What are you waiting for? On the blog we have been studying the life of ancient Israel’s great king, David, through the Hebrew Bible’s books of 1st and 2nd Samuel. We met David is 1st Samuel chapter 16 when God sent the prophet Samuel on a secret mission to anoint David to be the next king of all Israel. Since that time at least ten years have gone by. Maybe more. We don’t know for sure. But David is still not king of all Israel. After an astounding amount of drama in his life, David is finally king of his own tribe, Judah. Will he ever become king of all Israel? Maybe you know the feeling of waiting. What are you waiting for? What we see in the life of David is not perfection, but we do see a man who knows how to wait on God.
Last week we learned that Israel was in the middle of a civil war. On one side is the tribe of Judah, with David as their king. On the other side are eleven tribes, with Ish-Bosheth as their king. One versus eleven. That might not seem like a fair fight, but the one tribe, David’s tribe of Judah is winning! To make matters worse for the eleven tribes, their king Ish-Bosheth angered his top commander Abner. Ish-Bosheth’s was not just a little offense. Abner is so angry he says to Ish-Bosheth, “I am going to convince the eleven tribes to defect and go over to David.”
Abner was angry, and he meant what he said. He first met with the elders of the eleven tribes, proposed his plan, and they agreed. Then he brought the plan to David, and David agreed. Abner and David held a feast to celebrate. But just as it seemed that the deal was locked in, it fell apart. The commander of David’s army, Joab, killed Abner.
Why would Joab do this when they were about to sign a treaty? Abner in an earlier battle had killed Joab’s brother, so Joab was now getting revenge. Suddenly the peace process was in jeopardy. David quickly took extreme action, fasting and publicly condemning Joab. David was desperate to avoid an explosion of chaos between the two sides. 2nd Samuel chapter four begins right at that moment, when it seems that David has calmed things down.
We’re going to start our study of 2nd Samuel chapter four with verse 4. We’ll get back to verse 1 soon. But there is a reason I think it appropriate for us to start at verse 4. Some Bibles put this verse in parentheses, because it interrupts the flow of the story which begins at verse 4. But verse 4 has important info that we will need. In verse 4 we read about Israel’s former king, Saul, and his son Jonathan. They were both killed in battle (see 1st Samuel 31). Jonathan was also David’s best friend. Now we learn that Jonathan had a son named Mephibosheth. Mephibosheth was five years old when his dad, Jonathan, was killed. Why is the author telling us this? It seems to come out of the blue.
The author of the story likely wants us to see that there are no other heirs to the throne of the eleven tribes of Israel. It is either the current king Ish-Bosheth or his nephew Mephibosheth. But Mephibosheth is still young. Yes, time has passed, and he is not five anymore. Still, Mephibosheth is now probably only between ten to twelve years old here in 2nd Samuel chapter 4. Simply put, Mephibosheth is not ready to rule as king. Also, he is permanently disabled. In that culture, these two factors would preclude him from taking the throne. In our culture, a person with a lame leg would still be able to serve in all levels of politics. Our US president during World War 2, Franklin Roosevelt, used a wheelchair, for example. But in that culture, kings were expected to join their military in battle from time to time. Mephibosheth cannot serve, therefore, much in the same way that a person who needs corrective lenses cannot be a fighter pilot in our day.
So keep that parenthetical description in mind: Mephibosheth, the only other heir to the throne of Israel, cannot serve as king. Now back to verses 1-8. Let me summarize them. In 2nd Samuel chapter 4, verses one through eight, we read about an assassination attempt against King Ish-Bosheth, the king of the eleven tribes of Israel who are fighting David’s tribe. The assassins, Rekab and Baanah, stab Ish-Bosheth in this sleep and they kill him. Then they cut off his head and bring his head to David. They are so proud of themselves. They declare that through their actions, God has avenged David. Really? This was God at work? Should they be so confident? How will David view this situation?
When I was fifteen years old, like most of my peers, I wanted my driver’s license so badly. It seemed like it took forever to turn sixteen. When my wife Michelle and I got engaged, our wedding day was about nine months away, an impossibly long time. When we discovered that Michelle was pregnant with our first child, that was another nine months. When we were approved by a mission agency to be missionaries in Jamaica, it took three years for God to raise support so we could move there. When I started seminary, earning those 90 credits was an eight-year process that never seemed to end.
I could go on and on with more personal examples of waiting. As Tom Petty sang, “the waiting is the hardest part.” When my son was in the military, he learned the phrase “hurry up and wait,” seemingly one of the US Army’s foundational principles. We contemporary Americans can really struggle with waiting of any kind. Maybe you know the feeling. What are you waiting for?
In our blog series about the Life of David, studying the Old Testament books of 1st and 2nd Samuel, David has been waiting a long time for God to fulfill his promise to David. In 1st Samuel chapter 16, though he was just a young man, maybe even a teenager, God, through the prophet Samuel, anointed David to be the next king of Israel. Since that episode, we have followed the many detours in David’s journey to the throne. All told, David has been waiting for at least ten years. Likely longer. After King Saul died (1stSamuel 31), David is finally made king, but only over his own tribe of Judah (2nd Samuel 2). Civil war broke out between Judah and the other eleven tribes, who installed Saul’s son, Ish-Bosheth, as their king. Imagine how David felt being so close to enjoying the fulfillment of God’s promise, but still having to wait.
Maybe you’ve experienced something like that too. You are waiting so long, and you come so close to the end of the wait. But you’re not quite there. You can start to wonder what role, if any, God is playing in this situation. Does he not know how terrible it feels to wait? Does he care? You’ve likely prayed a lot. Why isn’t he answer? Waiting can be so frustrating. When we waiting, and we feel as though the wait is taking too long, we can get so frustrated that we take matters into our own hands. Often we’re sick and tired of waiting, and we attempt to make something happen, anything. Sometimes, maybe that helps. Sometimes we can make things worse.
This week on the blog, as we study 2nd Samuel chapters 4 and 5, we’re going to watch David do more waiting. How will he wait? When you’re waiting, struggling, what do you do? What is the right way to wait? Is there a wrong way?
This week on the blog, we’ve been studying the tragic events of a civil war in ancient Israel, and of palace intrigue that led to murder. Think about the numerous themes in these chapters. Weak versus strong leadership. The downfall brought about by fear and jealousy. Of course, lying, deceit and murder.
What we don’t see in these chapters is godly sorrow, except in David who wasn’t the one who committed the lying, deceit and murder. Yet, David himself is not blameless, is he? The author of 1st and 2nd Samuel has been laying the narrative groundwork for David’s most well-known sin, which we will get to in a few weeks. That groundwork has everything to do with David’s unchecked lust for women. So far we have seen that he had six wives, and he made a peace deal contingent on getting back his first wife.
It is a messy, messy story. And that messiness makes the story sound…normal. Yes, normal. I know the story is very dramatic. But also normal. We’ve read about normal people acting the way people act. We humans normally choose to think, talk and act in ways that are contrary to the heart and ways of God. We become jealous. We fixate on our desires, plans and paths, sometimes ignoring or simply being oblivious to how we are affecting others.
Think about the humanness of the people in this story.
Abner kills Asahel in battle (likely in self-defense?). He installs Ish-Bosheth as king, but when Ish-Bosheth shames Abner, Abner orchestrates a coup.
Joab is vengeful and murderous. He refuses to believe Abner’s peace deal, and instead kills Abner.
David is lustful and greedy.
Thankfully, there are some redeeming qualities in David we can focus on. David desires peace between the tribes of Israel. David expresses godly sorrow over the death of Abner, even though David had nothing to do with it. David clearly calls out Joab’s sin, and asks God to deal with it. But let’s focus on David’s godly sorrow.
What is godly sorrow? In 2 Corinthians 7, verses 8-11, the apostle Paul writes,
“Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it—I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while—yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.”
Godly sorrow is vital for disciples of Jesus. Godly sorrow is a quickness to demonstrate humble self-reflection that strongly desires to make things right. Godly sorrow trusts in God’s love for us, saying, “I messed up, I was wrong, but I know that God loves me, and forgives me, so I will clearly declare to all involved that I was wrong, and then I will work to make things right.” Godly sorrow does not avoid, or push people away, or deny, or ignore.
Godly sorrow repents. Repentance is word that goes beyond feeling sorrow in our minds or emotions. As Paul describes in this passage, repentance works hard to restore and heal and reconcile. Repentance is a physical 180 degree turn of thought and life. Repentance brings justice and flourishing after one has chosen pain and hurt and sin. When we practice godly sorrow, we break down the walls of pride and coldness and fear, and we trust in God’s love for us, so that we can strive towards healing.
What I have noticed, sometimes in others and sometimes in myself, is that pride, bitterness, and coldness can become a habit. Almost like a shield that we wrap around us, to protect ourselves, even if we are the ones who have hurt people. What I’m suggesting is that in the story of 2nd Samuel 2:9—3:39, though he has a messy side, David was also a man after God’s own heart who was willing to be vulnerable and sorrowful and take significant action in response to evil and wickedness. There is a real sense in this story that David has godly sorrow on behalf of those who did not, Joab, and David’s selfless godly sorrow is what leads to peace.
But don’t let others have godly sorrow for you. Practice godly sorrow yourself. Who do you need to reconcile with? Who do you need to let down your guard with? Who do you need to apologize to?
Where do you need more humility and less pride in your interactions? Ask God to show you areas of your heart, mind and attitude where there is any bitterness and hardness. Where you are getting offended quickly.
Those attitudes and actions quite often stick with us because of hurt that has not been healed. So the hurt remains and causes pain for yourself and others.
Take that hurt, bitterness, anger, and hard heart to God. Repent. Let yourself feel the sorrow of the circumstance, including the sorrow of your part in it, as well as the sin you carried. Ask God for his presence and healing and change. It’s sometimes difficult to have godly sorrow, but it is also how healing and reconciliation begin.
let’s think about the numerous themes in these chapters. Weak versus strong leadership. The downfall brought about by fear and jealousy. Of course, lying, deceit and murder. What we don’t see in these chapters is godly sorrow, except in David, who didn’t commit the lying, deceit and murder. Yet, David himself is not blameless, is he? The author of the story has been laying the narrative groundwork for David’s most well-known sin, which we will get to in a few weeks. That groundwork has everything to do with David’s unchecked lust for women. Today we have seen that he now has six wives, and he makes a peace deal contingent on getting back his first wife.
It is a messy, messy story. And that messiness makes the story sound…normal. Yes, normal. I know the story is very dramatic. But also normal. We’re faced with normal people acting the way people act. We humans normally choose to think, talk and act in ways that are contrary to the heart and ways of God. We have jealousy. We fixate on our desires, plans and paths, sometimes ignoring or oblivious to how we are affecting others.
Think about the humanness of the people in this story.
Abner was clearly power-hungry. He installs Ish-Bosheth as king. Abner orchestrates a coup.
Joab is vengeful and murderous. He refuses to believe Abner’s peace deal, and instead kills Abner.
David is lustful and greedy. But thankfully, there are some redeeming qualities in David we can focus on. David desires peace between the tribes of Israel. David expresses godly sorrow over the death of Abner, even though David had nothing to do with it. David clearly calls out Joab’s sin, and asks God to deal with it. But let’s focus on David’s godly sorrow.
What is godly sorrow? In 2 Corinthians 7, verses 8-11,
“Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it—I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while—yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.”
Godly sorrow is vital for disciples of Jesus. Godly sorrow is a quickness to humble self-reflection that strongly desires to make things right. Godly sorrow trusts in God’s love for us, and so is willing to say, “I messed up, I was wrong, but I know that God loves me, and forgives me, so I will clearly declare to all involved that I was wrong, and then I will work to make things right.” Godly sorrow does not avoid, or push people away, or deny, or ignore.
Godly sorrow repents. Repentance is word that goes beyond feeling sorrow in our minds or emotions. As Paul describes in this passage, repentance works hard to restore and heal and reconcile. Repentance is a physical 180 degree turn of thought and life. Repentance brings justice and flourishing after one has chosen pain and hurt and sin. When we practice godly sorrow, we break down the walls of pride and coldness and fear, and we trust in God’s love for us, so that we can strive towards healing.
What I have noticed, sometimes in others and sometimes in myself, is that pride, and bitterness and coldness can become a habit. Almost like a shield that we wrap around us, to protect ourselves, even if we are the ones who have hurt people. What I’m suggesting is that David, in this story, though he has a messy side, was also a man after God’s own heart who was willing to be vulnerable and sorrowful and take significant action in response to evil and wickedness. There is a real sense in this story that David has godly sorrow on behalf of those who did not, Joab, and David’s selfless godly sorrow is what leads to peace.
But don’t let others have godly sorrow for you. Practice godly sorrow yourself. Who do you need to reconcile with? Who do you need to let down your guard with? Who do you need to apologize to?
Where do you need more humility and less pride in your interactions? Ask God to show you areas of your heart, mind and attitude where there is any bitterness and hardness. Where you are getting offended quickly.
Those attitudes and actions quite often stick with us because of hurt that has not been healed. So the hurt remains and causes pain for yourself and others.
Take that hurt, bitterness, anger and hard heart to God. Repent. Let yourself feel the sorrow of the circumstance, including the sorrow of your part in it, as well as the sin you carried. Ask God for his presence and healing and change. It’s sometimes difficult to have godly sorrow, but it is also how healing and reconciliation begins.
let’s think about the numerous themes in these chapters. Weak versus strong leadership. The downfall brought about by fear and jealousy. Of course, lying, deceit and murder. What we don’t see in these chapters is godly sorrow, except in David, who didn’t commit the lying, deceit and murder. Yet, David himself is not blameless, is he? The author of the story has been laying the narrative groundwork for David’s most well-known sin, which we will get to in a few weeks. That groundwork has everything to do with David’s unchecked lust for women. Today we have seen that he now has six wives, and he makes a peace deal contingent on getting back his first wife.
It is a messy, messy story. And that messiness makes the story sound…normal. Yes, normal. I know the story is very dramatic. But also normal. We’re faced with normal people acting the way people act. We humans normally choose to think, talk and act in ways that are contrary to the heart and ways of God. We have jealousy. We fixate on our desires, plans and paths, sometimes ignoring or oblivious to how we are affecting others.
Think about the humanness of the people in this story.
Abner was clearly power-hungry. He installs Ish-Bosheth as king. Abner orchestrates a coup.
Joab is vengeful and murderous. He refuses to believe Abner’s peace deal, and instead kills Abner.
David is lustful and greedy. But thankfully, there are some redeeming qualities in David we can focus on. David desires peace between the tribes of Israel. David expresses godly sorrow over the death of Abner, even though David had nothing to do with it. David clearly calls out Joab’s sin, and asks God to deal with it. But let’s focus on David’s godly sorrow.
What is godly sorrow? In 2 Corinthians 7, verses 8-11,
“Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it—I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while—yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.”
Godly sorrow is vital for disciples of Jesus. Godly sorrow is a quickness to humble self-reflection that strongly desires to make things right. Godly sorrow trusts in God’s love for us, and so is willing to say, “I messed up, I was wrong, but I know that God loves me, and forgives me, so I will clearly declare to all involved that I was wrong, and then I will work to make things right.” Godly sorrow does not avoid, or push people away, or deny, or ignore.
Godly sorrow repents. Repentance is word that goes beyond feeling sorrow in our minds or emotions. As Paul describes in this passage, repentance works hard to restore and heal and reconcile. Repentance is a physical 180 degree turn of thought and life. Repentance brings justice and flourishing after one has chosen pain and hurt and sin. When we practice godly sorrow, we break down the walls of pride and coldness and fear, and we trust in God’s love for us, so that we can strive towards healing.
What I have noticed, sometimes in others and sometimes in myself, is that pride, and bitterness and coldness can become a habit. Almost like a shield that we wrap around us, to protect ourselves, even if we are the ones who have hurt people. What I’m suggesting is that David, in this story, though he has a messy side, was also a man after God’s own heart who was willing to be vulnerable and sorrowful and take significant action in response to evil and wickedness. There is a real sense in this story that David has godly sorrow on behalf of those who did not, Joab, and David’s selfless godly sorrow is what leads to peace.
But don’t let others have godly sorrow for you. Practice godly sorrow yourself. Who do you need to reconcile with? Who do you need to let down your guard with? Who do you need to apologize to?
Where do you need more humility and less pride in your interactions? Ask God to show you areas of your heart, mind and attitude where there is any bitterness and hardness. Where you are getting offended quickly.
Those attitudes and actions quite often stick with us because of hurt that has not been healed. So the hurt remains and causes pain for yourself and others.
Take that hurt, bitterness, anger and hard heart to God. Repent. Let yourself feel the sorrow of the circumstance, including the sorrow of your part in it, as well as the sin you carried. Ask God for his presence and healing and change. It’s sometimes difficult to have godly sorrow, but it is also how healing and reconciliation begins.
Civil war has torn Israel apart. David is king of the tribe of Judah. Ish-Bosheth is king of the other eleven tribes of Israel. It is one versus eleven. Though David’s side is only one tribe, they are beating the other eleven. To make matters worse for the eleven tribes, their king, Ish-Bosheth, makes a serious mistake. He accuses his top general, Abner, of impropriety, and Abner lashes back at Ish-Bosheth, threatening to defect to David and bring the eleven tribes with him. Abner makes good on his word, meeting first with the elders of the eleven tribes and then with David, brokering the deal. Finally the civil war is about to end.
Suddenly everything changes. In 2nd Samuel chapter 3, verses 22-25, David’s top general, Joab, returns from battle. When Joab finds out that David has just met with Abner, Joab can’t believe it. He confronts David, “You can’t be serious. You’re making a deal with the enemy? Abner is lying to you!”
Joab’s logic makes sense. Abner’s plan for peace could be a ruse to take David down. Is David getting taken? Maybe Joab is providing a helpful corrective. Or he just might be angry. Remember that Abner killed Joab’s brother in the opening battle of the civil war (read post here). Joab now takes matters into his own hands. 2 Samuel chapter 3, verses 26-27 describe a tragedy,
“Joab then left David and sent messengers after Abner, and they brought him back from the cistern at Sirah. But David did not know it. Now when Abner returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside into an inner chamber, as if to speak with him privately. And there, to avenge the blood of his brother Asahel, Joab stabbed him in the stomach, and he died.”
Not Abner, but Joab turns out to be the sneaky one. You might think, “Wait a minute, why would Abner have ever agreed to this private meeting with Joab? Abner had killed Joab’s brother. How did Abner not see this trap?” Remember when Joab’s brother, Asahel, was chasing Abner in the middle of battle, a chase which ended when Abner killed Asahel? With Asahel fiercly running after him, Abner called back to Asahel, “If I kill you, I won’t be able to look your brother Joab in the face?” Well now Abner is looking Joab in the face. Shouldn’t Abner at least be on yellow alert?
Maybe Abner let his guard down, agreeing to meet Joab thinking, “I just came from a great meeting with David, and we talked about peacefully uniting the country behind David. David must have sent Joab to reach out to me so we can work out details for the transition.” Abner might have assumed Joab wanted to talk military operations, chain of command, etc.
Except that Joab has not gotten over Abner’s killing of Asahel. Abner could say, “I didn’t want to kill your brother! I tried to get him to stop. The action was in self-defense.” Joab is not of a mind to hear any excuse. Joab stabs Abner in the stomach, as Abner did to Asahel. Abner dies, and just like that, the peace process is in jeopardy. If you were David, what would you do when you found out about Joab’s murder of Abner?
When David finds out, it wrecks him. Let me summarize 2nd Samuel 3, verses 28-39. David was planning a peaceful transition of power. But Joab has ruined the peace process, and potentially made the civil war worse than before. So David takes great pains to make it very clear that he had no part in this, and that Joab is to blame. David publicly accuses Joab, David fasts and laments, inviting the people to join him. David participates in Abner’s funeral processing, weeping. He is so distraught, the people plead with him to resume eating.
It seems that David is striving to make peace out of a situation that was about ready to explode into more war. And it works. David’s decision to fast, to not eat, to mourn the loss of Abner, helps all the people see that David really wants to handle this delicate situation with wisdom.
David even admits to his men, that the sons of Zeruiah, which is Joab and his brother are in his words “too strong for me.” I wonder how deeply David believed that. David is dealing with a complex situation. What do you do when headstrong people take action they believe is justified, but that action is so wrong?
Maybe David is a good example for us. David is not quiet in declaring Joab wicked and evil. David publicly calls out to the Lord to repay the evildoer. But David himself doesn’t punish Joab. Is David cowardly? Or wise? I’m iffy that David is being wise here. Here’s why: Joab will continue as the commander of David’s military, and throughout the rest of the series, we will hear about Joab many more times. Sadly, Joab, who David let get away with murder, will commit murder again.
In the end, David will never forget what Joab did when he killed Abner. How do we know David will never forget? Thirty-three years later, at the end of his life when he is transferring the throne to his son Solomon, David will remind Solomon that Joab murdered Abner, and ask Solomon to deal with Joab. What will Solomon do? That’s a story for another day.
For now, David’s response to Joab is a mixed bag. He clearly and publicly calls out Joab’s sin, asking God to deal with Joab. That is very courageous of David, and very bold. It must have shamed Joab. But David doesn’t enact any consequences beyond shame. Joab remains in his role as commander of the Army.
In my opinion, it is very difficult to hold two biblical principles in tension: 1. Love covers a multitude of sins, and 2. Speak the truth in love. To put it another way, it is the tension between grace and law. But we Christians do well to hold grace and law in tension. We need both. Perhaps David is a good example for us. What do you think?
In the previous post, Abner, the top general of the eleven tribes of Israel, has just been dishonored and shamed by his king, Ish-Bosheth. Deeply angered, Abner not only threatens to reach out to David, who is now king of the other tribe Judah, but also Abner begins organizing a massive defection to David. How will David react? In 2nd Samuel chapter 3, verse 13, we read David’s response to Abner.
“‘Good,’ said David. ‘I will make an agreement with you. But I demand one thing of you: Do not come into my presence unless you bring Michal daughter of Saul when you come to see me.’ Then David sent messengers to Ish-Bosheth son of Saul, demanding, ‘Give me my wife Michal, whom I betrothed to myself for the price of a hundred Philistine foreskins.’ So Ish-Bosheth gave orders and had her taken away from her husband Paltiel son of Laish. Her husband, however, went with her, weeping behind her all the way to Bahurim. Then Abner said to him, ‘Go back home!’ So he went back.”
As we learned in the previous post, David practices polygamy. Why does David need more women? He doesn’t! But this woman is well-known to David. David is asking for his first wife, Michal, to be returned to him. Remember Michal? She loved David. She helped David escape from Saul’s house when Saul started hunting David. Saul, in retaliation, orchestrated a forced divorce between David and Michal, and Saul gave Michal to another man. Now David wants her back. David is not wrong. Michal is rightfully his wife.
Yet here again, I believe we are getting a sense of David’s poor approach to women and marriage. Why can’t he let Michal just be with her new husband? Or at least give her the choice? What about what she wants? She was with her new husband likely longer than she was with David. And furthermore, David has six other wives. Why does he have to break up Michal’s new family? David doesn’t have to break up Michal and her new husband. But he chooses to anyway. Why? Arrogance? Pride? Honor? What is going on in David’s heart and mind here? We don’t know.
We read in those verses that Ish-Bosheth approves the forcible taking of Michal. It goes to show that Abner is serious about defecting. David had told Abner, “Bring me Michal,” as a kind of pledge that Abner was true to his word.” Abner brings Michal.
It’s also a very sad story, as her husband is weeping when Abner comes to take Michal away. That had to be an awful situation.
With Michal in hand, I’m going to summarize verses 17-21, which describe what happens next. Abner, the general who had installed Saul’s son as king of the eleven tribes, now goes to the elders of Israel, trying to convince them that they should make David king of all Israel. Abner also speaks personally to the tribe of Benjamin, which is Ish-Bosheth’s tribe. Finally, Abner reports to David that all Israel is going to make David king. Abner and David feast together, then depart. Abner seems to have fully turned his back on Ish-Bosheth.
Is this for real? Is Abner powerful enough to convince everyone? Is he working for peace? Could Israel truly become unified and put an end to war? It seems like Abner is making it happening.
Then suddenly everything changes. We’ll learn how in the next post.
We resume the story of civil war in Israel from the previous post. The story in 2nd Samuel chapter 2 is one of a fierce battle between the single tribe, Judah, and the other eleven tribes of Israel. Azahel of Judah is chasing down the top general of the army of Israel, Abner. Abner calls back to Asahel, asking him to stop. Abner doesn’t want to fight Asahel because until recently, before civil war split them on opposite sides, Abner had commanded the military alongside Asahel and Asahel’s brother Joab. But no longer. War has changed everything. Asahel wants to take Abner down. Abner seems to think he has no other choice but to strike Asahel with his spear, and he kills Asahel.
How will Asahel’s brother, Joab, react? Just as you would expect. War can turn friends into enemies so fast. The account tells us that Joab rounds up soldiers to attack Abner.
Surprisingly, even though Ish-Bosheth’s army, the army of the eleven tribes led by Abner, is getting beaten badly by David’s army of Judah, led by Joab, Abner is able to broker a cease fire. Though Joab is incensed because Abner killed his brother, Joab calls off the fight? Why? Probably because Abner got to high ground first. In warfare, the high ground is where you want to be. Abner gets there first, and Joab likely thinks, “If we try to take Abner out, we are going to face massive losses, because Abner has a significant advantage on the high ground.” Joab wisely doesn’t want to sacrifice his men, so he accepts Abner’s ceasefire proposal.
At the end of day, when the armies retreat, the final tally is that David and Joab’s side have lost 19, while Ish-Bosheth and Abner’s side have lost 360 soldiers. With the cease fire, though, there is peace. For now. This civil war has just begun. As we continue following the story of the civil war into chapter 3, verse 1 tells us, the momentum is going David’s way.
After so many years of frustration and discouragement, after being on the run, hunted by Saul, David is once again seeing his fortunes rise. The narrator of the story gives another indication of David’s growing stature in chapter 3, verses 1-5, where we read that David has six sons, born to him by six different women.
This list is an ancient way of describing David’s strength and power. In that ancient culture, lots of wives and sons was considered to be a clear indication that the man was favored by the gods. But what did YHWH, the one true God of Israel, think about David’s practice of polygamy? We get no comment at this point in 2nd Samuel about God’s opinion. Sometimes silence is consent. But God has not been silent on this matter.
Think back to Genesis chapter 2, where God describes his heart for marriage. One man and one woman become one flesh. That’s God’s vision for human marriage. David is not keeping to God’s heart for marriage. Thus we can make a viable guess that God was not happy about David’s polygamy. Furthermore, David’s immoral approach to women will lead him to make terrible choices in the future, because there will be even more women. For now, let’s keep reading what happens in the civil war.
In 2 Samuel chapter 3, verse 6, King Ish-Bosheth of the eleven tribes of Israel is watching as his general, Abner, is growing in stature and power. We learn that Ish-Bosheth is an apple that didn’t fall far from the tree. He is like his father, Saul. Suspicious. Jealous. So Ish-Bosheth accuses Abner of sleeping with one of Ish-Bosheth’s father, Saul’s, concubines.
What is a concubine? There are differences of opinion among scholars about concubines. Some see the concubines as a second-class wife. Others see concubines as more like sexual slaves. When Saul died, it would have been customary for his concubines to become the property of his next of kin, which was his son Ish-Bosheth. So if Abner, who was not a relative of Saul, slept with one of those concubines, it the same as Abner saying, “I am making a claim to be king. I should be king.”
We don’t know whether Ish-Bosheth’s accusation that Abner slept with Saul’s concubine is true or false. Could be that Ish-Bosheth heard a rumor, could be that he made up a lie. Could be that he saw Abner strengthening his position and feared that Abner wanted to usurp the throne. So Ish-Bosheth came up with a plan to knock Abner down a peg. Perhaps he hoped to throw Abner in prison or kill him.
How will Abner react? This is a super intense moments. You have the king who seems a bit weak and scared. You have a powerful bold general. They are facing off. Staring each other down. Abner was the one who installed Ish-Bosheth as king. Will he respect Ish-Bosheth?
In verse 8, Abner shoots right back at Ish-Bosheth, “So after all I have done for your father and for you, this is how you repay me, with an accusation of impropriety? I’m done with you. Watch. I’m going to hand the kingdom to David, just like God long ago declared was going to happen.” Abner’s response probably just made Ish-Bosheth ten times more nervous than the already was.
If you are Ish-Bosheth, what do you do? You’ve just had your top general and one of your biggest supporters threaten to take you down. To your face. Makes me wonder if anyone else heard Abner’s threat. Or were they in a private meeting? If it was a private meeting, Ish-Bosheth could save face, not tell anyone, and wonder if Abner was just upset. He could think, “Abner won’t really hand over the kingdom to David.”
We read next in verse 11 that, “Ish-Bosheth did not dare to say another word to Abner, because he was afraid of him.” It seems that Ish-Bosheth was like his father in one way, the jealousy, but very different from his father in another way, the viciousness. From what we know of Saul, I suspect Saul would have killed or imprisoned Abner. Ish-Bosheth, however, does nothing.
But what about Abner? Does Abner actually try to hand the kingdom over to David? Here’s the answer in 2 Samuel chapter 3, verse 12,
“Then Abner sent messengers on his behalf to say to David, ‘Whose land is it? Make an agreement with me, and I will help you bring all Israel over to you.’”
Abner has been dishonored and shamed by Ish-Bosheth, and he makes good on his threat to reach out to David and organize a massive defection to David.
How will David react? We find out in the next post.
Have you ever been playing the game of Risk, when you had a much larger army than another player, so you attack them? You are very confident that you will defeat them. Even if they roll well, you will win a war of attrition. But then it happens. They roll sixes over and over, slowly whittling down your army, and eventually, they successfully defend their territory and you call off the incursion. Super frustrating, isn’t it?
As we continue the story of the life of David, a scenario like that will happen. It will be a smaller military facing a larger force. Who has the large military that won’t do so well? Who has the smaller victorious one? Let’s find out.
When we left David last week, he had just been made King of his tribe, Judah. When Saul was king, he ruled over all 12 tribes of Israel. So why isn’t David made king of the other 11 tribes? In 2 Samuel chapter 2, verse 8 and following we learn that even though Saul and his three oldest sons were killed in battle, Saul had more kids who could become king. Next in line was Ish-Bosheth, and Saul’s military commander named Abner takes charge, installing Ish-Bosheth as king of the other 11 tribes of Israel.
Unity in Israel has now been broken. On one side is the tribe of Judah, with David as their king. On the other side are the 11 tribes with Ish-Bosheth as their king.
Think about this scenario a moment. What Judah did by making David king was revolutionary. I mean that in the true sense of the word. Judah revolted against the other 11 tribes. Judah did not wait for a national consensus on who should be the next king of all Israel. Judah did not follow the cultural practice of primogenitor, which says that a king’s next of kin becomes the next king. Judah took matters into their own hands and made David their king. But in the other 11 tribes, Abner follows the law of primogenitor, and he installs Saul’s son, Ish-Bosheth, as the king of the 11 tribes.
This is an honor and shame culture, and what Judah did by installing David as their king is major act of shame and dishonor toward the other 11 tribes. It would be totally normal, then, for those 11 tribes to not only install the person they believe to be the rightful king, but also to defend their honor. Can the 11 tribes allow the 1 tribe to just rebel without any response? You can imagine the tension between the tribes is crackling. I also suspect you will not be surprised at what happens next.
War breaks out between Judah and Israel. It is another instance of ancient representative warfare. We heard about represntative warfare in 1st Samuel 17, when the armies of Philistia and Israel were facing off against each other. Instead of both armies fighting a war with a high body count, the Philistine giant Goliath would walk out into the space between the armies and challenge any Israelite soldier to a fight. Winner takes all. The Israelite soldiers were scared to death of Goliath. No one would accept the challenge. No one, that is, until David came along with his slingshot and took Goliath down. Now, many years later, we have another representative battle. This time it is between the Israelite tribe of Judah, David’s men, led by the commander Joab, versus the other 11 tribes of Israel, Ish-Bosheth’s men, led by their commander Abner.
The representative battle will work differently this time: twelve men from each side will fight hand to hand. Winner takes all. Shockingly, all twenty-four men use the same approach and quickly kill each other. Suddenly, war breaks out involving both armies. In the end, the men of Judah, David’s men, are victorious. Like the improbably Risk scenario, one tribe beats eleven tribes. Though we don’t know how many soldiers were involved, it is reasonable to believe that the eleven tribes had more soldiers than just one tribe. Still, that one tribe is the victor.
Here’s another unique feature of this battle. Until just recently, many of these soldiers would have been on the same side. When Ish-Bosheth’s father, Saul, was king, he was king over all 12 tribes, including the tribe of Judah. After Saul dies and Judah makes David their king, there are now a bunch of soldiers in Judah’s army who used to be fighting for Saul. Like Abner and Joab. They were on the same team only a short time before this.
Here in 2 Samuel chapter 2, then, when war breaks out between Judah and the rest of Israel, it is a battle between soldiers who used to be on the same team. Imagine that. It sounds a lot like what happened in our own US Civil War, when some family members were split between North and South and had to fight against each other.
As we continue reading, the story focuses on the two generals, Abner and Joab. David’s commander, Joab, has a brother Asahel who is a fast runner. In the middle of the battle, Asahel wants the top prize. He wants to get the other general, Abner. It doesn’t matter to Asahel that these men used to be friends. The civil war has pitted them against each other, on opposite sides. He wants to kill Abner. He wants to known as the guy who took down the opposing general.
It does matter to Abner, however, that these used to be friends. While Asahel is chasing his, Abner yells back to him, “Asahel, stop chasing me! I don’t want this to come to blows. I could never face your brother.” Abner is concerned about his relationship with Joab, even though Joab’s brother Asahel is trying to kill Abner! You gotta respect Abner for trying to avoid conflict.
But Asahel has that prize in his mind. Azahel won’t give up, so Abner seems to think he has no other choice but to strike Asahel with his spear, and kill him. It is one of those sad, sad moments, when you know pain could have been avoided, should have been avoided, if the other person would just relent. But they don’t relent. The push and they push and they push, until horror cannot be avoided.
How will Joab react to Abner killing his brother? We find out in the next post.
Have you heard someone use that phrase? People say “sorry” and then in very quick succession, with no gap, they tack on “not sorry!” Almost like recruits at boot camp saying, “Sir, yes sir!” really fast. What do people mean when they say, “sorry, not sorry”? Are they sorry or are they not sorry?
When people say “sorry, not sorry,” they are in a situation when they are supposed to be sorry, and when it is customary to say sorry, but they are actually not sorry at all. It’s as though they are saying, “I’m going to say ‘sorry’ to abide by cultural expectations, but just like that I am also going to let you know that I am not actually sorry.”
“Sorry, not sorry” is often used in a humorous way, as people are boldly declaring that though they have done something that seems to be wrong, they are feeling just fine about it, and their “sorry, not sorry” might cause a giggle in response. Usually, people can only say “sorry, not sorry” when the offense they did is not too terrible. They know they can get away with being somewhat glib about it.
As we continue our study through the life of David, we are going to meet a man who is not sorry about what he did, and what he did was awful. In fact, what he did is so bad, it could throw the nation of Israel into chaos. Watching all this is David. How will he respond? What David chooses to do in this very tense moment is instructive for us. What does it mean to be truly sorry?
Join us on the blog next week the story of 2nd Samuel chapter 2, verse 8 through chapter 3, verse 39 will help us think about godly sorrow.
I have a TV show idea that I think would be a hit. I would call it The Padded Room. Here’s how it would work. The set would be a padded room filled with hidden cameras. Real people will volunteer to enter the room. Once inside, they cannot leave. They can’t get hurt because the walls and floor are padded and the ceiling is way too high to reach. Here’s the catch, participants stay in the padded room for as long as it takes. What does that mean, “As long as it takes”? As long as what takes? I’ll answer that in just a second.
Before I get to that, I need to tell you who will be in the padded room. Two people at a time: one politician from each of the USA’s two major political parties. No cell phones, no devices, no décor, nothing. They get food served through a hole, and there would be a system for a restroom. But the vast majority of the time is two people in a room, for as long as it takes. Until it happens. Until they let their guards down, and we get to see their humanity. Until they express their fears, their joy, their realness. Until they actually see each other as humans and honor one another.
Instead of the ridiculous televised debates candidates have, where they simply say the other person is horrible, and they talk over each other, claiming to be the only hope for all humankind. The Padded Room should replaces debates. Could you imagine Donald Trump and Kamala Harris in a padded room finally getting to a point of honor and respect for one another?
That’s on my mind because of the election season we are in here in the USA as I write this in September 2024. Bu The Padded Room could involve any two people who have different opinions, who seem unable to be civil or honorable to each other.
As I think about people with differing opinions and power dynamics, I think about what Paul writes in Romans 13, verses 1-7:
“Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience. This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.”
I am not saying that honoring leaders means avoiding speaking the truth. When we speak the truth to power, we do so with honor. Or as Paul writes in Ephesians 4:15, “speak the truth in love.” Honor doesn’t mean agreement. We can disagree honorably, though. With kindness, in love. We also show honor when we disagree with humility, leaving the door open for the possibility that we are wrong in how we have been viewing things. We might have built of months or even years of an impression about someone that they are awful people. There is almost always more to people than we realize. That leader you think is totally dishonorable, if you get to know them beyond a surface level, just might surprise you.
But we don’t need a padded room, do we? We can choose to be honorable, even to those who are not honorable. Who is that in your life? Who do you struggle with?
Is there someone in your life who you just don’t see eye-to-eye with, and you struggle to honor them? What can you do to honor them in your heart and your actions? It doesn’t mean you must be in agreement with them. You can have different viewpoints, but still be honorable. Honor doesn’t erase wrong or poor decisions, but it chooses to see the other person’s humanity.
Honor shows respect, listens attentively, gives special recognition, shows value for the other’s humanity. Ask to God to help you see the other person as he does, ask him to help you look for their humanity.
During the devastating war between Philistia and Israel (1 Samuel 31), King Saul and three of his sons were killed. There is now a vacuum of leadership in Israel. What happens to fill that vacuum?
In 2 Samuel chapter 2, verses 1-7, we learn that David finally becomes king! Well…kind of. David inquires of God, and God leads David to vacate the Philistine city of Ziklag and return to David’s tribal area of Judah. There his fellow Judeans make David king over their tribe.
But Judah is one tribe. There are 11 other tribes. When Saul was king, he ruled over all 12 tribes.
Do you see what has happened? The people of Israel have an interesting and tricky situation. They are 12 tribes. Their king is dead. One tribe takes action to anoint a king for that tribe, Judah. Will the other tribes follow suit? Will they have a whole bunch of kings? Will there be disunity? What about King Saul’s family? Yes, three of his sons were dead. But isn’t there a line of succession? Yes there is. It is called primogenitor, and it means that first the king’s sons become king, in order of oldest to youngest. If there are no sons, daughters would become queen, oldest to youngest. If there are no children, the line of successions would move to the kings siblings, and so on. Saul’s whole family was not destroyed in battle. Just Saul and three sons. There are others still alive! We find out about them in the next chapter, which we will study next week.
For now, I want us to think about how people honored their leaders in what we’ve studied this week in 1st Samuel 31 through 2nd Samuel 2, verse 7. Here in 2nd Samuel chapter 2, verses 5 through 7, David honors people who honored Saul. He thanks the people of Jabesh Gilead who recovered Saul’s corpse (see 1st Samuel 31, verses 11-13). In 2 Samuel chapter 1, verses 17-27, David’s lament for Saul and Jonathan, though I personally might be uncomfortable with it (which I discussed in the previous post), I have to hand it to David that his poem honors the leaders who have passed away.
Also, in 2 Samuel 1, verses 13-16, which we talked about in this post, David orders the capital punishment of the Amalekite who did not honor Saul as God’s anointed.
There is a persistent theme in these chapters: Honor leaders, even when they are not acting honorably. That is very appropriate for us today. We are being plastered with election commercials, phone calls, mailers and text messages. We might have strong opinions about the candidates. Our strong opinions can cause us to become dishonorable toward the candidates, and maybe dishonorably to those who like a different candidate than we do. No matter what it is about those candidates that causes us bitterness, we can remember that they are simply people like us, made in the image of God, valued by God, loved by God.
We should honor them as people loved by God, made in his image. We should pray for them. Hear what Paul writes about this in 1st Timothy 2:
“I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.…Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing.”
The same goes for bosses, teachers, coaches, church leaders. Some of you have leaders in your life who are difficult people. I, too, have had some leaders in my world that I thought were difficult. There have also been people I have led who thought I was difficult.
Honoring the dishonorable is difficult, especially when they are leaders with whom we must interact on a regular basis. To honor them, start by praying for them.
Engaging Scripture 