They cry out, ¹  but there is no one to help them; ²  they cry out to the Lord, ³  but he does not answer them.

But now he is dead. Why should I fast? Am I able to bring him back? I will go to him, but he cannot return to me!’”

They confronted ¹  me in my day of calamity, but the Lord helped me. ² 

But my servant ¹  has slandered me ²  to my lord the king. But my lord the king is like an angel of God. Do whatever seems appropriate to you.

You deliver oppressed ¹  people, but you watch the proud and bring them down. ² 

But he refused to listen to her. ¹  He overpowered her and humiliated her by raping her. ² 

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.

But she said to him, “No I won’t, for sending me away now would be worse than what you did to me earlier!” ¹  But he refused to listen to her.

But David’s soldiers had slaughtered the Benjaminites and Abner’s men – in all, 360 men had died!

But when Absalom pressed him, he sent Amnon and all the king’s sons along with him.

But evil people are like thorns – all of them are tossed away, for they cannot be held in the hand.

But David captured the fortress of Zion (that is, the city of David).

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, ¹  for the king’s son is dead.”

But my loyal love will not be removed from him as I removed it from Saul, whom I removed from before you.

So Amasa went out to call Judah together. But in doing so he took longer than the time that the king had allotted him.

Then Joab left David and sent messengers after Abner. They brought him back from the well of Sirah. (But David was not aware of it.)

But Uriah stayed at the door of the palace with all ¹  the servants of his lord. He did not go down to his house.

The elders of his house stood over him and tried to lift him from the ground, but he was unwilling, and refused to eat food with them.

But when she took the pan and set it before him, he refused to eat. Instead Amnon said, “Get everyone out of here!” ¹  So everyone left. ² 

But he made a stand in the middle of that area. He defended ¹  it and defeated the Philistines; the Lord gave them a great victory.