What would happen if a bomb destroyed the US Capitol during the State of the Union speech when nearly every government official is at the Capitol, and they all die? The President, VP, Speaker of the House, the senators and representatives. The Supreme Court justices. The Joint Chiefs of Staff. The president’s Cabinet, all those secretaries of this and that. Not only would this be a tragic loss of life, but imagine how it could throw our government into turmoil.
We know that if a President dies or resigns, their Vice-President becomes the new President. And if the Vice President cannot serve, then the Speaker of the House becomes President. But if they all die at the same time, who gets to be president?
This nightmare scenario is the premise of the TV show Designated Survivor. At least for the first season. But it’s not just a Hollywood speculation. The Designated Survivor is a real thing. Ever since the era of the Cold War, when it became a possibility for a nuclear attack to wipe out that many people at once, the government created a designated survivor system as a contingency. If there were a mass casualty event that kills all those people, the Designated Survivor becomes president. The Designated Survivor does not attend the event, and thus they are safely far away from danger.
So, who gets to be Designated Survivor? Every single time there is a mass gathering of government officials, like the State of the Union or the Inauguration, the President chooses a person for this role. Usually it is a member of his cabinet. The House and Senate also designate one person from each of their chambers to be a designated survivor for their chambers. These three people are sequestered in a safe location until the event is concluded.
What about in ancient Israel? Who gets to be king when the current king dies? And what if not only the king, but his successors die at the same time? As we learned last week when Kirk Marks blogged through 1st Samuel chapters 28-30, Israel is facing a serious threat. The much larger Philistine military is about to invade Israel, and King Saul panics. Through a diviner, he speaks to the ghost of the prophet Samuel who tells Saul that not only will Israel lose that battle, Saul will lose his life. The Philistines will win a major victory, and Israel will be without a leader. Who gets to be leader then? Will a family member of King Saul? As we’re about to find out, Samuel’s prophecy is fulfilled when not only Saul, but three of his sons are killed in battle. Who will become king? Saul had other sons and daughters. David used to be married to one, Michal. Will she become queen? And what about David? He’s already been anointed by God to be the next king. But David is living in Philistine territory.
Succession can be a very messy business if it is not spelled out before the succession needs to take place. For Israel, succession is about to get very complicated. This week, I’ll be blogging through 1st Samuel chapter 31 through 2nd Samuel 2, verse 7. We’ll observe a leadership vacuum, a leadership transition, and the difficulty of honoring leaders when they are dishonorable. I’m guessing you’ve interacted with some leaders who have been distasteful to you. Obviously, politicians come to mind. But it could a boss, a coach, a teacher, a parent. How do you honor the dishonorable? Join us on the blog next week as we learn some principles that will help us honor the dishonorable.
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
Engaging Scripture 