17:21 After the men had left, Ahimaaz and Jonathan 1 climbed out of the well. Then they left and informed King David. They advised David, “Get up and cross the stream 2 quickly, for Ahithophel has devised a plan to catch you.” 3
Now the people of Judah 5 had come to Gilgal to meet the king and to help him 6 cross the Jordan.
Now after he had crossed the Jordan, Shimei son of Gera threw himself down before the king.
1 tn Heb “they”; the referents (Ahimaaz and Jonathan) have been specified in the translation for clarity.
2 tn Heb “the water.”
3 tn Heb “for thus Ahithophel has devised against you.” The expression “thus” is narrative shorthand, referring to the plan outlined by Ahithophel (see vv. 1-3). The men would surely have outlined the plan in as much detail as they had been given by the messenger.
4 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
5 tn The Hebrew text has simply “Judah.”
6 tn Heb “the king.” The pronoun (“him”) has been used in the translation to avoid redundancy.
7 tn The MT in this instance alone spells the name with final ן (nun, “Kimhan”) rather than as elsewhere with final ם (mem, “Kimham”). As in most other translations, the conventional spelling (with ם) has been used here to avoid confusion.
8 tn Heb “people.”
9 tc The translation follows the Qere and many medieval Hebrew