2 Samuel 3:20

DAVID PREPARED A FEAST FOR ABNER AND HIS MEN

"When Abner came with twenty men to David at Hebron, David made a feast for Abner and the men who were with him. And Abner said to David, "I will arise and go, and will gather all Israel to my lord the king, that they may make a covenant with you, and that you may reign over all that your heart desires." So David sent Abner away, and he went in peace."

There was one big thing wrong with this arrangement, and that was the fact that, although David knew of Joab's murderous hatred of Abner, due to his having slain Asahel, he did not take Joab into his confidence here and brief him on what was afoot with Abner. In fact, some have supposed that, it is not unlikely that David had sent Joab on some kind of a foray in order to have him out of Hebron at the time of Abner's visit. As H. P. Smith stated it, "Not improbably David had so planned it."[21] This error on the part of David resulted in Abner's murder and the collapse of the prospective union of the two Israels.