his second was Chileab by Abigail, widow of Nabal from Carmel, his third was Absalom by Maacah, daughter of King Talmai from Geshur,

Sometime after this, David's son Amnon fell in love with David's other son Absalom's beautiful sister Tamar.

"Why are you so depressed these past few mornings," Jonadab asked Amnon, "since you're a son of the king? Why not tell me?" Amnon replied, "I'm in love with my brother Absalom's sister Tamar."

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.

But Absalom never said a word, either good or bad, to Amnon. Nevertheless, he hated Amnon because he had humiliated his sister Tamar.

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?"

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 responded, "If you aren't coming, please allow my brother Amnon to accompany us." The king asked, "Why should he go with you?"

But Absalom kept begging David until he sent Amnon and all of David's sons to accompany Absalom.

Then Absalom instructed his young men, "Please keep watching Amnon until he's drunk. Then I'll tell you, "Attack Amnon!' As soon as I do, kill him and don't be afraid! You have your orders, so be strong and brave!"

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.

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."

But David's brother Shimeah's son Jonadab reported, "Your majesty, don't assume they've killed all of the young men the king's sons only Amnon has died, since that was Absalom's intention from the day Amnon raped his sister Tamar.

Meanwhile, Absalom had run away. While the young man standing watch was looking around, all of a sudden he observed many people coming down the road behind and to the west of the mountain! So the watchman left his post and reported, "I have seen men coming from the direction of Horonaim."

Absalom continued to flee, eventually going to Ammihud's son King Talmai of Geshur, while King David continued to mourn for his son every day.

After fleeing to Geshur, Absalom remained there for three years.

Meanwhile, King David longed to visit Absalom, since he was moved to compassion over Amnon's death.

Meanwhile, Zeruiah's son Joab knew that the king's attention was focused on Absalom,

Then the king addressed Joab, "Look! I'll do this thing that you've requested. Go bring back the young man Absalom."

Then Joab got up, went to Geshur, and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem.

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.

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.

Absalom fathered three sons and one daughter, whom he named Tamar. She was a beautiful woman, both in form and appearance.

Meanwhile, Absalom lived in Jerusalem for two years, but never saw the king's face.

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.

So Absalom told his servants, "Observe that Joab's grain field lies next to mine. He has barley planted there. Go set it on fire." So Absalom's servants set the field on fire.

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

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.

Sometime later, Absalom acquired a chariot equipped with horses and recruited 50 men to accompany him.

Then he would get up early, stand near the passageway to the palace gate, and when anyone arrived to file a legal complaint for a hearing before the king, Absalom would call to him and ask, "You're from what city?" If he replied, "Your servant is from one of Israel's tribes,"

Absalom would respond, "Look, your claims are valid and defensible, but nobody will listen to you on behalf of the king.

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

And so it was that forty years after Israel had demanded a king, Absalom asked the king, "Please let me go to Hebron so I can pay my vow that I made to the LORD,

The king replied to him, "Go in peace!" So Absalom got up and left for Hebron.

But Absalom sent agents throughout all of the tribes of Israel, telling them, "When you hear the sound of the battle trumpet, you're to announce that Absalom is king in Hebron."

Meanwhile, 200 men left Jerusalem with Absalom. They had been invited to go along, but were innocent, not knowing anything about what was happening.

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.

Then a messenger arrived to inform David, "The loyalties of the men of Israel have shifted to Absalom."

So David told all of his staff who were with him in Jerusalem, "Let's get up and get out of here! Otherwise, none of us will escape from Absalom. Hurry, or he'll overtake us quickly, bring disaster on all of us, and execute the inhabitants of the city!"

Just then, someone told David, "Ahithophel is one of Absalom's conspirators!" So David prayed, "LORD, please turn Ahithophel's counsel into foolishness."

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.

So David's friend Hushai went back to the city just as Absalom was arriving in Jerusalem.

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!"

Right about then, Absalom and his entourage from the people of Israel entered Jerusalem, accompanied by Ahithophel.

When David's friend Hushai the Archite approached Absalom, Hushai greeted Absalom, "Long live the king! Long live the king!"

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

So Absalom asked Ahithophel, "What's your advice? What should we do?"

So they erected a tent for Absalom on the palace roof and Absalom went in and had sex with his father's mistresses right in front of all Israel.

Even though this plan seemed like a good idea to Absalom and to all of the elders of Israel,

Absalom replied, "Call in Hushai the Archite so I can hear what he has to say, too!"

When Hushai approached Absalom, Absalom asked him, "Here's what Ahithophel had to advise. Should we do what he says? Or if not, say so!"

"Ahithophel's advice is not best at this time," Hushai suggested to Absalom.

Look! He's probably already hiding in a cave or someplace like that. If the first attack fails, people will hear about it and think, "Absalom's army is losing!'

Absalom and all of the Israelis replied, "The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than Ahithophel's!"

But the LORD had planned to circumvent the sound advice of Ahithophel so the LORD could bring Absalom to destruction. So Hushai told Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, what Ahithophel had suggested to Absalom and the elders of Israel. He also reported what he himself had proposed. Hushai said,

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.

"Give me 12,000 men! I'll leave tonight and pursue David," Ahithophel advised Absalom.

But a young man observed Jonathan and Ahimaaz and informed Absalom, so they left in a hurry, arrived at the home of a man who lived at Bahurim, and hid inside a well that was in his courtyard.

When Absalom's servants approached the woman of the house, they asked her, "Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?" "They've already crossed the brook," the woman answered. So Absalom's servants went away in search of Jonathan and Ahimaaz, but they couldn't find them, so they returned to Jerusalem.

Later, David arrived at Mahanaim. Absalom and all of the Israelis who supported him crossed the Jordan River.

Absalom had installed Amasa in place of Joab over the army. (Amasa was the son of a man named Jether the Ishmaelite. His mother was Abigail, a daughter of Nahash and a sister of Zeruiah, Joab's mother.)

Absalom and the Israelis with him camped in the territory of Gilead.

"No way!" his army responded. "If we have to retreat from the battle, Absalom's men won't care about us. Even if half of us die, they won't care about us. But you are worth 10,000 of us. The best thing you can do for us is to remain in the city."

As they were going out, the king ordered Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, "Treat young Absalom gently for my sake." Everyone heard what the king had ordered his commanders about Absalom.

David's army left for the battlefield to fight Absalom and his Israeli followers, and they also fought in the Ephraim forest,

Absalom happened to run into David's soldiers. While Absalom was trying to get away on his mule, it ran under the thick branches of a giant oak tree, and Absalom's head got caught in the tree! As his mule ran out from under him, Absalom was left hanging above the ground.

When one of the soldiers saw what had happened, he told Joab, "I saw Absalom stuck in an oak tree!"

But the soldier replied to Joab, "I wouldn't have touched the king's son even if you dropped 1,000 pieces of silver right into my hands, because we heard the king command you, Abishai, and Ittai, "Watch how you treat the young man Absalom!'

"There's no reason to wait for you!" Joab retorted. Then he took three spears in his hand and stabbed Absalom in the heart while he was still alive, dangling from the branches of the oak tree.

Ten young men who served as Joab's personal assistants then surrounded Absalom, striking him repeatedly and killing him.

Meanwhile, Joab's army grabbed Absalom's body, tossed it into a large pit in the forest, and filled it up with a huge pile of rocks. Then the Israelis ran away back to their homes.

While Absalom had been living, he had erected a pillar as a monument to himself in King's Valley because he had been telling himself, "I don't have a son to carry on my family name." So he named the pillar after himself it's called Absalom's Monument even today.

"Are things fine with respect to the young man Absalom?" the king asked. Ahimaaz answered, "I saw a lot of confusion about the time Joab was getting ready to send the king's courier and me, your servant, but I'm not sure what was going on."

Deeply shaken, the king went up to the chamber overlooking the city gate, weeping bitterly and crying out as he went along, "My son Absalom! My son! My son Absalom! I wish I had died instead of you, Absalom my son, my son!"

Someone informed Joab, "The king is weeping bitterly, mourning for Absalom."

Meanwhile, the king veiled his face and kept on crying loudly, "My son Absalom! Absalom my son, my son!"

You love those who hate you and hate those who love you! You've made it abundantly clear today that your officers and the men under them mean nothing to you! I've learned today that you would rather have Absalom alive today and all the rest of us dead!

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"?"

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."

His father had never challenged him at any time during his life by asking him, "Why are you acting like this?" Adonijah was very handsome and had been born after Absalom.

Be gracious to the descendants of Barzillai the Gileadite, and provide for them in your household, because they helped me when I had to run from your brother Absalom.

When Joab learned what had happened, he ran to the LORD's tent and grabbed hold of the horns of the altar, since Joab had supported Adonijah (though he had not supported Absalom).

Absalom his third born by Maacah daughter of King Talmai of Geshur, Adonijah his fourth born by Haggith,

After this he married Absalom's daughter Maacah, who bore him Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith.

Rehoboam loved Absalom's daughter Maacah more than he did all of his wives and mistresses. (He married eighteen wives and 60 concubines, fathering 28 sons and 60 daughters.)

Kiss the son before he becomes angry, and you die where you stand. Indeed, his wrath can flare up quickly. How blessed are those who take refuge in him. A Davidic Psalm, when he fled from his son Absalom.