David asked him, "Where did you come from? He answered him, "I just escaped from Israel's encampment."

He begged me, "Please come stand here next to me and kill me, because I'm still alive.'

Abner told Joab, "Let's have the young men get up and fight in our presence." Joab replied, "Let them come."

David replied, "Sounds good to me! I'll cut a deal with you under one condition: you're not to show yourself in my presence unless you bring Saul's daughter with you when you come to see me."

So Joab approached the king and asked him, "What have you done? Look, Abner came to you! What's this? You sent him away? He's long gone now!

You know Ner's son Abner came to mislead you, to learn your troop movements, and to learn everything you're doing!"

Later, the king and his army marched on Jerusalem against the Jebusites, who were inhabiting the territory at that time and who had told David, "You're not coming in here! Even the blind and the lame could turn you away!" because they were thinking "David can't come here."

Therefore they say, "The blind and lame are never to come into the house." David occupied the fortress, naming it the City of David. He built up the surroundings from the terrace ramparts inward.

But David feared the LORD that day, and asked, "How can the Ark of God come to me?"

When David returned to bless his household, Saul's daughter Michal came out to meet him and called out, "How the king of Israel honored himself today by undressing himself right in front of his women staff members, just like any pervert would dare to expose himself!"

But later that same night, this message came to Nathan from the LORD:

""The LORD also announces to you: "The LORD will himself build a house for you. When your life is complete and you go to join your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you, who will come forth from your body, and I will fortify his kingdom.

When Arameans came from Damascus to help King Hadadezer of Zobah, David killed 22,000 of them.

He said, "If the Arameans prove too strong for me, then you are to help me. If the Ammonites prove too strong for you, then I will come help you.

When the men of the city came out to fight Joab, some of David's army staff members fell, and Uriah the Hittite died, too.

A traveler arrived to visit the rich man. Because he was unwilling to take an animal from one of his own flocks or herds to prepare for the guest who had come to visit him, he took the poor man's lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to visit him."

Jonadab advised him, "Lie down and pretend to be sick. When your father visits you, ask him, "Please let my sister Tamar come and give me something to eat that she prepares especially for me, and after she makes dinner for me, let her feed it to me personally.'"

So Amnon lay down and pretended to be sick. When the king came to visit him, Amnon asked the king, "Please let my sister Tamar come and make some of her bread especially for me, so she can feed it to me personally."

But as soon as she brought them near him to eat, he overpowered her and told her, "Come here and have sex with me, my sister!"

Two full years later, Absalom took some men to Baal-hazor near Ephraim to shear his sheep. He also invited all of the king's sons to come.

Absalom had gone to the king to ask him, "I've brought some men to shear the sheep. Won't you please come and join me, along with your senior staff?"

While they were still on the road, this rumor came to David: "Absalom has struck down all of the king's sons and none of them has survived."

Jonadab told the king, "Look! Here come the king's sons. This thing has turned out just like your servant reported."

"Now as to why I've come to speak with your majesty the king, it's because the people have made me afraid, so your humble servant told herself, "I'll go speak to the king, so perhaps the king will do what his humble servant has requested.

After this, Absalom sent for Joab, intending to send him to the king, but Joab would not come. Absalom sent for him a second time, but he still would not come.

In answer to Joab, Absalom replied, "Look, I sent for you, telling you "Come here so I can send you to the king to ask him "What's the point in moving here from Geshur? I would have been better off to have remained there!"' So let me see the king's face, and if I'm guilty of anything, let him execute me!"

So when Joab approached the king and told him what Absalom had said, he summoned Absalom, who then came to the king and fell to the ground on his face in front of him. Then the king kissed Absalom.

By doing all of this to anyone who came to the king for a hearing, Absalom stole the loyalty of the men of Israel.

Absalom also sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David's counselor, to come from his home town of Giloh while Absalom was presenting the sacrificial offerings. And so the conspiracy widened, because the common people increasingly sided with Absalom.

All of his staff were going on ahead of him that is, all of the special forces and mercenaries, all of the Gittites, and 600 men who had come to serve him from Gath, went on ahead of the king.

So David replied, "Come along, then!" So Ittai the Gittite went along also, accompanied by all of his men and all of his little ones.

David greeted him, "If you come along with me, you'll be a burden to me.

Ahithophel responded, "Go inside and have sex with your father's mistresses, whom he left to keep the palace in order. Then everyone in Israel will hear how your father has come to hate you and everyone who has joined you will be emboldened to act."

So King David sent this message to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests: "Ask the elders of Judah, "Why are you the last to bring the king back to his palace, considering that what's being reported throughout all of Israel has come to the king at his palace?

By doing things like this, he persuaded all the men of Judah to unite in support of him. They sent the king this message: "Come on back, you and all of your army!"

because your servant knows that I have sinned, but today I have come here as the first one from the entire house of Joseph to meet your majesty the king."

When he arrived from Jerusalem to greet the king, the king asked him, "So why didn't you come with me, Mephibosheth?"

Barzillai the Gileadite also had come down from Rogelim to cross the Jordan River with the king and to see him on his way from there.

When they arrived at the great stone that is in Gibeon, Amasa came out to meet them. Joab was dressed in a soldier's uniform, over which was a belt that fastened a sword sheath to his thigh. As he walked forward, the sword was exposed.

Just then a wise woman called out from the city. "Attention!" she said, "Go tell Joab "Come here! I want to talk to you!'"

Joab came over and the woman asked him, "Are you Joab?" "I am," he answered. So she told him, "Listen to what your servant has to say!" "I'm listening," he replied.

But Zeruiah's son Abishai came to David's aid, attacked the Philistine, and killed him. After this, David's army told him, "You're not going out anymore with us to battle, so Israel's beacon won't be extinguished!"

Foreigners came cringing to me; they obeyed as soon as they heard me.

Before David arose the next morning, this message from the LORD came to Gad, David's seer:

So Gad went to David and asked him, "Shall seven years of famine come to your land, or three months of reversals while you flee from your enemies as they pursue you, or three days of pestilence in your land? Decide right now what I am to answer to the one who sent me."

and asked him, "Why has your majesty the king come to his servant?" David replied, "To purchase your threshing floor and to build an altar to the LORD, so the pestilence can be averted from the people."