What Does 2 Samuel 13:14 Mean in the King James?
Howbeit he would not hearken unto her voice: but, being stronger than she, forced her, and lay with her.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The violence begins with his refusal to hear her and culminates in the Hebrew verb for afflicting and violating her.
THE MEANING
The verse keeps her refusal in view as he overpowers her, violates her, and lies with her. It names what happens as violation, so physical contact cannot erase her refusal.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the lie that someone’s strength or desire can turn another person’s refusal into consent: force remains violation.
THE ROOT
וַיְעַנֶּהָ
wayeʿanneha
GROWS FROM
ענה
To afflict, oppress, or humble; in this context, to violate.
“forced her” in this verse is wayeʿanneha. The Hebrew verb carries the broader force of affliction and humiliation beneath “forced.” Here it names sexual violation, so the following words “lay with her” cannot make the act mutual.
ALSO GROWS
ʿinnûy: Affliction, humiliation
עִנּוּי
This noun preserves the harm contained in the verb: the act is something done to her, not shared intimacy.
ʿānî: Afflicted, oppressed; poor
עָנִי
This branch names a person marked by affliction, keeping the root’s connection to vulnerability visible.
לִשְׁמֹעַ
lishmōaʿ
GROWS FROM
שמע
To hear, listen, and heed; when a plea or command calls for a response, to hear and respond.
“hearken” in this verse is lishmōaʿ. Her voice is present, and his refusal to hear it comes before the physical overpowering. The verse marks a chosen refusal, not a failure to notice her.
ALSO GROWS
shāmaʿ: Hear, listen, heed
שָׁמַע
The root’s sense of heeding makes his rejection of her voice part of the violence.
shemuʿāh: Report, news; something heard
שְׁמוּעָה
This branch points back to what is heard: her voice is there, even as he refuses its claim on him.
וַיֶּחֱזַק מִמֶּנָּה
wayyeḥezaq mimmennāh
GROWS FROM
חזק
To be strong, prevail, or hold fast; here, to overpower.
“being stronger” in this verse is wayyeḥezaq mimmennāh. The verse makes the imbalance of force explicit: he prevails over her. This is strength used to take control, not a description of mutual desire.
ALSO GROWS
ḥāzāq: Strong, firm
חָזָק
This is the strength named in “being stronger than she,” shown here through its effect on her.
heḥĕzîq: Seized, held fast
הֶחֱזִיק
This form can describe physical force, bringing the root’s sense of strength into the act of taking hold.
THE PATTERN
Sexual intimacy is not made mutual by contact alone: Scripture names coercion as violation and speaks of sexual agreement as mutual consent.
And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her.But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her, and lie with her: then the man only that lay with her shall die: But unto the damsel thou shalt do nothing; there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death: for as when a man riseth against his neighbour, and slayeth him, even so is this matter: For he found her in the field, and the betrothed damsel cried, and there was none to save her.Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.THE THREAD
And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her.The same root ענה (ʿānāh, “afflict or violate”) names Shechem’s act against Dinah and Amnon’s act here, though the KJV renders the verb differently. That shared root keeps the harm visible beneath the phrase “lay with her”: the verse has already named force.
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