Samaria” (TOB), “the soldiers of Samaria” (FRCL) or “the forces of Samaria” (NBS), instead of implying that Samaria possessed an organized army that was able to wage war. Sanballat asked five questions of ridicule, all implying negative answers and leading to the conclusion that the Jews could not accomplish what they had set out to do. These are not questions that he was asking to obtain information about the Jews and their capabilities. They are rhetorical questions that were filled with disdain