¹⁷ Your servant thought: May the word of my lord the king bring relief, for my lord the king is able to discern the good and the bad like the Angel of God. May the Lord your God be with you.”

²⁰ Joab your servant has done this to address the issue indirectly,^[a] but my lord has wisdom like the wisdom of the Angel of God, knowing everything on earth.”

²⁸ All Israel heard about the judgment the king had given, and they stood in awe of the king because they saw that God’s wisdom^(A) was in him to carry out justice.