2 Samuel 13:1-14

4. Amnon's Death, 2 Samuel 13:1-39.

Amnon's Sin With Tamar. 2 Samuel 13:1-14

And it came to pass after this, that Absalom the son of David had a fair sister, whose name was Tamar; and Amnon the son of David loved her.

2 And Amnon was so vexed, that he fell sick for his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin; and Amnon thought it hard for him to do any thing to her.

3 But Amnon had a friend, whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimeah David's brother; and Jonadab was a very subtle man.

4 And he said unto him, Why art thou, being the king's son, lean from day to day? wilt thou not tell me? And Amnon said unto him, I love Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister.

5 And Jonadab said unto him, Lay thee down on thy bed, and make thyself sick: and when thy father cometh to see thee, say unto him, I pray thee, let my sister Tamar come, and give me meat, and dress the meat in my sight, that I may see it, and eat it at her hand.

6 So Amnon lay down, and made himself sick: and when the king was come to see him, Amnon said unto the king, I pray thee, let Tamar my sister come, and make me a couple of cakes in my sight, that I may eat at her hand.
7 Then David sent home to Tamar, saying, Go now to thy brother Amnon's house, and dress him meat.
8 So Tamar went to her brother Amnon's house; and he was laid down. And she took flour, and kneaded it, and made cakes in his sight, and did bake the cakes.

9 And she took a pan, and poured them out before him; but he refused to eat. And Amnon said, Have out all men from me. And they went out every man from him.

10 And Amnon said unto Tamar, Bring the meat into the chamber, that I may eat of thine hand. And Tamar took the cakes which she had made, and brought them into the chamber of Amnon her brother.

11 And when she had brought them unto him to eat, he took hold of her, and said unto her, Come lie with me, my sister.

12 And she answered him, Nay, my brother, do not force me; for no such thing ought to be done in Israel: do not thou this folly.
13 And I, whither shall I cause my shame to go? and as for thee, thou shalt be as one of the fools in Israel. Now therefore, I pray thee, speak unto the king; for he will not withhold me from thee.
14 Howbeit he would not hearken unto her voice: but, being stronger than she, forced her, and lay with her.

1.

Who was Tamar? 2 Samuel 13:1

Tamar was the full sister of Absalom, both being the children of David by Maacah (2 Samuel 3:3). Amnon was the son of David and Ahinoam, the Jezreelitess, and David's first-born, thereby the heir apparent to the throne, and Israel's crown-prince. Tamar was therefore the half-sister of Amnon. A significant notice of Tamar's beauty was made; for the handsome features of Absalom, her brother, were also outstanding.

2.

Why was Amnon vexed? 2 Samuel 13:2

Amnon's lust for Tamar was so intense that he literally became ill as he harbored these wicked thoughts. Later on, he added a sickness that was feigned to his natural sickness (2 Samuel 13:5-6). Klostermann, a commentator of some years back, suggested that the root word was very close to another word which means to become insane. It is doubtful that Amnon became an idiot, but his illness was brought on by his state of mind. His vexation was caused by the fact that Tamar was a virgin, and he thought it would be impossible for him to seduce her and lay with her, since being a virgin Tamar had less public freedom. She was kept closer to home, as a matter of custom, and for her own protection. Amnon seems to have no personal inhibitions about forcing her and lying with her, and it probably did not seem hard to him to do anything to her because of his own conscience. Rather, he was stymied by the circumstances of the situation.

3.

Who was Jonadab? 2 Samuel 13:3

Jonadab was another of David's nephews. He makes the fourth nephew to be connected with David's ruleJoab, Abishai, and Asahel all being in David's army. Shimeah, Jonadab's father, was the third of Jesse's sons to pass by Samuel when Samuel was seeking the Lord's anointed to be king over Israel (1 Samuel 16:9). Such a circumstance would point to his being the third-born of Jesse's sons and David's older brother. Jonadab is described as being a subtle man, and it is better to consider him full of subtlety and guile, than to think of him as being the possessor of actual wisdom.

4.

What did Jonadab ask Amnon? 2 Samuel 13:4

Jonadab asked Amnon why he was thin and haggard from morning to morning. Jonadab had noticed the way in which Amnon was becoming lean and haggard but did not know the cause of it. Amnon told him that it was because of his misplaced affection for Tamar, his half-sister, and Absalom's full sister. Jonadab thought that such a condition was not becoming to a king's son. The royal family should have the appearance of being well-fed and properly nourished. Amnon's vexed condition led Jonadab to make his inquiry.

5.

What was Jonadab's scheme? 2 Samuel 13:5

Jonadab advised Amnon to go to bed and pretend that he was ill. David's concern over his condition would bring the king to visit him, and this would afford Amnon an opportunity to make his request. Amnon followed Jonadab's instructions and laid the trap for Tamar. His request for his sister's coming to him to prepare his food might have seemed quite unusual, but David would think it only the whim of a sick man.

6.

How could Amnon carry out such a dastardly plot? 2 Samuel 13:6

There was a bit of plausibility in his request. First, he was sick. Second, anyone would know that a sick man often has peculiar whims especially with regard to food. He simply decided that it was right to grant the sick man's request. The actual preparation of the meat in the house would fill the dwelling with the appetizing aromas and add to the appeal of the food. One of the king's own household might well be more careful in the preparation of the food. The plot seemed logical, and the arrangements were made.

7.

What kind of cakes did Tamar make? 2 Samuel 13:7

Some evidence is gathered from the text to support the belief that the cakes were heart-shaped. The Greek translation indicates that they were cylindrical-shaped cakes. The original text described the cakes with a word which was at the root of our English word for the heart. Too much cannot be made of this, and it would be a stretching of the actual indication of the text to make them any kind of love-cakes. They were, no doubt, appropriate. The verb used to describe the preparation of the cakes generally means to boil. The Greek translation has a word which often means to set fire to, but the translation in the King James is accurate. They were baked, or boiled, and prepared in such a way as to make them tasty and appetizing.

8.

Why did Amnon refuse to eat? 2 Samuel 13:9

Amnon acted very strangely. He must have taken steps to insure that all his servants were gone from the house. If Tamar sent the food to him by the servants, he may have sent it back to her with instructions that these men were to leave, and she was to bring the food into his bedchamber. The fact that she baked the cakes in his sight (verse eight) would not mean that he had only one room in his dwelling and that she baked the cakes where he was lying in his bed or that he was in the room where food was prepared. Her being in his house would suffice for the meaning of the phrase. Her pouring them out before him might have been done in the room where food was prepared and not necessarily where he was lying.

9.

Why did Tamar yield to Amnon's request? 2 Samuel 13:10

Amnon's refusal to eat the food which was set before him was not an unusual action for a sick man. Once again, he was acting whimsical; she could hardly suspect anything when he asked that she personally feed him his meal. This is in keeping with the way sick people act, often refusing to eat their meals unless it is fed to them by a certain person or in a certain way. By this fiendish scheme, Amnon was able to entice Tamar into his bedchamber, and at the same time, be sure that all others were out of the room. When she brought his food to him, he grabbed her, and forced her to lie with him.

10.

Why did Tamar suggest speaking to David? 2 Samuel 13:13

There was nothing particularly effective in Tamar's suggestion that Amnon ask for her hand in marriage from her father, the king. She was probably devising some way to escape for the time. She had remonstrated with Amnon saying that such a crime ought not to be committed in Israel, thereby implying such may have been customary among the Canaanites. She looked upon his actions as folly, but all of this was to no avail. She appealed to Amnon on her own behalf, saying that she would be ashamed if he carried out his intentions. She even told him that he would be as one of the fools in Israel. Amnon refused to listen to her. Since he was a man and stronger than she was, he forced her and lay with her. The description of his crime is similar to that committed by Shechem with Dinah the daughter of Jacob (Genesis 34:2).