Ii Samuelis 14

1 Intelligens autem Joab filius Sarviæ quod cor regis versum esset ad Absalom,

And Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that the king's heart was toward Absalom.

2 misit Thecuam, et tulit inde mulierem sapientem: dixitque ad eam: Lugere te simula, et induere veste lugubri, et ne ungaris oleo, ut sis quasi mulier jam plurimo tempore lugens mortuum:

And Joab sent to Tekoah, and fetched thence a wise woman, and said to her, I pray thee, feign thyself to be a mourner, and put on mourning garments, I pray, and anoint not thyself with oil, but be as a woman that hath a long time mourned for the dead;

3 et ingredieris ad regem, et loqueris ad eum sermones hujuscemodi. Posuit autem Joab verba in ore ejus.

and come to the king, and speak after this manner to him. And Joab put the words into her mouth.

4 Itaque cum ingressa fuisset mulier Thecuitis ad regem, cecidit coram eo super terram, et adoravit, et dixit: Serva me, rex.

And the woman of Tekoah spoke to the king, and she fell on her face to the ground and did obeisance, and said, Save, O king!

5 Et ait ad eam rex: Quid causæ habes? Quæ respondit: Heu, mulier vidua ego sum: mortuus est enim vir meus.

And the king said to her, What aileth thee? And she said, I am indeed a widow woman, and my husband is dead.

6 Et ancillæ tuæ erant duo filii: qui rixati sunt adversum se in agro, nullusque erat qui eos prohibere posset: et percussit alter alterum, et interfecit eum.

And thy bondmaid had two sons, and they two strove together in the field, and there was none to part them, but the one smote the other and slew him.

7 Et ecce consurgens universa cognatio adversum ancillam tuam, dicit: Trade eum qui percussit fratrem suum, ut occidamus eum pro anima fratris sui quem interfecit, et deleamus hæredem: et quærunt extinguere scintillam meam quæ relicta est, ut non supersit viro meo nomen, et reliquiæ super terram.

And behold, the whole family is risen against thy bondmaid, and they say, Deliver him that smote his brother, that we may put him to death, for the life of his brother whom he killed; and we will destroy the heir also: so they will quench my coal which is left, and will not leave to my husband a name or remnant on the earth.

8 Et ait rex ad mulierem: Vade in domum tuam, et ego jubebo pro te.

And the king said to the woman, Go to thy house, and I will give charge concerning thee.

9 Dixitque mulier Thecuitis ad regem: In me, domine mi rex, sit iniquitas, et in domum patris mei: rex autem et thronus ejus sit innocens.

And the woman of Tekoah said to the king, Upon me, my lord, O king, be the iniquity, and upon my father's house; and the king and his throne be guiltless.

10 Et ait rex: Qui contradixerit tibi, adduc eum ad me, et ultra non addet ut tangat te.

And the king said, Whoever speaks to thee, bring him to me, and he shall not touch thee any more.

11 Quæ ait: Recordetur rex Domini Dei sui, ut non multiplicentur proximi sanguinis ad ulciscendum, et nequaquam interficiant filium meum. Qui ait: Vivit Dominus, quia non cadet de capillis filii tui super terram.

Then she said, I pray thee, let the king remember Jehovah thy God, that thou wouldest not suffer the revengers of blood to destroy any more, lest they cut off my son. And he said, [As] Jehovah liveth, there shall not one hair of thy son fall to the earth.

12 Dixit ergo mulier: Loquatur ancilla tua ad dominum meum regem verbum. Et ait: Loquere.

And the woman said, Let thy bondmaid, I pray thee, speak a word to my lord the king. And he said, Speak.

13 Dixitque mulier: Quare cogitasti hujuscemodi rem contra populum Dei, et locutus est rex verbum istud, ut peccet, et non reducat ejectum suum?

And the woman said, Why then hast thou thought such a thing against God's people? and the king in saying this thing, is as one guilty, in that the king does not bring back his banished one.

14 Omnes morimur, et quasi aquæ dilabimur in terram, quæ non revertuntur: nec vult Deus perire animam, sed retractat cogitans ne penitus pereat qui abjectus est.

For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; and God has not taken away his life, but devises means that the banished one be not expelled from him.

15 Nunc igitur veni, ut loquar ad dominum meum regem verbum hoc, præsente populo. Et dixit ancilla tua: Loquar ad regem, si quomodo faciat rex verbum ancillæ suæ.

And now that I am come to speak of this thing to my lord the king, it is because the people have made me afraid; and thy bondmaid said, I will now speak to the king; perhaps the king will perform the request of his handmaid.

16 Et audivit rex, ut liberaret ancillam suam de manu omnium qui volebant de hæreditate Dei delere me, et filium meum simul.

For the king will hear, to deliver his handmaid out of the hand of the man that would destroy me and my son together out of the inheritance of God.

17 Dicat ergo ancilla tua, ut fiat verbum domini mei regis sicut sacrificium. Sicut enim angelus Dei, sic est dominus meus rex, ut nec benedictione, nec maledictione moveatur: unde et Dominus Deus tuus est tecum.

And thy bondmaid said, Let the word of my lord the king now be comfortable; for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and bad; and Jehovah thy God will be with thee.

18 Et respondens rex, dixit ad mulierem: Ne abscondas a me verbum quod te interrogo. Dixitque ei mulier: Loquere, domine mi rex.

And the king answered and said to the woman, Hide not from me, I pray thee, the thing that I shall ask thee. And the woman said, Let my lord the king now speak.

19 Et ait rex: Numquid manus Joab tecum est in omnibus istis? Respondit mulier, et ait: Per salutem animæ tuæ, domine mi rex, nec ad sinistram, nec ad dexteram est ex omnibus his quæ locutus est dominus meus rex: servus enim tuus Joab, ipse præcepit mihi, et ipse posuit in os ancillæ tuæ omnia verba hæc.

And the king said, Is the hand of Joab with thee in all this? And the woman answered and said, [As] thy soul liveth, my lord, O king, there is no turning to the right hand or to the left from aught that my lord the king has spoken; for thy servant Joab, he bade me, and he put all these words into the mouth of thy bondmaid:

20 Ut verterem figuram sermonis hujus, servus tuus Joab præcepit istud: tu autem, domine mi rex, sapiens es, sicut habet sapientiam angelus Dei, ut intelligas omnia super terram.

in order to turn the appearance of the thing has thy servant Joab done this thing; but my lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all that is in the earth.

21 Et ait rex ad Joab: Ecce placatus feci verbum tuum: vade ergo, et revoca puerum Absalom.

And the king said to Joab, Behold now, I have done this thing: so go, bring back the young man Absalom.

22 Cadensque Joab super faciem suam in terram, adoravit, et benedixit regi: et dixit Joab: Hodie intellexit servus tuus quia inveni gratiam in oculis tuis, domine mi rex: fecisti enim sermonem servi tui.

And Joab fell to the ground on his face and bowed himself, and blessed the king; and Joab said, To-day thy servant knows that I have found favour in thy sight, my lord, O king, in that the king has fulfilled the request of his servant.

23 Surrexit ergo Joab et abiit in Gessur, et adduxit Absalom in Jerusalem.

And Joab arose and went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem.

24 Dixit autem rex: Revertatur in domum suam, et faciem meam non videat. Reversus est itaque Absalom in domum suam, et faciem regis non vidit.

And the king said, Let him turn to his own house, and let him not see my face. And Absalom withdrew to his own house, and saw not the king's face.

25 Porro sicut Absalom, vir non erat pulcher in omni Israël, et decorus nimis: a vestigio pedis usque ad verticem non erat in eo ulla macula.

But in all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Absalom for his beauty: from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him.

26 Et quando tondebat capillum (semel autem in anno tondebatur, quia gravabat eum cæsaries), ponderabat capillos capitis sui ducentis siclis, pondere publico.

And when he shaved his head (for it was at every year's end that he shaved it, because it was heavy on him, therefore he shaved it), he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels after the king's weight.

27 Nati sunt autem Absalom filii tres, et filia una nomine Thamar, elegantis formæ.

And to Absalom there were born three sons, and one daughter, whose name was Tamar: she was a woman of a beautiful countenance.

28 Mansitque Absalom in Jerusalem duobus annis, et faciem regis non vidit.

So Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem, and did not see the king's face.

29 Misit itaque ad Joab, ut mitteret eum ad regem: qui noluit venire ad eum. Cumque secundo misisset, et ille noluisset venire ad eum,

Then Absalom sent for Joab, to send him to the king; but he would not come to him; and he sent again the second time, but he would not come.

30 dixit servis suis: Scitis agrum Joab juxta agrum meum, habentem messem hordei: ite igitur, et succendite eum igni. Succenderunt ergo servi Absalom segetem igni. Et venientes servi Joab, scissis vestibus suis, dixerunt: Succenderunt servi Absalom partem agri igni.

Then he said to his servants, See, Joab's allotment is near mine and he has barley there: go and set it on fire. And Absalom's servants set the allotment on fire.

31 Surrexitque Joab, et venit ad Absalom in domum ejus, et dixit: Quare succenderunt servi tui segetem meam igni?

Then Joab arose, and came to Absalom to [his] house, and said to him, Why have thy servants set my allotment on fire?

32 Et respondit Absalom ad Joab: Misi ad te obsecrans ut venires ad me, et mitterem te ad regem, et diceres ei: Quare veni de Gessur? melius mihi erat ibi esse: obsecro ergo ut videam faciem regis: quod si memor est iniquitatis meæ, interficiat me.

And Absalom said to Joab, Behold, I sent to thee, saying, Come hither, that I may send thee to the king, to say, Why am I come from Geshur? it would have been better for me to be there still. And now let me see the king's face; and if there be iniquity in me, let him slay me.

33 Ingressus itaque Joab ad regem, nuntiavit ei omnia: vocatusque est Absalom, et intravit ad regem, et adoravit super faciem terræ coram eo: osculatusque est rex Absalom.

And Joab came to the king, and told him. And he called Absalom, and he came to the king, and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king; and the king kissed Absalom.