²⁶ Abner called out to Joab, “Must the sword devour^(A) forever? Don’t you realize that this will end in bitterness? How long before you order your men to stop pursuing their fellow Israelites?”

²⁷ Joab answered, “As surely as God lives, if you had not spoken, the men would have continued pursuing them until morning.”

²⁸ So Joab^(B) blew the trumpet,^(C) and all the troops came to a halt; they no longer pursued Israel, nor did they fight anymore.