2 Samuel 2:17 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And the battle was very fierce that day. And Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.

NIV: The battle that day was very fierce, and Abner and the Israelites were defeated by David’s men.

NASB: That day the battle was very severe, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by the servants of David.

CSB: The battle that day was extremely fierce, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by David’s soldiers.

NLT: A fierce battle followed that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by the forces of David.

KJV: And there was a very sore battle that day; and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David.

NKJV: So there was a very fierce battle that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.

Ish-bosheth's general, Abner, and David's general, Joab, have brought their armies to the pool of Gibeon. It's possible that Abner and Joab hoped to decide the outcome of their confrontation with a twelve-on-twelve battle of champions. If so, that plan failed when all twelve pairs of men killed each other in close combat, leaving none of them alive and the issue unresolved (2 Samuel 2:14–16).

As a result, an all-out battle quickly breaks out with fierce fighting between the two sides. Yet this contest is one-sided. Joab and David's men overwhelm Abner and the fighters of Ish-bosheth. Abner loses 360 men, while Joab only loses twenty. This previews the pattern seen for the next two years. David grows stronger while Ish-bosheth loses both soldiers and control. After a fight over what Ish-bosheth owes Abner, the general defects. He reaches out to the elders of the tribes in Ish-bosheth's kingdom and convinces them to swear allegiance to David (2 Samuel 3:6–21).

Still the fight isn't over. First, Joab murders Abner for killing his brother (2 Samuel 3:26–30). Then two raiders assassinate Ish-bosheth. David, ever the politician, publicly mourns Abner and executes Ish-bosheth's murderers (2 Samuel 3:26—4:12). Only then can David be king of the nation (2 Samuel 5:1–3).

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.

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.

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.