Then: in some cases the beginning of a new paragraph at this point will be sufficient to represent the conjunction used here. But in others an overt connecting word such as “So” (New International Version, New Century Version, and Knox as well as Good News Translation) will be needed.

Told him: Good News Translation adds what is implied, “… what Absalom had said.” And New Century Version has “told him Absalom’s words.” A similar clarification may be required in other languages.

He summoned Absalom: it should be made clear in translation that it was David and not Joab who summoned Absalom as a result of this encounter. This may be done either by using the title “the king” or the name “David” in place of the pronoun he.

He came to the king: in some cases it may be necessary to say “his father, the king,” because it would be very unnatural to use only the title, since the two men were so closely related.

Bowed himself on his face to the ground: see verses 4 and 22, where the same verb is translated “did obeisance” in Revised Standard Version. Compare also 1 Sam 25.41 and 28.14.

Some translators may find it necessary to supply the implied information that Absalom got up from the ground before his father kissed him.

Kissed: the meaning of the gesture was as a greeting to show Absalom that the king was pleased to see him. In some languages a more general expression like “embraced him” will be more appropriate. Compare Ruth 1.9, 14; 1 Sam 10.1; 20.41. Further information may be found in Ellington, 1990.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

After this: this reflects the Hebrew verb of transition sometimes translated “and it came to pass.” Here it serves both to indicate the passage of time since the events related in the previous chapter, and to introduce a new episode. New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh has “Sometime afterward,” Moffatt says “Later on…,” and New International Version translates “In the course of time….”

Got himself a chariot and horses: the translation should not give the impression that Absalom had not previously owned or used chariots or horses. But in this passage he is depicted as beginning to act like a person who will soon become king. The verb is rendered “prepared” by Goldman. The Hebrew verb in the Dead Sea Scrolls at this point may be translated “began to make use of…” (Anchor Bible). Riding around in a chariot with fifty men to run before him was behavior typical of royalty (see 1 Sam 8.11). The runners who accompanied him served as a kind of bodyguard to protect their master and see to his every need. The number of these servants is the same as in the story of David’s other rebellious son, Adonijah (1 Kgs 1.5).

On the word for chariot, see 1.6; 8.4; and 10.18 as well as 1 Sam 8.11.

One suggested translation of this verse is:

• Later on Absalom began to move about the city in a chariot drawn by horses, and he had fifty men to run before him [to prepare the way].

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Used to rise early: the verb form here and in the following verses (through verse 6) indicates a repeated or habitual action, showing that the activities described in the passage were typical of Absalom’s activities over a considerable period of time. Languages that have habitual verb forms should use them here. In other languages there will be other ways of indicating frequently repeated actions over a period of time. It may be necessary to begin with “every morning” here and “every day” later in this passage.

Implied in the text is the fact that Absalom went from his house to the city gate. Some languages may find it necessary to say “got up early and went to the gate….”

Beside the way of the gate: this probably refers to the principal road leading into Jerusalem that passed through the main gate to the city. Anyone going to talk with King David about a problem would have normally passed this way. The gate may possibly refer to the actual entrance to the king’s palace, but it is more likely that it was the city gate, or as Fox says, “the main gate.” Absalom positioned himself in such a way as to intercept those people who were going to speak to the king about a matter of concern.

Suit: the noun used here refers generally to a contest or a controversy. The same term is found in 1 Sam 25.39, where David says “Praise be to the LORD who upheld my suit [or, cause] against Nabal.” And this same noun is rendered as “disputed cases” in 2 Chr 19.8. Here it has been rendered by various English translations as “a case” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh and Revised English Bible), “a lawsuit” (New American Bible and New Jerusalem Bible), and “a complaint” (New International Version and Contemporary English Version).

Would call … and say: the habitual aspect of this action should be brought out in translation. This did not happen just one time but on many occasions. In some languages the two verbs will be better translated as one. For example, “he used to ask each person….”

Your servant: in the response the subject uses the third person self-reference to show respect, but in many languages this will be better rendered by the first person pronoun, if the direct quotation is retained, and a term like “sir” (Revised English Bible) can be used to show respect. However, the direct quotation will be more naturally rendered indirectly in many cases—especially in view of the content of the response. In a direct quote a person would have probably named a particular tribe but would not have said of such and such a tribe or even “one of the tribes of Israel” (New Century Version), which is actually a more literal rendering of the Hebrew. An indirect quotation will be better in most languages here.

In Israel: while most interpreters take this to refer to the whole of Israel, some scholars think that it is a more exclusive reference to the northern tribes. This interpretation gives the impression that Absalom was preparing his rebellion by flattering only those who responded to his question by stating that they were from the north. Contemporary English Version adopts this interpretation and translates the response “I’m from a tribe in the north.” Compare also Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente, “I’m coming from such and such a town in the northern territory.” However, it is probably best not to include this interpretation so directly in the translation.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Would say: the verb form once again indicates a repeated or habitual action.

See: the verb of perception used here invites the hearer to consider the situation. The same verb is used in a similar way later in this chapter (verse 28). It is more natural in English to use the verb “look” as in New International Version, New Century Version, and Good News Translation. Revised English Bible, however, takes this verb as having Absalom as its subject: “I can see that….” And New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh seems to indicate that anyone could see that the claims being made were correct: “It is clear that….”

Your claims are good and right: the traditional Hebrew text has a very general term for “word” or “matter” instead of the plural claims or “arguments,” which is found in some manuscripts. But the point will be essentially the same. Absalom was trying to win the favor of each person who had a complaint by telling them that they were right and that he would certainly support their case.

There is no man deputed by the king to hear you: considerable information has been supplied even in Revised Standard Version, since the text says literally “no one hearing for you from the king.” Anchor Bible translates “you will get no hearing from the king.” The point of Absalom’s statement is, however, clear. He wanted to turn the people against their king by hinting that the king was not only unable or unwilling to hear their cases but also unwilling to appoint anyone else with this authority. Some possible renderings of this clause are “not one of the king’s deputies will listen to you” (New Jerusalem Bible), “there is no one assigned to you by the king to hear it” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), “there is no one to hear you in the king’s name” (New American Bible), or “the king has not appointed anyone to listen to your case.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Said moreover: the word translated moreover is merely the common Hebrew conjunction, but the context here requires something like “also said” or a verb like “went on” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), “continued,” or “would add” (New International Version, Revised English Bible as well as Good News Translation). This last rendering shows more clearly the habitual nature of this action, in keeping with the earlier verb forms.

Oh that I were judge: this false lament of Absalom begins with the interrogative pronoun that is sometimes used to introduce a kind of wish. A more literal rendering is “Who will make me judge…?” Compare New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, “Oh, who will appoint me judge in the land?” The same kind of device is used in Deut 5.29 and frequently in the book of Job (see, for example, 23.3; 29.2; 31.35). Another way of translating this in some cases may be like that of Revised English Bible, New American Bible, and Knox, “If only I could be appointed judge…,” or possibly “I wish someone would make me judge…” (New Century Version and Contemporary English Version).

In the land: this, of course, refers to the land of Israel. New Century Version makes this clearer with “in this land.” This is probably a better model in this case than Good News Translation, which omits any reference to the land.

Might come to me: the word order of the Hebrew places emphasis on the pronoun me. Revised English Bible attempts to reflect this order by beginning the clause “it would be my business to see that….” In languages that have emphatic forms of the pronouns, translators should consider using one here.

A suit or cause: the first of these two terms is the same as used in verse 2, and the use of two different words does not mean that Absalom is talking about two separate matters. They are rather two terms for the same thing, and for this reason they may be better translated as a single term or expression in some languages. Some may say something like “any kind of complaint.”

Give him justice: the text continues to imply habitual action. So the verb form used in translation should reflect this. Absalom is promising that he would “be fair to everyone” (Contemporary English Version). Some other ways of saying this may be “I would see that he gets justice” (New International Version), “I would see that he got his rights” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), or “I would adjudicate it in his favor” (Anchor Bible).

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

The word rendered a man is almost certainly intended to speak of any person, whether male or female. For this reason New Revised Standard Version and New Century Version translate “people,” and New International Version has “anyone.”

Do obeisance: see 1.2; 9.6; also 1 Sam 24.8; 28.14.

Would put out his hand: the verb form should again reflect the fact that this was not a one-time matter but something that was repeated many times. For a person in authority to stretch out his hand to another who was showing respect in this way was a way of trying to win favor by treating them more like equals. To further take hold of him, and kiss him was an even more obvious means of trying to persuade people to join him in the event of a rift with King David. On the idea of “kissing” between two unrelated male adults, see 14.33.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Thus Absalom did: the verb “do” may be so general as to be meaningless in some languages. Translators may consider the following models: “Absalom behaved in this way…” (New International Version) or “This is the manner in which Absalom acted….”

To all of Israel: the meaning of this expression as well as the men of Israel at the end of the verse is directly related to the question of whether Absalom was appealing only to the northern tribes or to the whole of Israel and Judah. The expressions here seem to be all-inclusive and should be so translated. In most cases it will be better to say “people of Israel” instead of men of Israel.

Stole the hearts: this English idiom has its basis in the Hebrew original. The affection that people had had for King David was taken from him and given to Absalom. This points out the success of Absalom’s intrigue. There may be a wide variety of ways in which this idea may be expressed in other languages. As in Contemporary English Version it may be possible to say “Soon everyone in Israel liked Absalom better than they liked David.” Moffatt uses the verb “beguiled.” In other languages the following models may be considered: “convinced [the people of Israel] to believe in him,” “seduced … into following him,” or “persuaded … to give their allegiance to him.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Four years: a majority of the manuscripts of the traditional Hebrew text have “forty years” (King James Version, New American Standard Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). But Hebrew Old Testament Text Project and Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament recommend the correction represented by the ancient Greek and Syriac versions (four years) at this point, though giving the recommended reading only a {C} rating. Most modern versions adopt this reading. It is unlikely that it took Absalom forty years to prepare his rebellion. Two manuscripts of the traditional Hebrew text have “forty days,” but no major English version adopts this solution. The four years almost certainly means four years after Absalom had returned to Jerusalem (14.23).

Pray let me …: on this request formula, see 13.6; 14.11; 1 Sam 22.3. Knox has “grant me leave to….” In other languages it will be more natural to begin “I beg you [sir] ….”

Pay my vow: Deut 23.21 imposes a binding obligation on every Israelite that he must not be slack in fulfilling obligations voluntarily undertaken. And in 1 Sam 1.21 the same expression is used of Elkanah. This does not refer to the payment of money. The meaning is to “fulfill a vow” (New American Bible). The idea is that Absalom had made a promise to the LORD that he would worship God in Hebron one day, if the LORD would allow him to return to Jerusalem. The following verse makes this much clearer. Now that Absalom was back in Jerusalem, he wanted to do what he had promised. Or at least this is what he pretended. In some languages this expression will be translated “fulfill a promise I made” or “do what I told God I would do.”

In Hebron: the exact meaning of these words may be a problem for some translators. Do they refer to the place where Absalom supposedly wanted to go to pay his vow, or is it the place where the vow was originally made? The Revised Standard Version rendering may give the impression that it is the place where the vow was originally made. But the clear meaning of the text—especially in the light of the following verse—is rather that it is the place where he wanted to go.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .