2 Samuel 14:15
ESV
Now I have come to say this to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid, and your servant thought, ‘I will speak to the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his servant.
NIV
"And now I have come to say this to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid. Your servant thought, ‘I will speak to the king; perhaps he will grant his servant’s request.
NASB
Now then, the reason I have come to speak this word to my lord the king is that the people have made me afraid; so your servant said, ‘Let me now speak to the king, perhaps the king will perform the request of his slave.
CSB
"Now therefore, I’ve come to present this matter to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid. Your servant thought: I must speak to the king. Perhaps the king will grant his servant’s request.
NLT
I have come to plead with my lord the king because people have threatened me. I said to myself, ‘Perhaps the king will listen to me
KJV
Now therefore that I am come to speak of this thing unto my lord the king, it is because the people have made me afraid: and thy handmaid said, I will now speak unto the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his handmaid.
NKJV
Now therefore, I have come to speak of this thing to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid. And your maidservant said, ‘I will now speak to the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his maidservant.
What does 2 Samuel 14:15 mean?
Commentators say the intended structure of this passage is unclear. The crafty woman from Tekoa first tells the story of her clan's plan to execute her murderous son. She asks David to order them to spare him for the sake of her family's future, which he agrees to do (2 Samuel 14:5–11).Then, suddenly, she speaks directly to David, comparing his forgiveness of her son to his own situation with Absalom. With great boldness, she tells him that he would be guilty of harming Israel's future if he didn't pardon his son's crime of murder and bring him back home to Jerusalem (2 Samuel 14:12–14).
Now she returns to speaking of her bereavement as if it's true. She sets aside the confrontation about David's pardon of Absalom and sums up her supposed request: to pardon her son because she was afraid the people would kill him.
Joab set her up to give David a fake story about her dilemma. He told her what to say, but the text isn't clear how much he told her: the reason he chose her is because she's shrewd and clever (2 Samuel 14:1–3). If Joab gave her everything she says, he sandwiched his message to David in between stories and flattery that emphasize David's power and the woman's vulnerability.
It's also possible that he didn't tell her to say this part, but she's afraid that David will be angry if he realizes her story is fake.
