The key actor in this drama was Abner, Saul’s cousin and the commander of his army (1 Sam. 14:50). It was Abner who brought David to Saul after David killed Goliath (17:55–58) and who with Saul pursued David for ten years (26:5ff.). Abner was rebuked and humiliated by David when he failed to protect the king (26:13–16) and Abner had no special love for David. The people of Israel honored David above Saul and eventually the nation would learn that David was God’s choice as king of Israel. But David already had a commander, Joab, so when David became king, what would happen to Abner? Most of what Abner did during those seven and a half years wasn’t for the glory of God or the strengthening of Israel, but for his own self-interest. He was taking care of number one.
Abner rejects David’s kingship (vv. 8–11). The people of Judah obeyed God’s will and anointed David as their king, but Abner disobeyed the Lord and made Saul’s one remaining son, Ish-Bosheth, the king of “all Israel.” Abner knew that David was God’s choice, a gifted leader and a brave soldier, but he deliberately rebelled against the Lord and appointed Ish-Bosheth. Israel had asked for a king “like all the nations” (1 Sam. 8:5), and when a king died, the other nations appointed a king’s eldest son to succeed him. Three of Saul’s sons had died in battle, and Ish-Bosheth was all that remained of the royal family.
Scripture doesn’t say much about Ish-Bosheth, but it’s clear that he was a weak puppet ruler manipulated by Abner (3:11; 4:1). He was certainly old enough to fight in the army with his father and brothers, but Saul left him home to protect the dynasty. (He was probably also a weak soldier.) Saul and Abner both knew that God had taken the dynasty away from Saul (1 Sam. 13:11–14). Knowing that he and his sons would die in the battle, Saul probably arranged to make his fourth son king. Ish-Bosheth may have been crowned by the general, but he was never anointed by the Lord. He is called Esh-Baal in 1 Chronicles 8:33, which means “man of the Lord.” The word “baal” means “lord” and was also the name of a Canaanite deity, so that may be why his name was changed.
Abner took Ish-Bosheth to Mahanaim, on the east side of the Jordan. This was a Levitical city of refuge where he would be safe (Josh. 21:38), and there Abner established a capital for “all Israel.” But it’s likely that it took at least five years for Abner to pursuade the tribes (minus Judah) to follow their new king. Ish-Bosheth was crowned at the beginning of David’s reign of seven years and six months and was assassinated after reigning only two years over “all Israel.” This would have been the last two years of David’s reign in Hebron. IshBosheth didn’t have a long reign over “all Israel,” but everybody knew that Abner was in charge anyway.
There’s a modern touch to this scenario, for our political and religious worlds are populated by these same three kinds of people. We have weak people like Ish-Bosheth, who get where they are because they have “connections.” We have strong, selfish people like Abner, who know how to manipulate others for their own personal profit. We also have people of God like David who are called, anointed, and equipped but must wait for God’s time before they can serve. During more than fifty years of ministry, I have seen churches and other ministries bypass God’s chosen men and women and put unqualified people into places of leadership just because they were well-known or had “connections.”
Abner got what he wanted, but within a few years, he lost it all.
Abner challenges David’s army (vv. 12–17). When Abner made Ish-Bosheth king, he was actually declaring war on David, and he knew it. But by now Abner had all the tribes except Judah behind him and he felt he could easily defeat David in battle and take over the entire kingdom. Confident of victory, Abner called for a contest between the two armies, to be held at the great cistern about twenty-three miles north of Gibeon. This was not unlike the challenge Goliath issued when he called for one of Saul’s soldiers to fight him (1 Sam. 17:8–10). But Abner was rebelling against God while David was God’s chosen leader!
This is the first time we meet Joab, David’s nephew and the commander of his army. The two armies met at the reservoir, and twelve soldiers from the army of Benjamin faced twelve men from Judah—and all twenty-four men were killed! That day the battlefield received a new name—“the field of sharp edges” or “the field of daggers.” Joab and Abner wasted no time getting their troops in battle formation, and “The battle that day was very fierce.” Abner was defeated that day, a portent of things to come.
Abner kills David’s nephew (vv. 18–23). Joab, Abishai, and Asahel were David’s nephews, the sons of his sister Zeruiah (see 1 Chron. 2:13–16). Whether on his own initiative or at his brother’s orders, Asahel went after Abner, for he knew that slaying the enemy general could mean confusing and scattering the whole enemy army. If Joab commanded the fleet-footed young man to go after Abner, perhaps he was thinking of his own future, for Abner might threaten to take his position as head of the army.
The record makes it clear that Abner had no desire to harm or kill the lad, but Asahel was persistent. First Abner told him to turn aside and take what he wanted from one of the dead enemy soldiers. Then he warned Asahel that if he killed him, this would create a “blood feud” that could cause trouble for years to come. Abner knew Joab and had no desire to begin a possible lifelong family conflict. It was bad enough that Joab and Abner were rival generals. When Asahel refused to give up the chase, the clever Abner killed him by using one of the oldest tricks of the battlefield: he stopped suddenly and allowed Asahel to propel himself right into the end of spear. The butt end of a spear was often sharpened so the spear could be thrust into the ground and be ready for action (1 Sam. 26:7). Asahel fell to the ground and died. Asahel died in the course of battle, even though it appears that Abner had no plans or even desire to kill him.
Abner calls for a truce (vv. 25–32). Asahel’s two brothers, Joab and Abishai, must have been following close behind because they took up the pursuit of Abner, no doubt determined to avenge the blood of their brother. But Abner’s troops rescued him, and he and the Benjamites retreated to the hill of Ammah. Abner knew he was beaten (vv. 30–31), so he called for a truce. He may have suspected that the death of Asahel would encourage Joab and Abishai to stop fighting and take care of burial. Judah and Benjamin were brothers, both sons of Jacob, and why should brother fight brother? But it was Abner who had initiated the battle, so he had only himself to blame. A scheming man, he had a plan in mind that would give him both armies without having to shed blood.
Joab knew the heart of David, that he wanted unity and peace, not division and war, so he blew the trumpet and stopped his troops from pursuing the enemy. He said to Abner, “God only knows what would have happened if you hadn’t spoken, for we would have chased you all night if necessary” (v. 27 nlt). Abner and his men walked all night to return to Mahanaim, and Joab and his army returned to Hebron, stopping at Bethlehem along the way to give Asahel a proper burial. During that all-night march, Joab and Abishai hatched a plot to avenge the death of their brother.