And Joabsent to Tekoah, and fetchedthence a wisewoman, and saidunto her, I praythee, feignthyself to be a mourner, and put on now mourningapparel, and anoint not thyselfwith oil, but be as a womanthat had a longtimemourned for the dead:
And, behold, the wholefamily is risenagainstthinehandmaid, and theysaid, Deliver him thatsmote his brother, that we may kill him, for the life of his brotherwhom he slew; and we willdestroy the heiralso: and so theyshallquench my coalwhich is left, and shall not leave to my husbandneithername nor remainderupon the earth.
Thensaid she, I praythee, let the kingremember the LORD thy God, thatthouwouldest not suffer the revengers of blood to destroy any more, lesttheydestroy my son. And he said, As the LORDliveth, thereshall not one hair of thy son fall to the earth.
And the womansaid, Whereforethenhastthouthoughtsuch a thingagainst the people of God? for the kingdothspeakthisthing as one which is faulty, in that the kingdoth not fetchhomeagain his banished.
For we mustneeds die, and are as waterspilt on the ground, whichcannot be gathered up again; neitherdoth God respect any person: yet doth he devisemeans, that his banished be not expelledfrom him.
Now thereforethat I am come to speak of thisthingunto my lord the king, it is because the peoplehavemade me afraid: and thy handmaidsaid, I will now speakunto the king; it may be that the kingwillperform the request of his handmaid.
Thenthinehandmaidsaid, The word of my lord the kingshall now be comfortable: for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discerngood and bad: therefore the LORD thy God will be withthee.
Then the kinganswered and saidunto the woman, Hide not from me, I praythee, the thingthat I shall ask thee. And the womansaid, Let my lord the king now speak.
And the kingsaid, Is not the hand of Joabwiththee in all this? And the womananswered and said, As thy soulliveth, my lord the king, none can turn to the righthand or to the leftfromoughtthat my lord the kinghathspoken: for thy servantJoab, he bade me, and he put all thesewords in the mouth of thinehandmaid:
To fetchaboutthisform of speechhath thy servantJoabdonethisthing: and my lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all thingsthat are in the earth.
And Joabfell to the ground on his face, and bowedhimself, and thanked the king: and Joabsaid, To day thy servantknoweththat I havefoundgrace in thy sight, my lord, O king, in that the kinghathfulfilled the request of his servant.
But in all Israelthere was none to be so muchpraised as Absalom for his beauty: from the sole of his footeven to the crown of his headthere was no blemish in him.
And when he polled his head, (for it was at everyyear’s end that he polled it: because the hair was heavy on him, therefore he polled it:) he weighed the hair of his head at two hundredshekelsafter the king’sweight.
Therefore he saidunto his servants, See, Joab’sfield is nearmine, and he hathbarleythere; go and set it on fire. And Absalom’sservants set the field on fire.
And AbsalomansweredJoab, Behold, I sentuntothee, saying, Comehither, that I may sendthee to the king, to say, Wherefore am I comefromGeshur? it had beengood for me to havebeentherestill: now therefore let me see the king’sface; and if there be any iniquity in me, let him kill me.
So Joabcame to the king, and told him: and when he had called for Absalom, he came to the king, and bowedhimself on his face to the groundbefore the king: and the kingkissedAbsalom.