Joab, son of Zeruiah, realized that the king's heart was focused on Absalom.

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

So Joab sent to Tekoa and brought a wise woman from there. He said to her, "Please act like you are in mourning. Put on mourning clothes and do not anoint yourself with oil. Behave as if you have been mourning for the dead for a long time.

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

Then go to the king and speak to him as I instruct you." And Joab put the words into her mouth.

And come to the king, and speak on this manner unto him. So Joab put the words in her mouth.

When the woman from Tekoa came to the king, she fell on her face to the ground, prostrated herself, and said, "Help, O king!"

And when the woman of Tekoah spake to the king, she fell on her face to the ground, and did obeisance, and said, Help, O king.

The king said to her, "What is troubling you?" She replied, "Truly, I am a widow; my husband has died.

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

Your servant had two sons. They were fighting in the field, with no one there to separate them, and one of them struck the other and killed him.

And thy handmaid 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.

Now the whole family has risen against your servant. They say, 'Hand over the one who killed his brother so that we may put him to death for taking his brother’s life. We want to destroy the heir as well.' They will extinguish my remaining ember, leaving neither name nor remnant for my husband on the earth.

And, behold, the whole family is risen against thine handmaid, and they said, Deliver him that smote his brother, that we may kill him, for the life of his brother whom he slew; and we will destroy the heir also: and so they shall quench my coal which is left, and shall not leave to my husband neither name nor remainder upon the earth.

Then the king said to the woman, "Go home, and I will issue a command on your behalf."

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

But the woman from Tekoa replied to the king, "My lord the king, let the guilt rest on me and on my father’s house. The king and his throne will be guiltless."

And the woman of Tekoah said unto the king, My lord, O king, the iniquity be on me, and on my father's house: and the king and his throne be guiltless.

The king replied, "If anyone says anything to you, bring them to me, and they will not bother you again."

And the king said, Whosoever saith ought unto thee, bring him to me, and he shall not touch thee any more.

She said, "Let the king swear by the LORD your God that the avenger of blood will not continue to destroy and that they will not eliminate my son." The king said, "As surely as the LORD lives, not one hair of your son’s head will fall to the ground."

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

Then the woman said, "Please let your servant speak a word to my lord the king." He said, "Speak."

Then the woman said, Let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak one word unto my lord the king. And he said, Say on.

The woman said, "Why have you devised such a thing against the people of God? By making this decision, the king is convicting himself for not bringing back his own banished son."

And the woman said, Wherefore then hast thou thought such a thing against the people of God? for the king doth speak this thing as one which is faulty, in that the king doth not fetch home again his banished.

We must all die; we are like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. Yet God does not take away life, but devises ways so that a banished person may not remain estranged from Him.

For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person: yet doth he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him.

Now I have come to speak this word to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid. Your servant thought, 'I will speak to the king—perhaps the king will grant the request of his servant.

Now therefore that I am come to speak of this thing unto my lord the king, it is because the people have made me afraid: and thy handmaid said, I will now speak unto the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his handmaid.

For the king will hear me and deliver me from the hand of the man who seeks to destroy me and my son together out of the inheritance of God.'

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.

And your servant thought, 'May the word of my lord the king bring me peace, for my lord the king is like an angel of God in discerning good and evil. May the LORD your God be with you.'

Then thine handmaid said, The word of my lord the king shall now be comfortable: for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and bad: therefore the LORD thy God will be with thee.

Then the king said to the woman, "Do not hide anything I ask you." The woman said, "Let my lord the king speak."

Then the king answered and said unto 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.

The king asked, "Is the hand of Joab with you in all of this?" The woman answered, "As surely as you live, my lord the king, it is true. Your servant Joab instructed me and put all these words into the mouth of your servant."

And the king said, Is not the hand of Joab with thee in all this? And the woman answered and said, As thy soul liveth, my lord the king, none can turn to the right hand or to the left from ought that my lord the king hath spoken: for thy servant Joab, he bade me, and he put all these words in the mouth of thine handmaid:

Joab did this to shape the course of events, but my lord the king is as wise as an angel of God in knowing everything that happens in the land."

To fetch about this form of speech hath thy servant Joab done this thing: and my lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the earth.

The king said to Joab, "Very well, I will do it. Go, bring back the young man Absalom."

And the king said unto Joab, Behold now, I have done this thing: go therefore, bring the young man Absalom again.

Joab fell with his face to the ground in homage, and he blessed the king. Joab said, "Today your servant knows that I have found favor in your eyes, my lord the king, because the king has granted his servant’s request."

And Joab fell to the ground on his face, and bowed himself, and thanked the king: and Joab said, To day 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.

Then Joab arose, went to Geshur, and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem.

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

But the king said, "He must go to his own house; he must not see my face." So Absalom went to his own house and did not see the king’s face.

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

In all of Israel, there was no man as handsome and highly praised as Absalom. From the sole of his foot to the crown of his head, there was no blemish in him.

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.

When he shaved his head—an event that occurred at the end of every year because his hair became heavy for him, so he shaved it—he would weigh the hair of his head, and it weighed two hundred shekels by the royal standard.

And when he polled his head, (for it was at every year'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 hundred shekels after the king's weight.

To Absalom, three sons and one daughter were born. His daughter’s name was Tamar, and she was a beautiful woman.

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

Absalom lived in Jerusalem for two years without seeing the king’s face.

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

Then Absalom sent for Joab to send him to the king, but Joab refused to come to him. So he sent for him a second time, but Joab still refused to come.

Therefore Absalom sent for Joab, to have sent him to the king; but he would not come to him: and when he sent again the second time, he would not come.

Then Absalom said to his servants, 'Look, Joab’s field is next to mine, and he has barley there. Go and set it on fire.' So Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.

Therefore he said unto his servants, See, Joab's field is near mine, and he hath barley there; go and set it on fire. And Absalom's servants set the field on fire.

Then Joab arose, went to Absalom’s house, and said to him, 'Why have your servants set my field on fire?'

Then Joab arose, and came to Absalom unto his house, and said unto him, Wherefore have thy servants set my field on fire?

Absalom said to Joab, 'Look, I sent word to you, saying, “Come here so I can send you to the king to ask, 'Why did I come back from Geshur? It would have been better for me to remain there.'” Now, let me see the king’s face. If I am guilty of anything, let him put me to death.'

And Absalom answered Joab, Behold, I sent unto thee, saying, Come hither, that I may send thee to the king, to say, Wherefore am I come from Geshur? it had been good for me to have been there still: now therefore let me see the king's face; and if there be any iniquity in me, let him kill me.

So Joab went to the king and told him this. Then the king summoned Absalom, who came to the king and bowed himself down with his face to the ground before him. And the king kissed Absalom.

So Joab came to the king, and told him: and when he had called for Absalom, he came to the king, and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king: and the king kissed Absalom.