2 Samuel 13 · Verse 4

2 Samuel 13:4

And he said unto him, Why art thou, being the king’s son, lean from day to day? wilt thou not tell me? And Amnon said unto him, I love Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.
2 Samuel 13:4, King James Version

2 Samuel 13:4 in other translations

BSBso he asked Amnon, “Why are you, the son of the king, so depressed morning after morning? Won’t you tell me?” Amnon replied, “I am in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.”
WEBHe said to him, “Why, son of the king, are you so sad from day to day? Won’t you tell me?” Amnon said to him, “I love Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.”
ASVAnd he said unto him, Why, O son of the king, art thou thus lean from day to day? wilt thou not tell me? And Amnon said unto him, I love Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.
YLTand saith to him, ‘Wherefore art thou thus lean, O king's son, morning by morning? dost thou not declare to me?' And Amnon saith to him, ‘Tamar--sister of Absalom my brother--I am loving.'
DARBYAnd he said to him, Why dost thou, the king's son, get thinner from morning to morning? Wilt thou not tell me? And Amnon said to him, I love Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister.
BBEAnd he said to him, O son of the king, why are you getting thinner day by day? will you not say what your trouble is? And Amnon said to him, I am in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister.
WebsterAnd he said to him, Why art thou, being the king's son, pining from day to day? wilt thou not tell me? And Amnon said to him, I love Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister.

What does 2 Samuel 13:4 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
4. my brother Absalom's sister--In Eastern countries, where polygamy prevails, the girls are considered to be under the special care and protection of their uterine brother, who is the guardian of their interests and their honor, even more than their father himself (see on Ge 34:6-25). 2Sa 13:6-27. He Defiles Her.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · 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 13:4 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.

וַיֹּ֣אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
ל֗וֹloto <the> him
מַדּ֣וּעַma.Du.a'why?H4069
אַ֠תָּה'A.tah[are] youH859
כָּ֣כָהKa.khahthusH3602
דַּ֤לdalweakH1800
בֶּן\־ben-O son ofH1121
הַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙ha.Me.lekhthe kingH4428
בַּבֹּ֣קֶרba.Bo.kerin the morningH1242
בַּבֹּ֔קֶרba.Bo.kerin the morningH1242
הֲל֖וֹאha.Lo'¿ notH3808
תַּגִּ֣ידta.Gidwill you tellH5046
לִ֑יLito <the> me
וַיֹּ֤אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
לוֹ֙loto <the> him
אַמְנ֔וֹן'am.NonAmnonH550
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
תָּמָ֗רta.MarTamarH8559
אֲח֛וֹת'a.Chot[the] sister ofH269
אַבְשָׁלֹ֥ם'av.sha.LomAbsalomH53
אָחִ֖י'a.Chibrother myH251
אֲנִ֥י'a.NiIH589
אֹהֵֽב\׃'o.Hev[am] lovingH157

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

Cross references for 2 Samuel 13:4

  • Luke 12:32

    Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

  • Isaiah 3:9

    The shew of their countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded evil unto themselves.

  • Leviticus 18:9

    The nakedness of thy sister, the daughter of thy father, or daughter of thy mother, whether she be born at home, or born abroad, even their nakedness thou shalt not uncover.

  • Esther 5:13-14

    Yet all this availeth me nothing, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king’s gate. Then said Zeresh his wife and all his friends unto him, Let a gallows be made of fifty cubits high, and to morrow speak thou unto the king that Mordecai may be hanged thereon: then go thou in merrily with the king unto the banquet. And the thing pleased Haman; and he caused the gallows to be made.

  • Micah 7:3

    That they may do evil with both hands earnestly, the prince asketh, and the judge asketh for a reward; and the great man, he uttereth his mischievous desire: so they wrap it up.

  • Jeremiah 8:12

    Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore shall they fall among them that fall: in the time of their visitation they shall be cast down, saith the Lord.

  • Leviticus 20:17

    And if a man shall take his sister, his father’s daughter, or his mother’s daughter, and see her nakedness, and she see his nakedness; it is a wicked thing; and they shall be cut off in the sight of their people: he hath uncovered his sister’s nakedness; he shall bear his iniquity.

  • 1 Kings 21:7

    And Jezebel his wife said unto him, Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Why art.
1Ki 21:7; Es 5:13,14; Lu 12:32
lean. Heb. thin. from day to day. Heb. morning by morning.I love.
Isa 3:9; Jer 8:12; Mic 7:3
my brother.
Le 18:9; 20:17

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

Context

  • 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.

  • 2 Samuel 13:4

    And he said unto him, Why art thou, being the king’s son, lean from day to day? wilt thou not tell me? And Amnon said unto him, I love Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.

  • 2 Samuel 13:5

    And Jonadab said unto him, Lay thee down on thy bed, and make thyself sick: and when thy father cometh to see thee, say unto him, I pray thee, let my sister Tamar come, and give me meat, and dress the meat in my sight, that I may see it, and eat it at her hand.

Read all of 2 Samuel 13

2 Samuel 13:4 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Y éste le dijo: Hijo del rey, ¿por qué de día en día vas así enflaqueciendo? ¿no me lo descubrirás á mí? Y Amnón le respondió: Yo amo á Thamar la hermana de Absalom mi hermano.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et il lui dit: Pourquoi maigris-tu ainsi d’un matin à l’autre, toi, fils du roi? Ne me le déclareras-tu pas? Et Amnon lui dit: J’aime Tamar, sœur d’Absalom mon frère.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und er sprach zu ihm: Warum bist du so abgezehrt, Königssohn, Morgen für Morgen? Willst du es mir nicht kundtun? Und Amnon sprach zu ihm: Ich liebe Tamar, die Schwester meines Bruders Absalom.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Qui dixit ad eum: Quare sic attenuaris macie, fili regis, per singulos dies? cur non indicas mihi? Dixitque ei Amnon: Thamar sororem fratris mei Absalom amo.