Common misinterpretations include viewing Abner's actions as purely loyal and righteous support for Saul's lineage, ignoring that it defied God's prior anointing of David through Samuel and fueled civil war; assuming Ishbosheth was the legitimate heir without recognizing the prophetic transition of kingship; or allegorizing the event as a timeless lesson on family loyalty rather than a specific historical step toward national division and eventual unification under David as foretold in God's plan.
II Samuel 2:8
King James Version (1769)
8 But Abner the son of Ner, captain of Saul’s host, took Ish–bosheth the son of Saul, and brought him over to Mahanaim;
This verse marks the beginning of a divided kingdom after Saul's death, where Abner, Saul's loyal military commander, proactively installs Ishbosheth, one of Saul's surviving sons, as king in Mahanaim east of the Jordan, establishing a rival power base to David's anointing in Hebron and highlighting human political maneuvering in contrast to God's sovereign choice of David as the future unified king of Israel.