As we closed yesterday's study we found Joab stabbing his cousin Amasa in the gut before continuing his pursuit of the rebel Sheba (who is stirring up opposition against David) and his men. Some of David's troops don't know what to do when they come upon the wounded Amasa lying in the roadway. During Absalom's brief reign, he was the chief general of Absalom's army. Since David was reinstated as king of Israel, he has been David's chief general in place of Joab. It draws the troops up short to find this army commander in their path and, if not for the quick thinking of one of Joab's men, it might have delayed the pursuit of Sheba or derailed it altogether.
"One of Joab's men stood beside Amasa and said, 'Whoever favors Joab, and whoever is for David, let him follow Joab!' Amasa lay wallowing in his blood in the middle of the road, and the man saw that all the troops came to a halt there. When he realized that everyone who came up to Amasa stopped, he dragged him from the road into a field and threw a garment over him. After Amasa had been removed from the road, everyone went on with Joab to pursue Sheba son of Bikri." (2 Samuel 20:11-13) This man's treatment of Amasa may be callous but on the other hand, in most nations a man who commanded the army of a man attempting to usurp the throne would have been executed for treason as soon as the rightful king was restored to the throne. Amasa was perfectly willing to lead Absalom's forces in a battle where the objective was to kill David. Any other king in the world at that time would almost certainly have had Amasa put to death for his treachery. But David is Amasa's uncle, David is bitter toward Joab over the death of Absalom, and David may have thought he'd regain the support of those who had betrayed him by placing Absalom's general at the head of his own army. Amasa didn't earn or deserve his position over the army and now Joab has relieved him of it, whether or not his method was right or wrong.
"Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel Beth Maakah and through the entire region of the Bikrites, who gathered together and followed him. All the troops with Joab came and besieged Sheba in Abel Beth Maakah. They built a siege ramp up to the city, and it stood against the outer fortifications. While they were battering the wall to bring it down, a wise woman called from the city, 'Listen! Listen! Tell Joab to come here so I can speak to him.'" (2 Samuel 20:14-16) Earlier in our chapter we were told that Sheba is the son of Bikri, so when we learn he gathers supporters from among the Bikrites, he's gathering supporters from among his own people. With him also are some or all of those who deserted David on the way back from the Jordan River to Jerusalem---those who quarreled with the men of Judah and accused them of trying to make themselves a big deal in David's eyes. Sheba does not have enough men to face down Joab's forces. If he did, he would not have fled to a fortified city for refuge.
People under siege usually undergo terrible deprivations. If a siege continues long enough, people can't go out to work their crops or tend their flocks and herds. People can't obtain food and medicine from outside. They begin dying of starvation or of treatable medical conditions. A woman known only to us as a "wise woman" takes matters into her own hands to put an end to the siege. I don't know whether the author of 2 Samuel refers to her as a wise woman because she saves the day in our text or whether she's a respected female elder of her city or whether she's a prophetess. But she decides she isn't going to just sit there; she's going to do something. She calls for the man now in command of the army, Joab, and he draws near enough to hear her words. "He went toward her, and she asked, 'Are you Joab?' 'I am,' he answered." (2 Samuel 20:17a)
She asks him why he would want to destroy a city that is at peace with everyone around it. "She said, 'Listen to what your servant has to say.' 'I'm listening,' he said. She continued, 'Long ago they used to say, 'Get your answer at Abel,' and that settled it. We are the peaceful and faithful in Israel. You are trying to destroy a city that is a mother in Israel. Why do you want to swallow up the Lord's inheritance?'" (2 Samuel 20:17b-19) Abel was evidently once known as a city where wisdom could be sought. There may have been a school of prophecy there or perhaps a council of elders. There is still at least one wise provider of advice in the city---this woman---and Joab clearly displays an attitude of respect for her when he makes his reply.
"'Far be it from me!' Joab replied, 'Far be it from me to swallow up or destroy! That is not the case. A man named Sheba son of Bikri, from the hill country of Ephraim, has lifted up his hand against the king, against David. Hand over this one man, and I'll withdraw from the city.'" (2 Samuel 20:20-21a) Do the average citizens of Abel not know what the siege is about? Are the leaders of the city protecting Sheba and his men? Or does Sheba have few enough supporters that they were able to enter the city gates in the daytime and blend in with the crowd? We are not provided with these answers but from our text it appears as if the wise woman does not know why Joab and his army are preparing to lay siege to the city. I believe most of her fellow citizens don't know why either, but as soon as she informs them of the reason, they help her put an end to the situation.
"The woman said to Joab, 'His head will be thrown to you from the wall.' Then the woman went to all the people with her wise advice, and they cut off the head of Sheba son of Bikri and threw it to Joab. So he sounded the trumpet, and his men dispersed from the city, each returning to his home. And Joab went back to the king in Jerusalem." (2 Samuel 20:21b-22) When the leader of the rebellion is killed, the rebellion itself is killed. Sheba didn't have enough followers for him to be successful in the long run anyway. Joab blows the trumpet to signal the end of the conflict and he and all his men return home.
Upon Joab's return to Jerusalem, he is reinstated as top commander over David's army. "Joab was over Israel's entire army; Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Kerethites and Pelethites; Adoniram was in charge of forced labor; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was recorder; Sheva was secretary; Zadok and Abiathar were priests; and Ira the Jairite was David's priest." (2 Samuel 20:23-26) I don't know whether or not David wants to reinstate Joab to his position as commander of the entire army but there is no other man in Israel at this time who can rally an army like Joab can. There is no other man whose orders so many men will automatically follow without question. Joab has helped the nation win a number of decisive battles against foreign enemies and against domestic enemies. He may not be the type of man David wants to lead his army but right now he's the type of man David needs.
Help doesn't always come to us through the channels we expect. I've had unbelievers give me aid in my troubles. I've had agnostics and bakslidden believers give me encouragement. I've had people do things for me because it helped them get something they wanted, not so much because they felt generous toward me. Joab is a loose cannon and does what seems best to him for David and for the nation even when what seems best to him contradicts direct orders from David. Yet in a lot of ways he helps David by being shrewd and ruthless and being able to look at situations more objectively than David can. Up until now he has always been firmly on David's side even though some of his actions have served to fulfill his own ambitions. We can say what we will about Joab's character but we can't say he has never done anything good for David or for Israel.
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