2 Samuel 20:15

¹³ As soon as Amasa’s body was removed from the road, all the men went on with Joab to pursue Sheba son of Bichri.

¹⁴ Sheba passed through all the tribes of Israel to Abel-beth-maacah and through the entire region of the Berites, who gathered together and followed him.

And Joab’s troops came and besieged Sheba in Abel-beth-maacah and built a siege ramp against the outer rampart of the city. As all the troops with Joab were battering the wall to topple it,

¹⁶ a wise woman called out from the city, “Listen! Listen! Please tell Joab to come here so that I may speak with him.”

¹⁷ When he had come near to her, the woman asked, “Are you Joab?” “I am,” he replied. “Listen to the words of your servant,” she said. “I am listening,” he answered.

Here the Bible tells a story about someone else. Ask yourself what it can say to us today. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: And Joab’s troops came and besieged Sheba in Abel-beth-maacah and built a siege ramp against the outer rampart of the city. As all the troops with Joab were battering the wall to topple it,
KJV: And they came and besieged him in Abel of Beth-maachah, 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.
WEB: They came and besieged him in Abel of Beth Maacah, and they cast up a mound against the city, and it stood against the rampart; and all the people who were with Joab battered the wall to throw it down.
ASV: And they came and besieged him in Abel of Beth-maacah, and they cast up a mound against the city, and it stood against the rampart; and all the people that were with Joab battered the wall, to throw it down.
DARBY: And they came and besieged him in Abel-Beth-Maacah, and they cast up a bank against the city, and it was raised in the trench; and all the people that were with Joab sapped the wall, to throw it down.
BLB: And they came and besieged him in Abel-Beth-maachah, and they heaped up a mound against the city, and it stood by the rampart. And all the people who [were] with Joab were destroying the wall to throw [it] down,

ÅB: Og de kom og kringsatte ham[^1] i Abel-Bet-Ma'aka og oppkastet en voll mot byen; den støtte opp mot yttermuren; og alt folket som var med Joab, var i ferd med å ødelegge muren for å få den til å falle.
OTB: De kom og beleiret ham i Abel av Bet-Maaka, og de kastet opp en voll mot byen, og den sto ved festningsvollen; og alle folkene som var med Joab slo på muren for å få den ned.
B1930: Og de kom og kringsatte ham i Abel-Bet-Ma'aka og opkastet en voll mot byen; den støtte op mot yttermuren; og alt folket som var med Joab, var i ferd med å ødelegge muren for å få den til å falle. / < Seba.>

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

2 Kings 19:32
So this is what the LORD says about the king of Assyria: ‘He will not enter this city or shoot an arrow into it. He will not come before it with a shield or build up a siege ramp against it.
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Jeremiah 32:24
See how the siege ramps are mounted against the city to capture it. And by sword and famine and plague, the city has been given into the hands of the Chaldeans who are fighting against it. What You have spoken has happened, as You now see!
Read in context
2 Kings 15:29
In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and captured Ijon, Abel-beth-maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, including all the land of Naphtali, and he took the people as captives to Assyria.
Read in context
1 Kings 15:20
And Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel, conquering Ijon, Dan, Abel-beth-maacah, and the whole land of Naphtali, including the region of Chinnereth.
Read in context
Luke 19:43
For the days will come upon you when your enemies will barricade you and surround you and hem you in on every side.
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Jeremiah 6:6
For this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Cut down the trees and raise a siege ramp against Jerusalem. This city must be punished; there is nothing but oppression in her midst.
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Jeremiah 33:4
For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says about the houses of this city and the palaces of the kings of Judah that have been torn down for defense against the siege ramps and the sword:
Read in context
Ezekiel 4:2
Then lay siege against it: Construct a siege wall, build a ramp to it, set up camps against it, and place battering rams around it on all sides.
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