¹Then when David had moved on a little from the summit, he saw Ziba, Mephibosheth's servant-lad coming towards him, and a pair of donkeys pack-saddled with two hundred loaves of bread on them and one hundred cakes of raisins and one hundred summer fruits and a skin-bottle of wine. ²And the king said to Ziba, “What are these things of yours?” And Ziba said, “The donkeys are for the king's household to ride on, and the bread, and the summer fruits are for the lads to eat, and the wine is for anyone weary in the desert to drink.” ³Then the king said, “And where is your master's son?” And Ziba said to the king, “Well now, he is staying in Jerusalem, for he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will restore my father's kingdom to me.’ ” ⁴And the king said to Ziba, “Look, everything which was Mephibosheth's is yours.” And Ziba said, “I am humbled in that I find grace in your sight, my lord the king.” ⁵Then when King David was approaching Bahurim, he saw a man of the family of the house of Saul coming out from there, whose name was Shimei the son of Gera, cursing incessantly as he came out. ⁶And he threw stones at David and all King David's servants, and at all the people, and at all the warriors, to the right and to the left. ⁷And this is what Shimei said in his cursing: “Come out, come out, you man of blood and useless man. ⁸The Lord has requited you all the blood of the house of Saul in whose place you have reigned, but the Lord has put the kingdom in the house of Absalom your son, and here you are in your plight, because you are a man of blood.” ⁹At this Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Please let me go over and remove his head.” ¹⁰But the king said, “What does it matter to me and to you, you sons of Zeruiah, if he curses and if the Lord has said to him, ‘Curse David’? So who can say, ‘Why have you done this?’?” ¹¹And David said to Abishai and to all his servants, “Look, my son who came out of my inward parts is seeking my life. So now, how much more may this Benjaminite? Leave him to curse, for so the Lord has said to him. ¹²It may be that the Lord will look with his eye, and that the Lord will render me good for that man's cursing this day.” ¹³And David and his men went on their way, while Shimei went on the mountain flank opposite him, cursing as he went and throwing stones at him, and throwing soil. ¹⁴And the king and all the people who were with him arrived tired, and he refreshed himself there. ¹⁵And Absalom and all the people – men of Israel – arrived in Jerusalem, and Ahithophel was with him. ¹⁶And it came to pass when Hushai the Archite, David's friend, went to Absalom, that Hushai said to Absalom, “May the king live, may the king live.” ¹⁷And Absalom said to Hushai, “That is your gracious courtesy with your friend. Why have you not gone with your friend?” ¹⁸And Hushai said to Absalom, “No, for my loyalty is to whomever the Lord chooses, and this people, and every man of Israel. I will be for him, and I will stay with him. ¹⁹And secondly, whom should I serve? Should it not be in the presence of his son? As I have served in the presence of your father, so I will be in your presence.” ²⁰Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give your advice as to what we should do.” ²¹And Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Go in to your father's concubines whom he has left to keep the house, and all Israel will hear that you have become abhorrent to your father, and the hands of all those who are with you will be strengthened.” ²²Then they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and Absalom went in to his father's concubines in the sight of the whole of Israel. ²³And Ahithophel's advice which he gave in those days was as when a man asks for the word of God. So was all Ahithophel's advice, both to David and to Absalom.