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.