2 Samuel 2:31 - Printer Friendly

ESV: But the servants of David had struck down of Benjamin 360 of Abner 's men.

NIV: But David’s men had killed three hundred and sixty Benjamites who were with Abner.

NASB: However, the servants of David had struck and killed many of Benjamin and Abner’s men; 360 men were dead.

CSB: but they had killed 360 of the Benjaminites and Abner’s men.

NLT: But 360 of Abner’s men had been killed, all from the tribe of Benjamin.

KJV: But the servants of David had smitten of Benjamin, and of Abner's men, so that three hundred and threescore men died.

NKJV: But the servants of David had struck down, of Benjamin and Abner’s men, three hundred and sixty men who died.

In all the long years Saul chased David, trying to kill the man he knew would succeed him as king, David never fought back. When Saul's army chased him, David took his army and ran. When Saul was vulnerable, David let him live and insisted he wasn't worth Saul's attention (1 Samuel 23—24; 26).

Samuel had anointed David to be king, but David doesn't demand his rightful place. After Saul died in battle against the Philistines (1 Samuel 31:1–4), David sent gifts to the people of Judah, and they crowned him king of the tribe (2 Samuel 30:26–31; 2:1–4). He sat waiting for five years for the other tribes to follow.

Instead, Saul's former military commander, Abner, crowned Saul's son Ish-bosheth king of Israel (2 Samuel 2:8–10). And, as kingdoms did back then, he met with Joab and David's army. The meeting became a battle. The battle became a rout. Abner has lost many, many times as many men as Joab. But Joab has lost his brother (2 Samuel 2:18–23, 30).

In all David's wandering, Saul's army never lost a man to violence by one of David's men. David's forces never lost a man because of Saul's troops. David has been chosen by God to be king of all the tribes of Israel. Abner could have gathered the tribes to Israel and handed them to David peacefully—and he will (2 Samuel 3:21). But first, his familial pride starts a two-year civil war that he will lose.

Second Samuel 2:29–32 begins a description of David's increasing power. The army of Saul's son Ish-bosheth has gone to battle against David's men and lost. The numbers given here illustrate how badly the attempt went. Throughout the civil war, David will continue to grow stronger. This not only applies to his army and power, but also to his family: he will add three wives, including a princess, and several sons (2 Samuel 3:1–5). After two years, Ish-bosheth's general will defect and give David all of Israel (2 Samuel 3:6–21).

David returns to Israel, where he is anointed king over Judah, and settles in Hebron. Abner declares Saul's son Ish-bosheth king over Israel. David blesses the men of Jabesh-gilead for burying Saul's remains. Abner, leading Ish-bosheth's men, faces off against Joab, leading David's fighters, at Gibeon. In a fierce, one-sided battle, Abner kills Joab's brother, but David's men overwhelm Abner's Benjaminite fighters, losing twenty but killing 360. Abner and the survivors prepare for a last stand on the hill of Ammah, but Joab calls off the battle when Abner pleads with him to stop. Both sides return home.

Saul and three of his sons are dead (1 Samuel 31:1–4). David becomes king of Judah, and Saul's son Ish-bosheth is king of the remaining tribes. When the two sides meet in battle, Ish-bosheth's army fares poorly. David continues to grow stronger over two years of fighting. Ish-bosheth's general Abner appears to make a futile attempt to take the crown from his king, then starts the work to peacefully hand David the crown of Israel (2 Samuel 3:1–12).

Second Samuel continues the story of David, who will become king over Judah. The other tribes of Israel are resistant, eventually sparking a civil war. David wins and makes Jerusalem his capital. Early success is followed by moral failure and controversy in David's house. The book of 1 Kings will begin by detailing David's decline and death.