2 Samuel 13:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: But when she brought them near him to eat, he took hold of her and said to her, "Come, lie with me, my sister."

NIV: But when she took it to him to eat, he grabbed her and said, "Come to bed with me, my sister."

NASB: When she brought them to him to eat, he took hold of her and said to her, 'Come, sleep with me, my sister.'

CSB: When she brought them to him to eat, he grabbed her and said, "Come sleep with me, my sister!"

NLT: But as she was feeding him, he grabbed her and demanded, 'Come to bed with me, my darling sister.'

KJV: And when she had brought them unto him to eat, he took hold of her, and said unto her, Come lie with me, my sister.

NKJV: Now when she had brought them to him to eat, he took hold of her and said to her, “Come, lie with me, my sister.”

Amnon is finally getting what he wants. He's obsessed with his half-sister Tamar to the point that it's making him physically ill. His friend and cousin saw his helplessness and came up with a plan (2 Samuel 13:1–5). It's working. He's in his bedchambers. He's sent the servants away. It's just him and Tamar (2 Samuel 13:9–10). So makes his proposition: that he and Tamar have sex—with the text once again emphasizing that these are half-siblings.

Tamar can't physically overpower Amnon, so she'll use reason. What Amnon wants is unthinkable (2 Samuel 13:12). She'll be irredeemably shamed, and he'll be an "outrageous fool." Tamar also looks to stall Amnon, saying that they can be married properly if David approves (2 Samuel 13:13).

Amnon has no idea that he's part of a curse God laid on David. David took Bathsheba and made her pregnant. He deceived Uriah and tried to get him to sleep with his wife and assume the child was his. When he refused, David sent him back to the battle, carrying sealed instructions on how Joab should arrange for the enemy to kill him (2 Samuel 10:2–17).

It took a parable and a series of curses before David could acknowledge what he'd done. He repented sincerely (Psalm 51). God accepted his humility and told him he wouldn't die, but the curses stand (2 Samuel 12:1–13).

All Amnon can think of is his lust. Completely forgotten is that Tamar has a full brother who, consistent with the culture, takes his sister's honor personally. After two years, Absalom will take that metaphorical sword (2 Samuel 12:10) and kill Amnon (2 Samuel 13:29).

Second Samuel 13:7–19 explains how Amnon makes himself a fulfillment of a curse God placed on David (2 Samuel 12:10—11). Using the ruse of being sick, Amnon has his half-sister Tamar alone and vulnerable (2 Samuel 13:1–6). She tries to reason with him, but he's far stronger. Once he's satisfied himself at her expense, he finds her disgusting and sends her away in shame. To her, the rejection is even more painful than the is a crime worse than the rape: she has been violated and will never marry or have children. Her brother Absalom will avenge her by murdering the rapist (2 Samuel 13:22, 28).

In this chapter, God's curse that the sword will strike David's house (2 Samuel 12:10) begins to emerge. David's firstborn son Amnon lusts over half-sister Tamar. Tamar fights back, but Amnon first rapes her and then rejects her. David is angry but does nothing. Two years later, Tamar's full brother Absalom murders Amnon. Three years after that, Absalom returns and becomes the enemy in David's house who takes his wives in public (2 Samuel 12:11–12; 15:1–16; 16:21–23).

This begins fulfillment of some of God's curses against David (2 Samuel 12:10), and sets the scene for others (2 Samuel 12:11–12). David's oldest son, Amnon, rapes his own half-sister, Tamar. Her full brother Absalom murders Amnon, starting a five-year campaign of vengeance against David. By the end, two of David's sons will be dead, his daughter will be desolate, and David will be deeply humbled (2 Samuel 14—19).

Second Samuel continues the story of David, who will become king over Judah. The other tribes of Israel are resistant, eventually sparking a civil war. David wins and makes Jerusalem his capital. Early success is followed by moral failure and controversy in David's house. The book of 1 Kings will begin by detailing David's decline and death.