2 SamuelChapter 13

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¹Some time later, David's son Amnon fell in love with Tamar. She was the beautiful sister of David's son Absalom. ²Amnon wanted his sister Tamar so badly that he made himself sick. She was a virgin. It seemed impossible for him to do anything to her. ³Amnon had a friend named Jonadab. He was the son of Shimeah, David's brother. Jonadab was a very clever and sly man. ⁴He asked Amnon, "You are the king's son. Why do you look so sad every morning? Won't you tell me?" Amnon said, "I am in love with Tamar, the sister of my brother Absalom." ⁵Jonadab told him, "Lie down on your bed and pretend to be sick. Your father will come to see you. Then say to him, 'Please let my sister Tamar come and give me something to eat. Let her make it in front of me. Then I can watch her and eat it from her hand.'" ⁶So Amnon lay down and pretended to be sick. The king came to see him. Amnon said, "Please let my sister Tamar come. Let her make a couple of cakes in front of me. Then I can eat from her hand." ⁷So David sent a message to Tamar at the palace. "Please go to your brother Amnon's house," he said. "Make some food for him." ⁸So Tamar went to the house of her brother Amnon. He was lying down. She took some dough and kneaded it. She made cakes while he watched, and she baked them. ⁹Then she took the pan and set the food in front of him. But he would not eat. "Send everyone out of here!" Amnon said. So everyone went out. ¹⁰Then Amnon said to Tamar, "Bring the food into my bedroom. Then I can eat it from your hand." So Tamar took the cakes she had made. She brought them to her brother Amnon in his bedroom. ¹¹She brought them close for him to eat. But he grabbed her and said, "Come to bed with me, my sister!" ¹²"No, my brother!" she cried. "Don't force me! Such a thing should never be done in Israel. Don't do this shameful thing! ¹³Where could I ever go with my shame? And you would be like one of the wicked fools in Israel! Please talk to the king. He will not keep me from being your wife." ¹⁴But Amnon would not listen to her. He was stronger than she was. So he forced her and raped her. ¹⁵Then Amnon hated Tamar very much. His hate was greater than the love he had felt for her before. "Get up!" he said to her. "Get out!" ¹⁶"No!" she said. "Sending me away would be worse than the great wrong you already did to me!" But he would not listen to her. ¹⁷Instead, he called his servant. He said, "Throw this woman out of here! Lock the door behind her!" ¹⁸So Amnon's servant threw her out and locked the door behind her. Tamar was wearing a long robe with sleeves. The king's daughters who were virgins wore robes like this.a ¹⁹Tamar put ashes on her head. She tore her robe. She put her hand on her head and went away crying loudly. ²⁰Her brother Absalom said to her, "Has your brother Amnon been with you? Be quiet for now, my sister. He is your brother. Don't let this break your heart." So Tamar lived in her brother Absalom's house. She was a lonely and sad woman. ²¹King David heard about all this. He was very angry. ²²Absalom never said a word to Amnon, good or bad. He hated Amnon because Amnon had raped his sister Tamar. ²³Two years later, Absalom's men were shearing his sheep at Baal-hazor near Ephraim. Absalom invited all the king's sons to come. ²⁴Absalom went to the king and said, "Your servant has just hired men to shear my sheep. Will the king and his servants please come with me?" ²⁵"No, my son," the king answered. "We should not all go. We would be too much trouble for you." Absalom kept urging him. But the king would not go. Instead, he gave Absalom his blessing. ²⁶"If you won't come," Absalom said, "then please let my brother Amnon go with us." "Why should he go with you?" the king asked. ²⁷But Absalom kept urging him. So the king sent Amnon and all the rest of his sons. ²⁸Absalom had given orders to his young men. "Watch Amnon," he said. "Wait until he is happy from drinking wine. Then I will tell you, 'Strike Amnon down.' When I do, kill him. Don't be afraid. I am the one giving you this order! Be strong and brave!" ²⁹So Absalom's young men did to Amnon just what Absalom had ordered. Then all the other sons of the king got up. Each one got on his mule and ran away. ³⁰While they were on their way, news came to David. "Absalom has killed all the king's sons. Not one of them is left!" ³¹Then the king stood up and tore his clothes. He lay down on the ground. All his servants stood beside him with their clothes torn. ³²But Jonadab, the son of David's brother Shimeah, spoke up. "My lord, don't think they have killed all the king's sons. Only Amnon is dead. Absalom has planned this ever since the day Amnon raped his sister Tamar. ³³So now, my lord the king, don't believe the report that all the king's sons are dead. Only Amnon is dead." ³⁴Meanwhile, Absalom had run away. The young man on watch looked up. He saw many people coming down the road to the west of him, along the side of the hill. The watchman went and told the king, "I see men coming from the direction of Horonaim, along the side of the hill." ³⁵Jonadab said to the king, "Look, the king's sons are here! It's just as your servant said." ³⁶Just as he finished speaking, the king's sons came in. They were crying loudly. Then the king and all his servants also cried very hard. ³⁷Absalom ran away. He went to Talmai son of Ammihud, the king of Geshur. But David mourned for his son every day. ³⁸After Absalom ran away to Geshur, he stayed there for three years. ³⁹King David longed to go to Absalom. For he had been comforted about Amnon's death.