Context No. 3389 of 4322 · 2 Samuel

2 Samuel 20:7-11: in context

7Joab’s men went out after him with the Cherethites, the Pelethites, and all the mighty men; and they went out of Jerusalem to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri. 8When they were at the great stone which is in Gibeon, Amasa came to meet them. Joab was clothed in his apparel of war that he had put on, and on it was a sash with a sword fastened on his waist in its sheath; and as he went along it fell out. 9Joab said to Amasa, “Is it well with you, my brother?” Joab took Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss him. 10But Amasa took no heed to the sword that was in Joab’s hand. So he struck him with it in the body and shed out his bowels to the ground, and didn’t strike him again; and he died. Joab and Abishai his brother pursued Sheba the son of Bichri. 11One of Joab’s young men stood by him, and said, “He who favors Joab, and he who is for David, let him follow Joab!”

Joab murders Amasa, his rival for command of the army, in a sickening act of treachery. He greets him warmly, is it well with you, my brother?, takes his beard with his right hand as if to kiss him, and with the other drives a hidden sword into him. The betrayal wears the mask of friendship; the kiss of greeting conceals the killing stroke.

It is a chilling picture of violence dressed as affection, murder committed under a gesture of love. Joab was in many ways a capable and loyal servant of David, and yet ruthless and bloody whenever his own position was threatened, and this act would stain him to the end of his days. There is a warning in it about ambition that will smile and embrace even as it destroys a rival. God sees the heart beneath the false gesture; the kiss that hides a sword may deceive a man like Amasa, but it does not deceive the God who looks past the friendly face to the murder within.

Do I ever cloak ill will or rivalry beneath a friendly face, and do I remember that God sees the true heart behind every gesture?

Sources

2 Samuel 20:9: "Joab said to Amasa, Is it well with you, my brother? Joab took Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss him."
2 Samuel 20:10: "Amasa took no heed to the sword that was in Joab's hand. So he struck him with it... and he died."
Psalm 55:21: "His mouth was smooth as butter, but his heart was war."