Chronological

Chapter 13

The Crime of Amnon. ¹ Sometime later the following events occurred. David’s son Absalom had a beautiful sister whose name was Tamar, and David’s son Amnon fell madly in love with her. ² Amnon was obsessed with her to the point that he became ill because of his love for his sister Tamar, since she was a virgin and Amnon felt it was impossible for him even to approach her.

³ However, Amnon had a friend whose name was Jonadab. He was the son of David’s brother Shimeah, and he was an extremely devious man. ⁴ He asked Amnon: “O son of the king, why do you appear to be so depressed morning after morning? Will you not tell me?” Amnon replied: “I am in love with Tamar, the sister of my brother Absalom.”

⁵ Then Jonadab said to him: “Lie down on your bed and pretend to be ill. When your father comes to visit you, say to him: ‘Please let my sister come and give me something to eat. Ask her to prepare the food in my presence for me to see and then eat it from her hand.’ ” ⁶ And so Amnon lay down and pretended to be ill. When the king came to visit him, Amnon said: “Please let my sister Tamar come and make some cakes before my eyes so that I can receive some nourishment from her hand.”

⁷ Then David sent a message to Tamar in the palace, saying: “Go to your brother Amnon’s house and prepare some food for him.” ⁸ Therefore, Tamar went to the house of her brother Amnon and found him lying in bed. She took dough and kneaded it, made some cakes while he watched, and baked the cakes.

⁹ Then Tamar took the pan and set out the cakes before him, but he refused to eat and ordered everyone else to leave the room. ¹⁰ Thereupon, Amnon said to Tamar: “Bring the food into the bedroom so that I may eat from your hand.” Therefore, Tamar took the cakes she had made and brought them into the bedroom to Amnon her brother.

¹¹ However, when she offered them to him to eat, he took hold of her and said: “Come to bed with me, my sister.” ¹² She answered him: “No, my brother! Do not force me! Such repulsive acts are not done in Israel. Do not commit such a vile act! ¹³ And as for me, where could I go to hide my shame? Moreover, you would be disgraced in Israel. Therefore, I beg you to speak to the king. He will not refuse you permission to marry me.”

¹⁴ Despite her entreaty, he would not listen to her. Rather, he overpowered her and raped her. ¹⁵ Then Amnon was seized with intense hatred for her, a hatred that was far greater than the love he had had for her. “Get up and leave,” he said. ¹⁶ But she answered: “No, my brother. If you send me away, that would be an even greater wrong^[a] than the other wrong you perpetrated against me.” However, he refused to listen to her.

¹⁷ Then Amnon summoned his personal attendant and said: “Take this woman out of my presence and bolt the door after her!” ¹⁸ She was wearing a long gown with sleeves, for this is how the virgin daughters of the king were clothed in those days. ¹⁹ Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the long gown that she was wearing. Then, putting her hand on her head, she went away, weeping loudly.

²⁰ Her brother Absalom said to her: “Has your brother Amnon been with you? Be quiet now, my sister. He is your brother. Do not take this to heart.” Then Tamar, forlorn and inconsolable, went to live in the house of her brother Absalom.

^21 [b]When King David learned about all this, he became extremely angry. However, he did not punish his son Amnon because he was his firstborn and he loved him. ²² But Absalom refused to say a single word to Amnon, either good or bad, since he hated Amnon because he had raped his sister Tamar.

²³ Absalom’s Plot. Two years later, when Absalom had sheep-shearers at Baal-hazor, near Ephraim, he invited all of the king’s sons. ²⁴ Absalom went to the king and said: “Your servant has summoned the sheep-shearers to work. Will your majesty and his retinue please come?” ²⁵ The king replied: “No, my son. If we all were to go, we would prove to be a burden to you.” Absalom continued to urge him, but the king still refused to go, although he gave him his blessing.

²⁶ Absalom then said: “If you will not come, then please allow my brother Amnon to go with us.” The king replied: “Why should he go with you?” ²⁷ However, Absalom continued to urge him, until finally the king allowed Amnon and all the other princes to go.

²⁸ Absalom prepared a feast fit for a king, and he instructed his servants: “Watch carefully! When Amnon is merry with wine and I say to you: ‘Strike down Amnon,’ then slay him. Do not be afraid. You will simply be obeying my command. Be courageous and act valiantly!”

²⁹ The Death of Amnon. When the servants of Absalom did to Amnon as Absalom had commanded, then all of the king’s sons leapt to their feet, mounted their mules, and fled. ³⁰ While they were still on the road, a report came to David that Absalom had slain all of the king’s sons and that not a single one of them had survived. ³¹ The king stood up, tore his garments, and threw himself on the ground. All of his servants who were standing around him also tore their garments.

³² However, Jonadab, the son of David’s brother Shimeah, said: “Let not my lord think that all the young princes, the sons of the king, have been killed. Amnon alone is dead, for Absalom has been determined to exact vengeance ever since the day that Amnon raped his sister Tamar. ³³ Therefore, my lord the king should not believe the report that all of the king’s sons are dead. Only Amnon is dead.”

³⁴ Meanwhile Absalom had fled. When the man on sentry duty looked up, he saw a large group of people coming down the hill from the direction of Horonaim. Immediately he hastened to the king and reported: “I have seen men coming down the hill from Horonaim.”

³⁵ Jonadab said to the king: “Behold, the king’s sons have returned, just as I said they would.” ³⁶ No sooner had he finished speaking than the king’s sons arrived, weeping aloud. The king and all his servants also wept bitterly.

³⁷ Absalom, who had taken flight, went to Talmai, the son of Ammihud, the king of Geshur, ³⁸ and he remained in Geshur for three years.

³⁹ Efforts for Absalom’s Return. During all that time, David mourned over his son, but once he became reconciled to the death of Amnon, he yearned to be reconciled with Absalom.

Chapter 14

¹ Joab, the son of Zeruiah, ascertained that the king, in his heart, longed for Absalom, ² so he sent to Tekoa and had a wise woman brought from there. He said to her: “Pretend to be a mourner. Dress yourself in mourning garments and do not anoint yourself with oil. Simply pretend to be a woman who has been grieving for the dead for many days. ³ Then go to the king and speak to him as I instruct you.” After that, Joab told her what she was to say.

⁴ When the woman of Tekoa approached the king, she fell prostrate to the ground in homage and said: “Please help me, O king.” ⁵ The king asked: “What can I do for you?” She replied: “As you can see I am a widow. My husband is dead. ⁶ Your servant had two sons, and they fought with one another in the field. There was no one around to separate them, and one of them struck the other and killed him.

⁷ “Now the entire family has risen against your servant and demanded: ‘Give up the man who killed his brother, so that we can put him to death to atone for the life of the brother whom he killed. Thus we shall get rid of the heir as well.’ Should they do this, they will extinguish my one remaining ember and leave my husband neither name nor posterity on the face of the earth.” ⁸ The king said to the woman: “Return home. I myself shall issue orders on your behalf.”

⁹ Then the woman of Tekoa said to the king: “My lord, let the guilt be on me and on my father’s house. The king and his throne will be without guilt.” ¹⁰ The king replied: “If anyone says something further that is threatening to you, have him brought to me, and he will never trouble you again.” ^11 [c]Then she said: “May the king keep the Lord, your God, in mind so that the avenger of blood will be prevented from killing any further and my son will not be destroyed.” The king swore: “As surely as the Lord lives, not one hair of your son’s head will fall to the ground.”

¹² The woman continued further; “Please permit your servant to speak a further word to my lord the king.” He replied: “Speak.” ¹³ She said: “In pronouncing this verdict, has not the king condemned himself by devising something like this against the people of God, since you have refused to bring back your banished son? ¹⁴ We all must die. We are like water that is spilled on the ground and cannot be gathered up again. However, God does not take away a life. Rather, he devises ways that will enable us to avoid being estranged forever from him.

¹⁵ “I have dared to speak in this way to your majesty because the people have intimidated me. I thought: ‘Perhaps if I can speak to the king, he will grant the request of his servant. ¹⁶ He will surely listen to me and deliver his servant from the hands of those who seek to cut off both me and my son from God’s inheritance.’ ¹⁷ And I further thought: ‘Perhaps the word of my lord the king will restore my peace of mind, for my lord the king is like an angel of God in discerning between good and evil.’ May the Lord, your God, be with you.”

¹⁸ Then in reply the king said to the woman: “Do not be evasive in replying to the question I will now ask you.” The woman answered: “Let my lord the king present his question.” ¹⁹ Then the king asked: “Is not the hand of Joab behind you in all this?” The woman asserted: “As you live, my lord the king, no one can avoid being completely truthful in responding to what you ask. Yes, it was your servant Joab who instructed me and taught your servant all the things she was to say. ²⁰ Your servant Joab did this to present the situation in a different light. But my lord has the wisdom of an angel of God and is fully aware of everything that happens in the land.”

²¹ Absalom’s Return. Then the king said to Joab: “Very well. I grant this request. Go forth and bring back the young man Absalom.” ²² Then Joab fell prostrate to the ground in homage and blessed the king, saying: “My lord the king, today your servant knows that I have found favor with you, since the king has granted his servant’s request.”

²³ Then Joab set out immediately for Geshur and brought back Absalom to Jerusalem. ²⁴ But the king said: “Let him go to his own house. He shall not come into my presence.” Therefore, Absalom went to his own house and was not received by the king.

²⁵ In all Israel there was no one who was so highly praised for his beauty as Absalom, who did not have a single blemish from the sole of his foot to the top of his head. ²⁶ When he would cut the hair of his head—something he used to do at the close of every year because his hair became too heavy for him—the hair weighed two hundred shekels according to the royal standard. ²⁷ To Absalom three sons were born, and also one daughter whose name was Tamar and who was truly beautiful.^[d]

²⁸ Absalom Is Pardoned. Absalom lived in Jerusalem for two years without coming into the king’s presence. ²⁹ Then Absalom summoned Joab, wishing to send him with a message to the king, but Joab refused to come. He then sent for him a second time, but Joab still refused to come. ³⁰ Then Absalom instructed his servants: “Joab’s field adjoins mine, and he has barley there. Go and set it on fire.” Therefore, Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.

³¹ Then Joab went to Absalom’s house and asked him: “Why have your servants set my field on fire?” ³² Absalom replied: “I sent word to you to come here so that I could send you to the king to give him this message from me: ‘Why did you summon me to come back from Geshur. I believe that I would be better off if I were still there. Let me now appear before the king. If I am guilty of anything, let him kill me.’ ”

³³ Joab then went before the king and reported this to him. Thereupon the king summoned Absalom, who came and prostrated himself before him, with his face to the ground. Then the king welcomed Absalom with a kiss.

Chapter 15

Absalom’s Plot. ¹ After this, Absalom provided himself with a chariot and horses and with fifty men to run on ahead of him. ² Absalom was accustomed to arise early and stand by the side of the road that led to the city gate. If someone had a lawsuit to bring before the king for judgment, Absalom would call out and ask him: “Which town do you come from?” and that person would answer: “Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel.”

³ Then Absalom would reply: “Your petition may be clearly valid and just, but there is no one who is authorized by the king to hear you.” ⁴ He would further add: “If only I were appointed as judge in the land, then everyone who has a lawsuit or a claim to be arbitrated could come to me, and I would ensure that he would have his case judged fairly.”

⁵ Moreover, whenever a man came before him and prostrated himself, Absalom would stretch out his hand, embrace him, and kiss him. ⁶ By behaving in such a manner to every Israelite who approached the king to seek justice, Absalom captured the affectionate loyalty of the people.

Conspiracy in Hebron. ⁷ After a period of four years had elapsed, Absalom said to the king: “Please allow me to go to Hebron so that I may fulfill the vow that I have made to the Lord. ⁸ For while I lived at Geshur in Aram, I made this vow: ‘If the Lord ever brings me back to Jerusalem, then I shall worship the Lord in Hebron.’ ” ⁹ The king replied: “Depart in peace.” Therefore, Absalom arose and went to Hebron.

¹⁰ Then Absalom sent messengers throughout all the tribes of Israel with this message: “As soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, then shout: ‘Absalom has become king in Hebron.’ ”

¹¹ Two hundred men had accompanied Absalom from Jerusalem. They had been invited as guests and had gone with him in complete innocence, totally unaware of what was going on. ¹² Absalom also sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, who was David’s counselor, and asked him to come from his town of Giloh to join him in offering the sacrifices. Thus the conspiracy grew in strength, and Absalom’s supporters continued to increase in numbers.

¹³ David Flees from Jerusalem. A messenger came to David with this report: “The men of Israel have transferred their allegiance to Absalom.” ¹⁴ Upon hearing this, David said to all of his officials who were with him in Jerusalem: “Get ready to depart! If we do not flee, then none of us will be able to escape from Absalom. Depart as quickly as you can, or he will soon overtake us and inflict disaster upon us and put the city to the sword.”^[e]

¹⁵ The king’s officials then replied: “Whatever our lord the king decides, we are prepared to follow your commands.” ¹⁶ Then the king set forth, followed by his entire household, aside from ten concubines whom he left behind to take care of the palace.

¹⁷ As the king moved on, followed by all the people, he halted at the last house, with the officials at his side. ¹⁸ As he watched, all the Cherethites and all the Pelethites and all of the six hundred Gittites who had followed him from Gath passed on before him.

¹⁹ David and Ittai. Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite: “Why should you also come with us? Go back and stay with King Absalom. For you are a foreigner, and in addition you are also an exile from your own country. ²⁰ You arrived only yesterday. How can I ask you to wander about with us today when truly I do not know where I am going? Go back home, therefore, and take your countrymen with you, and may the Lord grant you his kindness and his faithful love.”

²¹ However, Ittai replied to the king: “As the Lord lives, and as my lord the king lives, wherever my lord the king may be, whether it means life or death, there your servant will also be.”

²² David then said to Ittai: “Go ahead, then, and march on!” Therefore, Ittai the Gittite marched on with all his men and the families that were with him. ²³ Everyone in the countryside wept aloud as the king and all the people crossed the Wadi Kidron and moved on toward the desert wilderness.^[f]

²⁴ David and the Priests. Zadok was also there, as well as all the Levites with him, as they carried the Ark of the Covenant of God. They set down the Ark of God beside Abiathar until all those who were with them had marched out of the city.

²⁵ Then the king said to Zadok: “Take the Ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the Lord’s eyes, he will bring me back and permit me to see both the Ark and the place where it dwells. ²⁶ But if he says: ‘I am not pleased with you,’ then here I am. Let him do with me as he sees fit.”

²⁷ The king also said to Zadok the priest: “Aren’t you a seer? You and Abiathar can return safely into the city with your sons, your own son Ahimaaz, and Abiathar’s son Jonathan. ²⁸ I shall wait at the fords of the wilderness until I receive word from you.” ²⁹ Therefore, Zadok and Abiathar took the Ark of God back to Jerusalem and remained there.

³⁰ David then ascended to the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went, with his head covered and walking barefoot. All the people with him also covered their heads and wept as they went. ³¹ When it was revealed to David that Ahithophel was among the conspirators with Absalom, he said: “O Lord, I beg you to turn the counsel of Ahithophel into folly.”

³² David and Hushai. When David arrived at the summit where God was worshiped, Hushai the Archite came forth to meet him with his tunic torn and with dirt upon his head. ³³ David said to him: “If you come with me, you will only be a burden to me. ³⁴ However, if you return to the city and say to Absalom: ‘I will be your servant, O king. As I was formerly your father’s servant, now I will be your servant,’ you will make it possible for me to frustrate the advice of Ahithophel.

³⁵ “The priests Zadok and Abiathar will be with you there. Report to them everything that you hear in the royal palace. ³⁶ Their two sons are there with them: Zadok’s son Ahimaaz, and Abiathar’s son Jonathan. Through them you shall send word to me of everything you hear.”

³⁷ So David’s friend Hushai came into the city just as Absalom was entering Jerusalem.