【撒下18:1】 大卫数点跟随他的人,立千夫长,百夫长率领他们。
David mustered the men who were with him and appointed over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds.
【撒下18:2】 大卫打发军兵出战,分为三队,一队在约押手下,一队在洗鲁雅的儿子,约押兄弟亚比筛手下,一队在迦特人以太手下。大卫对军兵说,我必与你们一同出战。
David sent the troops out-a third under the command of Joab, a third under Joab's brother Abishai son of Zeruiah, and a third under Ittai the Gittite. The king told the troops, 'I myself will surely march out with you.'
【撒下18:3】 军兵却说,你不可出战。若是我们逃跑,敌人必不介意。我们阵亡一半,敌人也不介意。因为你一人强似我们万人,你不如在城里预备帮助我们。
But the men said, 'You must not go out; if we are forced to flee, they won't care about us. Even if half of us die, they won't care; but you are worth ten thousand of us. It would be better now for you to give us support from the city.'
【撒下18:4】 王向他们说,你们以为怎样好,我就怎样行。于是王站在城门旁,军兵或百或千地挨次出去了。
The king answered, 'I will do whatever seems best to you.' So the king stood beside the gate while all the men marched out in units of hundreds and of thousands.
【撒下18:5】 王嘱咐约押,亚比筛,以太说,你们要为我的缘故宽待那少年人押沙龙。王为押沙龙嘱咐众将的话,兵都听见了。
The king commanded Joab, Abishai and Ittai, 'Be gentle with the young man Absalom for my sake.' And all the troops heard the king giving orders concerning Absalom to each of the commanders.
【撒下18:6】 兵就出到田野迎着以色列人,在以法莲树林里交战。
The army marched into the field to fight Israel, and the battle took place in the forest of Ephraim.
【撒下18:7】 以色列人败在大卫的仆人面前。那日阵亡的甚多,共有二万人。
There the army of Israel was defeated by David's men, and the casualties that day were great-twenty thousand men.
【撒下18:8】 因为在那里四面打仗,死于树林的比死于刀剑的更多。
The battle spread out over the whole countryside, and the forest claimed more lives that day than the sword.
【撒下18:9】 押沙龙偶然遇见大卫的仆人。押沙龙骑着骡子,从大橡树密枝底下经过,他的头发被树枝绕住,就悬挂起来,所骑的骡子便离他去了。
Now Absalom happened to meet David's men. He was riding his mule, and as the mule went under the thick branches of a large oak, Absalom's head got caught in the tree. He was left hanging in midair, while the mule he was riding kept on going.
【撒下18:10】 有个人看见,就告诉约押说,我看见押沙龙挂在橡树上了。
When one of the men saw this, he told Joab, 'I just saw Absalom hanging in an oak tree.'
【撒下18:11】 约押对报信的人说,你既看见他,为什么不将他打死落在地上呢?你若打死他,我就赏你十舍客勒银子,一条带子。
Joab said to the man who had told him this, 'What! You saw him? Why didn't you strike him to the ground right there? Then I would have had to give you ten shekels of silver and a warrior's belt.'
【撒下18:12】 那人对约押说,我就是得你一千舍客勒银子,我也不敢伸手害王的儿子。因为我们听见王嘱咐你和亚比筛并以太说,你们要谨慎,不可害那少年人押沙龙。
But the man replied, 'Even if a thousand shekels were weighed out into my hands, I would not lift my hand against the king's son. In our hearing the king commanded you and Abishai and Ittai, 'Protect the young man Absalom for my sake. '
【撒下18:13】 我若妄为害了他的性命,就是你自己也必与我为敌。原来无论何事都瞒不过王。
And if I had put my life in jeopardy -and nothing is hidden from the king-you would have kept your distance from me.'
【撒下18:14】 约押说,我不能与你留连。约押手拿三杆短枪,趁押沙龙在橡树上还活着,就刺透他的心。
Joab said, 'I'm not going to wait like this for you.' So he took three javelins in his hand and plunged them into Absalom's heart while Absalom was still alive in the oak tree.
【撒下18:15】 给约押拿兵器的十个少年人围绕押沙龙,将他杀死。
And ten of Joab's armor-bearers surrounded Absalom, struck him and killed him.
【撒下18:16】 约押吹角,拦阻众人,他们就回来,不再追赶以色列人。
Then Joab sounded the trumpet, and the troops stopped pursuing Israel, for Joab halted them.
【撒下18:17】 他们将押沙龙丢在林中一个大坑里,上头堆起一大堆石头。以色列众人都逃跑,各回各家去了。
They took Absalom, threw him into a big pit in the forest and piled up a large heap of rocks over him. Meanwhile, all the Israelites fled to their homes.
【撒下18:18】 押沙龙活着的时候,在王谷立了一根石柱,因他说,我没有儿子为我留名。他就以自己的名称那石柱叫押沙龙柱,直到今日。
During his lifetime Absalom had taken a pillar and erected it in the King's Valley as a monument to himself, for he thought, 'I have no son to carry on the memory of my name.' He named the pillar after himself, and it is called Absalom's Monument to this day.