Asahel
Theme:
Can vs. should
Business Application:
Be judicious about where you apply your strength
Who he was:
King David’s nephew and Joab’s brother. He commanded a division of 24,000 men on a monthly rotation to support the king. He was killed in a skirmish with Abner, commander of the late King Saul’s army, after being warned to stop the chase
Why his story matters:
Asahel was a fast runner, compared to a gazelle in 2 Samuel 2:18. Yet he shows how easily abilities can be misapplied.
What we can learn from him:
When to back off of a pursuit. Asahel pursued Abner in spite of the man’s warning that if he caught up to him, he would kill him. The pursuit served no clear military purpose. He ran because he could. The fallout made it difficult to establish peace between the two factions, which would have greatly strengthened the kingdom.
Where we see his archetype today:
When too much focus is on beating the competition, and not enough on excellence and creating new value. When we overextend ourselves and suffer the consequences.
How we can learn more about him:
His background and achievements are in 1 Chronicles 2:16, 2 Samuel 23:24, 1 Chronicles 11:26, and 1 Chronicles 27:7. The story of his fight with Abner is in 2 Samuel 2.