“All the people took note and were pleased; indeed, everything the king did pleased them.” (v.36)
Here in chapter 3, Abner had come to David promising him the northern tribes in return for a place in David’s kingdom. David had agreed and sent Abner away “in peace” (vv. 22, 23). Just when things seemed to be coming together for David, Joab stepped in and threatened disaster for the hope of a united kingdom. Acting from personal vengeance over his brother’s death, and using David’s peaceful promise as a cloak, Joab summoned Abner and ruthlessly murdered him in private.
Joab carefully engineered this murder so that the killing was done outside the gate of Hebron. This was because Hebron was a city of refuge (Joshua 20:7), and it was against the law for Joab, as Asahel’s blood avenger, to kill Abner inside the city. This carefully concieved plot to murder Abner outside the city of refuge made the murder all the darker. It showed Joab knew that Abner had a rightful claim of self-defense and was protected inside the city of Hebron, yet he killed him anyway. David did not want his kingdom established by violence. He wanted God to establish his kingdom and to punish his enemies. David still believed that vengeance belongs to the Lord.
Would Joab’s blood vengeance thwart the promises God made to David about his kingdom? Surely the northern tribes would cry foul at the murder of their top general! And yet, even in the face of such circumstances, God’s plan slowly continued to move forward.
David responded with genuine grief over Abner’s death. He made public declarations of his innocence; he called curses upon Joab and his family (v.30); he called for a public funeral to mourn Abner’s loss; he wrote a lament in Abner’s honor; and even in private he refused to eat out of respect for Abner’s death.
All this led to the surprising result: “All the people took note and were pleased; indeed, everything the king did pleased them” (v.36). Despite Joab’s selfish action and his growing power, Scripture subtly reminds us that God’s promises cannot be thwarted. The northern tribes were coming around; a united kingdom was beginning to develop.
The Truth: “For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.” (2 Corinthians 1:20)
