2 Samuel 14:17

17 and thy maid-servant saith, Let, I pray thee, the word of my lord the king be for ease; for as a messenger of God so [is] my lord the king, to understand the good and the evil; and Jehovah thy God is with thee.'

2 Samuel 14:17 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 14:17

Then thine handmaid said, the word of my lord the king shall
now be comfortable
Or, "for rest" ^F17; what will give ease and satisfaction not only to her, but to all the people of Israel, when they shall hear of the king's intention and resolution to bring back Absalom:

for as an angel of God, so [is] my lord the king;
as they are very wise, knowing, and understanding creatures, so was David:

to discern good and bad;
to hear both the one and the other, and to discern the difference between them, and choose and pursue what is right, as in all other things, so in the present case:

therefore the Lord thy God shall be with thee;
as to counsel and advise, so to assist in performance, and to prosper and succeed; the Targum is,

``the Word of the Lord thy God shall be for thine help.''

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FOOTNOTES:

F17 (hxnml) "ad requiem", Pagninus, Montanus; "ad tranquillitatem", Tigurine version; "ad quietem", Vatablus, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator.

2 Samuel 14:17 In-Context

15 `And now that I have come to speak unto the king my lord this word, [it is] because the people made me afraid, and thy maid-servant saith, Let me speak, I pray thee, unto the king; it may be the king doth do the word of his handmaid,

16 for the king doth hearken to deliver his handmaid out of the paw of the man [seeking] to destroy me and my son together out of the inheritance of God,

17 and thy maid-servant saith, Let, I pray thee, the word of my lord the king be for ease; for as a messenger of God so [is] my lord the king, to understand the good and the evil; and Jehovah thy God is with thee.'

18 And the king answereth and saith unto the woman, `Do not, I pray thee, hide from me the thing that I am asking thee;' and the woman saith, `Let, I pray thee, my lord the king speak.'

19 And the king saith, `Is the hand of Joab with thee in all this?' And the woman answereth and saith, `Thy soul liveth, my lord, O king, none [doth turn] to the right or to the left from all that my lord the king hath spoken; for thy servant Joab he commanded me, and he put in the mouth of thy maid-servant all these words;