2 Samuel 13:1-39
13 And it came about after such things that Abʹsa·lom+ the son of David had a beautiful sister whose name was Taʹmar,+ and Amʹnon+ the son of David fell in love+ with her.
2 And it was so distressing to Amʹnon that he felt sick+ on account of Taʹmar his sister, because she was a virgin, and it was difficult in the eyes+ of Amʹnon to do anything at all to her.+
3 Now Amʹnon had a companion whose name was Je·honʹa·dab,*+ the son of Shimʹe·ah,+ David’s brother; and Je·honʹa·dab was a very wise man.
4 So he said to him: “Why are you, the son of the king, so downcast as this, morning by morning? Will you not tell me?”+ At this Amʹnon said to him: “With Taʹmar the sister+ of Abʹsa·lom my brother I am in love.”+
5 Upon that Je·honʹa·dab said to him: “Lie down on your bed and play sick.+ And your father will certainly come to see you, and you must say to him, ‘Please, let Taʹmar my sister come in and give me bread as a patient, and she will have to make the bread of consolation under my eyes in order that I may see it, and I shall have to eat from her hand.’”+
6 Accordingly Amʹnon lay down and played sick,+ and so the king came in to see him. Then Amʹnon said to the king: “Please, let Taʹmar my sister come in and bake two heart-shaped cakes under my eyes, that I may take bread as a patient from her hand.”
7 At that David sent to Taʹmar at the house, saying: “Go, please, to the house of Amʹnon your brother and make the bread of consolation for him.”
8 So Taʹmar went to the house of Amʹnon+ her brother while he was lying down. Then she took the flour dough and kneaded it and made the cakes under his eyes and cooked the heart-shaped cakes.*
9 Finally she took the deep pan and poured it out before him, but Amʹnon refused to eat and said: “HAVE everybody go out from me!”+ Then everybody went out from him.
10 Amʹnon now said to Taʹmar: “Bring the bread of consolation to the interior room, that I may take it as a patient from your hand.” So Taʹmar took the heart-shaped cakes that she had made and brought them in to Amʹnon her brother in the interior room.
11 When she came near to him for him to eat, he at once grabbed+ hold of her and said to her: “Come, lie down+ with me, my sister.”+
12 However, she said to him: “No, my brother! Do not humiliate+ me; for it is not usual to do that way in Israel.+ Do not do this disgraceful folly.+
13 And I—where shall I cause my reproach to go? And you—you will become like one of the senseless men in Israel. And now speak, please, to the king; for he will not withhold me from you.”
14 And he did not consent to listen to her voice, but used strength superior to hers and humiliated+ her and lay down with her.+
15 And Amʹnon began hating her with a very great hatred, because the hatred with which he hated her was greater than the love with which he had loved her, so that Amʹnon said to her: “Get up, go away!”
16 At this she said to him: “No, my brother; for* this badness in sending me away is greater than the other that you have done with me!” And he did not consent to listen to her.
17 With that he called his attendant who waited upon him and said: “Send this person away from me, please, to the outside, and lock the door behind her.”
18 (Now upon her there was a striped+ robe; for that was the way the daughters of the king, the virgins, used to dress with sleeveless coats.) So his waiter proceeded to lead her clear outside, and he locked the door behind her.
19 Then Taʹmar placed ashes+ upon her head, and the striped robe that was upon her she ripped apart; and she kept her hands* put upon her head+ and went walking away, crying out as she walked.
20 At this Abʹsa·lom+ her brother said to her: “Was it Amʹnon+ your brother that happened to be with you? And now, my sister, keep silent. He is your brother.+ Do not set your heart on this matter.” And Taʹmar began to dwell, while being kept from association [with others], at the house of Abʹsa·lom her brother.
21 And King David himself heard about all these things,+ and he became very angry.+
22 And Abʹsa·lom did not speak with Amʹnon either bad or good; for Abʹsa·lom hated+ Amʹnon over the fact that he had humiliated Taʹmar his sister.
23 And it turned out after two full years that Abʹsa·lom came to have sheepshearers+ at Baʹal-haʹzor, which is close by Eʹphra·im;+ and Abʹsa·lom proceeded to invite all the sons of the king.+
24 So Abʹsa·lom came in to the king and said: “Here, now, your servant has sheepshearers! Let the king go, please, and also his servants, with your servant.”
25 But the king said to Abʹsa·lom: “No, my son! Do not let all of us go, please, that we may not be a burden upon you.” Although he kept urging+ him, he did not consent to go but blessed+ him.
26 Finally Abʹsa·lom said: “If not [you], let Amʹnon my brother go with us, please.”+ At this the king said to him: “Why should he go with you?”
27 And Abʹsa·lom began to urge+ him, so that he sent Amʹnon and all the sons of the king* with him.
28 Then Abʹsa·lom commanded his attendants, saying: “See, please, that just as soon as Amʹnon’s heart is in a merry mood with wine,+ and I shall certainly say to YOU, ‘Strike down Amʹnon!’ YOU must then put him to death. Do not be afraid.+ Have not I myself commanded YOU? Be strong and prove yourselves to be valiant men.”
29 And Abʹsa·lom’s attendants proceeded to do to Amʹnon just as Abʹsa·lom had commanded;+ and all the other sons of the king began to rise up and mount each one his mule* and take to flight.
30 And it came about that, while they were on the way, the report itself came to David, saying: “Abʹsa·lom has struck down all the sons of the king, and not one of them has been left over.”
31 At this the king got up and ripped his clothes apart+ and lay upon the earth,+ and all his servants were standing by with their garments ripped+ apart.*
32 However, Je·honʹa·dab+ the son of Shimʹe·ah,+ David’s brother, answered and said: “Do not let my lord think that it is all the young men the sons of the king that they have put to death, for it is Amʹnon alone that has died,+ because at the order of Abʹsa·lom it has occurred as something appointed+ from the day that he humiliated+ Taʹmar his sister.+
33 And now do not let my lord the king take to his heart the word, saying, ‘All the king’s sons themselves have died’; but it is Amʹnon alone that has died.”
34 Meantime, Abʹsa·lom went running away.+ Later the young man, the watchman,+ raised his eyes and saw, and, look! there were many people coming from the road behind him by the mountainside.*
35 At this Je·honʹa·dab+ said to the king: “Look! The king’s sons themselves have come in. In accord with the word of your servant so it has taken place.”+
36 And it came about that, as soon as he finished speaking, here the king’s sons themselves came in, and they began to raise their voice and weep; and even the king and all his servants wept with a very great weeping.
37 As for Abʹsa·lom, he ran off that he might go to Talʹmai+ the son of Am·miʹhud the king of Geshʹur.+ And [David]* continued to mourn+ over his son all the days.
38 As for Abʹsa·lom, he ran off and made his way to Geshʹur;+ and he came to be there three years.
39 Finally [the soul of]* David the king longed to go out* to Abʹsa·lom; for he had comforted himself concerning Amʹnon, because he was dead.
Footnotes
^ Lit., “Jonadab.” Other places in M he is called “Jehonadab.”
^ Evidently similar to doughnuts, fried in deep fat rather than baked in an oven.
^ “No, my brother; for,” LXXLIt.
^ “Hands,” LXXVg; M, “hand.”
^ LXX finishes the vs with: “And Absalom spread a feast like the feast of the king.”
^ “His mule.” Heb., pir·dohʹ; the first occurrence of this word.
^ “And all his servants that were standing about him ripped their outer garments apart,” LXXVg.
^ LXX adds: “And the lookout came near and announced to the king and said: ‘I have seen men from the way to Horonaim by the mountainside.’ ”
^ Inserted to identify the subject of the verb; SyVg, “David”; LXX, “King David”; M, “he.”
^ “The soul of,” inserted to agree with the fem. Heb. verb for “longed,” whereas “David the king” is masc.; LXX, “the spirit of the king.”
^ Lit., “failed [with longing] to go out.”
