2. And rushing against him, for he is weary and has weakened hands, I will strike him. And when all the people who are with him will have fled, I will strike down the king in isolation.
3. And I will lead back the entire people, returning in the manner of one man. For you are seeking only one man. And all the people shall be in peace."
4. And this word pleased Absalom and all those greater by birth of Israel.
5. But Absalom said, "Summon Hushai the Archite, and let us hear what he also may say."
6. And when Hushai had gone to Absalom, Absalom said to him: "Ahithophel has spoken a word in this manner. Should we do it or not? What counsel do you give?"
7. And Hushai said to Absalom, "The counsel that Ahithophel has given at this time is not good."
8. And again Hushai declared, "You know your father, and the men who are with him, to be very strong and bitter in soul, comparable to a bear raging in the forest when her young have been taken away. Moreover, your father is a man of war, and so he will not live among the people.
9. Perhaps now he hides in pits, or in another place, wherever he wills. And if by chance, in the beginning, anyone may fall, whoever hears about it, no matter what he has heard, will say, 'There is a slaughter among the people who were following Absalom.'
10. And even the very strong, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, will be weakened out of fear. For all the people of Israel know your father to be a valiant man, and that all who are with him are robust.
11. But this seems to me to be the right counsel: Let all of Israel be gathered to you, from Dan to Beersheba, like the sand of the sea which is innumerable. And you will be in their midst.
12. And we shall rush against him in whatever place he will have been found. And we shall cover him, as the dew usually falls upon the ground. And we shall not leave behind even one of the men who are with him.
13. And if he will enter into any city, all of Israel shall encircle that city with ropes. And we will pull it into the torrent, so that there may not be found even one small stone from it."
14. And Absalom, with all the men of Israel, said: "The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel." So, by an act of the Lord, the useful counsel of Ahithophel was defeated, in order that the Lord might lead evil over Absalom.
15. And Hushai said to the priests, Zadok and Abiathar: "Ahithophel gave counsel to Absalom and to the elders of Israel in this and that manner. And I gave counsel in such and such a manner.
16. Now therefore, send quickly, and report to David, saying: 'You shall not stay this night in the plains of the desert. Instead, without delay, go across. Otherwise the king may be engulfed, and all the people who are with him.' "
17. But Jonathan and Ahimaaz remained beside the Fountain of Rogel. And a handmaid went away and reported it to them. And they set out, so that they might carry the report to king David. For they could not be seen, nor enter into the city.
18. But a certain young man saw them, and he revealed it to Absalom. Yet truly, they traveled quickly and entered into the house of a certain man in Bahurim, who had a well in his court, and they descended into it.