What Really Happened?

As the war between the house of Saul and the house of David went on, Abner became a powerful leader among those loyal to Saul. One day Ishbosheth, Saul’s son, accused Abner of sleeping with one of his father’s concubines, a woman named Rizpah, daughter of Aiah. Abner was furious. “Am I some Judean dog to be kicked around like this?” he shouted. “After all I have done for your father, Saul, and his family and friends by not handing you over to David, is this my reward—that you find fault with me about this woman? May God strike me and even kill me if I don’t do everything I can to help David get what the LORD has promised him! I’m going to take Saul’s kingdom and give it to David. I will establish the throne of David over Israel as well as Judah, all the way from Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south.” Ishbosheth didn’t dare say another word because he was afraid of what Abner might do. [2 Samuel 3.6-11]

What really happened?

The Word says Ishbosheth accused Abner of sleeping with Rizpah. Abner on the other hand, did not deny it but instead angrily rebuked Ishbosheth for making the accusation.

For all that could be discussed here about polygamy, the treatment of women, and ownership of humans in general, there is another thing that stands out...

Abner said, "May God strike me and even kill me if I don’t do everything I can to help David get what the LORD has promised him!" Interestingly enough, Abner died the day he went to David. So, if we reverse-engineer this circumstance and Abner's vow, should we not conclude then that Abner did NOT do all he could do for David?

It seems Abner was rather adept at positioning himself for his own benefit. While not denying Ishbosheth's accusation, he shamed him for making the accusation. He made a vow regarding bringing Israel under David's rule but then negotiated with David. Notice that "negotiating" and "doing everything I can..." are two different things!

With only a little observation, it seems that Abner was a shady and manipulative character. It was obviously wrong that Abner would sleep with Saul's concubine (it seems Ishbosheth might have believed she belonged to him as the successor of Saul). And, to make a vow (as Abner did regarding making David king of Israel) only to negotiate it later was also a big no-no.

What then is the takeaway from this situation? It would seem a good launching point for a sermon on integrity.

Father in heaven, give us eyes to see, ears to hear, and hearts to understand all there is for us to learn from Your Word and the events and circumstances presented therein. May we be found knowledgeable of the events in the Bible so that we might ascertain what You are saying to us through those events.