2 Samuel 2

2 ¹ Some time later, David inquired of our Father, "Should I go up to one of the cities of Judah?" Our Father said to him, "Go up." David asked, "Where should I go?" "To Hebron," he answered.

² So David went up there with his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel. ³ David also brought up the men who were with him, each with his household, and they settled in the towns around Hebron. ⁴ Then the men of Judah came, and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah. When David heard that the men of Jabesh-gilead had buried Saul,

⁵ he sent messengers to the men of Jabesh-gilead to say to them, "May our Father bless you for showing this kindness to Saul your lord by burying him." ⁶ "Now may our Father show you kindness and faithfulness, and I too will treat you well because you have done this." ⁷ Now then, be strong and courageous, for Saul your master is dead, and the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.

Abner Makes Ish-bosheth King over Israel

⁸ But Abner son of Ner, the commander of Saul's army, had taken Ish-bosheth son of Saul and brought him over to Mahanaim. ⁹ He made him king over Gilead, over the Ashurites, over Jezreel, over Ephraim, over Benjamin—over all Israel.

¹⁰ Ish-bosheth son of Saul was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he reigned two years. But the house of Judah followed David. ¹¹ David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah for seven years and six months.

Brother Against Brother at Gibeon

¹² Abner son of Ner, together with the servants of Ish-bosheth son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon. ¹³ Joab son of Zeruiah and the servants of David also went out, and they met them at the pool of Gibeon. One group sat down on one side of the pool and the other group on the other side.

¹⁴ Then Abner said to Joab, "Let the young men get up and compete before us." "Let them get up," Joab said.

¹⁵ So they got up and were counted off—twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bosheth son of Saul, and twelve from the servants of David. ¹⁶ Each one seized his opponent by the head and thrust his sword into his opponent's side, and they fell down together. So that place in Gibeon was called Helkath-hazzurim. ¹ 1 v16 Helkath-hazzurim means "field of sword-edges" — the place was named for the deadly hand-to-hand combat fought there.

¹⁷ The battle that day was fierce, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by the servants of David.

¹⁸ The three sons of Zeruiah were there—Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Now Asahel was as fast on his feet as a wild gazelle. ¹⁹ He chased Abner, turning neither to the right nor to the left as he pursued him. ²⁰ Abner looked back and said, "Is that you, Asahel?" "It is," he answered.

²¹ Abner said to him, "Go right or left—seize one of the young men and take his armor for yourself." But Asahel would not stop chasing him.

²² Again Abner warned Asahel, "Stop chasing me. Why should I strike you to the ground? How could I look your brother Joab in the face?"

²³ But he refused to turn aside, so Abner struck him in the belly with the butt of his spear, and the spear came out through his back. He fell there and died on the spot. And everyone who came to the place where Asahel had fallen and died stood still.

²⁴ But Joab and Abishai pursued Abner, and as the sun was setting they came to the hill of Ammah, near Giah on the way to the wilderness of Gibeon. ²⁵ The men of Benjamin rallied behind Abner, formed a single band, and took their stand on the top of a hill.

²⁶ Then Abner called out to Joab, "Must the sword devour forever? Don't you know that this will end in bitterness? How long before you tell the people to stop chasing their brothers?"

²⁷ Joab answered, "As surely as our Father lives, if you had not spoken, the people would have kept pursuing their brothers until morning."

²⁸ So Joab blew the trumpet, and all the troops stopped; they no longer pursued Israel or kept fighting.

²⁹ Abner and his men marched through the Arabah all that night. They crossed the Jordan, continued through the whole Bithron, and came to Mahanaim.

³⁰ Then Joab returned from pursuing Abner, and when he had gathered all the troops, nineteen of David's men were missing, besides Asahel. ³¹ But David's servants had struck down three hundred sixty of the men of Benjamin who were with Abner. ³² They carried Asahel and buried him in his father's tomb at Bethlehem. Then Joab and his men marched all night and reached Hebron at daybreak.