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

David continued questioning him, "How did things go? Please tell me!" He replied, "The army has fled the battlefield, many of the army are wounded or have died, and Saul and his son Jonathan are also dead."

On hearing this, David grabbed his clothes and tore them, as did all the men who were attending to him.

Now may the Lord reward you with gracious love, as well as faithfulness, to you, too! And I will also reward you because you did this good thing.

Meanwhile, Saul had a mistress named Rizpah, who was the daughter of Aiah. Ish-bosheth asked Abner, "Why did you have sex with my father's mistress?"

Everybody took note of this and was very pleased, just as everything else the king did pleased everyone.

So David did exactly what the LORD ordered him to do, and he struck down the Philistines from Geba to Gezer.

Wherever I moved among the Israelis, did I ever ask even one tribal leader of Israel whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, "Why haven't you built me a cedar house?'

But I'll never remove my gracious love from him as I did from Saul, whom I removed from your presence.

When David was told that Uriah hadn't gone home the previous night, he quizzed him, "You just arrived from a long journey, so why didn't you go down to your own house?"

Then at David's invitation, he and Uriah dined and drank wine together, and David got him drunk. Later that evening, Uriah went out to lie on a couch in the company of his lord's servants, and he did not go down to his house.

if the king starts to get angry and asks you, "Why did you get so near the city to fight? Didn't you know they would shoot from the wall?

Who killed Jerubbesheth's son Abimelech? Didn't a woman kill him by throwing an upper millstone on him from the wall at Thebez? Why did you go so close to the wall?' then tell him, "Your servant Uriah the Hittite also died.'"

David flew into a rage at the man and told Nathan, "As the LORD lives, the man who did this deserves to die!

He will restore the lamb four times its value, because he did this thing, and because he did it without compassion."

""Why did you despise what the LORD has promised by doing what is detestable in his sight? ""You struck down Uriah the Hittite with a battle sword. ""You took his wife to be your own. ""You killed him with the sword of the Ammonite army.

""What you did in secret I'm going to do right in front of all Israel and in broad daylight as well!'"

brought back the people who had lived in it, placing them under conscripted labor with saws, iron picks, and axes. He did this to every Ammonite city, and then David and his entire army returned to Jerusalem.

Even so, she tried to tell him, "No! After all, it's more wrong to send me away than what you just did to me!"

But King David declined, saying to Absalom, "No, my son, we won't all go, since that would be too much trouble for you." Although Absalom begged David, he would not go, even though he did give his blessing.

So Absalom's young men did to Amnon just as they had been ordered, but the rest of David's sons jumped up, mounted their mules, and escaped.

"As your soul lives, your majesty, the king," the woman answered, "no one can divert anything left or right from what your majesty the king has spoken! As a matter of fact, it was your servant Joab! He was there, giving me precise orders about everything that your humble servant was to say. Your servant Joab did this, intending to change the outcome of this matter. Nevertheless, your majesty is wise, like the wisdom of the angel of God, to be aware of everything that's going on throughout the earth."

Nevertheless, the king said, "Let him return to his own home and not show his face to me." So Absalom returned to his own home and did not show his face to the king.

At this, Joab got up, went to Absalom's home, and demanded of him, "Why did your servants set fire to my grain field?"

But Absalom asked Hushai, "So this is how you demonstrate your loyalty to your closest friends? Why didn't you leave with your friend?"

The battle spread throughout the entire countryside, and the forest claimed more casualties that day than did the sword fighting.

Joab asked the man who was reporting to him, "What! You saw him? Why didn't you kill him right then and there? I would've given you ten pieces of silver and a warrior's sash!"

Just as the king was about to ford the Jordan River, Gera's son Shimei fell down in front of the king and addressed him, "May your majesty not hold me guilty. Don't remember how your servant did wrong the day your majesty the king left Jerusalem. May the king not let it burden his heart,

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

As the king crossed over the Jordan River to Gilgal, Chimham accompanied him, as did all the troops of Judah and half the troops of Israel.

Not long afterward, all the men of Israel started coming to the king, complaining to him, "Why did our relatives in Judah's army sneak you away, taking the king and his household over the Jordan River, along with David's army?"

Everybody from Judah shouted to the men from Israel, "We did this because the king is closely related to us. So why are you angry about this? Have we lived off the king's expense? Have we appropriated anything for ourselves?"

So David told Abishai, "Now Bichri's son Sheba is about to do more damage than did Absalom. So take my personal guards and go after them. Otherwise, he'll run to one of the fortified cities and escape from us."

Amasa did not notice the sword that Joab was holding in his hand. Joab stabbed him in the abdomen, spilling his intestines to the ground in a single stroke and killing him. After this, Joab and his brother pursued Bichri's son Sheba.

You've made room beneath me for my footsteps, and my feet didn't slip.

I pursued my enemies and conquered them; I didn't return until they were consumed.

and said, "The LORD forbid that I drink this this is the blood of men who endangered their own lives!" The Three elite warriors did these things.

Benaiah did things like this and gained a reputation comparable to the Three warriors.

He was well known among the platoons, but he didn't measure up to the Three. David placed him in charge of his security detail.

Later, David's conscience bothered him after he had numbered the army, so David told the LORD, "I have sinned greatly by what I did. But now I am asking you, please remove the guilt of your servant, since I have acted very foolishly."

When David saw the angel who had been attacking the people, he told the LORD, "Look, I'm the one who has sinned! I did the evil. These are only sheep! What did they do? Please, let your hand fall on me and on my household!"