2 Samuel 14

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

And Joab son of Zeruial knoweth that the heart of the king [is] on Absalom,

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.

and Joab sendeth to Tekoah, and taketh thence a wise woman, and saith unto her, 'Feign thyself a mourner, I pray thee, and put on, I pray thee, garments of mourning, and anoint not thyself with oil, and thou hast been as a woman these many days 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 hast gone unto the king, and spoken unto him, according to this word;' and Joab putteth 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 of Tekoah speaketh unto the king, and falleth on her face to the earth, and doth obeisance, and saith, 'Save, 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 saith to her, 'What — to thee?' and she saith, 'Truly a widow woman [am] I, and my husband dieth,

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 maid-servant hath two sons; and they strive both of them in a field, and there is no deliverer between them, and the one smiteth the other, and putteth him to death;

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 lo, the whole family hath risen against thy maid-servant, and say, Give up him who smiteth his brother, and we put him to death for the life of his brother whom he hath slain, and we destroy also the heir; and they have quenched my coal which is left — so as not to set to my husband a name and remnant on the face of the ground.'

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

And the king saith unto the woman, 'Go to thine house, and I give 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.”

And the woman of Tekoah saith unto the king, 'On me, my lord, O king, [is] the iniquity, and on the house of my father; and the king and his throne [are] innocent.'

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

And the king saith, 'He who speaketh [aught] unto thee, and thou hast brought him unto me, then he doth not add any more to come against thee.'

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.”

And she saith, 'Let, I pray thee, the king remember by Jehovah thy God, that the redeemer of blood add not to destroy, and they destroy not my son;' and he saith, 'Jehovah liveth; if there doth fall of the 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.

And the woman saith, 'Let, I pray thee, thy maid-servant speak unto my lord the king a word;' and he saith, 'Speak.'

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 saith, 'And why hast thou thought thus concerning the people of God? yea, the king is speaking this thing as a guilty one, in that the king hath not brought back his outcast;

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 do surely die, and [are] as water which is running down to the earth, which is not gathered, and God doth not accept a person, and hath devised devices in that the outcast is not outcast by 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 have come to speak unto the king my lord this word, [it is] because the people made me afraid, and thy maid-servant saith, Let me speak, I pray thee, unto the king; it may be the king doth do the word of his handmaid,

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 doth hearken to deliver his handmaid out of the paw of the man [seeking] to destroy 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 maid-servant saith, Let, I pray thee, the word of my lord the king be for ease; for as a messenger of God so [is] my lord the king, to understand the good and the evil; and Jehovah thy God is 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.

And the king answereth and saith unto the woman, 'Do not, I pray thee, hide from me the thing that I am asking thee;' and the woman saith, 'Let, I pray thee, my lord the king 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 saith, 'Is the hand of Joab with thee in all this?' And the woman answereth and saith, 'Thy soul liveth, my lord, O king, none [doth turn] to the right or to the left from all that my lord the king hath spoken; for thy servant Joab he commanded me, and he put in the mouth of thy maid-servant 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 bring round the appearance of the thing hath thy servant Joab done this thing, and my lord [is] wise, according to the wisdom of a messenger of God, to know all that [is] in the land.'

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

And the king saith unto Joab, 'Lo, I pray thee, thou hast done this thing; and go, bring back the young man Absalom.'

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 falleth on his face to the earth, and doth obeisance, and blesseth the king, and Joab saith, 'To-day hath thy servant known that I have found grace in thine eyes, my lord, O king, in that the king hath done the word of his servant.'

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

And Joab riseth and goeth to Geshur, and bringeth in Absalom 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 saith, 'Let him turn round unto his house, and my face he doth not see.' And Absalom turneth round unto his house, and the face of the king he hath not seen.

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 Absalom there was no man [so] fair in all Israel, to praise greatly; from the sole of his foot even unto his crown there was no blemish in 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 in his polling his head — and it hath been at the end of year by year that he polleth [it], for it [is] heavy on him, and he hath polled it — he hath even weighed out the hair of his head — 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 are born to Absalom three sons, and one daughter, and her name [is] Tamar; she was a woman of a fair appearance.

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

And Absalom dwelleth in Jerusalem two years of days, and the face of the king he hath not seen;

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.

and Absalom sendeth unto Joab, to send him unto the king, and he hath not been willing to come unto him; and he sendeth again a second time, and he hath not been willing to 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.

And he saith unto his servants, 'See, the portion of Joab [is] by the side of mine, and he hath barley there; go, and burn it with fire;' and the servants of Absalom burn the portion with fire.

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

And Joab riseth and cometh unto Absalom in the house, and saith unto him, 'Why have thy servants burned the portion that I have with 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 Absalom saith unto Joab, 'Lo, I sent unto thee, saying, Come hither, and I send thee unto the king to say, Why have I come in from Geshur? — good for me while I [am] there — and now, let me see the king's face, and if there is in me iniquity then thou hast 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.

And Joab cometh unto the king, and declareth [it] to him, and he calleth unto Absalom, and he cometh unto the king, and boweth himself to him, on his face, to the earth, before the king, and the king giveth a kiss to Absalom.