7. Now therefore arise, go forth and speak comfortably unto thy servants: for I swear by the LORD, if thou go not forth, there will not tarry a man with thee this night: and that will be worse unto thee than all the evil that hath befallen thee from thy youth until now.
8. Then the king arose, and sat in the gate. And they told unto all the people, saying, Behold, the king doth sit in the gate: and all the people came before the king. Now Israel had fled every man to his tent.
9. And all the people were at strife throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, The king delivered us out of the hand of our enemies, and he saved us out of the hand of the Philistines; and now he is fled out of the land from Absalom.
10. And Absalom, whom we anointed over us, is dead in battle. Now therefore why speak ye not a word of bringing the king back?
11. And king David sent to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, saying, Speak unto the elders of Judah, saying, Why are ye the last to bring the king back to his house? seeing the speech of all Israel is come to the king, to bring him to his house.
12. Ye are my brethren, ye are my bone and my flesh: wherefore then are ye the last to bring back the king?
13. And say ye to Amasa, Art thou not my bone and my flesh? God do so to me, and more also, if thou be not captain of the host before me continually in the room of Joab.
14. And he bowed the heart of all the men of Judah, even as the heart of one man; so that they sent unto the king, saying, Return thou, and all thy servants.
15. So the king returned, and came to Jordan. And Judah came to Gilgal, to go to meet the king, to bring the king over Jordan.
16. And Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite, which was of Bahurim, hasted and came down with the men of Judah to meet king David.
17. And there were a thousand men of Benjamin with him, and Ziba the servant of the house of Saul, and his fifteen sons and his twenty servants with him; and they went through Jordan in the presence of the king.
18. And there went over a ferry boat to bring over the king's household, and to do what he thought good. And Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king, when he was come over Jordan.