2 Samuel 20

1 Now by chance there was present a good-for-nothing person named Sheba, the son of Bichri, a Benjamite: and he, sounding the horn, said, We have no part in David, or any interest in the son of Jesse: let every man go to his tent, O Israel.

A rabble-rouser called Sheba, son of Bichri, from the tribe of Benjamin, happened to be there. He blew the ram's horn and shouted: “We have no interest in David, no commitment to Jesse's son. Israelites, let's all go home!”

2 So all the men of Israel, turning away from David, went after Sheba, the son of Bichri: but the men of Judah were true to their king, going with him from Jordan as far as Jerusalem.

So all the men of Israel abandoned David to follow Sheba, son of Bichri. But the men of Judah accompanied their king all the way from the Jordan to Jerusalem.

3 And David came to his house at Jerusalem: and the king took the ten women to whom he had given the care of the house, and had them shut up, and gave them the necessaries of life, but did not go near them. So they were shut up till the day of their death, living as widows.

When David returned to his palace in Jerusalem, he took the ten concubines he had left to look after the palace and put them in a house under guard. He took care of their needs but he didn't sleep with them. They were imprisoned until they died, living like widows.

4 Then the king said to Amasa, Get all the men of Judah together, and in three days be here yourself.

Then the king ordered Amasa, “Call up the army of Judah. Have them come to me within three days, and you come too.”

5 So Amasa went to get all the men of Judah together, but he took longer than the time David had given him.

Amasa called up the army of Judah, but he took longer than the time he was given.

6 And David said to Abishai, Sheba, the son of Bichri, will do us more damage than Absalom did; so take some of your lord's servants and go after him, before he makes himself safe in the walled towns, and gets away before our eyes.

David then spoke to Abishai, saying, “Now Sheba the son of Bichri is going to cause us more trouble than Absalom did. Take the king's men and chase him down, or he will take over fortified towns and get away from us.”

7 So there went after Abishai, Joab and the Cherethites and the Pelethites and all the fighting-men; they went out of Jerusalem to overtake Sheba, the son of Bichri.

So Joab's men, along with the Cherethites, the Pelethites, and all the experienced fighters, marched out of Jerusalem to chase down Sheba, son of Bichri.

8 When they were at the great stone which is in Gibeon, Amasa came face to face with them. Now Joab had on his war-dress, and round him a band from which his sword was hanging in its cover; and while he was walking, it came out, falling to the earth.

While they were at the large rock in Gibeon, Amasa caught up with them. Joab was dressed for battle. Over his clothes was a belt around his waist with a dagger in its sheath. As he moved forward, it fell out.

9 And Joab said to Amasa, Is it well, my brother? And with his right hand he took him by the hair of his chin to give him a kiss.

“How are you doing, my brother?” Joab asked Amasa. Joab held Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss him.

10 But Amasa did not see danger from the sword which was now in Joab's left hand, and Joab put it through his stomach so that his inside came out on to the earth, and he did not give him another blow. So Joab and his brother Abishai went on after Sheba, the son of Bichri.

Amasa wasn't prepared for the dagger in Joab's left hand. Joab stabbed him in the belly and his intestines poured out onto the ground. Joab didn't need to stab him twice, because Amasa was already dead. Then Joab and his brother Abishai set off in pursuit of Sheba.

11 And one of Joab's young men, taking his place at Amasa's side, said, Whoever is for Joab and for David, let him go after Joab!

One of Joab's men stood beside Amasa and called out, “If you're on Joab's side, and if you are on David's side, then follow Joab!”

12 And Amasa was stretched out in a pool of blood in the middle of the highway. And when the man saw that all the people were stopping, he took Amasa out of the highway and put him in a field, with a cloth over him, when he saw that everyone who went by came to a stop.

But Amasa was there, lying in his blood in the middle of the main road. When the man saw that everybody was stopping to look, he pulled the body off the road into a field and threw a cloth over it.

13 When he had been taken off the road, all the people went on after Joab in search of Sheba, the son of Bichri.

Once Amasa's body was off the road, all the men followed Joab in pursuit of Sheba.

14 And Sheba went through all the tribes of Israel, to Abel of Beth-maacah; and all the Bichrites came together and went in after him.

In the meantime Sheba had gone around all the tribes of Israel and eventually ended up the town of Abel-beth-maacah. All the Bichrites gathered for battle and followed him into the town.

15 And Joab and his men got him shut up in Abel of Beth-maacah, and put up an earthwork against the town: and all Joab's men did their best to get the wall broken down.

Joab's army came and besieged Sheba in Abel-Beth-Maacah. They built a siege ramp against the town's outer wall. While all of Joab's army was battering the wall to knock it down,

16 Then a wise woman got up on the wall, and crying out from the town, said, Give ear, give ear; say now to Joab, Come near, so that I may have talk with you.

a wise woman from the town called out, “Listen! Please listen! Tell Joab, ‘Come over here so I can speak to you.’”

17 And he came near, and the woman said, Are you Joab? And he said in answer, I am. Then she said, Give ear to your servant's words. And he said, I am giving ear.

He went over to her, and the woman asked, “Are you Joab?” “Yes, that's me,” he replied. “Please listen to what I, your servant, have to say,” she said. “I'm listening,” he replied.

18 Then she said, In the old days, there was a saying, Let them put the question in Abel and in Dan, saying, Has what was ordered by men of good faith in Israel ever come to an end?

Then the woman said, “In times gone by people used to say, ‘If you want advice, go to Abel,’ and that's how arguments were settled.

19 Your purpose is the destruction of a mother-town in Israel: why would you put an end to the heritage of the Lord?

I am one of the peaceful and faithful people of Israel. You're trying to destroy a town that's like a mother in Israel. Why do you want to tear down the Lord's possession?”

20 And Joab, answering her, said, Far, far be it from me to be a cause of death or destruction;

“Certainly not!” Joab answered. “It's not what I want—to destroy or tear down this town!

21 Not so: but a man of the hill-country of Ephraim, Sheba, son of Bichri, by name, has taken up arms against the king, against David: give up this man only, and I will go away from the town. And the woman said to Joab, His head will be dropped over the wall to you.

That's not the intention. But a man called Sheba, son of Bichri, from the hill country of Ephraim, has rebelled against the king, against David. Just hand over this one man and I will withdraw from the town.” “Fine,” the woman replied, “his head will be thrown over the wall to you.”

22 Then the woman in her wisdom had talk with all the town. And they had Sheba's head cut off and sent out to Joab. And he had the horn sounded, and sent them all away from the town, every man to his tent. And Joab went back to Jerusalem to the king.

The woman went and talked with everyone about her wise plan. So they cut off the head of Sheba and threw it to Joab. Then Joab blew the ram's horn to sound the retreat, and all his men left the town and went home. Joab returned to the king in Jerusalem.

23 Now Joab was over all the army; and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, was at the head of the Cherethites and the Pelethites;

Joab commanded the whole army of Israel. Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, was in charge of the Cherethites and Pelethites.

24 And Adoram was overseer of the forced work; and Jehoshaphat, the son of Ahilud, was the recorder;

Adoniram was in charge of the labor force. Jehoshaphat, son of Ahilud, kept the official records.

25 And Sheva was the scribe, and Zadok and Abiathar were priests;

Sheva was the secretary. Zadok and Abiathar were the priests,

26 And in addition, Ira the Jairite was a priest to David.

and Ira the Jairite was David's priest.