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Take a breath, find your place, and read deeply. Discover the joy of reading God’s word with the Immerse New Living Translation (NLT) Bible.
This daily Bible podcast will take you through the Bible in a year following the Immerse Bible Reading Experience. So grab your family and small group and go through the Bible in a year together with Immerse. Each of the 6 volumes is available online or at your favorite Christian bookstore.
Ethan: Welcome to Immerse: the
daily bible reading experience.
Day 200 and 4
now Absalom was praised as the
most handsome man in all Israel.
He was flawless from head to foot.
He cut his hair only once a year, and
then only because it was so heavy.
When he weighed it out,
it came to five pounds.
He had three sons and one daughter.
His daughter's name was Tamar,
and she was very beautiful.
Absalom lived in Jerusalem for two
years, but he never got to see the king.
Then Absalom sent for Joab to
ask him to intercede for him.
But Joab refused to come.
Absalom sent for him a second time,
but again Joab refused to come.
So Absalom said to his servants,
Go and set fire to Joab's barley
field, the field next to mine.
So they set his field on fire
as Absalom had commanded.
Then Joab came to Absalom at his
house and demanded, Why did your
servants set my field on fire?
And Absalom replied, Because I wanted you
to ask the king why he brought me back
from Gesher if he didn't intend to see me.
I might as well have stayed there.
Let me see the king.
If he finds me guilty of
anything, then let him kill me.
So Joab told the king
what Absalom had said.
Then at last, David summoned Absalom,
who came and bowed low before the king.
And the king kissed him.
After this, Absalom bought a chariot
and horses, and he hired fifty
bodyguards to run ahead of him.
He got up early every morning and
went out to the gate of the city.
When people brought a case to the
king for judgment, Absalom would
ask where in Israel they were from,
and they would tell him their tribe.
Then Absalom would say, You've
really got a strong case here.
It's too bad the king doesn't
have anyone to hear it.
I wish I were the judge.
Then everyone could bring their
cases to me for judgment and
I would give them justice.
When people tried to bow before
him, Absalom wouldn't let them.
Instead, he took them by
the hand and kissed them.
Absalom did this with everyone
who came to the king for judgment.
And so he stole the hearts
of all the people of Israel.
After four years, Absalom said
to the king, Let me go to Hebron
to offer a sacrifice to the Lord
and fulfill a vow I made to him.
For while your servant was at
Gesher in Aram, I promised to
sacrifice to the Lord in Hebron if
he would bring me back to Jerusalem.
All right, the king told
him, go and fulfill your vow.
So Absalom went to Hebron.
But while he was there, He sent secret
messengers to all the tribes of Israel
to stir up a rebellion against the king.
As soon as you hear the ram's horn,
his message read, you are to say,
Absalom has been crowned king in Hebron.
He took two hundred men from
Jerusalem with him as guests, but
they knew nothing of his intentions.
While Absalom was offering the sacrifices.
He sent for Ahithophel, one of
David's counselors who lived in Gilo.
Soon, many others also joined Absalom,
and the conspiracy gained momentum.
A messenger soon arrived in Jerusalem
to tell David, All Israel has joined
Absalom in a conspiracy against you.
Then we must flee at once
or it will be too late.
David urged his men, Hurry!
If we get out of this city before
Absalom arrives, both we and the city of
Jerusalem will be spared from disaster.
We are with you, his advisors replied.
Do what you think is best.
So the king and all his
household set out at once.
He left no one behind except ten of his
concubines to look after the palace.
The king and all his people set out on
foot, pausing at the last house to let all
the king's men move past to lead the way.
There were six hundred men from
Gath who had come with David,
along with the king's bodyguard.
Then the king turned and said to
Ittai, a leader of the men from
Gath, Why are you coming with us?
Go on back to King Absalom, for you are
a guest in Israel, a foreigner in exile.
You arrived only recently, and should
I force you today to wander with us?
I don't even know where we will go.
Go on back and take your kinsmen
with you, and may the Lord show you
His unfailing love and faithfulness.
But Ittai said to the king, I vow
by the Lord and by my own life
that I will go wherever my lord the
king goes, no matter what happens.
Whether it means life or death, David
replied, All right, come with us.
So Ittai and all his men and
their families went along.
Everyone cried loudly as the
king and his followers passed by.
They crossed the Kidron Valley and
then went out toward the wilderness.
Zadok and all the Levites also came along,
carrying the Ark of the Covenant of God.
They set down the Ark of God, and
Abiathar offered sacrifices until
everyone had passed out of the city.
Then the king instructed Zadok to take
the Ark of God back into the city.
If the Lord sees fit, David said.
He will bring me back to see the
Ark and the Tabernacle again.
But if he is through with me, then
let him do what seems best to him.
The king also told Zadok the
priest, Look, here is my plan.
You and Abiathar should return
quietly to the city with your son
Ahimaaz and Abiathar's son Jonathan.
I will stop at the shallows
of the Jordan River and wait
there for a report from you.
So Zadok and Abiathar took the Ark of
God back to the city and stayed there.
David walked up the road to the
Mount of Olives, weeping as he went.
His head was covered and his feet
were bare as a sign of mourning.
And the people who were with
him covered their heads and
wept as they climbed the hill.
When someone told David that his
advisor Ahithophel was now backing
Absalom, David prayed, O Lord, let
Ahithophel give Absalom foolish advice.
When David reached the summit
of the Mount of Olives where
people worshipped God, Hushai the
Archite was waiting there for him.
Hushai had torn his clothing and put
dirt on his head as a sign of mourning.
But David told him, If you go with
me, you will only be a burden.
Return to Jerusalem and tell Absalom, I
will now be your advisor, O king, just as
I was your father's advisor in the past.
Then you can frustrate and
counter Ahithophel's advice.
Zadok and Abiathar, the
priests, will be there.
Tell them about the plans being
made in the king's palace and they
will send their sons Ahimaaz and
Jonathan to tell me what is going on.
So David's friend Hushai
returned to Jerusalem, getting
there just as Absalom arrived.
When David had gone a little beyond
the summit of the Mount of Olives,
Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth,
was waiting there for him.
He had two donkeys loaded with two hundred
loaves of bread, one hundred clusters of
raisins, one hundred bunches of summer
fruit, and a wineskin full of wine.
What are these for?
the king asked Ziba.
Ziba replied, The donkeys are
for the king's people to ride on,
and the bread and summer fruit
are for the young men to eat.
The wine is for those who become
exhausted in the wilderness.
And where is Mephibosheth, Saul's
grandson, the king asked him.
He stayed in Jerusalem, Ziba replied.
He said, Today I will get back the
kingdom of my grandfather Saul.
In that case, the king told Ziba, I
give you everything Mephibosheth owns.
I bow before you, Saiba replied.
May I always be pleasing
to you, my lord the king.
This concludes today's
Immerse Reading Experience.
Thank you for joining us.