2 Samuel 16:21

¹⁹ And again, whom should I serve? should I not serve in the presence of his son? as I have served in thy father’s presence, so will I be in thy presence.

²⁰ Then said Absalom to Ahithophel, Give counsel among you what we shall do.

And Ahithophel said unto Absalom, Go in unto thy father’s concubines, which he hath left to keep the house; and all Israel shall hear that thou art abhorred of thy father: then shall the hands of all that are with thee be strong.

²² So they spread Absalom a tent upon the top of the house; and Absalom went in unto his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.

²³ And the counsel of Ahithophel, which he counselled in those days, was as if a man had enquired at the oracle of God: so was all the counsel of Ahithophel both with David and with Absalom.

Here the Bible tells a story about someone else. Ask yourself what it can say to us today. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: Ahithophel replied, “Sleep with your father’s concubines, whom he has left to keep the palace. When all Israel hears that you have become a stench to your father, then the hands of all who are with you will be strengthened.”
KJV: And Ahithophel said unto Absalom, Go in unto thy father’s concubines, which he hath left to keep the house; and all Israel shall hear that thou art abhorred of thy father: then shall the hands of all that are with thee be strong.
WEB: Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Go in to your father’s concubines that he has left to keep the house. Then all Israel will hear that you are abhorred by your father. Then the hands of all who are with you will be strong.”
ASV: And Ahithophel said unto Absalom, Go in unto thy father`s concubines, that he hath left to keep the house; and all Israel will hear that thou art abhorred of thy father: then will the hands of all that are with thee be strong.
DARBY: And Ahithophel said to Absalom, Go in to thy father's concubines, whom he has left to keep the house; and all Israel shall hear that thou art become odious with thy father; and the hands of all that are with thee shall be strong.
BLB: And Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Go in to the concubines of your father, whom he has left to keep the house. And all Israel will hear that you are abhorred by your father, and the hands of all who are with you will be strengthened.”

ÅB: Akitofel svarte: Gå inn til din fars medhustruer som han lot bli tilbake for å ta vare på huset! Når da hele Israel får høre at du har gjort deg forhatt hos din far, så vil motet økes hos alle som er med deg.
OTB: Og Akitofel sa til Absalom, "Gå inn til din fars medhustruer som han lot bli igjen for å holde huset; da vil hele Israel høre at du har gjort deg avskyelig for din far. Da vil hendene til alle som er med deg bli styrket."
B1930: Akitofel svarte: Gå inn til din fars medhustruer som han lot bli tilbake for å ta vare på huset! Når da hele Israel får høre at du har gjort dig forhatt hos din far, så vil motet økes hos alle som er med dig.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

2 Samuel 20:3
And David came to his house at Jerusalem; and the king took the ten women his concubines, whom he had left to keep the house, and put them in ward, and fed them, but went not in unto them. So they were shut up unto the day of their death, living in widowhood.
Read in context
2 Samuel 15:16
And the king went forth, and all his household after him. And the king left ten women, which were concubines, to keep the house.
Read in context
2 Samuel 2:7
Therefore now let your hands be strengthened, and be ye valiant: for your master Saul is dead, and also the house of Judah have anointed me king over them.
Read in context
Leviticus 18:8
The nakedness of thy father’s wife shalt thou not uncover: it is thy father’s nakedness.
Read in context
Zechariah 8:13
And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong.
Read in context
1 Kings 2:17
And he said, Speak, I pray thee, unto Solomon the king, (for he will not say thee nay,) that he give me Abishag the Shunammite to wife.
Read in context
Genesis 49:3–4
Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:
Read in context
Genesis 34:30
And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled me to make me to stink among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites: and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house.
Read in context