2 Samuel 19:9-14

19:9 All the people throughout all the tribes of Israel were arguing among themselves saying, “The king delivered us from the hand of our enemies. He rescued us from the hand of the Philistines, but now he has fled from the land because of Absalom. 19:10 But Absalom, whom we anointed as our king, ¹  has died in battle. So now why do you hesitate to bring the king back?” ² 

19:11 Then King David sent a message to Zadok and Abiathar the priests saying, “Tell the elders of Judah, ‘Why should you delay any further in bringing the king back to his palace, ³  when everything Israel is saying has come to the king’s attention. ⁴  19:12 You are my brothers – my very own flesh and blood! ⁵  Why should you delay any further in bringing the king back?’ 19:13 Say to Amasa, ‘Are you not my flesh and blood? ⁶  God will punish me severely, ⁷  if from this time on you are not the commander of my army in place of Joab!’”

19:14 He ⁸  won over the hearts of all the men of Judah as though they were one man. Then they sent word to the king saying, “Return, you and all your servants as well.”

[19:10]  ¹ tn Heb “over us.”

[19:10]  ² tc The LXX includes the following words at the end of v. 11: “And what all Israel was saying came to the king’s attention.” The words are misplaced in the LXX from v. 12 (although the same statement appears there in the LXX as well).

[19:11]  ³ tn Heb “his house.”

[19:11]  ⁴ tc The Hebrew text adds “to his house” (= palace), but the phrase, which also appears earlier in the verse, is probably accidentally repeated here.

[19:12]  ⁵ tn Heb “my bone and my flesh.”

[19:13]  ⁶ tn Heb “my bone and my flesh.”

[19:13]  ⁷ tn Heb “Thus God will do to me and thus he will add.”

[19:14]  ⁸ tn The referent of “he” is not entirely clear: cf. NCV “David”; TEV “David’s words”; NRSV, NLT “Amasa.”