2 Samuel 2:24-32 – Think before we act

Abner killed the determined Asahel with the butt of his spear when the latter refused to turn away from pursuing him. When all Asahel’s fellowmen, who were behind him in the chase, came to the place where his body fell dead, they stopped. But his two brothers, Abishai and Joab did not. Seeing their younger brother dead made them more determined to get Abner. But by the time they reached the hill of Ammah, the people of Benjamin had regrouped and rallied behind Abner, their commander. So Abner called out to Joab asking, “Shall the sword devour forever? Do you not know that it will be bitter in the end? How long will you refrain from telling the people to turn back from following their brothers?” 

In a moment of sanity, Abner seemed to realize the folly of fighting each other. Perhaps, it was because he had already lost many of his men in the needless conflict. After all, they were fellow Israelites and brethren. It obviously did not make sense for them to get at each other senselessly. If only he had realized this earlier. Abner could have been the peacemaker after Saul’s death had he wanted, but he did not. He became an instigator fuelling the fight between the camp of Saul and that of David. Instead of seeking reconciliation, he instigated hostility. However, with so much blood already shed and so many lives lost, it was better late than never. His question jostled Joab, who also suddenly realized the folly of the needless fight. So he blew the trumpet, calling his people to stop pursuing Abner and his men. Thus it allowed the latter to travel all night across the Jordan to return to Mahanaim.

Having stopped the people from pursuing Abner, Joab and his men gathered the remains of the conflict. They counted and found out that nineteen of them besides Asahel were missing. In other words, they lost twenty men in the needless conflict. The loss to Abner and Saul’s camp was three hundred and sixty men. Joab and his men then took the dead body of Asahel and had him buried in his father’s tomb in Jerusalem. Then they also traveled all night and returned to Hebron.         

The enmity between the followers of Saul and David continued because of one man’s insatiable ambition. Abner was obviously eyeing the throne. So he manipulated the whole situation by making Ish-bosheth the puppet king with himself as the power behind the throne. He had all the people wound up pointlessly in the wrong direction by his wrong decision. Blinded by his ambition, he had unwittingly incited the continual fight between the people of Saul and those of David. Abner did not realize how dreadful his decision was until the consequences of it became blatantly obvious. Joab’s action was no better. He also had his fair share of flaws. Had he been calmer he would have a better hold of himself and the whole tension would not have escalated. The lesson here is that we should always think before we act. A better conclusion can always be reached when we take time to think and plan. We do not need dreadful consequences to wake us up if we have put more forethoughts into any matter. We must not act on impulse. Never let a moment of pleasure cause us a lifetime of pain. Always think before we act!