Absalom’s Return to Jerusalem

1And Joab son of Zeruiah knew that the heart of the king was on Absalom. 2And Joab sent to Tekoa, and he brought from there a wise woman, and said to her, “Pretend to be a mourner, please, and put on now mourning apparel, and do not anoint yourself with oil, and act like a woman these many days mourning for the dead. 3And go to the king and speak to him in this manner.” And Joab put the words in her mouth.

4And the woman of Tekoa spoke to the king, and she fell on her nose to the ground, and bowed low, and said, “Save me, O king.”

5And the king said to her, “What troubles you?”

And she answered, “Truly I am a woman, a widow, and my husband is dead. 6And your maidservant had two sons, and the two fought with each other in the field, and there was no one to part them, and the one struck the one and killed him. 7And behold, the whole family has risen up against your maidservant, and they said, ‘Give up him who struck his brother, that we may kill him for the life of his brother whom he has slain. And we will destroy also the heir.’ And they would extinguish my ember that is left, and not leave to my husband a name and remnant on the face of the earth.”

8And the king said to the woman, “Go to your house, and I will give orders concerning you.”

9And the woman of Tekoa said to the king, “On me, My lord the king, is the iniquity, and on the house of my father. And the king and his throne be guiltless.”

10And the king said, “He who speaks to you, bring him to me, and he shall not touch you anymore.”

11And she said, “Please let the king remember YHWH your God, and do not let add the avenger of blood to destroy. And they do not destroy my son.”

And he said, “As YHWH lives, not one hair of your son shall fall to the ground.”

12And the woman said, “Please let your maidservant speak to my lord the king a word.”

And he said, “Speak.”

13And the woman said, “And why have you schemed such as this against the people of God? For the king speaks this thing as one who is guilty, in that the king does not bring home again his banished one. 14For we will surely die and be like the water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. And God does not take away a life, and He devises means that His banished ones are not expelled from Him.

15And now that I have come to speak to the king my lord of this thing, because the people have made me afraid, and your maidservant said, ‘I will speak now to the king, perhaps the king will perform the request of his maidservant. 16For the king will hear and deliver his maidservant from the hand of the man destroying me and my son together from the inheritance of God.’

17And Your maidservant said, ‘Now the word of my lord the king will be comforting, for like the angel† of God, so is my lord the king in discerning good and evil. And may YHWH your God be with you.’”

18And the king answered and said to the woman, “Please do not hide from me anything that I am asking you.”

And the woman said, “Please let my lord the king speak.”

19And the king said, “Is the hand of Joab with you in all this?”

And the woman answered and said, “As you live, my lord the king, there is no one turning to the right or turning to the left from anything that my lord the king has spoken. For your servant Joab, he commanded me, and he put in the mouth of your maidservant all these words. 20In order to bring about the change of this thing, your servant Joab has done this thing. And my lord is wise, like the wisdom of the angel of God, to know everything that is in the land.”

21And the king said to Joab, “Behold now, I have granted this thing. Go and bring back the young man Absalom.”

22And Joab fell on his face to the ground, and bowed low, and blessed the king, and Joab said, “Today your servant knows that I have found favor in your eyes, my lord the king, in that the king has fulfilled the request of his servant.”

23And Joab arose and went to Geshur, and he brought Absalom to Jerusalem. 24And the king said, “Let him return to his own house, and do not let him see my face.” And Absalom returned to his own house, and the face of the king he did not see.

25And there was no handsome man in all Israel who was praised as much as Absalom. From the sole of his foot and to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him. 26And he cut the hair of his head, and it was at the end of every year that he cut it, because it was heavy on him; and he cut it, and he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels,† according to the standard of the king.

27And were born to Absalom three sons and one daughter, and her name was Tamar. She was a woman of beautiful appearance.

Absalom Reconciled to David

28And Absalom dwelt in Jerusalem two full years, and the face of the king he did not see. 29And Absalom sent for Joab, to send him to the king. And he would not come to him.

And he sent again the second time, and he would not come.

30And he said to his servants, “See, the portion of Joab is near mine, and he has barley there; go and burn it with the fire.”

And the servants of Absalom burned the portion with the fire.†

31And Joab arose and came to Absalom’s house, and he said to him, “Why have your servants burned the portion that is to me with the fire?”

32And Absalom answered unto Joab, “Behold, I sent to you, saying, ‘Come here, so that I may send you to the king to say: Why have I come from Geshur? It would be better for me if I were still there.’ And now let me see the face of the king. But if there is in me iniquity, let him kill me.”

33And Joab went to the king and told him, and he called for Absalom, and he came to the king and bowed himself on his nose to the ground before the face of the king. And the king kissed Absalom.