2 Samuel 20

20 ¹ Now a worthless man happened to be there whose name was Sheba son of Bichri, a Benjamite. He blew the trumpet and shouted, "We have no share in David, no inheritance in the son of Jesse! Every man to his own home, Israel!"

² So all the men of Israel abandoned David and followed Sheba son of Bichri; but the men of Judah stayed close to their king, all the way from the Jordan to Jerusalem.

³ When David came to his house in Jerusalem, the king took the ten concubines he had left to keep the house and put them in a guarded house. He provided for them, but he did not sleep with them. So they were confined until the day they died, living as widows.

⁴ Then the king said to Amasa, "Summon the men of Judah to me within three days, and be back here yourself."

⁵ So Amasa went to summon Judah, but he took longer than the time the king had set for him.

⁶ And David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom did. Take your lord's men and pursue him, or he will find fortified cities for himself and slip out of our sight."

⁷ So Joab's men went out after him, along with the Cherethites and the Pelethites and all the mighty warriors. They marched out from Jerusalem to pursue Sheba son of Bichri. ⁸ When they were at the great stone in Gibeon, Amasa came to meet them. Joab was wearing his military tunic with a sword in its sheath strapped to his waist; as he stepped forward, it dropped out.

⁹ Joab said to Amasa, "How are you, my brother?" And with his right hand Joab took hold of Amasa's beard to kiss him.

¹⁰ Amasa did not notice the sword in Joab's hand, and Joab struck him with it in the belly, spilling his entrails to the ground. He did not strike him again, and Amasa died. Then Joab and his brother Abishai pursued Sheba son of Bichri.

¹¹ One of Joab's young men stood beside Amasa and said, "Whoever favors Joab, and whoever is for David, let him follow Joab!" ¹² Amasa lay wallowing in his blood in the middle of the road. When the man saw that all the troops stopped there, he dragged Amasa out of the road into the field and threw a garment over him, because everyone who came upon him stopped. ¹³ Once he was removed from the road, all the men went on after Joab to pursue Sheba son of Bichri.

¹⁴ Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel of Beth Maacah; and all the Bicrites assembled and followed him too.

¹⁵ They came and besieged him in Abel of Beth Maacah. They built a siege ramp against the city, and it stood against the outer rampart; and all the troops with Joab were battering the wall to bring it down.

¹⁶ Then a wise woman called out from the city, "Listen! Listen! Tell Joab, 'Come here, so I can speak with you.'"

¹⁷ When he came near her, the woman asked, "Are you Joab?" "I am," he said. Then she said to him, "Listen to the words of your servant." "I am listening," he said.

¹⁸ She continued, "In the old days they used to say, 'Just ask for counsel at Abel,' and that would settle the matter. ¹⁹ I am one of the peaceable and faithful in Israel. You are trying to destroy a city that is a mother in Israel. Why would you swallow up the inheritance of our Father?" ¹ 1 v19 A 'mother city' was a major regional center that smaller towns depended on for guidance and protection.

²⁰ Joab answered, "I would never, never swallow up or destroy! ²¹ That is not the case. But a man from the hill country of Ephraim named Sheba son of Bichri has rebelled against the king, against David. Just hand over this one man to me, and I will withdraw from the city." The woman said to Joab, "His head will be thrown to you over the wall."

²² Then the woman went to all the people with her wise counsel, and they cut off the head of Sheba son of Bichri and threw it out to Joab. So he blew the trumpet, and they dispersed from the city, every man to his own home. And Joab returned to Jerusalem, to the king.

David's Royal Officials

²³ Now Joab commanded the whole army of Israel; Benaiah son of Jehoiada commanded the Cherethites and the Pelethites; ²⁴ Adoram was in charge of the forced labor; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder; ²⁵ Sheva was secretary; and Zadok and Abiathar were priests; ²⁶ and Ira the Jairite was also David's priest.