⁵ Then Joab came to the king’s house and said to him: “Today you have caused all of your officers and servants to feel ashamed, humiliating those who saved your life today, and the lives of your sons and daughters, and the lives of your wives and concubines, ⁶ by showing love for those who hate you and hatred for those who love you.

“You have made it perfectly clear that your commanders and soldiers mean nothing to you. I feel certain that if Absalom were still alive and all the rest of us were dead, then you would be pleased. ⁷ Therefore, get up, come out, and reassure your servants. I swear by the Lord that if you do not go out, not one man will be left with you by nightfall, and that will be worse for you than all the calamities you have endured from your youth until now.”