2 Samuel 20:1-22

2 Samuel 20:1-22

[1] And there happened  to be there a man  of Belial,  whose name  was Sheba,  the son  of Bichri,  and he blew  a trumpet,  and said,  We have no part  in David,  neither have we inheritance  in the son  of Jesse:  every  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  living  in widowhood.  [4] Then said  the king  to Amasa,  Assemble  me the men  of Judah  within three  days,  and be thou here present.  [5] So Amasa  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  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  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  by him, and said,  He  that favoureth  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 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,  say,  I pray you, unto Joab,  Come near  hither, that I may speak  [17] And when he was come near  unto her, the woman  said,  Art thou Joab?  And he answered,  unto him, Hear  the words  of thine handmaid.  And he answered,  I do hear.  [18] Then she spake,  They were wont  in old time,  saying,  They shall surely  counsel at Abel:  and so they ended  [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,  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  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. 

What does 2 Samuel 20:1-22 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

"The account of Sheba"s rebellion against David serves as a counterpoise to the story of Absalom"s conspiracy ( 2 Samuel 15:1-12) in chapters15-20 , which constitute the major part of the narrative that comprises chapters13-20 (more precisely, 2 Samuel 13:1 to 2 Samuel 20:22), the longest definable literary section of the Court History of David (chs9-20 ...)." [1]
Not all the people of Israel followed David. Some lined up behind Sheba, a discontented Benjamite who sought to split the kingdom as Jeroboam did45 years later. He sounded his rebel call in Gilgal and then proceeded north gathering supporters.
"It is no coincidence that independence is declared in practically identical terms in the cry of 2 Samuel 20:1 b and 1 Kings 12:16. Sheba ben Bichri was before his time-so a "worthless fellow." After Ahijah"s intervention, the time had come." [2]
This was another premature Acts , like the Israelites demand for a king before God gave them David. The notation of David"s dealings with his ten concubines ( 2 Samuel 20:3; cf. 2 Samuel 15:16; 2 Samuel 16:21-22) shows that the king behaved in harmony with the spirit of the Mosaic Law. The Law prohibited a woman who had had relations with two consecutive husbands from going back to her first husband ( Deuteronomy 24:1-4). The Law did not address David"s case specifically, but Deuteronomy 24was what seems to have guided his decision.
"The presence of concubines suggests how much the monarchy has embraced the royal ideology of the Near East, which is inimical to the old covenant tradition. David takes a drastic step of confining the concubines and presumably having no more to do with them. His action is most likely a concession and conciliatory gesture to the north.... In making this move, David not only distances himself from his own former practice but also offers a contrast to the conduct of Absalom ( 2 Samuel 16:21-22)." [3]
David"s action may also indicate that his temporary exile drove him back to the Lord and increased his desire to please Him. David had promoted Amasa by making him commander of the army in Joab"s place ( 2 Samuel 17:25), probably because Joab had killed Absalom ( 2 Samuel 19:13). Unfortunately Amasa moved too slowly ( 2 Samuel 20:5), so David put Abishai in charge ( 2 Samuel 20:6). The writer probably referred to the soldiers as "Joab"s men" ( 2 Samuel 20:7) because they had formerly been under Joab"s command.
Joab greeted Amasa in a customary way ( 2 Samuel 20:9). [4] He kissed the man he was about to slay, as Judas did centuries later ( Luke 22:47-48). Solomon avenged Joab"s murder of Amasa when he came to power ( 1 Kings 2:32-34). Perhaps David did not execute Joab because he felt gratefully indebted to him for his great service, and Joab was an effective commander who advanced David"s interests. Some leaders still publicly decry the methods of people whom they privately encourage.
Abel Beth-maacah lay about90 miles north of Gilgal and four miles west of Dan. Sheba had far fewer soldiers than Joab did ( 2 Samuel 20:11; 2 Samuel 20:14). The saying, "They will surely ask advice at Abel [5]," ( 2 Samuel 20:18) means people regarded the residents of that town as wise. The city was a mother in Israel ( 2 Samuel 20:19) in the sense that it exercised a beneficent maternal influence over its neighboring villages. Similarly "daughters," when used in reference to a town, represents the town"s satellite villages (e.g, Judges 1:27; et al.). The epithet "mother in Israel" describes only Deborah elsewhere in the Old Testament ( Judges 5:7).
"Abel is characterized in the proverb as a city with a long reputation for wisdom and faithfulness to the tradition of Israel. It Isaiah , therefore, a mother in the same way Deborah was: a creator and hence a symbol of the unity that bound Israel together under one God Yahweh. And it is the wise woman"s implicit appeal to this unity that stops Joab in his tracks." [6]
"The inheritance of the Lord" ( 2 Samuel 20:19) refers to Israel (cf. 2 Samuel 21:3). Evidently Sheba, though a Benjamite, lived in the hill country of Ephraim ( 2 Samuel 20:21). David"s rule was again secure with the death of Sheba, another man who rebelled against the Lord"s anointed and died for it.
"Wise words override ruthless policy. At the end, not only the woman and the city are saved; something of David"s dignity and self-respect are also rescued from Joab"s mad, obedient intent." [7]
"In an earlier incident, another "wise woman" had co-operated with Joab and had undertaken the delicate task of bringing the king to a new viewpoint ( 2 Samuel 14:1-20)." [8]
Compare also Abigail"s wise counsel to David ( 1 Samuel 25). This story teaches much about wisdom and folly.
"First of all the woman saw the problem realistically; the danger must have been clear enough to everyone in Abel, but there may have been some false hopes of rescue or intervention. Secondly, she did something about it-she did not wait for somebody else to act but took the initiative herself. Then she argued her case, challenging the rightness of Joab"s actions; and he was forced to agree with what she said. So a compromise was reached; and finally she took steps to fulfil [9] the terms agreed. In other words, wisdom was a combination of intelligent insight and bold action. The Old Testament rarely separates the intellectual from the pragmatic: wisdom is not simply knowing but also doing." [10]
The wise woman contrasts with foolish Joab who, nonetheless, showed wisdom himself when he listened to and cooperated with the woman. Sometimes very devoted people, such as Joab, can do much damage similarly in a church. Talk solved a problem that war would only have complicated. Wisdom saved the woman, her city, David"s reputation, Joab"s career, and many innocent lives. Her wisdom in action bears four marks: seeing the problem, acting to correct it, arguing her case persuasively, and fulfilling her responsibilities. God"s glory evidently motivated and guided her actions ( 2 Samuel 20:19). Sheba"s folly is clear in that he was easily offended, unable to muster support, and initiated a fight he could not win.