And the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together after Abner, and became one troop, and stood on the top of an hill. Then Abner called to Joab, and said, Shall the sword devour for ever? knowest thou not that it will be bitter. ness in the latter end; how long shall it be then ere thou bid the people return from following their bre. thren? And Joab said, As GoD liveth, unless thou hadst spoken, surely then in the morning the people had gone up every one from following his brother. So Joab blew a trumpet, and all the people stood still, and pursued after Israel no more, neither fought they any more. And Abner and his men walked all that night through the plain, and passed over Jordan, and went through all Bithron, and they came to Mahanaim. And Joab returned from following Abner: and when he had gathered all the people together, there lacked of David's servants nineteen men and Asahel. But the servants of David had smitten of Benjamin and of Abner's men, so that three hundred and threescore men died. And they took up Asahel, and buried him in the sepulchre of his father, which was in Bethlehem: and Joab and his men went all night, and they came to Hebron at the break of the day. ANNOTATIONS AND REFLECTIONS. David had a noble army under his command, yet he did not offer to possess himself of the throne, but enquired the will of the LORD. Hebron was situated in the midst of of the tribe of Judah, on the top of a ridge of high mountains. It was one of the most ancient cities in the world, originally called Kirjath-Arba, the birthplace of Arba the son of Anak, from whom the gigantic race called Anakims descended: it had likewise been the residence of Abraham: it is now in the possession of the Turks, but in a very ruinated state. Hebron was a very fruitful spot, and had been given to Caleb as a reward for his fidelity to GoD, and he assigned it to the Levites. Here David and his army could subsist with great conveniency, and it was peculiarly fitted for his reception, being the metropolis of his tribe, and the possession of those priestly families who espoused his interest, whose determination in his favour would have influence on the whole tribe. Da. vid's having been anointed by Samuel, was by this time generally known; Jacob and Moses had predicted the establishment of the sovereignty in the tribe of JUDAH; so that acting agreeably to Divine appointment, the men of Judah were fully justified in electing David for their king; and separating themselves from those tribes, who opposed the LORD's will, by setting up one of Saul's rejected family. David took the earliest opportunity of shewing, by kindness to the men of Jabesh Gilead, that he did not aim at the crown from a principle of ambition or enmity to Saul. Almer was Saul's uncle, and being a person of great spirit, he would not readily submit to let the sovereignty be lost from his family; neither was he willing to resign the command of the army: and having taken an active part with Saul, he might likewise be fearful of David's resentment. VOL. II. T Mahanaim, Mahanaim, the place where Ish-bosheth made his first claim, was on the other side Jordan, where it was suppose David had the least influence. Abner carried him about through the camp, and gained the tribes gradually to his interest. Gibeon had formerly been the metropolis of the Gibeonites, and after Joshua's league with him, it became a Levitical city. It is supposed that Saul had dispossessed the Levites and Gibeonites by violence, and placed some of his own tribe in their stead. At Gibeon, it is probable, that Ishbosheth resided during the two first years of his reign, for so long David seems to have remained quiet; each in the mean time strengthening his own interest as much as possible. Hitherto David seems carefully to have avoided all acts of hostility, and to have determined not to begin them, but to wait patiently for the Divine disposal in his favour: but when he found that Abner had drawn together a number of men at Gibeon, he thought it advisable to send Joab with some forces to observe them. One would expect from Abner's expression, let the young men arise and play before us, to hear of a combat, merely to shew how skilful they were in the science of defence; but it was a challenge, meant to prove who were the best warriors, and most deserving of giving a PRINCE to ISRAEL. Asahel unfortunately singled out Abner, and pursued him personally; but his ambition to take his spoils proved fatal to himself. Abner seems to have had some view to a reconciliation with David, by his unwilling. ness to kill the brother of Joab. It is most likely, that Joab and Abishai knew not of the |