John Gill Commentary 2 Samuel 13

And it came to pass after this
After the sin of David with Bathsheba, his repentance for it, and pardon of it, and the birth of Solomon as a token of reconciliation; yet after all this the divine threatenings must take place; they had begun already in the death of the child begotten in adultery, and others here follow:

that Absalom the son of David had a fair sister, whose name [was]
Tamar ;
she was his sister both by father and mother's side; the mother o, f them was Maacah, the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur; she was a very comely person, her name signifies a palm tree:

and Amnon the son of David loved her ;
not in an honourable way, to make her his wife, but in a lustful manner, to make an harlot of her; he was David's eldest son by Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, (2 Samuel 3:2) .

And Amnon was so vexed
Distressed, straitened, and perplexed in his mind through unruly and unbridled lusts that raged in him:

that he fell sick for his sister Tamar ;
as Antiochus son of Seleucus did for his mother in law Stratonice, who, to cure him of it, was delivered to him by his father ^F19 :

for she [was] a virgin ;
and so kept very recluse from the company of men, that he could not come at her; so Philo ^F20 , speaking of the Jewish women, and particularly virgins, says, that they were shut up in their chambers, and through modesty shun the sight of men, even those of their own house; hence they are called (twmle) , from a word which signifies to hide; and Phocylides ^F21 the poet advises to the shutting of them up in like manner:

and Amnon thought it hard for him to do anything to her ;
that it was difficult to have access to her, almost impossible, what he despaired of, and what, if attained to, would be wonderful and amazing; he was at his wits' end how to contrive any scheme to get at her, and obtain his desire.

FOOTNOTES:

• F19: See the Universal History, vol. 3. p. 519. Ed. fol.
• F20: In Flaccum, p. 977.
• F21: Poem. admon. v. 203, 204.

But Amnon had a friend
Though in the issue his friendship proved his ruin:

whose name [was] Jonadab, the son of Shimeah, David's brother ;
so that they were own cousins, the same with Shammah, (1 Samuel 16:9) ;

and Jonadab [was] a very subtle man ;
a very penetrating man into the dispositions of men, and could judge by their countenances what they were, and the affections of their minds, and had a talent in forming schemes; he was wise to do evil and was wickedly cunning.

And he said unto him, why [art] thou, [being] the king's son ,lean from day today ? &c.] Or "morning by morning", ^F23 ; he was the king's eldest son, heir to the crown, fed at his table, had everything to make him gay and cheerful, and yet pined away; his flesh wasted ^F24 , his countenance waxed wan and pale, and especially in the mornings; in the daytime he met with diversions which, in some measure, took off his thoughts from the object his mind was impressed with, but in the night season they were continually employed about it; so that he could have no rest and sleep, which made him look ruefully in the morning;

and this man had a suspicion of his case, and therefore put this and the following question to him:

wilt thou not tell me ? who am so nearly related to thee, and who have such a particular value and affection for thee:

and Amnon said unto him, I love Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister ; he does not call her his sister, but Absalom's sister, to lessen his sin of unlawful love to her, which, being thus closely pressed, and by a friend, he could not conceal.

FOOTNOTES:

• F23: (rqbb rqbb) , "in mane in mane", Montanus.
• F24: "Fecit amor maciem -----". Ovid Metamorph. l. 11. Fab. 11. v. 793.

And Jonadab said unto him Being a subtle man, he presently formed a scheme to relieve him, and open a way for the enjoyment of what he desired:

lay yourself down on your bed, and make yourself sick ; feign yourself sick, pretend that you are so, by lying down on the bed, and making complaints of one kind or another:

and when your father comes to see you ; as he quickly would, after hearing of his illness, being very affectionate to his children:

say unto him, I pray you let, my sister Tamar come, and give me meat ; here he is directed to call her not Absalom's sister, but his own, the more to cover his ill design upon her:

and dress the meat in my sight, that I may see [it], and eat [it] at her hand ; pretending that his stomach was very weak and squeamish, that he could not eat anything which his servants dressed for him, and which he did not see done with his own eyes.