9. I ask God to punish me if I don't help David get what the Lord promised him!
10. God said that he wouldn't let anyone in Saul's family ever be king again and that David would be king instead. He also said that David would rule both Israel and Judah, all the way from Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south.
11. Ishbosheth was so afraid of Abner that he could not even answer.
12. Abner sent some of his men to David with this message: “You should be the ruler of the whole nation. If you make an agreement with me, I will persuade everyone in Israel to make you their king.”
13. David sent this message back: “Good! I'll make an agreement with you. But before I will even talk with you about it, you must get Saul's daughter Michal back for me.”
14. David sent a few of his officials to Ishbosheth to give him this message: “Give me back my wife Michal! I killed a hundred Philistines so I could marry her.”
15. Ishbosheth sent some of his men to take Michal away from her new husband, Paltiel the son of Laish.
16. Paltiel followed Michal and the men all the way to Bahurim, crying as he walked. But he went back home after Abner ordered him to leave.
17. Abner talked with the leaders of the tribes of Israel and told them, “You've wanted to make David your king for a long time now.
18. So do it! After all, God said he would use his servant David to rescue his people Israel from their enemies, especially from the Philistines.”
19. Finally, Abner talked with the tribe of Benjamin. Then he left for Hebron to tell David everything that the tribe of Benjamin and the rest of the people of Israel wanted to do.
20. Abner took twenty soldiers with him, and when they got to Hebron, David gave a big feast for them.
21. After the feast, Abner said, “Your Majesty, let me leave now and bring Israel here to make an agreement with you. You'll be king of the whole nation, just as you've been wanting.”David told Abner he could leave, and he left without causing any trouble.
22. Soon after Abner had left Hebron, Joab and some of David's soldiers came back, bringing a lot of things they had taken from an enemy village.