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Return of David to Western Transjordan. 2 Samuel 19:5. And Joab came to the king’s house and said, “Today you have brought to shame all your servants, who have now saved your life and the lives of your sons and daughters, and the lives of your wives and the lives of your concubines; 2 Samuel 19:6. You love those who hate you and you hate those who love you, for you have shown today that both leaders and servants are nothing to you; Today I learned that if Absalom had remained alive and we had all died, it would have been more pleasant for you; 2 Samuel 19:7. So get up, go out and speak to the hearts of your servants, for I swear by the Lord that if you do not go out, not a single person will remain with you this night; and this will be worse for you than all the disasters that have come upon you from your youth until now. “This is what the murderer of Absalom, hated by David, says himself; but there was so much truth and practical prudence in his words that the smart king suppressed his grief and excitement, stood up and went out to the people in the square at the city gates” (Ya. Bogorodsky, “Jewish Tsars”, p. 236). 2 Samuel 19:8. And the king stood up and sat down at the gate, and it was announced to all the people that the king was sitting at the gate. And all the people came before the king [to the gate]; The Israelites fled to their tents. “the Israelites,” that is, the followers of Absalom (cf. 2 Samuel 18:17). 2 Samuel 19:9. And all the people in all the tribes of Israel argued and said: King [David] delivered us from the hands of our enemies and freed us from the hands of the Philistines, and now he himself has fled from this land [from his kingdom] from Absalom. 2 Samuel 19:10. But Absalom, whom we anointed king over us, died in the war; Why are you now delaying to return the king? [And these words of all Israel reached the king.] “David’s residence was now in Mahanaim, and in fact David was king only beyond the Jordan. The Jews on this side of the Jordan, who had sided with Absalom, now found themselves in a strange position. The king they had just recognized died, and they abandoned David and took up arms against him. David turned out to be invincible and reigned beyond the Jordan, and they, like a flock without a shepherd, found themselves in a position exposed to serious dangers. There was no other outcome than to submit to David and return him to the throne of Jerusalem. The first voices in favor of David were heard in the northern tribes” (Ya. Bogorodsky, “Jewish Kings”, p. 237). 2 Samuel 19:11. And King David sent to say to the priests Zadok and Abiathar: Tell the elders of Judah: Why do you want to be the last to return the king to his house, while the words of all Israel have reached the king to his house? 2 Samuel 19:12. You are my brothers, you are my bones and my flesh; Why do you want to be the last to return the king to his house? “The tribe of Judah remained mysteriously silent, not offering any hope for David. This circumstance seems somewhat strange and requires some explanation. It is possible that the assumption is that, having not received any special privileges from David compared to other tribes (2 Samuel 19:42), the tribe of Judah joined Absalom both out of a feeling of dissatisfaction with David and out of the expectation of receiving the desired privileges from Absalom. When Absalom’s enterprise failed and all that remained was to return to the old order of things, the tribe of Judah felt their error more deeply than others and were ashamed of their action. His representatives were ashamed to appear before David with a confession and an offer of allegiance, which had become so dubious, and they hesitated. David understood the difficulty of his tribe and, nevertheless, considering it, despite the temporary infatuation, to be a more faithful stronghold of his home, he decided to encourage him with a gentle invitation and a reminder of his duties” (Ya. Bogorodsky, “Jewish Kings”, pp. 237–238). 2 Samuel 19:13. And tell Amasa: art thou not my bone and my flesh? May God do this and that to me and do even more, if you are not a military leader with me, instead of Joab, forever! “Are you not my bone and my flesh?” See (2 Samuel 17:25). “In place of Joab, forever”: Joab’s sharp independence and the case of his obvious violation of the will of his king (2 Samuel 18:5,9–17), in addition to the fact that the subject of Joab’s last willful act was a person especially close to David, could not help but push David away from him. 2 Samuel 19:16. And Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite from Bahurim, hastened and went with the Jews to meet King David, 2 Samuel 19:17. and a thousand men of Benjamite with him, and Ziba the servant of the house of Saul, with fifteen of his sons and twenty of his servants; and they crossed the Jordan before the king [and prepared for the king to cross the Jordan]. 2 Samuel 19:18. When they had crossed the ship to carry the king's house and serve him, then Shimei the son of Gera fell [on his face] before the king, as soon as he crossed the Jordan, 2 Samuel 19:19. and he said to the king: Do not, my lord, commit a crime against me, and do not remember what your servant sinned on that day when my lord the king left Jerusalem, and do not hold it, O king, in your heart; 2 Samuel 19:20. for your servant knows that he has sinned, and behold, now I am the first of all the house of Joseph to go out to meet my lord the king. 2 Samuel 19:21. And Abishai the son of Zerui answered and said, Shall not Shimei die because he has cursed the Lord’s anointed? 2 Samuel 19:22. And David said, What is it to me and to you, sons of Zeruiah, that you are now becoming my accusers? Is it now acceptable to kill anyone in Israel? Do I not see that now I am king over Israel? 2 Samuel 19:23. And the king said to Shimei: You will not die. And the king swore to him. See (2 Samuel 16:5–11). "From all the house of Joseph"; according to the text of LXX: “first of all Israel and the house of Joseph.” For an explanation of why the house of Joseph is placed at the head of all Israel, see (1 Chronicles 5:1). 2 Samuel 19:24. And Mephibosheth the son of [Jonathan, son of] Saul came out to meet the king. He did not wash his feet, [did not cut his nails,] did not care for his beard and did not wash his clothes from the day the king went out until the day he returned in peace. 2 Samuel 19:25. When he left Jerusalem to meet the king, the king said to him: Why did you not go with me, Mephibosheth? 2 Samuel 19:26. He answered: My lord the king! my servant deceived me; for I, your servant, said: “I will saddle myself a donkey and sit on it and go with the king,” since your servant is lame. 2 Samuel 19:27. And he slandered your servant before my lord the king. But my lord the king is like an angel of God; do as you please; 2 Samuel 19:28. although all my father's house was guilty of death before my lord the king, yet you set your servant among those who ate at your table; What right do I have to complain before the king? “Thou hast set thy servant among them that eat at thy table.” See (2 Samuel 9:1–7). 2 Samuel 19:29. And the king said to him: Why are you saying all this? I told you and Siwa to divide the fields between each other. It was difficult to decide who was really to blame—Ziba or Mephibosheth. “In any case, it was hard for David to listen to the humiliating speeches of the son of his friend Jonathan, and he gloomily interrupted Mephibosheth: “Why are you saying all this?” . Finding his previous order to take away all property from Mephibosheth in favor of Ziba too cruel, but also not wanting to cancel it completely, since he considered Ziba’s report not completely unfounded, David, in order to somehow settle this unpleasant matter, added: “I say that you and Ziba divide the fields equally” (Ya. Bogorodsky, “Jewish Kings”, pp. 240–241). 2 Samuel 19:31. And Barzillai the Gileadite came from Roglim and crossed over the Jordan with the king to conduct him beyond the Jordan. 2 Samuel 19:32. Barzillai was very old, about eighty years old. He provided food for the king during his stay in Mahanaim, because he was a rich man. 2 Samuel 19:41. And behold, all the Israelites came to the king and said to the king: Why did our brothers, the men of Judah, kidnap you and carry the king and his house and all the people of David with him through the Jordan? “When David was already in Gilgal and when representatives of the northern tribes came here, they were unpleasantly surprised that the king was, so to speak, already at home and no longer seemed to need them. They expected to find David in his Trans-Jordanian refuge and delight him with their appearance and a solemn declaration of their loyal feelings. And suddenly they see the king on this side of the Jordan, at the head of a powerful tribe that hardly needs their deputation. The disappointment of the northerners turned into suspicion, and then annoyance at the tribe of Judah who warned them” (Ya. Bogorodsky, “Jewish Kings”, p. 242). You might be interested in: