1
And it came to pass after this that Daviyd asked of Yahuah, saying, “Shall I go up to one of the cities of Yehudah?” And Yahuah said to him, “Go up.” And Daviyd said, “To where shall I go up?” And He said, “To Chevron.”
2
And Daviyd went up there, and also his two wives, Achinoam the Yizre’elit and Avigayil the Karmelit, former ishah of Naval.
3
And the men who were with Daviyd he brought up, each ish and his house, and they dwelt in the cities of Chevron.
4
And the ish of Yehudah came, and there they anointed Daviyd as king over the house of Yehudah. And they declared to Daviyd, saying, “The men of Yavesh-Gilad are those who buried Shaul.”
5
And Daviyd sent messengers to the men of Yavesh-Gilad and said to them, “Blessed are you of Yahuah, because you have done this covenant-faithfulness with your master, with Shaul, and buried him.
6
And now may Yahuah do with you covenant-faithfulness and truth. And I also will do this good with you because you have done this thing.
7
And now let your hands be strengthened, and be sons of strength. For Shaul your master is dead, and also the house of Yehudah has anointed me king over them.”
8
But Avner son of Ner, commander of the host who belonged to Shaul, took Ish-Boshet son of Shaul and brought him across to Machanayim.
9
And he made him king over Gilad, and over the Ashuri, and over Yizre’el, and over Efrayim, and over Binyamin, and over all Yisra’el.
10
Ish-Boshet son of Shaul was forty years old when he began to reign over Yisra’el, and he reigned two years. Only the house of Yehudah followed Daviyd.
11
And the number of the days that Daviyd was king in Chevron over the house of Yehudah was seven years and six months.
12
And Avner son of Ner went out, and the servants of Ish-Boshet son of Shaul, from Machanayim to Givon.
13
And Yoav son of Tzeruyah and the servants of Daviyd went out and met them beside the pool of Givon. And these sat on this side of the pool, and those on that side of the pool.
14
And Avner said to Yoav, “Please let the young men rise and play before our face.” And Yoav said, “Let them rise.”
15
And they rose and crossed over by number: twelve for Binyamin and for Ish-Boshet son of Shaul, and twelve from the servants of Daviyd.
16
And each ish seized his companion by the head and thrust his sword into the side of his companion, and they fell together. Therefore the name of that place was called Chelqat-HaTzurim, which is in Givon.
17
And the battle became exceedingly severe on that day, and Avner and the ish of Yisra’el were struck before the servants of Daviyd.
18
And the three sons of Tzeruyah were there: Yoav, and Avishai, and Asael. And Asael was swift with his feet like one of the gazelles that are in the field.
19
And Asael pursued after Avner, and in going he did not turn aside to the right or to the left from after Avner.
20
And Avner turned behind him and said, “Are you Asael?” And he said, “I am.”
21
And Avner said to him, “Turn aside to your right or to your left, and seize for yourself one of the young men and take his spoil for yourself.” But Asael was not willing to turn aside from after him.
22
And Avner again said to Asael, “Turn aside from after me. Why should I strike you to the earth? And how then could I lift up my face to Yoav your brother?”
23
But he refused to turn aside. And Avner struck him with the back end of the spear into the belly, and the spear came out from behind him. And he fell there and died in his place. And it came to pass that everyone who came to the place where Asael had fallen and died stood still.
24
And Yoav and Avishai pursued after Avner. And the sun went down when they came to the hill of Ammah, which is before Giach, by the way of the wilderness of Givon.
25
And the sons of Binyamin gathered themselves together after Avner and became one company, and stood upon the top of one hill.
26
And Avner called to Yoav and said, “Shall the sword consume forever? Do you not know that bitterness will be at the latter end? And how long will you not say to the people to return from after their brothers?”
27
And Yoav said, “As Elohim lives, unless you had spoken, surely then from the morning the people would each have gone up from after his brother.”
28
And Yoav blew the shofar, and all the people stood still, and they no longer pursued after Yisra’el, and they did not continue to fight.
29
And Avner and his men walked through the Arabah all that night, and crossed the Yarden, and walked through all the Bithron, and came to Machanayim.
30
And Yoav returned from after Avner and gathered all the people together. And from the servants of Daviyd there were missing nineteen ish and Asael.
31
But the servants of Daviyd had struck from Binyamin and from the men of Avner three hundred and sixty ish who died.
32
And they lifted up Asael and buried him in the tomb of his father, which was in Beit-Lechem. And Yoav and his men walked all the night, and it became light for them at Chevron.