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Chapter 20 |
| 1 | And there
happened to be there a man of Belial, whose name was Sheba, the son of Bichri,
a Benjamite: and he blew a trumpet, and said, We have no part in David, neither
have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: every man to his tents, O
Israel. |
| 2 |
So every man of Israel went up from after David, and followed
Sheba the son of Bichri: but the men of Judah clave unto their king, from
Jordan even to Jerusalem. |
|
3 | And David came to his house at
Jerusalem; and the king took the ten women his concubines, whom he had left to
keep the house, and put them in ward, and fed them, but went not in unto them.
So they were shut up unto the day of their death, living in widowhood.
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| 4 | Then said the king to Amasa, Assemble me the men of Judah within three
days, and be thou here present. |
| 5 | So Amasa went to assemble the
men of Judah: but he tarried longer than the set time which he had appointed
him. |
| 6 |
And David said to Abishai, Now shall Sheba the son of Bichri
do us more harm than did Absalom: take thou thy lord's servants, and pursue
after him, lest he get him fenced cities, and escape us. |
| 7 | And there
went out after him Joab's men, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and all
the mighty men: and they went out of Jerusalem, to pursue after Sheba the son
of Bichri. |
| 8
| When they were at the great stone which is in Gibeon,
Amasa went before them. And Joab's garment that he had put on was girded unto
him, and upon it a girdle with a sword fastened upon his loins in the sheath
thereof; and as he went forth it fell out. |
|
9 | And Joab said to Amasa,
Art thou in health, my brother? And Joab took Amasa by the beard with the right
hand to kiss him. |
| 10 | But Amasa took no heed to the sword that was
in Joab's hand: so he smote him therewith in the fifth rib, and shed out his
bowels to the ground, and struck him not again; and he died. So Joab and
Abishai his brother pursued after Sheba the son of Bichri. |
| 11 | And one
of Joab's men stood by him, and said, He that favoreth Joab, and he that is for
David, let him go after Joab. |
|
12 | And Amasa wallowed in blood in the
midst of the highway. And when the man saw that all the people stood still, he
removed Amasa out of the highway into the field, and cast a cloth upon him,
when he saw that every one that came by him stood still. |
| 13 | When he
was removed out of the highway, all the people went on after Joab, to pursue
after Sheba the son of Bichri. |
| 14 | And he went through all the
tribes of Israel unto Abel, and to Bethmaachah, and all the Berites: and they
were gathered together, and went also after him. |
| 15 | And they
came and besieged him in Abel of Bethmaachah, and they cast up a bank against
the city, and it stood in the trench: and all the people that were with Joab
battered the wall, to throw it down. |
| 16 | Then cried a wise woman out
of the city, Hear, hear; say, I pray you, unto Joab, Come near hither, that I
may speak with thee. |
| 17 | And when he was come near unto her, the
woman said, Art thou Joab? And he answered, I am he. Then she said unto him,
Hear the words of thine handmaid. And he answered, I do hear. |
| 18 | Then
she spake, saying, They were wont to speak in old time, saying, They shall
surely ask counsel at Abel: and so they ended the matter. |
| 19 | I am one
of them that are peaceable and faithful in Israel: thou seekest to destroy a
city and a mother in Israel: why wilt thou swallow up the inheritance of the
LORD? |
| 20 |
And Joab answered and said, Far be it, far be it from me, that
I should swallow up or destroy. |
| 21 | The matter is not so: but a
man of mount Ephraim, Sheba the son of Bichri by name, hath lifted up his hand
against the king, even against David: deliver him only, and I will depart from
the city. And the woman said unto Joab, Behold, his head shall be thrown to
thee over the wall. |
| 22 | Then the woman went unto all the people in
her wisdom. And they cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri, and cast it
out to Joab. And he blew a trumpet, and they retired from the city, every man
to his tent. And Joab returned to Jerusalem unto the king. |
| 23 | Now Joab
was over all the host of Israel: and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the
Cherethites and over the Pelethites: |
| 24 | And Adoram was over the
tribute: and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder: |
| 25 | And
Sheva was scribe: and Zadok and Abiathar were the priests: |
| 26 | And Ira
also the Jairite was a chief ruler about David. |
