2 Samuel 13:3

3 But Amnon had a friend whose name was Jonadab, the son of ¹Shimeah, David's brother; and Jonadab was a very shrewd man.

2 Samuel 13:3 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 13:3

But Amnon had a friend
Though in the issue his friendship proved his ruin:

whose name [was] Jonadab, the son of Shimeah, David's brother;
so that they were own cousins, the same with Shammah, ( 1 Samuel 16:9 ) ;

and Jonadab [was] a very subtle man;
a very penetrating man into the dispositions of men, and could judge by their countenances what they were, and the affections of their minds, and had a talent in forming schemes; he was wise to do evil and was wickedly cunning.

2 Samuel 13:3 In-Context

1 Now it was after this that Absalom the son of David had a beautiful sister whose name was Tamar, and Amnon the son of David loved her.

2 Amnon was so frustrated because of his sister Tamar that he made himself ill, for she was a virgin, and it seemed hard to Amnon to do anything to her.

3 But Amnon had a friend whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimeah, David's brother; and Jonadab was a very shrewd man.

4 He said to him, "O son of the king, why are you so depressed morning after morning? Will you not tell me?" Then Amnon said to him, "I am in love with Tamar, the sister of my brother Absalom."

5 Jonadab then said to him, "Lie down on your bed and pretend to be ill; when your father comes to see you, say to him, 'Please let my sister Tamar come and give me some food to eat, and let her prepare the food in my sight, that I may see it and eat from her hand.' "

Cross References

• 1. 1 Samuel 16:9

Footnotes

• [a]. In 1 Sam 16:9, "Shammah;" in 1 Chr 2:13, "Shimea"