2 Samuel · Catholic Public Domain Version
2 Samuel 15 Catholic Public Domain Version
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
Notes on this text (3)
- Esther and Daniel are the Vulgate books (Esther 1–16 with the Greek additions as chapters 10:4–16; Daniel 1–14 with the Song of the Three, Susanna and Bel). Baruch 6 is the Letter of Jeremiah.
- The translator's footnotes, cross-references, chapter summaries and book introductions in the CrossWire module are not shown.
- No imprimatur; single translator.
1 Then, after these things, Absalom obtained for himself chariots, and horsemen, and fifty men who went before him.
1 After this, Absalom prepared a chariot and horses for himself, and fifty men to run before him.
2 And rising up in the morning, Absalom was standing beside the entrance of the gate. And when there was any man who had a dispute that might go before the king’s judgment, Absalom would call him to him, and would say, “Which city are you from?” And responding, he would say, “I am your servant, from a certain tribe of Israel.”
2 Absalom rose up early, and stood beside the way of the gate. When any man had a suit which should come to the king for judgment, then Absalom called to him, and said, “What city are you from?” He said, “Your servant is of one of the tribes of Israel.”
3 And Absalom would answer him: “Your words seem good and just to me. But there is no one appointed by the king to hear you.” And Absalom would say:
3 Absalom said to him, “Behold, your matters are good and right; but there is no man deputized by the king to hear you.”
4 “Who may appoint me judge over the land, so that all those who have a dispute might come to me, and I might judge justly.”
4 Absalom said moreover, “Oh that I were made judge in the land, that every man who has any suit or cause might come to me, and I would do him justice!”
5 Then too, when a man would draw near to him, so that he might greet him, he would extend his hand, and taking hold of him, he would kiss him.
5 It was so, that when any man came near to bow down to him, he stretched out his hand, took hold of him, and kissed him.
6 And he was doing this to all those of Israel arriving for judgment to be heard by the king. And he solicited the hearts of the men of Israel.
6 Absalom did this sort of thing to all Israel who came to the king for judgment. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.
7 Then, after forty years, Absalom said to king David: “I should go and pay my vows, which I have vowed to the Lord at Hebron.
7 At the end of forty years, Absalom said to the king, “Please let me go and pay my vow, which I have vowed to Yahweh, in Hebron.
8 For your servant made a vow, when he was in Geshur of Syria, saying: If the Lord will lead me back to Jerusalem, I will sacrifice to the Lord.”
8 For your servant vowed a vow while I stayed at Geshur in Syria, saying, ‘If Yahweh shall indeed bring me again to Jerusalem, then I will serve Yahweh.’”
9 And king David said to him, “Go in peace.” And he rose up and went away to Hebron.
9 The king said to him, “Go in peace.” So he arose and went to Hebron.
10 Then Absalom sent scouts into all the tribes of Israel, saying: “As soon as you hear the blare of the trumpet, say: ‘Absalom reigns in Hebron.’ ”
10 But Absalom sent spies throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, “As soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, then you shall say, ‘Absalom is king in Hebron!’”
11 Now having been called, two hundred men from Jerusalem went forth with Absalom, going in simplicity of heart and being entirely ignorant of the plan.
11 Two hundred men went with Absalom out of Jerusalem, who were invited, and went in their simplicity; and they didn’t know anything.
12 Absalom also summoned Ahithophel the Gilonite, a counselor of David, from his city, Giloh. And when he was immolating victims, a very strong oath was sworn, and the people, hurrying together, joined with Absalom.
12 Absalom sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David’s counselor, from his city, even from Giloh, while he was offering the sacrifices. The conspiracy was strong, for the people increased continually with Absalom.
13 Then a messenger went to David, saying, “With their whole heart, all of Israel is following Absalom.”
13 A messenger came to David, saying, “The hearts of the men of Israel are after Absalom.”
14 And David said to his servants, who were with him in Jerusalem: “Rise up, let us flee! For otherwise there will be no escape for us from the face of Absalom. Hurry to depart, lest perhaps, upon arriving, he may seize us, and force ruin upon us, and strike the city with the edge of the sword.”
14 David said to all his servants who were with him at Jerusalem, “Arise! Let’s flee, or else none of us will escape from Absalom. Hurry to depart, lest he overtake us quickly and bring down evil on us, and strike the city with the edge of the sword.”
15 And the servants of the king said to him, “Everything whatsoever that our lord the king will command, we your servants shall carry out willingly.”
15 The king’s servants said to the king, “Behold, your servants are ready to do whatever my lord the king chooses.”
16 Therefore, the king departed, with his entire household on foot. And the king left behind ten women of the concubines to care for the house.
16 The king went out, and all his household after him. The king left ten women, who were concubines, to keep the house.
17 And having gone forth on foot, the king and all of Israel stood at a distance from the house.
17 The king went out, and all the people after him; and they stayed in Beth Merhak.
18 And all his servants were walking beside him. And the legions of the Cerethites and Phelethites, and all the Gittites, powerful fighters, six hundred men who had followed him from Gath on foot, were preceding the king.
18 All his servants passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.
19 Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite: “Why do you come with us? Return and live with the king. For you are a stranger, and you departed from your own place.
19 Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite, “Why do you also go with us? Return, and stay with the king; for you are a foreigner and also an exile. Return to your own place.
20 You arrived yesterday. And today should you be compelled to go away with us? For I should go to the place where I am going. But you should return, and lead your own brothers back with you. And the Lord will show mercy and truth to you, because you have shown grace and faith.”
20 Whereas you came but yesterday, should I today make you go up and down with us, since I go where I may? Return, and take back your brothers. Mercy and truth be with you.”
21 And Ittai responded to the king, by saying, “As the Lord lives, and as my lord the king lives, in whatever place you will be, my lord the king, whether in death or in life, your servant will be there.”
21 Ittai answered the king and said, “As Yahweh lives, and as my lord the king lives, surely in what place my lord the king is, whether for death or for life, your servant will be there also.”
22 And David said to Ittai, “Come, and pass over.” And Ittai the Gittite passed over, and all the men who were with him, and the rest of the multitude.
22 David said to Ittai, “Go and pass over.” Ittai the Gittite passed over, and all his men, and all the little ones who were with him.
23 And they all wept with a great voice, and all the people passed over. The king also passed over the torrent Kidron. And all the people advanced opposite the way which looks out toward the desert.
23 All the country wept with a loud voice, and all the people passed over. The king also himself passed over the brook Kidron, and all the people passed over toward the way of the wilderness.
24 Now Zadok the priest also went, and all the Levites went with him, carrying the ark of the covenant of God. And they set down the ark of God. And Abiathar went up, until all the people who had departed from the city had gone by.
24 Behold, Zadok also came, and all the Levites with him, bearing the ark of the covenant of God; and they set down God’s ark; and Abiathar went up until all the people finished passing out of the city.
25 And the king said to Zadok: “Carry back the ark of God into the city. If I shall find grace in the sight of the Lord, he will lead me back. And he will show it to me in his tabernacle.
25 The king said to Zadok, “Carry God’s ark back into the city. If I find favor in Yahweh’s eyes, he will bring me again, and show me both it and his habitation;
26 But if he will say to me, ‘You are not pleasing,’ I am ready. Let him do whatever is good in his own sight.”
26 but if he says, ‘I have no delight in you,’ behold, here I am. Let him do to me as seems good to him.”
27 And the king said to Zadok the priest: “O seer, return into the city in peace. And let your son Ahimaaz, and Jonathan, the son of Abiathar, your two sons, be with you.
27 The king said also to Zadok the priest, “Aren’t you a seer? Return into the city in peace, and your two sons with you, Ahimaaz your son and Jonathan the son of Abiathar.
28 Behold, I will hide in the plains of the desert, until word from you may arrive to inform me.”
28 Behold, I will stay at the fords of the wilderness until word comes from you to inform me.”
29 Therefore, Zadok and Abiathar carried back the ark of God into Jerusalem, and they remained there.
29 Zadok therefore and Abiathar carried God’s ark to Jerusalem again; and they stayed there.
30 But David ascended to the Mount of Olives, climbing and weeping, advancing with bare feet and with his head covered. Moreover, all the people who were with him ascended, weeping with their heads covered.
30 David went up by the ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up; and he had his head covered and went barefoot. All the people who were with him each covered his head, and they went up, weeping as they went up.
31 Then it was reported to David that Ahithophel also had joined in swearing with Absalom. And David said, “ O Lord, I beg you, to uncover the foolishness of the counsel of Ahithophel.”
31 Someone told David, saying, “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.” David said, “Yahweh, please turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness.”
32 And when David had ascended to the summit of the mountain, where he was going to adore the Lord, behold Hushai the Archite met him, with his garment torn and his head covered with soil.
32 When David had come to the top, where God was worshiped, behold, Hushai the Archite came to meet him with his tunic torn and earth on his head.
33 And David said to him: “If you come with me, you will be a burden to me.
33 David said to him, “If you pass on with me, then you will be a burden to me;
34 But if you return to the city, and you say to Absalom, ‘I am your servant, O king; just as I have been the servant of your father, so too will I be your servant,’ you will destroy the counsel of Ahithophel
34 but if you return to the city, and tell Absalom, ‘I will be your servant, O king. As I have been your father’s servant in time past, so I will now be your servant; then you will defeat for me the counsel of Ahithophel.’
35 And you have with you the priests Zadok and Abiathar. And any word whatsoever that you will hear from the house of the king, you shall reveal it to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests.
35 Don’t you have Zadok and Abiathar the priests there with you? Therefore whatever you hear out of the king’s house, tell it to Zadok and Abiathar the priests.
36 Now with them are their two sons Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, and Jonathan, the son of Abiathar. And you shall send to me by them every word that you will have heard.”
36 Behold, they have there with them their two sons, Ahimaaz, Zadok’s son, and Jonathan, Abiathar’s son. Send to me everything that you shall hear by them.”
37 Therefore, Hushai, the friend of David, went into the city. And Absalom also entered into Jerusalem.
37 So Hushai, David’s friend, came into the city; and Absalom came into Jerusalem.
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Absalom
David's handsome son who avenged Tamar, rebelled against his father, and briefly seized the throne.
Cited in the guide: 2 Samuel 3:3; 2 Samuel 15-18
Ahimaaz
Zadok's son, who with Jonathan son of Abiathar secretly carried word to David during Absalom's revolt and outran the Cushite to bring David news of the victory.
Cited in the guide: 2 Samuel 15:27; 2 Samuel 15:36; 2 Samuel 17:17
Ahithophel
David's counselor from Giloh, whose advice was regarded like the word of God; he joined Absalom's conspiracy, advised him to take David's concubines and to pursue David at once,…
Cited in the guide: 2 Samuel 15:12; 2 Samuel 15:31; 2 Samuel 16:23
David
The shepherd who became Israel's greatest king and a man after God's own heart.
Cited in the guide: 1 Sam. 16 - 1 Kings 2; 2 Sam. 7; 1 Chron. 2:15; Matt. 1:6
Hushai
David's friend, who at David's request returned to Jerusalem as Absalom's servant and defeated Ahithophel's counsel with advice Absalom judged better.
Cited in the guide: 2 Samuel 15:32; 2 Samuel 15:37; 2 Samuel 16:16
Ittai
A foreigner from Gath who swore to follow David wherever he went, left Jerusalem with David and his men, and commanded a third of David's army against Absalom.
Cited in the guide: 2 Samuel 15:19; 2 Samuel 15:21; 2 Samuel 15:22
Jonathan
Son of the priest Abiathar, who with Ahimaaz carried messages to David during Absalom's revolt and hid in a well at Bahurim.
Cited in the guide: 2 Samuel 15:27; 2 Samuel 15:36; 2 Samuel 17:17
Zadok
Son of Ahitub and a priest alongside Abiathar in David's administration, who with the Levites carried the ark when David fled Jerusalem and returned it to the city at David's…
Cited in the guide: 2 Samuel 8:17; 2 Samuel 15:24; 2 Samuel 15:25
Cross references (34)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 1 Kings 1:5; 2 Samuel 12:11; Psalm 20:7; 1 Samuel 8:11; Proverbs 11:2
- 2 Ruth 4:1; Matthew 27:1; Exodus 18:16; 2 Samuel 19:8; Exodus 18:14
- 3 2 Peter 2:10; Psalm 12:2; Proverbs 30:11; 1 Peter 2:17; Proverbs 30:17
- 4 Judges 9:29; Luke 14:8–11; 2 Peter 2:19; Proverbs 27:2; Proverbs 25:6
- 5 2 Samuel 14:33; Proverbs 26:25; Psalm 55:21; Psalm 10:9–10
- 6 Romans 16:18; 2 Peter 2:3; Proverbs 11:9
- 7 Isaiah 58:4; 2 Samuel 13:24–27; 1 Samuel 16:1–2; 2 Samuel 13:38; Proverbs 21:27
- 8 2 Samuel 13:37–38; Genesis 28:20–21; Jeremiah 9:3–5; 1 Samuel 1:11; 2 Samuel 14:23
- 10 2 Samuel 14:30; 2 Samuel 5:5; 2 Samuel 3:2–3; 1 Chronicles 12:38; 2 Samuel 19:10
- 11 1 Samuel 9:13; 1 Samuel 22:15; Romans 16:18–19; Genesis 20:5; Matthew 10:16
- 12 2 Samuel 15:31; Psalm 41:9; Joshua 15:51; Titus 1:16; Psalm 55:12–14
- 13 Judges 9:3; 2 Samuel 15:6; Matthew 27:22; Psalm 62:9; 2 Samuel 3:36
- 14 2 Samuel 19:9; Psalm 3:1–8; Psalm 51:18; 2 Samuel 12:11; Matthew 11:12
- 15 Proverbs 18:24; Luke 22:28–29; John 6:66–69; John 15:14
- 16 2 Samuel 16:21–22; 2 Samuel 20:3; Psalm 3:1; Romans 12:2; 1 Samuel 25:27
- 17 Psalm 3:1–2; Psalm 66:12; Ecclesiastes 10:7
- 18 2 Samuel 8:18; 2 Samuel 20:23; 1 Samuel 30:14; 2 Samuel 20:7; 1 Kings 1:38
- 19 2 Samuel 18:2; Ruth 1:11–13
- 20 1 Samuel 23:13; 2 Samuel 2:6; Hebrews 11:37–38; John 1:17; Psalm 57:3
- 21 Ruth 1:16–17; Proverbs 17:17; 2 Kings 4:30; Proverbs 18:24; Acts 11:23
- 23 2 Samuel 16:2; 1 Kings 2:37; John 18:1; Matthew 3:3; 2 Chronicles 29:16
- 24 2 Samuel 8:17; Numbers 4:15; 2 Samuel 20:25; 1 Samuel 22:20; Joshua 3:3
- 25 Jeremiah 25:30; Psalm 26:8; Psalm 84:10; Psalm 43:3–4; Exodus 15:13
- 26 1 Samuel 3:18; 2 Samuel 22:20; 1 Kings 10:9; Numbers 14:8; Isaiah 62:4
- 27 2 Samuel 17:17; 1 Samuel 9:9; 2 Samuel 15:36; 2 Samuel 24:11; 2 Samuel 15:34
- 28 2 Samuel 17:16; 2 Samuel 15:23; 2 Samuel 16:2; 2 Samuel 17:1
- 30 Esther 6:12; 2 Samuel 19:4; Luke 19:41; Ezekiel 24:23; Luke 19:37
- 31 2 Samuel 17:14; 2 Samuel 17:23; Psalm 41:9; James 3:15; Job 5:12
- 32 Joshua 16:2; 2 Samuel 1:2; Psalm 3:3–5; 2 Samuel 16:16–19; Luke 19:29
- 33 2 Samuel 19:35
- 34 2 Samuel 16:16–19; Joshua 8:2; 2 Samuel 15:20; 2 Samuel 17:5–14; Matthew 10:16
- 35 2 Samuel 17:15–16
- 36 2 Samuel 17:17; 2 Samuel 15:27; 2 Samuel 18:19–33
- 37 1 Chronicles 27:33; 2 Samuel 16:15–16
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
Now the story which gave occasion to this prophecy may be easily recognised in the second book of Kings. For there Chusi, the friend of king David, went over to the side of Abessalon, his son, who was carrying on war against his father, for the purpose of discovering and reporting the designs which he was taking against his father, …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 8 (1888)