Young Folks' Bible in Words of Easy Reading / The Sweet Stories of God's Word in the Language of Childhood

by Josephine Pollard

And Da-vid told him to go. But it was not to serve the Lord that Ab-sa-lom went, but to have him-self made king in-stead of Da-vid. And he took ten score men with him, who did not know why or where they went, and sent spies all through the land to speak in his praise and urge that he be made king.

DA-VID FOR-GIV-ING AB-SA-LOM.

And when Da-vid heard of it he said to his men, Rise, let us flee from this place, lest Ab-sa-lom come and put us to death.

And they all fled from Je-ru-sa-lem, and went to hide in some lone place. And when Ab-sa-lom came to Je-ru-sa-lem he went to one of Da-vid's friends and asked him what he should do to be made king. A-hith-o-phel, who had once been a friend of Da-vid, and had now gone with the king's son, had said that he would go out with a large force and come up with Da-vid when he was weak and faint, so that he would be in a great fright. Those who were with Dav-id would flee, and he would soon put the king to death. Then, of course, Ab-sa-lom would be king.

But Ab-sa-lom would not do this till he had heard what Hu-sha-i said. Now Hu-sha-i was a true friend of Da-vid, and he told Ab-sa-lom to take more men than A-hith-o-phel had said, for he thought that would give Da-vid a chance to get out of the way. And Hu-sha-i sent two young men to tell Da-vid not to stop on the plains that night, but to cross the Jor-dan, lest he and all who were with him should be put to death.

But a boy saw the two sons of the high-priest who were on their way to Da-vid, and went and told Ab-sa-lom. And the priest's sons ran to a house near by, and hid in the well. And the wo-man who kept the house spread corn on top so that no one could see that a well was there.

And when Ab-sa-lom's men came in and asked the wo-man where the priest's sons were, she said they had gone on past the brook Ked-ron. And when the two could not be found the men went back.

Then the priest's sons came up out of the well, and made haste to give to Da-vid the word that Hu-sha-i had sent. And at dawn Da-vid and all his men crossed Jor-dan.