Go in to the king, and speak like this to him.” So Joab put the words in her mouth.
Parallel translations
- KJV And come to the king, and speak on this manner unto him. So Joab put the words in her mouth.
- BSB Then go to the king and speak these words to him.” And Joab put the words in her mouth.
- NKJV Go to the king and speak to him in this manner.” So Joab put the words in her mouth.
- NASB Then go to the king and speak to him in this way.” So Joab put the words in her mouth.
- NLT Then go to the king and tell him the story I am about to tell you.” Then Joab told her what to say.
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
Joab tells the woman exactly what to say, putting the words in her mouth. The whole appeal is his contrivance, delivered through her.
Overview
By scripting her speech, Joab orchestrates a persuasive scenario to lead David toward recalling Absalom. The method echoes Nathan's earlier use of a story to expose David's heart, though Joab's aim is political reconciliation rather than prophetic rebuke. The verse highlights Joab's role as the hidden author of the drama about to unfold before the king.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- 2 Sam 14:19The king said, “Is the hand of Joab with you in all this?” The woman answered, “As your soul lives, my lord the king, no one can turn to the right hand or to the left from anything that my lord the king has spoken; for your servant Joab urged me, and he put all these words in the mouth of your servant;
- Exod 4:15You shall speak to him, and put the words in his mouth. I will be with your mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what you shall do.
- Isa 59:21“As for me, this is my covenant with them,” says Yahweh. “My Spirit who is on you, and my words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, nor out of the mouth of your offspring, nor out of the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,” says Yahweh, “from henceforth and forever.”
- Deut 18:18I will raise them up a prophet from among their brothers, like you. I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I shall command him.
- Num 23:5Yahweh put a word in Balaam’s mouth, and said, “Return to Balak, and thus you shall speak.”
- Isa 51:16I have put my words in your mouth, and have covered you in the shadow of my hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and tell Zion, ‘You are my people.’”
- Jer 1:9Then Yahweh stretched out his hand, and touched my mouth. Then Yahweh said to me, “Behold, I have put my words in your mouth.
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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 14:3 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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