Then Abner looked behind him, and said, Art thou Asahel? And he answered, I am.
Then Abner looked behind him, and said, Is it thou, Asahel? And he answered, It is I.
And Abner looketh behind him, and saith, `Art thou he--Asahel?' and he saith, `I am .'
Then Abner looked behind him, and said, Art thou Asahel? And he said, I am.
2 Samuel — David's reign in three movements — rise, fall, consequences — with the Davidic covenant (ch. 7) as the vertical spine down the centre. A covenant held through both rise and fall; a throne established for ever.
Voices2
Then Abner looked behind him,.... Perceiving one at his heels, and making haste up to him. And said, art thou Asahel? for it seems he knew him personally, being well acquainted with his family: and he answered, I am; so that they were very near to each other, as to discourse together, and be heard and understood by each other.
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)reformed
Asahel pursued after Abner--To gain the general's armor was deemed the grandest trophy. Asahel, ambitious of securing Abner's, had outstripped all other pursuers, and was fast gaining on the retreating commander. Abner, conscious of possessing more physical power, and unwilling that there should be "blood" between himself and Joab, Asahel's brother, twice urged him to desist.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, 1871reformed
Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread — the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.
