20. then, if the king’s anger rises, and if he says to you, ‘Why did you go so near the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall?
21. Who killed Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Did not a woman cast an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died at Thebez? Why did you go so near the wall?’ then you shall say, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.’”
22. So the messenger went and came and told David all that Joab had sent him to tell.
23. The messenger said to David, “The men gained an advantage over us and came out against us in the field, but we drove them back to the entrance of the gate.