DAVID and his men lived in a city in the wilderness. This city had walls, and gates.

Absalom soon heard where his father David was, and he came after him with a great army. Absalom crossed over the river Jordan, and desired his men to set up their tents near the city where David was.

Then David saw that his wicked son meant to fight against him. So David one morning desired his soldiers to go out of the city. David was going with them; but they begged him not to come, lest he should be killed in the battle. These people loved him very much. Then the king said, "I will do as you think best." David did not wish to go to this battle, for he did not like to fight against Absalom.

David told the soldiers before they went to battle, not to hurt Absalom: for David still loved his wicked son.

Absalom and his soldiers came out to fight against David's men. They fought in a wood. This was not a good place for fighting, for a great many people were knocked against the trees, and bruised, and killed.

Who do you think conquered? David's men; because God helped them, and Absalom's men tried to run away, and a great many of them were killed by the swords of David's men, and still more were killed by the trees of the wood.

Now you shall hear what became of Absalom.

He rode upon a mule, (which is a beast. very much like a horse,) and as he was riding, he passed under a great oak-tree, and his beautiful long hair was caught in the boughs; and the mule ran away, and left him hanging by the hair in the tree, with his feet lifted up from the earth. You remember how proud he was of his hair. God let that very hair be fastened to the tree. We should pray to God

not to let us be proud of anything we have. One of David's soldiers saw him, and went to the captain Joab, and said, "Behold I saw Absalom hanged in an oak." Then Joab said, "And why did you not kill him? If you had, I would have given you a great deal of silver, and some clothes." But the man answered, "If you would have given me a

thousand pieces of silver, I would not have hurt Absalom, for I heard the king desire that no one should hurt him." Then Joab went very quietly to the oak tree, and he found Absalom still hanging there. So he took three darts, and thrust them through Absalom's heart, just through the middle of his body; and ten young men that were with Joab, hurt him also with swords, or darts, and killed him.

How frightened Absalom must have felt when he was hanging in the oak! I wonder whether he prayed to God to forgive him. Perhaps he did not wish to pray; for he did not love God. Perhaps he only felt frightened lest any one should kill him, and did not fear the anger of God. The darts must have hurt his body very much, and must have covered him with blood. Did he not well deserve to feel pain? What pain had he made his father feel in his mind!

Joab took his body down from the tree, and cast it into a great pit in the wood, and laid a great heap of stones on the top.

When Absalom was dead, Joab blew a

trumpet to call back his soldiers from running after Absalom's soldiers: for now Absalom was dead the Israelites might leave off fighting. Absalom's soldiers went back to their tents, and Joab took his soldiers back to the city where David was.

But before Joab and his men went back, two men ran very fast to tell David what had happened.

How much David longed to know whether Absalom was dead! David wished his men to conquer, and yet he did not wish Absalom to be killed.

David sat near the gates inside the city where he was. A man stood upon the top of the wall near the gate to watch to see whether any person was coming into the city. Soon the watchman saw a man running, and he cried out loud, "I see a man running alone." Then said David, "No doubt he brings some message." Soon afterwards the watchman cried out, "I see another man running alone." Then David said, "He also brings a message."