OET interlinear 2 SAM 18:9

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy

וַ⁠יִּקָּרֵא֙ אַבְשָׁל֔וֹם לִ⁠פְנֵ֖י עַבְדֵ֣י דָוִ֑ד

(Some words not found in UHB: and,he_was_met ʼAⱱīshālōm to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before servants_of Dāvid and,Absalom riding on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in the,mule and,it_went the,mule below/instead_of thick_branches_of of,the_terebinth (the),great and,it_was_firm his/its=head in,terebinth and,he_was_put between the=heavens and=between the=earth/land and,the,mule which/who [was]_under,him went_on )

Here, to the face of represents being in the presence of David’s servants. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use an equivalent expression or plain language. Alternate translation: [And Absalom encountered some of the servants of David]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom

וַ⁠יִּקָּרֵא֙ אַבְשָׁל֔וֹם לִ⁠פְנֵ֖י עַבְדֵ֣י דָוִ֑ד

(Some words not found in UHB: and,he_was_met ʼAⱱīshālōm to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before servants_of Dāvid and,Absalom riding on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in the,mule and,it_went the,mule below/instead_of thick_branches_of of,the_terebinth (the),great and,it_was_firm his/its=head in,terebinth and,he_was_put between the=heavens and=between the=earth/land and,the,mule which/who [was]_under,him went_on )

The author is using was met as a common expression of his culture to mean “happened to be.” If this phrase does not have that meaning in your language, you could use a comparable expression from your language that does have that meaning, or you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [And Absalom unexpectedly found himself in the presence of the servants of David] or [And Absalom happened to come into the presence of the servants of David]

Note 3 topic: writing-background

וְ⁠אַבְשָׁל֞וֹם רֹכֵ֣ב עַל־הַ⁠פֶּ֗רֶד

(Some words not found in UHB: and,he_was_met ʼAⱱīshālōm to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before servants_of Dāvid and,Absalom riding on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in the,mule and,it_went the,mule below/instead_of thick_branches_of of,the_terebinth (the),great and,it_was_firm his/its=head in,terebinth and,he_was_put between the=heavens and=between the=earth/land and,the,mule which/who [was]_under,him went_on )

Here, the author is providing background information to help readers understand what happens next in the story. In your translation, introduce this information in a way that would be natural in your own language and culture.

Note 4 topic: translate-symaction

וְ⁠אַבְשָׁל֞וֹם רֹכֵ֣ב עַל־הַ⁠פֶּ֗רֶד

(Some words not found in UHB: and,he_was_met ʼAⱱīshālōm to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before servants_of Dāvid and,Absalom riding on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in the,mule and,it_went the,mule below/instead_of thick_branches_of of,the_terebinth (the),great and,it_was_firm his/its=head in,terebinth and,he_was_put between the=heavens and=between the=earth/land and,the,mule which/who [was]_under,him went_on )

Riding on a mule was a symbolic action by which Absalom showed that he claimed to be king of Israel, since kings rode on mules. (For example, David has Solomon ride on his mule in [1 Kings 1:33](../../1ki/01/33.md) to show that he has chosen him to be the next king.) If it would be helpful to your readers, you could explain the significance of this action in the text of your translation or in a footnote. Alternate translation: [Now Absalom was riding on the royal mule]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / go

וַ⁠יָּבֹ֣א הַ⁠פֶּ֡רֶד

(Some words not found in UHB: and,he_was_met ʼAⱱīshālōm to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before servants_of Dāvid and,Absalom riding on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in the,mule and,it_went the,mule below/instead_of thick_branches_of of,the_terebinth (the),great and,it_was_firm his/its=head in,terebinth and,he_was_put between the=heavens and=between the=earth/land and,the,mule which/who [was]_under,him went_on )

In a context such as this, your language might say “went” instead of came. Alternate translation: [and the mule went]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

בֵּ֤ין הַ⁠שָּׁמַ֨יִם֙ וּ⁠בֵ֣ין הָ⁠אָ֔רֶץ

(Some words not found in UHB: and,he_was_met ʼAⱱīshālōm to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before servants_of Dāvid and,Absalom riding on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in the,mule and,it_went the,mule below/instead_of thick_branches_of of,the_terebinth (the),great and,it_was_firm his/its=head in,terebinth and,he_was_put between the=heavens and=between the=earth/land and,the,mule which/who [was]_under,him went_on )

In this context, the term heavens refers to the sky, and the term earth refers to the ground. Alternate translation: [between the sky and the ground] or [up in the air]