2 Samuel 14

1 Now Joab son of Zeruiah perceived that the king’s heart longed for Absalom.

And when now Joab the son of Zeruyah perceived that the heart of the king was [turned] toward Abshalom:

2 So Joab sent to Tekoa to bring a wise woman from there. He told her, “Please pretend to be a mourner; put on clothes for mourning and do not anoint yourself with oil. Act like a woman who has mourned for the dead a long time.

Then sent Joab to Tekoa', and he fetched thence a wise woman, and said to her, Feign. I pray thee, as though thou mournest, and do put on mourning garments, and anoint thyself not with oil; but be as a woman that hath these many days been mourning for the dead.

3 Then go to the king and speak these words to him.” And Joab put the words in her mouth.

And thou must come to the king and speak with him after these words: and Joab put the words into her mouth.

4 When the woman from Tekoa went to the king, she fell facedown in homage and said, “Help me, O king!”

And the woman from Tekoa' spoke to the king, and fell on her face to the ground, and bowed herself, and said, Help, O king!

5 “What troubles you?” the king asked her. “Indeed,” she said, “I am a widow, for my husband is dead.

And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she said, Truly, I am a widow-woman; since my husband is dead.

6 And your maidservant had two sons who were fighting in the field with no one to separate them, and one struck the other and killed him.

And thy hand-maid had two sons, and they two quarreled together in the field, and there was no one between them to help [either]; so the one smote the other, and slew him.

7 Now the whole clan has risen up against your maidservant and said, ‘Hand over the one who struck down his brother, that we may put him to death for the life of the brother whom he killed. Then we will cut off the heir as well!’ So they would extinguish my one remaining ember by not preserving my husband’s name or posterity on the earth.”

And, behold, the whole family is risen up against thy handmaid, and they said, Give up the slayer of his brother, that we may have him put to death, for the life of his brother whom he hath killed; and we will destroy also the heir: and thus they will quench my coal which is remaining, so as not to allow to my husband either name or remainder upon the face of the earth.

8 “Go home,” the king said to the woman, “and I will give orders on your behalf.”

And the king said unto the woman, Go to thy house, and I will issue [my] charge concerning thee.

9 But the woman of Tekoa said to the king, “My lord the king, may any blame be on me and on my father’s house, and may the king and his throne be guiltless.”

Then said the woman of Tekoa unto the king, On me, my Lord, O king, be the iniquity, and on my father's house: and may the king and his throne be guiltless.

10 “If anyone speaks to you,” said the king, “bring him to me, and he will not trouble you again!”

And the king said, Whosoever speaketh aught unto thee, bring him to me, and he shall not touch thee any more.

11 “Please,” she replied, “may the king invoke the LORD your God to prevent the avenger of blood from increasing the devastation, so that my son may not be destroyed!” “As surely as the LORD lives,” he vowed, “not a hair of your son’s head will fall to the ground.”

Then said she, Let the king, I pray thee, remember the Lord thy God, so as not to suffer the avenger of the blood to cause yet more destruction, and that they may not destroy my son. And he said, As the Lord liveth, there shall not fall one hair of thy son to the earth.

12 Then the woman said, “Please, may your servant speak a word to my lord the king?” “Speak,” he replied.

Then said the woman, Let thy hand-maid, I pray thee, speak unto my Lord the king one word. And he said, Speak on.

13 The woman asked, “Why have you devised a thing like this against the people of God? When the king says this, does he not convict himself, since he has not brought back his own banished son?

And the woman said, Wherefore then hast thou thought such a thing against the people of God? and since the king doth speak this thing, he is as a guilty man, if the king do not permit his banished one to return home.

14 For surely we will die and be like water poured out on the ground, which cannot be recovered. Yet God does not take away a life; but He devises ways that the banished one may not be cast out from Him.

For we must needs die, and are as water which is spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; and yet doth God not take away life; and he deviseth thoughts, so that the banished one may not remain banished from him.

15 Now therefore, I have come to present this matter 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 the request of his maidservant.

And now that I am come to speak unto my Lord the king of this thing, [happened] because the people made me afraid; and therefore thy hand-maid said, I will still speak unto the king; perhaps the king may act [in accordance with] the word of his hand-maid.

16 For the king will hear and deliver his maidservant from the hand of the man who would cut off both me and my son from God’s inheritance.’

For the king may hear [me], to deliver his hand-maid out of the hand of the man [that desireth] to exterminate me and my son together out of the inheritance of God.

17 And now your servant says, ‘May the word of my lord the king bring me rest, for my lord the king is able to discern good and evil, just like the angel of God. May the LORD your God be with you.’”

And thy hand-maid said, May the word of my Lord the king now become [the means of giving] repose; for as an angel of God, so is my Lord the king to comprehend the good and the bad: and may the Lord thy God be with thee.

18 Then the king said to the woman, “I am going to ask you something; do not conceal it from me!” “Let my lord the king speak,” she replied.

Then answered the king and said unto the woman, Conceal not, I pray thee, from me a word concerning what I am going to ask thee. And the woman said, Let my Lord the king but speak.

19 So the king asked, “Is the hand of Joab behind 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 that my lord the king says. Yes, your servant Joab is the one who gave me orders; he told your maidservant exactly what to say.

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, O king! none can turn to the right or to the left from all that my Lord the king hath spoken; for it was thy servant Joab who hath bidden me, and it was he that hath put in the mouth of thy hand-maid all these words.

20 Joab your servant has done this to bring about this change of affairs, but my lord has wisdom like the wisdom of the angel of God, to know everything that happens in the land.”

In order to change the appearance of the matter hath thy servant Joab done this thing: and my Lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all that is [done] on the earth.

21 Then the king said to Joab, “I hereby grant this request. Go, bring back the young man Absalom.”

And the king said unto Joab, Behold, now, thou hast done this thing: go then, bring back the young man Abshalom.

22 Joab fell facedown in homage and blessed the king. “Today,” said Joab, “your servant knows that he has found favor with you, my lord the king, because the king has granted his request.”

And Joab fell on his face to the ground, and bowed himself, and blessed the king: and Joab said, Today is thy servant convinced that I have found grace in thy eyes, my Lord, O king; since the king hath acted in accordance with the word of thy servant.

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

And Joab arose and went to Geshur, and brought Abshalom to Jerusalem.

24 But the king added, “He may return to his house, but he must not see my face.” So Absalom returned to his own house, but he did not see the king.

And the king said, Let him repair to his own house, but my face he shall not see. So Abshalom repaired to his own house, but the king's face he did not see.

25 Now there was not a man in all Israel as handsome and highly praised as Absalom. From the sole of his foot to the top of his head, he did not have a single flaw.

And like Abshalom there was no man as handsome in all Israel, so that he was greatly praised: from the sole of his foot up to the crown of his head there was no blemish on him.

26 And when he cut the hair of his head—he shaved it every year because his hair got so heavy—he would weigh it out to be two hundred shekels, according to the royal standard.

And when he shaved off [the hair of] his head [and it was at the end of every year that he shaved it off; because it was too heavy on him, so that he had to shave it off: ] he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels by the king's weight.

27 Three sons were born to Absalom, and a daughter named Tamar, who was a beautiful woman.

And there was born unto Abshalom three sons and one daughter, whose name was Thamar: this one was a woman of handsome appearance.

28 Now Absalom lived in Jerusalem two years without seeing the face of the king.

And Abshalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem, and the king's face he did not see.

29 Then he sent for Joab to send him to the king, but Joab refused to come to him. So Absalom sent a second time, but Joab still would not come.

Abshalom sent out therefore for Joab, to send him to the king; but he would not come to him: and he sent again the second time; but he would not come.

30 Then Absalom said to his servants, “Look, Joab’s field is next to mine, and he has barley there. Go and set it on fire!” And Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.

He thereupon said unto his servants, See, Joab's field is alongside of mine, and he hath barley there: go and set it on fire. And Abshalom's servants set the field on fire.

31 Then Joab came to Absalom’s house and demanded, “Why did your servants set my field on fire?”

Then did Joab arise, and he went to Abshalom unto his house, and said unto him, Wherefore have thy servants set the field belonging to me on fire?

32 “Look,” said Absalom, “I sent for you and said, ‘Come here. I want to send you to the king to ask: Why have I come back from Geshur? It would be better for me if I were still there.’ So now, let me see the king’s face, and if there is iniquity in me, let him kill me.”

And Abshalom said to Joab, Behold, I had sent unto thee, saying, Come hither, that I may send thee to the king, to say, Wherefore am I come from Geshur? it would be better for me were I yet there: and now let me see the king's face; and if there be any iniquity in me, let him put me to death.

33 So Joab went and told the king, and David summoned Absalom, who came to him and bowed facedown before him. Then the king kissed Absalom.

So Joab went to the king, and told it to him: and he called for Abshalom, who came to the king, and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king; and the king kissed Abshalom.