Joab rebuked the king

19 Someone told Joab that the king was crying and mourning because Absalom had died. 2 All of David’s soldiers became sad. Instead of rejoicing about defeating the soldiers who had fought with Absalom, they were sad because they heard that the king was mourning because Absalom was dead. 3 The soldiers returned to the city quietly, like [SIM] soldiers do when they are ashamed because they ran away from battle. 4 The king covered his face with his hands and kept crying loudly, “O, my son Absalom! O, Absalom, my son! My son!”

5 Then Joab entered the room where the king was, and said to the king, “Today you have caused your soldiers to be ashamed! You have humiliated the men who saved your life and the lives of your sons and daughters and your ordinary wives and your slave wives! 6 It seems that you love those who hate you and that you hate those who love you. You have caused it to be clear today that your commanders and your officers are not at all important to you. I think that if Absalom were still alive and we were all dead today, you would be happy. 7 So, now go and thank your soldiers for what they did. Because I solemnly declare that if you do not do that, none of them will still be with you by tomorrow morning and that would be worse for you than all the disasters/troubles that you have experienced since you were a boy.”

8 So the king got up and went and sat near the city gate. And all the people were told, “Hey, the king is sitting at the gate!” So they all came and gathered around him.