“And keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself:”
"Moreover, you know what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two commanders of the armies of Israel, Abner the son of Ner and Amasa the son of Jether, whom he murdered, avenging in time of peace the blood shed in war, and putting innocent blood upon the girdle about my loins and upon the sandals on my feet.'" — David now turns to *specific accounts to settle*. Joab (*Yo'av*) murdered Abner (*Avner*) and Amasa (*'Amasa*) in coldblood—*va-yishmok et-dam harizim* (he spilled innocent blood)—for political advantage, not in battle. David's phrase *be-qan sha'ah* (in time of peace) emphasizes that these were murders, not military acts. The visceral imagery—blood upon David's *loins* and *sandals*—suggests that though David did not command these murders, they stain his kingship and his personal honor. The deathbed charge to Solomon about Joab represents David's unfulfilled justice; he hands this account to Solomon to settle.
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