2 Samuel 13:5

5 Yehonadav said to him, Lay you down on your bed, and feign yourself sick: and when your father comes to see you, tell him, Please let my sister Tamar come and give me bread to eat, and dress the food in my sight, that I may see it, and eat it from her hand.

2 Samuel 13:5 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 13:5

And Jonadab said unto him
Being a subtle man, he presently formed a scheme to relieve him, and open a way for the enjoyment of what he desired:

lay thee down on thy bed, and make thyself sick;
feign thyself sick, pretend that thou art so, by lying down on the bed, and making complaints of one kind or another:

and when thy father cometh to see thee;
as he quickly would, after hearing of his illness, being very affectionate to his children:

say unto him, I pray thee let, my sister Tamar come, and give me meat;
here he is directed to call her not Absalom's sister, but his own, the more to cover his ill design upon her:

and dress the meat in my sight, that I may see [it], and eat [it] at
her hand;
pretending that his stomach was very weak and squeamish, that he could not eat anything which his servants dressed for him, and which he did not see done with his own eyes.

2 Samuel 13:5 In-Context

3 But Amnon had a friend, whose name was Yehonadav, the son of Shim`a, David's brother; and Yehonadav was a very subtle man.

4 He said to him, Why, son of the king, are you thus lean from day to day? Won't you tell me? Amnon said to him, I love Tamar, my brother Avshalom's sister.

5 Yehonadav said to him, Lay you down on your bed, and feign yourself sick: and when your father comes to see you, tell him, Please let my sister Tamar come and give me bread to eat, and dress the food in my sight, that I may see it, and eat it from her hand.

6 So Amnon lay down, and feigned himself sick: and when the king was come to see him, Amnon said to the king, Please let her sister Tamar come, and make me a couple of cakes in my sight, that I may eat from her hand.

7 Then David sent home to Tamar, saying, Go now to your brother Amnon's house, and dress him food.