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JOAB (Heb. " Yah [well] is a See also: Bible, the son of Zeruiah, See also: David's See also: sister (1 Chron. ii
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16)
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His See also: brothers were Asahel and Abishai
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All three were renowned warriors and played a prominent See also: part in David's See also: history
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Abishai on one occasion saved the See also: king's
See also: life from a See also: Philistine giant (2 Sam. xxi
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17), and Joab as See also: warrior and statesman was directly respon-
XV
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14sible for much of David's success
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Joab won his spurs, according to one account, by capturing Jerusalem (1 Chron. xi
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4–9); with Abishai and Ittai of See also: Gath he led a small army against the Israelites who had rebelled under Absalom (2 Sam. xviii
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2); and he superintended the See also: campaign against Ammon and See also: Edom (2 Sam. xi
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1, xii
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26; I See also: Kings xi
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15) . He showed his sturdy character by urging the king after theSee also: death of Absalom to place his duty to his See also: people before his grief for the loss of his favourite son (2 Sam. xix
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1–8), and by protesting against David's proposal to number the people, an innovation which may have been regarded as an infringement of their liberties (2 Sam. See also: xxiv.; I Chron. xxi
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6)
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The hostility of the " sons of Zeruiah " towards the tribe of Benjamin is characteristically contrasted with David's own generosity towards See also: Saul's fallen See also: house
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Abishai proposed to kill Saul when David surprised him asleep (t Sam. See also: xxvi
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8), and was anxious to slay Shimei when he cursed the icing (2 Sam. xvi
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9)
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But David was resigned to the will of Yahweh and refused to entertain the suggestions
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After Asahel met his death at the hands of Abner, Joab expostulated with David for not taking revenge upon the guilty one, and indeed the king might be considered bound in honour to take up his See also: nephew's cause
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But when Joab himself killed Abner, David's imprecation against him and his See also: brother Abishai showed that he dissociated himself from the See also: act of vengeance, although it brought him nearer to the See also: throne of all Israel (2 Sam. iii.)
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Fear of a possible See also: rival may have influenced Joab, and this at all events led him to slay Amasa of See also: Judah (2 Sam. xx
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4–13) . The two deeds are similar, and the impression See also: left by them is expressed in David's last charges to See also: Solomon (1 Kings ii.)
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But here Joab had taken the See also: side of Adonijah against Solomon, and was put to death by Benaiah at Solomon's command, and it is possible that the charges are the fruit of a later tradition to remove all possible blame from Solomon (q.v.)
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It is singular that Joab is not blamed for killing Absalom, but it would indeed be See also: strange if the See also: man who helped to reconcile See also: father and son (2 Sam. xiv.) should have perpetrated so cruel an act in See also: direct opposition to the king's wishes (xviii
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5, 10-16)
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A certain animus against Joab's See also: family thus seems to underlie some of the popular narratives of the life of David (q.v.)
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