Albert Barnes Commentary 2 Samuel 2

Inquired of the Lord - Through Abiathar, the high priest. The death of Saul and Jonathan had entirely changed David’s position, and therefore he needed divine guidance on how to act in the new circumstances in which he was placed. Compare the related passages.

Hebron was well suited for the temporary capital of David’s kingdom, being situated in a strong position in the mountains of Judah, among David’s friends, and also having especially sacred associations. It also appears to have been the center of a district (2 Samuel 2:3).

David had already been anointed by Samuel (1 Samuel 16:13). His first anointing indicated God’s secret purpose; his second, the accomplishment of that purpose. (Compare the case of Saul, 1 Samuel 10:1; 1 Samuel 11:14.) David was anointed again king over Israel (2 Samuel 5:3). The interval between the anointing of the Lord Jesus as the Christ of God and His taking to Himself His kingdom and glory seems to be typified in this way.

Mahanaim — See Genesis 32:2. From 2 Samuel 2:12, it would seem to have been Ish-bosheth’s capital.

The Ashurites - If this term refers to the tribe of Asher, then the verse indicates the order in which Abner recovered the different districts from the Philistines and added them to the dominion of Ish-bosheth. He began with Gilead. Then, west of the Jordan, he gradually added the territory of Asher as far as Carmel, the entire plain of Esdraelon, and the country of Ephraim and Benjamin. This constituted, in effect, all of Israel, as distinguished from Judah.

This reconquest may have occupied five years, and Ish-bosheth’s reign over Israel may not have been reckoned to begin until the conquest was complete.

Forty ... two - The numbers presented here are somewhat strange. First, regarding the forty years. If we assume Ish-bosheth’s reign did not begin until five and a half years after Saul’s death—which must be the case if the two-year reign mentioned in the text is correct—it is startling to find that Saul’s younger son would have been thirty-five years old at his father’s death. This would mean he was born about three years before his father became king and was five years older than David, the close friend of his older brother Jonathan. Furthermore, the age of Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth, who was five years old when his father died, suggests that his uncle Ish-bosheth should have been younger.

Second, regarding the two years. David reigned seven years in Hebron over Judah alone (compare 2 Samuel 2:11). Therefore, if the two-year reign for Ish-bosheth is correct, it implies one of two possibilities. Either five years passed between Ish-bosheth’s death and David’s anointing as king over all Israel, or a similar five-year interval occurred between Saul’s death and the start of Ish-bosheth’s reign.

Of these two scenarios, the latter is more probable, as it has the advantage of reducing Ish-bosheth’s age by five or six years. However, the narrative in 2 Samuel 3 and 2 Samuel 4:1–12, which describes the “long war,” the birth of David’s six sons, and Abner’s conspiracy and death, seems to imply a period longer than two years. If this is the case, both numbers in the text would need to be corrected.