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2 Samuel 20

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1 καὶ ἐκεῖ ἐπικαλούμενος υἱὸς παράνομος καὶ ὄνομα αὐτῷ Σαβεε υἱὸς Βοχορι ἀνὴρ ὁ Ιεμενι καὶ ἐσάλπισεν ἐν τῇ κερατίνῃ καὶ εἶπεν οὐκ ἔστιν ἡμῖν μερὶς ἐν Δαυιδ οὐδὲ κληρονομία ἡμῖν ἐν τῷ υἱῷ Ιεσσαι ἀνὴρ εἰς τὰ σκηνώματά σου Ισραηλ 2 καὶ ἀνέβη πᾶς ἀνὴρ Ισραηλ ἀπὸ ὄπισθεν Δαυιδ ὀπίσω Σαβεε υἱοῦ Βοχορι καὶ ἀνὴρ Ιουδα ἐκολλήθη τῷ βασιλεῖ αὐτῶν ἀπὸ τοῦ Ιορδάνου καὶ ἕως Ιερουσαλημ 3 καὶ εἰσῆλθεν Δαυιδ εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ εἰς Ιερουσαλημ καὶ ἔλαβεν ὁ βασιλεὺς τὰς δέκα γυναῖκας τὰς παλλακὰς αὐτοῦ ἃς ἀφῆκεν φυλάσσειν τὸν οἶκον καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτὰς ἐν οἴκῳ φυλακῆς καὶ διέθρεψεν αὐτὰς καὶ πρὸς αὐτὰς οὐκ εἰσῆλθεν καὶ ἦσαν συνεχόμεναι ἕως ἡμέρας θανάτου αὐτῶν χῆραι ζῶσαι

1 It chanced that there was a turbulent fellow there, called Seba, son of Bochri, from Benjamin, who now sounded his trumpet and raised the cry: David, then, is none of ours; not for us the son of Jesse; go back, men of Israel, to your homes! 2 Thereupon all the Israelites parted from David’s company, and marched away with Seba, son of Bochri; it was only the men of Juda that escorted David all the way from Jordan to Jerusalem. 3 So the king came home. As for the ten concubines he had left in charge of the palace, he shut these away, giving them their allowance of food still, but never again having commerce with them; they remained shut away in their widowhood as long as they lived.

1 Accidit quoque ut ibi esset vir Belial, nomine Seba, filius Bochri, vir Jemineus: et cecinit buccina, et ait: Non est nobis pars in David, neque hæreditas in filio Isai: revertere in tabernacula tua, Israël. 2 Et separatus est omnis Israël a David, secutusque est Seba filium Bochri: viri autem Juda adhæserunt regi suo a Jordane usque Jerusalem. 3 Cumque venisset rex in domum suam in Jerusalem, tulit decem mulieres concubinas quas dereliquerat ad custodiendam domum, et tradidit eas in custodiam, alimenta eis præbens: et non est ingressus ad eas, sed erant clausæ usque in diem mortis suæ in viduitate viventes.

4 καὶ εἶπεν ὁ βασιλεὺς πρὸς Αμεσσαϊ βόησόν μοι τὸν ἄνδρα Ιουδα τρεῖς ἡμέρας σὺ δὲ αὐτοῦ στῆθι 5 καὶ ἐπορεύθη Αμεσσαϊ τοῦ βοῆσαι τὸν Ιουδαν καὶ ἐχρόνισεν ἀπὸ τοῦ καιροῦ οὗ ἐτάξατο αὐτῷ Δαυιδ 6 καὶ εἶπεν Δαυιδ πρὸς Αβεσσα νῦν κακοποιήσει ἡμᾶς Σαβεε υἱὸς Βοχορι ὑπὲρ Αβεσσαλωμ καὶ νῦν σὺ λαβὲ μετὰ σεαυτοῦ τοὺς παῖδας τοῦ κυρίου σου καὶ καταδίωξον ὀπίσω αὐτοῦ μήποτε ἑαυτῷ εὕρῃ πόλεις ὀχυρὰς καὶ σκιάσει τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ἡμῶν 7 καὶ ἐξῆλθον ὀπίσω αὐτοῦ οἱ ἄνδρες Ιωαβ καὶ ὁ Χερεθθι καὶ ὁ Φελεθθι καὶ πάντες οἱ δυνατοὶ καὶ ἐξῆλθαν ἐξ Ιερουσαλημ διῶξαι ὀπίσω Σαβεε υἱοῦ Βοχορι 8 καὶ αὐτοὶ παρὰ τῷ λίθῳ τῷ μεγάλῳ τῷ ἐν Γαβαων καὶ Αμεσσαϊ εἰσῆλθεν ἔμπροσθεν αὐτῶν καὶ Ιωαβ περιεζωσμένος μανδύαν τὸ ἔνδυμα αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐ{P'} αὐτῷ περιεζωσμένος μάχαιραν ἐζευγμένην ἐπὶ τῆς ὀσφύος αὐτοῦ ἐν κολεῷ αὐτῆς καὶ ἡ μάχαιρα ἐξῆλθεν καὶ ἔπεσεν 9 καὶ εἶπεν Ιωαβ τῷ Αμεσσαϊ εἰ ὑγιαίνεις σύ ἀδελφέ καὶ ἐκράτησεν ἡ χεὶρ ἡ δεξιὰ Ιωαβ τοῦ πώγωνος Αμεσσαϊ τοῦ καταφιλῆσαι αὐτόν 10 καὶ Αμεσσαϊ οὐκ ἐφυλάξατο τὴν μάχαιραν τὴν ἐν τῇ χειρὶ Ιωαβ καὶ ἔπαισεν αὐτὸν ἐν αὐτῇ Ιωαβ εἰς τὴν ψόαν καὶ ἐξεχύθη ἡ κοιλία αὐτοῦ εἰς τὴν γῆν καὶ οὐκ ἐδευτέρωσεν αὐτῷ καὶ ἀπέθανεν καὶ Ιωαβ καὶ Αβεσσα ὁ ἀδελφὸς αὐτοῦ ἐδίωξεν ὀπίσω Σαβεε υἱοῦ Βοχορι 11 καὶ ἀνὴρ ἔστη ἐ{P'} αὐτὸν τῶν παιδαρίων Ιωαβ καὶ εἶπεν τίς ὁ βουλόμενος Ιωαβ καὶ τίς τοῦ Δαυιδ ὀπίσω Ιωαβ 12 καὶ Αμεσσαϊ πεφυρμένος ἐν τῷ αἵματι ἐν μέσῳ τῆς τρίβου καὶ εἶδεν ὁ ἀνὴρ ὅτι εἱστήκει πᾶς ὁ λαός καὶ ἀπέστρεψεν τὸν Αμεσσαϊ ἐκ τῆς τρίβου εἰς ἀγρὸν καὶ ἐπέρριψεν ἐ{P'} αὐτὸν ἱμάτιον καθότι εἶδεν πάντα τὸν ἐρχόμενον ἐ{P'} αὐτὸν ἑστηκότα 13 ἡνίκα δὲ ἔφθασεν ἐκ τῆς τρίβου παρῆλθεν πᾶς ἀνὴρ Ισραηλ ὀπίσω Ιωαβ τοῦ διῶξαι ὀπίσω Σαβεε υἱοῦ Βοχορι

4 And now the king said to Amasa, Muster all the warriors of Juda, three days from now, and present thyself here with them. 5 Amasa went to muster them, but dallied beyond the time which the king had named; 6 and David said to Abisai, This Seba, son of Bochri, will do us more harm than ever Absalom did. Take the royal troops with thee, and go in pursuit of him; or he will find refuge within city walls and escape us. 7 So in pursuit of Seba they went, under Abisai’s command, Joab’s men, and the Cerethites and Phelethites, and all the picked warriors in Jerusalem; 8 and when they reached the great stone of Gabaon, they fell in with Amasa. Joab was there, clad in a tight-fitting cloak of the same length as his coat, and girt with a dagger whose sheath only reached to his loins, such that he could draw it easily and strike.[1] 9 Greetings to thee, brother, said Joab, and with that he clapped his right hand under Amasa’s chin, as if he would kiss him; 10 then, with the dagger that had gone unmarked, he struck him in the side, and spilt his entrails on the ground, so that he died without a second blow. After this, Joab and his brother Abisai continued their pursuit of Seba, son of Bochri. 11 And among Joab’s men, that stood beside the body, the word went round, Here he lies that would have been David’s chosen friend in place of Joab.[2] 12 There Amasa lay, drenched in his own blood, till one who saw all the passers-by stopping to look at him, carried the body off into a field, away from the road; so they would halt on their journey no more. 13 And sure enough, when it had been taken aside from the road, all were ready to follow Joab in pursuit of Seba, the son of Bochri.

4 Dixit autem rex Amasæ: Convoca mihi omnes viros Juda in diem tertium, et tu adesto præsens. 5 Abiit ergo Amasa ut convocaret Judam, et moratus est extra placitum quod ei constituerat rex. 6 Ait autem David ad Abisai: Nunc magis afflicturus est nos Seba filius Bochri quam Absalom: tolle igitur servos domini tui, et persequere eum, ne forte inveniat civitates munitas, et effugiat nos. 7 Egressi sunt ergo cum eo viri Joab, Cerethi quoque et Phelethi: et omnes robusti exierunt de Jerusalem ad persequendum Seba filium Bochri. 8 Cumque illi essent juxta lapidem grandem qui est in Gabaon, Amasa veniens occurrit eis. Porro Joab vestitus erat tunica stricta ad mensuram habitus sui, et desuper accinctus gladio dependente usque ad ilia, in vagina, qui fabricatus levi motu egredi poterat, et percutere. 9 Dixit itaque Joab ad Amasam: Salve mi frater. Et tenuit manu dextera mentum Amasæ, quasi osculans eum. 10 Porro Amasa non observavit gladium quem habebat Joab: qui percussit eum in latere, et effudit intestina ejus in terram, nec secundum vulnus apposuit: et mortuus est. Joab autem, et Abisai frater ejus, persecuti sunt Seba filium Bochri. 11 Interea quidam viri, cum stetissent juxta cadaver Amasæ, de sociis Joab, dixerunt: Ecce qui esse voluit pro Joab comes David. 12 Amasa autem conspersus sanguine jacebat in media via. Vidit hoc quidam vir, quod subsisteret omnis populus ad videndum eum, et amovit Amasam de via in agrum, operuitque eum vestimento, ne subsisterent transeuntes propter eum. 13 Amoto ergo illo de via, transibat omnis vir sequens Joab ad persequendum Seba filium Bochri.

14 καὶ διῆλθεν ἐν πάσαις φυλαῖς Ισραηλ εἰς Αβελ καὶ εἰς Βαιθμαχα καὶ πάντες ἐν Χαρρι καὶ ἐξεκκλησιάσθησαν καὶ ἦλθον κατόπισθεν αὐτοῦ 15 καὶ παρεγενήθησαν καὶ ἐπολιόρκουν ἐ{P'} αὐτὸν τὴν Αβελ καὶ τὴν Βαιθμαχα καὶ ἐξέχεαν πρόσχωμα πρὸς τὴν πόλιν καὶ ἔστη ἐν τῷ προτειχίσματι καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ὁ μετὰ Ιωαβ ἐνοοῦσαν καταβαλεῖν τὸ τεῖχος 16 καὶ ἐβόησεν γυνὴ σοφὴ ἐκ τοῦ τείχους καὶ εἶπεν ἀκούσατε ἀκούσατε εἴπατε δὴ πρὸς Ιωαβ ἔγγισον ἕως ὧδε καὶ λαλήσω πρὸς αὐτόν 17 καὶ προσήγγισεν πρὸς αὐτήν καὶ εἶπεν ἡ γυνή εἰ σὺ εἶ Ιωαβ ὁ δὲ εἶπεν ἐγώ εἶπεν δὲ αὐτῷ ἄκουσον τοὺς λόγους τῆς δούλης σου καὶ εἶπεν Ιωαβ ἀκούω ἐγώ εἰμι 18 καὶ εἶπεν λέγουσα λόγον ἐλάλησαν ἐν πρώτοις λέγοντες ἠρωτημένος ἠρωτήθη ἐν τῇ Αβελ καὶ ἐν Δαν εἰ ἐξέλιπον ἃ ἔθεντο οἱ πιστοὶ τοῦ Ισραηλ ἐρωτῶντες ἐπερωτήσουσιν ἐν Αβελ καὶ οὕτως εἰ ἐξέλιπον 19 ἐγώ εἰμι εἰρηνικὰ τῶν στηριγμάτων Ισραηλ σὺ δὲ ζητεῖς θανατῶσαι πόλιν καὶ μητρόπολιν ἐν Ισραηλ ἵνα τί καταποντίζεις κληρονομίαν κυρίου 20 καὶ ἀπεκρίθη Ιωαβ καὶ εἶπεν ἵλεώς μοι ἵλεώς μοι εἰ καταποντιῶ καὶ εἰ διαφθερῶ 21 οὐχ οὗτος ὁ λόγος ὅτι ἀνὴρ ἐξ ὄρους Εφραιμ Σαβεε υἱὸς Βοχορι ὄνομα αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐπῆρεν τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὸν βασιλέα Δαυιδ δότε αὐτόν μοι μόνον καὶ ἀπελεύσομαι ἀπάνωθεν τῆς πόλεως καὶ εἶπεν ἡ γυνὴ πρὸς Ιωαβ ἰδοὺ ἡ κεφαλὴ αὐτοῦ ῥιφήσεται πρὸς σὲ διὰ τοῦ τείχους 22 καὶ εἰσῆλθεν ἡ γυνὴ πρὸς πάντα τὸν λαὸν καὶ ἐλάλησεν πρὸς πᾶσαν τὴν πόλιν ἐν τῇ σοφίᾳ αὐτῆς καὶ ἀφεῖλεν τὴν κεφαλὴν Σαβεε υἱοῦ Βοχορι καὶ ἔβαλεν πρὸς Ιωαβ καὶ ἐσάλπισεν ἐν κερατίνῃ καὶ διεσπάρησαν ἀπὸ τῆς πόλεως ἀνὴρ εἰς τὰ σκηνώματα αὐτοῦ καὶ Ιωαβ ἀπέστρεψεν εἰς Ιερουσαλημ πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα

14 Seba had gone through all the tribes of Israel, till he reached Abela that is called Beth-Maacha; and all their choicest warriors had rallied to him.[3] 15 So to Abela Beth-Maacha they went, and besieged him there, surrounding the city with works, so that it was quite cut off; nor did Joab’s men spare any pains to make a breach in the wall. 16 But now a wise woman cried out from within the city, A word with you, a word with you! Bid Joab come here, and let me speak to him. 17 Thou art Joab? she asked, as he came near; and when he answered to the name, Listen, she besought him, to what thy handmaid has to say. Listen I will, said he. 18 There is an old proverb, she told him, that says, They who ask counsel must ask it at Abela; and so they did.[4] 19 Here dwells a woman that tells Israelites the truth; and wouldst thou overthrow such a city, a mother-city in Israel? Why wouldst thou bring ruin on the Lord’s chosen land? 20 Never that, never that, Joab answered; ruin and destruction are not for me. 21 The case stands otherwise; there is one Seba, son of Bochri, from the hill-country of Ephraim, that is in rebellion against king David; hand that one man over, and we will raise the siege. Wait then, said the woman; his head shall be thrown down to thee from the wall. 22 And with that she went in, and spoke to the defenders in the wisdom that was her craft; whereupon they cut off the head of Seba, son of Bochri, and cast it down to Joab. So he blew his trumpet, and his men raised the siege and went to their tents; Joab himself went back to the king’s court at Jerusalem.

14 Porro ille transierat per omnes tribus Israël in Abelam et Bethmaacha: omnesque viri electi congregati fuerant ad eum. 15 Venerunt itaque, et oppugnabant eum in Abela et in Bethmaacha, et circumdederunt munitionibus civitatem, et obsessa est urbs: omnis autem turba quæ erat cum Joab, moliebatur destruere muros. 16 Et exclamavit mulier sapiens de civitate: Audite, audite: dicite Joab: Appropinqua huc, et loquar tecum. 17 Qui cum accessisset ad eam, ait illi: Tu es Joab? Et ille respondit: Ego. Ad quem sic locuta est: Audi sermones ancillæ tuæ. Qui respondit: Audio. 18 Rursumque illa: Sermo, inquit, dicebatur in veteri proverbio: Qui interrogant, interrogent in Abela: et sic perficiebant. 19 Nonne ego sum quæ respondeo veritatem in Israël, et tu quæris subvertere civitatem et evertere matrem in Israël? quare præcipitas hæreditatem Domini? 20 Respondensque Joab, ait: Absit, absit hoc a me: non præcipito, neque demolior. 21 Non sic se habet res, sed homo de monte Ephraim, Seba filius Bochri cognomine, levavit manum suam contra regem David: tradite illum solum, et recedemus a civitate. Et ait mulier ad Joab: Ecce caput ejus mittetur ad te per murum. 22 Ingressa est ergo ad omnem populum, et locuta est eis sapienter: qui abscissum caput Seba filii Bochri projecerunt ad Joab. Et ille cecinit tuba, et recesserunt ab urbe, unusquisque in tabernacula sua: Joab autem reversus est Jerusalem ad regem.

23 καὶ Ιωαβ πρὸς πάσῃ τῇ δυνάμει Ισραηλ καὶ Βαναιας υἱὸς Ιωδαε ἐπὶ τοῦ Χερεθθι καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Φελεθθι 24 καὶ Αδωνιραμ ἐπὶ τοῦ φόρου καὶ Ιωσαφατ υἱὸς Αχιλουθ ἀναμιμνῄσκων 25 καὶ Σουσα γραμματεύς καὶ Σαδωκ καὶ Αβιαθαρ ἱερεῖς 26 καί γε Ιρας ὁ Ιαριν ἦν ἱερεὺς τοῦ Δαυιδ

23 Joab, then, commanded the army of Israel, and Banaias son of Joiada the Cerethites and Phelethites; 24 Aduram was overseer of the revenues, and Josaphat, son of Ahilud, kept the records; 25 Siva was secretary, Sadoc and Abiathar chief priests; 26 Ira, too, the Jairite, was one of David’s ministers.[5]

23 Fuit ergo Joab super omnem exercitum Israël: Banaias autem filius Jojadæ super Cerethæos et Phelethæos: 24 Aduram vero super tributa: porro Josaphat filius Ahilud, a commentariis: 25 Siva autem, scriba: Sadoc vero et Abiathar, sacerdotes. 26 Ira autem Jairites erat sacerdos David.

[1] The sense here is uncertain; the Hebrew text seems to say (at the end of the verse) that Joab’s dagger fell out. If, as seems probable, it is corrupt, it may perhaps be conjectured that the dagger hung so as to be used with the left hand.

[2] According to the Hebrew text, the words used seem to mean ‘All those that love Joab and are for king David, follow Joab!’

[3] ‘Seba had gone’; this is presumably the meaning of the Latin, but both in the Latin and in the Hebrew text the sense might be, ‘Joab had gone’. Both in this and in the following verse there is some discrepancy between the Latin and the Hebrew.

[4] It is possible that the text has suffered from corruption; according to the Septuagint Greek, the proverb insisted that Abela (at the north of Dan) was a genuine Israelite city.

[5] ‘Ministers’; cf. note on 8.18.

Knox Translation Copyright © 2013 Westminster Diocese
Nihil Obstat. Father Anton Cowan, Censor.
Imprimatur. +Most Rev. Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster. 8th January 2012.
Re-typeset and published in 2012 by Baronius Press Ltd