2 Samuel 13 · Verse 2

2 Samuel 13:2

And Amnon was so vexed, that he fell sick for his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin; and Amnon thought it hard for him to do any thing to her.

2 Samuel 13:2, King James Version

2 Samuel 13:2 in other translations

BSB	Amnon was sick with frustration over his sister Tamar, for she was a virgin, and it seemed implausible for him to do anything to her.
WEB	Amnon was so troubled that he became sick because of his sister Tamar, for she was a virgin, and it seemed hard to Amnon to do anything to her.
ASV	And Amnon was so vexed that he fell sick because of his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin; and it seemed hard to Amnon to do anything unto her.
YLT	And Amnon hath distress--even to become sick, because of Tamar his sister, for she is a virgin, and it is hard in the eyes of Amnon to do anything to her.
DARBY	And Amnon was so vexed, that he fell sick for his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin; and it seemed difficult for Amnon to do the least thing to her.
BBE	And he was so deeply in love that he became ill because of his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin, and so it seemed hard to Amnon to do anything to her.
Webster	And Amnon was so afflicted, that he fell sick for his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin; and Amnon thought it hard for him to do any thing to her.

What does 2 Samuel 13:2 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

2. for she was a virgin--Unmarried daughters were kept in close seclusion from the company of men; no strangers, nor even their relatives of the other sex, being permitted to see them without the presence of witnesses. Of course, Amnon must have seen Tamar, for he had conceived a violent passion for her, which, though forbidden by the law (Le 18:11), yet with the sanction of Abraham's example (Ge 20:12), and the common practice in neighboring countries for princes to marry their half sisters, he seems not to have considered an improper connection. But he had no means of making it known to her, and the pain of that disappointment preying upon his mind produced a visible change in his appearance and health.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 2 Amnon was so vexed - for she was a virgin - It has been well remarked that "the passion of love is nowhere so wasting and vexatious, as where it is unlawful. A quick sense of guilt, especially where it is enormous, as in the present instance, strikes the soul with horror; and the impossibility of an innocent gratification loads that horror with desperation: a conflict too cruel and too dreadful for human bearing." - Delaney.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on 2 Samuel 13:1-20

From henceforward David was followed with one trouble after another. Adultery and murder were David's sins, the like sins among his children were the beginnings of his punishment: he was too indulgent to his children. Thus David might trace the sins of his children to his own misconduct, which must have made the anguish of the chastisement worse. Let no one ever expect good treatment from those who are capable of…

Read the full comment on 2 Samuel 13:1-20 →

2 Samuel 13:2 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיֵּ֨צֶרvai.Ye.tzerand it was distressH3334

לְאַמְנ֜וֹןle.'am.Nonto AmnonH550

לְהִתְחַלּ֗וֹתle.hit.cha.Lotto make himself sickH2470

בַּֽעֲבוּר֙ba.'a.Vurfor sake ofH5668

תָּמָ֣רta.MarTamarH8559

אֲחֹת֔וֹ'a.cho.Tosister hisH269

כִּ֥יkiforH3588

בְתוּלָ֖הve.tu.Lah[was] a virginH1330

הִ֑יאHi'sheH1931

וַיִּפָּלֵא֙vai.yi.pa.Le'and it was difficultH6381

בְּעֵינֵ֣יbe.'ei.Neiin [the] eyes ofH5869

אַמְנ֔וֹן'am.NonAmnonH550

לַעֲשׂ֥וֹתla.'a.Sotto doH6213

לָ֖הּlahto <the> her

מְאֽוּמָה\׃me.'U.mahanythingH3972

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for 2 Samuel 13:2

2 Corinthians 7:10
For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
Song of Solomon 5:8
I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my beloved, that ye tell him, that I am sick of love.
1 Kings 21:4
And Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him: for he had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no bread.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

vexed.
1Ki 21:4; So 5:8; 2Co 7:10
Amnon, etc. Heb. it was marvellous, or hidden, in the eyesof Amnon.

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

2 Samuel 13:1
And it came to pass after this, that Absalom the son of David had a fair sister, whose name was Tamar; and Amnon the son of David loved her.
2 Samuel 13:2
And Amnon was so vexed, that he fell sick for his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin; and Amnon thought it hard for him to do any thing to her.
2 Samuel 13:3
But Amnon had a friend, whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimeah David’s brother: and Jonadab was a very subtil man.

Read all of 2 Samuel 13

2 Samuel 13:2 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Y estaba Amnón angustiado hasta enfermar, por Thamar su hermana: porque por ser ella virgen, parecía á Amnón que sería cosa dificultosa hacerle algo.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Et Amnon fut tourmenté jusqu’à en tomber malade, à cause de Tamar, sa sœur; car elle était vierge, et il était trop difficile aux yeux d’Amnon de lui faire quoi que ce soit.
German Elberfelder 1871	Und es war dem Amnon wehe zum Krankwerden um seiner Schwester Tamar willen; denn sie war eine Jungfrau, und es war in den Augen Amnons unmöglich, ihr das Geringste zu tun.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	et deperiret eam valde, ita ut propter amorem ejus ægrotaret: quia cum esset virgo, difficile ei videbatur ut quippiam inhoneste ageret cum ea.