2 Samuel 14

1 Now it was clear to Joab, the son of Zeruiah, that the king's heart was turning to Absalom.

Forsothe Joab, the sone of Saruye, vndirstood, that the herte of the kyng was turned to Absolon;

2 And Joab sent to Tekoa and got from there a wise woman, and said to her, Now make yourself seem like one given up to grief, and put on the clothing of sorrow, not using any sweet oil for your body, but looking like one who for a long time has been weeping for the dead:

and he sente to Thecua, and took fro thennus a wise womman, and he seide to hir, Feyne thee to morene, and be thou clothid with clooth of duyl, and be thou anoyntid with oile, that thou be as a womman by morenynge `now in ful myche tyme a deed man.

3 And come to the king and say these words to him. So Joab gave her words to say.

And thou schalt entre to the kyng, and thou schalt speke to hym siche wordis. Sotheli Joab puttide the wordis in hir mouth.

4 And the woman of Tekoa came to the king, and falling on her face, gave him honour and said, Give me help, O king.

Therfor whanne the womman of Thecua hadde entrid to the kyng, sche felde bifor hym on the erthe, and worschipide, and seide, A! kyng, kepe me.

5 And the king said to her, What is your trouble? And her answer was, Truly I am a widow, and my husband is dead.

And the kyng seide to hir, What hast thou of cause? And sche answeride, Alas! Y am a womman widewe, for myn hosebonde is deed;

6 And I had two sons, and the two of them had a fight in the field, and there was no one to come between them, and one with a blow put the other to death.

and tweyne sones weren of thin handmayde, whiche debatiden ayens hem silf in the feeld, and `noon was that myyte forbede hem, and oon smoot `the tother, and killide hym.

7 And now all the family is turned against me, your servant, saying, Give up him who was the cause of his brother's death, so that we may put him to death in payment for the life of his brother, whose life he took; and we will put an end to the one who will get the heritage: so they will put out my last burning coal, and my husband will have no name or offspring on the face of the earth.

And lo! al the kynrede risith ayens thin handmayde, and seith, Yyue thou hym that killide his brothir, that we sle hym for the lijf of his brother whom he killide, and that we do awei the eir; and thei seken to quenche my sparcle whych is lefte, that name dwelle not to myn hosebonde, and relikis, `ethir remenauntis, be not to him on erthe.

8 And the king said to the woman, Go to your house and I will give orders about this.

And the kyng seide to the womman, Go in to thin hows, and Y schal comaunde for thee.

9 And the woman of Tekoa said to the king, My lord, O king, may the sin be on me and on my family, and may the king and the seat of his kingdom be clear of sin!

And the womman of Thecua seide to the kyng, My lord the kyng, this wickidnesse be on me, and on the hows of my fadir; forsothe the kyng and his trone be innocent.

10 And the king said, If anyone says anything to you, make him come to me, and he will do you no more damage.

And the kyng seide, Brynge thou hym to me, that ayenseith thee, and he schal no more adde that he touche thee.

11 Then she said, Let the king keep in mind the Lord your God, so that he who gives punishment for blood may be kept back from further destruction and that no one may send death on my son. And he said, By the living Lord, not a hair of your son's head will come to the earth.

And sche seide, The kyng haue mynde on his Lord God, and the nexte men of blood to take veniaunce be not multiplied, and `thei schulen not sle my sone. And the kyng seide, The Lord lyueth, for noon of the heeris of thi sone schal falle on the erthe.

12 Then the woman said, Will the king let his servant say one word more? And he said, Say on.

Therfor the womman seide, Thin handmayde speke a word to my lord the kyng. And the kyng seide, Speke thou.

13 And the woman said, Why have you had such a thought about the people of God? (for in saying these very words the king has put himself in the wrong because he has not taken back the one whom he sent far away.)

And the womman seide, Whi `thouytist thou sich a thing ayens the puple of God? and the kyng spak this word, that he do synne, and brynge not ayen his sone cast out?

14 For death comes to us all, and we are like water drained out on the earth, which it is not possible to take up again; and God will not take away the life of the man whose purpose is that he who has been sent away may not be completely cut off from him.

Alle we dyen, and as watris that schulen not turne ayen, we sliden in to erthe; and God nyl that a soule perische, but he withdrawith, and thenkith lest he perische outirly, which is cast awey.

15 And now it is my fear of the people which has made me come to say these words to my lord the king: and your servant said, I will put my cause before the king, and it may be that he will give effect to my request.

Now therfor come thou, that Y speke to my lord the kyng this word, while the puple is present; and thin handmaide seide, Y schal speke to the kyng, if in ony maner the kyng do the word of his handmayde.

16 For the king will give ear, and take his servant out of the power of the man whose purpose is the destruction of me and my son together from the heritage of God.

And the kyng herde the wordis, that he schulde delyuere his handmayde fro the hondis of alle men, that wolden do awei me, and my sone to gidere, fro the eritage of the Lord.

17 Then your servant said, May the word of my lord the king give me peace! for my lord the king is as the angel of God in his hearing of good and bad: and may the Lord your God be with you!

Therfor thin hand mayde seie, that the word of my lord the kyng be maad as sacrifice, `that is, that the sentence youun of hym be plesaunt to God, as sacrifice plesith God; for as an aungel of the Lord, so is my lord the kyng, that he be not mouyd bi blessyng nether bi cursyng. Wherfor and thi Lord God is with thee.

18 Then the king said to the woman, Now give me an answer to the question I am going to put to you; keep nothing back. And the woman said, Let my lord the king say on.

And the kyng answeride, and seide to the womman, Hide thou not fro me the word which Y axe thee. And the womman seide to hym, Speke thou, my lord the kyng.

19 And the king said, Is not the hand of Joab with you in all this? And the woman in answer said, By the life of your soul, my lord the king, it is not possible for anyone to go to the right hand or to the left from anything said by the king: your servant Joab gave me orders, and put all these words in my mouth:

And the kyng seide, Whether the hond of Joab is with thee in alle these thingis? The womman answeride, and seide, Bi the helthe of thi soule, my lord the kyng, nether to the left side nether to the riyt side is ony thing of alle these thingis, whiche my lord the kyng spak. For thi seruaunt Joab hym silf comaundide to me, and he puttide alle these wordis in to the mouth of thin handmaide,

20 This he did, hoping that the face of this business might be changed: and my lord is wise, with the wisdom of the angel of God, having knowledge of everything on earth.

that Y schulde turne the figure of this word; for thi seruaunt Joab comaundide this thing. Forsothe thou, my lord the kyng, art wijs, as an aungel of God hath wisdom, that thou vnderstonde alle thingis on erthe.

21 And the king said to Joab, See now, I will do this thing: go then and Come back with the young man Absalom.

And the kyng seide to Joab, Lo! Y am plesid, and Y haue do thi word; therfor go thou, and ayen clepe thou the child Absolon.

22 Then Joab, falling down on his face on the earth, gave the king honour and blessing; and Joab said, Today it is clear to your servant that I have grace in your eyes, my lord king, because the king has given effect to the request of his servant.

And Joab felde on his face to erthe, and worschipide, and blesside the kyng; and Joab seide, Thi seruaunt hath vndirstonde to dai, that Y foond grace in thin iyen, my lord the kyng, for thou hast do the word of thi seruaunt.

23 So Joab got up and went to Geshur and came back again to Jerusalem with Absalom.

Therfor Joab roos, and yede in to Gessur, and brouyte Absolon in to Jerusalem.

24 And the king said, Let him go to his house, but let him not see my face. So Absalom went back to his house and did not see the face of the king.

Forsothe the kyng seide, Turne he ayen in to his hows, and se not he my face.

25 Now in all Israel there was no one so greatly to be praised for his beautiful form as Absalom: from his feet to the crown of his head he was completely beautiful.

Therfor Absolon turnede ayen in to his hows, and siy not the face of the kyng. Sotheli no man in al Israel was so fair as Absolon, and ful comeli; fro the step of the foot `til to the top, `no wem was in hym;

26 And when he had his hair cut, (which he did at the end of every year, because of the weight of his hair; ) the weight of the hair was two hundred shekels by the king's weight.

and in as myche as `he clippide more the heeris, bi so myche thei wexiden more; forsothe he was clippid onys in the yeer, for the heer greuede him. And whanne he clippide the heeris, he weiyide `the heeris of his heed bi twei hundrid siclis with comyn weiyte.

27 And Absalom was the father of three sons and of one daughter named Tamar, who was very beautiful.

Forsothe thre sones, and a douyter, Thamar bi name, of `excellent forme weren borun to Absolon.

28 For two full years Absalom was living in Jerusalem without ever seeing the face of the king.

And Absolon dwellide in Jerusalem twei yeer, and he siy not the face of the kyng.

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

Therfor he sente to Joab, that he schulde sende hym to the kyng; which Joab nolde come to hym. And whanne he hadde sent the secounde tyme, and Joab nolde come,

30 So he said to his servants, See, Joab's field is near mine, and he has barley in it; go and put it on fire. And Absalom's servants put the field on fire.

Absolon seide to hise seruauntis, Ye knowen the feeld of Joab bisidis my feeld hauynge ripe barli; therfor go ye, and brenne ye it with fier. Therfor the seruauntis of Absolon brenten the corn with fier. And the seruauntis of Joab camen with her clothis to-rent, and seiden, The seruauntis

31 Then Joab came to Absalom in his house and said to him, Why have your servants put my field on fire?

of Absolon han brent the part of feeld bi fier. And Joab roos, and cam to Absolon in to his hows, and seide, Whi

32 And Absalom's answer was, See, I sent to you saying, Come here, so that I may send you to the king to say, Why have I come back from Geshur? it would be better for me to be there still: let me now see the king's face, and if there is any sin in me, let him put me to death.

han thi seruauntis brent my corn bi fier? And Absolon answeride to Joab, Y sente to thee, and bisouyte that thou schuldist come to me, and that Y schulde sende thee to the kyng, that thou schuldist seie to hym, Whi cam Y fro Gessur? It was betere to me to be there; therfor Y biseche, that Y se the face of the kyng, that if he is myndeful of my wickidnesse, sle he me.

33 So Joab went to the king and said these words to him: and when the king had sent for him, Absalom came, and went down on his face on the earth before the king: and the king gave him a kiss.

Joab entride to the kyng, and telde to hym. And Absolon was clepid, and entryde to the kyng, and worschipide on the face of erthe bifor hym, and the kyng kisside Absolon.