5. So David sent messengers to the people of Jabesh-gilead and said to them: “May you be blessed by the Lord for having done this kindness to your lord Saul in burying him.
6. And now may the Lord show you kindness and fidelity. For my part, I will show generosity to you for having done this.
7. So take courage and prove yourselves valiant, for though your lord Saul is dead, the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”
8. Abner, son of Ner, captain of Saul’s army, took Ishbaal, son of Saul, and brought him over to Mahanaim,
9. where he made him king over Gilead, the Asherites, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, and the rest of Israel.
10. Ishbaal, son of Saul, was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he reigned two years; but the house of Judah followed David.
11. In all, David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah seven years and six months.
12. Now Abner, son of Ner, and the servants of Ishbaal, Saul’s son, set out from Mahanaim for Gibeon.
13. Joab, son of Zeruiah, and the servants of David also set out and encountered them at the pool of Gibeon. And they sat down, one group on one side of the pool and the other on the opposite side.
14. Then Abner said to Joab, “Let the young men rise and perform for us.” Joab replied, “All right.”
15. So they rose and were counted off: twelve of the Benjaminites of Ishbaal, son of Saul, and twelve of David’s servants.
16. Then each one grasped his opponent’s head and thrust his sword into his opponent’s side, and they all fell down together. And so that place was named the Field of the Sides; it is in Gibeon.
17. The battle that day was very fierce, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by David’s servants.
18. The three sons of Zeruiah were there—Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Asahel, who was as fleet of foot as a gazelle in the open field,
19. set out after Abner, turning neither right nor left in his pursuit.
20. Abner turned around and said, “Is that you, Asahel?” He replied, “Yes.”
21. Abner said to him, “Turn right or left; seize one of the young men and take what you can strip from him.” But Asahel would not stop pursuing him.
22. Once more Abner said to Asahel: “Stop pursuing me! Why must I strike you to the ground? How could I show my face to your brother Joab?”