2 Samuel 3:13

2 Samuel 3:13 says, And he said, Well; I will make a league with thee: but one thing I require of thee, that is, Thou shalt not see my face, except thou first bring Michal Saul’s daughter, when thou comest to see my face.  David agreed to make peace with Abner, but only if Abner brought Michal, Saul’s daughter and David’s first wife to him.  Matthew Henry said David still loved her and that she was really his wife under God's plan for marriage.  We may have marriages end today, but this was never God's plan. Verse fourteen adds, And David sent messengers to Ishbosheth Saul’s son, saying, Deliver me my wife Michal, which I espoused to me for an hundred foreskins of the Philistines. David then sent word to Ishbosheth telling him to send Michal to him, since she became his wife when he paid Saul’s dowry.  We know that she loved David then, but I have to wonder how she felt now, since he had allowed her to be married to someone else without attempting to rescue her.  She still had no say in the matter.  If we truly love someone, we should put their safety and happiness above our own, no matter what the situation may be.  Verse fifteen continues, And Ishbosheth sent, and took her from her husband, even from Phaltiel the son of Laish.  Ishbosheth did as David asked, taking Michal from her husband.  Though Ishbosheth had been proclaimed king, he was still obeying David’s command.  He was not willing to defy David, and many so called rulers are really afraid of other powerful figures today.  Verse sixteen states, And her husband went with her along weeping behind her to Bahurim. Then said Abner unto him, Go, return. And he returned.  Phaltiel is the other one in the situation who could be overlooked.  He had his wife taken from him, and followed her while crying to Bahurim.  Still, he knew that she was David’s wife when he married her, so the problem was partly of his own making.  Unless we follow God's plan for marriage, which does give legitimate reasons for divorce, there will always be people who are hurt.  Verse seventeen adds, And Abner had communication with the elders of Israel, saying, Ye sought for David in times past to be king over you: Abner, I believe still looking out for his best interests, then talked to the elders of Israel, saying that they had sought David as king in the past.  He was making it their idea and not his.  People still do this today, making their getting what they want from us seem like it is our idea to start with.  Verse eighteen continues, Now then do it: for the LORD hath spoken of David, saying, By the hand of my servant David I will save my people Israel out of the hand of the Philistines, and out of the hand of all their enemies.  Abner now told them to make David king because God had ordained it.  Of course, this was after he started losing the war with David after he had ordained Ishbosheth king.  If he knew this was God's plan, then he had been in defiance not only of David but of God as well.  It is bad enough if we oppose God's chosen leaders, but I believe it is even worse if we then profess to know that He had called them to start with. Verse nineteen says, And Abner also spake in the ears of Benjamin: and Abner went also to speak in the ears of David in Hebron all that seemed good to Israel, and that seemed good to the whole house of Benjamin.  Abner next spoke with the people of Benjamin, his own tribe.  If we are going to switch sides, which is what we do when we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, it is always best to let our immediate family know this first.  Verse twenty adds, So Abner came to David to Hebron, and twenty men with him. And David made Abner and the men that were with him a feast.  This time,  Abner came to David openly and with twenty of his men, and David made a feast to share with them.  Though they had been enemies, they were now on the same side.  We may be enemies of someone today who is not a Christian, but if they accept the salvation of Christ, we need to rejoice with them and welcome them openly.  Verse twenty-one continues, And Abner said unto David, I will arise and go, and will gather all Israel unto my lord the king, that they may make a league with thee, and that thou mayest reign over all that thine heart desireth. And David sent Abner away; and he went in peace.  Abner then told David that he would go and gather all of Israel to serve under David as their king, and David sent him away in peace.  David would then be what God had ordained him to be long before now.  Sometimes,  we may have to wait to become what God has called us to be, but if so, it shouldn't be because of our reluctance to do so.