| New Living Translation | NET Bible |
| 1After this, David asked the LORD, “Should I move back to one of the towns of Judah?” “Yes,” the LORD replied. Then David asked, “Which town should I go to?” “To Hebron,” the LORD answered. | 1Afterward David inquired of the LORD, "Should I go up to one of the cities of Judah?" The LORD told him, "Go up." David asked, "Where should I go?" The LORD replied, "To Hebron." |
| 2David’s two wives were Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal from Carmel. So David and his wives | 2So David went up, along with his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelite and Abigail, formerly the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. |
| 3and his men and their families all moved to Judah, and they settled in the villages near Hebron. | 3David also brought along the men who were with him, each with his family. They settled in the cities of Hebron. |
| 4Then the men of Judah came to David and anointed him king over the people of Judah. When David heard that the men of Jabesh-gilead had buried Saul, | 4The men of Judah came and there they anointed David as king over the people of Judah. David was told, "The people of Jabesh Gilead are the ones who buried Saul." |
| 5he sent them this message: “May the LORD bless you for being so loyal to your master Saul and giving him a decent burial. | 5So David sent messengers to the people of Jabesh Gilead and told them, "May you be blessed by the LORD because you have shown this kindness to your lord Saul by burying him. |
| 6May the LORD be loyal to you in return and reward you with his unfailing love! And I, too, will reward you for what you have done. | 6Now may the LORD show you true kindness! I also will reward you, because you have done this deed. |
| 7Now that Saul is dead, I ask you to be my strong and loyal subjects like the people of Judah, who have anointed me as their new king.” Ishbosheth Proclaimed King of Israel | 7Now be courageous and prove to be valiant warriors, for your lord Saul is dead. The people of Judah have anointed me as king over them." |
| 8But Abner son of Ner, the commander of Saul’s army, had already gone to Mahanaim with Saul’s son Ishbosheth. | 8Now Abner son of Ner, the general in command of Saul's army, had taken Saul's son Ish-bosheth and had brought him to Mahanaim. |
| 9There he proclaimed Ishbosheth king over Gilead, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, the land of the Ashurites, and all the rest of Israel. | 9He appointed him king over Gilead, the Geshurites, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, and all Israel. |
| 10Ishbosheth, 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. | 10Ish-bosheth son of Saul was forty years old when he began to rule over Israel. He ruled two years. However, the people of Judah followed David. |
| 11David made Hebron his capital, and he ruled as king of Judah for seven and a half years. War between Israel and Judah | 11David was king in Hebron over the people of Judah for seven and a half years. |
| 12One day Abner led Ishbosheth’s troops from Mahanaim to Gibeon. | 12Then Abner son of Ner and the servants of Ish-bosheth son of Saul went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon. |
| 13About 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. | 13Joab son of Zeruiah and the servants of David also went out and confronted them at the pool of Gibeon. One group stationed themselves on one side of the pool, and the other group on the other side of the pool. |
| 14Then 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. | 14Abner said to Joab, "Let the soldiers get up and fight before us." Joab said, "So be it!" |
| 15So twelve men were chosen to fight from each side—twelve men of Benjamin representing Ishbosheth son of Saul, and twelve representing David. | 15So they got up and crossed over by number: twelve belonging to Benjamin and to Ish-bosheth son of Saul, and twelve from the servants of David. |
| 16Each 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. | 16As they grappled with one another, each one stabbed his opponent with his sword and they fell dead together. So that place is called the Field of Flints; it is in Gibeon. |
| 17A fierce battle followed that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by the forces of David. The Death of Asahel | 17Now the battle was very severe that day; Abner and the men of Israel were overcome by David's soldiers. |
| 18Joab, Abishai, and Asahel—the three sons of Zeruiah—were among David’s forces that day. Asahel could run like a gazelle, | 18The three sons of Zeruiah were there--Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. (Now Asahel was as quick on his feet as one of the gazelles in the field.) |
| 19and he began chasing Abner. He pursued him relentlessly, not stopping for anything. | 19Asahel chased Abner, without turning to the right or to the left as he followed Abner. |
| 20When Abner looked back and saw him coming, he called out, “Is that you, Asahel?” “Yes, it is,” he replied. | 20Then Abner turned and asked, "Is that you, Asahel?" He replied, "Yes it is!" |
| 21“Go fight someone else!” Abner warned. “Take on one of the younger men, and strip him of his weapons.” But Asahel kept right on chasing Abner. | 21Abner said to him, "Turn aside to your right or to your left. Capture one of the soldiers and take his equipment for yourself!" But Asahel was not willing to turn aside from following him. |
| 22Again Abner shouted to him, “Get away from here! I don’t want to kill you. How could I ever face your brother Joab again?” | 22So Abner spoke again to Asahel, "Turn aside from following me! I do not want to strike you to the ground. How then could I show my face in the presence of Joab your brother?" |
| 23But Asahel refused to turn back, so Abner thrust the butt end of his spear through Asahel’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 Asahel lying there. | 23But Asahel refused to turn aside. So Abner struck him in the abdomen with the back end of his spear. The spear came out his back; Asahel collapsed on the spot and died there right before Abner. Everyone who now comes to the place where Asahel fell dead pauses in respect. |
| 24When 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 Ammah near Giah, along the road to the wilderness of Gibeon. | 24So Joab and Abishai chased Abner. At sunset they came to the hill of Ammah near Giah on the way to the wilderness of Gibeon. |
| 25Abner’s troops from the tribe of Benjamin regrouped there at the top of the hill to take a stand. | 25The Benjaminites formed their ranks behind Abner and were like a single army, standing at the top of a certain hill. |
| 26Abner 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?” | 26Then Abner called out to Joab, "Must the sword devour forever? Don't you realize that this will turn bitter in the end? When will you tell the people to turn aside from pursuing their brothers?" |
| 27Then Joab said, “God only knows what would have happened if you hadn’t spoken, for we would have chased you all night if necessary.” | 27Joab replied, "As surely as God lives, if you had not said this, it would have been morning before the people would have abandoned pursuit of their brothers!" |
| 28So Joab blew the ram’s horn, and his men stopped chasing the troops of Israel. | 28Then Joab blew the ram's horn and all the people stopped in their tracks. They stopped chasing Israel and ceased fighting. |
| 29All 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. | 29Abner and his men went through the Arabah all that night. They crossed the Jordan River and went through the whole region of Bitron and came to Mahanaim. |
| 30Meanwhile, Joab and his men also returned home. When Joab counted his casualties, he discovered that only 19 men were missing in addition to Asahel. | 30Now Joab returned from chasing Abner and assembled all the people. Nineteen of David's soldiers were missing, in addition to Asahel. |
| 31But 360 of Abner’s men had been killed, all from the tribe of Benjamin. | 31But David's soldiers had slaughtered the Benjaminites and Abner's men--in all, 360 men had died! |
| 32Joab and his men took Asahel’s body to Bethlehem and buried him there in his father’s tomb. Then they traveled all night and reached Hebron at daybreak. | 32They took Asahel's body and buried him in his father's tomb at Bethlehem. Joab and his men then traveled all that night and reached Hebron by dawn. |
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