2 Samuel 14

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

And Joab the son of Saruia knew that the heart of the king was toward Abessalom.

2 and Joab sends to Tekoah, and takes a wise woman from there, and says to her, “Please feign yourself a mourner, and now put on garments of mourning, and do not anoint yourself with oil, and you have been as a woman mourning for the dead [for] these many days,

And Joab sent to Thecoe, and took thence a cunning woman, and said to her, Mourn, I pray you, and put on mourning apparel, and anoint you not with oil, and you shall be as a woman mourning for one that is dead thus for many days.

3 and you have gone to the king, and spoken to him, according to this word”; and Joab puts the words into her mouth.

And you shall go to the king, and speak to him according to this word. And Joab put the words in her mouth.

4 And the woman of Tekoah speaks to the king, and falls on her face to the earth, and pays respect, and says, “Save, O king.”

So the woman of Thecoe went in to the king and fell upon her face to the earth, and did him obeisance, and said, Help, O king, help.

5 And the king says to her, “What do you [want]?” And she says, “I [am] truly a widow woman, and my husband dies,

And the king said to her, What is the matter with you? And she said, I am indeed a widow woman, and my husband is dead.

6 and your maidservant has two sons; and both of them strive in a field, and there is no deliverer between them, and one strikes the other, and puts him to death;

And moreover your handmaid had two sons, and they fought together in the field, and there was no one to part them; and the one struck the other his brother, and killed him.

7 and behold, the whole family has risen against your maidservant, and say, Give up him who strikes his brother, and we put him to death for the life of his brother whom he has slain, and we also destroy the heir; and they have quenched my coal which is left—so as not to set a name and remnant on the face of the ground for my husband.”

And behold the whole family rose up against your handmaid, and they said, Give up the one that struck his brother, and we will put him to death for the life of his brother, whom he killed, and we will take away even your heir: so they will quench my coal that is left, so as not to leave my husband remnant or name on the face of the earth.

8 And the king says to the woman, “Go to your house, and I give charge concerning you.”

And the king said to the woman, Go in peace to your house, and I will give commandment concerning you.

9 And the woman of Tekoah says to 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.”

And the woman of Thecoe said to the king, On me, my lord, O king, and on my father's house [be] the iniquity, and the king and his throne [be] guiltless.

10 And the king says, “He who speaks to you, and you have brought him to me, then he does not add to come against you anymore.”

And the king said, Who was it that spoke to you? you shall even bring him to me, and [one] shall not touch him any more.

11 And she says, “Please let the king remember by your God YHWH, that the redeemer of blood does not add to destroy, and they do not destroy my son”; and he says, “YHWH lives; if there falls [even one] hair of your son to the earth.”

And she said, Let now the king remember concerning his Lord God in that the avenger of blood is multiplied to destroy, and let them not take away my son. And he said, [As] the lord lives, not a hair of your son shall fall to the ground.

12 And the woman says, “Please let your maidservant speak a word to my lord the king”; and he says, “Speak.”

And the woman said, Let now your servant speak a word to my lord the king. And he said, Say on.

13 And the woman says, “And why have you thought thus concerning the people of God? Indeed, the king is speaking this thing as a guilty one, in that the king has not brought back his outcast;

And the woman said, Why have you devised this thing against the people of God? or [is] this word out of the king's mouth as a transgression, so that the king should not bring back his banished?

14 for we surely die, and [are] as water which is running down to the earth, which is not gathered, and God does not accept a person, and has devised plans in that the outcast is not outcast by Him.

For we shall surely die, and be as water poured upon the earth, which shall not be gathered up, and God shall take the life, even as he devises to thrust forth from him his outcast.

15 And now that I have come to speak this word to my lord the king, [it is] because the people made me afraid, and your maidservant says, Please let me speak to the king; it may be the king does the word of his handmaid,

And now whereas I came to speak this word to my lord the king, [the reason is] that the people will see me, and your handmaid will say, Let one now speak to my lord the king, if perhaps the king will perform the request of his handmaid;

16 for the king listens 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,

for the king will hear. Let him rescue his handmaid out of the hand of the man that seeks to cast out me and my son from the inheritance of God.

17 and your maidservant says, Please let 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 your God YHWH is with you.”

And the woman said, If now the word of my lord the king be gracious, —[well]: for as an angel of God, so [is] my lord the king, to hear good and evil: and the Lord your God shall be with you.

18 And the king answers and says to the woman, “Please do not hide from me the thing that I am asking you”; and the woman says, “Please let my lord the king speak.”

And the king answered, and said to the woman, Hide not from me, I pray you, the matter which I ask you. And the woman said, Let my lord the king by all means speak.

19 And the king says, “Is the hand of Joab with you in all this?” And the woman answers and says, “Your soul lives, my lord, O king, none [turn] to the right or to the left from all that my lord the king has spoken; for your servant Joab commanded me, and he put all these words in the mouth of your maidservant.

And the king said, [Is] not the hand of Joab in all this matter with you? and the woman said to the king, [As] your soul lives, my lord, O king, there is no turning to the right hand or to the left from all that my lord the king has spoken; for your servant Joab himself charged me, and he put all these words in the mouth of your handmaid.

20 Your servant Joab has done this thing in order to bring around the appearance of the thing, and my lord [is] wise, according to the wisdom of a messenger of God, to know all that [is] in the land.”

In order that this form of speech might come about [it was] that your servant Joab has framed this matter: and my lord is wise as [is] the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the earth.

21 And the king says to Joab, “Now behold, you have done this thing; and go, bring back the young man Absalom.”

And the king said to Joab, Behold now, I have done to you according to this your word: go, bring back the young man Abessalom.

22 And Joab falls on his face to the earth, and pays respect, and blesses the king, and Joab says, “Today your servant has known that I have found grace in your eyes, my lord, O king, in that the king has done the word of his servant.”

And Joab fell on his face to the ground, and did obeisance, and blessed the king: and Joab said, To-day your servant knows that I have found grace in your sight, my lord, O king, for my lord the king has performed the request of his servant.

23 And Joab rises and goes to Geshur, and brings in Absalom to Jerusalem,

And Joab arose, and went to Gedsur, and brought Abessalom to Jerusalem.

24 and the king says, “Let him turn around to his house, and he does not see my face.” And Absalom turns around to his house, and he has not seen the face of the king.

And the king said, Let him return to his house, and not see my face. And Abessalom returned to his house, and saw not the king's face.

25 And there was no man [so] beautiful in all Israel like Absalom, to praise greatly; from the sole of his foot even to his crown there was no blemish in him;

And there was not a man in Israel so very comely as Abessalom: from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him.

26 and in his shaving his head—and it has been at the end of year by year that he shaves [it], for it [is] heavy on him, and he has shaved it—he has even weighed out the hair of his head—two hundred shekels by the king’s weight.

And when he polled his head, (and it was at the beginning of every year that he polled it, because it grew, heavy upon him, ) even when he polled it, he weighed the hair of his head, two hundred shekels according to the royal shekel.

27 And there are born to Absalom three sons and one daughter, and her name [is] Tamar; she was a woman of beautiful appearance.

And there were born to Abessalom three sons and one daughter, and her name was Themar: she was a very beautiful woman, and she becomes the wife of Roboam son of Solomon, and she bears to him Abia.

28 And Absalom dwells in Jerusalem [for] two years of days, and he has not seen the face of the king;

And Abessalom remained in Jerusalem two full years, and he saw not the king's face.

29 and Absalom sends to Joab, to send him to the king, and he has not been willing to come to him; and he sends again a second time, and he has not been willing to come.

And Abessalom sent to Joab to bring him in to the king, and he would not come to him: and he sent to him the second time, and he would not come.

30 And he says to his servants, “See, the portion of Joab [is] by the side of mine, and he has barley there; go and burn it with fire”; and the servants of Absalom burn the portion with fire.

And Abessalom said to his servants, Behold, Joab's portion in the field [is] next to mine, and he has in it barley; go and set it on fire. And the servants of Abessalom set the field on fire: and the servants of Joab come to him with their clothes tore, and they said to him, The servants of Abessalom have set the field on fire.

31 And Joab rises and comes to Absalom in the house, and says to him, “Why have your servants burned the portion that I have with fire?”

And Joab arose, and came to Abessalom into the house, and said to him, Why have your servants set my field on fire?

32 And Absalom says to Joab, “Behold, I sent to you, saying, Come here, and I send you to the king to say, Why have I come in from Geshur? [It was] good for me while I [was] there—and now, let me see the king’s face, and if there is iniquity in me then you have put me to death.”

And Abessalom said to Joab, Behold, I sent to you, saying, Come hither, and I will send you to the king, saying, Why did I come out of Gedsur? it would have been better for me to have remained there: and now, behold, I have not seen the face of the king; but if there is iniquity in me, then put me to death.

33 And Joab comes to the king, and declares [it] to him, and he calls to Absalom, and he comes to the king, and bows himself to him, on his face, to the earth, before the king, and the king gives a kiss to Absalom.

And Joab went in to the king, and brought him word: and he called Abessalom, and he went in to the king, and did him obeisance, and fell upon his face to the ground, even in the presence of the king; and the king kissed Abessalom.