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.

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!

Now Saul's son had two officers in charge of some raiding parties. One was named Baanah and the other was named Rechab. They were sons of Rimmon, a descendant of Benjamin from Beeroth, which was considered to belong to the tribe of Benjamin.

Even so, David captured the stronghold of Zion, which is now known as the City of David.

I'm going to act more shamelessly than this, even to humbling myself in my own eyes. Now as to the women staff members about whom you have spoken, they are to hold me in honor!"

he told the prophet Nathan, "Look now, I'm living in a cedar palace, but the Ark of God resides behind a tent curtain."

"""Are you going to build a house for me to inhabit? After all, I haven't lived in a house since the day I brought up the Israelis from Egypt until now. Instead, I've moved around in a tent that served as my dwelling place.

"""Now therefore this is what you are to tell my servant David: "This is what the LORD of the Heavenly Armies says: "I took you from the pasture myself from tending sheep to become Commander-in-Chief over my people, that is, over Israel.

"And now, LORD God, let what you have spoken concerning your servant and his household be done and let it be done just as you've promised.

"Now therefore, Lord GOD, you are God, and your words are true, and you have spoken to your servant these good things.

You and your servants are to farm the land on his behalf and bring in the crops in order to provide for your master's grandson. Meanwhile, Mephibosheth, your master's grandson, will always have a place at my table." (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and 20 servants.)

A week later, the child died, and David's staff was afraid to tell him that the child had died. They were telling themselves, "Look, when the child was still alive, we talked to him but he wouldn't listen to what we said. Now what kind of trouble will he bring on himself if we tell him that the child has died?"

His staff asked him, "What's this about? When the child was alive, you fasted and cried. Now that the child has died, you get up and eat!"

But now that he has died, what's the point of fasting? Can I bring him back again? I'll be going to be with him, but he won't be returning to me."

Meanwhile, Amnon had a friend named Jonadab, who was the son of David's brother Shimeah. Now Jonadab was a very shrewd man.

Now she was clothed in a long sleeved, multi-colored ornamental tunic, commonly worn by the king's virgin daughters. When Amnon's servant threw her out and locked the door after her,

Later, her brother Absalom asked her, "Has Amnon, that brother of yours, raped you? Then keep quiet about your half-brother for now, my sister. Stop taking this so personally." From that time on, Tamar lived in continuous desolation within her brother Absalom's house.

Now your majesty, don't be concerned about this rumor that all the king's sons have died, because only Amnon is dead."

Now please pay attention closely! My whole family is attacking your humble servant! They're saying, "Turn over the one who attacked his brother and we'll put him to death in retribution for his brother, whose life he took. That way, we'll kill the heir also!' They're going to extinguish the only light left in my family, leaving my late husband neither an ongoing name nor a survivor on the face of the earth!"

"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.

In reply, the king asked the woman, "Please don't conceal anything about which I'm going to be asking you now." So the woman replied, "Please, your majesty, let the king speak."

Now throughout all of Israel no one was as handsome as Absalom or so highly praised, from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head there wasn't a single thing wrong about him.

So go back to the city and tell Absalom, "I'll be your servant, your majesty! Just as I served your father in the past, I can be your servant now.' That way you can manipulate Ahithophel's advice to my benefit.

Now just as David happened to have passed the summit of the Mount of Olives, suddenly Mephibosheth's servant Ziba met him, accompanied by a couple of saddled donkeys loaded with 200 loaves of bread, 100 clusters of raisins, 100 pieces of summer fruit, and a skin of wine!

So the king told Ziba, "Pay attention! Everything that belongs to Mephibosheth is now yours!" In response Ziba said, "I'm submitting to you. Let me find favor in your sight, your majesty the king!"

The LORD has repaid you personally for murdering the entire dynasty of Saul, whose place you've taken to reign! And the LORD has given the kingdom into your son Absalom's control. Now look! Your own evil has caught up with you, because you're guilty of murder!"

So David ordered Abishai and all of his staff: "Look! My own son wants to kill me! How much more now is this descendant of Benjamin? Leave him alone and let him go on cursing, because the LORD has ordered him to do this.

Now Ahithophel's advice that he provided at that time was being compared to one who inquired of God, so highly regarded was Ahithophel's counsel by both David and Absalom.

Now get up and restore the morale of your army. I swear by the LORD that if you don't get out there, you won't have a single man left in your army by nightfall! You'll be in more trouble today than all the disasters you've been through from your boyhood until now!"

Meanwhile, the Israelis had run away back to their own homes. Throughout the tribes of Israel, everyone was quarreling with one another: "The king delivered us from the domination of our enemies"." "He's the one who rescued us from Philistine control"." "Now he's fleeing the country because of Absalom"!"

"The very same Absalom we anointed to rule just died in battle"!" "Now then, why remain silent about bringing the king back"?"

But Mephibosheth told the king, "Let him take all of it, now that your majesty the king has returned safely to his palace."

Now Barzillai was a very old man at the age of 80 years. A very wealthy man, Barzillai had provided for king David during his sojourn in Mahanaim.

I'm now 80 years old! I can hardly tell the difference between what tastes good or bad! I can't tell what I eat or drink! I can't hear the voice of men and women when they sing! So why should your servant be an added burden to your majesty the king?

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."

So the king called together the Gibeonites and conferred with them. Now the Gibeonites weren't part of the nation of Israel, but were the survivors from the Amorites. Although the Israelis had promised to spare them, Saul had started to execute them in his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah.

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."

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."

So David replied to Gad, "This is a very difficult choice for me to make! Let me now please fall into the hand of the LORD, since his mercy is very great, but may I never fall into human hands!"