A Journey Through The Old Testament - Elmer Towns

words, David’s fasting and mourning of that day convinced the people he was sincere in his
sense of loss for his friend and that the plot to kill Abner had not been initiated by the king.
David’s comment concerning Abner’s dying as a fool dies should be understood in the
context of the cities of refuge in Israel. If a man took the life of another by accident, he was safe
from relatives of the deceased who might seek vengeance only so long as he remained in a city
of refuge. Hebron was one of the six cities of refuge. Joab could not take the life of Abner until
he “took him aside in the gate” (v. 27). At the time of his death, Abner was literally steps away
from safety. Some commentators see Abner in his death as a picture of the unsaved man in
conviction who “comes to the gate” but never takes the step of saving faith and trusts Christ to
save him.
The death of Abner left Ishbosheth and his people in a state of confusion, disarray, and
fear. Two of Ishbosheth’s own captains plotted a coup and killed their king as he slept in bed
during the heat of the day. Traveling by night, they took the head of Ishbosheth to David in
Hebron, probably expecting to be rewarded for their efforts. But David was not at all impressed
with the murder of “a righteous person in his own house on his bed” (4:11). Baanah and Rechab,
the men who had killed Ishbosheth, were executed by David for the murder of their king. David
took the head of Ishbosheth and “buried it in the tomb of Abner” (v. 12).
The death of Ishbosheth left Israel without a king. The elders of Israel had already
discussed the possibility of making David their king when Abner had defected, and now took
that course of action. The kingdom was again reunited and David was anointed king over all
Israel. This was the third time David had been anointed as a king.
With the civil war resolved, David turned his attention to the city of Jerusalem. The
Jebusites thought they were secure in their city, so much so that they claimed even the blind and
the lame could defend it. But David took the city by coming through the water shaft, a tunnel
under the wall by which water was brought into the city. He then made that city his capital for
the remaining years of his reign. Even to this day, Jerusalem is sometimes called “the city of
David.” He lived in the fort of the city until carpenters and masons from his ally Hiram, king of
Tyre, finished building his palace. “So David knew that the Lord had established him as king
over Israel, and that He had exalted his kingdom for His people Israel’s sake” (5:12). At the
dedication of his palace, David wrote a psalm of thanksgiving and praise for what God had done
for him (Ps. 30).
DAVID’S REIGN IN JERUSALEM
(2 Sam. 5:13-10:19; Ps. 60)
Jerusalem was already important in Israel’s history even before it was conquered by
David. Melchizedek, to whom Abraham had paid tithes, was king of (Jeru)Salem (Gen. 14:18).
In conquering this city, David acquired this dynastic title “a priest forever according to the order
of Melchizedek” which later was ascribed to Jesus (cf. Ps. 110:4). Also, Jerusalem was the place
where Abraham nearly offered his son Isaac to God in a burnt offering. Being built on a hill, the
city was visible from Bethlehem, and David may have dreamed of conquering it even as a boy in
Bethlehem.
After establishing his throne in Jerusalem, David fought and defeated the enemy of Israel
which Saul had neglected while pursuing David. He finished the task begun by Samson “and
drove back the Philistines from Geba [Gibeon) as far as Gezer” (2 Sam. 5:25).
As Moses had prepared Israel to conquer the land, he told the people God would establish
a central place of worship once they had settled the land (cf. Deut. 12). God would not confirm