Joab

Joab was a general in King David's army during the Book of Samuel in the Old Testament.

Villainy
After being made captain of King David's army, David went to war with King Saul's cousin Abner and one surviving son Ish-bosheth for the throne of Israel. During the war, Joab's brother Asahel was killed in combat by Abner, who shortly thereafter went over to David. Despite this, Joab refused to let him get away with his brothers death, and led an ambush along with his men, stabbing and killing Abner. As a result, David ordered Joab to walk in front of Abner's funeral procession wearing sackcloth.

After being promoted to general, Joab was in charge of leading David's troops against the enemies of Israel, and conspired to have Uriah the Hittite killed so David could marry Uriah's wife Bathsheba, ordering for Uriah to be sent to the front lines to fight the Ammonites and abandoned by his men so he would be killed.

During the war against David's son Absalom, Joab and his forces were defeated and fled with David to escape Absalom's army. When Absalom pursued them, David ordered Joab to lead his forces against his son, but not to kill him. However, when Joab heard that Absalom had been found caught in a tree, he disobeyed this order and killed Absalom. When he heard about David's grief over the death of his son, Joab simply berated the king, and told him to make a public appearance before his troops. However, this resulted in his demotion from military commander, a post which subsequently went to Amasa.

When the Benjamite Sheba rebelled against David, Joab used Amasa's reluctance to mobilise troops against Sheba to accuse him of treachery and proceeded to murder him. He then laid siege to the city of Abel-beth-maachah, where Sheba was hiding, forcing the people of the city to kill Sheba rather than be slaughtered by Joab's army.

When David was on the brink of death, he ordered the new king, King Solomon, to kill Joab due to his murders of Amasa and Absalom. As a result, Solomon sent his bodyguard Benaiah to kill Joab. Joab fled to the House of Yahweh, and told Benaiah he would die there. Benaiah obliged, and stabbed Joab to death.