Abner, Imperfect Introducer of Kings
[26] When Joab came out from David’s presence, he sent messengers after Abner, and they brought him back from the cistern of Sirah. But David did not know about it. [27] And when Abner returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside into the midst of the gate to speak with him privately, and there he struck him in the stomach, so that he died, for the blood of Asahel his brother. [28] Afterward, when David heard of it, he said, “I and my kingdom are forever guiltless before the LORD for the blood of Abner the son of Ner. [29] May it fall upon the head of Joab and upon all his father’s house, and may the house of Joab never be without one who has a discharge or who is leprous or who holds a spindle or who falls by the sword or who lacks bread!” [30] So Joab and Abishai his brother killed Abner, because he had put their brother Asahel to death in the battle at Gibeon.
2 Samuel 3:26–30 ESV Read More
Remember we met Abner yesterday, as he was the voice of reason in stopping the war between the house of Saul and the house of David. “The end will be bitter! How many of your brothers must you kill before this is over?” He said. The trick is that he said this after killing the brother of Abishai and Joab – two super mean tough dudes. Granted, he warned and warned and tried to talk Asahel into giving up the chase before he killed him in defense. But whatever excuse, Abner killed Asahel.
Now Abner is starting to turn the elders that have been siding with the house of Saul to turn to the house of David. He has made diplomatic trips to see David and even fetched Michal, David’s first wife, as a plea bargain to make peace between the two factions. Abner is not innocent of evil, but he is certainly working things in such a way to bring about the thing that God desired. He is working to make David the king over a united Israel.
Joab doesn’t care at all about the work or progress of Abner. As far as he is concerned, David’s going to become king over a united Israel whether Abner does something or not. The progress of the kingdom pales in comparison to his desire to avenge the death of his brother. Joab actually puts all of the progress in great risk by killing the diplomat representing the house of Saul.
Our past bitterness, failures, poor choices, and broken friendships can come up and really mess things up years later. I knew a guy once, that when I asked him about his health, he said, “When you drink and do heroin all through your 20s, you go to the doctor all through your 60s.” Our past has affected us, but we can’t let that stop us.
The reminder of our past sins that comes up when we want to advise or teach someone doesn’t disqualify us from teaching. It humbles us to know we are on the same level. Our past sin doesn’t guarantee we’ll always be failures – it reminds us that we always need a savior.
When Abner died, murdered in revenge, the new King of Israel honored him. Abner served under Saul and was THE MAN that brought David to Saul after the slaughter of Goliath. (That verse that says David still had Goliath’s head in his hands? Abner is the one leading David around after that victory!) All of this can really make you appreciate Abner. He had plenty of good choices and bad ones (he took one of Saul’s concubines to be his wife after Saul died) but he had a deep desire to see God’s anointed rule as king over Israel. He wanted it when it was Saul, and he wanted it when it was David.
This is the man of which David would say, “Do you not know that a prince and a great man has fallen this day in Israel?”
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