10. Amasa didn’t see the knife that was now in Joab’s other hand. Joab stabbed him in the belly, and Amasa’s intestines spilled out on the ground. There was no need for Joab to stab him again; he was already dead. Then Joab and his brother Abishai resumed the chase after Sheba son of Bicri.
11. One of Joab’s young soldiers stood by Amasa’s body and said, “All of you who support Joab and David, let’s follow Joab.”
12. Amasa was there in the middle of road, lying in his own blood. The young soldier noticed that all the people kept stopping to look at the body, so he rolled the body off the road and into the field and covered it with a cloth.
13. Once the body was out of the way, the people simply passed it by and joined up with Joab to go after Sheba son of Bicri.
14. 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.
15. When Joab and his men came to Abel Beth Maacah, they surrounded the town. They piled dirt up against the city wall and began breaking stones out of the wall to make it fall down.
16. But there was a very wise woman in that city who shouted out to them and said, “Listen to me! Tell Joab to come here. I want to talk with him.”
17. Joab went to talk with the woman. She asked him, “Are you Joab?” Joab answered, “Yes, I am.” Then the woman said, “Listen to me.” Joab said, “I am listening.”
18. Then the woman said, “In the past people would say, ‘Ask for help in Abel and you will get what you need.’