way to the wilderness of Gibeon.

So Joab went to the king and informed him. The king ¹  summoned Absalom, and he came to the king. Absalom ²  bowed down before the king with his face toward the ground and the king kissed him. ³ 

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, ¹  whoever hears about it will say, ‘Absalom’s army has been slaughtered!’

Then Absalom sent a message to Joab asking him to send him to the king, but Joab was not willing to come to him. So he sent a second message to him, but he still was not willing to come.

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. ¹ 

Another battle was fought between the Philistines and Israel. So David went down with his soldiers ¹  and fought the Philistines. David became exhausted.

The men of Judah came and there they anointed David as king over the people ¹  of Judah. David was told, ²  “The people ³  of Jabesh Gilead are the ones who buried Saul.”

One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of his palace. ¹  From the roof he saw a woman bathing. Now this woman was very attractive. ² 

David sent some messengers to get her. ¹  She came to him and he had sexual relations with her. ²  (Now at that time she was in the process of purifying herself from her menstrual uncleanness.) ³  Then she returned to her home.

Then David summoned him. He ate and drank with him, and got him drunk. But in the evening he went out to sleep on his bed with the servants of his lord; he did not go down to his own house.

So as Joab kept watch on the city, he stationed Uriah at the place where he knew the best enemy soldiers ¹  were.

Now there was a servant from Saul’s house named Ziba, so he was summoned to David. The king asked him, “Are you Ziba?” He replied, “At your service.” ¹ 

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.

Now the Philistines had arrived and spread out in the valley of Rephaim.

The Philistines ¹  abandoned their idols ²  there, and David and his men picked them up.

The woman conceived and then sent word to David saying, “I’m pregnant.”