Ish‑Bosheth Made King; Civil War with David Begins
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Chapter 2
8And Abner son of Ner, commander of the army that belonged to Saul, took Ish-Bosheth son of Saul and brought him over from the camp.9And he made him king over Gilead and over the Ashurites and over Jezreel and over Ephraim and over Benjamin and over all Israel.10Ish-bosheth, a son of Saul, was forty years old when he began to reign over Israel, and he reigned two years. But the house of Judah followed David.11The length of time David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.12And Abner son of Ner and the servants of Saul son of Kish went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.13And Joab son of Zeruiah and David's servants went out and met them at the pool of Gibeon. They sat by the pool on one side, and these by the pool on the other side.14And Abner said to Joab, "Please let the young men arise and compete before us." And Joab said, "Let them arise."15And they arose and passed over by number, twelve for Benjamin and for Ish-bosheth son of Saul, and twelve from the servants of David.16And they grabbed each other by the head, and each man's sword was in his neighbor's side, and they fell together. And that place was called the Field of the Adversaries, which is in Gibeon.17And the battle was very fierce that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated before the servants of David.18There were three sons of Zeruiah: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. And Asahel was swift on his feet like one of the gazelles in the field.19Asahel pursued Abner and did not turn aside to the right or to the left from behind Abner.20And Abner turned after him and said, "Are you this Asahel?" And he said, "I am."21Abner said to him, "Turn aside to your right or to your left, seize one of the young men, and take his belt." But Asahel was not willing to turn aside from following him.22And Abner added to say to Asahel, "Turn aside from following me. Why should I strike you to the ground? How will I face Joab your brother?"23And he refused to turn aside, and Abner struck him with the back of the spear in the fifth rib, and the spear came out behind him, and he fell there and died under him. And it was that all who came to the place where Asahel fell and died stood still.24Joab and Abishai pursued Abner. When the sun set, they came to the hill of Ammah, which faces Giah on the way to the wilderness of Gibeon.25The sons of Benjamin gathered behind Abner, and they became like one bundle and stood on the top of one hill.26And Abner called to Joab and said, "Will the sword devour forever? Do you not know that bitterness will be at the end? How long before you tell the people, 'Return from following their brothers'?"27Joab said, "As God lives, if you had not spoken, then from the morning the people would have gone up, a man behind his brother."28Joab blew the shofar, and all the people stood still and did not pursue Israel any further, and they stopped fighting.29Abner and his men marched through the Plains of Moab all that night. They crossed the Jordan and marched all morning until they came to Mahanaim.30Joab returned from following Abner and gathered all the people together. When they counted David's servants, there were nine hundred and twenty men.31David's servants struck down three hundred and sixty men from Benjamin and from Abner's men, and they died.32And they bore Asahel and buried him in the burial site of his father, which is in the house of bread. And Joab and his men went all night, and they encamped at Hebron.
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Chapter 3
1The war became prolonged between the house of Saul and the house of David. And David grew strong, while the house of Saul grew weak.2Sons were born to David in Hebron. His firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam the Jezreelite.3His second was Kelaab, by Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite; the third was Abshalom the son of Maacah the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur.4And the fourth, Adonijah son of Haggith; and the fifth, Shephatiah son of Abital.5And the sixth, Ithream, by Eglah, David's wife. These were born to David in Hebron.