2 Samuel 13
1 David’s son Absalom had a beautiful sister named Tamar. Another of David’s sons, Amnon, was attracted to Tamar.
And it comes to pass afterward that Absalom son of David has a beautiful sister, and her name [is] Tamar, and Amnon son of David loves her.
2 He wanted [to have sex with] [EUP] his half-sister very much, with the result that he made himself sick [thinking about her all the time]. But it was not possible for Amnon to get her, because she was a virgin, [so they kept men away from her].
And Amnon has distress—even to become sick, because of his sister Tamar, for she [is] a virgin, and it is hard in the eyes of Amnon to do anything to her.
3 But Amnon had a friend named Jonadab, who was the son of David’s brother Shimeah. Jonadab was a very crafty/shrewd man.
And Amnon has a friend, and his name [is] Jonadab, son of Shimeah, David’s brother, and Jonadab [is] a very wise man,
4 [One day] Jonadab said to Amnon, “You are the king’s son, but every day I see that [RHQ] you seem very depressed/sad. What is your problem?” Amnon replied, “I (am in love/want to sleep) [EUP] with Tamar, my half-brother Absalom’s sister.”
and says to him, “Why [are] you thus lean, O king’s son, morning by morning? Do you not declare [it] to me?” And Amnon says to him, “Tamar—sister of my brother Absalom—I am loving.”
5 Jonadab said to him, “Lie down on your bed, and pretend that you are sick. When your father comes to see you, say to him, ‘Allow my half-sister Tamar to come and give me some food to eat. She can prepare the food while I am watching her. Then she can serve it to me herself.’”
And Jonadab says to him, “Lie down on your bed, and feign yourself sick, and your father has come in to see you, and you have said to him: Please let my sister Tamar come in and give me bread to eat; and she has made the food before my eyes so that I see [it], and have eaten from her hand.”
6 So Amnon lay down, and pretended that he was sick. When the king came to see him, Amnon said to him, “[I am sick; ] please allow my half-sister Tamar to come and make a couple scones/dumplings for me while I am watching, and then she can serve them to me.”
And Amnon lies down, and feigns himself sick, and the king comes in to see him, and Amnon says to the king, “Please let my sister Tamar come, and she makes two cakes before my eyes, and I eat from her hand.”
7 So David sent a message to Tamar in the palace, saying “Amnon [is sick and he wants you to] go to his house and prepare some food for him.”
And David sends to Tamar, to the house, saying, “Now go to the house of your brother Amnon and make food for him.”
8 So Tamar went to Amnon’s house, where he was lying in bed. She took some dough and kneaded it, and formed it into some scones/dumplings while he was watching her. Then she baked them.
And Tamar goes to the house of her brother Amnon, and he is lying down, and she takes the dough, and kneads, and makes cakes before his eyes, and cooks the cakes,
9 She took them out of the pan and put them [on a plate] in front of him, but he refused to eat them. Then he said to everyone else in the room, “All the rest of you, leave me now!” So all the others left his [room].
and takes the frying-pan, and pours out before him, and he refuses to eat, and Amnon says, “Have everyone go out from me”; and everyone goes out from him.
10 Then Amnon said to Tamar, “Bring the food into my room and serve it to me.” So Tamar took into his room the scones/dumplings that she had made.
And Amnon says to Tamar, “Bring the food into the inner chamber, and I eat from your hand”; and Tamar takes the cakes that she has made and brings [them] to her brother Amnon [in] the inner chamber,
11 But when she brought them close for him to eat them, he grabbed her and said to her, “Come to bed with me!”
and she brings [them] near to him to eat, and he lays hold on her, and says to her, “Come, lie with me, my sister.”
12 She replied, “No, do not force me to do such a disgraceful thing! We never do things like that in Israel! That would be awful/terrible!
And she says to him, “No, my brother, do not humble me, for it is not done so in Israel; do not do this folly.
13 As for me, if I did that, I would not be able to [RHQ] endure being disgraced by having done that. And as for you, everyone in Israel would condemn you for having done such a disgraceful deed. So I plead with you, talk to the king. I am sure that he will allow me to marry you.”
And I—to where do I cause my reproach to go? And you are as one of the fools in Israel; and now, please speak to the king; for he does not withhold me from you.”
14 But he would not listen to her. He was stronger than she was, so he forced her to have sex with him.
And he has not been willing to listen to her voice, and is stronger than she, and humbles her, and lies with her.
15 Then Amnon hated her very much. He hated her much more than he had desired her. He said to her, “Get up and get out of here!”
And Amnon hates her—a very great hatred—that greater [is] the hatred with which he has hated her than the love with which he loved her, and Amnon says to her, “Rise, go.”
16 But she said to him, “No! It would be very wrong for you to send me away. It would be worse than what you just did to me!” But he would not listen to her.
And she says to him, “Because of the circumstances this evil is greater than the other that you have done with me—to send me away”; and he has not been willing to listen to her,
17 He summoned his personal servant and said to him, “Take this woman outside, away from me, and lock the door [so that she cannot come in again]!”
and calls his young man, his servant, and says, “Now send this one away from me outside, and bolt the door after her.”
18 So the servant put her outside and locked the door. Tamar was wearing a long robe with long sleeves, which was the clothing that was usually worn by the unmarried daughters of the king at that time.
And a long coat [is] on her, for such upper robes daughters of the king who [are] virgins put on—and his servant takes her outside, and has bolted the door after her.
19 But Tamar tore the long robe that she was wearing, and put ashes on her head [to show that she was very sad]. Then she put her hands on her head [to show that she was grieving], and she went away, crying.
And Tamar takes ashes for her head, and has torn the long coat that [is] on her, and puts her hand on her head, and goes, going on and crying;
20 Her brother Absalom [saw her and] said to her, “Has your half-brother Amnon [DOU] forced you to have sex with him [EUP]? Please, my sister, do not tell anyone, and do not become depressed/sad.” So Tamar went to live in Absalom’s house, and she was very sad and lonely.
and her brother Absalom says to her, “Has your brother Amnon been with you? And now, my sister, keep silent, he [is] your brother; do not set your heart to this thing”; and Tamar dwells—but desolate—in the house of her brother Absalom.
21 When King David heard about all that, he became very angry.
And King David has heard all these things, and it is very displeasing to him;
22 And Absalom hated Amnon, because he had raped his sister, so he would not speak to Amnon about anything.
and Absalom has not spoken with Amnon either evil or good, for Absalom is hating Amnon, because that he humbled his sister Tamar.
23 Two years later, Absalom’s servants were shearing sheep at Baal-Hazor, which is near [a town named] Ephraim. [When they finished shearing the sheep, they celebrated], and Absalom invited all the king’s sons [to come and celebrate].
And it comes to pass, after two years of days, that Absalom has shearers in Ba‘al-Hazor, which [is] near Ephraim, and Absalom calls for all the sons of the king.
24 Absalom went to the king and said to him, “Sir, my servants have been shearing my sheep. Please come with your officials [to celebrate] with us!”
And Absalom comes to the king and says, “Now behold, your servant has shearers, please let the king go—and his servants—with your servant.”
25 But the king replied, “No, my son, it would not be good for all of us to go, because it would cause you to do a lot of work and spend a lot of money for food.” Absalom continued urging him, but the king would not go. Instead, he said that he hoped/desired that God would bless them [while they celebrated].
And the king says to Absalom, “No, my son, please let us not all go, and we are not too heavy on you”; and he presses on him, and he has not been willing to go, and he blesses him.
26 Then Absalom said, “If you will not go, please allow my half-brother Amnon to go with us.” But the king replied, “Why [do you want] him to go with you?”
And Absalom says, “If not, please let my brother Amnon go with us”; and the king says to him, “Why does he go with you?”
27 But Absalom continued to insist, so finally the king permitted Amnon and all David’s other sons to go with Absalom.
And Absalom urges for him, and he sends Amnon and all the sons of the king with him.
28 [So they all went. And at the celebration], Absalom commanded his servants, “Notice when Amnon has become a bit drunk from the wine. Then when I signal to you, kill him. Do not be afraid; you will be doing this [only] because I told you [RHQ] to do it. So be courageous and do it!”
And Absalom commands his young men, saying, “Now see, when the heart of Amnon [is] glad with wine, and I have said to you, Strike Amnon, that you have put him to death; do not fear; is it not because I have commanded you? Be strong, indeed, become sons of valor.”
29 So Absalom’s servants did what Absalom told them to do. [They killed Amnon]. All the rest of David’s sons [saw what happened and] fled, riding on their mules.
And the young men of Absalom do to Amnon as Absalom commanded, and all the sons of the king rise, and they ride, each on his mule, and flee.
30 While they were on their way home, someone [went quickly and] reported to David, “Absalom has killed all of your other sons; none of them is still alive!”
And it comes to pass—they [are] in the way—and the report has come to David, saying, “Absalom has struck all the sons of the king, and there is not left [even] one of them”;
31 The king stood up, tore his clothes [because he was extremely sad], and then he threw himself down on the ground. All the servants who were there also tore their clothes.
and the king rises, and tears his garments, and lies on the earth, and all his servants are standing by [with] torn garments.
32 But Jonadab, the son of David’s brother Shimeah, said, “Your Majesty, [I am sure that] they have not killed all your sons. [I am sure that] only Amnon is dead, because Absalom has determined to do this ever since the day that Amnon raped [EUP] his half-sister Tamar.
And Jonadab son of Shimeah, David’s brother, answers and says, “Do not let my lord say, The whole of the young men, the sons of the king, they have put to death; for Amnon alone [is] dead, for it has been appointed by the command of Absalom from the day of his humbling his sister Tamar;
33 So, your majesty, do not believe the report that all your sons are dead. [I am sure that] only Amnon is dead.”
and now, do not let my lord the king lay the word to his heart, saying, All the sons of the king have died, for Amnon alone [is] dead.”
34 In the meantime, Absalom ran away. Just then, the soldier/sentry [who was standing on the city wall] saw a large crowd of people coming down the hill along the road from Horonaim. [He ran and told the king what he had seen].
And Absalom flees, and the young man who is watching lifts up his eyes and looks, and behold, many people are coming by the way behind him, on the side of the hill.
35 Jonadab said to the king, “Aha! What I told you is true. Your other sons [are alive and] have come!”
And Jonadab says to the king, “Behold, the sons of the king have come; as the word of your servant, so it has been.”
36 And as soon as he said that, David’s sons came in. They all started crying, and David and all his officials also cried very much.
And it comes to pass at his finishing to speak, that behold, the sons of the king have come, and they lift up their voice, and weep, and also the king and all his servants have wept—a very great weeping.
37 But Absalom had fled. He went to stay with the king of [the] Geshur [region], who was Talmai the son of Ammihud. Absalom stayed there for three years. David mourned for his son Amnon for a long time,
And Absalom has fled, and goes to Talmai, son of Ammihud, king of Geshur, and [David] mourns for his son all the days.
And Absalom has fled, and goes to Geshur, and is there [for] three years;
39 but after that, he desired very much to see Absalom, because he was no longer grieving about Amnon being dead.
and King David determines to go out to Absalom, for he has been comforted for Amnon, for [he is] dead.
