2 Samuel 14:3 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Go to the king and speak thus to him." So Joab put the words in her mouth.

NIV: Then go to the king and speak these words to him." And Joab put the words in her mouth.

NASB: Then go to the king and speak to him in this way.' So Joab put the words in her mouth.

CSB: Go to the king and speak these words to him." Then Joab told her exactly what to say.

NLT: Then go to the king and tell him the story I am about to tell you.' Then Joab told her what to say.

KJV: And come to the king, and speak on this manner unto him. So Joab put the words in her mouth.

NKJV: Go to the king and speak to him in this manner.” So Joab put the words in her mouth.

Joab has a plan to convince David to bring Absalom back to Jerusalem from exile in Geshur. In essence, Joab is mimicking what God did through Nathan the prophet. Both set up David's understanding of a situation with a story about other people (2 Samuel 12:1–9). Joab has found a wise woman from a small town to come and tell David a tragic story about herself.

One of the king's duties was to settle disputes according to the law. But he was also to protect the poor and powerless from mistreatment by the wealthy and influential in the community (Proverbs 31:8 – 9). Joab instructs this woman to present herself as if she's been mourning for a long time. Either her everyday clothes are torn or she's wearing sackcloth. They may be covered in dust or ash, and she may be barefoot. She is not dressed for a formal visit with the king; her appearance shows her great desperation. Only the king can help.

Joab gives her the story: she's to pretend she's a widow. Her sons fought, and one killed the other. Their clan demands that the murderer be held accountable, but if her last son dies, her husband's line will be broken (2 Samuel 14:4–7). Joab knows that if David responds with sympathy, he might see his own situation with Absalom from a new perspective.

Second Samuel 14:1–11 describes Joab's effort to convinces David to bring Absalom home. David is distracted by thoughts of Absalom, his son, currently in exile for killing his own brother. Joab believes this continued absence is bad for Israel. He arranges for a woman to tell David a story of family violence and murder. This ends with a lesson about the goodness of forgiveness. David agrees to her premise, and she challenges him to apply it to his own situation (2 Samuel 14:12–17).

Second Samuel 14 sets the scene for Absalom's rebellion against David. Joab wants David to forgive Absalom for murdering his brother and end his exile. Joab has a woman pretend to be a widow, who tells a story about a murderous son to convince David to pardon his own son. David brings Absalom home to Jerusalem, but not to the court or family. Joab eventually convinces David to see Absalom and the two are officially reconciled. With freedom, status, and ambition, Absalom starts a campaign to draw the people's hearts away from David and toward himself (2 Samuel 15:1–6).

Second Samuel 14 continues God's promise that tragedy will plague David's family. This is a curse for David's sin against Uriah and Bathsheba (2 Samuel 12:9–11). David's son Amnon raped his own half-sister Tamar. Tamar's full brother Absalom avenged her by killing Amnon, then fled to his maternal grandfather (2 Samuel 13). David thinks about Absalom, and Joab convinces David to bring him home and reconcile with him. Absalom wins the hearts of the people and takes the throne while David flees. Eventually, Absalom will be dead, and David will be a chastened man and wiser king. (2 Samuel 15–20).

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.