2 Samuel 2

Verses 1-7, “It happened after this that David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go up to any of the cities of Judah?” And the Lord said to him, “Go up.” David said, “Where shall I go up?” And He said, “To Hebron.” So David went up there, and his two wives also, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite. And David brought up the men who were with him, every man with his household. So they dwelt in the cities of Hebron. Then the men of Judah came, and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah. And they told David, saying, “The men of Jabesh Gilead were  the ones who buried Saul.” So David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead, and said to them, “You are blessed of the Lord, for you have shown this kindness to your Lord, to Saul, and have buried him. And now may the Lord show kindness and truth to you. I also will repay you this kindness, because you have done this thing. Now therefore, let your hands be strengthened, and be valiant; for your master Saul is dead, and also the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”

David inquired of the Lord before he took action. So many would rather take action first, then try to persuade God to get on board with their plan instead of letting Him be in control. This is not walking by faith. Proverbs 3:5‭-‬7, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil.”  The Lord told David to go up to Hebron, and there the men of Judah made him king over them. Until this time, David had been living among the Philistines; but now that Saul was dead, it was time to return to his homeland and people. When you reach the end of yourself and doing things your way, it is time to return to the narrow difficult road that leads to life. David had been living in fear of Saul, rather than trusting God. It was time for him to get back to where he got off track.

Verses 8-11, “But Abner the son of Ner, commander of Saul’s army, took Ishbosheth the son of Saul and brought him over to Mahanaim; and he made him king over Gilead, over the Ashurites, over Jezreel, over Ephraim, over Benjamin, and over all Israel. Ishbosheth, Saul’s son, was forty years old when he began to reign over Israel, and he reigned two years. Only the house of Judah followed David. And the time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.”  David may have been accepted as king among Judah, but the rest of Israel was following Saul's son, Ishbosheth. This no doubt would cause conflict among the two kings.

Verses 12-17, “Now Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ishbosheth the son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon. And Joab the son of Zeruiah, and the servants of David, went out and met them by the pool of Gibeon. So they sat down, one on one side of the pool and the other on the other side of the pool. Then Abner said to Joab, “Let the young men now arise and compete before us.” And Joab said, “Let them arise.” So they arose and went over by number, twelve from Benjamin, followers of Ishbosheth the son of Saul, and twelve from the servants of David. And each one grasped his opponent by the head and thrust his sword in his opponent’s side; so they fell down together. Therefore that place was called the Field of Sharp Swords, which is in Gibeon. So there was a very fierce battle that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.”

Abner, commander of Saul's army, challenged Joab from David's army to a head to head battle of their best 12 men. But when the battle began, they thrust swords into each other so that they both fell down together. This bloodshed would fuel a bigger battle to follow. Although David's side would prevail, there was still loss that day. Joab's brother Asahel, both of which were the sons of David's sister,  would pursue Abner immediately following the massacre.

Verses 18-23, “Now the three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab and Abishai and Asahel. And Asahel was as fleet of foot as a wild gazelle. So Asahel pursued Abner, and in going he did not turn to the right hand or to the left from following Abner. Then Abner looked behind him and said, “Are you Asahel?” He answered, “I am.” And Abner said to him, “Turn aside to your right hand or to your left, and lay hold on one of the young men and take his armor for yourself.” But Asahel would not turn aside from following him. So Abner said again to Asahel, “Turn aside from following me. Why should I strike you to the ground? How then could I face your brother Joab?” However, he refused to turn aside. Therefore Abner struck him in the stomach with the blunt end of the spear, so that the spear came out of his back; and he fell down there and died on the spot. So it was that as many as came to the place where Asahel fell down and died, stood still.”

Asahel was apparently known for his speed on foot, and found himself in a chase against Abner. With his mind on one thing, getting Abner, he could not be convinced to turn aside from his pursuit. At first, Abner attempts to appeal to his greed, tempting him to collect enemy armor for himself along the way. This tactic, however, did not work. Next, Abner appealed to his personal safety, asking him to turn aside so Abner would not have to strike him. Asahel must have felt like he had the advantage, so would not abandon his pursuit. But Abner did indeed strike him in self defense, leaving Joab, and his remaining brother Abishai, in a position to avenge their brother's death.

Verses 24-31, “Joab and Abishai also pursued Abner. And the sun was going down when they came to the hill of Ammah, which is before Giah by the road to the Wilderness of Gibeon. Now the children of Benjamin gathered together behind Abner and became a unit, and took their stand on top of a hill. Then Abner called to Joab and said, “Shall the sword devour forever? Do you not know that it will be bitter in the latter end? How long will it be then until you tell the people to return from pursuing their brethren?” And Joab said, “As God lives, unless you had spoken, surely then by morning all the people would have given up pursuing their brethren.” So Joab blew a trumpet; and all the people stood still and did not pursue Israel anymore, nor did they fight anymore. Then Abner and his men went on all that night through the plain, crossed over the Jordan, and went through all Bithron; and they came to Mahanaim. So Joab returned from pursuing Abner. And when he had gathered all the people together, there were missing of David’s servants nineteen men and Asahel. But the servants of David had struck down, of Benjamin and Abner’s men, three hundred and sixty men who died.”

Just as the two side were ready to take their stand, Abner called out to Joab for a truce. Joab agreed to peace, maybe reasoning that it was not worth the price of lives for this internal battle of Isreal.  The truce did not end the battle between Saul's house and David. There continued to be conflict between them, even though David was the rightful heir to the throne. The unrighteousness always battle against the righteous.

Although blood may not be shed, there are often internal battles in the church. As brothers and sisters, we are called to peace with one another. Romans 14:19, “Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another.”  There are some things, however, that we will never be able to agree to disagree upon for the sake of unity. False brethren will continually to have conflict with us if we won't yield and compromise the doctrine of Christ. If they refuse to be corrected by the word, we cannot continue our fellowship with them. II John 1:9‭-‬11, “Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds.”