1 Now after these things, it happened that Amnon, the son of David, was in love with the very beautiful sister of Absalom, the son of David, and she was called Tamar.
2 And he pined for her exceedingly, so much so that, out of love for her, he became ill. For, since she was a virgin, it seemed a difficulty to him that he would do anything dishonest with her.
3 Now Amnon had a friend named Jonadab, the son of Shimeah, the brother of David: a very prudent man.
4 And he said to him: “Why are you becoming so thin from day to day, O son of the king? Why won’t you tell me?” And Amnon said to him, “I am in love with Tamar, the sister of my brother Absalom.”
5 And Jonadab said to him: “Lie down upon your bed, and feign sickness. And when your father will come to visit you, say to him: ‘I ask you to let my sister Tamar come to me, so that she may give me food, and may make a small meal, so that I may eat it from her hand.’ “
6 And so, Amnon lay down, and he began to act as if he were ill. And when the king had come to visit him, Amnon said to the king, “I beg you to let my sister Tamar come to me, and make in my sight two little portions of food, so that I take it from her hand.”
7 Therefore, David sent home to Tamar, saying, “Come to the house of your brother Amnon, and make a small meal for him.”
8 And Tamar went into the house of her brother Amnon. But he was lying down. And taking flour, she mixed it. And dissolving it in his sight, she cooked little portions of food.
9 And taking what she had cooked, she poured it out, and she set it before him. But he refused to eat. And Amnon said, “Send everyone away from me.” And when they had sent everyone away,
10 Amnon said to Tamar, “Bring the food into the bedroom, so that I may eat from your hand.” Therefore, Tamar took the little portions of food that she had made, and she brought them to her brother Amnon in the bedroom.
11 And when she had presented the food to him, he took hold of her, and he said, “Come lie with me, my sister.”
12 She answered him: “Do not do so, my brother! Do not force me. For no such thing must be done in Israel. Do not choose to do this senseless act.
13 For I will not be able to bear my shame. And you will be like one of the foolish in Israel. For it is better to speak to the king, and he will not deny me to you.”
14 But he was not willing to agree to her petition. Instead, prevailing by strength, he forced her, and he lay with her.
15 And Amnon held hatred for her with an exceedingly great hatred, so much so that the hatred with which he hated her was greater than the love with which he had loved her before. And Amnon said to her, “Rise up, and go away.”
16 And she answered him, “This evil is greater, which you are now doing against me in driving me away, than what you did before.” But he was not willing to listen to her.
17 Instead, calling the servants who were ministering to him, he said, “Cast this woman out from me, and close the door behind her.”
18 Now she was clothed with an ankle-length robe. For the virgin daughters of the king made use of this kind of garment. And so, his servant cast her out, and he closed the door behind her.
19 And she sprinkled ashes upon her head, and she tore her ankle-length robe. And placing her hands upon her head, she went forth, walking and crying out.
20 Then her brother Absalom said to her: “Has your brother Amnon lain with you? But now, sister, be quiet. For he is your brother. And you should not afflict your heart because of this matter.” And so, Tamar remained, wasting away in the house of her brother Absalom.
21 And when king David had heard about these things, he was deeply grieved. But he was not willing to afflict the spirit of his son Amnon. For he loved him, since he was his firstborn.
22 Yet Absalom did not speak to Amnon, neither good nor evil. For Absalom hated Amnon because he had violated his sister Tamar.
23 Then, after the time of two years, it happened that the sheep of Absalom were being shorn in Baal-hazor, which is near Ephraim. And Absalom invited all the sons of the king.
24 And he went to the king, and he said to him: “Behold, the sheep of your servant are being shorn. I ask that the king, with his servants, may come to his servant.”
25 And the king said to Absalom: “Do not, my son, do not choose to ask that we may all come and be a burden to you.” Then, after he urged him, and he had refused to go, he blessed him.
26 And Absalom said, “If you are not willing to come, I beg you, at least let my brother Amnon come with us.” And the king said to him, “It is not necessary that he go with you.”
27 But Absalom pressed him, and so he sent with him Amnon and all the sons of the king. And Absalom made a feast, like the feast of a king.
28 Then Absalom commanded his servants, saying: “Observe when Amnon will have become drunk with wine. And when I say to you, ‘Strike and kill him!’ do not be afraid. For it is I who commands you. Be strong and valiant men.”
29 Therefore, the servants of Absalom acted against Amnon, just as Absalom had commanded them. And all the sons of the king rose up, and each one climbed upon his mule and fled.
30 And while they were still traveling on the journey, a rumor reached David, saying, “Absalom has struck down all the sons of the king, and there is not one of them remaining.”
31 And so the king rose up, and he tore his garments, and he fell upon the ground. And all his servants, who were standing near him, tore their garments.
32 But Jonadab, the son of Shimeah, David’s brother, responding, said: “My lord the king should not consider that all the sons of the king have been slain. Amnon alone is dead. For he was set against by the mouth of Absalom from the day that he raped his sister Tamar.
33 Now therefore, let not my lord the king set this word in his heart, saying, ‘All the sons of the king have been slain.’ For only Amnon is dead.”
34 Now Absalom fled. And the young man keeping watch, lifted up his eyes and gazed out. And behold, many people were arriving along a remote road at the side of the mountain.
35 And Jonadab said to the king: “Behold, the sons of the king are here. In accord with the word of your servant, so it has happened.”
36 And when he had ceased speaking, the sons of the king also appeared. And entering, they lifted up their voice, and they wept. And the king also, and all his servants, wept with an exceedingly great weeping.
37 But Absalom, fleeing, went to Talmai, the son of Ammihud, the king of Geshur. Then David mourned for his son every day.
38 Now after he had fled and had arrived in Geshur, Absalom was in that place for three years. And king David ceased to pursue Absalom, because he had been consoled over the passing of Amnon.
1 Now Joab, the son of Zeruiah, understood that the heart of the king had been turned toward Absalom,
2 so he sent to Tekoa, and he brought from there a wise woman. And he said to her: “Feign that you are in mourning, and put on the clothing of one who mourns. And do not anoint yourself with oil, so that you may be like a woman who is still grieving for someone who died some time ago.
3 And you shall enter to the king, and you shall speak words to him in this manner.” Then Joab put the words in her mouth.
4 And so, when the woman of Tekoa had entered to the king, she fell before him on the ground, and she reverenced, and she said, “Save me, O king.”
5 And the king said to her, “What problem do you have?” And she responded: “Alas, I am a woman who is a widow. For my husband has died.
6 And your handmaid had two sons. And they quarreled against one another in the field. And there was no one there who would be able to stop them. And one struck the other, and killed him.
7 And behold, the whole family, rising up against your handmaid, said: ‘Deliver him who struck down his brother, so that we may kill him for the life of his brother, whom he killed, and so that we may do away with the heir.’ And they are seeking to extinguish my spark that is left, so that there may not survive a name for my husband, nor a remnant upon the earth.”
8 And the king said to the woman, “Go to your own house, and I will make a decree on your behalf.”
9 And the woman of Tekoa said to the king: “May the iniquity be upon me, my lord, and upon the house of my father. But may the king and his throne be innocent.”
10 And the king said, “Whoever will contradict you, bring him to me, and he will never touch you again.”
11 And she said, “Let the king remember the Lord his God, so that close blood relatives may not be multiplied in order to take revenge, and so that they may by no means kill my son.” And he said, “As the Lord lives, not one hair from your son shall fall to the ground.”
12 Then the woman said, “Let your handmaid speak a word to my lord the king.” And he said, “Speak.”
13 And the woman said: “Why have you thought such a thing against the people of God, and why has the king spoken this word, so that he sins and does not lead back the one whom he rejected?
14 We are all dying, and we are all like waters that flow into the ground and do not return. God does not will to lose a soul. Instead, he renews his efforts, thinking that what has been rejected might not perish altogether.
15 Therefore, now I have come to speak this word to my lord the king, in the presence of the people. And your handmaid said: I will speak to the king, for perhaps there may be some way for the king to accomplish the word of his handmaid.
16 And the king listened, and he freed his handmaid from the hand of all who were willing to take away me and my son together, from the inheritance of God.
17 Therefore, let your handmaid speak, so that the word of my lord the king may be like a sacrifice. For even like an Angel of God, so is my lord the king, so that he is moved by neither a blessing, nor a curse. Then too, the Lord your God is with you.”
18 And in response, the king said to the woman, “You shall not conceal from me a word of what I ask you.” And the woman said to him, “Speak, my lord the king.”
19 And the king said, “Is not the hand of Joab with you in all this?” And the woman answered and said: “By the welfare of your soul, my lord the king, it is neither to the left, nor to the right, in all these things that my lord the king has spoken. For your servant Joab himself instructed me, and he himself placed all these words in the mouth of your handmaid.
20 Thus did I turn to this figure of speech, because your servant Joab instructed it. But you, my lord the king, are wise, just as an Angel of God has wisdom, so that you understand all that is upon the earth.”
21 And the king said to Joab: “Behold, your word has succeeded in appeasing me. Therefore, go and call back the boy Absalom.”
22 And falling to the ground upon his face, Joab reverenced, and he blessed the king. And Joab said: “Today your servant has understood that I have found grace in your sight, my lord the king. For you have accomplished the word of your servant.”
23 Then Joab rose up, and he went away to Geshur. And he brought Absalom into Jerusalem.
24 But the king said, “Let him return to his own house, but let him not see my face.” And so, Absalom returned to his own house, but he did not see the face of the king.
25 Now in all of Israel, there was no man so handsome, and so very stately as Absalom. From the sole of the foot to the top of the head, there was no blemish in him.
26 And when he shaved off his hair, for he shaved it off once a year, because his long hair was burdensome to him, he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels, by the public weights.
27 Then three sons were born to Absalom, and one daughter, of elegant form, whose name was Tamar.
28 And Absalom remained for two years in Jerusalem, and he did not see the face of the king.
29 And so, he sent to Joab, so that he might send him to the king. But he refused to come to him. And when he had sent a second time, and he had refused to come to him,
30 he said to his servants: “You know that the field of Joab, the one that is near my field, has a harvest of barley. Therefore, go and set it on fire.” And so, the servants of Absalom set fire to the grain field. And the servants of Joab, arriving with their garments torn, said, “The servants of Absalom have set fire to part of the field!”
31 And Joab rose up, and he went to Absalom at his house, and he said, “Why have your servants set fire to my grain field?”
32 And Absalom responded to Joab: “I sent to you, begging that you might come to me, and that I might send you to the king, and that you might say to him: ‘Why was I brought from Geshur? It would have been better for me to be there.’ I beg you, therefore, that I may see the face of the king. And if he is mindful of my iniquity, let him put me to death.”
33 And so, Joab, entering to the king, reported everything to him. And Absalom was summoned. And he entered to the king, and he reverenced on the face of the earth. And the king kissed Absalom.
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14 But I acted for the sake of my name, lest it be violated before the Gentiles, from whom I cast them out, in their sight.
15 And so I lifted up my hand over them in the desert, so as not to lead them into the land that I had given to them, flowing with milk and honey, the foremost of all lands.
16 For they cast aside my judgments, and they did not walk in my precepts, and they violated my Sabbaths. For their heart went after idols.
17 Yet my eye was lenient concerning them, so that I did not utterly destroy them, nor did I consume them in the desert.
18 Then I said to their sons in the wilderness: ‘Do not choose to advance by the precepts of your fathers, nor should you observe their judgments. And do not be defiled by their idols.
19 I am the Lord your God. Walk in my precepts, and observe my judgments, and accomplish them.
20 And sanctify my Sabbaths, so that these may be a sign between me and you, and so that you may know that I am the Lord your God.’
21 But their sons provoked me. They did not walk in my precepts. And they did not observe my judgments, so as to do them; for if a man does them, he shall live by them. And they violated my Sabbaths. And so, I threatened that I would pour out my fury upon them, and that I would fulfill my wrath among them in the desert.
22 But I turned aside my hand, and I acted for the sake of my name, so that it would not be violated before the Gentiles, from whom I cast them out, before their eyes.
23 Again, I lifted up my hand against them, in the wilderness, so that I would disperse them among the nations, and scatter them among the lands.
24 For they had not accomplished my judgments, and they had rejected my precepts, and they had violated my Sabbaths. And their eyes had been after the idols of their fathers.
25 Therefore, I also gave them precepts that were not good, and judgments by which they shall not live.
26 And I defiled them by their own gifts, when they offered everything that opened the womb, because of their offenses. And they shall know that I am the Lord.
27 For this reason, son of man, speak to the house of Israel, and you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God. Yet also in this did your fathers blaspheme me, after they had spurned and despised me,
28 though I had led them into the land, about which I lifted up my hand, so that I might give it to them: They saw every lofty hill and every leafy tree, and there they immolated their victims, and there they presented the provocation of their oblations, and there they stationed their sweet fragrances, and poured out their libations.
29 And I said to them, ‘What is exalted about the place to which you go?’ And yet its name is called ‘Exalted,’ even to this day.
30 Because of this, say to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord God: Certainly, you are defiled by the way of your fathers, and you have fornicated after their stumbling blocks.
31 And you are being defiled by all of your idols, even to this day, by the oblation of your gifts, when you lead your sons through the fire. And should I respond to you, O house of Israel? As I live, says the Lord God, I will not answer you.
32 And the plan of your mind will not occur, saying: ‘We will be like the Gentiles, and like the families of the earth, so that we worship what is wood and stone.’
33 As I live, says the Lord God, I will reign over you with a strong hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured forth.
1 Unto the end, in praises, a psalm for Asaph: a canticle to the Assyrians.
2 In Judea God is known: his name is great in Israel.
3 And his place is in peace: and his abode in Sion:
4 There hath he broken the powers of bows, the shield, the sword, and the battie.
5 Thou enlightenest wonderfully from the everlasting hills.
6 All the foolish of heart were troubled. They have slept their sleep; and all the men of riches have found nothing in their hands.
7 At thy rebuke, O God of Jacob, they have all slumbered that mounted on horseback.
8 Thou art terrible, and who shall resist thee? from that time thy wrath.
9 Thou hast caused judgment to be heard from heaven: the earth trembled and was still,
10 When God arose in judgment, to save all the meek of the earth.
11 For the thought of man shall give praise to thee: and the remainders of the thought shall keep holiday to thee.
12 Vow ye, and pay to the Lord your God: all you that are round about him bring presents. To him that is terrible,
13 Even to him who taketh away the spirit of princes: to the terrible with the kings of the earth.
1 After this, Jesus manifested himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias. And he manifested himself in this way.
2 These were together: Simon Peter and Thomas, who is called the Twin, and Nathanael, who was from Cana of Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples.
3 Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “And we are going with you.” And they went and climbed into the ship. And in that night, they caught nothing.
4 But when morning arrived, Jesus stood on the shore. Yet the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
5 Then Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any food?” They answered him, “No.”
6 He said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the ship, and you will find some.” Therefore, they cast it out, and then they were not able to draw it in, because of the multitude of fish.
7 Therefore, the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.” Simon Peter, when he had heard that it was the Lord, wrapped his tunic around himself, (for he was naked) and he cast himself into the sea.
8 Then the other disciples arrived in a boat, (for they were not far from the land, only about two hundred cubits) dragging the net with the fish.
9 Then, when they climbed down to the land they saw burning coals prepared, and fish already placed above them, and bread.
10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just now caught.”
11 Simon Peter climbed up and drew in the net to land: full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn.
12 Jesus said to them, “Approach and dine.” And not one of them sitting down to eat dared to ask him, “Who are you?” For they knew that it was the Lord.
13 And Jesus approached, and he took bread, and he gave it to them, and similarly with the fish.
14 This was now the third time that Jesus was manifested to his disciples, after he had resurrected from the dead.
15 Then, when they had dined, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.”
16 He said to him again: “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.”
17 He said to him a third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was very grieved that he had asked him a third time, “Do you love me?” And so he said to him: “Lord, you know all things. You know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my sheep.
18 Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked wherever you wanted. But when you are older, you will extend your hands, and another shall gird you and lead you where you do not want to go.”
19 Now he said this to signify by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when he had said this, he said to him, “Follow me.”
20 Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, the one who also had leaned on his chest at supper and said, “Lord, who is it who shall betray you?”
21 Therefore, when Peter had seen him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, but what about this one?”
22 Jesus said to him: “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you? You follow me.”
23 Therefore, the saying went out among the brothers that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but only, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you?”
24 This is the same disciple who offers testimony about these things, and who has written these things. And we know that his testimony is true.
25 Now there are also many other things that Jesus did, which, if each of these were written down, the world itself, I suppose, would not be able to contain the books that would be written.
