押沙龙之死
1大卫召集军队，设立了千夫长和百夫长率领他们。 2他兵分三队，一队由约押率领，一队由洗鲁雅的儿子、约押的兄弟亚比筛率领，一队由迦特人以太率领。大卫对部下说：“我必与你们一同出战”。 3他们却说：“请我王不要出战。因为如果我们败逃，敌方不会放在心上；即使我们一半人阵亡，敌方也不会放在心上。你一人比我们一万人更宝贵。你还是留在城中支援我们吧。” 4王说：“你们认为怎样好，我就怎样做。”于是，大卫王站在城门旁边，军兵百人一队、千人一队地按次序出城了。 5大卫王吩咐约押、亚比筛和以太说：“你们要看在我的份上对年轻的押沙龙手下留情。”全体的军兵都听见了大卫吩咐众将领的话。
6大卫的军队在以法莲的树林里跟以色列人交战。 7以色列人被大卫的部下打败，伤亡惨重，有两万人阵亡。 8战事蔓延到整个郊野，那天死在树林里的人比死在刀下的人还多。 9押沙龙碰巧遇见大卫的部下。他骑着骡子逃走，骡子从一棵大橡树的茂密枝条下经过，押沙龙的头发被树枝缠住，整个人吊在半空中，胯下的骡子也跑了。 10大卫的一个部下看见，就向约押禀告说：“我看见押沙龙正吊在橡树上。” 11约押对那报信的说：“什么！你看见他吊在树上，为什么不把他杀掉呢？要是你把他杀了，我会赏你十块银子和一条腰带。” 12他却答道：“就是你赏我一千块银子，我也不敢加害王的儿子啊！我们曾听见王吩咐你、亚比筛和以太不可伤害年轻的押沙龙。 13如果我胆敢杀死押沙龙，王迟早会查出真相，到时你就撒手不管了。” 14约押说：“我不跟你浪费时间。”趁着押沙龙还吊在橡树上，他拿起三杆矛枪剌入了他的心脏。 15十个为约押拿兵器的年轻人围上去将押沙龙杀死。 16随后，约押吹起收兵的号角，部下便停止追赶以色列人。 17他们把押沙龙的尸体丢在林中的一个坑里，在上面堆了一大堆石头。以色列人都各自逃回家去了。 18押沙龙生前没有儿子为他留名，所以他曾在王谷立了一根石柱，以自己的名字命名，称为“押沙龙柱”，沿用至今。
19撒督的儿子亚希玛斯对约押说：“请让我跑回去向王禀告，让王知道耶和华已从仇敌手中救了他。” 20但约押对他说：“你今天不要去报信，改天再报吧。你不要今天去，因为王的儿子死了。” 21约押吩咐一个古示人：“你去把所看见的禀报给王。”那人就拜别了约押，马上跑回去报信。 22撒督的儿子亚希玛斯再次对约押说：“求你让我与古示人一同去吧！”约押说：“我的孩子，你何必要去呢？你报这个消息是不会得到赏赐的。” 23他说：“无论怎样，我想跑去报信。”约押答应了。亚希玛斯沿平原的路跑，跑到了古示人的前面。
24那时，大卫王正坐在内城门和外城门中间。有一个守卫爬上城门楼顶观望，看见一个人独自跑来。 25守卫就大声向大卫禀告。王说：“如果他是单独一个人，他带来的一定是好消息。”那人越来越近了。 26这时候，守卫又看见另一个人跑来，就大声对守城门的说：“又有一个人独自跑来了！”王说：“他也一定是传好消息的。” 27守卫又说：“从跑的姿势看，那跑在前面的人好像撒督的儿子亚希玛斯。”王说：“他是个好人，他一定带来了好消息。”
28亚希玛斯高声对王说：“一切都好！”他在王面前俯伏叩拜，说：“你的上帝耶和华当受称颂，祂已经消灭了那些攻击我主我王的敌人。” 29王问道：“年轻的押沙龙平安吗？”亚希玛斯答道：“约押派仆人来的时候，仆人看见一阵大骚动，但不知道是什么事。” 30王说：“你先退到一边去。”亚希玛斯就退下，站在一边。
31这时，古示人也到了，他说：“我有好消息向我主我王禀告，今日耶和华已经从一切反叛之人手中救了我主我王。” 32王问古示人：“年轻的押沙龙平安吗？”古示人答道：“愿我主我王的仇敌和一切要加害我王的人，下场都与那青年一样。” 33王听了十分难过，就走上城门楼去痛哭，边走边说：“我儿押沙龙啊！我儿，我儿押沙龙啊！我恨不得可以替你死！押沙龙，我儿啊！我儿！”
1David brought together the men with him. He appointed commanders of thousands over some of them. He appointed commanders of hundreds over the others. 2Then David sent out his troops in military groups. One group was under the command of Joab. Another was under Joab’s brother Abishai, the son of Zeruiah. The last was under Ittai, the Gittite. The king told the troops, “You can be sure that I myself will march out with you.”
3But the men said, “You must not march out. If we are forced to run away, our enemies won’t care about us. Even if half of us die, they won’t care. But you are worth 10,000 of us. So it would be better for you to stay here in the city. Then you can send us help if we need it.”
4The king said, “I’ll do what you think is best.”
So the king stood beside the city gate. His whole army marched out in groups of hundreds and groups of thousands. 5The king gave an order to Joab, Abishai and Ittai. He commanded them, “Be gentle with the young man Absalom. Do it for me.” All the troops heard the king give the commanders that order about Absalom.
6David’s army marched out of the city to fight against Israel. The battle took place in the forest of Ephraim. 7There David’s men won the battle over Israel’s army. A huge number of men were wounded or killed that day. The total number was 20,000. 8The fighting spread out over the whole countryside. But more men were killed in the forest that day than out in the open.
9Absalom happened to come across some of David’s men. He was riding his mule. The mule went under the thick branches of a large oak tree. Absalom’s hair got caught in the tree. He was left hanging in the air. The mule he was riding kept on going.
10One of David’s men saw what had happened. He told Joab, “I just saw Absalom hanging in an oak tree.”
11Joab said to the man, “What! You saw him? Why didn’t you strike him down right there? Then I would have had to give you four ounces of silver and a soldier’s belt.”
12But the man replied, “I wouldn’t do anything to hurt the king’s son. I wouldn’t do it even for 25 pounds of silver. We heard the king’s command to you and Abishai and Ittai. He said, ‘Be careful not to hurt the young man Absalom. Do it for me.’ 13Suppose I had put my life in danger by killing him. The king would have found out about it. Nothing is hidden from him. And you wouldn’t have stood up for me.”
14Joab said, “I’m not going to waste any more time on you.” So he got three javelins. Then he went over and plunged them into Absalom’s heart. He did it while Absalom was still hanging there alive in the oak tree. 15Ten of the men carrying Joab’s armor surrounded Absalom. They struck him and killed him.
16Then Joab blew his trumpet. He ordered his troops to stop chasing Israel’s army. 17Joab’s men threw Absalom into a big pit in the forest. They covered him with a large pile of rocks. While all of that was going on, all the Israelites ran back to their homes.
18Earlier in his life Absalom had set up a pillar in the King’s Valley. He had put it up as a monument to himself. He thought, “I don’t have a son to carry on the memory of my name.” So he named the pillar after himself. It is still called Absalom’s Monument to this day.
David Mourns Over Absalom
19Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, said to Joab, “Let me run and take the news to the king. Let me tell him that the Lord has shown that David is in the right. The Lord has done this by saving David from his enemies.”
20“I don’t want you to take the news to the king today,” Joab told him. “You can do it some other time. But you must not do it today, because the king’s son is dead.”
21Then Joab said to a man from Cush, “Go. Tell the king what you have seen.” The man bowed down in front of Joab. Then he ran off.
22Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, spoke again to Joab. He said, “I don’t care what happens to me. Please let me run behind the man from Cush.”
But Joab replied, “My son, why do you want to go? You don’t have any news that will bring you a reward.”
23He said, “I don’t care what happens. I want to run.”
So Joab said, “Run!” Then Ahimaaz ran across the plain of the Jordan River. As he ran, he passed the man from Cush.
24David was sitting in the area between the inner and outer gates of the city. The man on guard duty went up to the roof over the entrance of the gate by the wall. As he looked out, he saw someone running alone. 25The guard called out to the king and reported it.
The king said, “If the runner is alone, he must be bringing good news.” The runner came closer and closer.
26Then the man on guard duty saw another runner. He called out to the man guarding the gate. He said, “Look! There’s another man running alone!”
The king said, “He must be bringing good news too.”
27The man on guard duty said, “I can see that the first one runs like Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok.”
“He’s a good man,” the king said. “He’s bringing good news.”
28Then Ahimaaz called out to the king, “Everything’s all right!” He bowed down in front of the king with his face toward the ground. He said, “You are my king and master. Give praise to the Lord your God! He has handed over to you those who lifted their hands to kill you.”
29The king asked, “Is the young man Absalom safe?”
Ahimaaz answered, “I saw total disorder. I saw it just as Joab was about to send the king’s servant and me to you. But I don’t know what it was all about.”
30The king said, “Stand over there and wait.” So he stepped over to one side and stood there.
31Then the man from Cush arrived. He said, “You are my king and master. I’m bringing you some good news. The Lord has shown that you are in the right. He has done this by rescuing you today from all those trying to kill you.”
32The king asked the man from Cush, “Is the young man Absalom safe?”
The man replied, “King David, may your enemies be like that young man. May all those who rise up to harm you be like him.”
33The king was very upset. He went up to the room over the entrance of the gate and wept. As he went, he said, “My son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! I wish I had died instead of you. Absalom! My son, my son!”
