Read the Bible

¹ And after this it fortuned that Absalom caused to prepare himselfe chearettes and horses, and fyftye men, which were his fote me.² And Absalo gat him vp allwaye early in the mornynge, and stode in the waye by the porte: and whan eny man had a matter which shulde come to the kynge for iudgment, Absalom called vnto him and sayde: Of what cite art thou? Yf he sayde then: thy seruaunt is of one of the trybes of Israel,³ then sayde Absalom vnto him: Beholde, thy matter is righte and plaine: but there is noman appoynted ye of the kynge to heare the.⁴ And Absalom sayde: O who setteth me to be iudge in ye londe, that euery man which hath a plee or matter to do in ye lawe, might come to me, that I might helpe him to right⁵ And whan eny man came to him to do worshippe & to do him obeisaunce, he put forth his hade, and helde him & kyssed him.⁶ After this maner dyd Absalom vnto all Israel whan they came to the lawe vnto the kynge, and so dyd he steale awaye the hert of ye men of Israel.

⁷ After fortye yeares sayde Absalom vnto the kynge: I wil go and perfourme my vowe at Hebron, which I made vnto the LORDE.⁸ For thy seruaunt made a vowe, whan I dwelt at Gesur in Siria, and saide: Whan ye LORDE bryngeth me agayne to Ierusalem, I shal do a Gods seruyce vnto the LORDE.⁹ The kynge sayde vnto him: Go thy waye in peace. And he gat him vp, and wente vnto Hebron.¹⁰ But Absalom had sent out spyes in all the trybes of Israel, sayenge: Whan ye heare the noyse of the trompe, saye: Absalom is made kynge at Hebron.¹¹ There wente with Absalom two hundreth men called from Ierusalem, but they wente on symply, and knewe not of the matter.¹² Absalom sent also for Achitophel (the Gilonyte) Dauids counceler, out of his cite Gilo. Now whan he did the sacrifice, the conspiracion was mightie and the people ranne together, and multyplied with Absalom.

¹³ Then came one which tolde Dauid, and sayde, that the hert of euery man in Israel folowed Absalom.¹⁴ Dauid sayde vnto all his seruauntes that were with him at Ierusalem: Vp, let vs fle, for here shall be no escapynge for vs before Absalom. Make haist that we maye be goynge, lest he ouertake vs and catch vs, and dryue some mysfortune vpon vs, and smyte the cyte with the edge of the swerde.¹⁵ Then sayde the kynges seruauntes vnto him: Loke what my LORDE ye kinge choseth, beholde, here are thy seruauntes.¹⁶ And the kynge wente forth on fote wt all his housholde. But ten concubynes lefte he to kepe the house.¹⁷ And whan the kynge and all the people came forth on fote, they wete farre from home,¹⁸ and all his seruauntes wente by him, and all the Chrethians and Plethians, and all the Gethites (euen sixe hundreth men) which were come on fote from Gath, wente before the kynge.¹⁹ And the kynge sayde vnto Ithai ye Gethite: Why goest thou also with vs? Turne backe, and byde with the kynge, for thou art a straunger: get the hence agayne vnto thy place.²⁰ Thou camest yesterdaye, and to daye thou iuperdest to go with vs: As for me, I wyl go whither I can: turne thou backe agayne, and mercy and faithfulnes happen vnto thy brethren with the.²¹ Ithai answered, and sayde: As truly as the LORDE lyueth, and as truly as my lorde the kynge lyueth, loke in what place my lorde the kynge shalbe, (whether it chaunce to life or death) there shal thy seruaunt be also.²² Dauid sayde vnto Ithai: Then come, and go with vs. So wente Ithai the Gethite and all his men, and the whole multitude of the children that were with him.²³ And all the lande wepte with loude voyce, and all the people with them. And the kynge wete ouer the broke Cedron, and all the people wente ouer by the waye that goeth to the wyldernes.

²⁴ And beholde, Sadoc was there also, and all the Leuites that were with them, & they bare ye Arke of the couenuat of God, and set it there. And Abiathar wente vp, tyll all the people came out of the cite.²⁵ But the kynge sayde vnto Sadoc: Brynge the Arke of God into the cite agayne. Yf I shal fynde grace before the LORDE, he shall fetch me agayne, and shall let me se it, and the house of it.²⁶ But yf he saye thus: I haue no pleasure to ye, beholde, here am I, let him do with me as it pleaseth him.²⁷ And the kynge saide vnto Sadoc ye prest: O thou Seer, turne agayne to ye cite with peace, and Ahimaas thy sonne with the and Ionathas the sonne of Abiathar:²⁸ beholde, I wyl tary in the playne of the wyldernes, tyll the message come from you, and tell me.²⁹ So Sadoc and Abiathar broughte the Arke of God agayne to Ierusalem, and remayned there.³⁰ But Dauid wente vp to mount Olyuete and wepte, & his heade was couered. And all the people that was with him, had euery man his heade couered and wente on and wepte.

³¹ And whan it was tolde Dauid, that Achitophel was in the cofederacy with Absalom, he sayde: LORDE turne thou Achitophels councell to foolishnes.³² And whan Dauid came vp to the toppe of the mount, where the vse was to worshippe God, Chusai the Arachite met him with his cote rent, and earth vpon his heade.³³ And Dauid sayde vnto him: Yf thou go with me, thou shalt be chargeable vnto me:³⁴ but yf thou goest agayne in to the cite, and sayest vnto Absalom: I am thy seruaunt O kynge euen as I was thy fathers seruaunt, so wyll I now be thy seruaunt, Then shalt thou brynge Achitophels councell to naughte.³⁵ So is Sadoc and Abiathar ye prestes with the, and all that thou hearest out of the kynges house, tell it vnto Sadoc and Abiathar the prestes.³⁶ Beholde, their two sonnes are with the: Ahimaas the sonne of Sadoc, and Ionathas the sonne of Abiathar, by them mayest thou sende me worde what thou hearest.³⁷ So Chusai Dauids frende came in to the cite. And Absalom came to Ierusalem.