And King David longed to go to Absalom, for he had been consoled over Amnon’s death.
Parallel translations
- WEB King David longed to go out to Absalom; for he was comforted concerning Amnon, since he was dead.
- KJV And the soul of king David longed to go forth unto Absalom: for he was comforted concerning Amnon, seeing he was dead.
- NKJV And King David longed to go to Absalom. For he had been comforted concerning Amnon, because he was dead.
- NASB And the heart of King David longed to go out to Absalom; for he was comforted regarding Amnon, since he was dead.
- NLT And King David, now reconciled to Amnon’s death, longed to be reunited with his son Absalom.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
David's heart longs to go out to Absalom, now that his grief over the dead Amnon has eased. The king's affection for his exiled son begins to draw him toward reconciliation.
Overview
As time tempers David's mourning for Amnon, his fatherly love increasingly turns toward the absent Absalom. Yet this yearning is complicated by the unaddressed guilt of Absalom's murder, leaving David torn between justice and affection. This inner conflict prepares for Joab's scheme in the next chapter to bring Absalom back without resolving the deeper issues.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Gen 24:67And Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah and took Rebekah as his wife. And Isaac loved her and was comforted after his mother’s death.
- Gen 37:35All his sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. “No,” he said. “I will go down to Sheol mourning for my son.” So his father wept for him.
- Gen 38:12After a long time Judah’s wife, the daughter of Shua, died. When Judah had finished mourning, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite went up to his sheepshearers at Timnah.
- Ps 119:20My soul is consumed with longing for Your judgments at all times.
- Deut 28:32Your sons and daughters will be given to another nation, while your eyes grow weary looking for them day after day, with no power in your hand.
- Ps 84:2My soul longs, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
- Gen 31:30Now you have gone off because you long for your father’s house. But why have you stolen my gods?”
- Phil 2:26For he has been longing for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill.
- 2 Sam 12:19–23When David saw that his servants were whispering to one another, he perceived that the child was dead. So he asked his servants, “Is the child dead?” “He is dead,” they replied.
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Christ at the center
God's covenant with David — a son whose throne and kingdom would last forever (7:12–16) — finds its yes in Jesus, the Son of David who reigns without end.
How 2 Samuel 13:39 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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