2 Samuel 20:14

New Revised Standard

Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel of Beth-maacah; and all the Bichrites assembled, and followed him inside. Joab's forces came and besieged him in Abel of Beth-maacah; they threw up a siege ramp against the city, and it stood against the rampart. Joab's forces were battering the wall to break it down. Then a wise woman called from the city, "Listen! Listen! Tell Joab, ‘Come here, I want to speak to you.'" He came near her; and the woman said, "Are you Joab?" He answered, "I am." Then she said to him, "Listen to the words of your servant." He answered, "I am listening." Then she said, "They used to say in the old days, ‘Let them inquire at Abel'; and so they would settle a matter. I am one of those who are peaceable and faithful in Israel; you seek to destroy a city that is a mother in Israel; why will you swallow up the heritage of the Lord ?" Joab answered, "Far be it from me, far be it, that I should swallow up or destroy! That is not the case! But a man of the hill country of Ephraim, called Sheba son of Bichri, has lifted up his hand against King David; give him up alone, and I will withdraw from the city." The woman said to Joab, "His head shall be thrown over the wall to you." Then the woman went to all the people with her wise plan. And they cut off the head of Sheba son of Bichri, and threw it out to Joab. So he blew the trumpet, and they dispersed from the city, and all went to their homes, while Joab returned to Jerusalem to the king. Now Joab was in command of all the army of Israel; Benaiah son of Jehoiada was in command of the Cherethites and the Pelethites; Adoram was in charge of the forced labor; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder; Sheva was secretary; Zadok and Abiathar were priests; and Ira the Jairite was also David's priest.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel of Beth-maacah. All the Berites came together and followed him.

Hebrew Names Version
He went through all the tribes of Yisra'el to Hevel, and to Beit-Ma`akha, and all the Beri`i: and they were gathered together, and went also after him.

King James Version
And he went through all the tribes of Israel unto Abel, and to Bethmaachah, and all the Berites: and they were gathered together, and went also after him.

Lexham English Bible
(He had passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel and Beth Maacah; now all of the Berites had been treated badly, so they also followed after him.)

English Standard Version
And Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel of Beth-maacah, and all the Bichrites assembled and followed him in.

New Century Version
Sheba went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel Beth Maacah. All the Berites also came together and followed him.

New English Translation
Sheba traveled through all the tribes of Israel to Abel of Beth Maacah and all the Berite region. When they had assembled, they too joined him.

Amplified Bible
Now Joab went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, even Beth-maacah, and all the Berites; and they assembled and also went after Sheba.

New American Standard Bible
Now he went on through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, that is, Beth-maacah, and all the Berites; and they assembled and went after him as well.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And he went through all the tribes of Israel vnto Abel, and Bethmaachah and all places of Berim: and they gathered together, and went also after him.

Legacy Standard Bible
Now he went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, even Beth-maacah, and all the Berites; and they were assembled and also came after him.

Contemporary English Version
Sheba had gone through all of the tribes of Israel when he came to the town of Abel Beth-Maacah. All of his best soldiers met him there and followed him into the town.

Complete Jewish Bible
Sheva went through all the tribes of Isra'el, to Avel and Beit-Ma‘akhah, and to all the Berim; they assembled and followed him.

Darby Translation
who went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, and to Beth-Maacah, and all the Berim; and they gathered together, and went also after him.

Easy-to-Read Version
Sheba son of Bicri passed through all the tribes of Israel on his way to Abel Beth Maacah. All the Berites joined together and followed Sheba.

George Lamsa Translation
And they went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel and to Beth-maachah and to Berin; and they went after him.

Good News Translation
Sheba passed through the territory of all the tribes of Israel and came to the city of Abel Beth Maacah, and all the members of the clan of Bikri assembled and followed him into the city.

Literal Translation
And he went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, and to Beth-maachah, and to all the Berites. And they were gathered, and went after him also.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And he wente thorow all ye trybes of Israel vnto Abel Beth Maacha, and all the best chosen men gathered them selues together, & folowed after him,

American Standard Version
And he went through all the tribes of Israel unto Abel, and to Beth-maacah, and all the Berites: and they were gathered together, and went also after him.

Bible in Basic English
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.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And he went thorow all the tribes of Israel, vnto Abel, and to Bethmaacha, and all the places of Berim: And they gathered together, and went after him.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And he went through all the tribes of Israel unto Abel, and to Beth-maacah, and all the Berites; and they were gathered together, and went in also after him.

King James Version (1611)
And hee went thorow all the tribes of Israel vnto Abel, and to Bethmaachah, and all the Berites: and they were gathered together, and went also after him.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And he went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, and to Bethmacha; and all in Charri too were assembled, and followed after him.

English Revised Version
And he went through all the tribes of Israel unto Abel, and to Beth–maacah, and all the Berites: and they were gathered together, and went also after him.

Berean Standard Bible
Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel toward Abel-Beth-Maacah, through the entire region of the Berites, who gathered together and followed him.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Forsothe Siba hadde passide bi alle the lynagis of Israel til in to Habela, and in to Bethmacha; and alle chosun men weren gaderid to hym.

Young's Literal Translation
And he passeth over through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, and to Beth-Maachah, and to all the Berites, and they are assembled, and go in also after him,

Update Bible Version
And he went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, and to Beth-maacah. And all those who joined him were gathered together, and also went after him.

Webster's Bible Translation
And he went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, and to Beth-maachah, and all the Berites: and they were assembled, and went also after him.

World English Bible
He went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, and to Beth-maacah, and all the Berites: and they were gathered together, and went also after him.

New King James Version
And he went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel and Beth Maachah and all the Berites. So they were gathered together and also went after Sheba. [fn]

New Living Translation
Meanwhile, Sheba traveled through all the tribes of Israel and eventually came to the town of Abel-beth-maacah. All the members of his own clan, the Bicrites, assembled for battle and followed him into the town.

New Life Bible
Sheba passed through all the families of Israel to Abel Bethmaacah. Then all the Berites gathered together and followed him into the city.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And he passed on throughout all the tribes of Israel, unto Abel and unto Beth-maachah, and all the Berites, - and they were called together, and came in, yea and followed him.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Now he had passed through all the tribes of Israel unto Abela and Bethmaacha: and all the chosen men were gathered together unto him.

Revised Standard Version
And Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel of Beth-ma'acah; and all the Bichrites assembled, and followed him in.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Now he went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, even Beth-maacah, and all the Berites; and they were gathered together and also went after him.

Contextual Overview

¹⁴ Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel of Beth-maacah; and all the Bichrites assembled, and followed him inside. Joab's forces came and besieged him in Abel of Beth-maacah; they threw up a siege ramp against the city, and it stood against the rampart. Joab's forces were battering the wall to break it down. Then a wise woman called from the city, "Listen! Listen! Tell Joab, ‘Come here, I want to speak to you.'" He came near her; and the woman said, "Are you Joab?" He answered, "I am." Then she said to him, "Listen to the words of your servant." He answered, "I am listening." Then she said, "They used to say in the old days, ‘Let them inquire at Abel'; and so they would settle a matter. I am one of those who are peaceable and faithful in Israel; you seek to destroy a city that is a mother in Israel; why will you swallow up the heritage of the Lord ?" Joab answered, "Far be it from me, far be it, that I should swallow up or destroy! That is not the case! But a man of the hill country of Ephraim, called Sheba son of Bichri, has lifted up his hand against King David; give him up alone, and I will withdraw from the city." The woman said to Joab, "His head shall be thrown over the wall to you." Then the woman went to all the people with her wise plan. And they cut off the head of Sheba son of Bichri, and threw it out to Joab. So he blew the trumpet, and they dispersed from the city, and all went to their homes, while Joab returned to Jerusalem to the king. Now Joab was in command of all the army of Israel; Benaiah son of Jehoiada was in command of the Cherethites and the Pelethites; Adoram was in charge of the forced labor; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder; Sheva was secretary; Zadok and Abiathar were priests; and Ira the Jairite was also David's priest. ¹⁵ Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel of Beth-maacah; and all the Bichrites assembled, and followed him inside. Joab's forces came and besieged him in Abel of Beth-maacah; they threw up a siege ramp against the city, and it stood against the rampart. Joab's forces were battering the wall to break it down. ¹⁶ Then a wise woman called from the city, "Listen! Listen! Tell Joab, ‘Come here, I want to speak to you.'" ¹⁷ He came near her; and the woman said, "Are you Joab?" He answered, "I am." Then she said to him, "Listen to the words of your servant." He answered, "I am listening." ¹⁸ Then she said, "They used to say in the old days, ‘Let them inquire at Abel'; and so they would settle a matter. ¹⁹ I am one of those who are peaceable and faithful in Israel; you seek to destroy a city that is a mother in Israel; why will you swallow up the heritage of the Lord ?" ²⁰ Joab answered, "Far be it from me, far be it, that I should swallow up or destroy! ²¹ That is not the case! But a man of the hill country of Ephraim, called Sheba son of Bichri, has lifted up his hand against King David; give him up alone, and I will withdraw from the city." The woman said to Joab, "His head shall be thrown over the wall to you." ²² Then the woman went to all the people with her wise plan. And they cut off the head of Sheba son of Bichri, and threw it out to Joab. So he blew the trumpet, and they dispersed from the city, and all went to their homes, while Joab returned to Jerusalem to the king.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Abel: Or rather, probably, Abel of Beth-Maachah, as in the next verse. It appears, from Joab having marched "through all the tribes of Israel," to have been situated in the northern confines of the land of Israel, and in the half tribe of Manasseh, east of Jordan, as that was the situation of Maachah, to which it belonged. This agrees with the situation of the Abila which Eusebius and Jerome place between Paneas, or Cesarea Philippi, and Damascus. Josephus says it was a fortified city, and a metropolis of the Israelites; and also that it belonged to the ten tribes, having been taken from the king of Damascus. 1 Kings 15:20, 2 Kings 15:29, 2 Chronicles 16:4

Berites: Joshua 18:25, Beeroth

Reciprocal: Judges 9:21 - Beer

Cross-References

Genesis 12:16
And for her sake he dealt well with Abram; and he had sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male and female slaves, female donkeys, and camels.

Genesis 20:2
Abraham said of his wife Sarah, "She is my sister." And King Abimelech of Gerar sent and took Sarah.

Genesis 20:7
Now then, return the man's wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all that are yours."

Genesis 20:11
Abraham said, "I did it because I thought, There is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And he went through all the tribes of Israel,.... That is, Sheba the son of Bichri, last mentioned, 2 Samuel 20:13, who passed through all the tribes of Israel to get as many to be of his party as he could, and to be proclaimed their king; or finding himself pursued, he passed on as fast as he could from place to place, through all the tribes, until at length he fixed for safety in a place later named; though Josephus w understands this of Joab pursuing Sheba through all the tribes of Israel with the forces under him; and to this sense the Syriac and Arabic versions, and so R. Isaiah interprets it; but the first sense is more generally received, that Sheba is meant, who passing through various tribes, came

unto Abel, and unto Bethmaachah; which were two places very near one another, if not one and the same place; since Abel is in 2 Samuel 20:15 called Abel of Bethmaachah, to distinguish it from any other place: it was a city that lay to the north of Israel near Syria; and from

2 Kings 15:29, it appears to be in the tribe of Naphtali. There was one city of this name of Abel, six miles from Philadelphia, another twelve miles from Gadara, and a third between Paneas and Damascus, which, of the three, Reland thinks x, is most eligible to be the place here meant; though he rather chooses to look for it in Galilee, to the west or south of Paneas, than to the east or north in the way to Damascus; and so Adrichomius y calls it a city of upper Galilee, sixty furlongs or seven and an half miles from Jordan; and though he also places it in the tribe of Naphtali, in the plain of the country of Berim (from whence perhaps were the Berites next mentioned), not far from Caesarea Philippi; see 1 Kings 15:20;

and all the Berites; the inhabitants of Beeroth, in the tribe of Benjamin, of which tribe Sheba was, they followed him hither, as in the next clause:

and they were gathered together, and went also after him; unto Abel; of these, see Joshua 18:25; though perhaps these Berim or Berites were nearer to Abel; or rather that was in their country, as has been observed by Adrichomius.

w Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 7. c. 11. sect. 7.) x Palestina Illustrata, tom. 2. p. 519. y Theatrum Terrae S. p. 101.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Abel - More commonly called 2 Samuel 20:15 “Abel-Beth-maachah” to distinguish it from other places of the name of “Abel” (a grassy plain). It is represented by the modern Abil-el-Kamh, a Christian village on the northwest of lake Huleh, the ancient Merom. Compare 2 Chronicles 16:4, “Abel-maim,” Abel by the water.

And all the Berites - What this means is utterly unknown. Many approve of the reading of the Latin Version, connecting it with what follows: “And all the choice young men mustered and followed him.”

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 2 Samuel 20:14. Unto Abel — This is supposed to have been the capital of the district called Abilene in St. Luke's Gospel, Luke 3:1.

Beth-maachah — Is supposed to have been in the northern part of the Holy Land, on the confines of Syria, and probably in the tribe of Naphtali.