Reference: Sheba (1)
Fausets
1. Son of Bichri a Benjamite, a man of Belial (2Sa 20:1-22). The tribe of Benjamin through Sheba sought to regain the ascendancy which it lost at Saul's fall. Judah alone remained faithful to David "from Jordan even to Jerusalem"; the rest of Israel followed Sheba. The division between Israel and Judah already had shown itself under Ishbosheth (2Sa 2:4-9), again at the close of Absalom's rebellion (2Sa 19:41-43), David felt the greatness of the crisis, "now shall Sheba do us more harm than did Absalom." Sheba traversed the country gathering followers, and finally aimed at fortifying himself in Abel Beth Maachah in the far N., which was probably connected with Absalom's rebellion through Maacah his mother, and was famed for worldly wisdom. (See ABEL BETH MAACHAH.) A woman in it saved the city by cutting off and casting Sheba's head to Joab (see Ec 9:14-15). (See AMASA; JOAB.)
2. 1Ch 5:13.
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After this, the army of Judah arrived, and they anointed David king over the house of Judah. There they informed David, "The men of Jabesh-gilead buried Saul." So David sent messengers to the people of Jabesh-gilead and told them, "May the LORD bless you, because you showed gracious love like this to your lord Saul by burying him. read more. Now may the Lord reward you with gracious love, as well as faithfulness, to you, too! And I will also reward you because you did this good thing. So strengthen yourselves, and be valiant in heart, because your lord Saul has died, and the household of Judah has anointed me to be king over them." Meanwhile, Ner's son Abner, the commander of Saul's army, had taken Saul's son Ish-bosheth and brought him to Mahanaim. He installed him as king over Gilead, the Ashurites, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, and all of the rest of Israel.
Not long afterward, all the men of Israel started coming to the king, complaining to him, "Why did our relatives in Judah's army sneak you away, taking the king and his household over the Jordan River, along with David's army?" Everybody from Judah shouted to the men from Israel, "We did this because the king is closely related to us. So why are you angry about this? Have we lived off the king's expense? Have we appropriated anything for ourselves?" read more. But the men from Israel answered the men from Judah: "We represent ten of the tribes of Israel! So we have more right to David than you do! Why haven't you taken us seriously? Weren't we the first to talk about bringing back our king?" But what the people of Judah had to say was harsher than what the people of Israel were saying.
Right about then, Bichri's son Sheba, an ungodly man from the tribe of Benjamin, sounded a battle trumpet and announced: We've never been a part of David! We'll never gain anything from Jesse's son! It's every man to his tent, Israel! So all of the other Israeli soldiers abandoned David to follow Bichri's son Sheba, while the army of Judah remained with the king all the way from the Jordan River to Jerusalem. read more. When David arrived at his palace in Jerusalem, the king took the ten mistresses whom he had left behind to keep the palace in order and placed them in a separate house, providing for them under the care of a protective guard. He never visited them again, so they were under care until they died, living as if their husbands had died. Meanwhile, David ordered Amasa, "Muster the army of Judah here within three days, and be here yourself!" But when Amasa went out to muster the army of Judah, he delayed to act within the time allotted to him. So David told Abishai, "Now Bichri's son Sheba is about to do more damage than did Absalom. So take my personal guards and go after them. Otherwise, he'll run to one of the fortified cities and escape from us." So Joab's men, the special forces and mercenaries, and all of David's elite forces left Jerusalem in pursuit of Bichri's son Sheba. When they arrived at the great stone that is in Gibeon, Amasa came out to meet them. Joab was dressed in a soldier's uniform, over which was a belt that fastened a sword sheath to his thigh. As he walked forward, the sword was exposed. Joab asked Amasa, "Is everything going well with you, my brother?" As Joab took Amasa by his beard to greet him, Amasa did not notice the sword that Joab was holding in his hand. Joab stabbed him in the abdomen, spilling his intestines to the ground in a single stroke and killing him. After this, Joab and his brother pursued Bichri's son Sheba. One of Joab's soldiers stood by Amasa while he lay dying and announced, "Whoever is in favor of Joab and David, let him follow Joab." While Amasa lay wallowing in his blood in the middle of the highway, everybody who passed by was stopping to stare at him, so when the soldier saw that all of the army was stopping, he carried Amasa off the highway into a nearby field and covered him with a garment. After Amasa had been removed from the highway, the rest of the army followed Joab in pursuit of Bichri's son Sheba. Meanwhile, Sheba traveled throughout the tribes of Israel in the direction of Abel and Beth-maacah, and all of the descendants of Beri gathered together and followed him inside. All of the men who had accompanied Joab arrived and besieged Sheba in Abel of Beth-maacah. They threw up a siege ramp against the city rampart and began to batter the wall to demolish it. Just then a wise woman called out from the city. "Attention!" she said, "Go tell Joab "Come here! I want to talk to you!'" Joab came over and the woman asked him, "Are you Joab?" "I am," he answered. So she told him, "Listen to what your servant has to say!" "I'm listening," he replied. So she said, "In days past, people used to settle a dispute by saying "Let's ask for advice at Abel!' I'm one of the peaceful and faithful citizens of Israel. You're trying to destroy a city that's a mother in Israel. Why are you devouring the heritage of the LORD?" But Joab replied, "No way! No way! I'm not here to devour or destroy! That's a lie! But there is a man from the Ephraim hill country he's known as Bichri's son Sheba who has rebelled against King David. Turn him over and I'll withdraw from the city!" So the woman replied, "Watch this! His head will be thrown to you over the city wall." Then the woman wisely went back to her people. They cut off the head of Bichri's son Sheba and threw it out to Joab, so Joab sounded his battle trumpet and they withdrew from the city. Everybody went back home and Joab returned to the king at Jerusalem.
Their seven relatives, according to the households of their clans, included Michael, Meshullam, Sheba, Jorai, Jacan, Zia, and Eber.
There was a little city with few men in it. A great king came against it, surrounded it, and built massive siege ramps against it. Now there was found within it a poor, but wise man. He delivered the city by his wisdom, but not one person remembered that poor man.