The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Samuel — Section 40

lmnnim lny upon the borclore of G11d 11nd pop11lnr ratification was necessary, some Mnn!IBACh, Abner would eoeily control these months may have passed before Ishbosheth two tribes, nnd Reuben, which was never Bn was publicly installed ns king, though noti vo or enterprising tribo, would follow Ab11er mnst have ncted in hi~ name from the their lend. Of the Aehurites nothing is first. 'fhe mnin interval-0f ftve year• before known, nnd the reading is uncert11in, as the Dnvid's nccession must lmve been o.fter LXX. !me "Th11sir," e.nd the Vulge.te and Ishboeheth's death. That murder, and still Byrino " Goshur." The Ohaldee paraplunse more so the murder of Abner, must have boldly gives "the house of Asher; " but this mnde David nn object of great suspicion to tribe lny oloee to Phcenioie., on the extreme all Israel. Shimei, when he caller! him "o. north- west. There nre two places oolled bloody man" (eh. xvi. S), was but uttering a Geshur (see on eh. iii 3), but neither of slnnder commonly current a.mong the people. them seems meant, o.nd more probably it Gradually most of them would become con- was some pince the name of which we.a un- vinced of his innocence ; and all. e.s they common, nnd so was wrongly copied by contrasted the anarchy which prevailed in soribes until the present confusion Brose. their country with the peace and security J'ezreel, The nomeofthis place, BB specinlly won by David for Judah, would regard hi,i subject to lshbosheth, is surprising; for the election a.a the best course under the ci rcum- town, at this time of no importance, lay in stances. As the Philistines immediately the wide plnin between the mountnins of resented their action, and endeavoured to Gilbon nnd the little Hermon. But this crush the king before he could concentrate district wos the prize won by the Philistines, his power, it is probable that during these and was a region where their cavalry and five years they bad again obtained practical oho.riots gnve them a great advantage. For command of the more fertile districts of Ishbosheth to have hnd even a nominal Palestine. Ishbosheth ... wu forty years old. dominion over Jezreel, he must either hBve In the previous narrative Jonatllan always become a tributnry, or Abner must have appears as the most important of Saul's mnintained a not unsuccessful struggle there sons, nnd naturally it is BIISllllled that he after the battle of Gilboa. The latter is the was the firstbom : yet his child was but five more probable. In safe possession of all the years old at his father's death, while Ishbo- country east of the Jordan, Abner was not sheth, his uncle, e. younger brother of Jona- likely to consent to anything 80 humiliating than, is described as a man of forty. Some BB submission to the Philistines: while think that lshbosheth was the eldest son, Do.vid'e connection with Achish made it but in 1 Ohron. viii. 33 he is placed la.st, neitber 80 galling to him nor so disadvan- and, though Bweak mnn, was not so feeble tageous. As the Transjordanio tribes as- as to have been set aside from the succes- sembled at Hebron to make David king to sion. But confessedly the chronology of the number of one hundred and twenty Snul's reil!:11 is so full of difficulties, that it thousand men (1 Ohron. xii. 37), Abner is impossible altogether to explain it (see plainly had large resources at his command, note on 1 Sam. xiii. 1). and, though the people were not very earnest Ver. 12.-Abner . . . went out. This is in the cause of Saul's house, yet they would B further proof of considerable success on probably assemble in considerable numbers Abnor's side. Encouraged by the result of after the battle of Gilboo., to prevent any numerous skirmishes with the Philistines, irruption of the victors into their country. and the gradual restoration of the king's At their heo.d Abner probnbly gained some authority in Ephraim and Benjamin, Abner advantages over the Philistines, e.nd thus determined to make thil attempt to win back became powerful enough to proclaim Ish- Judah also. There David had been content bosheth king, and as Ephraim and Benjamin with protecting Judah, and establishing acquiesced, he became nominally rnler over good order; and, following his constant cus- e.11 Israel, tom, had taken no steps to obtain for himself Vere. 10, 11.-Ishboeheth , , . two yee.re the kingdom "over all Israel." The war , .. David , , . seven years and six months, was of Abner's choosing, and shows him to Where are we to place the five years nnd a ns in the character of Bn able but ambitious hnlf of difference? The usual assumption is and restless mnn. that David wns mndo King of Israel imme- Ver. 13.-The pool of Gibeon. As Gibeon, diately upon lshbosheth's murder: but this which le.y a.bout six miles north-west from is wrong. We cannot believe that Abner Jerusalem, wns twenty-six miles diste.ut fmm would allow so long a. period as five yenrs to Hebron, and a.bout the same distance from elapse before asserting the olo.ims of Saul's Mahanaim, it is pie.in that David knew of family, espeoio.lly as David was already Abner's mB?Oh. Possibly he hnd been sum- mndo King of Juclnh at Hebron. Still, as moned to yield his kingdom up to lshbosheth the war with the Philistines was the first as the rightful lord, but, while taking no object of his c1ue, and as some form of measures to extend his rule, he felt himscli 38 'l'Im SEOOND BOOK OF SAMUEL. [cH, II, 1-32,