14:1 Now Joab son of Zeruiah realized that the king longed to see 1 Absalom. 14:2 So Joab sent to Tekoa and brought from there a wise woman. He told her, “Pretend to be in mourning 2 and put on garments for mourning. Don’t anoint yourself with oil. Instead, act like a woman who has been mourning for the dead for some time. 3 14:3 Go to the king and speak to him in the following fashion.” Then Joab told her what to say. 4
1 tn Heb “the heart of the king was upon.” The Syriac Peshitta adds the verb ’ethre’i (“was reconciled”).
2 tn The Hebrew Hitpael verbal form here indicates pretended rather than genuine action.
3 tn Heb “these many days.”
4 tn Heb “put the words in her mouth” (so NASB, NIV).