2 Samuel 18:13-15

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. 2 Samuel 18:13 tc The translation follows the Qere, many medieval Hebrew mss, and a number of the ancient versions in reading בְנַפְשִׁי (v^enafshi, “against my life”) rather than the MT בְנַפְשׁוֹ (v^enafsho, “against his life”).
2. 2 Samuel 18:13 tn Heb “stood aloof.”
3. 2 Samuel 18:14 tn There is a play on the word “heart” here that is difficult to reproduce in English. Literally the Hebrew text says “he took three spears in his hand and thrust them into the heart of Absalom while he was still alive in the heart of the oak tree.” This figure of speech involves the use of the same word in different senses and is known as antanaclasis. It is illustrated in the familiar saying from the time of the American Revolution: “If we don’t hang together, we will all hang separately.” The present translation understands “heart” to be used somewhat figuratively for “chest” (cf. TEV, CEV), which explains why Joab’s armor-bearers could still “kill” Absalom after he had been stabbed with three spears through the “heart.” Since trees do not have “chests” either, the translation uses “middle.”