II Samuel 14

¹Now Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that the king’s heart was toward Absalom.

²And Joab sent to Tekoa, and fetched thence a wise woman, and said unto her, I pray thee, feign thyself to be a mourner, and put on mourning apparel, I pray thee, and anoint not thyself with oil, but be as a woman that hath a long time mourned for the dead:

³and go in to the king, and speak on this manner unto him. So Joab put the words in her mouth.

⁴And when the woman of Tekoa spake to the king, she fell on her face to the ground, and did obeisance, and said, Help, O king.

⁵And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, Of a truth I am a widow, and my husband is dead.

⁶And thy 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 killed him.

⁷And, behold, the whole family is risen against thy handmaid, and they say, Deliver him that smote his brother, that we may kill him for the life of his brother whom he slew, and so destroy the heir also. Thus will they quench my coal which is left, and will leave to my husband neither name nor remainder upon the face of the earth.

⁸And the king said unto the woman, Go to thy house, and I will give charge concerning thee.

⁹And the woman of Tekoa said unto 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.

¹⁰And the king said, Whosoever saith aught unto thee, bring him to me, and he shall not touch thee any more.

¹¹Then said she, I pray thee, let the king remember Jehovah thy God, that the avenger of blood destroy not any more, lest they destroy my son. And he said, As Jehovah liveth, there shall not one hair of thy son fall to the earth.

¹²Then the woman said, Let thy handmaid, I pray thee, speak a word unto my lord the king. And he said, Say on.

¹³And the woman said, Wherefore then hast thou devised such a thing against the people of God? for in speaking this word the king is as one that is guilty, in that the king doth not fetch home again his banished one.

¹⁴For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God take away life, but deviseth means, that he that is banished be not an outcast from him.

¹⁵Now therefore seeing that I am come to speak this word unto my lord the king, it is because the people have made me afraid: and thy handmaid said, I will now speak unto the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his servant.

¹⁶For the king will hear, to deliver his servant out of the hand of the man that would destroy me and my son together out of the inheritance of God.

¹⁷Then thy handmaid said, Let, I pray thee, the word of my lord the king be comfortable; for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and bad: and Jehovah thy God be with thee.

¹⁸Then the king answered and said unto the woman, Hide not from me, I pray thee, aught that I shall ask thee. And the woman said, Let my lord the king now speak.

¹⁹And the king said, Is the hand of Joab with thee in all this? And the woman answered and said, As thy soul liveth, my lord the king, none can turn to the right hand or to the left from aught that my lord the king hath spoken; for thy servant Joab, he bade me, and he put all these words in the mouth of thy handmaid;

²⁰to change the face 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 things that are in the earth.

²¹And the king said unto Joab, Behold now, I have done this thing: go therefore, bring the young man Absalom back.

²²And Joab fell to the ground on his face, and did obeisance, and blessed the king; and Joab said, To-day thy servant knoweth that I have found favor in thy sight, my lord, O king, in that the king hath performed the request of his servant.

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

²⁴And the king said, Let him turn to his own house, but let him not see my face. So Absalom turned to his own house, and saw not the king’s face.

²⁵Now 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.

²⁶And when he cut the hair of his head (now it was at every year’s end that he cut it; because it was heavy on him, therefore he cut it); he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels, after the king’s weight.

²⁷And unto Absalom there were born three sons, and one daughter, whose name was Tamar: she was a woman of a fair countenance.

²⁸And Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem; and he saw not the king’s face.

²⁹Then Absalom sent for Joab, to send him to the king; but he would not come to him: and he sent again a second time, but he would not come.

³⁰Therefore he said unto his servants, See, Joab’s field is near mine, and he hath barley there; go and set it on fire. And Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.

³¹Then Joab arose, and came to Absalom unto his house, and said unto him, Wherefore have thy servants set my field on fire?

³²And Absalom answered Joab, Behold, I sent unto thee, saying, Come hither, that I may send thee to the king, to say, Wherefore am I come from Geshur? it were better for me to be there still. Now therefore let me see the king’s face; and if there be iniquity in me, let him kill me.

³³So 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.

II Samuel 14

¹And Joab son of Zeruial knoweth that the heart of the king is on Absalom,

²and 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,

³and thou hast gone unto the king, and spoken unto him, according to this word;' and Joab putteth the words into her mouth.

⁴And the woman of Tekoah speaketh unto the king, and falleth on her face to the earth, and doth obeisance, and saith, `Save, O king.'

⁵And the king saith to her, `Whatto thee?' and she saith, `Truly a widow woman am I, and my husband dieth,

⁶and 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;

⁷and 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 leftso as not to set to my husband a name and remnant on the face of the ground.'

⁸And the king saith unto the woman, `Go to thine house, and I give charge concerning thee.'

⁹And 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.'

¹⁰And 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.'

¹¹And 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.'

¹²And the woman saith, `Let, I pray thee, thy maid-servant speak unto my lord the king a word;' and he saith, `Speak.'

¹³And 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;

¹⁴for 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`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,

¹⁶for 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,

¹⁷and 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.'

¹⁸And 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.'

¹⁹And 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;

²⁰in 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.'

²¹And the king saith unto Joab, `Lo, I pray thee, thou hast done this thing; and go, bring back the young man Absalom.'

²²And 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.'

²³And Joab riseth and goeth to Geshur, and bringeth in Absalom to Jerusalem,

²⁴and 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.

²⁵And 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;

²⁶and in his polling his headand it hath been at the end of year by year that he polleth it , for it is heavy on him, and he hath polled ithe hath even weighed out the hair of his headtwo hundred shekels by the king's weight.

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

²⁸And Absalom dwelleth in Jerusalem two years of days, and the face of the king he hath not seen;

²⁹and 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.

³⁰And 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.

³¹And 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?'

³²And 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 thereand now, let me see the king's face, and if there is in me iniquity then thou hast put me to death.'

³³And 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.