²⁰ And if he pushed him out of hatred or hurled something at him, ^(A)lying in wait, so that he died,

¹¹ “But if anyone hates his neighbor and lies in wait for him and attacks him ^(A)and strikes him fatally so that he dies, and he flees into one of these cities,

¹⁴ But if a man willfully attacks another to kill him by cunning, ^(A)you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.

¹⁰ But Amasa did not observe the sword that was in Joab's hand. ^(A)So Joab struck him with it ^(B)in the stomach and spilled his entrails to the ground without striking a second blow, and he died.

Then Joab and Abishai his brother pursued Sheba the son of Bichri.

²⁷ And when Abner returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside into the midst of the gate to speak with him privately, ^(A)and there he struck him ^(B)in the stomach, so that he died, for the blood of Asahel his brother.

⁸ Cain spoke to Abel his brother.^[a] And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and ^(A)killed him.

²¹ But do not be persuaded by them, for more than forty of their men are lying in ambush for him, who ^(A)have bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they have killed him. And now they are ready, waiting for your consent.”

³ There he spent three months, and when ^(A)a plot was made against him by the Jews^[a] as he was about to set sail for Syria, he decided to return through Macedonia.

²⁹ And they rose up and ^(A)drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff.

²⁴ And she went out and said to her mother, “For what should I ask?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.” ²⁵ And she came in immediately with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” ²⁶ And the king was exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her.