1 When Saul’s son Ishbosheth heard that Abner had been killed at Hebron, he realized that he might also be killed. He became discouraged, and all the Israeli people ◄trembled/became afraid►. 2 Ishbosheth had two officers who were leaders of groups that raided other villages. They were brothers; their names were Baanah and Rechab, sons of Rimmon from Beeroth town in the tribe of Benjamin. Beeroth is in the area that had been assigned to the tribe of Benjamin. 3 But the people of Beeroth had fled to Gittaim town, and they still live there.

4 Saul’s son Jonathan had a son named Mephibosheth. When Mephibosheth was five years old, Saul and Jonathan died in the battle. When people brought that news from Jezreel, Mephibosheth’s nursemaid picked him up and ran away. She ran very fast, with the result that she dropped him, and his legs became crippled.

5 One day, Rechab and Baanah left their home to go to Ishbosheth’s house. They arrived there about noontime, when Ishbosheth was taking his midday nap. 6 The woman who was the doorkeeper was sifting wheat. While doing that, she became sleepy, and fell asleep. So Rechab and his brother Baanah were able to creep in quietly.

7 They entered Ishbosheth’s bedroom, where he was sleeping. They killed him with their swords and cut off his head. They carried his head and walked all night through the Jordan River Valley. 8 They took the head of Ishbosheth to David at Hebron. They said to him, “Here is the head of Ishbosheth, the son of your enemy Saul, who tried to kill you. Your majesty, today Yahweh has allowed you to get revenge on Saul and his descendants!”

9 But David replied to them, “Yahweh is the one who has rescued me from all my troubles. And just as surely as Yahweh lives, what I am now saying is also true. 10 When a messenger came to Ziklag and told me ‘Saul is dead!’ and he thought that the news that he was bringing to me was good news, I seized him and commanded one of my soldiers to kill him. That was the reward I gave to him for his news! 11 So because you two evil men murdered a man who is ◄innocent/has done nothing wrong► when he was sleeping on his bed in his own house, I will do something worse to you. I will surely [RHQ] get revenge on you two for murdering [MTY] him, and ◄wipe you/cause you to disappear► from the earth!”

12 Then, following David’s orders, his soldiers killed the two men, and cut off their hands and their feet, and hung their bodies (OR, their hands and feet) on a pole near the pool at Hebron. But they took the head of Ishbosheth and buried it respectfully in the tomb of Abner, there at Hebron.