He came near, and she asked, “Are you Joab?” “I am,” he answered. “Listen to what I have to say,” she told him. “I’m listening,” he answered.
The woman said, “Please let me say something else to you.” “Speak,” he said.
Then a clever woman called from the city, “Listen, listen! Tell Joab to come here so that I can talk to him.”
So she said, “There’s an old saying: ‘Be sure to ask at Abel ⌞before doing anything⌟. That’s the way they settle matters.’
After she bowed at his feet, she said, “Sir, let me be held responsible for this wrong. Please let me speak with you. Please listen to my words.