In the course of time, David inquired of the Lord. “Shall I go up to one of the towns of Judah?” he asked. The Lord said, “Go up.” David asked, “Where shall I go?” “To Hebron,” the Lord 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 took the men who were with him, each with his family, and they settled in Hebron and its towns. 4 Then the men of Judah came to Hebron, and there they anointed David king over the tribe of Judah. When David was told that it was the men from Jabesh Gilead who had buried Saul, 5 he sent messengers to them to say to them, “The Lord bless you for showing this kindness to Saul your master by burying him. 6 May the Lord now show you kindness and faithfulness, and I too will show you the same favor because you have done this. 7 Now then, be strong and brave, for Saul your master is dead, and the people of Judah have anointed me king over them.”
David’s inquiring of the Lord is an important point to ponder. How often do we ask the Lord about the things in our life? Do we include Him at all? David does. In fact, he doesn’t make a move out of the land of the Philistines (he’’s still in Ziklag) until he hears from God. Remember, David rushed to the land of the Philistines to avoid Saul.
He is told to go to Hebron and settle there. He didn’t take the throne at this time. Instead, he waited for the men of Judah to come to him and anoint him over their tribe. David did not rush into Judah and attempt to climb into power. He knew that in God’s time it would come to pass, so he waited for God to stir the hearts of those in Judah and beyond.
He does not show any remorse for the former king. He isn’t looking back but forward. He blesses those men of Jabesh Gilead for their duty.
War Between the Houses of David and Saul 8 Meanwhile, 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, Ashuri and Jezreel, and also over Ephraim, Benjamin and all Israel. 10 Ish-Bosheth son of Saul was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he reigned two years. The tribe of Judah, however, remained loyal to David. 11 The length of time David was king in Hebron over Judah was seven years and six months.
Ish-Bosheth, although not mentioned before in Saul’s lineage, has been made king of Israel by Abner, who was the commander of Saul’s army. It seems that Abner wanted to retain power and found Ish-Bosheth, who could have been an illegitimate son of Saul’s, possibly by a concubine. Nevertheless, this is a shameless grab of power, trying to keep the kingship of Saul alive. David allows this to happen for two years. He rules in Judah (southern Israel) while Ish-Bosheth rules in Northern Israel. It is also important to note that Ish-Bosheth was not anointed, but appointed by the commander of the army. He is not God’s choice of a leader.
12 Abner son of Ner, together with the men of Ish-Bosheth son of Saul, left Mahanaim and went to Gibeon. 13 Joab son of Zeruiah and David’s men went out and met them at the pool of Gibeon. One group sat down on one side of the pool and one group on the other side. 14 Then Abner said to Joab, “Let’s have some of the young men get up and fight hand to hand in front of us.” “All right, let them do it,” Joab said. 15 So they stood up and were counted off—twelve men for Benjamin and Ish-Bosheth son of Saul, and twelve for David. 16 Then each man grabbed his opponent by the head and thrust his dagger into his opponent’s side, and they fell down together. So that place in Gibeon was called Helkath Hazzurim. 17 The battle that day was very fierce, and Abner and the Israelites were defeated by David’s men.
As was customary in the ancient days, sometimes a battle was judged not by armies clashing against each other but by a handful of men battling intimately. In 1 Samuel 17 we see this play out between he Israelites and Goliath. Instead of the armies attacking, a single man is sent out in opposition to Goliath. The sum of the battle is finalized in that one fight. Here is a similar scenario, but there is a dozen men from Judah (Benjamin) and a dozen Israel (Ish-Bosheth). It devolves into a gruesome fight, and there is a draw amongst the 24 men. So the armies go to war and David’s forces prevail.
18 The three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab, Abishai and Asahel. Now Asahel was as fleet-footed as a wild gazelle. 19 He chased Abner, turning neither to the right nor to the left as he pursued him. 20 Abner looked behind him and asked, “Is that you, Asahel?” “It is,” he answered. 21 Then Abner said to him, “Turn aside to the right or to the left; take on one of the young men and strip him of his weapons.” But Asahel would not stop chasing him. 22 Again Abner warned Asahel, “Stop chasing me! Why should I strike you down? How could I look your brother Joab in the face?” 23 But Asahel refused to give up the pursuit; so Abner thrust the butt of his spear into Asahel’s stomach, and the spear came out through his back. He fell there and died on the spot. And every man stopped when he came to the place where Asahel had fallen and died.
According to 1 Chronicles 2:16, Zeruiah was David’s sister. Therefore, Joab, Abishai and Ashael were David’s nephews. Joab had risen to David’s commander of the army. All of these men were most likely men who were in the caves with David as he was chased by Saul.
Since David’s men won the overall battle in the field, Abner, the leader of Ish-Bosheth’s men, was in trouble. Abner, as we will see later on, isn’t a very respectable man, but here he seems to make some sense. Ashael will indeed catch up to him, so he appeals to him first by asking him to go somewhere else, take some plunder, stop chasing him (verse 21). But Ashael does not.
Second, he appeals to the family dynamic of the situation. He’s basically saying, “if you keep coming after me I’m going to have to defend myself. Then how can I explain myself to the family if I have to cut you down?” But Ashael continues to pursue. Abner must defend himself and ultimately kills Ashael. 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 wasteland of Gibeon. 25 Then the men of Benjamin rallied behind Abner. They formed themselves into a group and took their stand on top of a hill. 26 Abner called out to Joab, “Must the sword devour 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 blew the trumpet, and all the troops came to a halt; they no longer pursued Israel, nor did they fight anymore.
Out of options, Abner again appeals to the greater humanity of the Jewish people. He can only appeal to their cultural brotherhood. Abner is probably just playing a card that keeps him alive, but it works.
29 All that night Abner and his men marched through the Arabah. They crossed the Jordan, continued through the morning hours and came to Mahanaim. 30 Then Joab stopped pursuing Abner and assembled the whole army. Besides Asahel, nineteen of David’s men were found missing. 31 But David’s men had killed three hundred and sixty Benjamites who were with Abner. 32 They took Asahel and buried him in his father’s tomb at Bethlehem. Then Joab and his men marched all night and arrived at Hebron by daybreak.
The fight was quite uneven, but a positive item came out of the bloodshed: they went back to their tribes without decimating either side. There was an opportunity for Joab to completely annihilate the other side, but the mercy that was displayed so often by David is registering through his leadership.