2 Samuel 20

1 And there happened to be a man of worthlessness there, and his name [is] Sheba, son of Bichri, a Benjamite, and he blows with a horn and says, “We have no portion in David, and we have no inheritance in the son of Jesse; each [goes] to his tents, O Israel.”

And there happened to be there a man of Belial, whose name was Seba, the son of Bochri, a man of Jemini: and he sounded the trumpet, and said: We have no part in David, nor inheritance in the son of Isai: return to thy dwellings, O Israel.

2 And every man of Israel goes up from after David, after Sheba son of Bichri, and the men of Judah have cleaved to their king, from the Jordan even to Jerusalem.

And all Israel departed from David, and followed Seba the son of Bochri: but the men of Juda stuck to their king from the Jordan unto Jerusalem.

3 And David comes to his house at Jerusalem. And the king takes the ten women-concubines whom he had left to keep the house, and puts them in a house of ward and sustains them, and he has not gone in to them, and they are shut up to the day of their death, living in widowhood.

And when the king was come into his house at Jerusalem, he took the ten women his concubines, whom he had left to keep the house, and put them in ward, allowing them provisions: and he went not in unto them, but they were shut up unto the day of their death living in widowhood.

4 And the king says to Amasa, “Call the men of Judah for me [within] three days, and you, stand here,”

And the king said to Amasa: Assemble to me all the men of Juda against the third day, and be thou here present.

5 and Amasa goes to call Judah, and tarries beyond the appointed time that he had appointed him;

So Amasa went to assemble the men of Juda, but he tarried beyond the set time which the king had appointed him.

6 and David says to Abishai, “Now Sheba son of Bichri does evil to us more than Absalom; you, take the servants of your lord, and pursue after him, lest he has found fortified cities for himself, and delivered himself [from] our eye.”

And David said to Abisai: Now will Seba the son of Bochri do us more harm than did Absalom: take thou therefore the servants of thy lord, and pursue after him, lest he find fenced cities, and escape us.

7 And the men of Joab go out after him, and the Cherethite, and the Pelethite, and all the mighty men, and they go out from Jerusalem to pursue after Sheba son of Bichri;

So Joab’s men went out with him, and the Cerethi and the Phelethi: and all the valiant men went out of Jerusalem to pursue after Seba the son of Bochri.

8 they [are] near the great stone that [is] in Gibeon, and Amasa has gone before them, and Joab [is] girded; he has put his long robe on him, and on it a girdle—a sword [is] fastened on his loins in its sheath; and he has gone out, and it falls.

And when they were at the great stone which is in Gabaon, Amasa coming met them. And Joab had on a close coat of equal length with his habit, and over it was girded with a sword hanging down to his flank, in a scabbard, made in such manner as to come out with the least motion and strike.

9 And Joab says to Amasa, “Are you [in] peace, my brother?” And the right hand of Joab lays hold on the beard of Amasa to give a kiss to him;

And Joab said to Amasa: God save thee, my brother. And he took Amasa by the chin with his right hand to kiss him.

10 and Amasa has not been watchful of the sword that [is] in the hand of Joab, and he strikes him with it to the fifth [rib], and sheds out his bowels to the earth, and he has not repeated [it] to him, and he dies; and Joab and his brother Abishai have pursued after Sheba son of Bichri.

But Amasa did not take notice of the sword, which Joab had, and he struck him in the side, and shed out his bowels to the ground, and gave him not a second wound, and he died. And Joab, and Abisai his brother pursued after Seba the son of Bochri.

11 And a man has stood by him, of the young men of Joab, and says, “He who has delight in Joab, and he who [is] for David—after Joab!”

In the mean time some men of Joab’s company stopping at the dead body of Amasa, said: Behold he that would have been in Joab’s stead the companion of David.

12 And Amasa is rolling himself in blood, in the midst of the highway, and the man sees that all the people have stood still, and he brings around Amasa out of the highway to the field, and casts a garment over him when he has seen that everyone who has come by him has stood still.

And Amasa imbrued with blood, lay in the midst of the way. A certain man saw this that all the people stood still to look upon him, so he removed Amasa out of the highway into the field, and covered him with a garment, that they who passed might not stop on his account.

13 When he has been removed out of the highway, every man has passed on after Joab, to pursue after Sheba son of Bichri.

And when he was removed out of the way, all the people went on following Joab to pursue after Seba the son of Bochri.

14 And he passes over through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, and to Beth-Maachah, and to all the Berites, and they are assembled, and also go in after him,

Now he had passed through all the tribes of Israel unto Abela and Bethmaacha: and all the chosen men were gathered together unto him.

15 and they go in and lay siege against him, in Abel of Beth-Maachah, and cast up a mound against the city, and it stands in a trench, and all the people who are [are] with Joab are destroying, to cause the wall to fall.

And they came, and besieged him in Abela, and in Bethmaacha, and they cast up works round the city, and the city was besieged: and all the people that were with Joab, laboured to throw down the walls.

16 And a wise woman calls out of the city, “Hear! Hear! Please say to Joab, Come near here, and I speak to you.”

And a wise woman cried out from the city: Hear, hear, and say to Joab: Come near hither, and I will speak with thee.

17 And he comes near to her, and the woman says, “Are you Joab?” And he says, “I [am].” And she says to him, “Hear the words of your handmaid”; and he says, “I am hearing.”

And when he was come near to her, she said to him: Art thou Joab? And he answered: I am. And she spoke thus to him: Hear the words of thy handmaid. He answered: I do hear.

18 And she speaks, saying, “They spoke often in former times, saying, Let them diligently inquire at Abel, and so they finished.

And she again said: A saying was used in the old proverb: They that inquire, let them inquire in Abela: and so they made an end.

19 I [am] of the peaceable, faithful ones of Israel; you are seeking to destroy a city and mother in Israel; why do you swallow up the inheritance of YHWH?”

Am not I she that answer truth in Israel, and thou seekest to destroy the city, and to overthrow a mother in Israel? Why wilt thou throw down the inheritance of the Lord?

20 And Joab answers and says, “Far be it—far be it from me; I do not swallow up nor destroy.

And Joab answering said: God forbid, God forbid that I should, I do not throw down, nor destroy.

21 The matter [is] not so; for a man of the hill-country of Ephraim—Sheba son of Bichri [is] his name—has lifted up his hand against the king, against David; give him up by himself, and I go away from the city.” And the woman says to Joab, “Behold, his head is cast to you over the wall.”

The matter is not so, but a man of mount Ephraim, Seba the son of Bochri by name, hath lifted up his hand against king David: deliver him only, and we will depart from the city. And the woman said to Joab: Behold his head shall be thrown to thee from the wall.

22 And the woman comes to all the people in her wisdom, and they cut off the head of Sheba son of Bichri, and cast [it] to Joab, and he blows with a horn, and they are scattered from the city, each [goes] to his tents, and Joab has turned back to Jerusalem to the king.

So she went to all the people, and spoke to them wisely: and they cut off the head of Seba the son of Bochri, and cast it out to Joab. And he sounded the trumpet, and they departed from the city, every one to their home: and Joab returned to Jerusalem to the king.

23 And Joab [is] over all the host of Israel, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada [is] over the Cherethite, and over the Pelethite,

So Joab was over all the army of Israel: and Banaias the son of Joiada was over the Cerethites and Phelethites,

24 and Adoram [is] over the tribute, and Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud [is] the remembrancer,

But Aduram over the tributes: and Josaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder.

25 and Sheva [is] scribe, and Zadok and Abiathar [are] priests,

And Siva was scribe: and Sadoc and Abiathar, priests.

26 and also, Ira the Jairite has been minister to David.

And Ira the Jairite was the priest of David.