Joab Arranges for Absalom's Return
1 Joab knew that King David missed Absalom very much, 2 so he sent for a clever woman who lived in Tekoa. When she arrived, he said to her, “Pretend that you are in mourning; put on your mourning clothes, and don't comb your hair. Act like a woman who has been in mourning for a long time. 3 Then go to the king and say to him what I tell you to say.” Then Joab told her what to say.
4 The woman went to the king, bowed down to the ground in respect, and said, “Help me, Your Majesty!”
5 “What do you want?” he asked her.
“I am a poor widow, sir,” she answered. “My husband is dead. 6 Sir, I had two sons, and one day they got into a quarrel out in the fields, where there was no one to separate them, and one of them killed the other. 7 And now, sir, all my relatives have turned against me and are demanding that I hand my son over to them, so that they can kill him for murdering his brother. If they do this, I will be left without a son. They will destroy my last hope and leave my husband without a son to keep his name alive.”
8 “Go back home,” the king answered, “and I will take care of the matter.”
9 “Your Majesty,” she said, “whatever you do, my family and I will take the blame; you and the royal family are innocent.”
10 The king replied, “If anyone threatens you, bring him to me, and he will never bother you again.”
11 She said, “Your Majesty, please pray to the Lord your God, so that my relative who is responsible for avenging the death of my son will not commit a greater crime by killing my other son.”
“I promise by the living Lord,” David replied, “that your son will not be harmed in the least.”
12 “Please, Your Majesty, let me say just one more thing,” the woman said.
“All right,” he answered.
13 She said to him, “Why have you done such a wrong to God's people? You have not allowed your own son to return from exile, and so you have condemned yourself by what you have just said. 14 We will all die; we are like water spilled on the ground, which can't be gathered again. Even God does not bring the dead back to life, but the king can at least find a way to bring a man back from exile. 15 Now, Your Majesty, the reason I have come to speak to you is that the people threatened me, and so I said to myself that I would speak to you in the hope that you would do what I ask. 16 I thought you would listen to me and save me from the one who is trying to kill my son and me and so remove us from the land God gave his people. 17 I said to myself that your promise, sir, would make me safe, because the king is like God's angel and can distinguish good from evil. May the Lord your God be with you!”
18 The king answered, “I'm going to ask you a question, and you must tell me the whole truth.”
“Ask me anything, Your Majesty,” she answered.
19 “Did Joab put you up to this?” he asked her.
She answered, “I swear by all that is sacred, Your Majesty, that there is no way to avoid answering your question. It was indeed your officer Joab who told me what to do and what to say. 20 But he did it in order to straighten out this whole matter. Your Majesty is as wise as the angel of God and knows everything that happens.”
21 Later on the king said to Joab, “I have decided to do what you want. Go and get the young man Absalom and bring him back here.”
22 Joab threw himself to the ground in front of David in respect, and said, “God bless you, Your Majesty! Now I know that you are pleased with me, because you have granted my request.” 23 Then he got up and went to Geshur and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem. 24 The king, however, gave orders that Absalom should not live in the palace. “I don't want to see him,” the king said. So Absalom lived in his own house and did not appear before the king.
Absalom Is Reconciled to David
25 There was no one in Israel as famous for his good looks as Absalom; he had no defect from head to toe. 26 His hair was very thick, and he had to cut it once a year, when it grew too long and heavy. It would weigh about five pounds according to the royal standard of weights. 27 Absalom had three sons and one daughter named Tamar, a very beautiful woman.
28 Absalom lived two years in Jerusalem without seeing the king. 29 Then he sent for Joab, to ask him to go to the king for him; but Joab would not come. Again Absalom sent for him, and again Joab refused to come. 30 So Absalom said to his servants, “Look, Joab's field is next to mine, and it has barley growing in it. Go and set fire to it.” So they went and set the field on fire.
31 Joab went to Absalom's house and demanded, “Why did your servants set fire to my field?”
32 Absalom answered, “Because you wouldn't come when I sent for you. I wanted you to go to the king and ask for me: ‘Why did I leave Geshur and come here? It would have been better for me to have stayed there.’” And Absalom went on, “I want you to arrange for me to see the king, and if I'm guilty, then let him put me to death.”
33 So Joab went to King David and told him what Absalom had said. The king sent for Absalom, who went to him and bowed down to the ground in front of him. The king welcomed him with a kiss.
Joab ta longekidha egaluko lyaAbsalom
1 Joab, omuna gwaZeruia, okwa tseya kutya omwenyo gwaDavid ogwa kanyatela kuAbsalom, 2 onkee a tumu komukiintu omunandunge a kala muTekoa. Sho a thiki, Joab okwe mu lombwele a ti: “Ifethitha omuntu ta lili oosa; zala oonguwo dholuhodhi ngoye ino kamula omafufu goye. Kala wa fa omukulukadhi a kala moosa ethimbo ele. 3 Nena inda komukwaniilwa e to ti kuye shoka tii ku lombwele, u shi tye.” Nena Joab okwe mu lombwele shoka ta ka tya.
4 Omukulukadhi okwa yi komukwaniilwa, okwi inyongamene pevi, e mu simaneke e ta ti: “Nkeyama, kwatha ndje.”
5 Omukwaniilwa okwe mu pula a ti: “Owa hala shike?”
Omukulukadhi okwa yamukula a ti: “Tatekulu, ngame omuselekadhi ohepele. Omusamane gwandje okwa sa. 6 Tatekulu, onda li ndi na aamwandjemati yaali. Esiku limwe oya tamanana melundu, nokakwa li ngoka te ya hangukununa. Gumwe okwa dhipaga mukwawo. 7 Ngashingeyi, tatekulu, aakwetu otaa konenene ndje e taa pula ndje, ndi ya pe omumwandje, opo ye mu dhipage molwashoka a dhipagele mumwayina. Ngele oye shi ningi, nena ote kala po kaandi na we munona. Otaa ka kutha po etegameno lyandje alihe e taa kaleke omusamane gwandje keehe na munona, ngoka ta thigi ko ando edhina lye kombanda yevi.”
8 Omukwaniilwa okwa yamukula a ti: “lnda kegumbo, iinima mbika otandi ke yi sila oshimpwiyu.”
9 Omukulukadhi okwa ti kuye: “Nkeyama, meyono ndika tse nezimo lyetu otatu taamba ombedhi; ngoye nezimo lyoye ekwaniilwa kali na ndjo.”
10 Omukwaniilwa okwa yamukula a ti: “Ngele ope na ngoka te ku hindi, mu eta kungame, noite ke ku piyaganeka we.”
11 Omukulukadhi okwa ti: “Nkeyama, galikana Omuwa Kalunga koye, opo omunezimo lyandje ngoka ta konenene eso lyomumwandje, kaa longe iihuna yi thike mpoka, a dhipage po omumwandje omukwawo.”
David okwa yamukula a ti: “Otandi uvaneke kOmuwa omunamwenyo kutya omumwoye ita ningwa nando osha.”
12 Omukulukadhi okwa ti: “Nkeyama, kwatha ndje, ndi tumbule sha natango.”
Omukwaniilwa okwa yamukula a ti: “Eewa!”
13 Omukulukadhi okwa ti kuye: “Omolwashike wa ningi epuko li thike mpoka kaantu yaKalunga? Ino pitika, nando omumwoyelela, a galuke mo muupongo. Osho ngeyi wi ipangula ngoye mwene, sho wa popi oohapu dha tya ngaaka. 14 Atuhe otatu ka sa, otwa fa omeya taga tilwa pevi go itaga vulu okugongelwa ishewe. Nando nee Kalunga ita yumudha aasi, ya kale ye na omwenyo, oshike omukwaniilwa itaa vulu okumona ondjila yokugalula omuntu muupongo? 15 Nkeyama, onde ya okupopya nangoye, oshoka aantu oya tilitha ndje. Onda dhiladhila, nandi ka popye nomukwaniilwa. Ngiika ota ningi shoka te pula. 16 Ota vulu okupulakena ndje nokuhupitha ndje miikaha yaangoka a hala oku tu dhipaga tse nomumwandje, opo e tu kuthe mevi ndika Kalunga e li pa aantu ye. 17 Onda dhiladhila kutya oohapu dhoye, tatekulu, otadhi gundjilike ndje, oshoka omukwaniilwa okwa fa omuyengeli gwaKalunga nota vulu okuyoolola uuwanawa muuwinayi. Omuwa Kalunga koye na kale pamwe nangoye!”
18 Omukwaniilwa okwa yamukula a ti: “Otandi ku pula epulo, nou na okulombwela ndje oshili ayihe.”
Omukulukadhi okwa ti: “Nkeyama, pula ndje shaa shoka.”
19 David okwe mu pula a ti: “Oohapu ndhika owe dhi lombwelwa kuJoab?”
Omukulukadhi okwa yamukula a ti: “Nkeyama, otandi gana kOmuwa kutya kape na ompito okuhenuka epulo lyoye. Eeno, elenga lyoye Joab olyo lya lombwele ndje shoka ndi na okupopya. 20 Ihe okwe shi ningi, opo a opaleke oshinima shika. Nkeyama, ngoye omunandunge wa fa omuyengeli gwaKalunga nowa tseya ayihe tayi ka ningwa.”
21 Konima omukwaniilwa okwa ti kuJoab: “Onda tokola okugwanitha shoka wa hala. Inda, u ka tale omugundjuka Absalom, u mu shunithe huka.”
22 Joab okwi ihata pevi koshipala shaDavid, e mu simaneke e ta ti: “Nkeyama, Kalunga ne ku yambeke! Ngashingeyi ondi shi shi kutya ou na ombili nangame, oshoka owa hala omaindilo gandje.” 23 Nena okwa yambuka po e ta yi kuGeshur e ta galulile Absalom kuJerusalem. 24 Ihe omukwaniilwa okwa li inaa hala, Absalom a kale muuwa. Okwa li ihee mu ti we meho. Onkee Absalom okwa kala megumbo lye mwene noina holoka nando okoshipala shomukwaniilwa.
Absalom ta hangana naDavid
25 MuIsrael kamwa li nando omuntu a simana a shitika ngaashi Absalom; ka li e na oshipwe okuza komutse sigo ompadhi. 26 Omafufu ge oga li ge na ondjundo nokwe ga kululitha ko omumvo kehe; ngele oga koka ga ninga omale nomadhigu. Ohaga vihwa ge vule ookilograma mbali pandjeleko yomukwaniilwa. 27 Absalom okwa li e na oyana aamati yatatu nomukadhona gumwe edhina lye Tamar, omukiintu a shitika.
28 Absalom okwa kala omimvo mbali muJerusalem inaa mona omukwaniilwa. 29 Nena okwa tumu kuJoab, opo e mu tume komukwaniilwa, ihe Joab ine ya ko. Absalom okwa tumununa ko ishewe, ihe Joab okwa tindi okuya. 30 Nena Absalom okwa ti kaapiya ye: “Taleni, epya lyaJoab olya tegama nolyandje noli na iishokelya. Indeni, mu ke li tomeke omulilo.” Oyo noya yi e taye li tomeke omulilo.
31 Nena Joab okwa yi kaandjaAbsalom e te mu pula ta ti: “Omolwashike aapiya yoye ya fike po epya lyandje?”
32 Absalom okwa yamukula: “Oshoka inoo ya, nando nde ku tumine elaka, u ye. Onda halele u ye komukwaniilwa, u mu pule kombinga yandje u tye: ‘Omolwashike nda zi muGeshur, ndi ye huka? Ando nda kalele natango nkoka!’ ” Absalom okwa tsikile a ti: “Onda hala u longekidhile ndje ondjila, ndi ye komukwaniilwa. Ngele ondi na ondjo, nena na dhipage ndje.”
33 Joab okwa yi komukwaniilwa David e te mu lombwele shoka Absalom a ti. Omukwaniilwa nokwi ithana Absalom, ngoka e ya kuye e ti inyongamene pevi koshipala she. Omukwaniilwa okwe mu taamba nombili e te mu thipi komilungu.
