2 Samuel 13:29 - Printer Friendly

ESV: So the servants of Absalom did to Amnon as Absalom had commanded. Then all the king 's sons arose, and each mounted his mule and fled.

NIV: So Absalom’s men did to Amnon what Absalom had ordered. Then all the king’s sons got up, mounted their mules and fled.

NASB: And the servants of Absalom did to Amnon just as Absalom had commanded. Then all the king’s sons got up and each mounted his mule and fled.

CSB: So Absalom’s young men did to Amnon just as Absalom had commanded. Then all the rest of the king’s sons got up, and each fled on his mule.

NLT: So at Absalom’s signal they murdered Amnon. Then the other sons of the king jumped on their mules and fled.

KJV: And the servants of Absalom did unto Amnon as Absalom had commanded. Then all the king's sons arose, and every man gat him up upon his mule, and fled.

NKJV: So the servants of Absalom did to Amnon as Absalom had commanded. Then all the king’s sons arose, and each one got on his mule and fled.

Absalom has invited his brothers to feast to celebrate his sheep shearing. The party is a ruse. It's Absalom's way of getting his half-brother Amnon close, in a carefully arranged situation. Two years before, Amnon raped Tamar, Absalom's sister. David, their father, did nothing but stew in his own rage (2 Samuel 13:1–27).

Absalom seems to think God has commissioned him to enact justice. When he instructed his servants to get Amnon drunk and kill him, he told them, "Do not fear; have I not commanded you? Be courageous and valiant" (2 Samuel 13:28). His words are strikingly close to those God told Joshua as the Israelites prepared to conquer the evil Canaanites (Joshua 1:9).

The main difference is the part where God told Joshua, "For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:9). Absalom is not acting on God's behalf. The law of Moses has a very different penalty for men who rape young women who are not married. The man is to marry her, give her a proper life, and never divorce her (Deuteronomy 22:28–29).

In the culture of the time, a young woman's sexual purity was a direct reflection of her brother's honor. Absalom just wants revenge. When the other brothers realize what is happening, they flee for their lives. It's not unheard of for one son of a king to kill all his rivals (Judges 9:1–6). They needn't worry. Absalom doesn't have to kill them to take David's throne.

Second Samuel 13:20–29 depict Tamar as desolate, David as furious, and Absalom as calculating. David's oldest son, Amnon, raped his own half-sister Tamar and threw her out into the street. Tamar's full brother Absalom tries to comfort her with thoughts of familial loyalty but secretly plots his revenge. Meanwhile, David is angry but seems to make no move to punish his son. Two years later, Absalom completes his plot to ambush and murder Amnon.

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.