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¹ And it fortuned after this, that Absalom ye sonne of Dauid had a fayre sister, whose name was Thamar, & Ammon the sonne of Dauid loued her.² And Ammon was in greate combraunce, in so moch that he was euen sicke, because of Thamar his sister. For she was a virgin, and Ammon thoughte it shulde beharde for him to do eny thinge vnto her.³ But Ammon had a frede, whose name was Ionadab the sonne of Simea Dauids brother, And the same Ionadab was a very wyse man,⁴ which sayde vnto him: Why art thou so leane (thou kynges sonne) from daye to daye? Mayest thou not tell me? Then sayde Ammon vnto him: I loue Thamar my brother Absaloms sister exceadingly.⁵ Ionadab sayde vnto him: laye the downe vpon thy bedd, and make the sicke. And whan thy father commeth to loke how thou doest, saye vnto him: Oh let my sister Thamar come, that she maye fede me, and make a meece of meate before me, that I maye se it, & eate it of hir hande.⁶ So Ammon layed him downe, and made him sicke. Now wha the kynge came in to loke how he dyd, Ammon sayde vnto the kynge: Oh let my sister Thamar come, and make me a syppynge or two, and that I maye eate it of hir hande.⁷ Then sent Dauid for Thamar in to the house, and sayde vnto her: Go thy waye to thy brother Ammons house, & make him a meece of meate.⁸ Thamar wente vnto hir brother Amons house, but he laye in his bed. And she toke floure, and mixte it, and dighte it before his eyes, and made him a syppynge.⁹ And she toke the meece of meate, and poured it out before him: but he wolde not eate.¹⁰ And Ammon saide: Put forth euery man fro me. And euery man wete forth from him. Then sayde Ammon vnto Thamar: Brynge me that meece of meate in to the chamber, that I maye eate it of thy hande. Then toke Thamar ye syppynge that she had made, and broughte it vnto Ammon hir brother into the chamber.¹¹ And whan she broughte it vnto him yt he mighte eate, he toke holde of her, & sayde vnto her: Come my sister, lye with me.¹² Neuertheles she saide: Oh no my brother, force me not: for so do they not in Israel, do not thou soch foly.¹³ Whither shal I go with my shame? And thou shalt be as one of the vnwyse in Israel. But speake vnto the kynge, he shal not withholde me from the.¹⁴ Howbeit he wolde not herken vnto her, and ouercame her, forced her, and laye with her.¹⁵ And Ammon hated her exceadingly, so that the hate was greater then the loue was before. And Ammon sayde vnto her: Vp, and get the hence.¹⁶ She saide vnto him: This euell that thou thrustest me out, is greater then the other, that thou hast done vnto me. Neuertheles he herkened not vnto her,¹⁷ but called his boye that serued him, and sayde: Put awaye this woman fro me, and locke the dore after her.¹⁸ And she had a partye garment on: for soch garmentes wayre ye kynges doughters whyle they were virgins. And wha his seruaunt had put hir forth, & lockte the dore after her,¹⁹ Thamar strowed aßshes vpon hir heade, and rente the partye garment which she had vpon her, and layed hir hande vpon hir heade, and wente on, and cryed.²⁰ And hir brother Absalom sayde vnto her: Hath thy brother Ammon bene with the? Now holde thy peace my sister, it is thy brother, and take not the matter so to hert. So Thamar remayned a wyddowe in brother Absaloms house.

²¹ And whan kynge Dauid herde of all this, he was very sory.²² As for Absalom, he spake nether euell ner good to Ammon: but Absalom hated Ammon, because he had forced his sister Thamar.²³ After two yeares had Absalom shepe clyppers at Baal Hazor, which lyeth by Ephraim. And Absalom called all the kynges children,²⁴ and came to the kynge, and sayde: Beholde, thy seruaunt hath shepe clyppers, let it please ye kynge with his seruauntes to go with his seruaunte.²⁵ But the kynge sayde vnto Absalom: No my sonne, let vs not all go, lest we be to chargeable vnto the. And he wolde nedes haue had him to go, howbeit he wolde not, but blessed him.²⁶ Absalom sayde: Shall my brother Ammon go with vs then? The kynge sayde vnto him: Wherfore shall he go with the?²⁷ Then was Absalom so importune vpon him, that he let Ammon and all the kynges childre go with him.²⁸ But Absalom commaunded his yongemen, and sayde: Take hede whan Ammon is mery with wyne (and I saye vnto you: Smyte Ammon, and slaye him) that ye be not afrayed: for I haue commaunded you, be stronge, and playe the men.²⁹ So Absaloms yonge men dyd vnto Ammon, as Absalom had commaunded them. Then stode all the kynges children vp, and euery one gat him vp vpo his Mule, and fled.

³⁰ And whyle they were yet on their waye, the rumoure came to kynge Dauid, that Absalom had slayne all the kynges children, so that not one of them was lefte.³¹ Then stode the kynge vp, and rente his clothes, & layed him downe vpon the earth, and all his seruautes that stode aboute him, rente their clothes.³² Then answered Ionadab ye sonne of Simea Dauids brother, and sayde: Let not my lorde thynke that all the yonge men the kynges children are deed, but yt Ammon is deed onely: for Absalom hath kepte it in him selfe sence the daie that he forced his sister Thamar.³³ Therfore let not my lorde the kynge take it so to hert, that all the kynges children shulde be deed, but that Ammon is deed onely.³⁴ As for Absalom, he fled. And the yongeman that kepte the watch, lifte vp his eyes, and loked, and beholde, A greate people came in the waye one after another by the hill syde.³⁵ Then sayde Ionadab vnto the kynge: Beholde, the kynges children come. Euen as thy seruaunt sayde, so is it happened.³⁶ And whan he had ended his talkynge, the kynges children came, and lifte vp their voyce, and wepte. The kynge and all his seruauntes wepte also very sore.³⁷ But Absalom fled, and wente vnto Thalmai the sonne of Ammihud kynge of Gesur. As for Dauid, he mourned for his sonne euery daye.³⁸ Whan Absalom was fled and gone vnto Gesur, he was there thre yeare.³⁹ And kynge Dauid ceassed from goinge out agaynst Absalom, for he had comforted him selfe ouer Ammon that he was deed.