Then Absalom would say to him, “Look, your case is good and right; but there is no deputy of the king to hear you.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Absalom said to him, “Behold, your matters are good and right; but there is no man deputized by the king to hear you.”
- KJV And Absalom said unto him, See, thy matters are good and right; but there is no man deputed of the king to hear thee.
- BSB Absalom would say, “Look, your claims are good and right, but the king has no deputy to hear you.”
- NASB Then Absalom would say to him, “See, your claims are good and right, but you have no one to listen to you on the part of the king.”
- NLT Then Absalom would say, “You’ve really got a strong case here! It’s too bad the king doesn’t have anyone to hear it.
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
Absalom tells each petitioner his case is valid but no royal official will hear him. He subtly discredits David's government.
Overview
Absalom flatters the petitioners and insinuates that David has failed to provide justice. Whether or not the courts were truly neglected, his words sow doubt and discontent toward the king. This manipulation of grievances is a classic strategy of the would-be usurper, turning the people's longing for justice into a weapon against the throne.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Num 16:13–14Is it a small thing that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, but you must also make yourself a prince over us?
- Prov 12:2A good man shall obtain favor from Yahweh, but he will condemn a man of wicked devices.
- Exod 21:17“Anyone who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.
- Ps 12:2Everyone lies to his neighbor. They speak with flattering lips, and with a double heart.
- 1 Pet 2:17Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.
- Exod 20:12“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land which Yahweh your God gives you.
- Acts 23:5Paul said, “I didn’t know, brothers, that he was high priest. For it is written, ‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’”
- Ezek 22:7In you have they treated father and mother with contempt. Among you they have oppressed the foreigner. In you they have wronged the fatherless and the widow.
- Prov 30:11There is a generation that curses their father, and doesn’t bless their mother.
- Prov 30:17“The eye that mocks at his father, and scorns obedience to his mother: the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, the young eagles shall eat it.
- 2 Sam 8:15David reigned over all Israel; and David executed justice and righteousness for all his people.
- Num 16:3They assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, “You take too much on yourself, since all the congregation are holy, everyone of them, and Yahweh is among them! Why do you lift yourselves up above Yahweh’s assembly?”
- 2 Pet 2:10but chiefly those who walk after the flesh in the lust of defilement, and despise authority. Daring, self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries;
- Dan 11:21In his place shall stand up a contemptible person, to whom they had not given the honor of the kingdom: but he shall come in time of security, and shall obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
- Matt 15:4For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘He who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death.’
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 15:3 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.