[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. [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. [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. [4] Then the king said to Amasa,
Get all the men of Judah together, and in three days be here yourself. [5]
So Amasa went to get all the men of Judah together, but he took longer than
the time David had given him. [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. [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. [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. [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. [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. [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! [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. [13] When he had been taken off
the road, all the people went on after Joab in search of Sheba, the son of
Bichri. [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.
[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. [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. [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. [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? [19] Your purpose is the destruction of a mother-town in Israel: why
would you put an end to the heritage of the Lord? [20] And Joab, answering
her, said, Far, far be it from me to be a cause of death or destruction;
[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. [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. [23] Now Joab was over all the army; and Benaiah, the son of
Jehoiada, was at the head of the Cherethites and the Pelethites; [24] And
Adoram was overseer of the forced work; and Jehoshaphat, the son of Ahilud,
was the recorder; [25] And Sheva was the scribe, and Zadok and Abiathar
were priests; [26] And in addition, Ira the Jairite was a priest to David.
