2 Samuel 14:17
Ver. 17. Then thine handmaid said, the word of my lord the king shall now be comfortable,.... Or, "for rest" {q}; what will give ease and satisfaction not only to her, but to all the people of Israel, when they shall hear of the king's intention and resolution to bring back Absalom:
for as an angel of God, so [is] my lord the king; as they are very wise, knowing, and understanding creatures, so was David:
to discern good and bad; to hear both the one and the other, and to discern the difference between them, and choose and pursue what is right, as in all other things, so in the present case:therefore the Lord thy God shall be with thee; as to counsel and advise, so to assist in performance, and to prosper and succeed; the Targum is,"the Word of the Lord thy God shall be for thine help.''{q} hxnml "ad requiem", Pagninus, Montanus; "ad tranquillitatem", Tigurine version; "ad quietem", Vatablus, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. 2 Samuel 14:18Ver. 18. Then the king answered and said unto the woman,.... Understanding plainly what she meant by all this, that the case she brought was a feigned one, and that the intention of it was to let him know the sense of the people with respect to Absalom, and the recall of him:hide not from me, I pray thee, the thing that I shall ask thee; he suspected that this was not a scheme of her own, but some considerable person had formed it, and made use of her to execute it, which was what he desired to know:and the woman said, let my lord the king now speak; ask what question he pleases, I am ready to answer. 2 Samuel 14:19Ver. 19. And the king said, [is not] the hand of Joab with thee in all this?.... That is, is not this done by the advice, assistance, and direction of Joab? did not he form this scheme for thee, and direct thee to this method, and put thee upon prosecuting it?and the woman answered and said, [as] thy soul liveth, my lord the king; what I am about to say is as sure as thou art alive; though this may be only a wish that he might long live and be happy; nothing is more desirable than thy valuable life:none can turn to the right hand or the left from ought that my lord the king hath spoken; he has hit upon the truth of the matter; there is no dissimulation or prevarication to be used; the thing cannot be denied; for thy servant Joab he bade me, and put all these words in the mouth of thine handmaid: he sent for me, and laid his commands on me, and directed me what to say to the king, and how to conduct this affair. 2 Samuel 14:20Ver. 20. To fetch about this form of speech hath thy servant Joab done this thing,.... Feigned a story in such form and manner as had been delivered to the king, that it might be accommodated and applied to the case of Absalom, and to transfer it in a figure to the king, to use the apostle's phrase, 1Co 4:8;and my lord [is] wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God; as not only to understand the design of this fable or parable, but of such sagacity and penetration as to find out the author of it; and evento know all [things] that [are] in the earth; either in the whole world, or rather in the land of Israel; and it is to be understood not of all actions natural and moral done by men in it, which would be to ascribe omniscience to him; but of all political things, all things respecting civil government; that he had such a spirit of discerning of men and things, that nothing could be said or done, or scheme formed, but he got intelligence of it, and insight into it; and which was carrying the compliment to a great height. 2 Samuel 14:21Ver. 21. And the king said unto Joab,.... Who was present, or but at a little distance, waiting the issue of this affair:behold now I have done this thing; have agreed to recall Absalom, at the suit of this woman, which thou hast put her upon; or, according to the textual reading, "thou hast done this thing" {r}; contrived this scheme, to let me know the mind of the people with respect to Absalom, or to represent to me the propriety of sending for him home:go, therefore, bring the young man Absalom again; I give my consent to it, and you may send for him, or fetch him as soon as you please; it is thought he calls him a young man, to extenuate his crime, that it was done in youthful heat and passion, and therefore he should pass it over.{r} tyve "fecisti", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. 2 Samuel 14:22Ver. 22. And Joab fell to the ground on his face, and bowed himself,.... Or bowed so low as to the ground, in reverence of the king:and thanked the king; for giving him leave to fetch Absalom home, as if it was a favour done to himself: or "blessed" {s} him; wished all happiness and prosperity might attend him, in consequence of this grant, which he knew would be acceptable to the people:and Joab said, today thy servant knoweth that I have found grace in thy sight, my lord, O king, in that the king hath fulfilled the request of his servant; he might presume upon this, that as the king had given orders at his request to recall Absalom, who had murdered his brother, which was tacitly giving him a pardon; so he would forgive him the murder of Abner, 2Sa 3:30, and think no more of it; since he perceived now, which he had not so clearly perceived before from that time, that he found grace in his sight, or shared in his favour and good will, as now he saw he did.{s} Krbyw "et benedixit", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. 2 Samuel 14:23Ver. 23. So Joab arose and went to Geshur,.... Where Absalom was with his grandfather, the king of the place; see 2Sa 13:37;and brought Absalom to Jerusalem; from thence, which, according to Bunting {t}, was the distance of eighty eight miles from it.{t} Travels, &c. p 146, 148. 2 Samuel 14:24Ver. 24. And the king said,.... Very probably to Joab, when he informed him of Absalom's being come to Jerusalem:let him turn to his own house; depart from the king's palace, where Joab had brought him, and go to his own house, which was in Jerusalem; for here he had one before he fled to Geshur; see 2Sa 13:20;and let him not see my face; which he ordered, partly to show his detestation of the crime he had been guilty of, and some remaining resentment in his mind at him on account of it; and partly for his credit among some of the people at least, who might think it was a crime so great as not to go unpunished, though others were of a different mind; and also for the greater humiliation of Absalom, who, the king might think, had not been sufficiently humbled for his sin, or had not truly repented of it:so Absalom returned to his own house, and saw not the king's face; in obedience to his father's orders. 2 Samuel 14:25Ver. 25. But in all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Absalom for his beauty,.... Which is observed to account in some measure for the interest he had in the affections of the people, both now and hereafter:from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him; not any spot, freckle, wart, scurf, or scab; nothing deficient or superfluous in him; no disproportion of parts, nor any disagreeable feature; but an entire symmetry, and perfect comeliness, which made him very respectable. The Talmudists {u} make him to be of a gigantic stature.{u} T. Bab. Niddah, fol. 24. 2. 2 Samuel 14:26Ver. 26. And when he polled his head,.... Or cut off the hair of it; for that was one thing, a good head of hair which he had, that made him look very comely and beautiful:for it was at every year's end that he polled [it]; or cut it off once a year; but the Jews say {w} he was a perpetual Nazarite:because [the hair] was heavy upon him, and therefore he polled it; it grew so very thick and long in one year's time, that he was obliged to cut it; and what might add to the weight of it, its being oiled and powdered; and, as some say, with the dust of gold, to make it look yellow and glistering:he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels, after the king's weight; and a shekel being the weight of half an ounce of avoirdupois weight, as Bishop Cumberland {x} has shown from various writers, the weight of his hair must be an hundred ounces; which was a very great weight indeed on his head. Some think that the price it was sold at, and not the weight of it, is meant; which they suppose was sold to women for ornament about their temples, and the money given either to the poor, or for the use of the sanctuary; and reckoning a shekel at two shillings and sixpence, as some do, the value of it came to twenty five pounds of our money; but the above mentioned writer {y} reduces it to about two shillings and four pence farthing; which makes the value somewhat less; but inasmuch as it is not so probable that a person of such rank should sell his hair, nor does it appear that any, such use was made of hair in those times as suggested; and this being said to be according to the king's weight or stone, by which all weights were to be regulated, it is best to understand this of the weight, and not of the price of his hair; which, according to Josephus {z}, was five pounds; but, according to the above account, it must be six pounds and a quarter. The Jews say {a} this weight was according to what the inhabitants of Tiberias and Zippore used, but do not tell us what it was.{w} Maimon. & Bartenora in Misn. Nazir, c 1. sect. 2. Bemidbar Rabba, sect. 9. fol. 194. 3. Gloss. T. Bab. Sotah, fol. 10. 2. {x} Scripture Weights and Measures, ch. 4. p. 103. {y} Ibid. p. 104. {z} Antiqu. l. 7. c. 8. sect. 5. {a} T. Bab. Sotah, fol. 10. 2. 2 Samuel 14:27Ver. 27. And unto Absalom there were born three sons,.... Who very probably died young; and the rather it may be thought so, since their names are not given, and more especially since it is said that Absalom had no sons, and therefore erected a pillar to keep up the remembrance of his name; unless it can be thought that that was set up before he had any sons, which is not so likely; see 2Sa 18:18;and one daughter, whose name [was] Tamar; and whom he named after his sister Tamar, who was ravished by Amnon; the Septuagint version in some copies adds,"and she became the wife of Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, and bore to him Abia;''and so says Josephus {b}; see 1Ki 15:22;she was a woman of a fair countenance; as was her aunt, after whom she was named, 2Sa 13:1; by this it appears that she lived to a woman's estate, though the sons of Absalom died young.{b} Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 7. c. 8. sect. 5.) 2 Samuel 14:28Ver. 28. So Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem,.... After his return from Geshur:and saw not the king's face; all that time; which was owing either to the king's resentment of the fact committed by him, or to state policy. 2 Samuel 14:29Ver. 29. Therefore Absalom sent for Joab, to have sent him to the king,.... To introduce him into his presence, being uneasy to be thus confined at his own house, and not suffered to come to court:but he would not come to him; knowing the king's mind, and being unwilling to disoblige him by a troublesome solicitation:and when he sent again the second time, he would not come; knowing his business with him; and perhaps between the first time of his sending and this he had sounded the king about it, and found it was not agreeable to him to admit him to access to him as yet. 2 Samuel 14:30Ver. 30. Therefore he said unto his servants,.... That did his business for him in the field, in keeping his flocks, and tilling his ground:see Joab's field is near mine: for great personages in those days attended to husbandry:and he hath barley there, go and set it on fire; it being ripe, and so capable of being fired, and therefore must be some time in March or April, when barley harvest began; he served Joab as Samson did the Philistines, Jud 15:4; which shows him to be a bold, and revengeful, and ungrateful man, to use his friend, and the general of the king's army, after this manner:and Absalom's servants set the field on fire; as their master had bid them, and which is no wonder; for as they murdered Ammon at his command, they would not stop at burning Joab's field, when he bid them do it; see 2Sa 13:28. 2 Samuel 14:31Ver. 31. Then Joab arose, and came to Absalom unto [his] house,.... Provoked at what he had done, and to know the reason of it; and which was answering Absalom's end:and said unto him, wherefore have thy servants set my field on fire? which was not only injurious to his property, but a malicious action. 2 Samuel 14:32Ver. 32. And Absalom answered Joab,.... Neither denying the fact, nor being ashamed of it, nor asking pardon for it; but endeavouring to vindicate it, by giving a reason as he thought sufficient for it:behold, I sent unto thee, saying, come hither, that I may send thee to the king; which was assuming great authority over a person in such an high office as Joab was; had he been king, he could not have used more, to send for him, and command his attendance, and send him on what errand he thought fit, as here:to say, wherefore am I come from Geshur? why did the king send for me? why did not he let me alone where I was? to what purpose am I brought hither, since I am not admitted to court?[it had been] good for me [to have been] there still; and better, where he lived in a king's court, and had honour and respect shown him, suitable to his rank; and where he had his liberty, and could go where he pleased; and where this mark of his father's displeasure, not suffering him to see his face, would not be so manifest as here, and so less disgraceful to him:now therefore let me see the king's face; that is, speak to the king, and intercede for me, that I may see his face; which he was so importunate for, not from affection to the king; but that being at court, he might be able to ingratiate himself among the courtiers and others, and carry the point which his ambition prompted him to, supplant the king, and seize the crown:and if there be [any] iniquity in me, let him kill me; signifying he chose to die, rather than to live such a life he did: but of being put to death he was not much afraid; presuming partly upon his innocence, thinking that the killing of his brother was no crime, because he was the aggressor, had ravished his sister, and for it ought to die; and since justice was delayed, and not done him, he had committed no iniquity in putting him to death; and partly on his father's affection to him, which he was sensible of; at least he had reason to believe he would not now put him to death; for had he designed that, he would have ordered it before now, since he had had him so long in his hands. 2 Samuel 14:33Ver. 33. So Joab came to the king, and told him,.... What Absalom had said to him:and when he had called for Absalom; sent messengers to his house to order him to come to him:he came to the king, and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king; made a very reverend bow to him, according to the custom of those times, throwing himself at his feet in great submission to him:and the king kissed Absalom; in token of his reconciliation to him; which laid the foundation of his after troubles from him, related in the following chapters.
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.