¹⁷ When he had come near her, the woman asked, “Are you Joab?”

“I am,” he replied.

“Listen to the words of your servant,” she said to him.

He answered, “I’m listening.”

¹⁸ She said, “In the past they used to say, ‘Seek counsel in Abel,’ and that’s how they settled disputes. ¹⁹ I am a peaceful person, one of the faithful in Israel, but you’re trying to destroy a city that is like a mother in Israel. Why would you devour the Lord’s inheritance?”