2
So Joabsent to Tekoa and brought a wisewoman from there and said to her, "Pleasepretend to be a mourner, and put on mourninggarmentsnow, and do not anoint yourself with oil, but be like a woman who has been mourning for the deadmanydays;
6
"Your maidservant had twosons, but the two of them struggledtogether in the field, and there was noone to separate them, so onestruck the other and killed him.
7
"Now behold, the wholefamily has risenagainst your maidservant, and they say, 'Handover the one who struck his brother, that we may put him to death for the life of his brotherwhom he killed, and destroy the heiralso.' Thus they will extinguish my coalwhich is left, so as to leave my husbandneithernamenorremnant on the face of the earth."
11
Then she said, "Please let the kingremember the LORD your God, so that the avenger of blood will not continue to destroy, otherwise they will destroy my son." And he said, "As the LORDlives, not one hair of your son shall fall to the ground."
13
The womansaid, "Why then have you plannedsuch a thingagainst the people of God? For in speakingthisword the king is as onewho is guilty, in that the king does not bringback his banishedone.
14
"For we will surelydie and are like waterspilled on the groundwhichcannot be gathered up again. Yet God does not take away life, but plansways so that the banishedone will not be cast out from him.
15
"Now the reason I have come to speakthisword to my lord the king is that the people have made me afraid; so your maidservantsaid, 'Let me nowspeak to the king, perhaps the king will perform the request of his maidservant.
17
"Then your maidservantsaid, 'Please let the word of my lord the king be comforting, for as the angel of God, so is my lord the king to discerngood and evil. And may the LORD your God be with you.' "
18
Then the kinganswered and said to the woman, "Please do not hideanything from me that I am about to ask you." And the womansaid, "Let my lord the kingpleasespeak."
19
So the kingsaid, "Is the hand of Joab with you in allthis?" And the womanreplied, "As your soullives, my lord the king, no one can turn to the right or to the left from anything that my lord the king has spoken. Indeed, it was your servantJoabwhocommanded me, and it was he who putallthesewords in the mouth of your maidservant;
20
in order to change the appearance of things your servantJoab has donethisthing. But my lord is wise, like the wisdom of the angel of God, to knowall that is in the earth."
22
Joabfell on his face to the ground, prostrated himself and blessed the king; then Joabsaid, "Today your servantknows that I have foundfavor in your sight, O my lord, the king, in that the king has performed the request of his servant."
24
However the kingsaid, "Let him turn to his own house, and let him not see my face." So Absalomturned to his own house and did not see the king'sface.
26
When he cut the hair of his head (and it was at the end of every year that he cut it, for it was heavy on him so he cut it), he weighed the hair of his head at 200shekels by the king'sweight.
30
Therefore he said to his servants, "See, Joab'sfield is next to mine, and he has barleythere; go and set it on fire." So Absalom'sservantsset the field on fire.
32
AbsalomansweredJoab, "Behold, I sent for you, saying, 'Comehere, that I may send you to the king, to say, "Why have I come from Geshur? It would be better for me still to be there."' Now therefore, let me see the king'sface, and ifthere is iniquity in me, let him put me to death."
33
So when Joabcame to the king and told him, he called for Absalom. Thus he came to the king and prostrated himself on his face to the groundbefore the king, and the kingkissedAbsalom.