nkjv 2Samuel:20-22 SEEK
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And there happened to be there a rebel ,
whose name was Sheba the son of Bichri ,
a Benjamite .
And he blew a trumpet ,
and said : "
We have no share in David ,
Nor do we have inheritance in the son of Jesse ;
Every man to his tents ,
O Israel !"
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So every man of Israel deserted David ,
and followed Sheba the son of Bichri .
But the men of Judah ,
from the Jordan as far as Jerusalem ,
remained loyal to their king .
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Now David came to his house at Jerusalem .
And the king took the ten women ,
his concubines whom he had left to keep the house ,
and put them in seclusion and supported them ,
but did not go in to them .
So they were shut up to the day of their death ,
living in widowhood .
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And the king said to Amasa , "
Assemble the men of Judah for me within three days ,
and be present here yourself ."
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So Amasa went to assemble the men of Judah .
But he delayed longer than the set time which David had appointed him .
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And David said to Abishai , "
Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom .
Take your lord '
s servants and pursue him ,
lest he find for himself fortified cities ,
and escape us ."
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So Joab '
s men ,
with the Cherethites ,
the Pelethites ,
and all the mighty men ,
went out after him .
And they went out of Jerusalem to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri .
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When they were at the large stone which is in Gibeon ,
Amasa came before them .
Now Joab was dressed in battle armor ;
on it was a belt with a sword fastened in its sheath at his hips ;
and as he was going forward ,
it fell out .
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Then Joab said to Amasa , "
Are you in health ,
my brother ?"
And Joab took Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss him .
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But Amasa did not notice the sword that was in Joab '
s hand .
And he struck him with it in the stomach ,
and his entrails poured out on the ground ;
and he did not strike him again .
Thus he died .
Then Joab and Abishai his brother pursued Sheba the son of Bichri .
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Meanwhile one of Joab '
s men stood near Amasa ,
and said , "
Whoever favors Joab and whoever is for David--follow Joab !"
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But Amasa wallowed in his blood in the middle of the highway .
And when the man saw that all the people stood still ,
he moved Amasa from the highway to the field and threw a garment over him ,
when he saw that everyone who came upon him halted .
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When he was removed from the highway ,
all the people went on after Joab to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri .
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And he went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel and Beth Maachah and all the Berites .
So they were gathered together and also went after Sheba .
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Then they came and besieged him in Abel of Beth Maachah ;
and they cast up a siege mound against the city ,
and it stood by the rampart .
And all the people who were with Joab battered the wall to throw it down .
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Then a wise woman cried out from the city , "
Hear ,
hear !
Please say to Joab , "
Come nearby ,
that I may speak with you ."'
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When he had come near to her ,
the woman said , "
Are you Joab ?"
He answered , "
I am ."
Then she said to him , "
Hear the words of your maidservant ."
And he answered , "
I am listening ."
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So she spoke ,
saying , "
They used to talk in former times ,
saying , "
They shall surely seek guidance at Abel ,'
and so they would end disputes .
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I am among the peaceable and faithful in Israel .
You seek to destroy a city and a mother in Israel .
Why would you swallow up the inheritance of the LORD ?"
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And Joab answered and said , "
Far be it ,
far be it from me ,
that I should swallow up or destroy !
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That is not so .
But a man from the mountains of Ephraim ,
Sheba the son of Bichri by name ,
has raised his hand against the king ,
against David .
Deliver him only ,
and I will depart from the city ."
So the woman said to Joab , "
Watch ,
his head will be thrown to you over the wall ."
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Then the woman in her wisdom went to all the people .
And they cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri ,
and threw it out to Joab .
Then he blew a trumpet ,
and they withdrew from the city ,
every man to his tent .
So Joab returned to the king at Jerusalem .
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And Joab was over all the army of Israel ;
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites ;
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Adoram was in charge of revenue ;
Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder ;
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Sheva was scribe ;
Zadok and Abiathar were the priests ;
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and Ira the Jairite was a chief minister under David .
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Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years ,
year after year ;
and David inquired of the LORD .
And the LORD answered , "
It is because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house ,
because he killed the Gibeonites ."
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So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them .
Now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel ,
but of the remnant of the Amorites ;
the children of Israel had sworn protection to them ,
but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah .
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Therefore David said to the Gibeonites , "
What shall I do for you ?
And with what shall I make atonement ,
that you may bless the inheritance of the LORD ?"
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And the Gibeonites said to him , "
We will have no silver or gold from Saul or from his house ,
nor shall you kill any man in Israel for us ."
So he said , "
Whatever you say ,
I will do for you ."
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Then they answered the king , "
As for the man who consumed us and plotted against us ,
that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the territories of Israel ,
*
let seven men of his descendants be delivered to us ,
and we will hang them before the LORD in Gibeah of Saul ,
whom the LORD chose ."
And the king said , "
I will give them ."
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But the king spared Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan ,
the son of Saul ,
because of the LORD '
s oath that was between them ,
between David and Jonathan the son of Saul .
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So the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth ,
the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah ,
whom she bore to Saul ,
and the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul ,
whom she brought up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite ;
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and he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites ,
and they hanged them on the hill before the LORD .
So they fell ,
all seven together ,
and were put to death in the days of harvest ,
in the first days ,
in the beginning of barley harvest .
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Now Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the rock ,
from the beginning of harvest until the late rains poured on them from heaven .
And she did not allow the birds of the air to rest on them by day nor the beasts of the field by night .
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And David was told what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah ,
the concubine of Saul ,
had done .
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Then David went and took the bones of Saul ,
and the bones of Jonathan his son ,
from the men of Jabesh Gilead who had stolen them from the street of Beth Shan ,
where the Philistines had hung them up ,
after the Philistines had struck down Saul in Gilboa .
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So he brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from there ;
and they gathered the bones of those who had been hanged .
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They buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in Zelah ,
in the tomb of Kish his father .
So they performed all that the king commanded .
And after that God heeded the prayer for the land .
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When the Philistines were at war again with Israel ,
David and his servants with him went down and fought against the Philistines ;
and David grew faint .
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Then Ishbi-Benob ,
who was one of the sons of the giant ,
the weight of whose bronze spear was three hundred shekels ,
who was bearing a new sword ,
thought he could kill David .
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But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid ,
and struck the Philistine and killed him .
Then the men of David swore to him ,
saying , "
You shall go out no more with us to battle ,
lest you quench the lamp of Israel ."
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Now it happened afterward that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Gob .
Then Sibbechai the Hushathite killed Saph ,
who was one of the sons of the giant .
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Again there was war at Gob with the Philistines ,
where Elhanan the son of Jaare-Oregim the Bethlehemite killed the brother of Goliath the Gittite ,
the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver '
s beam .
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Yet again there was war at Gath ,
where there was a man of great stature ,
who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot ,
twenty-four in number ;
and he also was born to the giant .
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So when he defied Israel ,
Jonathan the son of Shimea ,
David '
s brother ,
killed him .
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These four were born to the giant in Gath ,
and fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants .
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Then David spoke to the LORD the words of this song ,
on the day when the LORD had delivered him from the hand of all his enemies ,
and from the hand of Saul .
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And he said : "
The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer ;
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The God of my strength ,
in whom I will trust ;
My shield and the horn of my salvation ,
My stronghold and my refuge ;
My Savior ,
You save me from violence .
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I will call upon the LORD ,
who is worthy to be praised ;
So shall I be saved from my enemies .
* "
When the waves of death surrounded me ,
The floods of ungodliness made me afraid .
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The sorrows of Sheol surrounded me ;
The snares of death confronted me .
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In my distress I called upon the LORD ,
And cried out to my God ;
He heard my voice from His temple ,
And my cry entered His ears .
* "
Then the earth shook and trembled ;
The foundations of heaven quaked and were shaken ,
Because He was angry .
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Smoke went up from His nostrils ,
And devouring fire from His mouth ;
Coals were kindled by it .
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He bowed the heavens also ,
and came down With darkness under His feet .
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He rode upon a cherub ,
and flew ;
And He was seen upon the wings of the wind .
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He made darkness canopies around Him ,
Dark waters and thick clouds of the skies .
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From the brightness before Him Coals of fire were kindled .
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The LORD thundered from heaven ,
And the Most High uttered His voice .
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He sent out arrows and scattered them ;
Lightning bolts ,
and He vanquished them .
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Then the channels of the sea were seen ,
The foundations of the world were uncovered ,
At the rebuke of the LORD ,
At the blast of the breath of His nostrils .
* "
He sent from above ,
He took me ,
He drew me out of many waters .
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He delivered me from my strong enemy ,
From those who hated me ;
For they were too strong for me .
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They confronted me in the day of my calamity ,
But the LORD was my support .
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He also brought me out into a broad place ;
He delivered me because He delighted in me .
* "
The LORD rewarded me according to my righteousness ;
According to the cleanness of my hands He has recompensed me .
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For I have kept the ways of the LORD ,
And have not wickedly departed from my God .
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For all His judgments were before me ;
And as for His statutes ,
I did not depart from them .
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I was also blameless before Him ,
And I kept myself from my iniquity .
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Therefore the LORD has recompensed me according to my righteousness ,
According to my cleanness in His eyes .
* "
With the merciful You will show Yourself merciful ;
With a blameless man You will show Yourself blameless ;
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With the pure You will show Yourself pure ;
And with the devious You will show Yourself shrewd .
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You will save the humble people ;
But Your eyes are on the haughty ,
that You may bring them down .
* "
For You are my lamp ,
O LORD ;
The LORD shall enlighten my darkness .
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For by You I can run against a troop ;
By my God I can leap over a wall .
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As for God ,
His way is perfect ;
The word of the LORD is proven ;
He is a shield to all who trust in Him .
* "
For who is God ,
except the LORD ?
And who is a rock ,
except our God ?
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God is my strength and power ,
And He makes my way perfect .
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He makes my feet like the feet of deer ,
And sets me on my high places .
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He teaches my hands to make war ,
So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze .
* "
You have also given me the shield of Your salvation ;
Your gentleness has made me great .
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You enlarged my path under me ;
So my feet did not slip .
* "
I have pursued my enemies and destroyed them ;
Neither did I turn back again till they were destroyed .
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And I have destroyed them and wounded them ,
So that they could not rise ;
They have fallen under my feet .
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For You have armed me with strength for the battle ;
You have subdued under me those who rose against me .
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You have also given me the necks of my enemies ,
So that I destroyed those who hated me .
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They looked ,
but there was none to save ;
Even to the LORD ,
but He did not answer them .
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Then I beat them as fine as the dust of the earth ;
I trod them like dirt in the streets ,
And I spread them out .
* "
You have also delivered me from the strivings of my people ;
You have kept me as the head of the nations .
A people I have not known shall serve me .
*
The foreigners submit to me ;
As soon as they hear ,
they obey me .
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The foreigners fade away ,
And come frightened from their hideouts .
* "
The LORD lives !
Blessed be my Rock !
Let God be exalted ,
The Rock of my salvation !
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It is God who avenges me ,
And subdues the peoples under me ;
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He delivers me from my enemies .
You also lift me up above those who rise against me ;
You have delivered me from the violent man .
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Therefore I will give thanks to You ,
O LORD ,
among the Gentiles ,
And sing praises to Your name .
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He is the tower of salvation to His king ,
And shows mercy to His anointed ,
To David and his descendants forevermore ."
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Now these are the last words of David .
Thus says David the son of Jesse ;
Thus says the man raised up on high ,
The anointed of the God of Jacob ,
And the sweet psalmist of Israel :