2
"I will come upon him while he is weary and exhausted* and terrify him, so that all the peoplewho are with him will flee. Then I will strikedown the kingalone,
8
Moreover, Hushaisaid, "You know your father and his men, that they are mightymen and they are fierce*, like a bearrobbed of her cubs in the field. And your father is an expert in warfare, and will not spend the night with the people.
9
"Behold, he has nowhiddenhimself in one of the cavesor in anotherplace; and it will be when he falls on them at the first attack, that whoever hears it will say, 'There has been a slaughter among the peoplewhofollowAbsalom.'
10
"And even the one who is valiant*, whoseheart is like the heart of a lion, will completelyloseheart; for allIsraelknows that your father is a mightyman and those who are with him are valiantmen.
11
"But I counsel that allIsrael be surelygathered to you, from Dan even to Beersheba, as the sand that is by the sea in abundance, and that you personallygo into battle.
12
"So we shall come to him in one of the placeswhere* he can be found, and we will fall on him as the dewfalls on the ground; and of him and of all the menwho are with him, not evenone will be left.
13
"If he withdraws into a city, then allIsrael shall bringropes to that city, and we will drag it into the valleyuntil* not even a smallstone is foundthere."
14
Then Absalom and all the men of Israelsaid, "The counsel of Hushai the Archite is betterthan the counsel of Ahithophel." For the LORD had ordained to thwart the goodcounsel of Ahithophel, so that the LORD might bringcalamity on Absalom.
15
Then Hushaisaid to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, "This is whatAhithophelcounseledAbsalom and the elders of Israel, and this is what I have counseled.
16
"Now therefore, sendquickly and tellDavid, saying, 'Do not spend the night at the fords of the wilderness, but by all*meanscrossover, orelse the king and all the peoplewho are with him will be destroyed.' "
17
Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying at En-rogel, and a maidservant would go and tell them, and they would go and tellKingDavid, for they could not be seenentering the city.
18
But a lad did see them and toldAbsalom; so the two of them departedquickly and came to the house of a man in Bahurim, who had a well in his courtyard, and they wentdown into it.
20
Then Absalom'sservantscame to the woman at the house and said, "Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?" And the womansaid to them, "They have crossed the brook of water." And when they searched and could not find them, they returned to Jerusalem.
21
It came about after they had departed that they came up out of the well and went and toldKingDavid; and they said to David, "Arise and crossover the waterquickly for thusAhithophel has counseledagainst you."
23
Now whenAhithophelsaw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his donkey and arose and went to his home, to his city, and set his house in order, and strangled himself; thus he died and was buried in the grave of his father.
25
AbsalomsetAmasaover the army in place of Joab. Now Amasa was the son of a man whose name was Ithra the Israelite, whowent in to Abigail the daughter of Nahash, sister of Zeruiah, Joab'smother.
26
And Israel and Absalomcamped in the land of Gilead.
d'[.liG;h #,r,a ~{l'v.b;a.w lea'r.fIy !;xiY;w
27
Now when David had come to Mahanaim, Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, Machir the son of Ammiel from Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim,
29
honey, curds, sheep, and cheese of the herd, for David and for the peoplewho were with him, to eat; for they said, "The people are hungry and weary and thirsty in the wilderness."