2 Samuel 2
Christian Standard Bible
David, King of Judah
2 Some time later, David inquired of the Lord:(A) “Should I go to one of the towns of Judah?”
The Lord answered him, “Go.”
Then David asked, “Where should I go?”
“To Hebron,”(B) the Lord replied.
2 So David went there with his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelite and Abigail, the widow of Nabal the Carmelite.(C) 3 In addition, David brought the men who were with him, each one with his family, and they settled in the towns near Hebron.(D) 4 Then the men of Judah came, and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah.(E) They told David, “It was the men of Jabesh-gilead who buried Saul.”(F)
5 David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh-gilead and said to them, “The Lord bless you because you have shown this kindness to Saul your lord when you buried him. 6 Now, may the Lord show kindness and faithfulness to you, and I will also show the same goodness to you because you have done this deed. 7 Therefore, be strong[a] and valiant, for though Saul your lord is dead, the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”
8 Abner son of Ner, commander of Saul’s army,(G) took Saul’s son Ish-bosheth[b][c] and moved him to Mahanaim. 9 He made him king over Gilead, Asher, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin—over all Israel. 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. 11 The length of time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.(H)
12 Abner son of Ner and soldiers of Ish-bosheth son of Saul marched out from Mahanaim to Gibeon. 13 So Joab son of Zeruiah and David’s soldiers marched out and met them by the pool of Gibeon.(I) The two groups took up positions on opposite sides of the pool.
14 Then Abner said to Joab, “Let’s have the young men get up and compete in front of us.”
“Let them get up,” Joab replied.
15 So they got up and were counted off—twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bosheth son of Saul, and twelve from David’s soldiers. 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. So this place, which is in Gibeon, is named Field of Blades.[d]
17 The battle that day was extremely fierce, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by David’s soldiers. 18 The three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel.(J) Asahel was a fast runner, like one of the wild gazelles.(K) 19 He chased Abner and did not turn to the right or the left in his pursuit of him. 20 Abner glanced back and said, “Is that you, Asahel?”
“Yes it is,” Asahel replied.
21 Abner said to him, “Turn to your right or left, seize one of the young soldiers, and take whatever you can get from him.” But Asahel would not stop chasing him. 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?” (L)
23 But Asahel refused to turn away, so Abner hit 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,(M) 24 but Joab and Abishai pursued 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.
25 The Benjaminites rallied to Abner; they formed a unit and took their stand on top of a hill. 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 troops to stop pursuing their brothers?”
27 “As God lives,” Joab replied, “if you had not spoken up, the troops wouldn’t have stopped pursuing their brothers until morning.”(N) 28 Then Joab blew the ram’s horn, and all the troops stopped; they no longer pursued Israel or continued to fight. 29 So Abner and his men marched through the Arabah all that night. They crossed the Jordan, marched all morning,[e] and arrived at Mahanaim.(O)
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, 31 but they had killed 360 of the Benjaminites and Abner’s men. 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.
2 Samuel 2
Common English Bible
David made king in Hebron
2 Some time later, David questioned the Lord, “Should I go to one of the towns in Judah?”
“Yes, go,” the Lord told him.
“Which one should I go to?” David asked.
“To Hebron,” the Lord replied.
2 So David went there, along with his two wives: Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, Nabal’s widow, from Carmel. 3 David also took the soldiers who were with him, each with his family, and they lived in the towns around Hebron. 4 Then the people of Judah came to Hebron and anointed David king over the house of Judah.
When David was informed that it was the people of Jabesh-gilead who had buried Saul, 5 he sent messengers to the people of Jabesh-gilead. “The Lord bless you,” he said to them, “for doing this loyal deed for your master Saul by burying him. 6 May the Lord now show you loyal love and faithfulness. I myself will also reward you because you did this. 7 So now take courage and be brave—yes, your master Saul is dead, but the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”
Israel’s King Ishbosheth
8 Meanwhile, Abner, Ner’s son, the commander of Saul’s army, had taken Ishbosheth,[a] Saul’s son, and brought him over to Mahanaim. 9 There he made him king over Gilead, the Geshurites,[b] Jezreel, Ephraim, and Benjamin—over all Israel. 10 Saul’s son Ishbosheth was 40 years old when he became king over Israel, and he ruled for two years. The house of Judah, however, followed David. 11 The amount of time David ruled in Hebron over the house of Judah totaled seven and a half years.
Conflict between Judah and Israel
12 Abner, Ner’s son, along with the soldiers of Ishbosheth, Saul’s son, left Mahanaim to go to Gibeon. 13 Joab, Zeruiah’s son, and David’s soldiers also came out and confronted them at the pool of Gibeon. One group sat on one side of the pool; the other sat on the opposite side of the pool. 14 Abner said to Joab, “Let’s have the young men fight in a contest[c] before us.”
“All right,” Joab said, “let’s do it.” 15 So the men came forward and were counted as they passed by: twelve for Benjamin and Ishbosheth, Saul’s son; and twelve of David’s soldiers. 16 Each man grabbed his opponent by the head and stuck[d] his sword into his opponent’s side so that they both fell dead together. That’s why that place is called The Field of Daggers,[e] which is located in Gibeon. 17 A fierce battle took place that day, and Abner and the Israelite troops were defeated by David’s soldiers.
18 Now Zeruiah’s three sons were present at the battle: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Asahel was as fast as a gazelle in an open field. 19 Asahel went after Abner, staying completely focused in his pursuit of Abner.
20 Abner looked behind him and said, “Is that you, Asahel?”
“Yes, it’s me,” Asahel answered.
21 “Break off your pursuit!” Abner told him. “Fight one of the young warriors and take his gear for yourself!” But Asahel wouldn’t stop chasing him.
22 So Abner repeated himself to Asahel: “Stop chasing me. Why should I kill you? How could I look your brother Joab in the face?” 23 But Asahel wouldn’t turn back, so Abner hit him in the stomach with the back end of his spear. But the spear went through Asahel’s back. He fell down and died right there.
Everyone who came to the place where Asahel had fallen and died just stood there, 24 but Joab and Abishai went after Abner. The sun was setting when they came to the hill of Ammah, which faces Giah on the road to the Gibeon wilderness. 25 The Benjaminites rallied behind Abner, forming a single unit. Then they took their positions on the top of a hill. 26 Abner yelled down to Joab, “Must the sword keep killing forever? Don’t you realize that this will end bitterly? How long before you order the troops to stop chasing their brothers?”
27 “As surely as God lives,” Joab replied, “if you hadn’t just said that, the soldiers would have continued after their brothers until morning.” 28 Joab blew the trumpet,[f] and all the soldiers stopped. They didn’t pursue Israel anymore, nor did they continue to fight.
29 Abner and his men then marched all night through the wilderness, crossing the Jordan River and marching all morning[g] until they got to Mahanaim. 30 Joab, meanwhile, returned from pursuing Abner and assembled the troops. Nineteen of David’s soldiers were counted missing in addition to Asahel. 31 But David’s soldiers had defeated the Benjaminites, killing three hundred sixty of Abner’s soldiers. 32 They took Asahel and buried him in his father’s tomb in Bethlehem. Then Joab and his men marched all night. When daylight came, they were in Hebron.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 2:8 Ishbosheth means man of shame; shame (Heb bosheth) may be a deliberate alteration from Baal (cf Esh-baal, man of Baal in 1 Chron 8:33; 9:39; see also 2 Sam 4:4); one manuscript of LXXL reads Ishbaal.
- 2 Samuel 2:9 Syr, Vulg; MT Ashurites or Assyrians; cf Tg, LXXL, Judg 1:32 Asherites
- 2 Samuel 2:14 Or come forward and play or compete
- 2 Samuel 2:16 Heb lacks stuck.
- 2 Samuel 2:16 Heb Helkath-hazzurim
- 2 Samuel 2:28 Heb shofar
- 2 Samuel 2:29 Heb uncertain
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible