2 Samuel 14 – NIV & BPH

New International Version

2 Samuel 14:1-33

Absalom Returns to Jerusalem

1Joab son of Zeruiah knew that the king’s heart longed for Absalom. 2So Joab sent someone to Tekoa and had a wise woman brought from there. He said to her, “Pretend you are in mourning. Dress in mourning clothes, and don’t use any cosmetic lotions. Act like a woman who has spent many days grieving for the dead. 3Then go to the king and speak these words to him.” And Joab put the words in her mouth.

4When the woman from Tekoa went14:4 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; most Hebrew manuscripts spoke to the king, she fell with her face to the ground to pay him honor, and she said, “Help me, Your Majesty!”

5The king asked her, “What is troubling you?”

She said, “I am a widow; my husband is dead. 6I your servant had two sons. They got into a fight with each other in the field, and no one was there to separate them. One struck the other and killed him. 7Now the whole clan has risen up against your servant; they say, ‘Hand over the one who struck his brother down, so that we may put him to death for the life of his brother whom he killed; then we will get rid of the heir as well.’ They would put out the only burning coal I have left, leaving my husband neither name nor descendant on the face of the earth.”

8The king said to the woman, “Go home, and I will issue an order in your behalf.”

9But the woman from Tekoa said to him, “Let my lord the king pardon me and my family, and let the king and his throne be without guilt.”

10The king replied, “If anyone says anything to you, bring them to me, and they will not bother you again.”

11She said, “Then let the king invoke the Lord his God to prevent the avenger of blood from adding to the destruction, so that my son will not be destroyed.”

“As surely as the Lord lives,” he said, “not one hair of your son’s head will fall to the ground.”

12Then the woman said, “Let your servant speak a word to my lord the king.”

“Speak,” he replied.

13The woman said, “Why then have you devised a thing like this against the people of God? When the king says this, does he not convict himself, for the king has not brought back his banished son? 14Like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be recovered, so we must die. But that is not what God desires; rather, he devises ways so that a banished person does not remain banished from him.

15“And now I have come to say this to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid. Your servant thought, ‘I will speak to the king; perhaps he will grant his servant’s request. 16Perhaps the king will agree to deliver his servant from the hand of the man who is trying to cut off both me and my son from God’s inheritance.’

17“And now your servant says, ‘May the word of my lord the king secure my inheritance, for my lord the king is like an angel of God in discerning good and evil. May the Lord your God be with you.’ ”

18Then the king said to the woman, “Don’t keep from me the answer to what I am going to ask you.”

“Let my lord the king speak,” the woman said.

19The king asked, “Isn’t the hand of Joab with you in all this?”

The woman answered, “As surely as you live, my lord the king, no one can turn to the right or to the left from anything my lord the king says. Yes, it was your servant Joab who instructed me to do this and who put all these words into the mouth of your servant. 20Your servant Joab did this to change the present situation. My lord has wisdom like that of an angel of God—he knows everything that happens in the land.”

21The king said to Joab, “Very well, I will do it. Go, bring back the young man Absalom.”

22Joab fell with his face to the ground to pay him honor, and he blessed the king. Joab said, “Today your servant knows that he has found favor in your eyes, my lord the king, because the king has granted his servant’s request.”

23Then Joab went to Geshur and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem. 24But the king said, “He must go to his own house; he must not see my face.” So Absalom went to his own house and did not see the face of the king.

25In all Israel there was not a man so highly praised for his handsome appearance as Absalom. From the top of his head to the sole of his foot there was no blemish in him. 26Whenever he cut the hair of his head—he used to cut his hair once a year because it became too heavy for him—he would weigh it, and its weight was two hundred shekels14:26 That is, about 5 pounds or about 2.3 kilograms by the royal standard.

27Three sons and a daughter were born to Absalom. His daughter’s name was Tamar, and she became a beautiful woman.

28Absalom lived two years in Jerusalem without seeing the king’s face. 29Then Absalom sent for Joab in order to send him to the king, but Joab refused to come to him. So he sent a second time, but he refused to come. 30Then he said to his servants, “Look, Joab’s field is next to mine, and he has barley there. Go and set it on fire.” So Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.

31Then Joab did go to Absalom’s house, and he said to him, “Why have your servants set my field on fire?”

32Absalom said to Joab, “Look, I sent word to you and said, ‘Come here so I can send you to the king to ask, “Why have I come from Geshur? It would be better for me if I were still there!” ’ Now then, I want to see the king’s face, and if I am guilty of anything, let him put me to death.”

33So Joab went to the king and told him this. Then the king summoned Absalom, and he came in and bowed down with his face to the ground before the king. And the king kissed Absalom.

Bibelen på hverdagsdansk

2. Samuelsbog 14:1-33

Absalom og David forsones

1Da Joab blev klar over, hvor meget kongens tanker hele tiden kredsede om Absalom, 2-3sendte han bud til Tekoa efter en bestemt kvinde, som var kendt for sin visdom. „Du skal se ud som en, der sørger,” forklarede Joab. „Tag sørgedragt på og forsøm dit udseende, så du ligner en, der længe har sørget over en afdød. Træd så frem for kongen og sig det, som jeg nu fortæller dig.”

4Da kvinden trådte frem for kongen, bøjede hun sig underdanigt for ham og udbrød: „Herre konge, hjælp mig!”

5„Hvad er der galt?” spurgte han.

„Jeg er enke,” svarede hun. 6„Jeg havde to sønner, men en dag kom de i slagsmål ude på marken. Der var ingen til at lægge sig imellem, og derfor kom den ene til at slå den anden ihjel. 7Nu kræver resten af familien, at jeg udleverer den overlevende søn, så de kan henrette ham for at have myrdet sin bror. Men det er lige så meget for, at de på den måde kan få ryddet min nærmeste arving af vejen. Hvis jeg føjer dem, har jeg ingen sønner tilbage, og dermed uddør min afdøde mands slægt.”

8„Overlad den sag til mig,” svarede kongen. „Jeg skal nok sørge for, at ingen rører ham.”

9„Tak, herre!” udbrød hun. „Jeg skal nok tage ansvaret, hvis du senere bliver kritiseret for at have hjulpet mig.”

10„Det skal du ikke tænke på,” sagde kongen. „Hvis nogen gør indsigelser, så send dem bare til mig, og jeg skal sørge for, at de holder op med at genere dig.”

11Kvinden fortsatte: „Vil du sværge ved Herren din Gud på, at ingen får lov at hævne drabet og gøre min søn fortræd?”

„Det sværger jeg ved den levende Gud på!” svarede kongen. „Der skal ikke krummes et hår på hans hoved!”

12„Tillad mig endnu et par ord,” vedblev kvinden.

„Sig frem!” svarede kongen.

13Da spurgte kvinden: „Hvorfor viser du ikke samme velvilje overfor din egen slægt, som Gud har udvalgt, som du gør over for min? Med denne beslutning har du dømt dig selv, for du går med tanker om at slå din egen søn ihjel! 14Livet er som vandet, der hældes ud og synker ned i jorden—ingen kan samle det op igen, og ingen vender tilbage fra døden. Men Gud ønsker ikke døden. Han vil hellere finde en udvej for at kunne få en forvist søn hjem. 15Jeg kom til dig for at bede om hjælp, fordi jeg var bange for, hvad min familie ville gøre ved mig. 16Jeg tænkte, at du kunne redde os fra den mand, som er ude på at slå min søn ihjel og derved gøre det umuligt for vores slægt at få andel i det land, Gud har givet os. 17Jeg var overbevist om, at du nok skulle finde en udvej—hvad du også gjorde. Jeg ved, at min herre kongen har visdom fra Gud til at skelne mellem godt og ondt. Må Herren din Gud være med dig!”

18„Sig mig en ting!” sagde kongen.

„Ja, herre?” svarede kvinden.

19„Har Joab haft en finger med i spillet i alt det her?”

„Det kan ikke nægtes,” svarede kvinden, „for det var Joab, som sendte mig herhen med besked om, hvad jeg skulle sige. 20Hans hensigt var, at du skulle se sagen i et nyt lys. Din visdom, herre, er som en engels—intet undslipper din opmærksomhed.”

21Så sendte kongen bud efter Joab og sagde til ham: „Godt, du har overbevist mig! Bring Absalom tilbage til mig!”

22Joab bøjede sig ærbødigt for kongen og sagde: „Nu ved jeg, at du værdsætter mig, for du har indvilliget i at gøre det, jeg bad dig om.”

23Så rejste Joab til Geshur og hentede Absalom, som han førte med sig tilbage til Jerusalem. 24Absalom fik lov at komme tilbage til sit gamle hus på paladsets område, men kongen nægtede at se ham.

25Ingen i hele Israel var så beundret for sit udseende som Absalom. Der var intet at udsætte på ham fra top til tå. 26Når han lod sit lange hår klippe en gang om året, plejede han at veje det. Der var gerne over to kilo, og han lod det kun klippe, fordi det ellers blev for tungt at bære rundt på. 27Absalom havde tre sønner og en datter, som også fik navnet Tamar. Hun var en usædvanlig smuk kvinde.

28To år efter at Absalom var vendt hjem fra sit eksil, havde han endnu ikke fået foretræde for kongen. 29Derfor sendte han bud efter Joab, for at han skulle gå i forbøn for ham. Men Joab kom ikke—heller ikke da Absalom gentog opfordringen.

30Derfor gav Absalom sine folk ordre til at gå hen og sætte ild til Joabs bygmark, der grænsede op til hans egen. Det gjorde de så. 31Derefter kom Joab ind til Absalom og spurgte:

„Hvorfor gav du dine folk ordre til at sætte ild til min mark?”

32Absalom svarede: „For at få din opmærksomhed! Jeg vil gerne have, at du henvender dig til kongen og spørger ham, hvorfor han fik mig bragt tilbage fra Geshur, når han altid undgår mig. Jeg kunne jo lige så godt være blevet, hvor jeg var. Jeg ønsker, at du skal arrangere et møde mellem kongen og mig, og hvis han derefter stadig er overbevist om, at jeg er skyldig til døden, kan han for min skyld gerne henrette mig.”

33Så gik Joab til kongen og fortalte, hvad Absalom havde sagt. Da gav David efter og tilkaldte Absalom, og da Absalom mødte kongen, bøjede han sig ærbødigt for ham, og kongen omfavnede ham.