24. David was sitting between the two gates while the watchman walked along the roof of the gate by the wall. As he looked, he saw a man running alone.
25. The watchman called and alerted the king.“If he’s alone,” the king said, “he has good news to tell.” The runner continued to come closer.
26. When the watchman saw another man running, the watchman called, “There’s ⌊another⌋ man running alone.”The king said, “This one is also bringing good news.”
27. The watchman said, “It seems to me that the first one runs like Ahimaaz, Zadok’s son.”“He’s a good man,” the king said. “He must be coming with good news.”
28. Then Ahimaaz came up to the king, greeted him, and bowed down in front of him. Ahimaaz said, “May the Lord your God be praised. He has handed over the men who rebelled against Your Majesty.”
29. “Is the young man Absalom alright?” the king asked.Ahimaaz answered, “I saw a lot of confusion when Joab sent me away, but I didn’t know what it meant.”
30. “Step aside, and stand here,” the king said. He stepped aside and stood there.
31. Then the Sudanese messenger came. “Good news for Your Majesty!” he said. “Today the Lord has freed you from all who turned against you.”
32. “Is the young man Absalom alright?” the king asked.The Sudanese messenger answered, “May your enemies and all who turned against you be like that young man!”