2 Samuel 2:22

2:22 So Abner spoke again to Asahel, “Turn aside from following me! I do not want to strike you to the ground. ¹  How then could I show ²  my face in the presence of Joab your brother?”

2 Samuel 3:13

3:13 So David said, “Good! I will make an agreement with you. I ask only one thing from you. You will not see my face unless you bring Saul’s daughter Michal when you come to visit me.” ³ 

2 Samuel 9:6

9:6 When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed low with his face toward the ground. ⁴  David said, “Mephibosheth?” He replied, “Yes, at your service.” ⁵ 

2 Samuel 14:33

14:33 So Joab went to the king and informed him. The king ⁶  summoned Absalom, and he came to the king. Absalom ⁷  bowed down before the king with his face toward the ground and the king kissed him. ⁸ 

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¹ tn Heb “Why should I strike you to the ground?”

² tn Heb “lift.”

³ tn The words “when you come to see my face,” though found in the Hebrew text, are somewhat redundant given the similar expression in the earlier part of the verse. The words are absent from the Syriac Peshitta.

⁴ tn Heb “he fell on his face and bowed down.”

⁵ tn Heb “Look, your servant.”

⁶ tn Heb “he.” Joab, acting on behalf of the king, may be the implied subject.

⁷ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Absalom) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁸ tn Heb “Absalom.” For stylistic reasons the name has been replaced by the pronoun (“him”) in the translation.