2 Samuel 2 - Printer Friendly

What does 2 Samuel 2 mean?

Chapter Commentary:

David and Ish-bosheth begin their long fight for the crown of Israel. Saul's sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchi-shua were killed in battle with the Philistines. Saul was wounded by archers and fell on his sword so he wouldn't have to endure capture and humiliation by his enemy (1 Samuel 31:1–4). When David learned this, he wrote an emotional lament, mourning the loss and celebrating the lives of his king and his best friend (2 Samuel 1:19–27).

Saul's death clears the way for David to return to Judah. He asks God what to do and follows the Lord's instructions to take his men and family to Hebron. Soon after David arrives, the elders of Judah anoint him king over the tribe. David settles into Hebron as his capital (2 Samuel 2:1–4).

After Saul and his sons died, the Philistines hanged their bodies on a wall in Beth-shan. The men of Jabesh-gilead risked their lives to retrieve their bodies and properly bury them (1 Samuel 31:8–13). David sends a message to Jabesh-gilead, giving them thanks and blessings for their loyalty to Saul. David is likely hoping to secure their support for his kingship (2 Samuel 2:4–7).

Five years into David's reign in Hebron, Abner, Saul's cousin and the commander of his army, takes Ish-bosheth, one of Saul's remaining sons, and installs him as king over the rest of Israel. Abner's future actions (2 Samuel 3:6–7) suggest he's setting up Ish-bosheth as a temporary puppet to be controlled (2 Samuel 2:8–11).

Abner meets David's army commander, Joab. This is near Gibeon, a neutral city inhabited by a Gentile tribe that once tricked Joshua into letting them live in peace (Joshua 9). Scripture doesn't specify why Gibeon was chosen, although it seems the tabernacle was moved there after Saul massacred all the priests at Nob (1 Samuel 22:11–19; 1 Chronicles 16:39–40). The generals begin by calling twelve soldiers each to face a soldier from the other side. It's possible they're hoping for a decisive win on one side or the other, so they don't have to battle. But all twenty-four men end up killing each other, leaving no decisive victor. The ensuing battle is fierce (2 Samuel 2:12–17).

Amidst the battle, Joab's brother Asahel sprints after Abner. When Abner recognizes Asahel, he tells the younger man to go back and collect plunder from the battlefield. When that doesn't work, Abner asks Asahel to stop so he won't have to kill him. He asks how he could look Joab in the face if that happened. Asahel ignores Abner's pleas. He has almost caught up to Abner when Abner stops suddenly and thrusts the butt of his spear backwards. This end of the spear may have been just pointed enough to be stuck upright in the ground (2 Samuel 26:7). The thrust from Abner goes into and through Asahel's stomach. Asahel falls dead, and Abner runs on (2 Samuel 2:23).

By the time Asahel's two brothers, Joab and Abishai, take up the pursuit, Abner has regrouped with his fighters. They prepare to make a last stand against Joab's men, who arrive at sunset. Abner pleads with Joab to break off the battle. Joab agrees, and the armies return home (2 Samuel 2:24– 32).

The two sides continue to fight for two years; David's side grows stronger while Ish-bosheth's gets weaker. Eventually, Abner will defect, and Ish-bosheth will be murdered. Israel will accept David as their king peacefully, but Joab won't forget. He will murder Abner for killing his brother (2 Samuel 3:1—4:3).

Second Samuel 2:1–4 depicts the moment David becomes king of Judah. David and his men had plundered the Amalekites when they rescued their families, and David sent some of the treasure to the elders in Judah (1 Samuel 30:16–31). With Saul dead, David becomes king of Judah—but not yet over all Israelites. David already executed the man who boasted he killed Saul. David then sent a lament across the land (2 Samuel 1). Next, he publicly thanks the men who rescued Saul's and his sons' bodies from the Philistines (2 Samuel 2:4–7). It seems David is trying to win favor with the Israelites peacefully. Sadly, peace won't last.

Second Samuel 2:5–7 is David's thanks to those who honored the body of his own enemy. Early in his reign, King Saul saved Jabesh-gilead from the Ammonites (1 Samuel 11:1–11). At Saul's death, the Philistines hanged Saul's and three of his sons' bodies on a wall. The men of Jabesh-gilead risked their lives to rescue the bodies and bury them properly (1 Samuel 31). David's thanks are sincere yet may also be a way to win support. Meanwhile, Saul's general Abner makes Saul's son Ish-bosheth king of Israel (2 Samuel 2:8–11).

Second Samuel 2:8–11 records when Abner made Ish-bosheth king. Saul and Jonathan are dead (1 Samuel 31:1–4). The men of Judah have made David king of their tribe (2 Samuel 2:1–4). Now Abner, Saul's cousin and army commander (1 Samuel 14:50), takes Saul's son Ish-bosheth and makes him king over the rest of Israel. Abner will fight David's forces for two years before he realizes he can't win. He switches to David's side and convinces Israel to follow David before both he and Ish-bosheth are murdered (2 Samuel 2:12—4:12).

Second Samuel 2:12–17 marks the beginning of a civil war. Upon Saul's death, David became king of Judah (1 Samuel 31:1–4; 2 Samuel 2:1–4). Despite five years of his diplomatic attempts (2 Samuel 1; 2:4–7), David hasn't managed to unite the Israelites under his rule. Abner makes Saul's son Ish-bosheth king over the rest of Israel (2 Samuel 2:8–10). For two years, the rival kingdoms fight: David's side growing stronger and Ish-bosheth's weaker (2 Samuel 3:1). The war begins with twelve duels.

Second Samuel 2:18–23 describes how Abner kills Asahel. The men of Judah have made David king of their tribe; Abner, Saul's general, has made Ish-bosheth king of the rest of Israel (2 Samuel 2:1–4, 8–11). The civil war begins with twelve duels (2 Samuel 2:12–17) and devolves into open warfare. Abner is losing and flees. Asahel, the brother of David's commander Joab, gives chase. Abner reluctantly kills Asahel. Abner convinces Joab to call off the fight (2 Samuel 2:24–28), for now. Within two years, Abner will betray Ish-bosheth and give David Israel, and Joab will avenge his Asahel (2 Samuel 3).

Second Samuel 2:24–28 records Abner calling for a truce. The armies of Israel, led by Abner, and Judah, led by Joab, have met in what seems to be their first battle. Israel is losing badly. During the fighting, Abner has killed Joab and Abishai's brother. As the sun sets, Abner reminds Joab that they are all brothers: Israelites. Joab agrees to suspend the hostilities. The two armies march all night to their homes (2 Samuel 2:29–32).

Second Samuel 2:29–32 begins a description of David's increasing power. The army of Saul's son Ish-bosheth has gone to battle against David's men and lost. The numbers given here illustrate how badly the attempt went. Throughout the civil war, David will continue to grow stronger. This not only applies to his army and power, but also to his family: he will add three wives, including a princess, and several sons (2 Samuel 3:1–5). After two years, Ish-bosheth's general will defect and give David all of Israel (2 Samuel 3:6–21).

Chapter Summary:

David returns to Israel, where he is anointed king over Judah, and settles in Hebron. Abner declares Saul's son Ish-bosheth king over Israel. David blesses the men of Jabesh-gilead for burying Saul's remains. Abner, leading Ish-bosheth's men, faces off against Joab, leading David's fighters, at Gibeon. In a fierce, one-sided battle, Abner kills Joab's brother, but David's men overwhelm Abner's Benjaminite fighters, losing twenty but killing 360. Abner and the survivors prepare for a last stand on the hill of Ammah, but Joab calls off the battle when Abner pleads with him to stop. Both sides return home.

Chapter Context:

Saul and three of his sons are dead (1 Samuel 31:1–4). David becomes king of Judah, and Saul's son Ish-bosheth is king of the remaining tribes. When the two sides meet in battle, Ish-bosheth's army fares poorly. David continues to grow stronger over two years of fighting. Ish-bosheth's general Abner appears to make a futile attempt to take the crown from his king, then starts the work to peacefully hand David the crown of Israel (2 Samuel 3:1–12).

Second Samuel continues the story of David, who will become king over Judah. The other tribes of Israel are resistant, eventually sparking a civil war. David wins and makes Jerusalem his capital. Early success is followed by moral failure and controversy in David's house. The book of 1 Kings will begin by detailing David's decline and death.

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