Episode 124: Come lie with me, my sister

2 Samuel 13

Amnon rapes his half-sister Tamar

13 ¹ David had a beautiful daughter, whose name was Tamar. Amnon, Tamar's half-brother, loved her.

² He loved her so much that he fell sick (since she was a virgin). But he didn't know how to do anything to her.

⁴ Amnon's friend, Jonadab, asked him what was troubling him. Amnon said, "I love Tamar, Absalom's sister."

⁵ Jonadab had a plan. He said,

Lie down on your bed and pretend to be sick. When your father comes to see you, ask him to send Tamar to your room to prepare some food for you.

⁶ So Amnon did as Jonadab suggested, and said to David, "Let Tamar come and feed me cakes."

⁷ David said to Tamar, "Go to Amnon's house and prepare some food for him."

^8-10 And Tamar did as her father told her to do.

¹¹ When she brought the cakes, Amnon grabbed her and said, "Let me have sex with you, my sister."

¹² Tamar said,

¹³ No, my brother. Don't rape me. Ask our father, the king. He will let you marry me.

¹⁴ But Amnon wouldn't listen to her. And he raped her.

¹⁵ After raping her, he hated her more than he loved her before. He said to her, "Get out of here."

¹⁶ She said to him, "Sending me away after raping me is worse than the rape itself."

¹⁷ Since Tamar refused to leave on her own, Amnon sent for a servant and said to him,

Throw this woman out and lock the door after her.

¹⁸ So Amnon's servant removed Tamar and locked the door.

Tamar was wearing a robe of divers colors, as the virgin daughters of kings wore.

¹⁹ After she was removed and locked out of Amnon's room, she put ashes on her head and tore her multicolored robe and cried.

Absalom kills Amnon for raping his sister

²⁰ Tamar's brother Absalom said to her,

Did Amnon have sex with you?

Don't say anything, he's your brother.

So Tamar remained desolate in Absalom's house for the rest of her life.

²² And Absalom hated Amnon for raping his sister.

²³ Two years later, Absalom was having a sheep-shearing party, and he invited his brothers to attend.

²⁸ At the party, Absalom said to his servants,

Wait until Amnon is drunk, and then when I say, "Kill Amnon," Kill him.

²⁹ And his servants killed Amnon.