2 Samuel 1–20

1ST CHAPTER

The Report of Saul’s Death

¹After Saul died and David returned from defeating the Amalekites,^aDavid stayed in Ziklag two days. ²On the third day a man came from Saul’s camp. His clothes were torn, and he had dirt on his head. When he came to David, he immediately bowed down with his face touching the ground. 

³“Where did you come from?” David asked him. 

“I escaped from the camp of Israel,” he answered. 

⁴“What happened?” David asked him. “Please tell me.” 

The man answered, “The army fled from the battle, and many of the soldiers died. Saul and his son Jonathan are dead too.” 

⁵“How do you know Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?” David asked the young man who had brought him the news. 

⁶The young man answered, “I happened to be on Mount Gilboa. Saul was there leaning on his spear, and the chariots and horsemen were catching up with him. ⁷When he looked back and saw me, he called to me, and I said, ‘Yes?’ ” 

⁸“He asked me, ‘Who are you?’ 

“I said to him, ‘I’m an Amalekite.’ 

⁹“He said to me, ‘Please stand over me and kill me. I’m alive, but I’m suffering.’ 

¹⁰“So I stood over him and killed him, since I knew he couldn’t survive after he had been wounded. And I took the crown that was on his head and the band that was on his arm and brought them here to you, sir.” 

¹¹Then David grabbed his own clothes and tore them ⸤in grief⸥. All the men with him did the same. ¹²They mourned, cried, and fasted until evening because Saul, his son Jonathan, the Lord’s army, and the nation of Israel had been defeated in battle. 

¹³David asked the young man who had brought him the news, “Where are you from?” 

And the young man answered, “I’m an Amalekite, the son of a foreign resident.” 

¹⁴David asked, “Why weren’t you afraid to take it upon yourself to destroy the Lord’s anointed king?” ¹⁵Then David called one of ⸤his⸥ young men and told him, “Come here and attack him.” David’s young man executed him ¹⁶while David said, “You are responsible for spilling your own blood. You testified against yourself when you said, ‘I killed the Lord’s anointed king.’ ” 

David’s Lament

¹⁷David wrote this song of mourning for Saul and his son Jonathan. ¹⁸He said, 

“Teach this kesheth^cto the people of Judah.” 

(It is recorded in the Book of Jashar.) 

¹⁹“Your glory, Israel, lies dead on your hills. 

See how the mighty have fallen! 

²⁰Don’t tell the news in Gath. 

Don’t announce the victory in the streets of Ashkelon, 

or the daughters of the Philistines will be glad, 

and the daughters of godless men will celebrate. 

²¹You mountains in Gilboa, 

may there be no dew or rain on you 

or on your slopes, 

because warriors’ shields were tarnished there. 

Saul’s shield was never rubbed with olive oil. 

²²From the blood of those killed and the fat of the warriors, 

Jonathan’s bow did not turn away, 

nor did Saul’s sword return unused. 

²³Saul and Jonathan were loved and well-liked while they were living. 

They were not separated even when they died. 

They were swifter than eagles and stronger than lions. 

²⁴Daughters of Israel, cry over Saul, 

who dressed you in decorated, red clothes, 

who put gold jewelry on your clothes. 

²⁵See how the mighty have fallen in battle! 

On your hills Jonathan was killed! 

²⁶I am heartbroken over you, my brother Jonathan. 

You were my great delight. 

Your love was more wonderful to me than the love of women. 

²⁷See how the mighty have fallen! 

See how the weapons of war have been destroyed!” 

2ND CHAPTER

David Becomes King of Judah

¹After this, David asked the Lord, “Should I go to one of the cities of Judah?” 

“Go,” the Lord answered him. 

“Where should I go?” David asked. 

“To Hebron,” the Lord replied. 

²David went there with his two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail (who had been Nabal’s wife) from Carmel. ³David took his men and their families with him, and they settled in the towns around Hebron. ⁴Then the people of Judah came to Hebron and anointed David to be king over the tribe of Judah. 

They told David, “The people of Jabesh Gilead were the ones who buried Saul.” ⁵So David sent messengers to the people of Jabesh Gilead. He said to them, “May the Lord bless you because you showed kindness to your master Saul by burying him. ⁶May the Lord always show you kindness. I, too, will be good to you because you did this. ⁷Now, be strong and courageous. Because your master Saul is dead, the tribe of Judah has anointed me to be their king.” 

Abner Makes Ishbosheth King of Israel

⁸Ner’s son Abner, commander of Saul’s army, took Saul’s son Ishbosheth^aand brought him to Mahanaim. ⁹Abner made him king of Gilead, Asher,^bJezreel, Ephraim, and Benjamin, that is, all Israel. ¹⁰Saul’s son Ishbosheth was 40 years old when he became king of Israel. He ruled for two years, but the tribe of Judah followed David. ¹¹In Hebron David was king over the tribe of Judah for seven years and six months. 

Conflicts between Abner and Joab

¹²Ner’s son Abner and the officers of Saul’s son Ishbosheth went from Mahanaim to Gibeon. ¹³Zeruiah’s son Joab and David’s officers also left ⸤Hebron⸥. Both groups met at the pool of Gibeon. They sat down there, one group on one side of the pool and the other group on the other side of the pool. 

¹⁴Abner said to Joab, “Let’s have the young men hold a contest.” Joab agreed. 

¹⁵The men got up and were counted as they passed by. Twelve were from the tribe of Benjamin (representing Saul’s son Ishbosheth), and twelve were from David’s officers. ¹⁶Each one grabbed his opponent by the head, stuck his sword into his opponent’s side, and they fell down together. Therefore, that place in Gibeon is called the Field of Enemies. ¹⁷Fierce fighting broke out that day, and David’s men defeated Abner and the men of Israel. 

¹⁸Zeruiah’s three sons were there: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Asahel was as fast on his feet as a wild gazelle. ¹⁹He chased Abner and refused to leave him alone. ²⁰When Abner looked back, he asked, “Are you Asahel?” 

“Yes,” Asahel answered. 

²¹Abner told him, “Leave me alone! Catch one of the young men, and take his weapon.” 

But Asahel refused to turn away from him. ²²So Abner spoke again to Asahel. “Stop following me,” he said. “Why should I kill you? How could I look your brother Joab in the face again?” 

²³But Asahel refused to turn away. So Abner struck him with the butt of the spear. The spear went into his belly and came out his back. He fell down there and died on the spot. And everyone who came to the place where Asahel fell and died stopped there. 

²⁴But Joab and Abishai chased Abner. When the sun went down, they came to the hill of Ammah, opposite Giah on the road from Gibeon to the desert. ²⁵The men of Benjamin rallied behind Abner, banding together and taking their position on top of a hill. 

²⁶Then Abner called to Joab, “Should this slaughter go on forever? Don’t you know this will end in bitterness? How long will it be before you will call off your troops from chasing their relatives?” 

²⁷Joab answered, “I solemnly swear, as God lives, if you had not spoken, the men would not have stopped chasing their relatives until morning.” ²⁸So Joab blew a ram’s horn, and all the troops stopped. They didn’t chase or fight Israel anymore. 

²⁹Abner and his men marched through the plains all that night. They crossed the Jordan River and passed through the entire Bithron until they came to Mahanaim. 

³⁰Joab returned from chasing Abner. When he had gathered all the troops, ⸤only⸥ 19 of David’s officers and Asahel were missing. ³¹However, David’s officers had killed 360 of the men of Benjamin under Abner’s command. ³²They took Asahel and buried him in his father’s tomb in Bethlehem. Then Joab and his men marched all night and arrived at Hebron by daybreak. 

3RD CHAPTER

¹As the war between the royal families of Saul and David dragged on, David’s family became stronger and stronger, and Saul’s family became weaker and weaker. 

David’s Sons—1 Chronicles 3:1–4

²Sons were born to David while he was in Hebron. His first son was Amnon, ⸤born⸥ to Ahinoam from Jezreel. ³The second was Chileab, ⸤born⸥ to Abigail (who had been Nabal’s wife) from Carmel. The third was Absalom, whose mother was Maacah (the daughter of King Talmai) from Geshur. ⁴The fourth was Adonijah, whose mother was Haggith. The fifth was Shephatiah, whose mother was Abital. ⁵The sixth was Ithream, ⸤born⸥ to David’s wife Eglah. These sons were born to David while he was in Hebron. 

Abner’s Death

⁶During the war between the families of Saul and David, Abner strengthened his position in Saul’s royal family. ⁷Saul had a concubine^anamed Rizpah (Aiah’s daughter). Ishbosheth asked Abner, “Why did you have sex with my father’s concubine?” 

⁸Ishbosheth’s question made Abner very angry. “Have I been behaving like some Judean dog?”he asked. “Until now I’ve been faithful to your father Saul’s family, to his relatives and friends, and I haven’t handed you over to David. But now you charge me with a crime because of this woman. ⁹May God strike me dead unless I do for David what the Lord had promised him with an oath: ¹⁰‘I, the Lord, will transfer the kingship from Saul’s family and establish David’s throne over Israel and Judah from Dan to Beersheba.’ ” ¹¹Ishbosheth couldn’t respond to a single word, because he was afraid of Abner. 

¹²Then Abner sent messengers to David to speak on his behalf. “Who owns this country?” he asked. “Make an agreement with me,” he said. “I’ll support you and bring all Israel to you.” 

¹³“Good!” David answered. “I’ll make an agreement with you. But there’s one condition: You can’t come to see me unless you bring Michal, Saul’s daughter, when you come.” 

¹⁴Then David sent messengers to Saul’s son Ishbosheth to say, “Give me my wife Michal. I made a payment of 100 Philistine foreskins for her.” 

¹⁵So Ishbosheth sent men to take her from her husband Paltiel, son of Laish. ¹⁶Her husband went with her and cried over her all the way to Bahurim. “Go home,” Abner told him. So he went home. 

¹⁷Meanwhile, Abner sent the following message to the…