2 Samuel 14
English Standard Version
Absalom Returns to Jerusalem
14 Now Joab the son of Zeruiah knew (A)that the king's heart went out to Absalom. 2 And Joab sent to (B)Tekoa and brought from there a wise woman and said to her, “Pretend to be a mourner and put on mourning garments. (C)Do not anoint yourself with oil, but behave like a woman who has been mourning many days for the dead. 3 Go to the king and speak thus to him.” So Joab (D)put the words in her mouth.
4 When the woman of Tekoa came to the king, (E)she fell on her face to the ground and paid homage and said, (F)“Save me, O king.” 5 And the king said to her, “What is your trouble?” She answered, (G)“Alas, I am a widow; my husband is dead. 6 And your servant had two sons, and they quarreled with one another in the field. There was no one to separate them, and one struck the other and killed him. 7 And now the whole clan has risen against your servant, and they say, ‘Give up the man who struck his brother, that we may put him to death for the life of his brother whom he killed.’ And so they would (H)destroy the heir also. Thus they would quench my coal that is left and leave to my husband neither name nor (I)remnant on the face of the earth.”
8 Then the king said to the woman, “Go to your house, and I will give orders concerning you.” 9 And the woman of Tekoa said to the king, (J)“On me be the guilt, my lord the king, and on my father's house; let the king and his throne be guiltless.” 10 The king said, “If anyone says anything to you, bring him to me, and he shall never touch you again.” 11 Then she said, “Please let the king invoke the Lord your God, that (K)the avenger of blood kill no more, and my son be not destroyed.” He said, (L)“As the Lord lives, (M)not one hair of your son shall fall to the ground.”
12 Then the woman said, “Please let your servant speak a word to my lord the king.” He said, “Speak.” 13 And the woman said, “Why then have you planned such a thing against (N)the people of God? For in giving this decision the king convicts himself, inasmuch as the king does not bring (O)his banished one home again. 14 We must all die; we are (P)like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. But God will not take away life, and he devises means (Q)so that the banished one will not remain an outcast. 15 Now I have come to say this to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid, and your servant thought, ‘I will speak to the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his servant. 16 For the king will hear and deliver his servant from the hand of the man who would destroy me and my son together from (R)the heritage of God.’ 17 And your servant thought, ‘The word of my lord the king will set me at rest,’ for my lord the king is (S)like the angel of God to discern good and evil. The Lord your God be with you!”
18 Then the king answered the woman, “Do not hide from me anything I ask you.” And the woman said, “Let my lord the king speak.” 19 The king said, “Is the hand of Joab with you in all this?” The woman answered and said, (T)“As surely as you live, my lord the king, one cannot turn to the right hand or to the left from anything that my lord the king has said. It was your servant Joab who commanded me; (U)it was he who put all these words in the mouth of your servant. 20 In order to change the course of things your servant Joab did this. But my lord has wisdom like the wisdom of (V)the angel of God to know all things that are on the earth.”
21 Then the king said to Joab, “Behold now, I grant this; go, bring back the young man Absalom.” 22 And Joab fell on his face to the ground and paid homage (W)and blessed the king. And Joab said, “Today your servant knows that I have found favor in your sight, my lord the king, in that the king has granted the request of his servant.” 23 So Joab arose and went to (X)Geshur and brought Absalom to Jerusalem. 24 And the king said, “Let him dwell apart in his own house; he is not to come into my presence.” So Absalom lived apart in his own house and did not come into the king's presence.
25 Now in all Israel there was no one so much to be praised for his handsome appearance as Absalom. (Y)From the sole of his foot to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him. 26 And when he cut the hair of his head (for at the end of every year he used to cut it; when it was heavy on him, he (Z)cut it), he weighed the hair of his head, two hundred shekels[a] by the king's weight. 27 There were born (AA)to Absalom three sons, and one daughter whose name was Tamar. She was a beautiful woman.
28 So Absalom lived two full years in Jerusalem, without coming into the king's presence. 29 Then Absalom sent for Joab, to send him to the king, but Joab would not come to him. And he sent a second time, but Joab would not come. 30 Then he said to his servants, “See, Joab's field is next to mine, and he has barley there; go and set it on fire.” So Absalom's servants set the field on fire.[b] 31 Then Joab arose and went to Absalom at his house and said to him, “Why have your servants set my field on fire?” 32 Absalom answered Joab, “Behold, I sent word to you, ‘Come here, that I may send you to the king, to ask, “Why have I come from (AB)Geshur? It would be better for me to be there still.” Now therefore let me go into the presence of the king, (AC)and if there is guilt in me, let him put me to death.’” 33 Then Joab went to the king and told him, and he summoned Absalom. So he came to the king and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king, and the king kissed Absalom.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 14:26 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams
- 2 Samuel 14:30 Septuagint, Dead Sea Scroll add So Joab's servants came to him with their clothes torn, and they said to him, “The servants of Absalom have set your field on fire.”
2 Samuel 14
New American Standard Bible
The Woman of Tekoa
14 Now Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that (A)the king’s heart was drawn toward Absalom. 2 So Joab sent a messenger to (B)Tekoa and [a]brought a wise woman from there, and said to her, “Please follow mourning rites, and put on mourning garments now, and do not (C)anoint yourself with oil but be like a woman who has been mourning for the dead for many days. 3 Then go to the king and speak to him in this way.” So Joab put (D)the words in her mouth.
4 Now when the woman of Tekoa [b]spoke to the king, she fell on her face to the ground and (E)prostrated herself, and said, “(F)Help, O king!” 5 And the king said to her, “What is troubling you?” And she [c]answered, “Truly I am a widow, for my husband is dead. 6 And your servant had two sons, but the two of them fought in the field, and there was no [d]one to save [e]them from each other, so one struck the other and killed him. 7 Now behold, (G)the entire family has risen against your servant, and they have said, ‘Hand over the one who struck his brother, so that we may put him to death for the life of his brother whom he killed, (H)and eliminate the heir as well.’ So they will extinguish my coal which is left, so as to [f]leave my husband neither name nor remnant on the face of the earth.”
8 Then the king said to the woman, “Go to your home, and I will issue orders concerning you.” 9 The woman of Tekoa said to the king, “My lord, the king, (I)the guilt is on me and my father’s house, but (J)the king and his throne are guiltless.” 10 So the king said, “Whoever speaks to you, bring him to me, and he will not touch you anymore.” 11 Then she said, “May the king please remember the Lord your God, (K)so that the avenger of blood will not continue to destroy, otherwise they will destroy my son.” And he said, “(L)As the Lord lives, not one hair of your son shall fall to the ground.”
12 Then the woman said, “Please let your servant speak a word to my lord the king.” And he said, “Speak.” 13 The woman said, “(M)Why then have you planned such a thing against the people of God? For in speaking this word the king is like one who is guilty, in that the king does not bring back (N)his banished one. 14 For (O)we will surely die and are (P)like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up. Yet God does not take away life, but makes plans so that (Q)the banished one will not be cast out from Him. 15 Now then, [g]the reason I have come to speak this word to my lord the king is that the people have made me afraid; so your servant said, ‘Let me now speak to the king, perhaps the king will perform the [h]request of his slave. 16 For the king will listen, to save his slave from the [i]hand of the man who would eliminate [j]both me and my son from (R)the inheritance of God.’ 17 Then your servant said, ‘Please let the word of my lord the king be [k]comforting, for as (S)the angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and evil. And may the Lord your God be with you.’”
18 Then the king answered and said to the woman, “Please do not hide anything from me that I am about to ask you.” And the woman said, “Let my lord the king please speak.” 19 So the king said, “Is the hand of Joab with you in all this?” And the woman replied, “As your soul lives, my lord the king, no one can turn to the right or to the left from anything that my lord the king has spoken. Indeed, it was (T)your servant Joab who commanded me, and it was he who put all these words in the mouth of your servant. 20 In order to change the appearance of things your servant Joab has done this thing. But my lord is wise, (U)like the wisdom of the angel of God, to know all that is on the earth.”
Absalom Returns
21 Then the king said to Joab, “Behold now, (V)I [l]will certainly do this thing; go then, bring back the young man Absalom.” 22 And Joab fell on his face to the ground, prostrated himself, and blessed the king; then Joab said, “Today your servant knows that I have found favor in your sight, my lord the king, in that the king has performed the [m]request of his servant.” 23 So Joab arose and went to (W)Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem. 24 However, the king said, “He shall return to (X)his own house, but he shall not see my face.” So Absalom returned to his own house and did not see the king’s face.
25 Now in all Israel there was no one as handsome as Absalom, so highly praised; (Y)from the sole of his foot to the top of his head there was no impairment in him. 26 And when he (Z)cut the hair of his head (and it was at the end of every year that he cut it, because it was heavy on him, so he cut it), he weighed the hair of his head at [n]two hundred shekels by the king’s weight. 27 And (AA)to Absalom there were born three sons, and one daughter whose name was (AB)Tamar; she was a woman of beautiful appearance.
28 Now Absalom lived two full years in Jerusalem, (AC)yet he did not see the king’s face. 29 Then Absalom sent for Joab, to send him to the king, but he would not come to him. So he sent word again a second time, but he would not come. 30 Therefore he said to his servants, “See, (AD)Joab’s plot is next to mine, and he has barley there; go and set it on fire.” So Absalom’s servants set the plot on fire. 31 Then Joab got up, came to Absalom at his house, and said to him, “Why have your servants set my plot on fire?” 32 Absalom [o]answered Joab, “Behold, I sent for you, saying, ‘Come here, so that I may send you to the king, to say, “Why have I come from Geshur? It would be better for me still to be there.”’ Now then, let me see the king’s face, (AE)and if there is guilt in me, he can have me executed.” 33 So when Joab came to the king and told him, he summoned Absalom. Then Absalom came to the king and prostrated himself [p]with his face to the ground before the king; and (AF)the king kissed Absalom.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 14:2 Lit took
- 2 Samuel 14:4 Many mss and ancient versions came
- 2 Samuel 14:5 Lit said
- 2 Samuel 14:6 Lit deliverer between
- 2 Samuel 14:6 Lit between them
- 2 Samuel 14:7 Lit establish for
- 2 Samuel 14:15 Lit that I
- 2 Samuel 14:15 Lit word
- 2 Samuel 14:16 Lit palm
- 2 Samuel 14:16 Lit together
- 2 Samuel 14:17 Lit for rest
- 2 Samuel 14:21 Lit have done
- 2 Samuel 14:22 Lit word
- 2 Samuel 14:26 About 4 lb. or 1.8 kg
- 2 Samuel 14:32 Lit said to
- 2 Samuel 14:33 Lit on his
2 Samuel 14
Common English Bible
Absalom is restored
14 Now Joab, Zeruiah’s son, could see that the king’s mind was on Absalom. 2 So Joab sent someone to Tekoa and brought a wise woman from there. He said to her, “Pretend to be in mourning. Dress in mourning clothes. Don’t anoint yourself with oil. Act like a woman who has spent a long time mourning over someone who has died. 3 Go to the king and speak to him as follows.” Then Joab told her what to say.
4 When the woman from Tekoa came to the king, she fell facedown, bowing low out of respect. “King, help me!” she said.
5 “What is wrong?” the king asked her.
“It’s terrible!” she said. “I am a widow; my husband is dead. 6 Your servant had two sons, but the two of them fought in the field. No one could separate them, and one struck the other and killed him. 7 Now the entire clan has turned against your servant. They say, ‘Hand over the one who killed his brother so we can execute him for murdering his brother, even though we would destroy the heir as well.’ So they would snuff out the one ember I have left, leaving my husband without name or descendant on the earth.”
8 The king said to the woman, “Return home, and I will issue an order in your behalf.”
9 The woman of Tekoa said to the king, “My master and king, let the guilt be on me and on my father’s household. The king and his throne are innocent.”
10 “If anyone speaks against you, bring him to me, and he will never trouble you again,” the king replied.
11 She said, “Please let the king remember the Lord your God so that the one seeking revenge doesn’t add to the destruction and doesn’t kill my son.”
“As surely as the Lord lives,” David said, “not one of your son’s hairs will fall to the ground.”
12 Then the woman said, “May your female servant say something to my master the king?”
“Speak!” he said.
13 The woman said, “Why have you planned the very same thing against God’s people? In giving this order, the king has become guilty because the king hasn’t restored his own banished son. 14 We all have to die—we’re like water spilled out on the ground that can’t be gathered up again. But God doesn’t take life away; instead, he makes plans so those banished from him don’t stay that way.[a]
15 [b]“I have come to my master the king to talk about this because people have made me afraid. Your servant thought, I must speak with the king. Maybe the king will act on the request of his servant, 16 because the king will agree to deliver his servant from the power of anyone who would destroy both me and my son from the inheritance God gave. 17 Your servant thought, The word of my master the king will definitely comfort me, because my master the king is like one of God’s messengers, understanding good and evil. May the Lord your God be with you!”
18 [c] The king answered the woman, “I must ask you something—don’t hide anything from me!”
The woman said, “Please, my master and king, speak.”
19 So the king said, “Has Joab put you up to this?”
The woman answered, “As surely as you live, my master and king, no one can deviate a bit from whatever my master and king says. Yes, it was your servant Joab who directed me, and it was Joab who told your female servant to say all these things. 20 Your servant Joab did this to change the way things look.[d] But my master’s wisdom is like the wisdom of one of God’s own messengers—he knows everything that takes place in the land.”
21 So the king said to Joab, “All right then. I will do it. Go and bring back my boy Absalom.”
22 Joab fell facedown, bowing low out of respect, and he blessed the king.
“Today your servant knows that you think well of me, my master and king,” Joab said, “because the king has followed up on his servant’s recommendation.”
23 So Joab got up, went to Geshur, and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem.
24 The king said, “He must go straight to his own house. He must not see my face.” So Absalom went straight to his own house and did not see the king.
25 No man throughout Israel was as praised for his good looks as Absalom. From the soles of his feet to the crown of his head there was nothing wrong with him. 26 When he shaved his head—he had to shave his head at the end of each year because his hair was so heavy that he had to shave it—the weight of the hair from his head was two hundred shekels by the royal weight. 27 Absalom had three sons and one daughter. The daughter’s name was Tamar. She was a beautiful woman.
28 Absalom lived in Jerusalem two years without ever seeing the king’s face. 29 Absalom called for Joab in order to send Joab to the king, but Joab refused to come. Absalom called for Joab a second time, but he still wouldn’t come. 30 So Absalom said to his servants, “Look, Joab’s property is next to mine. He has barley there. Go and set it on fire.” So Absalom’s servants set the property on fire. Then Joab’s servants went to Joab with their clothes torn. “Absalom’s servants set the property on fire,” they said.[e]
31 So Joab went straight to Absalom’s house and said to him, “Why have your servants set my property on fire?”
32 Absalom answered Joab, “Look, I sent you a message: Come here so I can send you to the king to ask, ‘Why have I returned from Geshur? I would be better off if I were still there!’ Please let me see the king’s face. If I’m guilty, then the king can kill me.”
33 Joab went to the king and reported this to him. Then the king called for Absalom, and Absalom came to the king. He bowed low out of respect, nose to the ground before the king. Then the king kissed Absalom.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 14:14 Heb uncertain
- 2 Samuel 14:15 14:15-17 may have originally followed 14:7.
- 2 Samuel 14:18 14:18 may have originally followed 14:14.
- 2 Samuel 14:20 Heb uncertain
- 2 Samuel 14:30 DSS (4QSamc), LXX; MT lacks Then Joab’s servants… said.
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