Text -- 2 Samuel 14:29-33 (NET)

14:29 Then Absalom sent a message to Joab asking him to send him to the king, but Joab was not willing to come to him. So he sent a second message to him, but he still was not willing to come. 14:30 So he said to his servants, “Look, Joab has a portion of field adjacent to mine and he has some barley there. Go and set it on fire.” So Absalom’s servants set Joab’s portion of the field on fire. 14:31 Then Joab got up and came to Absalom’s house. He said to him, “Why did your servants set my portion of field on fire?” 14:32 Absalom said to Joab, “Look, I sent a message to you saying, ‘Come here so that I can send you to the king with this message: “Why have I come from Geshur? It would be better for me if I were still there.”’ Let me now see the face of the king. If I am at fault, let him put me to death!” 14:33 So Joab went to the king and informed him. The king summoned Absalom, and he came to the king. Absalom bowed down before the king with his face toward the ground and the king kissed him.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: 2Sa 14:30

¹ tc The LXX adds here the following words: “And the servants of Absalom burned them up. And the servants of Joab came to him, rending their garments. They said….”

² tn The word “Joab’s” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

NET Notes: 2Sa 14:32

¹ tn Heb “saying.”

NET Notes: 2Sa 14:33

¹ tn Heb “he.” Joab, acting on behalf of the king, may be the implied subject.

² tn Heb “he”; the referent (Absalom) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³ tn Heb “Absalom.” For stylistic reasons the name has been replaced by the pronoun (“him”) in the translation.