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2 Samuel 14
New English Translation

David Permits Absalom to Return to Jerusalem

14 Now Joab son of Zeruiah realized that the king longed to see[a] Absalom. 2 So Joab sent to Tekoa and brought from there a wise woman. He told her, “Pretend to be in mourning[b] and put on garments for mourning. Don’t anoint yourself with oil. Instead, act like a woman who has been mourning for the dead for some time.[c] 3 Go to the king and speak to him in the following fashion.” Then Joab told her what to say.[d]

4 So the Tekoan woman went[e] to the king. She bowed down with her face to the ground in deference to him and said, “Please help me,[f] O king!” 5 The king replied to her, “What do you want?”[g] She answered, “I am a widow; my husband is dead. 6 Your servant[h] has two sons. When the two of them got into a fight in the field, there was no one present who could intervene. One of them struck the other and killed him. 7 Now the entire family has risen up against your servant, saying, ‘Turn over the one who struck down his brother, so that we can execute him and avenge the death[i] of his brother whom he killed. In so doing we will also destroy the heir.’ They want to extinguish my remaining coal,[j] leaving no one on the face of the earth to carry on the name of my husband.”

8 Then the king told the woman, “Go to your home. I will give instructions concerning your situation.”[k] 9 The Tekoan woman said to the king, “My lord the king, let any blame fall on me and on the house of my father. But let the king and his throne be innocent!”

10 The king said, “Bring to me whoever speaks to you, and he won’t bother you again!” 11 She replied, “In that case,[l] let the king invoke the name of[m] the Lord your God so that the avenger of blood may not add to the killing! Then they will not destroy my son!” He replied, “As surely as the Lord lives, not a single hair of your son’s head[n] will fall to the ground.”

12 Then the woman said, “Please permit your servant to speak to my lord the king about another matter.” He replied, “Tell me.” 13 The woman said, “Why have you devised something like this against God’s people? When the king speaks in this fashion, he makes himself guilty, for the king has not brought back the one he has banished. 14 Certainly we must die, and are like water spilled on the ground that cannot be gathered up again. But God does not take away life; instead he devises ways for the banished to be restored.[o] 15 I have now come to speak with my lord the king about this matter, because the people have made me fearful.[p] But your servant said, ‘I will speak to the king! Perhaps the king will do what his female servant[q] asks. 16 Yes![r] The king may[s] listen and deliver his female servant[t] from the hand of the man who seeks to remove[u] both me and my son from the inheritance God has given us!’[v] 17 So your servant said, ‘May the word of my lord the king be my security, for my lord the king is like the angel of God when it comes to deciding between right and wrong! May the Lord your God be with you!’”

18 Then the king replied to the woman, “Don’t hide any information from me when I question you.” The woman said, “Let my lord the king speak.” 19 The king said, “Did Joab put you up to all of this?”[w] The woman answered, “As surely as you live, my lord the king, there is no deviation to the right or to the left from all that my lord the king has said. For your servant Joab gave me instructions. He has put all these words in your servant’s mouth. 20 Your servant Joab did this so as to change this situation. But my lord has wisdom like that of the angel of God, and knows everything that is happening in the land.”[x]

21 Then the king said to Joab, “All right! I[y] will do this thing. Go and bring back the young man Absalom!” 22 Then Joab bowed down with his face toward the ground and thanked[z] the king. Joab said, “Today your servant knows that I have found favor in your sight, my lord the king, because the king has granted the request of your[aa] servant!”

23 So Joab got up and went to Geshur and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem. 24 But the king said, “Let him go over[ab] to his own house. He may not see my face.” So Absalom went over[ac] to his own house; he did not see the king’s face.

25 Now in all Israel everyone acknowledged that there was no man as handsome as Absalom.[ad] From the soles of his feet to the top of his head he was perfect in appearance.[ae] 26 When he would shave his head—at the end of every year he used to shave his head, for it grew too long[af] and he would shave it—he used to weigh the hair of his head at three pounds[ag] according to the king’s weight. 27 Absalom had[ah] three sons and one daughter, whose name was Tamar. She was a very attractive woman.[ai]

28 Absalom lived in Jerusalem for two years without seeing the king’s face. 29 Then Absalom sent a message to Joab asking him to send him to the king, but Joab[aj] was not willing to come to him. So he sent a second message to him, but he still was not willing to come. 30 So he said to his servants, “Look, Joab has a portion of field adjacent to mine and he has some barley there. Go and set it on fire.”[ak] So Absalom’s servants set Joab’s[al] portion of the field on fire.

31 Then Joab got up and came to Absalom’s house. He said to him, “Why did your servants set my portion of field on fire?” 32 Absalom said to Joab, “Look, I sent a message to you saying, ‘Come here so that I can send you to the king with this message:[am] “Why have I come from Geshur? It would be better for me if I were still there.”’ Let me now see the face of the king. If I am at fault, let him put me to death!”

33 So Joab went to the king and informed him. The king[an] summoned Absalom, and he came to the king. Absalom[ao] bowed down before the king with his face toward the ground and the king kissed him.[ap]

Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 14:1 tn Heb “the heart of the king was upon.” The Syriac Peshitta adds the verb ʾethreʿi (“was reconciled”).
  2. 2 Samuel 14:2 tn The Hebrew Hitpael verbal form here indicates pretended rather than genuine action.
  3. 2 Samuel 14:2 tn Heb “these many days.”
  4. 2 Samuel 14:3 tn Heb “put the words in her mouth” (so NASB, NIV).
  5. 2 Samuel 14:4 tc The translation follows many medieval Hebrew mss in reading וַתַּבֹא (vattavoʾ, “and she went”) rather than the MT וַתֹּאמֶר (vattoʾmer, “and she said”). The MT reading shows confusion with וַתֹּאמֶר later in the verse. The emendation suggested here is supported by the LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, some mss of the Targum, and Vulgate.
  6. 2 Samuel 14:4 tn The word “me” is left to be inferred in the Hebrew text; it is present in the Syriac Peshitta and Vulgate.
  7. 2 Samuel 14:5 tn Heb “What to you?”
  8. 2 Samuel 14:6 tn Here and elsewhere (vv. 7, 12, 15a, 17, 19) the woman uses a term which suggests a lower level female servant. She uses the term to express her humility before the king. However, she uses a different term in vv. 15b-16. See the note at v. 15 for a discussion of the rhetorical purpose of this switch in terminology.
  9. 2 Samuel 14:7 tn Heb “in exchange for the life.” The Hebrew preposition ב (bet, “in”) here is the so-called bet pretii, or bet (ב) of price, defining the value attached to someone or something.
  10. 2 Samuel 14:7 sn My remaining coal is here metaphorical language, describing the one remaining son as her only source of lingering hope for continuing the family line.
  11. 2 Samuel 14:8 tn Heb “concerning you.”
  12. 2 Samuel 14:11 tn The words “in that case” are not in the Hebrew text, but may be inferred from the context. They are supplied in the translation for the sake of clarification.
  13. 2 Samuel 14:11 tn Heb “let the king remember.”
  14. 2 Samuel 14:11 tn Heb “of your son.”
  15. 2 Samuel 14:14 tn Heb “he devises plans for the one banished from him not to be banished.”
  16. 2 Samuel 14:15 tc The LXX (ὄψεταί με, opsetai me) has misunderstood the Hebrew יֵרְאֻנִי (yereʾuni, Piel perfect, “they have made me fearful”), taking the verb to be a form of the verb רָאָה (raʾah, “to see”) rather than the verb יָרֵא (yareʾ, “to fear”). The fact that the Greek translators were working with an unvocalized Hebrew text (i.e., consonants only) made them very susceptible to this type of error.
  17. 2 Samuel 14:15 tn Here and in v. 16 the woman refers to herself as the king’s אָמָה (ʾamah), a term that refers to a higher level female servant toward whom the master might have some obligation. Like the other term, this word expresses her humility, but it also suggests that the king might have some obligation to treat her in accordance with the principles of justice.
  18. 2 Samuel 14:16 tn Or “for.”
  19. 2 Samuel 14:16 tn Or “will.” The imperfect verbal form can have either an indicative or modal nuance. The use of “perhaps” in v. 15b suggests the latter here.
  20. 2 Samuel 14:16 tn Heb “in order to deliver his maid.”
  21. 2 Samuel 14:16 tn Heb “destroy.”
  22. 2 Samuel 14:16 tn Heb “from the inheritance of God.” The expression refers to the property that was granted to her family line in the division of the land authorized by God.
  23. 2 Samuel 14:19 tn Heb “Is the hand of Joab with you in all this?”
  24. 2 Samuel 14:20 tn Heb “to know all that is in the land.”
  25. 2 Samuel 14:21 tc Many medieval Hebrew mss have “you” rather than “I.”
  26. 2 Samuel 14:22 tn Heb “blessed.”
  27. 2 Samuel 14:22 tc The present translation reads with the Qere “your” rather than the MT “his.”
  28. 2 Samuel 14:24 tn Heb “turn aside.”
  29. 2 Samuel 14:24 tn Heb “turned aside.”
  30. 2 Samuel 14:25 tn Heb “Like Absalom there was not a handsome man in all Israel to boast exceedingly.”
  31. 2 Samuel 14:25 tn Heb “there was not in him a blemish.”
  32. 2 Samuel 14:26 tn Heb “for it was heavy upon him.”
  33. 2 Samuel 14:26 tn Heb “two hundred shekels.” The modern equivalent would be about three pounds (1.4 kg).
  34. 2 Samuel 14:27 tn Heb “and there were born.”
  35. 2 Samuel 14:27 tc The LXX adds here the following words: “And she became a wife to Rehoboam the son of Solomon and bore to him Abia.”
  36. 2 Samuel 14:29 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  37. 2 Samuel 14:30 tc The LXX adds here the following words: “And the servants of Absalom burned them up. And the servants of Joab came to him, rending their garments. They said….”
  38. 2 Samuel 14:30 tn The word “Joab’s” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
  39. 2 Samuel 14:32 tn Heb “saying.”
  40. 2 Samuel 14:33 tn Heb “he.” Joab, acting on behalf of the king, may be the implied subject.
  41. 2 Samuel 14:33 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Absalom) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  42. 2 Samuel 14:33 tn Heb “Absalom.” For stylistic reasons the name has been replaced by the pronoun (“him”) in the translation.
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2 Samuel 14
New King James Version

Absalom Returns to Jerusalem

14 So Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that the king’s heart was concerned (A)about Absalom. 2 And Joab sent to (B)Tekoa and brought from there a wise woman, and said to her, “Please pretend to be a mourner, (C)and put on mourning apparel; do not anoint yourself with oil, but act like a woman who has been mourning a long time for the dead. 3 Go to the king and speak to him in this manner.” So Joab (D)put the words in her mouth.

4 And when the woman of Tekoa [a]spoke to the king, she (E)fell on her face to the ground and prostrated herself, and said, (F)“Help, O king!”

5 Then the king said to her, “What troubles you?”

And she answered, (G)“Indeed I am a widow, my husband is dead. 6 Now your maidservant had two sons; and the two fought with each other in the field, and there was no one to part them, but the one struck the other and killed him. 7 And now the whole family has risen up against your maidservant, and they said, ‘Deliver him who struck his brother, that we may execute him (H)for the life of his brother whom he killed; and we will destroy the heir also.’ So they would extinguish my ember that is left, and leave to my husband neither name nor remnant on 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, “My lord, O king, let (I)the [b]iniquity be on me and on my father’s house, (J)and the king and his throne be guiltless.”

10 So the king said, “Whoever says anything to you, bring him to me, and he shall not touch you anymore.”

11 Then she said, “Please let the king remember the Lord your God, and do not permit (K)the avenger of blood to destroy anymore, lest they destroy my son.”

And he said, (L)“As the Lord lives, not one hair of your son shall fall to the ground.”

12 Therefore the woman said, “Please, let your maidservant speak another word to my lord the king.”

And he said, “Say on.”

13 So the woman said: “Why then have you schemed such a thing against (M)the people of God? For the king speaks this thing as one who is guilty, in that the king does not bring (N)his banished one home again. 14 For we (O)will surely die and become like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. Yet God does not (P)take away a life; but He (Q)devises means, so that His banished ones are not [c]expelled from Him. 15 Now therefore, I have come to speak of this thing to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid. And your maidservant said, ‘I will now speak to the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his maidservant. 16 For the king will hear and deliver his maidservant from the hand of the man who would destroy me and my son together from the (R)inheritance of God.’ 17 Your maidservant said, ‘The word of my lord the king will now be comforting; for (S)as the angel of God, so is my lord the king in (T)discerning 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 from me anything that I ask you.”

And the woman said, “Please, let my lord the king speak.”

19 So the king said, “Is the hand of Joab with you in all this?” And the woman answered and said, “As you live, my lord the king, no one can turn to the right hand or to the left from anything that my lord the king has spoken. For your servant Joab commanded me, and (U)he put all these words in the mouth of your maidservant. 20 To bring about this change of affairs your servant Joab has done this thing; but my lord is wise, (V)according to the wisdom of the angel of God, to know everything that is in the earth.”

21 And the king said to Joab, “All right, I have granted this thing. Go therefore, bring back the young man Absalom.”

22 Then Joab fell to the ground on his face and bowed himself, and [d]thanked the king. And Joab said, “Today your servant knows that I have found favor in your sight, my lord, O king, in that the king has fulfilled the request of his servant.” 23 So Joab arose (W)and went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem. 24 And the king said, “Let him return to his own house, but (X)do not let him see my face.” So Absalom returned to his own house, but did not see the king’s face.

David Forgives Absalom

25 Now in all Israel there was no one who was praised as much as Absalom for his good looks. (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—at the end of every year he cut it because it was heavy on him—when he cut it, he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels according to the king’s standard. 27 (Z)To Absalom were born three sons, and one daughter whose name was Tamar. She was a woman of beautiful appearance.

28 And Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem, (AA)but did not see the king’s face. 29 Therefore Absalom sent for Joab, to send him to the king, but he would not come to him. And when he sent again the second time, he would not come. 30 So he said to his servants, “See, Joab’s field is near mine, and he has barley there; go and set it on fire.” And Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.

31 Then Joab arose and came to Absalom’s house, and said to him, “Why have your servants set my field on fire?”

32 And Absalom answered Joab, “Look, I sent to 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 to be there still.” ’ Now therefore, let me see the king’s face; but (AB)if there is iniquity in me, let him execute me.”

33 So Joab went to the king and told him. And when he had called for Absalom, he came to the king and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king. Then the king (AC)kissed Absalom.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 14:4 Many Heb. mss., LXX, Syr., Vg. came
  2. 2 Samuel 14:9 guilt
  3. 2 Samuel 14:14 cast out
  4. 2 Samuel 14:22 Lit. blessed
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2 Samuel 14
Wycliffe Bible

14 Forsooth Joab, the son of Zeruiah, understood, that the heart of the king was turned to(ward) Absalom;

2 and he sent to Tekoah, and took from thence a wise woman, and he said to her, Feign thee to mourn, and be thou clothed with a cloak of dole, and be thou not anointed with oil, that thou be as a woman by mourning now in full much time a dead man (so that thou be like a woman now after a great deal of time mourning for her husband).

3 And thou shalt enter to the king, and thou shalt speak to him such manner words. And Joab put the words in her mouth.

4 Therefore when the woman of Tekoah had entered to the king, she felled before him on the earth, and worshipped, and said, O! king, keep thou me. (And so when the woman from Tekoah had entered before the king, she fell on the ground before him, and honoured him, and said, O! king, help thou me.)

5 And the king said to her, What hast thou of cause? And she answered, Alas! I am a woman widow, for mine husband is dead; (And the king said to her, What is thy problem? And she answered, Alas! I am a widow woman, for my husband is dead;)

6 and twain sons were of thine handmaid, which debated against themselves in the field, and none was that might forbid them, and the one smote the tother, and killed him. (and thy servantess had two sons, who raged against each other out in the field, and no one could separate them, and one of them struck the other, and killed him.)

7 And lo! all the kindred riseth against thine handmaid, and saith, Give thou him to us that killed his brother, that we slay him, for the life of his brother whom he killed, and that we do away the heir; and they seek to quench my spark that is left, that the name dwell not to mine husband, and that remnants be not to him on earth. (And lo! all the kinsmen riseth against thy servantess, and saith, Give thou to us he who killed his brother, so that we can kill him for taking his brother’s life, and so that we can do away the heir; yea, they seek to quench what is left of my spark, so that my husband’s name not remain, and that there be no remnant of him left here on the earth.)

8 And the king said to the woman, Go into thine house, and I shall (give a) command for thee.

9 And the woman of Tekoah said to the king, My lord the king, this wickedness be on me, and on the house of my father; forsooth (let) the king and his throne be innocent/be guiltless.

10 And the king said, Bring thou him to me, that against-saith thee, and he shall no more add to (it,) that he touch thee.

11 And she said, The king have mind on his Lord God, and the next (kins)men of blood to take vengeance be not multiplied, and they shall not slay my son. And the king said, The Lord liveth, for none of the hairs of thy son shall fall upon the earth. (And she said, May the king pray to the Lord his God, that the kinsmen who be next of blood, and who desire vengeance, be not able to take it, and so they shall not kill my son. And the king said, As the Lord liveth, none of the hairs of thy son shall fall on the ground!)

12 Therefore the woman said, Thine handmaid speak a word to my lord the king (And the woman said, May thy servantess speak a word to my lord the king?). And the king said, Speak thou.

13 And the woman said, Why hast thou thought such a thing against the people of God? and the king spake this word, that he do sin, and bring not again his son (who is) cast out? (And the woman said, Why then hast thou done this same thing against the people of God? and so by speaking this word, the king hath sinned, for he hath not brought back his own son who is cast out.)

14 All we die, and as waters that shall not turn again, we slide into the earth; and God will not that a soul perish, but he withdraweth, and thinketh, lest he perish utterly, which is cast away. (We shall all die, and we shall slide into the earth, like water that shall not return; but God desireth that no soul perish, but he withdraweth, and thinketh, lest he, who is cast away, utterly perish.)

15 Now therefore come thou, that I speak to my lord the king this word, while the people is present; and thine handmaid said, I shall speak to the king, if in any manner the king do the word of his handmaid. (And so now, I have come that I may speak of this thing to my lord the king, because the people have threatened me; and so thy servantess said to herself, I shall speak to the king, if by any chance the king will do what I request.)

16 And the king heard the words, that he should deliver his handmaid from the hands of all men, that would do away me, and my son together, from the heritage of the Lord. (And for the king to hear these words, so that he might deliver his servantess from the hands of all those who would do away me, and my son, from the Lord’s inheritance.)

17 Therefore thine handmaid say, that the word of my lord the king be made as sacrifice, that is, that the sentence given of him be pleasant to God, as sacrifice pleaseth God (And so thy servantess said to herself, that the words of my lord the king would be like a sacrifice, that is, that his judgement would be pleasing to God, like a sacrifice pleaseth God); for as an angel of the Lord, so is my lord the king, that he be not moved by blessing neither by cursing. Wherefore and thy Lord God is with thee.

18 And the king answered, and said to the woman, Hide thou not from me the word which I ask thee (Hide thou not from me what I ask thee). And the woman said to him, Speak thou, my lord the king.

19 And the king said, Whether the hand of Joab is with thee in all these things? The woman answered, and said, By the health of thy soul, my lord the king, neither to the left side neither to the right side is anything of all these things, which my lord the king hath spoken. For thy servant Joab himself commanded to me, and he putted all these words into the mouth of thine handmaid,

20 that I should turn the figure of this word (so that I might help straighten out this matter); for thy servant Joab commanded this thing. Forsooth thou, my lord the king, art wise, as an angel of God that hath wisdom, that thou understand all things on (the) earth.

21 And (later,) the king said to Joab, Lo! I am pleased, and I have done thy word; therefore go thou, and again-call thou the child Absalom. (And later, the king said to Joab, Lo! I grant thy request; go thou, and bring back the young man Absalom.)

22 And Joab felled upon his face to the earth, and he worshipped, and blessed the king; and Joab said, Thy servant hath understood today, that I have found grace in thine eyes, my lord (the) king, for thou hast done the word of thy servant. (And Joab fell down on the ground, or the floor, and he honoured the king, and blessed him; and Joab said, Thy servant knoweth today, that I have found favour in thine eyes, my lord the king, for thou hast granted my request.)

23 Therefore Joab rose up, and went into Geshur, and brought Absalom into Jerusalem. (And so Joab rose up, and went to Geshur, and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem.)

24 And the king said, Turn he again into his house, and see not he my face. Therefore Absalom turned again into his house, and saw not the face of the king. (And the king said, Go he back to his own house, for he shall not come before me, or into my presence. And so Absalom returned to his own house, and did not come before the king.)

25 Soothly no man in all Israel was so fair as Absalom, and full comely; from the step of the foot unto the top, there was no wem in him (there was no flaw, or blemish, on him);

26 and inasmuch as he clipped more his hairs, by so much the more they waxed; but he was clipped once in the year, for his hair grieved him. And when he clipped the hairs, he weighed the hairs of his head by two hundred shekels by common weight (And when he cut his hair, the hairs of his head weighed two hundred shekels by common weight).

27 And three sons, and a daughter, Tamar by name, (and she was) of seemly shape, or excellent form, were born to Absalom.

28 And Absalom dwelled in Jerusalem two years, and he saw not the face of the king. (And Absalom lived in Jerusalem for two years, but he never came before the king.)

29 Therefore he sent to Joab, that he should send him to the king; and Joab would not come to him. And when he had sent the second time, and Joab would not come, (And so he sent for Joab, so that he could take a message to the king; but Joab would not come to him. And when he had sent for him a second time, and Joab would still not come,)

30 Absalom said to his servants, Ye know the field of Joab beside my field, (the field of his) having ripe barley; therefore go ye, and burn ye it [up] with fire. Therefore the servants of Absalom burnt the (barley) corn with fire. (Absalom said to his servants, Ye know Joab’s field beside my field, the one with the ripe barley; go ye, and burn it down. And so Absalom’s servants burned down the crop.)

31 And Joab rose up, and came to Absalom into his house, and said, Why have thy servants burnt [up] my (barley) corn with fire? (And Joab rose up, and came to Absalom at his house, and said, Why have thy servants burned down my crop?)

32 And Absalom answered to Joab, I sent to thee, and besought that thou shouldest come to me, and that I should send thee to the king, that thou shouldest say to him, Why came I from Geshur? It was better to me to have been there; therefore I beseech, that I see the face of the king, that if he is mindful of my wickedness, slay he me. (And Absalom answered to Joab, I sent for thee, and desired that thou wouldest come to me, so that I could send thee to the king, and thou couldest say to him for me, Why did I come back from Geshur? It was better for me to have stayed there; and so I beseech thee, let me go before the king, and if he thinketh on my wickedness, then let him kill me.)

33 (So) Joab entered to the king, and told to him. And Absalom was called, and he entered to the king, and he worshipped on the face of [the] earth before him (and honouring him, he bowed low to the ground before him), and the king kissed Absalom.

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2 Samuel 14
New International Version

Absalom Returns to Jerusalem

14 Joab(A) son of Zeruiah knew that the king’s heart longed for Absalom. 2 So Joab sent someone to Tekoa(B) and had a wise woman(C) brought from there. He said to her, “Pretend you are in mourning. Dress in mourning clothes, and don’t use any cosmetic lotions.(D) Act like a woman who has spent many days grieving for the dead. 3 Then go to the king and speak these words to him.” And Joab(E) put the words in her mouth.

4 When the woman from Tekoa went[a] to the king, she fell with her face to the ground to pay him honor, and she said, “Help me, Your Majesty!”

5 The king asked her, “What is troubling you?”

She said, “I am a widow; my husband is dead. 6 I your servant had two sons. They got into a fight with each other in the field, and no one was there to separate them. One struck the other and killed him. 7 Now the whole clan has risen up against your servant; they say, ‘Hand over the one who struck his brother down, so that we may put him to death(F) for the life of his brother whom he killed; then we will get rid of the heir(G) as well.’ They would put out the only burning coal I have left,(H) leaving my husband neither name nor descendant on the face of the earth.”

8 The king said to the woman, “Go home,(I) and I will issue an order in your behalf.”

9 But the woman from Tekoa said to him, “Let my lord the king pardon(J) me and my family,(K) and let the king and his throne be without guilt.(L)”

10 The king replied, “If anyone says anything to you, bring them to me, and they will not bother you again.”

11 She said, “Then let the king invoke the Lord his God to prevent the avenger(M) of blood from adding to the destruction, so that my son will not be destroyed.”

“As surely as the Lord lives,” he said, “not one hair(N) of your son’s head will fall to the ground.(O)”

12 Then the woman said, “Let your servant speak a word to my lord the king.”

“Speak,” he replied.

13 The woman said, “Why then have you devised a thing like this against the people of God? When the king says this, does he not convict himself,(P) for the king has not brought back his banished son?(Q) 14 Like water(R) spilled on the ground, which cannot be recovered, so we must die.(S) But that is not what God desires; rather, he devises ways so that a banished person(T) does not remain banished from him.

15 “And now I have come to say this to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid. Your servant thought, ‘I will speak to the king; perhaps he will grant his servant’s request. 16 Perhaps the king will agree to deliver his servant from the hand of the man who is trying to cut off both me and my son from God’s inheritance.’(U)

17 “And now your servant says, ‘May the word of my lord the king secure my inheritance, for my lord the king is like an angel(V) of God in discerning(W) good and evil. May the Lord your God be with you.’”

18 Then the king said to the woman, “Don’t keep from me the answer to what I am going to ask you.”

“Let my lord the king speak,” the woman said.

19 The king asked, “Isn’t the hand of Joab(X) with you in all this?”

The woman answered, “As surely as you live, my lord the king, no one can turn to the right or to the left from anything my lord the king says. Yes, it was your servant Joab who instructed me to do this and who put all these words into the mouth of your servant. 20 Your servant Joab did this to change the present situation. My lord has wisdom(Y) like that of an angel of God—he knows everything that happens in the land.(Z)”

21 The king said to Joab, “Very well, I will do it. Go, bring back the young man Absalom.”

22 Joab fell with his face to the ground to pay him honor, and he blessed the king.(AA) Joab said, “Today your servant knows that he has found favor in your eyes, my lord the king, because the king has granted his servant’s request.”

23 Then Joab went to Geshur and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem. 24 But the king said, “He must go to his own house; he must not see my face.” So Absalom went to his own house and did not see the face of the king.

25 In all Israel there was not a man so highly praised for his handsome appearance as Absalom. From the top of his head to the sole of his foot there was no blemish in him. 26 Whenever he cut the hair of his head(AB)—he used to cut his hair once a year because it became too heavy for him—he would weigh it, and its weight was two hundred shekels[b] by the royal standard.

27 Three sons(AC) and a daughter were born to Absalom. His daughter’s name was Tamar,(AD) and she became a beautiful woman.

28 Absalom lived two years in Jerusalem without seeing the king’s face. 29 Then Absalom sent for Joab in order to send him to the king, but Joab refused to come to him. So he sent a second time, but he refused to come. 30 Then he said to his servants, “Look, Joab’s field is next to mine, and he has barley(AE) there. Go and set it on fire.” So Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.

31 Then Joab did go to Absalom’s house, and he said to him, “Why have your servants set my field on fire?(AF)”

32 Absalom said to Joab, “Look, I sent word to you and said, ‘Come here so I can send you to the king to ask, “Why have I come from Geshur?(AG) It would be better for me if I were still there!”’ Now then, I want to see the king’s face, and if I am guilty of anything, let him put me to death.”(AH)

33 So Joab went to the king and told him this. Then the king summoned Absalom, and he came in and bowed down with his face to the ground before the king. And the king kissed(AI) Absalom.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 14:4 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; most Hebrew manuscripts spoke
  2. 2 Samuel 14:26 That is, about 5 pounds or about 2.3 kilograms
Listen to 2 Samuel 14
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2 Samuel 14
King James Version

14 Now Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that the king's heart was toward Absalom.

2 And Joab sent to Tekoah, and fetched thence a wise woman, and said unto her, I pray thee, feign thyself to be a mourner, and put on now mourning apparel, and anoint not thyself with oil, but be as a woman that had a long time mourned for the dead:

3 And come to the king, and speak on this manner unto him. So Joab put the words in her mouth.

4 And when the woman of Tekoah spake to the king, she fell on her face to the ground, and did obeisance, and said, Help, O king.

5 And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, I am indeed a widow woman, and mine husband is dead.

6 And thy handmaid had two sons, and they two strove together in the field, and there was none to part them, but the one smote the other, and slew him.

7 And, behold, the whole family is risen against thine handmaid, and they said, Deliver him that smote his brother, that we may kill him, for the life of his brother whom he slew; and we will destroy the heir also: and so they shall quench my coal which is left, and shall not leave to my husband neither name nor remainder upon the earth.

8 And the king said unto the woman, Go to thine house, and I will give charge concerning thee.

9 And the woman of Tekoah said unto the king, My lord, O king, the iniquity be on me, and on my father's house: and the king and his throne be guiltless.

10 And the king said, Whoever saith ought unto thee, bring him to me, and he shall not touch thee any more.

11 Then said she, I pray thee, let the king remember the Lord thy God, that thou wouldest not suffer the revengers of blood to destroy any more, lest they destroy my son. And he said, As the Lord liveth, there shall not one hair of thy son fall to the earth.

12 Then the woman said, Let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak one word unto my lord the king. And he said, Say on.

13 And the woman said, Wherefore then hast thou thought such a thing against the people of God? for the king doth speak this thing as one which is faulty, in that the king doth not fetch home again his banished.

14 For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person: yet doth he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him.

15 Now therefore that I am come to speak of this thing unto my lord the king, it is because the people have made me afraid: and thy handmaid said, I will now speak unto the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his handmaid.

16 For the king will hear, to deliver his handmaid out of the hand of the man that would destroy me and my son together out of the inheritance of God.

17 Then thine handmaid said, The word of my lord the king shall now be comfortable: for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and bad: therefore the Lord thy God will be with thee.

18 Then the king answered and said unto the woman, Hide not from me, I pray thee, the thing that I shall ask thee. And the woman said, Let my lord the king now speak.

19 And the king said, Is not the hand of Joab with thee in all this? And the woman answered and said, As thy soul liveth, my lord the king, none can turn to the right hand or to the left from ought that my lord the king hath spoken: for thy servant Joab, he bade me, and he put all these words in the mouth of thine handmaid:

20 To fetch about this form of speech hath thy servant Joab done this thing: and my lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the earth.

21 And the king said unto Joab, Behold now, I have done this thing: go therefore, bring the young man Absalom again.

22 And Joab fell to the ground on his face, and bowed himself, and thanked the king: and Joab said, To day thy servant knoweth that I have found grace in thy sight, my lord, O king, in that the king hath fulfilled the request of his servant.

23 So Joab arose and went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem.

24 And the king said, Let him turn to his own house, and let him not see my face. So Absalom returned to his own house, and saw not the king's face.

25 But in all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Absalom for his beauty: from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him.

26 And when he polled his head, (for it was at every year's end that he polled it: because the hair was heavy on him, therefore he polled it:) he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels after the king's weight.

27 And unto Absalom there were born three sons, and one daughter, whose name was Tamar: she was a woman of a fair countenance.

28 So Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem, and saw not the king's face.

29 Therefore Absalom sent for Joab, to have sent him to the king; but he would not come to him: and when he sent again the second time, he would not come.

30 Therefore he said unto his servants, See, Joab's field is near mine, and he hath barley there; go and set it on fire. And Absalom's servants set the field on fire.

31 Then Joab arose, and came to Absalom unto his house, and said unto him, Wherefore have thy servants set my field on fire?

32 And Absalom answered Joab, Behold, I sent unto thee, saying, Come hither, that I may send thee to the king, to say, Wherefore am I come from Geshur? it had been good for me to have been there still: now therefore let me see the king's face; and if there be any iniquity in me, let him kill me.

33 So Joab came to the king, and told him: and when he had called for Absalom, he came to the king, and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king: and the king kissed Absalom.

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