Scriptures

New Living Translation (NLT)

2 Samuel 12
²⁷ Joab sent messengers to tell David, “I have fought against Rabbah and captured its water supply.
²⁸ Now bring the rest of the army and capture the city. Otherwise, I will capture it and get credit for the victory.”
²⁹ So David gathered the rest of the army and went to Rabbah, and he fought against it and captured it.
³⁰ David removed the crown from the king’s head, and it was placed on his own head. The crown was made of gold and set with gems, and it weighed seventy-five pounds. David took a vast amount of plunder from the city.
³¹ He also made slaves of the people of Rabbah and forced them to labor with saws, iron picks, and iron axes, and to work in the brick kilns. That is how he dealt with the people of all the Ammonite towns. Then David and all the army returned to Jerusalem.
2 Samuel 13
¹ Now David’s son Absalom had a beautiful sister named Tamar. And Amnon, her half brother, fell desperately in love with her.
² Amnon became so obsessed with Tamar that he became ill. She was a virgin, and Amnon thought he could never have her.
³ But Amnon had a very crafty friend—his cousin Jonadab. He was the son of David’s brother Shimea.
⁴ One day Jonadab said to Amnon, “What’s the trouble? Why should the son of a king look so dejected morning after morning?” So Amnon told him, “I am in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.”
⁵ “Well,” Jonadab said, “I’ll tell you what to do. Go back to bed and pretend you are ill. When your father comes to see you, ask him to let Tamar come and prepare some food for you. Tell him you’ll feel better if she prepares it as you watch and feeds you with her own hands.”
⁶ So Amnon lay down and pretended to be sick. And when the king came to see him, Amnon asked him, “Please let my sister Tamar come and cook my favorite dish as I watch. Then I can eat it from her own hands.”