20
1 And there happened to be there an ish Beliyaal,* shmo Sheva Ben Bikhri an ish from Binyamin; and he blew a shofar, and said, We have no chelek in Dovid, neither have we nachalah in Ben Yishai; every ish to his ohel, O Yisroel.
2 So kol Ish Yisroel went up from after Dovid, and followed Sheva Ben Bikhri; but the Ish Yehudah had deveykus unto their Melech, from Yarden even to Yerushalayim.
3 And Dovid came to his Bais (palace) at Yerushalayim; and HaMelech took the ten nashim, his pilagshim, whom he had left to be shomer over the Bais, and put them in Bais Mishmeret (seclusion), and provided for them, but went not in unto them. So they were shut up unto their yom mot, living in almenut (widowhood).
4 Then said HaMelech to Amasa, Assemble the Ish Yehudah within shloshet yamim; be thou here present.
5 So Amasa went to assemble Yehudah; but he tarried longer than the mo'ed which he had appointed him. 6 And Dovid said to Avishai, Now shall Sheva Ben Bikhri do us more harm than did Avshalom; take thou the avadim of adoneicha, pursue after him, lest he get him fortified cities, and escape us.
7 And there went out after him anshei Yoav, and the Kereti, and the Peleti, and kol Gibborim; and they went out of Yerushalayim, to pursue after Sheva Ben Bikhri. 8 When they were at the Even Hagedolah (Great Stone) which is in Giv'on, Amasa went before them. And Yoavʼs military garment that he had put on was girded unto him, and upon it a khagor with a cherev fastened upon his waist in the sheath thereof; and as he went forth it fell out.
9 Yoav said to Amasa, Art thou in shalom, my brother? And Yoav took Amasa by the zaken (beard) with the right hand to kiss him. 10 But Amasa took no heed to the cherev that was in the yad Yoav; so he stabbed him therewith in the fifth rib, and shed out his bowels to the ground, and struck him not again; and he died. So Yoav and Avishai achiv pursued after Sheva Ben Bikhri. 11 And one of the nearim of Yoav stood by him, and said, He that favoreth Yoav, and he that is for Dovid, let him go after Yoav. 12 And Amasa wallowed in dahm in the midst of the mesilah (road). And when the ish saw that kol haAm halted, he removed Amasa out of the mesilah into the sadeh, and threw a beged (garment) over him, when he saw that every one that came by him halted.
13 When he was removed from the mesilah, kol haAm went on after Yoav, to pursue after Sheva Ben Bikhri.
14 And he passed through all the Shivtei Yisroel unto Abel, and to Beit-Ma'achah, and all the Berim; and they were gathered together, and went also after him.† 15 And they came and besieged him in Abel of Beit-Ma'achah, and they cast up a siege ramp against the Ir, until it stood by the rampart; and kol haAm that were with Yoav battered the chomah (wall), to throw it down.
16 Then cried an isha chachamah (wise woman) from the Ir, Hear, hear; say, now unto Yoav, Come here, that I may speak with thee.
17 And when he was come near unto her, the isha said, Art thou Yoav? And he answered, I am he. Then she said unto him, Hear the devarim of thine amah. And he answered, I do hear. 18 Then she spoke, saying, They used to speak in rishonah (old times), saying, They shall surely ask counsel at Abel; and so they settled the matter. 19 I am one of them that are of shalom and of emunah in Yisroel; thou seekest to destroy an Ir and an em b'Yisroel; why wilt thou swallow up the nachalat Hashem? 20 And Yoav answered and said, Chalilah (far be it), chalilah from me, that I should swallow up or destroy. 21 The matter is not so; but an ish of har Ephrayim, Sheva Ben Bikhri shmo, hath lifted up his yad against HaMelech, even against Dovid; hand over him only, and I will depart from the Ir. And the woman said unto Yoav, Hinei, his rosh shall be thrown to thee from the chomah.
22 Then the isha went unto kol haAm in her chochmah. And they cut off the rosh of Sheva Ben Bikhri, and threw it out to Yoav. And he blew a shofar, and they retired from the city, every ish to his ohel. And Yoav returned to Yerushalayim unto HaMelech.
23 Now Yoav was over kol HaTzava Yisroel; and Benayah Ben Yehoyada was over the Kereti and over the Peleti;
24 And Adoram was over the forced labor; and Yehoshaphat Ben Achilud was mazkir (secretary); 25 And Sheva was sofer; and Tzadok and Evyatar (Abiathar) were the kohanim; 26 And also Ira the Yairi was kohen to Dovid.
* 20:1 rebel † 20:14 i.e., Sheva