“Meanwhile, Abner had consulted with the elders of Israel. “For some time now,” he told them, “you have wanted to make David your king. Now is the time! For the Lord has said, ‘I have chosen David to save my people Israel from the hands of the Philistines and from all their other enemies.’” Abner also spoke with the men of Benjamin. Then he went to Hebron to tell David that all the people of Israel and Benjamin had agreed to support him. When Abner and twenty of his men came to Hebron, David entertained them with a great feast. Then Abner said to David, “Let me go and call an assembly of all Israel to support my Lord the king. They will make a covenant with you to make you their king, and you will rule over everything your heart desires.” So David sent Abner safely on his way. But just after David had sent Abner away in safety, Joab and some of David’s troops returned from a raid, bringing much plunder with them. When Joab arrived, he was told that Abner had just been there visiting the king and had been sent away in safety. Joab rushed to the king and demanded, “What have you done? What do you mean by letting Abner get away? You know perfectly well that he came to spy on you and find out everything you’re doing!” Joab then left David and sent messengers to catch up with Abner, asking him to return. They found him at the well of Sirah and brought him back, though David knew nothing about it. When Abner arrived back at Hebron, Joab took him aside at the gateway as if to speak with him privately. But then he stabbed Abner in the stomach and killed him in revenge for killing his brother Asahel. When David heard about it, he declared, “I vow by the Lord that I and my kingdom are forever innocent of this crime against Abner son of Ner. Joab and his family are the guilty ones. May the family of Joab be cursed in every generation with a man who has open sores or leprosy or who walks on crutches or dies by the sword or begs for food!” So Joab and his brother Abishai killed Abner because Abner had killed their brother Asahel at the battle of Gibeon. Then David said to Joab and all those who were with him, “Tear your clothes and put on burlap. Mourn for Abner.” And King David himself walked behind the procession to the grave. They buried Abner in Hebron, and the king and all the people wept at his graveside. Then the king sang this funeral song for Abner: “Should Abner have died as fools die? Your hands were not bound; your feet were not chained. No, you were murdered— the victim of a wicked plot.” All the people wept again for Abner. David had refused to eat anything on the day of the funeral, and now everyone begged him to eat. But David had made a vow, saying, “May God strike me and even kill me if I eat anything before sundown.” This pleased the people very much. In fact, everything the king did pleased them! So everyone in Judah and all Israel understood that David was not responsible for Abner’s murder. Then King David said to his officials, “Don’t you realize that a great commander has fallen today in Israel? And even though I am the anointed king, these two sons of Zeruiah—Joab and Abishai—are too strong for me to control. So may the Lord repay these evil men for their evil deeds.””
2 Samuel 3:17-39 NLT
Abner, like Saul before him, was a stubborn and bitter man. Just like Saul, he led the people away from God’s plan, refusing to acknowledge David as the rightful king, despite knowing that this was God’s will for him. Despite knowing the ins and outs of God’s plan and seeing first hand how God had his hand on David, he willfully disregarded God. He was a man driven by spite and swayed by his own desire for power. Despite this, David, much like with Saul, extended him quite a bit of grace
Abner, like Saul before him, was a stubborn and bitter man. Just like Saul, he led the people away from God’s plan, refusing to acknowledge David as the rightful king, despite knowing that this was God’s will for him. Despite knowing the ins and outs of God’s plan and seeing firsthand how God had his hand on David, he willfully disregarded God. He was a man driven by spite and swayed by his own desire for power. Despite this, David, much like with Saul, extended him quite a bit of grace and even forgave him. This is something we can know to be true due to the fact that he honored him after his murder. This murder, being the result of choices he had made in direct rebellion to God. And here we can see a profound warning. Despite Abner’s change of heart toward David, his choice to be self-serving led him down a path that eventually saw him murdered. This is true despite the fact that David forgave him. The lesson is clear. The actions we take, even when grace is applied, have consequences. We must be careful about the events we set into motion. They can be detrimental despite forgiveness and grace. At the end of the day, it is questionable whether Abner’s repentance was genuine. Nevertheless, his consequences were.
JOSH McGARY.COM 