Ethan: Welcome to Immerse: the daily bible reading experience.
Day 100 and 98
ish bosheth, Saul's son, was forty years old when he became king, and
he ruled from Mahanaim for two years.
Meanwhile, the people of Judah remained loyal to David.
David made Hebron his capital, and he ruled as king of Judah
for seven and a half years.
One day, Abner led Ish bosheth's troops from Mahanaim to Gibeon.
About the same time, Joab son of Zeruiah led David's troops out and
met them at the pool of Gibeon.
The two groups sat down there, facing each other from opposite sides of the pool.
Then Abner suggested to Joab, Let's have a few of our warriors fight
hand to hand here in front of us.
All right, Joab agreed.
So twelve men were chosen to fight from each side.
Twelve men of Benjamin, representing Ish bosheth, son of Saul, and
twelve representing David.
Each one grabbed his opponent by the hair and thrust his sword into the
other's side, so that all of them died.
So this place at Gibeon has been known ever since as the Field of Swords.
A fierce battle followed that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were
defeated by the forces of David.
Joab, Abishai, and Azahel, the three sons of Zeruiah, were
among David's forces that day.
Azahel could run like a gazelle, and he began chasing Abner.
He pursued him relentlessly, not stopping for anything.
When Abner looked back and saw him coming, he called out, Is that you, Azahel?
Yes, it is, he replied.
Go fight someone else, Abner warned.
Take on one of the younger men and strip him of his weapons.
But Azahel kept right on chasing Abner.
Again, Abner shouted to him, Get away from here.
I don't want to kill you.
How could I ever face your brother, Joab, again?
But Azahel refused to turn back, so Abner thrust the butt end of his
spear through Azahel's stomach, and the spear came out through his back.
He stumbled to the ground and died there, and everyone who came by
that spot stopped and stood still when they saw Azahel lying there.
When Joab and Abishai found out what had happened, they set out after Abner.
The sun was just going down as they arrived at the hill of
Amma, near Gaia, along the road to the wilderness of Gibeon.
Abner's troops from the tribe of Benjamin regrouped there at the
top of the hill to take a stand.
Abner shouted down to Joab, Must we always be killing each other?
Don't you realize that bitterness is the only result?
When will you call off your men from chasing their Israelite brothers?
Then Joab said, God only knows what would have happened if you hadn't spoken.
For we would have chased you all night if necessary.
So Joab blew the ram's horn and his men stopped chasing the troops of Israel.
All that night, Abner and his men retreated through the Jordan Valley.
They crossed the Jordan River traveling all through the morning and didn't
stop until they arrived at Mahanaim.
Meanwhile, Joab and his men also returned home.
When Joab counted his casualties, he discovered that only nineteen men
were missing, in addition to Azahel.
But three hundred and sixty of Abner's men had been killed,
all from the tribe of Benjamin.
Joab and his men took Azahel's body to Bethlehem.
And buried him there in his father's tomb.
Then they traveled all night and reached Hebrew at Daybreak.
That was the beginning of a long war between those who were loyal
to soul and those loyal to David.
As time passed, David became stronger and stronger.
While Saul's dynasty became weaker and weaker.
These are the sons who were born to David in Hebron.
The oldest was Amnon, whose mother was Ahinoam from Jezreel.
The second was Daniel, whose mother was Abigail, the widow of Nabal, from Carmel.
The third was Absalom, whose mother was Maacah, the daughter
of Talmai, king of Geshur.
The fourth was Adonijah.
whose mother was Haggith.
The fifth was Shephetiah, whose mother was Abital.
The sixth was Ithrium, whose mother was Egla, David's wife.
These sons were all born to David, in Hebron.
As the war between the house of Saul and the house of David went on, Abner became a
powerful leader among those loyal to Saul.
One day, Ish bosheth, Saul's son, accused Abner of sleeping with
one of his father's concubines.
A woman named Rizpah, daughter of Eah.
Abner was furious.
Am I some Judean dog to be kicked around like this?
He shouted.
After all I have done for your father Saul and his family and friends by not handing
you over to David, is this my reward?
That you find fault with me about this woman?
May God strike me and even kill me if I don't do everything I can to help David
get what the Lord has promised him.
I'm going to take Saul's kingdom and give it to David.
I will establish the throne of David over Israel, as well as
Judah, all the way from Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south.
Ish bosheth didn't dare say another word, because he was
afraid of what Abner might do.
Then Abner sent messengers to David, saying, Doesn't the
entire land belong to you?
Make a solemn pact with me, and I will help turn over all of Israel to you.
All right.
David replied, But I will not negotiate with you unless you bring back my wife
Michael, Saul's daughter, when you come.
David then sent this message to Ish bosheth, Saul's son.
Give me back my wife Michael, for I bought her with the lives
of one hundred Philistines.
So Ish bosheth took Michael away from her husband, Paltai, son of Laish.
Paltai followed along behind her, as far as Behurim, weeping as he went.
Then Abner told him, Go back home.
So Paltai returned.
Meanwhile, Abner had consulted with the elders of Israel.
For some time now, he told them, you have wanted to make David your king.
Now is the time, for the Lord has said, I have chosen David to save my people
Israel from the hands of the Philistines and from all their other enemies.
Abner also spoke with the men of Benjamin.
Then he went to Hebron to tell David that all the people of Israel and
Benjamin had agreed to support him.
When Abner and twenty of his men came to Hebron, David entertained
them with a great feast.
Then Abner said to David, Let me go and call an assembly of all
Israel to support my lord the king.
They will make a covenant with you to make you their king, and you will rule
over everything your heart desires.
So David sent Abner safely on his way.
But just after David had sent Abner away in safety, Joab and some of
David's troops returned from a raid.
Bringing much plunder with them.
When Joab arrived, he was told that Abner had just been there visiting the
king and had been sent away in safety.
Joab rushed to the king and demanded, What have you done?
What do you mean by letting Abner get away?
You know perfectly well that he came to spy on you and find
out everything you're doing.
Joab then left David and sent messengers to catch up with
Abner, asking him to return.
They found him at the well of Syrah and brought him back, though
David knew nothing about it.
When Abner arrived back at Hebron, Joab took him aside at the gateway
as if to speak with him privately.
But then he stabbed Abner in the stomach and killed him in revenge
for killing his brother Azahel.
When David heard about it, he declared, I vow by the Lord that I
and my kingdom are forever innocent of this crime against Abner son of Ner.
Joab and his family are the guilty ones.
May the family of Joab be cursed in every generation with a man who has open
sores or leprosy or who walks on crutches or dies by the sword or begs for food.
So Joab and his brother Abishai.
Killed Abner, because Abner had killed their brother
Asahel at the Battle of Gibeon.
Then David said to Joab and all those who were with him, Tear
your clothes and put on burlap.
Mourn for Abner.
And King David himself walked behind the procession to the grave.
They buried Abner in Hebron, and the king and all the people wept at his graveside.
Then the king sang this funeral song for Abner.
Should Abner have died as fools die?
Your hands were not bound.
Your feet were not chained.
No, you were murdered.
The victim of a wicked plot.
All the people wept again for Abner.
David had refused to eat anything on the day of the funeral, and
now everyone begged him to eat.
But David had made a vow, saying, May God strike me and even kill me
if I eat anything before sundown.
This pleased the people very much.
In fact, everything the king did pleased them.
So everyone in Judah and all Israel understood that David was not
responsible for Abner's murder.
Then King David said to his officials, Don't you realize that a great
commander has fallen today in Israel?
And even though I am the anointed king, these two sons of Zeruiah, Joab and
Abishai, are too strong for me to control.
So, may the Lord repay these evil men for their evil deeds.
When Ish bosheth, Saul's son, heard about Abner's death at Hebron,
he lost all courage, and all Israel became paralyzed with fear.
Now there were two brothers, Baana and Rechab, who were captains of
Ish bosheth's raiding parties.
They were sons of Rimen, a member of the tribe of Benjamin, who lived in Beoroth.
The town of Beoroth is now part of Benjamin's territory because the original
people of Beoroth fled to Gittayim, where they still live as foreigners.
Saul's son Jonathan had a son named Mephibosheth, who was crippled as a child.
He was five years old when the report came from Jezreel that Saul and
Jonathan had been killed in battle.
When the child's nurse heard the news, she picked him up and fled, but as
she hurried away, she dropped him.
And he became crippled.
One day Rechab and Bayanah, the sons of Rimmon from Beoroth, went
to Ishbosheth's house around noon as he was taking his midday rest.
The doorkeeper, who had been sifting wheat, became drowsy and fell asleep.
So Rechab and Bayanah slipped past her.
They went into the house and found Ish bosheth sleeping on his bed.
They struck and killed him and cut off his head.
Then, taking his head with them, they fled across the
Jordan Valley through the night.
When they arrived at Hebron, they presented Ish bosheth's head to David.
Look!
they exclaimed to the king.
Here is the head of Ish bosheth.
The son of your enemy Saul, who tried to kill you.
Today the Lord has given my Lord the King revenge on Saul and his entire family.
But David said to Recav and Baanah, The Lord, who saves me
from all my enemies, is my witness.
Someone once told me, Saul is dead, thinking he was bringing me good news.
But I seized him and killed him at Ziklag.
That's the reward I gave him for his news.
How much more should I reward evil men who have killed an innocent man
in his own house and on his own bed?
Shouldn't I hold you responsible for his blood?
Rid the earth of you.
So David ordered his young men to kill them, and they did.
They cut off their hands and feet and hung their bodies beside the pool in Hebron.
Then they took Seth's head and buried it in Abner's tomb in Hebron.
Then all the tribes of Israel went to David at Hebron and told him,
we are your own flesh and blood.
In the past, when Saul was our king, you were the one who
really led the forces of Israel.
And the Lord told you, you will be the shepherd of my people Israel.
You will be Israel's leader.
So there at Hebron, King David made a covenant before the Lord
with all the elders of Israel.
And they anointed him king of Israel.
This concludes today's Immerse Reading Experience.
Thank you for joining us.