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¹ And Joab the son of Zeruiah knew that the king's heart was on Absalom.² And Joab sent to Tekoah and took a wise woman from there, and said to her, Pretend yourself to be a mourner now, and please put on garments of mourning. And do not anoint yourself with oil, and you shall be a woman mourning for one who died these many days.³ And you shall go to the king and speak with him according to this word. And Joab put the words into her mouth.⁴ And the woman of Tekoah spoke to the king, and fell on her face to the earth, and bowed and said, Save, O king!⁵ And the king said to her, What shall be to you? And she said, Truly I am a widow woman, and my husband died.⁶ And your servant had two sons. And the two of them fought in the field, and there was no deliverer between them. And the one struck the other, and killed him.⁷ And, behold, the whole family has risen against your servant, and said, Give up him who struck his brother, and we shall kill him for the life of his brother whom he has slain. And we shall also destroy the heir. And they shall quench my coalwhich is left, so as not to set to my husband a name and remnant on the face of the earth.⁸ And the king said to the woman, Go to your house, and I will give command concerning you.⁹ And the woman of Tekoah said to the king, My lord, O king, let the iniquity be on me, and on my father's house; and the king and his throne shall be guiltless.¹⁰ And the king said, Whoever speaks to you, you also shall bring him to me, then he shall not touch you any more.¹¹ And she said, Please let the king remember Jehovah your God, that the avenger of blood not destroy any more, and that they may not destroy my son. And he said, As Jehovah lives, not one hair of your son shall fall to the earth.¹² And the woman said, Please let your servant speak a word to my lord the king. And he said, Speak.¹³ And the woman said, And why have you thought in this way about the people of God? Yea, the king is speaking this thing as a guilty one, in that the king has not brought back his outcast.¹⁴ For dying we die and are as water which is spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up. And God does not take a life, but has devised plans so that the outcast is not cast out from Him.¹⁵ And now that I have come to speak this word to my lord the king, because the people made me afraid; and your servant said, Please let me speak to the king; it may be the king shall do the word of his servant.¹⁶ For the king has listened, to deliver his servant out of the hand of the man seeking to destroy me and my son together, out of the inheritance of God.¹⁷ And your servant said, Please let the word of my lord the king be comforting. For as a messenger of God, so is my lord the king, to understand the good and the evil. And Jehovah your God shall be with you.¹⁸ And the king answered and said to the woman, Please do not hide from me the thing that I am asking you. And the woman said, Then let my lord the king speak.¹⁹ And the king said, Is the hand of Joab with you in all this? And the woman answered and said, As your soul lives, my lord, O king, none shall turn to the right or to the left from all thatmy lord the king has spoken. For your servantJoab commanded me, and he put all these words in your servant's mouth.²⁰ Your servant Joab has done this thing to turn about the face of the matter, and my lord is wise according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all that is in the land.

²¹ And the king said to Joab, Behold, now, I have done this thing. Then go, bring back the young man Absalom.²² And Joab fell on his face to the earth, and bowed, and blessed the king. And Joab said, Today your servant has known that I have found grace in your eyes, my lord, O king, in that the king has done the word of his servant.²³ And Joab rose up and went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem.²⁴ And the king said, Let him turn to his house, and he shall not see my face. And Absalom turned to his house, and he did not see the king's face.²⁵ And no man was handsome like Absalom in all Israel, to be so greatly praised. From the sole of his foot to his crown, there was not a blemish in him.²⁶ And when he sheared his head (for it was at the end of days of days that he sheared it , because the hair was heavy on him, and he sheared it ), he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels by the king's weight.²⁷ And three sons were born to Absalom, and one daughter. And her name was Tamar; she was a woman of a beautiful form.

²⁸ And Absalom lived in Jerusalem two years, and had not seen the king's face.²⁹ And Absalom sent to Joab, to send him to the king. But he was not willing to come to him. And he sent again a second time, and he was not willing to come.³⁰ And he said to his servants, Behold, Joab's allotment is beside mine, and he has barley there. Go and set it on fire. And Absalom's servants set the allotment on fire.³¹ And Joab rose up and came to Absalom, to the house, and said to him, Why have your servants set my allotment on fire?³² And Absalom said to Joab, Behold, I sent to you, saying, Come here, and I will send you to the king to say, Why have I come from Geshur? It was good for me to be there still. And now, letme see the king's face, and if there is guiltin me, then you shall cause me to die.³³ And Joab came to the king and told him. And he called to Absalom; and he came to the king, and bowed to him on his face to the earth before the king. And the king gave a kiss to Absalom.