2 Samuel 14:4 - Printer Friendly

ESV: When the woman of Tekoa came to the king, she fell on her face to the ground and paid homage and said, "Save me, O king."

NIV: When the woman from Tekoa went to the king, she fell with her face to the ground to pay him honor, and she said, "Help me, Your Majesty!"

NASB: Now when the woman of Tekoa spoke to the king, she fell on her face to the ground and prostrated herself, and said, 'Help, O king!'

CSB: When the woman from Tekoa came to the king, she fell facedown to the ground, paid homage, and said, "Help me, Your Majesty!"

NLT: When the woman from Tekoa approached the king, she bowed with her face to the ground in deep respect and cried out, 'O king! Help me!'

KJV: And when the woman of Tekoah spake to the king, she fell on her face to the ground, and did obeisance, and said, Help, O king.

NKJV: And when the woman of Tekoa spoke to the king, she fell on her face to the ground and prostrated herself, and said, “Help, O king!”

A mourning woman has come to King David to settle a dispute on her behalf. Resolving conflicts by enforcing the law or making exceptions was one duty of the king. The assumption is that David regularly performed this task for those in need of help. The woman falls to the ground, face down, in the typical gesture of great respect and honor before someone who is worthy. She begins simply by asking the king to save her.

Her story is that her husband has died, and one of her two sons murdered the other in a fight. Now, her clan demands she turn over her remaining son for execution. This would be in accordance with one of the oldest laws God established (Genesis 9:8) as well as the Mosaic law (Numbers 35:30–31). But if her last son dies, her husband's line will die out. She begs David to pardon her son. He agrees (2 Samuel 14:5–11).

Her story isn't true. David's general, Joab, has sent her to tell the story as a symbol of David's relationship with his own sons. Three years prior, Absalom had murdered Amnon and fled. The woman challenges David to restore Absalom (2 Samuel 14:12–17).

We don't know if David realizes the story is fake, but he does recognize that Joab is heavily involved (2 Samuel 14:18–20). David agrees to the request, and Absalom returns to Jerusalem (2 Samuel 14:21).

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.