Tag Archives: 2 Samuel 1-3

Daily Bible Study

April 8, 2024 Bible Study — The Origin of David’s Hostility to Joab

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 1-3.

Some people think the account given of Saul’s death here contradicts the one given at the end of 1  Samuel.  While this is true, they miss the fact that the account of his death given here is not told as what happened.  Rather, it is told as what the messenger who brought the news to David said happened.  The writer makes no comment in this passage as to whether or not the messenger is telling the truth.  Even David’s response does not necessarily tell us that David believed the messenger.  It is worth noting that the messenger was an Amalekite and that David had recently returned from chasing down a group of Amalekites who had destroyed his home and taken the women and children of his men, and himself, captive.  So, David was predisposed to think poorly of Amalekites.  The messenger did confess to killing the king, something David had refrained from doing at least twice.

I have often wondered at the hostility which David expresses towards Joab and his brother Abishai.  I think today reading this passage I finally understand it.  It is not made completely clear, but when Abner offered to come over to David, David asked for Saul’s daughter Michal to be returned to him as his wife.  Ish-Bosheth, Saul’s surviving son whom Abner had previously supported as king over Israel, ordered her taken from the man to whom King Saul had given her after David fled from Saul’s attempts to kill him.  This suggests that not only was Abner going to swear fealty to David as king, but that Ish-Bosheth would do so as well.  So, Joab killing Abner ended to opportunity to end the conflict between David and Saul’s house without further bloodshed.  After the death of Abner, Ish-Bosheth was afraid that someone among David’s men would kill him as well.  We see from David’s psalm of mourning in today’s passage that he had no enmity towards Saul’s family.  In any case, while David had stopped Abishai from killing Saul on the occasion when the two of them had snuck into Saul’s camp, he only starts complaining about how bloodthirsty Abishai and Joab were after the incident with Abner.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

April 8, 2023 Bible Study — David Reacts To The Deaths Of His Enemies

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 1-3.

In today’s passage we have two accounts about how David reacted to the deaths of his political enemies (although the death of Abner occurred after Abner had reconciled with David).  When an Amalekite brought David the news of King Saul’s death, claiming to have administered the coup-de-gras, David ordered him executed.  Later, when Joab murdered Abner, David forced Joab to put on a show of mourning for Abner’s death.  After Abner’s burial, David laments his inability to control Joab and Abishai.  In both cases, the death of Saul and the death of Abner, David mourned the loss of those he counted as great men.

One thing which often seems odd to me is the verse which tells us that Joab and Abishai murdered Abner in vengeance for Abner killing their brother.  Yet, one would have thought that if Joab sought vengeance for his brother’s death he would have continued the pursuit of Abner on the day when Abner had killed him, rather than calling off the pursuit.  Instead we have Joab killing Abner after Abner had made an agreement with David to turn over the kingship still held by the House of Saul in return for David giving him Joab’s job as commander of David’s armies.  I realized today that the reference to Joab killing Abner as revenge for the death of his brother records Joab’s defense against a murder charge.  Mosaic law gives implied permission to the family of someone killed by another the right to take the life of the killer.  So, the writer is not claiming that Joab murdered Abner to revenge his brother.  Rather, the writer is explaining, in part, why David could not execute Joab for doing so.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

April 8, 2021 Bible Study King David Strives To Unify Israel

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 1-3.

I am reminded of the murder of Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, by retainers of King Henry II.  In one form or another, Henry II inquired whether someone would rid him of “this meddlesome priest,” which led four of his retainers to kill the Archbishop.  David’s actions here, and later, would mean that no one who was part of his court would think that killing his opponents would lead King David to reward them unless he had explicitly ordered it.  Perhaps the lengths David went to send this message were extreme, it is one from which rulers who wish to be godly would be wise to learn.  I am returning to this after a few hours to add something which occurred to me.  David reacted so extremely to the messenger who claimed to have killed King Saul, and later the men who killed Ish-bosheth, in part because of how brutal King Saul was.  King David reacted brutally to those who killed his opponents to communicate to everyone that he was not going to treat his opponents as brutally as King Saul had done, and at the same time he communicated that this did not make him weak.

I find the story of Abner’s attempt to come over to supporting King David interesting.  If one does not pay close enough attention, it appears as if Abner betrays Saul’s son, Ish-bosheth, because of hurt feelings.  Perhaps it was, but there was more to it than that.  After Abner reached out to King David, David responded by demanding that Michal, King Saul’s daughter who had been given to him in marriage and then, after David fled from King Saul’s attempts to kill him, to another man in marriage.  It was Ish-bosheth who gave the orders for her to be taken from her second husband and given back to David.  This tells us that if Joab had not killed Abner, Israel would have united under King David sooner, and with a greater degree of unity.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Daily Bible Study

April 8, 2020 Bible Study — Loving Those To Whom God Has Given Authority

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on 2 Samuel 1-3.

The book of 1 Samuel relates the great love which David had for Jonathan.  However, the song David composed upon learning of the death and King Saul and Jonathan suggests that David held Saul dear as well.  David felt this way about King Saul despite Saul’s repeated attempts to kill him.  The deep-seated affection which David apparently felt for Saul helps explain why he twice refused to take Saul’s life when presented with the opportunity.  Perhaps David’s love for Saul was partially a result of the reason David gave at the time for not killing Saul.  David may have felt love for Saul in part because Saul was God’s anointed king over Israel.  This should guide our feelings towards those whom God has given political authority over us, even when we dislike their policies.

Daily Bible Study

April 8, 2019 Bible Study — David Becomes King

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on 2 Samuel 1-3.

The account of King Saul’s death given here differs from the one given at the end of 1 Samuel which we read yesterday.  However, this account is that of the messenger who brought King Saul’s crown and armband to David.  It appears to me that the messenger expected to receive a reward from David for bringing him this news.  Instead David ordered his men to kill the messenger for killing King Saul (which the messenger claimed that he had done).  I feel bad for the messenger because he claimed that he killed King Saul at Saul’s request and because he was dying anyway.  On the other hand, if David had not killed the messenger there would have been those who believed that he had arranged for the man to kill King Saul. 

David composed a memorial song for King Saul and Jonathan.  I had always thought that David composed this song because of his deep love for his friend Jonathan and included King Saul because that was politically expedient (or maybe just because King Saul died in the same battle and was Jonathan’s father).  However, reading the passage today it struck me that David genuinely had affection for and admired King Saul.  David’s song here is just a continuation of his previous actions in refusing to kill King Saul when presented with the opportunity on two occasions.  It strikes me that David may have genuinely believed that King Saul’s animosity towards him was a result of others in King Saul’s court poisoning Saul’s mind against him.

After King Saul’s death, David has himself made king of Judah, clearly with the intention of becoming king over all of Israel.  After becoming king of Judah, David invites the men of Jabesh-Gilead to accept him as king.  Because the battle at jabesh-Gilead is what led Saul to truly become king over Israel, if the men of Jabesh-Gilead accepted David’s claim it would have made it hard for anyone to challenge him.  In the meantime, Abner, the commander of King Saul’s army, made King Saul’s son, Ishbosheth, king in Saul’s place.  Ishbosheth was still alive because he had not been with King Saul’s army, which suggests that he was not a military leader of any sort. Ishbosheth could not have claimed the throne without Abner’s support because he did not have the loyalty of a group of warriors.

All of this sets the stage for the first scene in the complex relationship between King David and the commander of his army, Joab, his nephew.  King David’s power-base was the tribe of Judah, to which he belonged and among whom he had been cultivating influence since he fled from King Saul.  Ishbosheth’s power-base was, for all intents and purposes, Abner.  Abner was King Saul’s cousin and thus of the tribe of Benjamin.  As commander of King Saul’s army Abner would have acquired some standing among the other tribes.  By bringing Abner over to his side, King David would have removed Ishbosheth’s support and extended his power-base beyond the tribe of Judah.  However, Abner had killed Joab’s brother in battle, which gave Joab an excuse to kill him.  I call it an excuse because later King David attempts to make another one of his nephews commander over his army and Joab kills that man as well.   What makes me say that the relationship between King David and Joab was complex is that, except for these two occasions and when Joab supported a different son of David to succeed David as king, every mention of Joab has him acting in David’s interests or at David’s commands.  Despite this King David twice attempted to replace him as commander of his army and expressed a deep-seated animosity towards Joab and his surviving brother.

Daily Bible Study

April 8, 2018 Bible Study — David Becomes King

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on 2 Samuel 1-3.

    The Book of 2 Samuel begins with the story of how David received the news of Saul’s death. It tells us of a messenger who brought the news to David, claiming to have committed the coup-de-gras to Saul. The messenger appears to have expected a reward from David for his actions. Instead, David has the messenger killed. This story establishes a pattern which David will follow throughout his life, David executed those who thought to curry favor with him by bringing him news that they had killed one of his enemies. Once David had finished mourning the death of Saul and Jonathan, he sought God’s guidance on returning to the land controlled by the tribe of Judah. As soon as he had established himself there, the leaders of Judah came to him and made him their king.

    About the same time that the leaders of Judah made David their king, Abner, Saul’s army commander, made Saul’s remaining son king over the rest of Israel. Abner then marched his army to Gibeon (despite the fact that Saul’s son, Ishbosheth, was king, it was Abner’s army). The city of Gibeon was a city of significant political importance in Israel, including Judah, and Joab, David’s army commander, would not allow Abner to claim it for Ishbosheth. So, with the two armies facing each other and neither willing to make the first move, Abner suggests to Joab that they have a battle of twelve champions (that number is significant, at least partially because of the twelve tribes). All twelve fights end in each fighter killing his opponent. While Joab’s forces won the day, I believe that battle of champions shows us that neither side could win the ensuing war militarily. Unfortunately, during the battle, Abner could not escape from Joab’s younger brother and was forced to kill him.

    During the ensuing war, we learn that Abner is the true power behind the throne of Saul’s son. When the two men have a falling out, Abner promises to turn Ishbosheth’s throne over to David. What I find interesting is that Ishbosheth cooperated with Abner’s negotiation with David. Joab did not believe that Abner was dealing honestly with David and killed Abner by trickery. The passage tells us that Joab killed Abner in revenge for Abner killing his own brother. Right after this we learn that David and Joab do not have the most cordial of relationships. Joab and David are cousins (as were Abner and Saul), which makes me wonder if some members of the tribe of Judah had greater loyalty to Joab than to David.

Daily Bible Study

April 8, 2017 Bible Study — David, A Ruler Who Recognized That Evil Means Do Not Lead to Good Ends

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on 2 Samuel 1-3.

    This passage shows us the political maneuvering which occurred following the death of Saul. When David received word of Saul’s death, he immediately moved from Philistine territory back into territory controlled by Israelites, in particular territory controlled by the tribe of Judah and made himself king of Judah (setting the stage for the political divide of Israel under his grandson). In the meantime, Abner, the commander of Saul’s army, made Saul’s only remaining son king. It is worthy of note that Saul’s son, Ish-Bosheth, had not been with Saul’s army. The fact that he did not make himself king, but was rather made king by Abner suggests that the reason was that he was not a warrior or a leader of men.

    After Ish-Bosheth insulted Abner by suggesting that he had slept with Saul’s concubine in order to gain a claim to the throne (at least that is how I read Ish-Bosheth’s confrontation with Abner), Abner begins negotiating with David to bring the rest of Israel over to David. However, those negotiations do not appear to be going on behind Ish-Bosheth’s back. When David demanded that Saul’s daughter, Michal, be returned to him as his wife before he would make a deal with Abner, it was Ish-Bosheth who gave the orders for her to be given back to David. Which means that when Joab killed Abner he prevented David from unifying Israel in a way which might have prevented some of the rebellions which happened under David and forestalled the eventual division of the kingdom under Rehoboam.
    At the beginning of this passage, David makes it very clear that he had nothing to do with the death of Saul by killing the messenger who brought the word of Saul’s death and also claimed to have committed the mercy killing of Saul. Then at the end, David makes it very clear that he had nothing to do with Abner’s death as well. In both cases, David is clear that he did not desire these deaths, even though both could be perceived as being to David’s advantage. David’s position regarding Saul’s death is supported by his earlier refusals to take Saul’s life when presented with the opportunity. And his position regarding Abner’s death is supported by the fact that the deal he had just struck with Abner would have been superior to the way things worked out.

Daily Bible Study

April 8, 2016 Bible Study

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading. I had been using One Year Bible Online, but it was time for a change.

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Today, I am reading and commenting on 2 Samuel 1-3.

    When a messenger came to David with news of Saul’s death, the messenger claimed to have killed Saul, at Saul’s request. I am not sure why the messenger claimed to have killed Saul, perhaps he thought David would reward him. Yet he appears to have been aware that the news would not be greeted with unmitigated joy by David, since he was careful to make clear that he only killed Saul at Saul’s request. David had the messenger killed for claiming to have killed Saul. It is not clear to me why David did this. However, David was sending a clear message that he had not been behind Saul’s death. He also sent a message that not only would he not reward people for assassinating his enemies, he would hold them accountable for doing so.

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    In the story of Abner coming over to David we see the weakness in David’s approach to governing. When Joab killed Abner, David was unable to do anything about it because he needed Joab’s support. While Joab claimed to have killed Abner because Abner had killed Joab’s brother, there is reason to believe that Joab killed Abner because he saw Abner as a threat to his position as commander of David’s armies.