2Samuel:19:9-43
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And all the people were at strife throughout all the tribes of Israel ,
saying ,
The king saved us out of the hand of our enemies ,
and he delivered us out of the hand of the Philistines ;
and now he is fled out of the land for Absalom .
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And Absalom ,
whom we anointed over us ,
is dead in battle .
Now therefore why speak ye not a word of bringing the king back ?
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And king David sent to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests ,
saying ,
Speak unto the elders of Judah ,
saying ,
Why are ye the last to bring the king back to his house ?
seeing the speech of all Israel is come to the king ,
even to his house .
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Ye are my brethren ,
ye are my bones and my flesh :
wherefore then are ye the last to bring back the king ?
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And say ye to Amasa ,
Art thou not of my bone ,
and of my flesh ?
God do so to me ,
and more also ,
if thou be not captain of the host before me continually in the room of Joab .
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And he bowed the heart of all the men of Judah ,
even as the heart of one man ;
so that they sent this word unto the king ,
Return thou ,
and all thy servants .
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So the king returned ,
and came to Jordan .
And Judah came to Gilgal ,
to go to meet the king ,
to conduct the king over Jordan .
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And Shimei the son of Gera ,
a Benjamite ,
which was of Bahurim ,
hasted and came down with the men of Judah to meet king David .
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And there were a thousand men of Benjamin with him ,
and Ziba the servant of the house of Saul ,
and his fifteen sons and his twenty servants with him ;
and they went over Jordan before the king .
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And there went over a ferry boat to carry over the king '
s household ,
and to do what he thought good .
And Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king ,
as he was come over Jordan ;
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And said unto the king ,
Let not my lord impute iniquity unto me ,
neither do thou remember that which thy servant did perversely the day that my lord the king went out of Jerusalem ,
that the king should take it to his heart .
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For thy servant doth know that I have sinned :
therefore ,
behold ,
I am come the first this day of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my lord the king .
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But Abishai the son of Zeruiah answered and said ,
Shall not Shimei be put to death for this ,
because he cursed the LORD '
S anointed ?
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And David said ,
What have I to do with you ,
ye sons of Zeruiah ,
that ye should this day be adversaries unto me ?
shall there any man be put to death this day in Israel ?
for do not I know that I am this day king over Israel ?
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Therefore the king said unto Shimei ,
Thou shalt not die .
And the king sware unto him .
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And Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king ,
and had neither dressed his feet ,
nor trimmed his beard ,
nor washed his clothes ,
from the day the king departed until the day he came again in peace .
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And it came to pass ,
when he was come to Jerusalem to meet the king ,
that the king said unto him ,
Wherefore wentest not thou with me ,
Mephibosheth ?
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And he answered ,
My lord ,
O king ,
my servant deceived me :
for thy servant said ,
I will saddle me an ass ,
that I may ride thereon ,
and go to the king ;
because thy servant is lame .
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And he hath slandered thy servant unto my lord the king ;
but my lord the king is as an angel of God :
do therefore what is good in thine eyes .
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For all of my father '
s house were but dead men before my lord the king :
yet didst thou set thy servant among them that did eat at thine own table .
What right therefore have I yet to cry any more unto the king ?
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And the king said unto him ,
Why speakest thou any more of thy matters ?
I have said ,
Thou and Ziba divide the land .
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And Mephibosheth said unto the king ,
Yea ,
let him take all ,
forasmuch as my lord the king is come again in peace unto his own house .
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And Barzillai the Gileadite came down from Rogelim ,
and went over Jordan with the king ,
to conduct him over Jordan .
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Now Barzillai was a very aged man ,
even fourscore years old :
and he had provided the king of sustenance while he lay at Mahanaim ;
for he was a very great man .
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And the king said unto Barzillai ,
Come thou over with me ,
and I will feed thee with me in Jerusalem .
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And Barzillai said unto the king ,
How long have I to live ,
that I should go up with the king unto Jerusalem ?
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I am this day fourscore years old :
and can I discern between good and evil ?
can thy servant taste what I eat or what I drink ?
can I hear any more the voice of singing men and singing women ?
wherefore then should thy servant be yet a burden unto my lord the king ?
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Thy servant will go a little way over Jordan with the king :
and why should the king recompense it me with such a reward ?
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Let thy servant ,
I pray thee ,
turn back again ,
that I may die in mine own city ,
and be buried by the grave of my father and of my mother .
But behold thy servant Chimham ;
let him go over with my lord the king ;
and do to him what shall seem good unto thee .
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And the king answered ,
Chimham shall go over with me ,
and I will do to him that which shall seem good unto thee :
and whatsoever thou shalt require of me ,
that will I do for thee .
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And all the people went over Jordan .
And when the king was come over ,
the king kissed Barzillai ,
and blessed him ;
and he returned unto his own place .
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Then the king went on to Gilgal ,
and Chimham went on with him :
and all the people of Judah conducted the king ,
and also half the people of Israel .
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And ,
behold ,
all the men of Israel came to the king ,
and said unto the king ,
Why have our brethren the men of Judah stolen thee away ,
and have brought the king ,
and his household ,
and all David '
s men with him ,
over Jordan ?
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And all the men of Judah answered the men of Israel ,
Because the king is near of kin to us :
wherefore then be ye angry for this matter ?
have we eaten at all of the king '
s cost ?
or hath he given us any gift ?
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And the men of Israel answered the men of Judah ,
and said ,
We have ten parts in the king ,
and we have also more right in David than ye :
why then did ye despise us ,
that our advice should not be first had in bringing back our king ?
And the words of the men of Judah were fiercer than the words of the men of Israel .