2 Samuel 14

1 Forsothe Joab, the sone of Saruye, vndirstood, that the herte of the kyng was turned to Absolon;

Now Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that the king’s heart was toward Absalom.

2 and he sente to Thecua, and took fro thennus a wise womman, and he seide to hir, Feyne thee to morene, and be thou clothid with clooth of duyl, and be thou anoyntid with oile, that thou be as a womman by morenynge `now in ful myche tyme a deed man.

And Joab sent to Tekoah, and fetched there a wise woman, and said to her, I pray you, feign yourself to be a mourner, and put on now mourning apparel, and anoint not yourself with oil, but be as a woman that had a long time mourned for the dead:

3 And thou schalt entre to the kyng, and thou schalt speke to hym siche wordis. Sotheli Joab puttide the wordis in hir mouth.

And come to the king, and speak on this manner to him. So Joab put the words in her mouth.

4 Therfor whanne the womman of Thecua hadde entrid to the kyng, sche felde bifor hym on the erthe, and worschipide, and seide, A! kyng, kepe me.

And when the woman of Tekoah spoke to the king, she fell on her face to the ground, and did obeisance, and said, Help, O king.

5 And the kyng seide to hir, What hast thou of cause? And sche answeride, Alas! Y am a womman widewe, for myn hosebonde is deed;

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

6 and tweyne sones weren of thin handmayde, whiche debatiden ayens hem silf in the feeld, and `noon was that myyte forbede hem, and oon smoot `the tother, and killide hym.

And your handmaid had two sons, and they two strove together in the field, and there was none to part them, but the one smote the other, and slew him.

7 And lo! al the kynrede risith ayens thin handmayde, and seith, Yyue thou hym that killide his brothir, that we sle hym for the lijf of his brother whom he killide, and that we do awei the eir; and thei seken to quenche my sparcle whych is lefte, that name dwelle not to myn hosebonde, and relikis, `ethir remenauntis, be not to him on erthe.

And, behold, the whole family is risen against your handmaid, and they said, Deliver him that smote his brother, that we may kill him, for the life of his brother whom he slew; and we will destroy the heir also: and so they shall quench my coal which is left, and shall not leave to my husband neither name nor remainder on the earth.

8 And the kyng seide to the womman, Go in to thin hows, and Y schal comaunde for thee.

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

9 And the womman of Thecua seide to the kyng, My lord the kyng, this wickidnesse be on me, and on the hows of my fadir; forsothe the kyng and his trone be innocent.

And the woman of Tekoah said to the king, My lord, O king, the iniquity be on me, and on my father’s house: and the king and his throne be guiltless.

10 And the kyng seide, Brynge thou hym to me, that ayenseith thee, and he schal no more adde that he touche thee.

And the king said, Whoever says anything to you, bring him to me, and he shall not touch you any more.

11 And sche seide, The kyng haue mynde on his Lord God, and the nexte men of blood to take veniaunce be not multiplied, and `thei schulen not sle my sone. And the kyng seide, The Lord lyueth, for noon of the heeris of thi sone schal falle on the erthe.

Then said she, I pray you, let the king remember the LORD your God, that you would not suffer the revengers of blood to destroy any more, lest they destroy my son. And he said, As the LORD lives, there shall not one hair of your son fall to the earth.

12 Therfor the womman seide, Thin handmayde speke a word to my lord the kyng. And the kyng seide, Speke thou.

Then the woman said, Let your handmaid, I pray you, speak one word to my lord the king. And he said, Say on.

13 And the womman seide, Whi `thouytist thou sich a thing ayens the puple of God? and the kyng spak this word, that he do synne, and brynge not ayen his sone cast out?

And the woman said, Why then have you thought such a thing against the people of God? for the king does speak this thing as one which is faulty, in that the king does not fetch home again his banished.

14 Alle we dyen, and as watris that schulen not turne ayen, we sliden in to erthe; and God nyl that a soule perische, but he withdrawith, and thenkith lest he perische outirly, which is cast awey.

For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither does God respect any person: yet does he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him.

15 Now therfor come thou, that Y speke to my lord the kyng this word, while the puple is present; and thin handmaide seide, Y schal speke to the kyng, if in ony maner the kyng do the word of his handmayde.

Now therefore that I am come to speak of this thing to my lord the king, it is because the people have made me afraid: and your handmaid said, I will now speak to the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his handmaid.

16 And the kyng herde the wordis, that he schulde delyuere his handmayde fro the hondis of alle men, that wolden do awei me, and my sone to gidere, fro the eritage of the Lord.

For the king will hear, to deliver his handmaid out of the hand of the man that would destroy me and my son together out of the inheritance of God.

17 Therfor thin hand mayde seie, that the word of my lord the kyng be maad as sacrifice, `that is, that the sentence youun of hym be plesaunt to God, as sacrifice plesith God; for as an aungel of the Lord, so is my lord the kyng, that he be not mouyd bi blessyng nether bi cursyng. Wherfor and thi Lord God is with thee.

Then your handmaid said, The word of my lord the king shall now be comfortable: for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and bad: therefore the LORD your God will be with you.

18 And the kyng answeride, and seide to the womman, Hide thou not fro me the word which Y axe thee. And the womman seide to hym, Speke thou, my lord the kyng.

Then the king answered and said to the woman, Hide not from me, I pray you, the thing that I shall ask you. And the woman said, Let my lord the king now speak.

19 And the kyng seide, Whether the hond of Joab is with thee in alle these thingis? The womman answeride, and seide, Bi the helthe of thi soule, my lord the kyng, nether to the left side nether to the riyt side is ony thing of alle these thingis, whiche my lord the kyng spak. For thi seruaunt Joab hym silf comaundide to me, and he puttide alle these wordis in to the mouth of thin handmaide,

And the king said, Is not the hand of Joab with you in all this? And the woman answered and said, As your soul lives, my lord the king, none can turn to the right hand or to the left from anything that my lord the king has spoken: for your servant Joab, he bade me, and he put all these words in the mouth of your handmaid:

20 that Y schulde turne the figure of this word; for thi seruaunt Joab comaundide this thing. Forsothe thou, my lord the kyng, art wijs, as an aungel of God hath wisdom, that thou vnderstonde alle thingis on erthe.

To fetch about this form of speech has your servant Joab done this thing: and my lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the earth.

21 And the kyng seide to Joab, Lo! Y am plesid, and Y haue do thi word; therfor go thou, and ayen clepe thou the child Absolon.

And the king said to Joab, Behold now, I have done this thing: go therefore, bring the young man Absalom again.

22 And Joab felde on his face to erthe, and worschipide, and blesside the kyng; and Joab seide, Thi seruaunt hath vndirstonde to dai, that Y foond grace in thin iyen, my lord the kyng, for thou hast do the word of thi seruaunt.

And Joab fell to the ground on his face, and bowed himself, and thanked the king: and Joab said, To day your servant knows that I have found grace in your sight, my lord, O king, in that the king has fulfilled the request of his servant.

23 Therfor Joab roos, and yede in to Gessur, and brouyte Absolon in to Jerusalem.

So Joab arose and went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem.

24 Forsothe the kyng seide, Turne he ayen in to his hows, and se not he my face.

And the king said, Let him turn to his own house, and let him not see my face. So Absalom returned to his own house, and saw not the king’s face.

25 Therfor Absolon turnede ayen in to his hows, and siy not the face of the kyng. Sotheli no man in al Israel was so fair as Absolon, and ful comeli; fro the step of the foot `til to the top, `no wem was in hym;

But in all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Absalom for his beauty: from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him.

26 and in as myche as `he clippide more the heeris, bi so myche thei wexiden more; forsothe he was clippid onys in the yeer, for the heer greuede him. And whanne he clippide the heeris, he weiyide `the heeris of his heed bi twei hundrid siclis with comyn weiyte.

And when he polled his head, (for it was at every year’s end that he polled it: because the hair was heavy on him, therefore he polled it: ) he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels after the king’s weight.

27 Forsothe thre sones, and a douyter, Thamar bi name, of `excellent forme weren borun to Absolon.

And to Absalom there were born three sons, and one daughter, whose name was Tamar: she was a woman of a fair countenance.

28 And Absolon dwellide in Jerusalem twei yeer, and he siy not the face of the kyng.

So Absalom dwelled two full years in Jerusalem, and saw not the king’s face.

29 Therfor he sente to Joab, that he schulde sende hym to the kyng; which Joab nolde come to hym. And whanne he hadde sent the secounde tyme, and Joab nolde come,

Therefore Absalom sent for Joab, to have sent him to the king; but he would not come to him: and when he sent again the second time, he would not come.

30 Absolon seide to hise seruauntis, Ye knowen the feeld of Joab bisidis my feeld hauynge ripe barli; therfor go ye, and brenne ye it with fier. Therfor the seruauntis of Absolon brenten the corn with fier. And the seruauntis of Joab camen with her clothis to-rent, and seiden, The seruauntis

Therefore he said to his servants, See, Joab’s field is near mine, and he has barley there; go and set it on fire. And Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.

31 of Absolon han brent the part of feeld bi fier. And Joab roos, and cam to Absolon in to his hows, and seide, Whi

Then Joab arose, and came to Absalom to his house, and said to him, Why have your servants set my field on fire?

32 han thi seruauntis brent my corn bi fier? And Absolon answeride to Joab, Y sente to thee, and bisouyte that thou schuldist come to me, and that Y schulde sende thee to the kyng, that thou schuldist seie to hym, Whi cam Y fro Gessur? It was betere to me to be there; therfor Y biseche, that Y se the face of the kyng, that if he is myndeful of my wickidnesse, sle he me.

And Absalom answered Joab, Behold, I sent to you, saying, Come here, that I may send you to the king, to say, Why am I come from Geshur? it had been good for me to have been there still: now therefore let me see the king’s face; and if there be any iniquity in me, let him kill me.

33 Joab entride to the kyng, and telde to hym. And Absolon was clepid, and entryde to the kyng, and worschipide on the face of erthe bifor hym, and the kyng kisside Absolon.

So Joab came to the king, and told him: and when he had called for Absalom, he came to the king, and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king: and the king kissed Absalom.