2 Samuel 18

18 ¹ David mustered his troops and appointed commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds over them. ² David sent out the troops: a third under Joab, a third under Abishai son of Zeruiah, Joab's brother, and a third under Ittai the Gittite. The king told the troops, "I will surely go out with you too."

³ But the troops said, "Don't go out. If we flee, they won't care; if half of us die, they won't care. You are worth ten thousand of us. Better you stay in the city, ready to send us help."

⁴ The king told them, "I'll do whatever seems best to you." Then he stood at the gate as all the troops marched out by hundreds and by thousands.

⁵ The king commanded Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, "Be gentle with the young man Absalom, for my sake." All the troops heard the king commanding the commanders about Absalom.

⁶ The troops went out to the field against Israel, and the battle happened in the forest of Ephraim. ⁷ There Israel's army was defeated by David's men, and the slaughter that day was great: twenty thousand. ⁸ The battle spread across the whole region, and the forest devoured more troops that day than the sword devoured.

⁹ Absalom encountered David's men. Riding his mule, he passed under the thick branches of a great oak, and his head caught fast in the tree. He hung between heaven and earth as the mule went on beneath him. ¹⁰ A certain man saw it and told Joab, "I just saw Absalom hanging in an oak."

¹¹ Joab said to the man who told him, "You saw him? Why not strike him to the ground there? I'd have owed you ten days' wages in silver and a belt."

¹² But the man told Joab, "Even if a thousand pieces of silver were weighed into my palm, I wouldn't raise my hand against the king's son. For we all heard the king order you, Abishai, and Ittai, 'Protect the young man Absalom for my sake.'" ¹³ Otherwise I'd have thrown away my life, for nothing is hidden from the king, and you'd have stood apart from me.

¹⁴ Joab said, "I won't waste time with you like this." He took three javelins in his hand, drove them into Absalom's heart while he was still alive, in the oak's heart. ¹⁵ And ten young men, Joab's armor-bearers, surrounded Absalom, struck him, and killed him. ¹⁶ Joab blew the ram's horn, and the troops stopped chasing Israel, for Joab held them back. ¹⁷ They took Absalom, threw him into a big forest pit, and heaped a huge pile of stones over him. All Israel fled, each to his own home.

¹⁸ During his lifetime Absalom had set up a pillar in the King's Valley, saying, "I have no son to keep my name remembered." He named the pillar after himself, and it is called Absalom's Monument to this day. ^a a v18 Absalom had sons born to him (2 Samuel 14:27), but they apparently died before him, leaving him no heir to carry on his name.

David Weeps for His Son Absalom

¹⁹ Ahimaaz son of Zadok said, "Let me run and tell the king our Father has cleared him of his enemies."

²⁰ Joab said, "You're not the man to carry news today. Carry it another day—not today, for the king's son is dead."

²¹ Joab said to the Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you saw." The Cushite bowed to Joab and ran.

²² Ahimaaz son of Zadok said to Joab again, "Come what may, please let me also run after the Cushite." Joab replied, "Why run, my son? You have no news worth a reward."

²³ "Whatever happens," he said, "I'll run." "Run," Joab said. So Ahimaaz ran the plain route and outran the Cushite.

²⁴ David was sitting between the two gates. The watchman went up to the gate roof at the wall, lifted his eyes, and saw a man running alone. ²⁵ The watchman called out, telling the king. The king said, "If alone, he brings news." The runner kept coming closer.

²⁶ The watchman saw another man running and called to the gatekeeper, "Look, another man running alone!" The king said, "He too brings news."

²⁷ The watchman said, "The first one runs like Ahimaaz son of Zadok." The king said, "He is a good man; he comes with good news."

²⁸ Ahimaaz called to the king, "All is well!" He bowed before the king, face to the ground, and said, "Blessed be your Father, who handed over those who rebelled against my lord the king."

²⁹ The king asked, "Is the young man Absalom safe?" Ahimaaz answered, "When Joab sent off the king's servant and me your servant, I saw a great commotion, but I did not know what it was."

³⁰ The king said, "Step aside and stand here." So he stepped aside and stood still.

³¹ The Cushite arrived and said, "Good news, my lord the king! Today the LORD cleared you from the hand of all who rose against you."

³² The king asked the Cushite, "Is the young man Absalom safe?" The Cushite answered, "May my lord the king's enemies, and all who rise against you to harm you, be like that young man."

³³ The king trembled. He went up to the gate's upper room, weeping, saying as he walked: 'My son Absalom! My son, my son, Absalom! If only I had died instead of you, Absalom, my son, my son!'