2 Samuel 2
2 Samuel 2:1 Later, David inquired of the Lord: “Should I go to one of the towns of Judah?” Yahveh answered him, “Go.” Then David asked, “Where should I go?” “To Hebron,” Yahveh replied.
2 Samuel 2:2 So David went there with his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelite and Abigail, the widow of Nabal the Carmelite.
2 Samuel 2:3 In addition, David brought the men with him, each with his family, and they settled in the towns near Hebron.
2 Samuel 2:4 Then the men of Judah came, and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah. They told David: “It was the men of Jabesh-Gilead who buried Saul.”
2 Samuel 2:5 David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh-Gilead and said to them, “Yahveh bless you because you had shown this kindness to Saul your lord when you buried him.
2 Samuel 2:6 Now, may Yahveh show kindness and faithfulness to you, and I will also show the same goodness to you because you have done this deed.
2 Samuel 2:7 Therefore, be strong and valiant, for though Saul your lord is dead, the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”
2 Samuel 2:8 Abner, son of Ner, commander of Saul’s army, took Ish-bosheth, Saul’s son, and moved him to Mahanaim.
2 Samuel 2:9 He made him king over Gilead, Asher, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin– over all Israel.
2 Samuel 2:10 Saul’s son Ish-bosheth was forty years old when he became king over Israel; he reigned for two years. The house of Judah, however, followed David.
2 Samuel 2:11 David ruled over the house of Judah in Hebron for seven years and six months.
2 Samuel 2:12 Abner, son of Ner, and soldiers of Ish-bosheth, son of Saul, marched out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.
2 Samuel 2:13 So Joab, son of Zeruiah and David’s soldiers, marched out and met them by the pool of Gibeon. The two groups took up positions on opposing sides of the pool.
2 Samuel 2:14 Then Abner said to Joab, “Let the boys get up and compete in front of us.” “Let them get up,” Joab replied.
2 Samuel 2:15 So they got up and were counted off — twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, and twelve from David’s soldiers.
2 Samuel 2:16 Then each man grabbed his opponent by the head and thrust his sword into his opponent’s side so that they all died together. That is why this place in Gibeon is named Field of Blades.
2 Samuel 2:17 The battle that day was extremely severe, and David’s soldiers defeated Abner and the men of Israel.
2 Samuel 2:18 The three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Asahel was a fast runner, like one of the wild gazelles.
2 Samuel 2:19 He chased Abner and did not turn to the right or the left in his pursuit of him.
2 Samuel 2:20 Abner glanced back and said, “Is that you, Asahel?” “It is me,” Asahel said.
2 Samuel 2:21 Abner said to him, “Turn to your right or left, seize one of the boys, and take whatever you can get from him.” But Asahel would not stop chasing him.
2 Samuel 2:22 Once again, Abner warned Asahel, “Stop chasing me. Why should I strike you to the ground? How could I ever look your brother Joab in the face?”
2 Samuel 2:23 But Asahel refused to turn away, so Abner struck him in the stomach with the butt of his spear. The spear went through his body, and he fell and died right there. As they all came to the place where Asahel had fallen and died, they stopped,
2 Samuel 2:24 but Joab and Abishai chased Abner. By sunset, they had gone as far as the hill of Ammah, which is opposite Giah, on the way to the wilderness of Gibeon.
2 Samuel 2:25 The Benjaminites gathered behind Abner, formed a unit, and took their stand on top of a hill.
2 Samuel 2:26 Then Abner called out to Joab: “Must the sword devour forever? Don’t you realize this will only end in bitterness? How long before you tell the people to stop pursuing their brothers?”
2 Samuel 2:27 “As God lives,” Joab replied, “If you had not spoken up, the people wouldn’t have stopped pursuing their brothers until morning.”
2 Samuel 2:28 Then Joab blew the ram’s horn, and all the people stopped; they no longer pursued Israel or continued to fight.
2 Samuel 2:29 So Abner and his men marched through the Arabah all that night. They crossed the Jordan, marched all morning, and arrived at Mahanaim.
2 Samuel 2:30 When Joab had turned back from pursuing Abner, he gathered all the troops. In addition to Asahel, nineteen of David’s soldiers were missing,
2 Samuel 2:31 but they had struck down 360 of the Benjaminites and Abner’s men.
2 Samuel 2:32 Afterward, they carried Asahel to his father’s tomb in Bethlehem and buried him. Then Joab and his men marched all night and reached Hebron at dawn.
jeffersonvann 