¹And when David had passed a little beyond the top, behold, Ziba, the boy of Mephibosheth, was there to meet him, with a pair of saddled donkeys, and on them two hundred loaves of food, a hundred bunches of raisins, a hundred summer fruits, and a skin of wine.

²And the king said to Ziba, What are these to you? And Ziba said, The donkeys are for the king's household to ride, the food and the summer fruit for the boys to eat, and the wine for the exhausted in the wilderness to drink.

³And the king said, And where is your lord's son? And Ziba said to the king, Behold, he is dwelling in Jerusalem, for he said, Today the house of Israel will restore to me the kingdom of my father.

⁴And the king said to Ziba, Behold, all that belonged to Mephibosheth is yours. And Ziba said, I bow down; may I find favor in your eyes, my lord the king.

⁵And King David came as far as Bahurim, and behold, from there a man was coming out from the clan of the house of Saul, his name Shimei son of Gera; he was coming out continually and cursing.

⁶And he threw stones at David and at all the slaves of King David, while all the people and all the mighty men were on his right and on his left.

⁷And this is what Shimei said as he cursed: Get out, get out, you man of blood, you man of worthlessness!

⁸Yahweh has brought back on you all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose place you reigned; and Yahweh has set the kingdom in the hand of Absalom your son. And behold, you are in your misery, for you are a man of blood.

⁹And Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me cross over, please, and let me remove his head.

¹⁰But the king said, What have I to do with you, sons of Zeruiah? He is cursing like this, for Yahweh has said to him, Curse David; and who can say, Why have you done so?

¹¹And David said to Abishai and to all his slaves, Behold, my son, who came out of my inward parts, is seeking my being; how much more now this Benjaminite! Leave him alone and let him curse, for Yahweh has spoken to him.

¹²Perhaps Yahweh will look into my eye, and Yahweh will repay me good in place of his cursing this day.

¹³And David and his men went on the road, while Shimei was going on the side of the mountain alongside him, going on and cursing, and he pelted stones alongside him and flung dust.

¹⁴And the king and all the people who were with him came exhausted, and he took breath there.

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

¹⁶And it happened, when Hushai the Arkite, David's friend, came to Absalom, that Hushai said to Absalom, Live the king! Live the king!

¹⁷And Absalom said to Hushai, Is this your loyal love to your neighbor? Why did you not go with your neighbor?

¹⁸And Hushai said to Absalom, No, but whom Yahweh has chosen, and this people, and all the men of Israel, his I will be, and with him I will dwell.

¹⁹And second, whom should I serve? Should it not be before his son? As I served before your father, so will I be before your face.

²⁰And Absalom said to Ahithophel, Give your counsel, what we shall do.

²¹And Ahithophel said to Absalom, Go in to the concubines of your father, whom he settled to keep the house; and all Israel will hear that you have made yourself odious to your father, and the hands of all who are with you will be strong.

²²So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and Absalom went in to his father's concubines before the eyes of all Israel.

²³And the counsel of Ahithophel, which he advised in those days, was as when one inquires of the word of God; so was all the counsel of Ahithophel, both for David, and for Absalom.