1. What do I learn about God?
2. What do I learn about man?
3. Is there an example to follow?
4. What does God want me to believe?

Psalm 5, 38, 41-42

PSALM 5

¹Give ear to my words, O Lord , consider my sighing.

²Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray.

³In the morning, O Lord , you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.

⁴You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil; with you the wicked cannot dwell.

⁵The arrogant cannot stand in your presence; you hate all who do wrong.

⁶You destroy those who tell lies; bloodthirsty and deceitful men the Lord abhors.

⁷But I, by your great mercy, will come into your house; in reverence will I bow down toward your holy temple.

⁸Lead me, O Lord , in your righteousness because of my enemies- make straight your way before me.

⁹Not a word from their mouth can be trusted; their heart is filled with destruction. Their throat is an open grave; with their tongue they speak deceit.

¹⁰Declare them guilty, O God! Let their intrigues be their downfall. Banish them for their many sins, for they have rebelled against you.

¹¹But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

¹²For surely, O Lord , you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

PSALM 38

¹O Lord , do not rebuke me in your anger or discipline me in your wrath.

²For your arrows have pierced me, and your hand has come down upon me.

³Because of your wrath there is no health in my body; my bones have no soundness because of my sin.

⁴My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear.

⁵My wounds fester and are loathsome because of my sinful folly.

⁶I am bowed down and brought very low; all day long I go about mourning.

⁷My back is filled with searing pain; there is no health in my body.

⁸I am feeble and utterly crushed; I groan in anguish of heart.

⁹All my longings lie open before you, O Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you.

¹⁰My heart pounds, my strength fails me; even the light has gone from my eyes.

¹¹My friends and companions avoid me because of my wounds; my neighbors stay far away.

¹²Those who seek my life set their traps, those who would harm me talk of my ruin; all day long they plot deception.

¹³I am like a deaf man, who cannot hear, like a mute, who cannot open his mouth;

¹⁴I have become like a man who does not hear, whose mouth can offer no reply.

¹⁵I wait for you, O Lord ; you will answer, O Lord my God.

¹⁶For I said, “Do not let them gloat or exalt themselves over me when my foot slips.”

¹⁷For I am about to fall, and my pain is ever with me.

¹⁸I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin.

¹⁹Many are those who are my vigorous enemies; those who hate me without reason are numerous.

²⁰Those who repay my good with evil slander me when I pursue what is good.

²¹O Lord , do not forsake me; be not far from me, O my God.

²²Come quickly to help me, O Lord my Savior.

PSALM 41

¹Blessed is he who has regard for the weak; the Lord delivers him in times of trouble.

²The Lord will protect him and preserve his life; he will bless him in the land and not surrender him to the desire of his foes.

³The Lord will sustain him on his sickbed and restore him from his bed of illness.

⁴I said, “O Lord , have mercy on me; heal me, for I have sinned against you.”

⁵My enemies say of me in malice, “When will he die and his name perish?”

⁶Whenever one comes to see me, he speaks falsely, while his heart gathers slander; then he goes out and spreads it abroad.

⁷All my enemies whisper together against me; they imagine the worst for me, saying,

⁸“A vile disease has beset him; he will never get up from the place where he lies.”

⁹Even my close friend, whom I trusted, he who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.

¹⁰But you, O Lord , have mercy on me; raise me up, that I may repay them.

¹¹I know that you are pleased with me, for my enemy does not triumph over me.

¹²In my integrity you uphold me and set me in your presence forever.

¹³Praise be to the Lord , the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Amen and Amen.

PSALM 42

¹As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.

²My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?

³My tears have been my food day and night, while men say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

⁴These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go with the multitude, leading the procession to the house of God, with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive throng.

⁵Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and

⁶my God. My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon-from Mount Mizar.

⁷Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me.

⁸By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me- a prayer to the God of my life.

⁹I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?”

¹⁰My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

¹¹Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

1. What do I learn about God?
2. What do I learn about man?
3. Is there an example to follow?
4. What does God want me to believe?

2 Samuel 19-21

19Joab was told, “The king is weeping and mourning for Absalom.”

²And for the whole army the victory that day was turned into mourning, because on that day the troops heard it said, “The king is grieving for his son.”

³The men stole into the city that day as men steal in who are ashamed when they flee from battle.

⁴The king covered his face and cried aloud, “O my son Absalom! O Absalom, my son, my son!”

⁵Then Joab went into the house to the king and said, “Today you have humiliated all your men, who have just saved your life and the lives of your sons and daughters and the lives of your wives and concubines.

⁶You love those who hate you and hate those who love you. You have made it clear today that the commanders and their men mean nothing to you. I see that you would be pleased if Absalom were alive today and all of us were dead.

⁷Now go out and encourage your men. I swear by the Lord that if you don’t go out, not a man will be left with you by nightfall. This will be worse for you than all the calamities that have come upon you from your youth till now.”

⁸So the king got up and took his seat in the gateway. When the men were told, “The king is sitting in the gateway,” they all came before him. Meanwhile, the Israelites had fled to their homes.

⁹Throughout the tribes of Israel, the people were all arguing with each other, saying, “The king delivered us from the hand of our enemies; he is the one who rescued us from the hand of the Philistines. But now he has fled the country because of Absalom;

¹⁰and Absalom, whom we anointed to rule over us, has died in battle. So why do you say nothing about bringing the king back?”

¹¹King David sent this message to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests: “Ask the elders of Judah, ‘Why should you be the last to bring the king back to his palace, since what is being said throughout Israel has reached the king at his quarters?

¹²You are my brothers, my own flesh and blood. So why should you be the last to bring back the king?’

¹³And say to Amasa, ‘Are you not my own flesh and blood? May God deal with me, be it ever so severely, if from now on you are not the commander of my army in place of Joab.’ “

¹⁴He won over the hearts of all the men of Judah as though they were one man. They sent word to the king, “Return, you and all your men.”

¹⁵Then the king returned and went as far as the Jordan. Now the men of Judah had come to Gilgal to go out and meet the king and bring him across the Jordan.

¹⁶Shimei son of Gera, the Benjamite from Bahurim, hurried down with the men of Judah to meet King David.

¹⁷With him were a thousand Benjamites, along with Ziba, the steward of Saul’s household, and his fifteen sons and twenty servants. They rushed to the Jordan, where the king was.

¹⁸They crossed at the ford to take the king’s household over and to do whatever he wished. When Shimei son of Gera crossed the Jordan, he fell prostrate before the king

¹⁹and said to him, “May my lord not hold me guilty. Do not remember how your servant did wrong on the day my lord the king left Jerusalem. May the king put it out of his mind.

²⁰For I your servant know that I have sinned, but today I have come here as the first of the whole house of Joseph to come down and meet my lord the king.”

²¹Then Abishai son of Zeruiah said, “Shouldn’t Shimei be put to death for this? He cursed the Lord ‘s anointed.”

²²David replied, “What do you and I have in common, you sons of Zeruiah? This day you have become my adversaries! Should anyone be put to death in Israel today? Do I not know that today I am king over Israel?”

²³So the king said to Shimei, “You shall not die.” And the king promised him on oath.

²⁴Mephibosheth, Saul’s grandson, also went down to meet the king. He had not taken care of his feet or trimmed his mustache or washed his clothes from the day the king left until the day he returned safely.

²⁵When he came from Jerusalem to meet the king, the king asked him, “Why didn’t you go with me, Mephibosheth?”

²⁶He said, “My lord the king, since I your servant am lame, I said, ‘I will have my donkey saddled and will ride on it, so I can go with the king.’ But Ziba my servant betrayed me.

²⁷And he has slandered your servant to my lord the king. My lord the king is like an angel of God; so do whatever pleases you.

²⁸All my grandfather’s descendants deserved nothing but death from my lord the king, but you gave your servant a place among those who eat at your table. So what right do I have to make any more appeals to the king?”

²⁹The king said to him, “Why say more? I order you and Ziba to divide the fields.”

³⁰Mephibosheth said to the king, “Let him take everything, now that my lord the king has arrived home safely.”

³¹Barzillai the Gileadite also came down from Rogelim to cross the Jordan with the king and to send him on his way from there.

³²Now Barzillai was a very old man, eighty years of age. He had provided for the king during his stay in Mahanaim, for he was a very wealthy man.

³³The king said to Barzillai, “Cross over with me and stay with me in Jerusalem, and I will provide for you.”

³⁴But Barzillai answered the king, “How many more years will I live, that I should go up to Jerusalem with the king?

³⁵I am now eighty years old. Can I tell the difference between what is good and what is not? Can your servant taste what he eats and drinks? Can I still hear the voices of men and women singers? Why should your servant be an added burden to my lord the king?

³⁶Your servant will cross over the Jordan with the king for a short distance, but why should the king reward me in this way?

³⁷Let your servant return, that I may die in my own town near the tomb of my father and mother. But here is your servant Kimham. Let him cross over with my lord the king. Do for him whatever pleases you.”

³⁸The king said, “Kimham shall cross over with me, and I will do for him whatever pleases you. And anything you desire from me I will do for you.”

³⁹So all the people crossed the Jordan, and then the king crossed over. The king kissed Barzillai and gave him his blessing, and Barzillai returned to his home.

⁴⁰When the king crossed over to Gilgal, Kimham crossed with him. All the troops of Judah and half the troops of Israel had taken the king over.

⁴¹Soon all the men of Israel were coming to the king and saying to him, “Why did our brothers, the men of Judah, steal the king away and bring him and his household across the Jordan, together with all his men?”

⁴²All the men of Judah answered the men of Israel, “We did this because the king is closely related to us. Why are you angry about it? Have we eaten any of the king’s provisions? Have we taken anything for ourselves?”

⁴³Then the men of Israel answered the men of Judah, “We have ten shares in the king; and besides, we have a greater claim on David than you have. So why do you treat us with contempt? Were we not the first to speak of bringing back our king?” But the men of Judah responded even more harshly than the men of Israel.

20Now a troublemaker named Sheba son of Bicri, a Benjamite, happened to be there. He sounded the trumpet and shouted, “We have no share in David, no part in Jesse’s son! Every man to his tent, O Israel!”

²So all the men of Israel deserted David to follow Sheba son of Bicri. But the men of Judah stayed by their king all the way from the Jordan to Jerusalem.

³When David returned to his palace in Jerusalem, he took the ten concubines he had left to take care of the palace and put them in a house under guard. He provided for them, but did not lie with them. They were kept in confinement till the day of their death, living as widows.

⁴Then the king said to Amasa, “Summon the men of Judah to come to me within three days, and be here yourself.”

⁵But when Amasa went to summon Judah, he took longer than the time the king had set for him.

⁶David said to Abishai, “Now Sheba son of Bicri will do us more harm than Absalom did. Take your master’s men and pursue him, or he will find fortified cities and escape from us.”

⁷So Joab’s men and the Kerethites and Pelethites and all the mighty warriors went out under the command of Abishai. They marched out from Jerusalem to pursue Sheba son of Bicri.

⁸While they were at the great rock in Gibeon, Amasa came to meet them. Joab was wearing his military tunic, and strapped over it at his waist was a belt with a dagger in its sheath. As he stepped forward, it dropped out of its sheath.

⁹Joab said to Amasa, “How are you, my brother?” Then Joab took Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss him.

¹⁰Amasa was not on his guard against the dagger in Joab’s hand, and Joab plunged it into his belly, and his intestines spilled out on the ground. Without being stabbed again, Amasa died. Then Joab and his brother Abishai pursued Sheba son of Bicri.

¹¹One of Joab’s men stood beside Amasa and said, “Whoever favors Joab, and whoever is for David, let him follow Joab!”

¹²Amasa lay wallowing in his blood in the middle of the road, and the man saw that all the troops came to a halt there. When he realized that everyone who came up to Amasa stopped, he dragged him from the road into a field and threw a garment over him.

¹³After Amasa had been removed from the road, all the men went on with Joab to pursue Sheba son of Bicri.

¹⁴Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel Beth Maacah and through the entire region of the Berites, who gathered together and followed him.

¹⁵All the troops with Joab came and besieged Sheba in Abel Beth Maacah. They built a siege ramp up to the city, and it stood against the outer fortifications. While they were battering the wall to bring it down,

¹⁶a wise woman called from the city, “Listen! Listen! Tell Joab to come here so I can speak to him.”

¹⁷He went toward her, and she asked, “Are you Joab?” “I am,” he answered. She said, “Listen to what your servant has to say.” “I’m listening,” he said.

¹⁸She continued, “Long ago they used to say, ‘Get your answer at Abel,’ and that settled it.

¹⁹We are the peaceful and faithful in Israel. You are trying to destroy a city that is a mother in Israel. Why do you want to swallow up the Lord ‘s inheritance?”

²⁰“Far be it from me!” Joab replied, “Far be it from me to swallow up or destroy!

²¹That is not the case. A man named Sheba son of Bicri, from the hill country of Ephraim, has lifted up his hand against the king, against David. Hand over this one man, and I’ll withdraw from the city.” The woman said to Joab, “His head will be thrown to you from the wall.”

²²Then the woman went to all the people with her wise advice, and they cut off the head of Sheba son of Bicri and threw it to Joab. So he sounded the trumpet, and his men dispersed from the city, each returning to his home. And Joab went back to the king in Jerusalem.

²³Joab was over Israel’s entire army; Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Kerethites and Pelethites;

²⁴Adoniram was in charge of forced labor; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was recorder;

²⁵Sheva was secretary; Zadok and Abiathar were priests;

²⁶and Ira the Jairite was David’s priest.

21During the reign of David, there was a famine for three successive years; so David sought the face of the Lord . The Lord said, “It is on account of Saul and his blood-stained house; it is because he put the Gibeonites to death.”

²The king summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not a part of Israel but were survivors of the Amorites; the Israelites had sworn to spare them, but Saul in his zeal for Israel and Judah had tried to annihilate them.)

³David asked the Gibeonites, “What shall I do for you? How shall I make amends so that you will bless the Lord ‘s inheritance?”

⁴The Gibeonites answered him, “We have no right to demand silver or gold from Saul or his family, nor do we have the right to put anyone in Israel to death.” “What do you want me to do for you?” David asked.

⁵They answered the king, “As for the man who destroyed us and plotted against us so that we have been decimated and have no place anywhere in Israel,

⁶let seven of his male descendants be given to us to be killed and exposed before the Lord at Gibeah of Saul-the Lord ‘s chosen one.” So the king said, “I will give them to you.”

⁷The king spared Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath before the Lord between David and Jonathan son of Saul.

⁸But the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, the two sons of Aiah’s daughter Rizpah, whom she had borne to Saul, together with the five sons of Saul’s daughter Merab, whom she had borne to Adriel son of Barzillai the Meholathite.

⁹He handed them over to the Gibeonites, who killed and exposed them on a hill before the Lord . All seven of them fell together; they were put to death during the first days of the harvest, just as the barley harvest was beginning.

¹⁰Rizpah daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on a rock. From the beginning of the harvest till the rain poured down from the heavens on the bodies, she did not let the birds of the air touch them by day or the wild animals by night.

¹¹When David was told what Aiah’s daughter Rizpah, Saul’s concubine, had done,

¹²he went and took the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the citizens of Jabesh Gilead. (They had taken them secretly from the public square at Beth Shan, where the Philistines had hung them after they struck Saul down on Gilboa.)

¹³David brought the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from there, and the bones of those who had been killed and exposed were gathered up.

¹⁴They buried the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan in the tomb of Saul’s father Kish, at Zela in Benjamin, and did everything the king commanded. After that, God answered prayer in behalf of the land.

¹⁵Once again there was a battle between the Philistines and Israel. David went down with his men to fight against the Philistines, and he became exhausted.

¹⁶And Ishbi-Benob, one of the descendants of Rapha, whose bronze spearhead weighed three hundred shekels and who was armed with a new sword , said he would kill David.

¹⁷But Abishai son of Zeruiah came to David’s rescue; he struck the Philistine down and killed him. Then David’s men swore to him, saying, “Never again will you go out with us to battle, so that the lamp of Israel will not be extinguished.”

¹⁸In the course of time, there was another battle with the Philistines, at Gob. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Saph, one of the descendants of Rapha.

¹⁹In another battle with the Philistines at Gob, Elhanan son of Jaare-Oregim the Bethlehemite killed Goliath the Gittite, who had a spear with a shaft like a weaver’s rod.

²⁰In still another battle, which took place at Gath, there was a huge man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot-twenty-four in all. He also was descended from Rapha.

²¹When he taunted Israel, Jonathan son of Shimeah, David’s brother, killed him.

²²These four were descendants of Rapha in Gath, and they fell at the hands of David and his men.

1. What do I learn about God?
2. What do I learn about man?
3. Is there an example to follow?
4. What does God want me to believe?

2 Samuel 16-18

16When David had gone a short distance beyond the summit, there was Ziba, the steward of Mephibosheth, waiting to meet him. He had a string of donkeys saddled and loaded with two hundred loaves of bread, a hundred cakes of raisins, a hundred cakes of figs and a skin of wine.

²The king asked Ziba, “Why have you brought these?” Ziba answered, “The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride on, the bread and fruit are for the men to eat, and the wine is to refresh those who become exhausted in the desert.”

³The king then asked, “Where is your master’s grandson?” Ziba said to him, “He is staying in Jerusalem, because he thinks, ‘Today the house of Israel will give me back my grandfather’s kingdom.’ “

⁴Then the king said to Ziba, “All that belonged to Mephibosheth is now yours.” “I humbly bow,” Ziba said. “May I find favor in your eyes, my lord the king.”

⁵As King David approached Bahurim, a man from the same clan as Saul’s family came out from there. His name was Shimei son of Gera, and he cursed as he came out.

⁶He pelted David and all the king’s officials with stones, though all the troops and the special guard were on David’s right and left.

⁷As he cursed, Shimei said, “Get out, get out, you man of blood, you scoundrel!

⁸The Lord has repaid you for all the blood you shed in the household of Saul, in whose place you have reigned. The Lord has handed the kingdom over to your son Absalom. You have come to ruin because you are a man of blood!”

⁹Then Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and cut off his head.”

¹⁰But the king said, “What do you and I have in common, you sons of Zeruiah? If he is cursing because the Lord said to him, ‘Curse David,’ who can ask, ‘Why do you do this?’ “

¹¹David then said to Abishai and all his officials, “My son, who is of my own flesh, is trying to take my life. How much more, then, this Benjamite! Leave him alone; let him curse, for the Lord has told him to.

¹²It may be that the Lord will see my distress and repay me with good for the cursing I am receiving today.”

¹³So David and his men continued along the road while Shimei was going along the hillside opposite him, cursing as he went and throwing stones at him and showering him with dirt.

¹⁴The king and all the people with him arrived at their destination exhausted. And there he refreshed himself.

¹⁵Meanwhile, Absalom and all the men of Israel came to Jerusalem, and Ahithophel was with him.

¹⁶Then Hushai the Arkite, David’s friend, went to Absalom and said to him, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”

¹⁷Absalom asked Hushai, “Is this the love you show your friend? Why didn’t you go with your friend?”

¹⁸Hushai said to Absalom, “No, the one chosen by the Lord , by these people, and by all the men of Israel-his I will be, and I will remain with him.

¹⁹Furthermore, whom should I serve? Should I not serve the son? Just as I served your father, so I will serve you.”

²⁰Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give us your advice. What should we do?”

²¹Ahithophel answered, “Lie with your father’s concubines whom he left to take care of the palace. Then all Israel will hear that you have made yourself a stench in your father’s nostrils, and the hands of everyone with you will be strengthened.”

²²So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and he lay with his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.

²³Now in those days the advice Ahithophel gave was like that of one who inquires of God. That was how both David and Absalom regarded all of Ahithophel’s advice.

17Ahithophel said to Absalom, “I would choose twelve thousand men and set out tonight in pursuit of David.

²I would attack him while he is weary and weak. I would strike him with terror, and then all the people with him will flee. I would strike down only the king

³and bring all the people back to you. The death of the man you seek will mean the return of all; all the people will be unharmed.”

⁴This plan seemed good to Absalom and to all the elders of Israel.

⁵But Absalom said, “Summon also Hushai the Arkite, so we can hear what he has to say.”

⁶When Hushai came to him, Absalom said, “Ahithophel has given this advice. Should we do what he says? If not, give us your opinion.”

⁷Hushai replied to Absalom, “The advice Ahithophel has given is not good this time.

⁸You know your father and his men; they are fighters, and as fierce as a wild bear robbed of her cubs. Besides, your father is an experienced fighter; he will not spend the night with the troops.

⁹Even now, he is hidden in a cave or some other place. If he should attack your troops first, whoever hears about it will say, ‘There has been a slaughter among the troops who follow Absalom.’

¹⁰Then even the bravest soldier, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, will melt with fear, for all Israel knows that your father is a fighter and that those with him are brave.

¹¹“So I advise you: Let all Israel, from Dan to Beersheba-as numerous as the sand on the seashore-be gathered to you, with you yourself leading them into battle.

¹²Then we will attack him wherever he may be found, and we will fall on him as dew settles on the ground. Neither he nor any of his men will be left alive.

¹³If he withdraws into a city, then all Israel will bring ropes to that city, and we will drag it down to the valley until not even a piece of it can be found.”

¹⁴Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Arkite is better than that of Ahithophel.” For the Lord had determined to frustrate the good advice of Ahithophel in order to bring disaster on Absalom.

¹⁵Hushai told Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, “Ahithophel has advised Absalom and the elders of Israel to do such and such, but I have advised them to do so and so.

¹⁶Now send a message immediately and tell David, ‘Do not spend the night at the fords in the desert; cross over without fail, or the king and all the people with him will be swallowed up.’ “

¹⁷Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying at En Rogel. A servant girl was to go and inform them, and they were to go and tell King David, for they could not risk being seen entering the city.

¹⁸But a young man saw them and told Absalom. So the two of them left quickly and went to the house of a man in Bahurim. He had a well in his courtyard, and they climbed down into it.

¹⁹His wife took a covering and spread it out over the opening of the well and scattered grain over it. No one knew anything about it.

²⁰When Absalom’s men came to the woman at the house, they asked, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?” The woman answered them, “They crossed over the brook.” The men searched but found no one, so they returned to Jerusalem.

²¹After the men had gone, the two climbed out of the well and went to inform King David. They said to him, “Set out and cross the river at once; Ahithophel has advised such and such against you.”

²²So David and all the people with him set out and crossed the Jordan. By daybreak, no one was left who had not crossed the Jordan.

²³When Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and set out for his house in his hometown. He put his house in order and then hanged himself. So he died and was buried in his father’s tomb.

²⁴David went to Mahanaim, and Absalom crossed the Jordan with all the men of Israel.

²⁵Absalom had appointed Amasa over the army in place of Joab. Amasa was the son of a man named Jether, an Israelite who had married Abigail, the daughter of Nahash and sister of Zeruiah the mother of Joab.

²⁶The Israelites and Absalom camped in the land of Gilead.

²⁷When David came to Mahanaim, Shobi son of Nahash from Rabbah of the Ammonites, and Makir son of Ammiel from Lo Debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim

²⁸brought bedding and bowls and articles of pottery. They also brought wheat and barley, flour and roasted grain, beans and lentils,

²⁹honey and curds, sheep, and cheese from cows’ milk for David and his people to eat. For they said, “The people have become hungry and tired and thirsty in the desert.”

18David mustered the men who were with him and appointed over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds.

²David sent the troops out-a third under the command of Joab, a third under Joab’s brother Abishai son of Zeruiah, and a third under Ittai the Gittite. The king told the troops, “I myself will surely march out with you.”

³But the men said, “You must not go out; if we are forced to flee, they won’t care about us. Even if half of us die, they won’t care; but you are worth ten thousand of us. It would be better now for you to give us support from the city.”

⁴The king answered, “I will do whatever seems best to you.” So the king stood beside the gate while all the men marched out in units of hundreds and of thousands.

⁵The king commanded Joab, Abishai and Ittai, “Be gentle with the young man Absalom for my sake.” And all the troops heard the king giving orders concerning Absalom to each of the commanders.

⁶The army marched into the field to fight Israel, and the battle took place in the forest of Ephraim.

⁷There the army of Israel was defeated by David’s men, and the casualties that day were great-twenty thousand men.

⁸The battle spread out over the whole countryside, and the forest claimed more lives that day than the sword.

⁹Now Absalom happened to meet David’s men. He was riding his mule, and as the mule went under the thick branches of a large oak, Absalom’s head got caught in the tree. He was left hanging in midair, while the mule he was riding kept on going.

¹⁰When one of the men saw this, he told Joab, “I just saw Absalom hanging in an oak tree.”

¹¹Joab said to the man who had told him this, “What! You saw him? Why didn’t you strike him to the ground right there? Then I would have had to give you ten shekels of silver and a warrior’s belt.”

¹²But the man replied, “Even if a thousand shekels were weighed out into my hands, I would not lift my hand against the king’s son. In our hearing the king commanded you and Abishai and Ittai, ‘Protect the young man Absalom for my sake. ‘

¹³And if I had put my life in jeopardy -and nothing is hidden from the king-you would have kept your distance from me.”

¹⁴Joab said, “I’m not going to wait like this for you.” So he took three javelins in his hand and plunged them into Absalom’s heart while Absalom was still alive in the oak tree.

¹⁵And ten of Joab’s armor-bearers surrounded Absalom, struck him and killed him.

¹⁶Then Joab sounded the trumpet, and the troops stopped pursuing Israel, for Joab halted them.

¹⁷They took Absalom, threw him into a big pit in the forest and piled up a large heap of rocks over him. Meanwhile, all the Israelites fled to their homes.

¹⁸During his lifetime Absalom had taken a pillar and erected it in the King’s Valley as a monument to himself, for he thought, “I have no son to carry on the memory of my name.” He named the pillar after himself, and it is called Absalom’s Monument to this day.

¹⁹Now Ahimaaz son of Zadok said, “Let me run and take the news to the king that the Lord has delivered him from the hand of his enemies.”

²⁰“You are not the one to take the news today,” Joab told him. “You may take the news another time, but you must not do so today, because the king’s son is dead.”

²¹Then Joab said to a Cushite, “Go, tell the king what you have seen.” The Cushite bowed down before Joab and ran off.

²²Ahimaaz son of Zadok again said to Joab, “Come what may, please let me run behind the Cushite.” But Joab replied, “My son, why do you want to go? You don’t have any news that will bring you a reward.”

²³He said, “Come what may, I want to run.” So Joab said, “Run!” Then Ahimaaz ran by way of the plain and outran the Cushite.

²⁴While David was sitting between the inner and outer gates, the watchman went up to the roof of the gateway by the wall. As he looked out, he saw a man running alone.

²⁵The watchman called out to the king and reported it. The king said, “If he is alone, he must have good news.” And the man came closer and closer.

²⁶Then the watchman saw another man running, and he called down to the gatekeeper, “Look, another man running alone!” The king said, “He must be bringing good news, too.”

²⁷The watchman said, “It seems to me that the first one runs like Ahimaaz son of Zadok.” “He’s a good man,” the king said. “He comes with good news.”

²⁸Then Ahimaaz called out to the king, “All is well!” He bowed down before the king with his face to the ground and said, “Praise be to the Lord your God! He has delivered up the men who lifted their hands against my lord the king.”

²⁹The king asked, “Is the young man Absalom safe?” Ahimaaz answered, “I saw great confusion just as Joab was about to send the king’s servant and me, your servant, but I don’t know what it was.”

³⁰The king said, “Stand aside and wait here.” So he stepped aside and stood there.

³¹Then the Cushite arrived and said, “My lord the king, hear the good news! The Lord has delivered you today from all who rose up against you.”

³²The king asked the Cushite, “Is the young man Absalom safe?” The Cushite replied, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up to harm you be like that young man.”

³³The king was shaken. He went up to the room over the gateway and wept. As he went, he said: “O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you-O Absalom, my son, my son!”

1. What do I learn about God?
2. What do I learn about man?
3. Is there an example to follow?
4. What does God want me to believe?

Psalm 3-4, 12-13, 28, 55

PSALM 3

¹O Lord , how many are my foes! How many rise up against me!

²Many are saying of me, “God will not deliver him.” Selah

³But you are a shield around me, O Lord ; you bestow glory on me and lift up my head.

⁴To the Lord I cry aloud, and he answers me from his holy hill. Selah

⁵I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the Lord sustains me.

⁶I will not fear the tens of thousands drawn up against me on every side.

⁷Arise, O Lord ! Deliver me, O my God! Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked.

⁸From the Lord comes deliverance. May your blessing be on your people. Selah

PSALM 4

¹Answer me when I call to you, O my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; be merciful to me and hear my prayer.

²How long, O men, will you turn my glory into shame ? How long will you love delusions and seek false gods ? Selah

³Know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself; the Lord will hear when I call to him.

⁴In your anger do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent. Selah

⁵Offer right sacrifices and trust in the Lord .

⁶Many are asking, “Who can show us any good?” Let the light of your face shine upon us, O Lord .

⁷You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound.

⁸I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord , make me dwell in safety.

PSALM 12

¹Help, Lord , for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men.

²Everyone lies to his neighbor; their flattering lips speak with deception.

³May the Lord cut off all flattering lips and every boastful tongue

⁴that says, “We will triumph with our tongues; we own our lips -who is our master?”

⁵“Because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy, I will now arise,” says the Lord . “I will protect them from those who malign them.”

⁶And the words of the Lord are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times.

⁷O Lord , you will keep us safe and protect us from such people forever.

⁸The wicked freely strut about when what is vile is honored among men.

PSALM 13

¹How long, O Lord ? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?

²How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?

³Look on me and answer, O Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death;

⁴my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,” and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

⁵But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.

⁶I will sing to the Lord , for he has been good to me.

PSALM 28

¹To you I call, O Lord my Rock; do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if you remain silent, I will be like those who have gone down to the pit.

²Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help, as I lift up my hands toward your Most Holy Place.

³Do not drag me away with the wicked, with those who do evil, who speak cordially with their neighbors but harbor malice in their hearts.

⁴Repay them for their deeds and for their evil work; repay them for what their hands have done and bring back upon them what they deserve.

⁵Since they show no regard for the works of the Lord and what his hands have done, he will tear them down and never build them up again.

⁶Praise be to the Lord , for he has heard my cry for mercy.

⁷The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.

⁸The Lord is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one.

⁹Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever.

PSALM 55

¹Listen to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea;

²hear me and answer me. My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught

³at the voice of the enemy, at the stares of the wicked; for they bring down suffering upon me and revile me in their anger.

⁴My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death assail me.

⁵Fear and trembling have beset me; horror has overwhelmed me.

⁶I said, “Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest-

⁷I would flee far away and stay in the desert; Selah

⁸I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm.”

⁹Confuse the wicked, O Lord, confound their speech, for I see violence and strife in the city.

¹⁰Day and night they prowl about on its walls; malice and abuse are within it.

¹¹Destructive forces are at work in the city; threats and lies never leave its streets.

¹²If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were raising himself against me, I could hide from him.

¹³But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend,

¹⁴with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship as we walked with the throng at the house of God.

¹⁵Let death take my enemies by surprise; let them go down alive to the grave, for evil finds lodging among them.

¹⁶But I call to God, and the Lord saves me.

¹⁷Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice.

¹⁸He ransoms me unharmed from the battle waged against me, even though many oppose me.

¹⁹God, who is enthroned forever, will hear them and afflict them- Selah men who never change their ways and have no fear of God.

²⁰My companion attacks his friends; he violates his covenant.

²¹His speech is smooth as butter, yet war is in his heart; his words are more soothing than oil, yet they are drawn swords.

²²Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.

²³But you, O God, will bring down the wicked into the pit of corruption; bloodthirsty and deceitful men will not live out half their days. But as for me, I trust in you.

1. What do I learn about God?
2. What do I learn about man?
3. Is there an example to follow?
4. What does God want me to believe?

2 Samuel 13-15

13In the course of time, Amnon son of David fell in love with Tamar, the beautiful sister of Absalom son of David.

²Amnon became frustrated to the point of illness on account of his sister Tamar, for she was a virgin, and it seemed impossible for him to do anything to her.

³Now Amnon had a friend named Jonadab son of Shimeah, David’s brother. Jonadab was a very shrewd man.

⁴He asked Amnon, “Why do you, the king’s son, look so haggard morning after morning? Won’t you tell me?” Amnon said to him, “I’m in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.”

⁵“Go to bed and pretend to be ill,” Jonadab said. “When your father comes to see you, say to him, ‘I would like my sister Tamar to come and give me something to eat. Let her prepare the food in my sight so I may watch her and then eat it from her hand.’ “

⁶So Amnon lay down and pretended to be ill. When the king came to see him, Amnon said to him, “I would like my sister Tamar to come and make some special bread in my sight, so I may eat from her hand.”

⁷David sent word to Tamar at the palace: “Go to the house of your brother Amnon and prepare some food for him.”

⁸So Tamar went to the house of her brother Amnon, who was lying down. She took some dough, kneaded it, made the bread in his sight and baked it.

⁹Then she took the pan and served him the bread, but he refused to eat. “Send everyone out of here,” Amnon said. So everyone left him.

¹⁰Then Amnon said to Tamar, “Bring the food here into my bedroom so I may eat from your hand.” And Tamar took the bread she had prepared and brought it to her brother Amnon in his bedroom.

¹¹But when she took it to him to eat, he grabbed her and said, “Come to bed with me, my sister.”

¹²“Don’t, my brother!” she said to him. “Don’t force me. Such a thing should not be done in Israel! Don’t do this wicked thing.

¹³What about me? Where could I get rid of my disgrace? And what about you? You would be like one of the wicked fools in Israel. Please speak to the king; he will not keep me from being married to you.”

¹⁴But he refused to listen to her, and since he was stronger than she, he raped her.

¹⁵Then Amnon hated her with intense hatred. In fact, he hated her more than he had loved her. Amnon said to her, “Get up and get out!”

¹⁶“No!” she said to him. “Sending me away would be a greater wrong than what you have already done to me.” But he refused to listen to her.

¹⁷He called his personal servant and said, “Get this woman out of here and bolt the door after her.”

¹⁸So his servant put her out and bolted the door after her. She was wearing a richly ornamented robe, for this was the kind of garment the virgin daughters of the king wore.

¹⁹Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the ornamented robe she was wearing. She put her hand on her head and went away, weeping aloud as she went.

²⁰Her brother Absalom said to her, “Has that Amnon, your brother, been with you? Be quiet now, my sister; he is your brother. Don’t take this thing to heart.” And Tamar lived in her brother Absalom’s house, a desolate woman.

²¹When King David heard all this, he was furious.

²²Absalom never said a word to Amnon, either good or bad; he hated Amnon because he had disgraced his sister Tamar.

²³Two years later, when Absalom’s sheepshearers were at Baal Hazor near the border of Ephraim, he invited all the king’s sons to come there.

²⁴Absalom went to the king and said, “Your servant has had shearers come. Will the king and his officials please join me?”

²⁵“No, my son,” the king replied. “All of us should not go; we would only be a burden to you.” Although Absalom urged him, he still refused to go, but gave him his blessing.

²⁶Then Absalom said, “If not, please let my brother Amnon come with us.” The king asked him, “Why should he go with you?”

²⁷But Absalom urged him, so he sent with him Amnon and the rest of the king’s sons.

²⁸Absalom ordered his men, “Listen! When Amnon is in high spirits from drinking wine and I say to you, ‘Strike Amnon down,’ then kill him. Don’t be afraid. Have not I given you this order? Be strong and brave.”

²⁹So Absalom’s men did to Amnon what Absalom had ordered. Then all the king’s sons got up, mounted their mules and fled.

³⁰While they were on their way, the report came to David: “Absalom has struck down all the king’s sons; not one of them is left.”

³¹The king stood up, tore his clothes and lay down on the ground; and all his servants stood by with their clothes torn.

³²But Jonadab son of Shimeah, David’s brother, said, “My lord should not think that they killed all the princes; only Amnon is dead. This has been Absalom’s expressed intention ever since the day Amnon raped his sister Tamar.

³³My lord the king should not be concerned about the report that all the king’s sons are dead. Only Amnon is dead.”

³⁴Meanwhile, Absalom had fled. Now the man standing watch looked up and saw many people on the road west of him, coming down the side of the hill. The watchman went and told the king, “I see men in the direction of Horonaim, on the side of the hill.”

³⁵Jonadab said to the king, “See, the king’s sons are here; it has happened just as your servant said.”

³⁶As he finished speaking, the king’s sons came in, wailing loudly. The king, too, and all his servants wept very bitterly.

³⁷Absalom fled and went to Talmai son of Ammihud, the king of Geshur. But King David mourned for his son every day.

³⁸After Absalom fled and went to Geshur, he stayed there three years.

³⁹And the spirit of the king longed to go to Absalom, for he was consoled concerning Amnon’s death.

14Joab son of Zeruiah knew that the king’s heart longed for Absalom.

²So Joab sent someone to Tekoa and had a wise woman brought from there. He said to her, “Pretend you are in mourning. Dress in mourning clothes, and don’t use any cosmetic lotions. Act like a woman who has spent many days grieving for the dead.

³Then go to the king and speak these words to him.” And Joab put the words in her mouth.

⁴When the woman from Tekoa went to the king, she fell with her face to the ground to pay him honor, and she said, “Help me, O king!”

⁵The king asked her, “What is troubling you?” She said, “I am indeed a widow; my husband is dead.

⁶I your servant had two sons. They got into a fight with each other in the field, and no one was there to separate them. One struck the other and killed him.

⁷Now the whole clan has risen up against your servant; they say, ‘Hand over the one who struck his brother down, so that we may put him to death for the life of his brother whom he killed; then we will get rid of the heir as well.’ They would put out the only burning coal I have left, leaving my husband neither name nor descendant on the face of the earth.”

⁸The king said to the woman, “Go home, and I will issue an order in your behalf.”

⁹But the woman from Tekoa said to him, “My lord the king, let the blame rest on me and on my father’s family, and let the king and his throne be without guilt.”

¹⁰The king replied, “If anyone says anything to you, bring him to me, and he will not bother you again.”

¹¹She said, “Then let the king invoke the Lord his God to prevent the avenger of blood from adding to the destruction, so that my son will not be destroyed.” “As surely as the Lord lives,” he said, “not one hair of your son’s head will fall to the ground.”

¹²Then the woman said, “Let your servant speak a word to my lord the king.” “Speak,” he replied.

¹³The woman said, “Why then have you devised a thing like this against the people of God? When the king says this, does he not convict himself, for the king has not brought back his banished son?

¹⁴Like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be recovered, so we must die. But God does not take away life; instead, he devises ways so that a banished person may not remain estranged from him.

¹⁵“And now I have come to say this to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid. Your servant thought, ‘I will speak to the king; perhaps he will do what his servant asks.

¹⁶Perhaps the king will agree to deliver his servant from the hand of the man who is trying to cut off both me and my son from the inheritance God gave us.’

¹⁷“And now your servant says, ‘May the word of my lord the king bring me rest, for my lord the king is like an angel of God in discerning good and evil. May the Lord your God be with you.’ “

¹⁸Then the king said to the woman, “Do not keep from me the answer to what I am going to ask you.” “Let my lord the king speak,” the woman said.

¹⁹The king asked, “Isn’t the hand of Joab with you in all this?” The woman answered, “As surely as you live, my lord the king, no one can turn to the right or to the left from anything my lord the king says. Yes, it was your servant Joab who instructed me to do this and who put all these words into the mouth of your servant.

²⁰Your servant Joab did this to change the present situation. My lord has wisdom like that of an angel of God-he knows everything that happens in the land.”

²¹The king said to Joab, “Very well, I will do it. Go, bring back the young man Absalom.”

²²Joab fell with his face to the ground to pay him honor, and he blessed the king. Joab said, “Today your servant knows that he has found favor in your eyes, my lord the king, because the king has granted his servant’s request.”

²³Then Joab went to Geshur and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem.

²⁴But the king said, “He must go to his own house; he must not see my face.” So Absalom went to his own house and did not see the face of the king.

²⁵In all Israel there was not a man so highly praised for his handsome appearance as Absalom. From the top of his head to the sole of his foot there was no blemish in him.

²⁶Whenever he cut the hair of his head-he used to cut his hair from time to time when it became too heavy for him-he would weigh it, and its weight was two hundred shekels by the royal standard.

²⁷Three sons and a daughter were born to Absalom. The daughter’s name was Tamar, and she became a beautiful woman.

²⁸Absalom lived two years in Jerusalem without seeing the king’s face.

²⁹Then Absalom sent for Joab in order to send him to the king, but Joab refused to come to him. So he sent a second time, but he refused to come.

³⁰Then he said to his servants, “Look, Joab’s field is next to mine, and he has barley there. Go and set it on fire.” So Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.

³¹Then Joab did go to Absalom’s house and he said to him, “Why have your servants set my field on fire?”

³²Absalom said to Joab, “Look, I sent word to you and said, ‘Come here so I can send you to the king to ask, “Why have I come from Geshur? It would be better for me if I were still there!” ‘ Now then, I want to see the king’s face, and if I am guilty of anything, let him put me to death.”

³³So Joab went to the king and told him this. Then the king summoned Absalom, and he came in and bowed down with his face to the ground before the king. And the king kissed Absalom.

15In the course of time, Absalom provided himself with a chariot and horses and with fifty men to run ahead of him.

²He would get up early and stand by the side of the road leading to the city gate. Whenever anyone came with a complaint to be placed before the king for a decision, Absalom would call out to him, “What town are you from?” He would answer, “Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel.”

³Then Absalom would say to him, “Look, your claims are valid and proper, but there is no representative of the king to hear you.”

⁴And Absalom would add, “If only I were appointed judge in the land! Then everyone who has a complaint or case could come to me and I would see that he gets justice.”

⁵Also, whenever anyone approached him to bow down before him, Absalom would reach out his hand, take hold of him and kiss him.

⁶Absalom behaved in this way toward all the Israelites who came to the king asking for justice, and so he stole the hearts of the men of Israel.

⁷At the end of four years, Absalom said to the king, “Let me go to Hebron and fulfill a vow I made to the Lord .

⁸While your servant was living at Geshur in Aram, I made this vow: ‘If the Lord takes me back to Jerusalem, I will worship the Lord in Hebron. ‘ “

⁹The king said to him, “Go in peace.” So he went to Hebron.

¹⁰Then Absalom sent secret messengers throughout the tribes of Israel to say, “As soon as you hear the sound of the trumpets, then say, ‘Absalom is king in Hebron.’ “

¹¹Two hundred men from Jerusalem had accompanied Absalom. They had been invited as guests and went quite innocently, knowing nothing about the matter.

¹²While Absalom was offering sacrifices, he also sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David’s counselor, to come from Giloh, his hometown. And so the conspiracy gained strength, and Absalom’s following kept on increasing.

¹³A messenger came and told David, “The hearts of the men of Israel are with Absalom.”

¹⁴Then David said to all his officials who were with him in Jerusalem, “Come! We must flee, or none of us will escape from Absalom. We must leave immediately, or he will move quickly to overtake us and bring ruin upon us and put the city to the sword.”

¹⁵The king’s officials answered him, “Your servants are ready to do whatever our lord the king chooses.”

¹⁶The king set out, with his entire household following him; but he left ten concubines to take care of the palace.

¹⁷So the king set out, with all the people following him, and they halted at a place some distance away.

¹⁸All his men marched past him, along with all the Kerethites and Pelethites; and all the six hundred Gittites who had accompanied him from Gath marched before the king.

¹⁹The king said to Ittai the Gittite, “Why should you come along with us? Go back and stay with King Absalom. You are a foreigner, an exile from your homeland.

²⁰You came only yesterday. And today shall I make you wander about with us, when I do not know where I am going? Go back, and take your countrymen. May kindness and faithfulness be with you.”

²¹But Ittai replied to the king, “As surely as the Lord lives, and as my lord the king lives, wherever my lord the king may be, whether it means life or death, there will your servant be.”

²²David said to Ittai, “Go ahead, march on.” So Ittai the Gittite marched on with all his men and the families that were with him.

²³The whole countryside wept aloud as all the people passed by. The king also crossed the Kidron Valley, and all the people moved on toward the desert.

²⁴Zadok was there, too, and all the Levites who were with him were carrying the ark of the covenant of God. They set down the ark of God, and Abiathar offered sacrifices until all the people had finished leaving the city.

²⁵Then the king said to Zadok, “Take the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the Lord ‘s eyes, he will bring me back and let me see it and his dwelling place again.

²⁶But if he says, ‘I am not pleased with you,’ then I am ready; let him do to me whatever seems good to him.”

²⁷The king also said to Zadok the priest, “Aren’t you a seer? Go back to the city in peace, with your son Ahimaaz and Jonathan son of Abiathar. You and Abiathar take your two sons with you.

²⁸I will wait at the fords in the desert until word comes from you to inform me.”

²⁹So Zadok and Abiathar took the ark of God back to Jerusalem and stayed there.

³⁰But David continued up the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went; his head was covered and he was barefoot. All the people with him covered their heads too and were weeping as they went up.

³¹Now David had been told, “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.” So David prayed, “O Lord , turn Ahithophel’s counsel into foolishness.”

³²When David arrived at the summit, where people used to worship God, Hushai the Arkite was there to meet him, his robe torn and dust on his head.

³³David said to him, “If you go with me, you will be a burden to me.

³⁴But if you return to the city and say to Absalom, ‘I will be your servant, O king; I was your father’s servant in the past, but now I will be your servant,’ then you can help me by frustrating Ahithophel’s advice.

³⁵Won’t the priests Zadok and Abiathar be there with you? Tell them anything you hear in the king’s palace.

³⁶Their two sons, Ahimaaz son of Zadok and Jonathan son of Abiathar, are there with them. Send them to me with anything you hear.”

³⁷So David’s friend Hushai arrived at Jerusalem as Absalom was entering the city.

1. What do I learn about God?
2. What do I learn about man?
3. Is there an example to follow?
4. What does God want me to believe?

Psalm 32, 51, 86, 122

PSALM 32

¹Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

²Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit.

³When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.

⁴For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Selah

⁵Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord “- and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah

⁶Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him.

⁷You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah

⁸I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.

⁹Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you.

¹⁰Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord ‘s unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him.

¹¹Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!

PSALM 51

¹Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.

²Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.

³For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.

⁴Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge.

⁵Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.

⁶Surely you desire truth in the inner parts ; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place.

⁷Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

⁸Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice.

⁹Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity.

¹⁰Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

¹¹Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.

¹²Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

¹³Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you.

¹⁴Save me from bloodguilt, O God, the God who saves me, and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.

¹⁵O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.

¹⁶You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.

¹⁷The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

¹⁸In your good pleasure make Zion prosper; build up the walls of Jerusalem.

¹⁹Then there will be righteous sacrifices, whole burnt offerings to delight you; then bulls will be offered on your altar.

PSALM 86

¹Hear, O Lord , and answer me, for I am poor and needy.

²Guard my life, for I am devoted to you. You are my God; save your servant who trusts in you.

³Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I call to you all day long.

⁴Bring joy to your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.

⁵You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call to you.

⁶Hear my prayer, O Lord ; listen to my cry for mercy.

⁷In the day of my trouble I will call to you, for you will answer me.

⁸Among the gods there is none like you, O Lord; no deeds can compare with yours.

⁹All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, O Lord; they will bring glory to your name.

¹⁰For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God.

¹¹Teach me your way, O Lord , and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.

¹²I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever.

¹³For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths of the grave.

¹⁴The arrogant are attacking me, O God; a band of ruthless men seeks my life- men without regard for you.

¹⁵But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.

¹⁶Turn to me and have mercy on me; grant your strength to your servant and save the son of your maidservant.

¹⁷Give me a sign of your goodness, that my enemies may see it and be put to shame, for you, O Lord , have helped me and comforted me.

PSALM 122

¹I rejoiced with those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord .”

²Our feet are standing in your gates, O Jerusalem.

³Jerusalem is built like a city that is closely compacted together.

⁴That is where the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord , to praise the name of the Lord according to the statute given to Israel.

⁵There the thrones for judgment stand, the thrones of the house of David.

⁶Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: “May those who love you be secure.

⁷May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels.”

⁸For the sake of my brothers and friends, I will say, “Peace be within you.”

⁹For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek your prosperity.

1. What do I learn about God?
2. What do I learn about man?
3. Is there an example to follow?
4. What does God want me to believe?

2 Samuel 11-12; 1 Chronicles 20

11In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem.

²One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful,

³and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “Isn’t this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite?”

⁴Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her. (She had purified herself from her uncleanness.) Then she went back home.

⁵The woman conceived and sent word to David, saying, “I am pregnant.”

⁶So David sent this word to Joab: “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent him to David.

⁷When Uriah came to him, David asked him how Joab was, how the soldiers were and how the war was going.

⁸Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.” So Uriah left the palace, and a gift from the king was sent after him.

⁹But Uriah slept at the entrance to the palace with all his master’s servants and did not go down to his house.

¹⁰When David was told, “Uriah did not go home,” he asked him, “Haven’t you just come from a distance? Why didn’t you go home?”

¹¹Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in tents, and my master Joab and my lord’s men are camped in the open fields. How could I go to my house to eat and drink and lie with my wife? As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!”

¹²Then David said to him, “Stay here one more day, and tomorrow I will send you back.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next.

¹³At David’s invitation, he ate and drank with him, and David made him drunk. But in the evening Uriah went out to sleep on his mat among his master’s servants; he did not go home.

¹⁴In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah.

¹⁵In it he wrote, “Put Uriah in the front line where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die.”

¹⁶So while Joab had the city under siege, he put Uriah at a place where he knew the strongest defenders were.

¹⁷When the men of the city came out and fought against Joab, some of the men in David’s army fell; moreover, Uriah the Hittite died.

¹⁸Joab sent David a full account of the battle.

¹⁹He instructed the messenger: “When you have finished giving the king this account of the battle,

²⁰the king’s anger may flare up, and he may ask you, ‘Why did you get so close to the city to fight? Didn’t you know they would shoot arrows from the wall?

²¹Who killed Abimelech son of Jerub-Besheth ? Didn’t a woman throw an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died in Thebez? Why did you get so close to the wall?’ If he asks you this, then say to him, ‘Also, your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.’ “

²²The messenger set out, and when he arrived he told David everything Joab had sent him to say.

²³The messenger said to David, “The men overpowered us and came out against us in the open, but we drove them back to the entrance to the city gate.

²⁴Then the archers shot arrows at your servants from the wall, and some of the king’s men died. Moreover, your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.”

²⁵David told the messenger, “Say this to Joab: ‘Don’t let this upset you; the sword devours one as well as another. Press the attack against the city and destroy it.’ Say this to encourage Joab.”

²⁶When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him.

²⁷After the time of mourning was over, David had her brought to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing David had done displeased the Lord .

12The Lord sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, “There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor.

²The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle,

³but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.

⁴“Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him.”

⁵David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this deserves to die!

⁶He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity.”

⁷Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! This is what the Lord , the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.

⁸I gave your master’s house to you, and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more.

⁹Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites.

¹⁰Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’

¹¹“This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity upon you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight.

¹²You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’ “

¹³Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord .” Nathan replied, “The Lord has taken away your sin. You are not going to die.

¹⁴But because by doing this you have made the enemies of the Lord show utter contempt, the son born to you will die.”

¹⁵After Nathan had gone home, the Lord struck the child that Uriah’s wife had borne to David, and he became ill.

¹⁶David pleaded with God for the child. He fasted and went into his house and spent the nights lying on the ground.

¹⁷The elders of his household stood beside him to get him up from the ground, but he refused, and he would not eat any food with them.

¹⁸On the seventh day the child died. David’s servants were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they thought, “While the child was still living, we spoke to David but he would not listen to us. How can we tell him the child is dead? He may do something desperate.”

¹⁹David noticed that his servants were whispering among themselves and he realized the child was dead. “Is the child dead?” he asked. “Yes,” they replied, “he is dead.”

²⁰Then David got up from the ground. After he had washed, put on lotions and changed his clothes, he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and at his request they served him food, and he ate.

²¹His servants asked him, “Why are you acting this way? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept, but now that the child is dead, you get up and eat!”

²²He answered, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, ‘Who knows? The Lord may be gracious to me and let the child live.’

²³But now that he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.”

²⁴Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and he went to her and lay with her. She gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon. The Lord loved him;

²⁵and because the Lord loved him, he sent word through Nathan the prophet to name him Jedidiah.

²⁶Meanwhile Joab fought against Rabbah of the Ammonites and captured the royal citadel.

²⁷Joab then sent messengers to David, saying, “I have fought against Rabbah and taken its water supply.

²⁸Now muster the rest of the troops and besiege the city and capture it. Otherwise I will take the city, and it will be named after me.”

²⁹So David mustered the entire army and went to Rabbah, and attacked and captured it.

³⁰He took the crown from the head of their king -its weight was a talent of gold, and it was set with precious stones-and it was placed on David’s head. He took a great quantity of plunder from the city

³¹and brought out the people who were there, consigning them to labor with saws and with iron picks and axes, and he made them work at brickmaking. He did this to all the Ammonite towns. Then David and his entire army returned to Jerusalem.

1 Chronicles 20

20In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, Joab led out the armed forces. He laid waste the land of the Ammonites and went to Rabbah and besieged it, but David remained in Jerusalem. Joab attacked Rabbah and left it in ruins.

²David took the crown from the head of their king -its weight was found to be a talent of gold, and it was set with precious stones-and it was placed on David’s head. He took a great quantity of plunder from the city

³and brought out the people who were there, consigning them to labor with saws and with iron picks and axes. David did this to all the Ammonite towns. Then David and his entire army returned to Jerusalem.

⁴In the course of time, war broke out with the Philistines, at Gezer. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Sippai, one of the descendants of the Rephaites, and the Philistines were subjugated.

⁵In another battle with the Philistines, Elhanan son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, who had a spear with a shaft like a weaver’s rod.

⁶In still another battle, which took place at Gath, there was a huge man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot-twenty-four in all. He also was descended from Rapha.

⁷When he taunted Israel, Jonathan son of Shimea, David’s brother, killed him.

⁸These were descendants of Rapha in Gath, and they fell at the hands of David and his men.

1. What do I learn about God?
2. What do I learn about man?
3. Is there an example to follow?
4. What does God want me to believe?

Psalm 65-67, 69-70

PSALM 65

¹Praise awaits you, O God, in Zion; to you our vows will be fulfilled.

²O you who hear prayer, to you all men will come.

³When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions.

⁴Blessed are those you choose and bring near to live in your courts! We are filled with the good things of your house, of your holy temple.

⁵You answer us with awesome deeds of righteousness, O God our Savior, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas,

⁶who formed the mountains by your power, having armed yourself with strength,

⁷who stilled the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, and the turmoil of the nations.

⁸Those living far away fear your wonders; where morning dawns and evening fades you call forth songs of joy.

⁹You care for the land and water it; you enrich it abundantly. The streams of God are filled with water to provide the people with grain, for so you have ordained it.

¹⁰You drench its furrows and level its ridges; you soften it with showers and bless its crops.

¹¹You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance.

¹²The grasslands of the desert overflow; the hills are clothed with gladness.

¹³The meadows are covered with flocks and the valleys are mantled with grain; they shout for joy and sing.

PSALM 66

¹Shout with joy to God, all the earth!

²Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious!

³Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you.

⁴All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to you, they sing praise to your name.” Selah

⁵Come and see what God has done, how awesome his works in man’s behalf!

⁶He turned the sea into dry land, they passed through the waters on foot- come, let us rejoice in him.

⁷He rules forever by his power, his eyes watch the nations- let not the rebellious rise up against him. Selah

⁸Praise our God, O peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard;

⁹he has preserved our lives and kept our feet from slipping.

¹⁰For you, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver.

¹¹You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs.

¹²You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.

¹³I will come to your temple with burnt offerings and fulfill my vows to you-

¹⁴vows my lips promised and my mouth spoke when I was in trouble.

¹⁵I will sacrifice fat animals to you and an offering of rams; I will offer bulls and goats. Selah

¹⁶Come and listen, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me.

¹⁷I cried out to him with my mouth; his praise was on my tongue.

¹⁸If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened;

¹⁹but God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer.

²⁰Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!

PSALM 67

¹May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us, Selah

²that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations.

³May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you.

⁴May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly and guide the nations of the earth. Selah

⁵May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you.

⁶Then the land will yield its harvest, and God, our God, will bless us.

⁷God will bless us, and all the ends of the earth will fear him.

PSALM 69

¹Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck.

²I sink in the miry depths, where there is no foothold. I have come into the deep waters; the floods engulf me.

³I am worn out calling for help; my throat is parched. My eyes fail, looking for my God.

⁴Those who hate me without reason outnumber the hairs of my head; many are my enemies without cause, those who seek to destroy me. I am forced to restore what I did not steal.

⁵You know my folly, O God; my guilt is not hidden from you.

⁶May those who hope in you not be disgraced because of me, O Lord, the Lord Almighty; may those who seek you not be put to shame because of me, O God of Israel.

⁷For I endure scorn for your sake, and shame covers my face.

⁸I am a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my own mother’s sons;

⁹for zeal for your house consumes me, and the insults of those who insult you fall on me.

¹⁰When I weep and fast, I must endure scorn;

¹¹when I put on sackcloth, people make sport of me.

¹²Those who sit at the gate mock me, and I am the song of the drunkards.

¹³But I pray to you, O Lord , in the time of your favor; in your great love, O God, answer me with your sure salvation.

¹⁴Rescue me from the mire, do not let me sink; deliver me from those who hate me, from the deep waters.

¹⁵Do not let the floodwaters engulf me or the depths swallow me up or the pit close its mouth over me.

¹⁶Answer me, O Lord , out of the goodness of your love; in your great mercy turn to me.

¹⁷Do not hide your face from your servant; answer me quickly, for I am in trouble.

¹⁸Come near and rescue me; redeem me because of my foes.

¹⁹You know how I am scorned, disgraced and shamed; all my enemies are before you.

²⁰Scorn has broken my heart and has left me helpless; I looked for sympathy, but there was none, for comforters, but I found none.

²¹They put gall in my food and gave me vinegar for my thirst.

²²May the table set before them become a snare; may it become retribution and a trap.

²³May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see, and their backs be bent forever.

²⁴Pour out your wrath on them; let your fierce anger overtake them.

²⁵May their place be deserted; let there be no one to dwell in their tents.

²⁶For they persecute those you wound and talk about the pain of those you hurt.

²⁷Charge them with crime upon crime; do not let them share in your salvation.

²⁸May they be blotted out of the book of life and not be listed with the righteous.

²⁹I am in pain and distress; may your salvation, O God, protect me.

³⁰I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.

³¹This will please the Lord more than an ox, more than a bull with its horns and hoofs.

³²The poor will see and be glad- you who seek God, may your hearts live!

³³The Lord hears the needy and does not despise his captive people.

³⁴Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and all that move in them,

³⁵for God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah. Then people will settle there and possess it;

³⁶the children of his servants will inherit it, and those who love his name will dwell there.

PSALM 70

¹Hasten, O God, to save me; O Lord , come quickly to help me.

²May those who seek my life be put to shame and confusion; may all who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace.

³May those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!” turn back because of their shame.

⁴But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation always say, “Let God be exalted!”

⁵Yet I am poor and needy; come quickly to me, O God. You are my help and my deliverer; O Lord , do not delay.

1. What do I learn about God?
2. What do I learn about man?
3. Is there an example to follow?
4. What does God want me to believe?

2 Samuel 10; 1 Chronicles 19; Psalm 20

2 Samuel 10

10In the course of time, the king of the Ammonites died, and his son Hanun succeeded him as king.

²David thought, “I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent a delegation to express his sympathy to Hanun concerning his father. When David’s men came to the land of the Ammonites,

³the Ammonite nobles said to Hanun their lord, “Do you think David is honoring your father by sending men to you to express sympathy? Hasn’t David sent them to you to explore the city and spy it out and overthrow it?”

⁴So Hanun seized David’s men, shaved off half of each man’s beard, cut off their garments in the middle at the buttocks, and sent them away.

⁵When David was told about this, he sent messengers to meet the men, for they were greatly humiliated. The king said, “Stay at Jericho till your beards have grown, and then come back.”

⁶When the Ammonites realized that they had become a stench in David’s nostrils, they hired twenty thousand Aramean foot soldiers from Beth Rehob and Zobah, as well as the king of Maacah with a thousand men, and also twelve thousand men from Tob.

⁷On hearing this, David sent Joab out with the entire army of fighting men.

⁸The Ammonites came out and drew up in battle formation at the entrance to their city gate, while the Arameans of Zobah and Rehob and the men of Tob and Maacah were by themselves in the open country.

⁹Joab saw that there were battle lines in front of him and behind him; so he selected some of the best troops in Israel and deployed them against the Arameans.

¹⁰He put the rest of the men under the command of Abishai his brother and deployed them against the Ammonites.

¹¹Joab said, “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you are to come to my rescue; but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will come to rescue you.

¹²Be strong and let us fight bravely for our people and the cities of our God. The Lord will do what is good in his sight.”

¹³Then Joab and the troops with him advanced to fight the Arameans, and they fled before him.

¹⁴When the Ammonites saw that the Arameans were fleeing, they fled before Abishai and went inside the city. So Joab returned from fighting the Ammonites and came to Jerusalem.

¹⁵After the Arameans saw that they had been routed by Israel, they regrouped.

¹⁶Hadadezer had Arameans brought from beyond the River ; they went to Helam, with Shobach the commander of Hadadezer’s army leading them.

¹⁷When David was told of this, he gathered all Israel, crossed the Jordan and went to Helam. The Arameans formed their battle lines to meet David and fought against him.

¹⁸But they fled before Israel, and David killed seven hundred of their charioteers and forty thousand of their foot soldiers. He also struck down Shobach the commander of their army, and he died there.

¹⁹When all the kings who were vassals of Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with the Israelites and became subject to them. So the Arameans were afraid to help the Ammonites anymore.

1 Chronicles 19

19In the course of time, Nahash king of the Ammonites died, and his son succeeded him as king.

²David thought, “I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, because his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent a delegation to express his sympathy to Hanun concerning his father. When David’s men came to Hanun in the land of the Ammonites to express sympathy to him,

³the Ammonite nobles said to Hanun, “Do you think David is honoring your father by sending men to you to express sympathy? Haven’t his men come to you to explore and spy out the country and overthrow it?”

⁴So Hanun seized David’s men, shaved them, cut off their garments in the middle at the buttocks, and sent them away.

⁵When someone came and told David about the men, he sent messengers to meet them, for they were greatly humiliated. The king said, “Stay at Jericho till your beards have grown, and then come back.”

⁶When the Ammonites realized that they had become a stench in David’s nostrils, Hanun and the Ammonites sent a thousand talents of silver to hire chariots and charioteers from Aram Naharaim, Aram Maacah and Zobah.

⁷They hired thirty-two thousand chariots and charioteers, as well as the king of Maacah with his troops, who came and camped near Medeba, while the Ammonites were mustered from their towns and moved out for battle.

⁸On hearing this, David sent Joab out with the entire army of fighting men.

⁹The Ammonites came out and drew up in battle formation at the entrance to their city, while the kings who had come were by themselves in the open country.

¹⁰Joab saw that there were battle lines in front of him and behind him; so he selected some of the best troops in Israel and deployed them against the Arameans.

¹¹He put the rest of the men under the command of Abishai his brother, and they were deployed against the Ammonites.

¹²Joab said, “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you are to rescue me; but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will rescue you.

¹³Be strong and let us fight bravely for our people and the cities of our God. The Lord will do what is good in his sight.”

¹⁴Then Joab and the troops with him advanced to fight the Arameans, and they fled before him.

¹⁵When the Ammonites saw that the Arameans were fleeing, they too fled before his brother Abishai and went inside the city. So Joab went back to Jerusalem.

¹⁶After the Arameans saw that they had been routed by Israel, they sent messengers and had Arameans brought from beyond the River, with Shophach the commander of Hadadezer’s army leading them.

¹⁷When David was told of this, he gathered all Israel and crossed the Jordan; he advanced against them and formed his battle lines opposite them. David formed his lines to meet the Arameans in battle, and they fought against him.

¹⁸But they fled before Israel, and David killed seven thousand of their charioteers and forty thousand of their foot soldiers. He also killed Shophach the commander of their army.

¹⁹When the vassals of Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with David and became subject to him. So the Arameans were not willing to help the Ammonites anymore.

PSALM 20

¹May the Lord answer you when you are in distress; may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.

²May he send you help from the sanctuary and grant you support from Zion.

³May he remember all your sacrifices and accept your burnt offerings. Selah

⁴May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.

⁵We will shout for joy when you are victorious and will lift up our banners in the name of our God. May the Lord grant all your requests.

⁶Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed; he answers him from his holy heaven with the saving power of his right hand.

⁷Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.

⁸They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm.

⁹O Lord , save the king! Answer us when we call!

1. What do I learn about God?
2. What do I learn about man?
3. Is there an example to follow?
4. What does God want me to believe?

Psalm 50, 53, 60, 75

PSALM 50

¹The Mighty One, God, the Lord , speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets.

²From Zion, perfect in beauty, God shines forth.

³Our God comes and will not be silent; a fire devours before him, and around him a tempest rages.

⁴He summons the heavens above, and the earth, that he may judge his people:

⁵“Gather to me my consecrated ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”

⁶And the heavens proclaim his righteousness, for God himself is judge. Selah

⁷“Hear, O my people, and I will speak, O Israel, and I will testify against you: I am God, your God.

⁸I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices or your burnt offerings, which are ever before me.

⁹I have no need of a bull from your stall or of goats from your pens,

¹⁰for every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.

¹¹I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are mine.

¹²If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it.

¹³Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?

¹⁴Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High,

¹⁵and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”

¹⁶But to the wicked, God says: “What right have you to recite my laws or take my covenant on your lips?

¹⁷You hate my instruction and cast my words behind you.

¹⁸When you see a thief, you join with him; you throw in your lot with adulterers.

¹⁹You use your mouth for evil and harness your tongue to deceit.

²⁰You speak continually against your brother and slander your own mother’s son.

²¹These things you have done and I kept silent; you thought I was altogether like you. But I will rebuke you and accuse you to your face.

²²“Consider this, you who forget God, or I will tear you to pieces, with none to rescue:

²³He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God.”

PSALM 53

¹The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, and their ways are vile; there is no one who does good.

²God looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.

³Everyone has turned away, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.

⁴Will the evildoers never learn- those who devour my people as men eat bread and who do not call on God?

⁵There they were, overwhelmed with dread, where there was nothing to dread. God scattered the bones of those who attacked you; you put them to shame, for God despised them.

⁶Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When God restores the fortunes of his people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!

PSALM 60

¹You have rejected us, O God, and burst forth upon us; you have been angry-now restore us!

²You have shaken the land and torn it open; mend its fractures, for it is quaking.

³You have shown your people desperate times; you have given us wine that makes us stagger.

⁴But for those who fear you, you have raised a banner to be unfurled against the bow. Selah

⁵Save us and help us with your right hand, that those you love may be delivered.

⁶God has spoken from his sanctuary: “In triumph I will parcel out Shechem and measure off the Valley of Succoth.

⁷Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine; Ephraim is my helmet, Judah my scepter.

⁸Moab is my washbasin, upon Edom I toss my sandal; over Philistia I shout in triumph.”

⁹Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom?

¹⁰Is it not you, O God, you who have rejected us and no longer go out with our armies?

¹¹Give us aid against the enemy, for the help of man is worthless.

¹²With God we will gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies.

PSALM 75

¹We give thanks to you, O God, we give thanks, for your Name is near; men tell of your wonderful deeds.

²You say, “I choose the appointed time; it is I who judge uprightly.

³When the earth and all its people quake, it is I who hold its pillars firm. Selah

⁴To the arrogant I say, ‘Boast no more,’ and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horns.

⁵Do not lift your horns against heaven; do not speak with outstretched neck.’ “

⁶No one from the east or the west or from the desert can exalt a man.

⁷But it is God who judges: He brings one down, he exalts another.

⁸In the hand of the Lord is a cup full of foaming wine mixed with spices; he pours it out, and all the wicked of the earth drink it down to its very dregs.

⁹As for me, I will declare this forever; I will sing praise to the God of Jacob.

¹⁰I will cut off the horns of all the wicked, but the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.