but, being whetted by the natural rivalry f)f position between him and Abner, he afterwards made it the ex- cuse of his ))olicy by treacherously, in the act of friend- ly communication, slaying Abner, at the very time when the services of the latter to David, to whom he had then turned, had rendered him a most dangerous rival to him in power and influence (2 Sam. iii, 22-27). That Abner had at first suspected that Joab would take the position of blood-avenger [see Blood-ke^-exge] is clear from the apprehension which he expressed (2 Sam. ii, 22) ; but that he thought that Joab had, under all the circumstances, abandoned this position, is shown by the unsuspecting readiness with which he went aside with him (2 Sam. iii, 2G, 27) ; and that Joab ]ilaced his miu-derous act on the footing of vengeance for his broth- er's blood is plainly stated in 2 Sam. iii, 30; by which it also appears that the other brother, Abishai, shared in some way in the deed and its responsbilities. At the same time, as Abner w^as perfectly justified in slaying Asahel to save his own life, it is \cry doubtful if Joab would ever have asserted his right of blood-revenge had not Abner appeared likely to endanger his influence with David. The king, much as he reprobated the act, knew that it had a sort of excuse in the old customs of blood-revenge, and he stood habitually too much in awe of his impetuous and able nephew to bring him to pun- ishment, or even to displace him from his command. " I am this day weak," he said, " though anointed king, and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, be too hard for me" (2 Sam. iii, 39). B.C. 1046. Desirous probably of mak- ing some atonement before David and the public for this atrocity, in a way which at the same time was most likely to prove eifectual, namely, by some daring exploit, Joab was the first to mount to the assault at the storming of the fortress on Mount Zion, which had re- mained so king in the hands of the Jebusites, B.C. cir. 1044. By this service he acquired the chief command of the army of all Israel, of which David was by this time king (2 Sam. v, 6-10). He had a chief armor- bearer of his own, Naharai, a Beerothite (2 Sam. xxiii, 37; 1 Chron. xi, 39), and ten attenelants to cany his equipment and baggage (2 Sam. xviii, 15). He had the charge, formerly belonging to the king or judge, of giving the signal by trumpet for advance or retreat (2 Sam. xviii, 16). He was called by the almost regal title of " lord" (2 Sam. xi, 11), " the prince of the king's army" (1 Chron. xxvii, 34). His usual residence (ex- cept Avhen campaigning) was in Jerusalem, but he had a house and property, with barley-fields adjoining, in the country (2 Sam. xiv, 30), in the ''wilderness" (1 Kings ii, 34), preibably on the north-east of Jerusalem (compare 1 Sam. xiii, 18 ; Josh, viii, 15, 20), near an an- cient sanctuary, called from its nomadic village " Baal- hazor" (2 Sam. xiii, 23 ; compare with xiv, 30), where there were extensive sheepwalks. It is possible that this " house of Joab" may have given its name to Ata- roth Beth-Joab (1 Chron. ii, 54), to distinguish it from Ataroth-adar. His great militarj' achievements, which he conducted in person, may be divided into three cam^ paigns: (o) The first was against the allied forces of Syria and Ammon. He attacked and elefeated the Syr- ians, while his brother Abishai did the same for the Ammonites. The Syrians rallied Avith their kindred tribes from beyond the Euphrates, and were finally routed by David himself. See Hadarezer. (i) The second was against Edom. The decisive victory was gained by David himself in the " valley of salt," and celebrated by a triumphal monument (1 Sam. viii, 13). But Joab had the charge of carrying out the victory," and remained for six months extirpating the male pop- ulation, whom he then buried in the tombs of Petra (1 Kings xi, 15, 16). So long was the terror of liis name preserved that only when the fugitive prince of Etlom, in the Egyptian court, heard that "David slept with liis fathers, and that Joab, the captain of the host, vas dead," did he venture to return to his own country (ib. xi, 21, 22). (c) The third was agamst the Ammonites.
i
JOAB
921
JOACIM
I
They were again left to Joab (2 Sam. x, 7-10), He went against them at the beginning of the next year, " at the time when kings go out to battle" — to the siege, of Kabbah. The ark was sent with liim, and the whole army was encamped in booths or luits round the be- leaguered city (2 Sam. xi, 1, 11). After a sortie of the inhabitants, which caused some loss to the Jewish army, Joab took the lower city on the river, and then, with true loyalty, sent to urge David to come and take the citadel, "Kabbah," lest the glory of the capture should pass from the king to his general (2 Sam. xii, 26-28).
It is not necessary to trace in detail the later acts of Joab, seeing that they are in fact part of the public rec- ord of the king he served. See David. He served liim faithfully, both in political and private relations; for, although he knew his power over David, and often treated him with little ceremony, there can be no doubt that he was most truly devoted to his interests. But Joab had no principles apart from what he deemed his duty to the king and the people, and was quite as ready to serve his master's vices as his virtues, so long as they did not interfere with his own interests, or tended to promote them by enabling him to make liimself useful to the king. (See Niemeyer, C/uurikf. iv, 458 sq.) His ready apprehension of the king's meaning in the matter of Uriah, and the facility with wliich he made himself the instrument of the murder, and of the hypocrisy by which it was covered, are proofs of this, and form as deep a stain upon his character as his own murdtrs (2 Sam. xi, 14-25), B.C. 1035. As Joab was on good terras with Absalom, and had taken pains to bring about a rec- onciliation between him and his father, we may set the higher value upon his firm adhesion to David when Ab- salom revolted, and upon his stern sense of duty to the king — from whom he expected no thanks — displayed in putting an end to the war by the slaughter of his favor- ite son, ^vhon all others shrunk from the responsibility of doing tlie king a service against his own will (2 Sam. xviii, 1-14). B.C. cir. 1023. In like manner, when Da- vid unhappily resolved to number the people, Joab dis- cerned the evil and remonstrated against it, and al- thougli he did not venture to disobey, he i)erformed the duty tardily and reluctantly, to afford the king an op- portunity of reconsidering the matter, and took no pains to conceal how odious the measure was to him (2 Sam. xxxiv, 1-4). David was certainly ungrateful for the services of Joab when, in order to conciliate the pow- erful party which had supported Absalom, he offered the command of the host to Amasa, who had command- ed the army of Absalom (2 Sam. xix, 13). But the in- efficiency of the new commander, in the emergency which the revolt of Bichri's son produced, arising per- haps from the reluctance of the troops to follow their new leader, gave Joab an opportunity of displaying his superior resources, and also of removing his rival by a niuriler very similar to that of Abner, and in some re- spects less excusable and more foul. See Ajiasa. Be- sides, Amasa was his own cousin, being the son of his mother's sister (2 Sam. xx, 1-13). B.C. cir. 1022.