2Samuel 2:12 - Prayer Tents



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2Samuel 2
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David Is Made King of Judah

2After this, David asked the LORD, "Shall I go and take control of one of the towns of Judah?" "Yes," the LORD answered. "Which one?" David asked. "Hebron," the LORD said.H310H1732H7592H3068H559H5927H259H5892H3063H3068H559H5927H1732H559H5927H559H2275
2So David went to Hebron, taking with him his two wives: Ahinoam, who was from Jezreel, and Abigail, Nabal's widow, who was from Carmel.H1732H5927H8147H802H293H3159H26H5037H802H3761
3He also took his men and their families, and they settled in the towns around Hebron.H582H1732H5927H376H1004H3427H5892H2275
4Then the men of Judah came to Hebron and anointed David as king of Judah. When David heard that the people of Jabesh in Gilead had buried Saul,H582H3063H935H4886H1732H4428H1004H3063H5046H1732H559H582H3003H1568H6912H7586
5he sent some men there with the message: "May the LORD bless you for showing your loyalty to your king by burying him.H1732H7971H4397H582H3003H1568H559H1288H3068H6213H2617H113H7586H6912
6And now may the LORD be kind and faithful to you. I too will treat you well because of what you have done.H3068H6213H2617H571H6213H2896H6213H1697
7Be strong and brave! Saul your king is dead, and the people of Judah have anointed me as their king."H3027H2388H1121H2428H113H7586H4191H1004H3063H4886H4428

Ishbosheth Is Made King of Israel

8The commander of Saul's army, Abner son of Ner, had fled with Saul's son Ishbosheth across the Jordan to Mahanaim.H74H1121H5369H8269H7586H6635H3947H378H1121H7586H5674H4266
9There Abner made Ishbosheth king of the territories of Gilead, Asher, Jezreel, Ephraim, and Benjamin, and indeed over all Israel.H4427H1568H805H3157H669H1144H3478
10He was forty years old when he was made king of Israel, and he ruled for two years. But the tribe of Judah was loyal to David,H378H7586H1121H705H8141H1121H4427H3478H4427H8147H8141H1004H3063H310H1732
11and he ruled in Hebron over Judah for seven and a half years.H4557H3117H1732H4428H2275H1004H3063H7651H8141H8337H2320

War between Israel and Judah

12Abner and the officials of Ishbosheth went from Mahanaim to the city of Gibeon.H74H1121H5369H5650H378H1121H7586H3318H4266H1391
13Joab, whose mother was Zeruiah, and David's other officials met them at the pool, where they all sat down, one group on one side of the pool and the other group on the opposite side.H3097H1121H6870H5650H1732H3318H6298H3162H1295H1391H3427H1295H1295
14Abner said to Joab, "Let's have some of the young men from each side fight an armed contest." "All right," Joab answered.H74H559H3097H5288H6965H7832H6440H3097H559H6965
15So twelve men, representing Ishbosheth and the tribe of Benjamin, fought twelve of David's men.H6965H5674H4557H8147H6240H1144H378H1121H7586H8147H6240H5650H1732
16Each man caught his opponent by the head and plunged his sword into his opponent's side, so that all twenty-four of them fell down dead together. And so that place in Gibeon is called "Field of Swords."H2388H376H7453H7218H2719H7453H6654H5307H3162H4725H7121H2521H1391
17Then a furious battle broke out, and Abner and the Israelites were defeated by David's men.H3966H7186H4421H3117H74H5062H582H3478H6440H5650H1732
18The three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Asahel, who could run as fast as a wild deer,H7969H1121H6870H3097H52H6214H6214H7031H7272H259H7704H6643
19started chasing Abner, running straight for him.H6214H7291H310H74H3212H5186H3225H8040H310H74
20Abner looked back and said, "Is that you, Asahel?" "Yes," he answered.H74H6437H310H559H6214H559
21"Stop chasing me!" Abner said. "Run after one of the soldiers and take what he has." But Asahel kept on chasing him.H74H559H5186H3225H8040H270H259H5288H3947H2488H6214H14H5493H310
22Once more Abner said to him, "Stop chasing me! Why force me to kill you? How could I face your brother Joab?"H74H559H3254H6214H5493H310H5221H776H5375H6440H3097H251
23But Asahel would not quit; so Abner, with a backward thrust of his spear, struck him through the stomach so that the spear came out at his back. Asahel dropped to the ground dead, and everyone who came to the place where he was lying stopped and stood there.H3985H5493H74H310H2595H5221H413H2570H2595H3318H310H5307H4191H8478H935H4725H6214H5307H4191H5975
24But Joab and Abishai started out after Abner, and at sunset they came to the hill of Ammah, which is to the east of Giah on the road to the wilderness of Gibeon.H3097H52H7291H310H74H8121H935H935H1389H522H6440H1520H1870H4057H1391
25The men from the tribe of Benjamin gathered around Abner again and took their stand on the top of a hill.H1121H1144H6908H310H74H259H92H5975H7218H1389
26Abner called out to Joab, "Do we have to go on fighting forever? Can't you see that in the end there will be nothing but bitterness? We are your relatives. How long will it be before you order your men to stop chasing us?"H74H7121H3097H559H2719H398H5331H3045H4751H314H559H5971H7725H310H251
27"I swear by the living God," Joab answered, "that if you had not spoken, my men would have kept on chasing you until tomorrow morning."H3097H559H430H2416H3884H1696H1242H5971H5927H376H310H251
28Then Joab blew the trumpet as a signal for his men to stop pursuing the Israelites; and so the fighting stopped.H3097H8628H7782H5971H5975H7291H310H3478H3898H3254
29Abner and his men marched through the Jordan Valley all that night; they crossed the Jordan River, and after marching all the next morning, they arrived back at Mahanaim.H74H582H1980H3915H6160H5674H3383H3212H1338H935H4266
30When Joab gave up the chase, he gathered all his men and found that nineteen of them were missing, in addition to Asahel.H3097H7725H310H74H6908H5971H6908H6485H1732H5650H8672H6240H376H6214
31David's men had killed 360 of Abner's men from the tribe of Benjamin.H5650H1732H5221H1144H74H582H7969H3967H8346H376H4191
32Joab and his men took Asahel's body and buried it in the family tomb at Bethlehem. Then they marched all night and at dawn arrived back at Hebron.H5375H6214H6912H6913H1H1035H3097H582H3212H3915H2275H215


Good News Translation. Scripture taken from the Good News Translation in Today’s English Version- Second Edition Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission. More details.
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