2 Samuel 13:4He 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."
The setting
Jerusalem palace, ~1000 BC. Crown prince Amnon sits dejected, losing weight and health over his obsession with his half-sister. Location: royal quarters in modern Jerusalem, Israel.
The emotion here: recording with horror how evil disguises itself as emotion
The original word
ʾāhab (אָהַב) — the word for love, but context reveals this is possession, not love
Why it matters
Tamar was Amnon's half-sister through David, making this both incest and a violation of Israelite law
Read with care
What most readers miss in 2 Samuel 13:4
Amnon calls it 'love' but it's pure lust — notice he's wasting away because he can't possess her
Common misconceptionPeople think Amnon truly loved Tamar, but the Hebrew shows this was selfish lust masquerading as love — proven by his hatred of her afterward.
The thread continues
Verses that echo 2 Samuel 13:4
Bible Genome reading
2 Samuel 13:4 — Bible Genome reading
Emotional genome
2 Samuel 13:4 comes from the book of 2 Samuel, written during the United Kingdom period. The setting is a royal palace. These words are attributed to Jonadab. The dominant emotion in this verse is seeking, with a comfort power of 10% and a tone that is conversational. It belongs to the dialogue genre of biblical literature. Key themes include inquiry, friendship. Notable phrases: Why are you so sad.
Emotionally similar
Verses that meet the same seeking
“Pray without ceasing.”
— 1 Thessalonians 5:17
“But let justice roll on like rivers, and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
— Amos 5:24
“Be it far from you to do things like that, to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be like the wicked. May that …”
— Genesis 18:25
“Call to me, and I will answer you, and will show you great things, and difficult, which you don't know.”
— Jeremiah 33:3
“Forgive us our sins, for we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. Bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evi…”
— Luke 11:4
Your reflection
What does 2 Samuel 13:4 mean to you, today?
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