2 Samuel 17 Cross References - BSB

¹ Furthermore, Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Let me choose twelve thousand men and set out tonight in pursuit of David. ² I will attack him while he is weak and weary; I will throw him into a panic, and all the people with him will flee; I will strike down only the king ³ and bring all the people back to you as a bride returning to her husband. You seek the life of only one man; then all the people will be at peace.” ⁴ This proposal seemed good to Absalom and all the elders of Israel. ⁵ Then Absalom said, “Summon Hushai the Archite as well, and let us hear what he too has to say.” ⁶ So Hushai came to Absalom, who told him, “Ahithophel has spoken this proposal. Should we carry it out? If not, what do you say?” ⁷ Hushai replied, “This time the advice of Ahithophel is not sound.” ⁸ He continued, “You know your father and his men. They are mighty men, and as fierce as a wild bear robbed of her cubs. Moreover, your father is a man of war who will not spend the night with the troops. ⁹ Surely by now he is hiding in a cave or some other location. If some of your troops fall first, whoever hears of it will say, ‘There has been a slaughter among the troops who follow Absalom.’ ¹⁰ Then even the most valiant soldier with the heart of a lion will melt with fear, because all Israel knows that your father is a mighty man who has valiant men with him. ¹¹ Instead, I advise that all Israel from Dan to Beersheba—a multitude like the sand on the seashore—be gathered to you, and that you yourself lead them into battle. ¹² Then we will attack David wherever we find him, and we will descend on him like dew on the ground. And of all the men with him, not even one will remain. ¹³ If he retreats to a city, all Israel will bring ropes to that city, and we will drag it down to the valley until not even a pebble can be found.” ¹⁴ Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than that of Ahithophel.” For the LORD had purposed to thwart the good counsel of Ahithophel in order to bring disaster on Absalom. ¹⁵ So Hushai told Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, “This is what Ahithophel has advised Absalom and the elders of Israel, and this is what I have advised. ¹⁶ Now send quickly and tell David, ‘Do not spend the night at the fords of the wilderness, but be sure to cross over. Otherwise the king and all the people with him will be swallowed up.’” ¹⁷ Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying at En-rogel, where a servant girl would come and pass along information to them. They in turn would go and inform King David, for they dared not be seen entering the city. ¹⁸ But a young man did see them and told Absalom. So the two left quickly and came to the house of a man in Bahurim. He had a well in his courtyard, and they climbed down into it. ¹⁹ Then the man’s wife took a covering and spread it over the mouth of the well, scattering grain over it so nobody would know a thing. ²⁰ When Absalom’s servants came to the woman at the house, they asked, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?” “They have crossed over the brook,” she replied. The men searched but did not find them, so they returned to Jerusalem. ²¹ After the men had gone, Ahimaaz and Jonathan climbed up out of the well and went to inform King David, saying, “Get up and cross over the river at once, for Ahithophel has given this advice against you.” ²² So David and all the people with him got up and crossed the Jordan. By daybreak, there was no one left who had not crossed the Jordan. ²³ When Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and set out for his house in his hometown. He put his affairs in order and hanged himself. So he died and was buried in his father’s tomb. ²⁴ Then David went to Mahanaim, and Absalom crossed the Jordan with all the men of Israel. ²⁵ Absalom had appointed Amasa over the army in place of Joab. Amasa was the son of a man named Ithra, the Ishmaelite who had married Abigail, the daughter of Nahash and sister of Zeruiah the mother of Joab. ²⁶ So the Israelites and Absalom camped in the land of Gilead. ²⁷ When David came to Mahanaim, he was met by Shobi son of Nahash from Rabbah of the Ammonites, Machir son of Ammiel from Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim. ²⁸ They brought beds, basins, and earthen vessels, as well as wheat, barley, flour, roasted grain, beans, lentils, ²⁹ honey, curds, sheep, and cheese from the herd for David and his people to eat. For they said, “The people have become hungry, exhausted, and thirsty in the wilderness.”

³ But You, O LORD, are a shield around me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head. ⁴ To the LORD I cry aloud, and He answers me from His holy mountain. Selah ⁵ I lie down and sleep; I wake again, for the LORD sustains me.

⁸ I will lie down and sleep in peace, for You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.

² For wicked and deceitful mouths open against me; they speak against me with lying tongues. ³ They surround me with hateful words and attack me without cause. ⁴ In return for my love they accuse me, but I am a man of prayer.

¹⁶ For their feet run to evil, and they are swift to shed blood.

¹⁶ For they cannot sleep unless they do evil; they are deprived of slumber until they make someone fall.

⁷ Their feet run to evil; they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are sinful thoughts; ruin and destruction lie in their wake. ⁸ The way of peace they have not known, and there is no justice in their tracks. They have turned them into crooked paths; no one who treads on them will know peace.

¹⁸ how they met you on your journey when you were tired and weary, and they attacked all your stragglers; they had no fear of God.

¹⁴ Finally, the king and all the people with him arrived, exhausted. And there he refreshed himself.

³¹ Now the king of Aram had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, “Do not fight with anyone, small or great, except the king of Israel.”

⁷ Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, against the man who is My Companion, declares the LORD of Hosts. Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn My hand against the little ones.

³⁸ But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and take his inheritance.’

³¹ Then Jesus said to them, “This very night you will all fall away on account of Me. For it is written: ‘I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’

⁵⁰ You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.”

⁴ Jesus, knowing all that was coming upon Him, stepped forward and asked them, “Whom are you seeking?” ⁵ “Jesus of Nazareth,” they answered. Jesus said, “I am He.” And Judas His betrayer was standing there with them. ⁶ When Jesus said, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground. ⁷ So He asked them again, “Whom are you seeking?” “Jesus of Nazareth,” they answered. ⁸ “I told you that I am He,” Jesus replied. “So if you are looking for Me, let these men go.”

²¹ Then Abner said to David, “Let me go at once, and I will gather all Israel to my lord the king, that they may make a covenant with you, and that you may rule over all that your heart desires.” So David dismissed Abner, and he went in peace.

²² “There is no peace,” says the LORD, “for the wicked.”

²¹ “There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.”

³ While people are saying, “Peace and security,” destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

²⁰ Now Saul’s daughter Michal loved David, and when this was reported to Saul, it pleased him. ²¹ “I will give her to David,” Saul thought, “so that she may be a snare to him, and the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” So Saul said to David, “For a second time now you can be my son-in-law.”

²¹ “May you be blessed by the LORD,” replied Saul, “for you have had compassion on me.

⁴ This proposal pleased the king and the whole assembly.

²¹ The king and his princes were pleased with this counsel; so the king did as Memucan had advised.

¹⁴ His wife Zeresh and all his friends told him, “Have them build a gallows fifty cubits high, and ask the king in the morning to have Mordecai hanged on it. Then go to the banquet with the king and enjoy yourself.” The advice pleased Haman, and he had the gallows constructed.

³² Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things are worthy of death, they not only continue to do these things, but also approve of those who practice them.

³² When David came to the summit, where he used to worship God, Hushai the Archite was there to meet him with his robe torn and dust on his head. ³³ David said to him, “If you go on with me, you will be a burden to me. ³⁴ But you can thwart the counsel of Ahithophel for me if you return to the city and say to Absalom: ‘I will be your servant, my king; in the past I was your father’s servant, but now I will be your servant.’ ³⁵ Will not Zadok and Abiathar the priests be there with you? Report to them everything you hear from the king’s palace. ³⁶ Indeed, their two sons, Ahimaaz son of Zadok and Jonathan son of Abiathar, are there with them. Send them to me with everything you hear.” ³⁷ So David’s friend Hushai arrived in Jerusalem just as Absalom was entering the city.

¹⁶ And David’s friend Hushai the Archite went to Absalom and said to him, “Long live the king! Long live the king!” ¹⁷ “Is this the loyalty you show your friend?” Absalom replied. “Why did you not go with your friend?” ¹⁸ “Not at all,” Hushai answered. “For the one chosen by the LORD, by the people, and by all the men of Israel—his I will be, and with him I will remain. ¹⁹ Furthermore, whom should I serve if not the son? As I served in your father’s presence, so also I will serve in yours.”

⁸ Open your mouth for those with no voice, for the cause of all the dispossessed.

²⁵ The Danites said to him, “Do not raise your voice against us, or angry men will attack you, and you and your family will lose your lives.”

¹⁸ One of the servants answered, “I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the harp. He is a mighty man of valor, a warrior, eloquent and handsome, and the LORD is with him.”

³⁴ David replied, “Your servant has been tending his father’s sheep, and whenever a lion or a bear came and carried off a lamb from the flock, ³⁵ I went after it, struck it down, and delivered the lamb from its mouth. If it reared up against me, I would grab it by its fur, strike it down, and kill it. ³⁶ Your servant has killed lions and bears; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.”

⁵⁰ Thus David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.

²³ Observe and find out all the places where he hides. Then come back to me with certainty, and I will go with you. If he is in the land, I will search him out among all the clans of Judah.”

¹⁸ and all his servants marched past him—all the Cherethites and Pelethites, and six hundred Gittites who had followed him from Gath.

¹⁸ Some time later at Gob, there was another battle with the Philistines. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Saph, one of the descendants of Rapha. ¹⁹ Once again there was a battle with the Philistines at Gob, and Elhanan son of Jair the Bethlehemite killed the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. ²⁰ And there was still another battle at Gath, where there was a man of great stature with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot—twenty-four in all. He too was descended from Rapha, ²¹ and when he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son of David’s brother Shimei killed him. ²² So these four descendants of Rapha in Gath fell at the hands of David and his servants.

⁸ These are the names of David’s mighty men: Josheb-basshebeth the Tahchemonite was chief of the Three. He wielded his spear against eight hundred men, whom he killed at one time. ⁹ Next in command was Eleazar son of Dodo the Ahohite. As one of the three mighty men, he went with David to taunt the Philistines who had gathered for battle at Pas-dammim. The men of Israel retreated,

¹⁶ So the three mighty men broke through the Philistine camp, drew water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem, and brought it back to David. But he refused to drink it; instead, he poured it out to the LORD,

¹⁸ Now Abishai, the brother of Joab and son of Zeruiah, was chief of the Three, and he lifted his spear against three hundred men, killed them, and won a name along with the Three.

²⁰ And Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a man of valor from Kabzeel, a man of many exploits. He struck down two champions of Moab, and on a snowy day he went down into a pit and killed a lion. ²¹ He also killed an Egyptian, a huge man. Although the Egyptian had a spear in his hand, Benaiah went against him with a club, snatched the spear from his hand, and killed the Egyptian with his own spear. ²² These were the exploits of Benaiah son of Jehoiada, who won a name alongside the three mighty men.

²⁴ Then he turned around, looked at them, and called down a curse on them in the name of the LORD. Suddenly two female bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys.

²⁵ He was most honored among the Thirty, but he did not become one of the Three. And David appointed him over his guard. ²⁶ Now these were the mighty men: Asahel the brother of Joab, Elhanan son of Dodo of Bethlehem, ²⁷ Shammoth the Harorite, Helez the Pelonite, ²⁸ Ira son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, Abiezer the Anathothite, ²⁹ Sibbecai the Hushathite, Ilai the Ahohite, ³⁰ Maharai the Netophathite, Heled son of Baanah the Netophathite, ³¹ Ithai son of Ribai from Gibeah of the Benjamites, Benaiah the Pirathonite, ³² Hurai from the brooks of Gaash, Abiel the Arbathite, ³³ Azmaveth the Baharumite, Eliahba the Shaalbonite, ³⁴ the sons of Hashem the Gizonite, Jonathan son of Shagee the Hararite, ³⁵ Ahiam son of Sachar the Hararite, Eliphal son of Ur, ³⁶ Hepher the Mecherathite, Ahijah the Pelonite, ³⁷ Hezro the Carmelite, Naarai son of Ezbai, ³⁸ Joel the brother of Nathan, Mibhar son of Hagri, ³⁹ Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, the armor-bearer of Joab son of Zeruiah, ⁴⁰ Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite, ⁴¹ Uriah the Hittite, Zabad son of Ahlai, ⁴² Adina son of Shiza the Reubenite, chief of the Reubenites, and the thirty with him, ⁴³ Hanan son of Maacah, Joshaphat the Mithnite, ⁴⁴ Uzzia the Ashterathite, Shama and Jeiel the sons of Hotham the Aroerite, ⁴⁵ Jediael son of Shimri and his brother Joha the Tizite, ⁴⁶ Eliel the Mahavite, Jeribai and Joshaviah, the sons of Elnaam, Ithmah the Moabite, ⁴⁷ Eliel, Obed, and Jaasiel the Mezobaite.

¹² It is better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than a fool in his folly.

¹⁵ Like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked ruler over a helpless people.

⁵ Suddenly another beast appeared, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. So it was told, ‘Get up and gorge yourself on flesh!’

⁸ Like a bear robbed of her cubs I will attack them, and I will tear open their chests. There I will devour them like a lion, like a wild beast would tear them apart.

³² And what more shall I say? Time will not allow me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets, ³³ who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, ³⁴ quenched the raging fire, and escaped the edge of the sword; who gained strength from weakness, became mighty in battle, and put foreign armies to flight.

⁵ And the men of Ai struck down about thirty-six of them, chasing them from the gate as far as the quarries and striking them down on the slopes. So the hearts of the people melted and became like water.

⁶ They will pursue us until we have drawn them away from the city, for they will say, ‘The Israelites are running away from us as they did before.’ So as we flee from them,

³² “We are defeating them as before,” said the Benjamites. But the Israelites said, “Let us retreat and draw them away from the city onto the roads.” ³³ So all the men of Israel got up from their places and arrayed themselves at Baal-tamar, and the Israelites in ambush charged from their positions west of Gibeah.

¹⁴ In that first assault, Jonathan and his armor-bearer struck down about twenty men over half an acre of land. ¹⁵ Then terror struck the Philistines in the camp, in the field, and among all the people. Even those in the outposts and raiding parties trembled. Indeed, the earth quaked and panic spread from God.

¹ So David left Gath and took refuge in the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and the rest of his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there.

³ Soon Saul came to the sheepfolds along the road, where there was a cave, and he went in to relieve himself. And David and his men were hiding in the recesses of the cave.

⁹ Judah is a young lion—my son, you return from the prey. Like a lion he crouches and lies down; like a lioness, who dares to rouse him?

¹⁵ Then the chiefs of Edom will be dismayed; trembling will seize the leaders of Moab; those who dwell in Canaan will melt away,

⁸ God brought him out of Egypt with strength like a wild ox, to devour hostile nations and crush their bones, to pierce them with arrows. ⁹ He crouches, he lies down like a lion; like a lioness, who dares to rouse him? Blessed are those who bless you and cursed are those who curse you.”

²⁸ Where can we go? Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying: ‘The people are larger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the heavens. We even saw the descendants of the Anakim there.’”

⁹ and said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you this land and that the fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who dwell in the land are melting in fear of you. ¹⁰ For we have heard how the LORD dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites across the Jordan, whom you devoted to destruction. ¹¹ When we heard this, our hearts melted and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in the heavens above and on the earth below.

¹⁷ Then Saul said to David, “Here is my older daughter Merab. I will give her to you in marriage. Only be valiant for me and fight the LORD’s battles.” But Saul was thinking, “I need not raise my hand against him; let the hand of the Philistines be against him.”

²³ Saul and Jonathan, beloved and delightful in life, were not divided in death. They were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions.

²⁰ And Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a man of valor from Kabzeel, a man of many exploits. He struck down two champions of Moab, and on a snowy day he went down into a pit and killed a lion.

¹ The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.

⁷ Behold, it is Solomon’s carriage, escorted by sixty of the mightiest men of Israel.

⁷ Therefore all hands will fall limp, and every man’s heart will melt.

¹ This is the burden against Egypt: Behold, the LORD rides on a swift cloud; He is coming to Egypt. The idols of Egypt will tremble before Him, and the hearts of the Egyptians will melt within them.

³⁴ quenched the raging fire, and escaped the edge of the sword; who gained strength from weakness, became mighty in battle, and put foreign armies to flight.

¹⁶ I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if one could count the dust of the earth, then your offspring could be counted.

¹⁷ I will surely bless you, and I will multiply your descendants like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the gates of their enemies.

⁴ So these kings came out with all their armies, a multitude as numerous as the sand on the seashore, along with a great number of horses and chariots.

¹ Then all the Israelites from Dan to Beersheba and from the land of Gilead came out, and the congregation assembled as one man before the LORD at Mizpah.

²⁸ Now, therefore, assemble the rest of the troops, lay siege to the city, and capture it. Otherwise I will capture the city, and it will be named after me.”

² So the king said to Joab the commander of his army, who was with him, “Go now throughout the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beersheba and register the troops, so that I may know their number.”

²⁰ The people of Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand on the seashore, and they were eating and drinking and rejoicing.

¹⁰ Then Ben-hadad sent another message to Ahab: “May the gods deal with me, and ever so severely, if enough dust remains of Samaria for each of my men to have a handful.”

¹⁵ He has dug a hole and hollowed it out; he has fallen into a pit of his own making. ¹⁶ His trouble recoils on himself, and his violence falls on his own head.

¹⁶ The LORD is known by the justice He brings; the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands. Higgaion Selah

²³ Now, therefore, make a bargain with my master, the king of Assyria. I will give you two thousand horses—if you can put riders on them!

²⁴ I have dug wells and drunk foreign waters. With the soles of my feet I have dried up all the streams of Egypt.”

¹³ For he says: ‘By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom, for I am clever. I have removed the boundaries of nations and plundered their treasures; like a mighty one I subdued their rulers. ¹⁴ My hand reached as into a nest to seize the wealth of the nations. Like one gathering abandoned eggs, I gathered all the earth. No wing fluttered, no beak opened or chirped.’”

³ The pride of your heart has deceived you, O dwellers in the clefts of the rocks whose habitation is the heights, who say in your heart, ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’

⁶ Therefore I will make Samaria a heap of rubble in the open field, a planting area for a vineyard. I will pour her stones into the valley and expose her foundations.

² “Do you see all these things?” He replied. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”

²⁸ Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men, and you have prevailed.”

¹⁶ But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display My power to you, and that My name might be proclaimed in all the earth.

³⁰ But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass through, for the LORD your God had made his spirit stubborn and his heart obstinate, that He might deliver him into your hand, as is the case this day.

³¹ Now someone told David: “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.” So David pleaded, “O LORD, please turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness!”

³⁴ But you can thwart the counsel of Ahithophel for me if you return to the city and say to Absalom: ‘I will be your servant, my king; in the past I was your father’s servant, but now I will be your servant.’

²³ Now in those days the advice of Ahithophel was like the consultation of the word of God. Such was the regard that both David and Absalom had for Ahithophel’s advice.

¹⁶ While he was still speaking, the king asked, “Have we made you the counselor to the king? Stop! Why be struck down?” So the prophet stopped, but he said, “I know that God has determined to destroy you, because you have done this and have not heeded my advice.”

²⁰ But Amaziah would not listen, for this had come from God in order to deliver them into the hand of Jehoash, because they had sought the gods of Edom.

¹² He thwarts the schemes of the crafty, so that their hands find no success. ¹³ He catches the wise in their craftiness, and sweeps away the plans of the cunning. ¹⁴ They encounter darkness by day and grope at noon as in the night.

⁹ For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm. ¹⁰ The LORD frustrates the plans of the nations; He thwarts the devices of the peoples.

²¹ Many plans are in a man’s heart, but the purpose of the LORD will prevail.

³⁰ There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel that can prevail against the LORD.

¹⁰ Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted; state a proposal, but it will not happen. For God is with us.”

³⁷ Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has ordained it?

³ Though they hide themselves atop Carmel, there I will track them and seize them; and though they hide from Me at the bottom of the sea, there I will command the serpent to bite them.

⁸ The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the sons of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the sons of light.

¹⁹ For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.” ²⁰ Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

¹⁹ For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.”

³⁵ Will not Zadok and Abiathar the priests be there with you? Report to them everything you hear from the king’s palace. ³⁶ Indeed, their two sons, Ahimaaz son of Zadok and Jonathan son of Abiathar, are there with them. Send them to me with everything you hear.”

³⁸ Then Jonathan cried out, “Hurry! Make haste! Do not delay!” So the boy picked up the arrow and returned to his master.

¹⁴ And David said to all the servants with him in Jerusalem, “Arise and let us flee, or we will not escape from Absalom! We must leave quickly, or he will soon overtake us, heap disaster on us, and put the city to the sword.”

²⁸ See, I will wait at the fords of the wilderness until word comes from you to inform me.”

²¹ After the men had gone, Ahimaaz and Jonathan climbed up out of the well and went to inform King David, saying, “Get up and cross over the river at once, for Ahithophel has given this advice against you.” ²² So David and all the people with him got up and crossed the Jordan. By daybreak, there was no one left who had not crossed the Jordan.

¹⁹ I am among the peaceable and faithful in Israel, but you are trying to destroy a city that is a mother in Israel. Why would you swallow up the LORD’s inheritance?” ²⁰ “Far be it!” Joab declared. “Far be it from me to swallow up or destroy!

²⁵ Let them not say in their hearts, “Aha, just what we wanted!” Let them not say, “We have swallowed him up!”

⁸ I would hurry to my shelter, far from this raging tempest.”

² My enemies pursue me all day long, for many proudly assail me.

³ He reaches down from heaven and saves me; He rebukes those who trample me. Selah God sends forth His loving devotion and His truth.

⁴ Allow no sleep to your eyes or slumber to your eyelids. ⁵ Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the snare of the fowler.

¹⁶ then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ¹⁷ Let no one on the housetop come down to retrieve anything from his house. ¹⁸ And let no one in the field return for his cloak.

⁵⁴ When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come to pass: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”

⁴ So while we are in this tent, we groan under our burdens, because we do not wish to be unclothed but clothed, so that our mortality may be swallowed up by life.

⁴ But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. So she said, “Yes, the men did come to me, but I did not know where they had come from. ⁵ At dusk, when the gate was about to close, the men went out, and I do not know which way they went. Pursue them quickly, and you may catch them!” ⁶ (But Rahab had taken them up to the roof and hidden them among the stalks of flax that she had laid out there.) ⁷ So the king’s men set out in pursuit of the spies along the road to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as they had gone out, the gate was shut. ⁸ Before the spies lay down for the night, Rahab went up on the roof ⁹ and said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you this land and that the fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who dwell in the land are melting in fear of you. ¹⁰ For we have heard how the LORD dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites across the Jordan, whom you devoted to destruction. ¹¹ When we heard this, our hearts melted and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in the heavens above and on the earth below. ¹² Now therefore, please swear to me by the LORD that you will indeed show kindness to my family, because I showed kindness to you. Give me a sure sign ¹³ that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and that you will deliver us from death.” ¹⁴ “Our lives for your lives!” the men agreed. “If you do not report our mission, we will show you kindness and faithfulness when the LORD gives us the land.” ¹⁵ Then Rahab let them down by a rope through the window, since the house where she lived was built into the wall of the city. ¹⁶ “Go to the hill country,” she said, “so that your pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there for three days until they have returned; then go on your way.” ¹⁷ The men said to her, “We will not be bound by this oath you made us swear ¹⁸ unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother and brothers and all your family into your house. ¹⁹ If anyone goes out the door of your house into the street, his blood will be on his own head, and we will be innocent. But if a hand is laid on anyone with you in the house, his blood will be on our heads. ²⁰ And if you report our mission, we will be released from the oath you made us swear.” ²¹ “Let it be as you say,” she replied, and she sent them away. And when they had gone, she tied the scarlet cord in the window. ²² So the spies went out into the hill country and stayed there three days, until their pursuers had returned without finding them, having searched all along the road. ²³ Then the two men started back, came down from the hill country, and crossed the river. So they came to Joshua son of Nun and reported all that had happened to them. ²⁴ “The LORD has surely delivered the entire land into our hands,” they said to Joshua. “Indeed, all who dwell in the land are melting in fear of us.”

⁷ Then the border went up to Debir from the Valley of Achor, turning north to Gilgal, which faces the Ascent of Adummim south of the ravine. It continued along the waters of En-shemesh and came out at En-rogel.

¹⁶ Then it went down to the foot of the hill that faces the Valley of Hinnom at the northern end of the Valley of Rephaim and ran down the Valley of Hinnom toward the southern slope of the Jebusites and downward to En-rogel.

²⁷ The king also said to Zadok the priest, “Are you not a seer? Return to the city in peace—you with your son Ahimaaz, and Abiathar with his son Jonathan.

³⁶ Indeed, their two sons, Ahimaaz son of Zadok and Jonathan son of Abiathar, are there with them. Send them to me with everything you hear.”

⁹ And Adonijah sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fattened calves near the stone of Zoheleth, which is next to En-rogel. He invited all his royal brothers and all the men of Judah who were servants of the king.

¹⁶ Her husband followed her, weeping all the way to Bahurim. Then Abner said to him, “Go back.” So he returned home.

⁵ As King David approached Bahurim, a man from the family of the house of Saul was just coming out. His name was Shimei son of Gera, and as he approached, he kept yelling out curses.

¹⁶ Then Shimei son of Gera, a Benjamite from Bahurim, hurried down with the men of Judah to meet King David,

¹⁹ The midwives answered Pharaoh, “The Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before a midwife arrives.”

³ So the king of Jericho sent to Rahab and said, “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, for they have come to spy out the whole land.” ⁴ But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. So she said, “Yes, the men did come to me, but I did not know where they had come from. ⁵ At dusk, when the gate was about to close, the men went out, and I do not know which way they went. Pursue them quickly, and you may catch them!”

²² So the spies went out into the hill country and stayed there three days, until their pursuers had returned without finding them, having searched all along the road. ²³ Then the two men started back, came down from the hill country, and crossed the river. So they came to Joshua son of Nun and reported all that had happened to them.

¹² So Michal lowered David from the window, and he ran away and escaped. ¹³ Then Michal took a household idol and laid it in the bed, placed some goat hair on its head, and covered it with a garment. ¹⁴ When Saul sent the messengers to seize David, Michal said, “He is ill.” ¹⁵ But Saul sent the messengers back to see David and told them, “Bring him up to me in his bed so I can kill him.” ¹⁶ And when the messengers entered, there was the idol in the bed with the quilt of goats’ hair on its head. ¹⁷ And Saul said to Michal, “Why did you deceive me like this? You sent my enemy away and he has escaped!” Michal replied, “He said to me, ‘Help me get away, or I will kill you!’”

² “The king has given me a mission,” David replied. “He told me no one is to know about the mission or charge. And I have directed my young men to meet me at a certain place.

¹¹ David did not leave a man or woman alive to be brought to Gath, for he said, “Otherwise they will report us, saying, ‘This is what David did.’” And this was David’s custom the whole time he lived in Philistine territory. ¹² So Achish trusted David, thinking, “Since he has made himself an utter stench to his people Israel, he will be my servant forever.”

¹⁵ So Hushai told Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, “This is what Ahithophel has advised Absalom and the elders of Israel, and this is what I have advised. ¹⁶ Now send quickly and tell David, ‘Do not spend the night at the fords of the wilderness, but be sure to cross over. Otherwise the king and all the people with him will be swallowed up.’”

⁴⁹ and said, “Your servants have counted the soldiers under our command, and not one of us is missing.

²⁴ Then David went to Mahanaim, and Absalom crossed the Jordan with all the men of Israel.

¹² The prudent see danger and take cover; but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.

¹⁶ Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.

⁹ This was to fulfill the word He had spoken: “I have not lost one of those You have given Me.”

⁴ Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and run it through me, or these uncircumcised men will come and run me through and torture me!” But his armor-bearer was terrified and refused to do it. So Saul took his own sword and fell on it. ⁵ When his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he too fell on his own sword and died with him.

¹² While Absalom was offering the sacrifices, he sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David’s counselor, to come from his hometown of Giloh. So the conspiracy gained strength, and Absalom’s following kept increasing.

¹⁸ When Zimri saw that the city was captured, he entered the citadel of the royal palace and burned it down upon himself. So he died

¹ In those days Hezekiah became mortally ill. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz came to him and said, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Put your house in order, for you are about to die; you will not recover.’”

³ Does not disaster come to the unjust and calamity to the workers of iniquity?

¹⁰ Declare them guilty, O God; let them fall by their own devices. Drive them out for their many transgressions, for they have rebelled against You.

²³ But You, O God, will bring them down to the Pit of destruction; men of bloodshed and deceit will not live out half their days. But I will trust in You.

¹⁸ Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.

³ A man’s own folly subverts his way, yet his heart rages against the LORD.

⁵ So Judas threw the silver into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.

² When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God.” So he named that place Mahanaim.

²⁶ the territory from Heshbon to Ramath-mizpeh and Betonim, and from Mahanaim to the border of Debir;

⁸ Meanwhile, Abner son of Ner, the commander of Saul’s army, took Saul’s son Ish-bosheth, moved him to Mahanaim,

¹³ And say to Amasa, ‘Aren’t you my flesh and blood? May God punish me, and ever so severely, if from this time you are not the commander of my army in place of Joab!’”

⁴ Then the king said to Amasa, “Summon the men of Judah to come to me within three days, and be here yourself.”

⁹ “Are you well, my brother?” Joab asked Amasa. And with his right hand Joab grabbed Amasa by the beard to kiss him. ¹⁰ Amasa was not on guard against the dagger in Joab’s hand, and Joab stabbed him in the stomach and spilled out his intestines on the ground. And Joab did not need to strike him again, for Amasa was dead. Then Joab and his brother Abishai pursued Sheba son of Bichri. ¹¹ One of Joab’s young men stood near Amasa and said, “Whoever favors Joab, and whoever is for David, let him follow Joab!” ¹² But Amasa wallowed in his blood in the middle of the road, and when the man saw that all the troops were stopping there, he dragged the body off the road into a field and threw a garment over it.

⁵ Moreover, you know what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me—what he did to Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether, the two commanders of the armies of Israel. He killed them in peacetime to avenge the blood of war. He stained with the blood of war the belt around his waist and the sandals on his feet.

³² The LORD will bring his bloodshed back upon his own head, for without the knowledge of my father David he struck down two men more righteous and better than he when he put to the sword Abner son of Ner, commander of Israel’s army, and Amasa son of Jether, commander of Judah’s army.

¹³ Jesse was the father of Eliab his firstborn; Abinadab was born second, Shimea third,

¹⁶ Their sisters were Zeruiah and Abigail. And the three sons of Zeruiah were Abishai, Joab, and Asahel. ¹⁷ Abigail was the mother of Amasa, whose father was Jether the Ishmaelite.

¹ Now the Reubenites and Gadites, who had very large herds and flocks, surveyed the lands of Jazer and Gilead, and they saw that the region was suitable for livestock. ² So the Gadites and Reubenites came to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the congregation, and said, ³ “Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon, ⁴ which the LORD conquered before the congregation of Israel, are suitable for livestock—and your servants have livestock.” ⁵ “If we have found favor in your sight,” they said, “let this land be given to your servants as a possession. Do not make us cross the Jordan.” ⁶ But Moses asked the Gadites and Reubenites, “Shall your brothers go to war while you sit here? ⁷ Why are you discouraging the Israelites from crossing into the land that the LORD has given them? ⁸ This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to inspect the land. ⁹ For when your fathers went up to the Valley of Eshcol and saw the land, they discouraged the Israelites from entering the land that the LORD had given them. ¹⁰ So the anger of the LORD was kindled that day, and He swore an oath, saying, ¹¹ ‘Because they did not follow Me wholeheartedly, not one of the men twenty years of age or older who came out of Egypt will see the land that I swore to give Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob— ¹² not one except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua son of Nun—because they did follow the LORD wholeheartedly.’ ¹³ The anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until the whole generation who had done evil in His sight was gone. ¹⁴ Now behold, you, a brood of sinners, have risen up in place of your fathers to further stoke the burning anger of the LORD against Israel. ¹⁵ For if you turn away from following Him, He will once again leave this people in the wilderness, and you will be the cause of their destruction.” ¹⁶ Then the Gadites and Reubenites approached Moses and said, “We want to build sheepfolds here for our livestock and cities for our little ones. ¹⁷ But we will arm ourselves and be ready to go ahead of the Israelites until we have brought them into their place. Meanwhile, our little ones will remain in the fortified cities for protection from the inhabitants of the land. ¹⁸ We will not return to our homes until every Israelite has taken possession of his inheritance. ¹⁹ Yet we will not have an inheritance with them across the Jordan and beyond, because our inheritance has come to us on the east side of the Jordan.” ²⁰ Moses replied, “If you will do this—if you will arm yourselves before the LORD for battle, ²¹ and if every one of your armed men crosses the Jordan before the LORD, until He has driven His enemies out before Him, ²² then when the land is subdued before the LORD, you may return and be free of obligation to the LORD and to Israel. And this land will belong to you as a possession before the LORD. ²³ But if you do not do this, you will certainly sin against the LORD—and be assured that your sin will find you out. ²⁴ Build cities for your little ones and folds for your flocks, but do what you have promised.” ²⁵ The Gadites and Reubenites said to Moses, “Your servants will do just as our lord commands. ²⁶ Our children, our wives, our livestock, and all our animals will remain here in the cities of Gilead. ²⁷ But your servants are equipped for war, and every man will cross over to the battle before the LORD, just as our lord says.” ²⁸ So Moses gave orders about them to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua son of Nun, and to the family leaders of the tribes of Israel. ²⁹ And Moses said to them, “If the Gadites and Reubenites cross the Jordan with you, with every man armed for battle before the LORD, and the land is subdued before you, then you are to give them the land of Gilead as a possession. ³⁰ But if they do not arm themselves and go across with you, then they must accept their possession among you in the land of Canaan.” ³¹ The Gadites and Reubenites replied, “As the LORD has spoken to your servants, so we will do. ³² We will cross over into the land of Canaan armed before the LORD, that we may have our inheritance on this side of the Jordan.” ³³ So Moses gave to the Gadites, to the Reubenites, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan—the land including its cities and the territory surrounding them. ³⁴ And the Gadites built up Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, ³⁵ Atroth-shophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, ³⁶ Beth-nimrah, and Beth-haran as fortified cities, and they built folds for their flocks. ³⁷ The Reubenites built up Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim, ³⁸ as well as Nebo and Baal-meon (whose names were changed), and Sibmah. And they renamed the cities they rebuilt. ³⁹ The descendants of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead, captured it, and drove out the Amorites who were there. ⁴⁰ So Moses gave Gilead to the clan of Machir son of Manasseh, and they settled there. ⁴¹ Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, went and captured their villages and called them Havvoth-jair. ⁴² And Nobah went and captured Kenath and its villages and called it Nobah, after his own name.

¹⁵ To Machir I gave Gilead,

¹ Now this was the allotment for the tribe of Manasseh as Joseph’s firstborn son, namely for Machir the firstborn of Manasseh and father of the Gileadites, who had received Gilead and Bashan because Machir was a man of war.

¹ Soon Nahash the Ammonite came up and laid siege to Jabesh-gilead. All the men of Jabesh said to him, “Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you.”

⁴ “Where is he?” replied the king. And Ziba said, “Indeed, he is in Lo-debar at the house of Machir son of Ammiel.”

¹ Some time later, the king of the Ammonites died and was succeeded by his son Hanun. ² And David said, “I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent some of his servants to console Hanun concerning his father. But when they arrived in the land of the Ammonites,

²⁶ Meanwhile, Joab fought against Rabbah of the Ammonites and captured the royal fortress.

²⁹ So David assembled all the troops and went to Rabbah; and he fought against it and captured it. ³⁰ Then he took the crown from the head of their king. It weighed a talent of gold and was set with precious stones, and it was placed on David’s head. And David took a great amount of plunder from the city.

³¹ Now Barzillai the Gileadite had come down from Rogelim to cross the Jordan with the king and send him on his way from there. ³² Barzillai was quite old, eighty years of age, and since he was a very wealthy man, he had provided for the king while he stayed in Mahanaim. ³³ The king said to Barzillai, “Cross over with me, and I will provide for you at my side in Jerusalem.” ³⁴ But Barzillai replied, “How many years of my life remain, that I should go up to Jerusalem with the king? ³⁵ I am now eighty years old. Can I discern what is good and what is not? Can your servant taste what he eats or drinks? Can I still hear the voice of singing men and women? Why should your servant be an added burden to my lord the king? ³⁶ Your servant could go with the king only a short distance past the Jordan; why should the king repay me with such a reward? ³⁷ Please let your servant return, that I may die in my own city near the tomb of my father and mother. But here is your servant Chimham. Let him cross over with my lord the king, and do for him what is good in your sight.” ³⁸ The king replied, “Chimham will cross over with me, and I will do for him what seems good in your sight, and I will do for you whatever you desire of me.” ³⁹ So all the people crossed the Jordan, and then the king crossed over. The king kissed Barzillai and blessed him, and Barzillai returned home.

⁷ But show loving devotion to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at your table, because they stood by me when I fled from your brother Absalom.

⁶¹ And from among the priests: the descendants of Hobaiah, the descendants of Hakkoz, and the descendants of Barzillai (who had married a daughter of Barzillai the Gileadite and was called by their name).

¹⁸ Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five butchered sheep, five seahs of roasted grain, a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs. She loaded them on donkeys

¹ When David had gone a little beyond the summit, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth was there to meet him. He had a pair of saddled donkeys loaded with two hundred loaves of bread, a hundred clusters of raisins, a hundred summer fruits, and a skin of wine. ² “Why do you have these?” asked the king. Ziba replied, “The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride, the bread and summer fruit are for the young men to eat, and the wine is to refresh those who become exhausted in the wilderness.”

⁸ But a noble man makes honorable plans; he stands up for worthy causes.

⁴ Then Gideon and his three hundred men came to the Jordan and crossed it, exhausted yet still in pursuit. ⁵ So Gideon said to the men of Succoth, “Please give my troops some bread, for they are exhausted, and I am still pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.” ⁶ But the leaders of Succoth asked, “Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna already in your possession, that we should give bread to your army?”

¹⁸ Take also these ten portions of cheese to the commander of their unit. Check on the welfare of your brothers and bring back an assurance from them.

² “Why do you have these?” asked the king. Ziba replied, “The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride, the bread and summer fruit are for the young men to eat, and the wine is to refresh those who become exhausted in the wilderness.”

² I will attack him while he is weak and weary; I will throw him into a panic, and all the people with him will flee; I will strike down only the king

⁸ Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! ⁹ Fear the LORD, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing. ¹⁰ Young lions go lacking and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

¹¹ For the LORD God is a sun and a shield; the LORD gives grace and glory; He withholds no good thing from those who walk with integrity.

¹ Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. ² Divide your portion among seven, or even eight, for you do not know what disaster may befall the land.

¹⁴ Bring water for the thirsty, O dwellers of Tema; meet the refugees with food.

⁷ Isn’t it to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your home, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

³ Joanna the wife of Herod’s household manager Chuza, Susanna, and many others. These women were ministering to them out of their own means.

¹³ Share with the saints who are in need. Practice hospitality.

¹⁵ And as you Philippians know, in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church but you partnered with me in the matter of giving and receiving. ¹⁶ For even while I was in Thessalonica, you provided for my needs again and again. ¹⁷ Not that I am seeking a gift, but I am looking for the fruit that may be credited to your account. ¹⁸ I have all I need and more, now that I have received your gifts from Epaphroditus. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. ¹⁹ And my God will supply all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.