May 2023
REFLECTIONS ON LIFE IN THE PROMISED LAND
The Promised Land “reflections” 32
S a m u e l .. King David 1
Our reading this week informs us of a 3 year famine in the land. King David probably related that to events which had recently happened. So he enquired of the Lord so that he could understand (Chapter 21). The Lord told him that it related to an unresolved incident, which does not fit sequentially with the narrative here. It describes the Lord’s judgment on Israel for a failure on the part of king Saul (long dead). It also is demonstrative of God’s righteousness regarding covenants and promises of protection made to the Gibeonites many years earlier. It illustrates that God is a promise keeper, and, once again, provides a reminder that God is not to be trifled with.
It appears that this put David into a contemplative mindset. He immediately (Chapter 22) thought about how the Lord had delivered him, many times, from the spiteful and dangerous hand of king Saul. Those who appreciate the days of “Scripture in song” not many years ago, will recognise the beauty, the sincerity, and the truth of David’s words. “The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; …. my shield … my stronghold … my refuge … my Saviour.” And who could ever forget that stirring song of praise “I will call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies.” And more, as God filled his heart and his spirit with praise and thanksgiving. All the characteristics which we like to recall when we think of this man after God’s own heart. “God is my strength and power, and He makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of deer, and sets me on my high places.” On and on it goes. take time to read, and bask in, the outpouring of wonder, and gratitude and love from David’s lips.
Chapter 23 of our text says “Now these are the last words of David”. Clearly, that is reference to his last literary contribution. He certainly was not struck dumb at this time ! And what David wrote here are words of wisdom which David had not always adhered to. “He who rules over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God” David was acutely aware of his failings in this regard. But he also had knowledge that God had made what he considered a covenant with him. “Although my house is not so with God, yet He has made with me an everlasting covenant.” (Read 2 Sam 7: 12-16). That would in part be fulfilled by the appointment of Solomon to succeed him, but goes way beyond that, and into a future date, when Yeshua will take His place on the throne and rule “with a rod of iron” from Jerusalem as King of kings, and Lord of lords. David also takes time to remember the names and acts of “mighty men” whom the Lord had given to assist David in the task the Lord had assigned to him. It is noteworthy that the last named in this list was “Uriah the Hittite” who David had so grievously harmed, and whose death, and the manner of it, had brought upon David the situation he now was in with “the sword never departing from his house”.
“Again the anger of the Lord was aroused against Israel, and He moved David against them to say ‘Go, number Israel and Judah’.” It may be a bit of a mystery to us to find out what the fuss was about, and why was the anger of the Lord aroused again so soon after the 3 years of famine. We are not given that detail. There is a parallel account of this incident in 1 Chronicles 21:1. There we read “Now Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to number Israel.” That is interesting because nothing happens without God’s knowledge, and to my mind it provides an indication that Satan’s power is limited to that which God permits. And God is quite able to get Satan to do His bidding if He so chooses. In the event, taking a census was usually done to gauge a nation’s strength in preparation for a battle. In the past, David sought God’s approval and instruction before engaging in battle. Taking this census speaks of David’s reliance on military might, rather than God’s guidance. The census, of which Joab was less than enthusiastic, took almost 10 months to complete. Purists will note a discrepancy in the number quoted in this account and that in 1 Chronicles (which commentators ascribe to Joab’s reluctance 1 Chron 21:6)
David confessed his error and ‘foolishness’, in conducting the census, to the Lord …. and then went to bed! When he woke up, the prophet Gad, a trusted wise man in David’s court came to him with a message from the Lord. Again there is a discrepancy between this account and the equivalent in 1 Chronicles with commentators agreeing that the 1 Chronicles 21 account is more reliable. The Lord gave David a choice of three optional punishments for his sin of numbering the people. 3 years (our text says 7 years) of famine in the land, 3 months of harassment at the hand of his enemies, or 3 days of plague in the land. David confessed to Gad that “I am in great distress. Please let us fall into the hand of the Lord, for His mercies are great; but do not let me fall into the hand on man.” The plague took 70,000 lives before David went before the Lord to plead that the sin was his own and he was the one to be punished because the people were not guilty of that sin.
It was at this point that Gad came again to David with instruction to erect an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Arauna the Jebusite. In the same manner that Abraham paid full price for the “Cave at Machpelar” (Genesis 23) and Jacob purchased the land in Shechem (Genesis 33:18-20) where Joseph was buried, so too David purchased the threshing floor for a generous price, to erect an altar to the Lord, the place today recognised as the site of the Temple in Jerusalem. The Lord was, and is, working out His purposes in ways that we can only marvel at.
Shabbat Shalom
RS
REFLECTIONS ON LIFE IN THE PROMISED LAND
The Promised Land “reflections” 31
S a m u e l .. King David 1
“Behold the King is weeping and mourning for Absolom.” There had been a massive victory for King David’s army, who had subdued the attempt by Absolom to overthrow David as king of Israel. But instead of widespread rejoicing, “the people stole back into the city that day as people who are ashamed steal away when they flee in battle.”
We remind ourselves that this series of ‘reflections’ is broadly designated “Life in the Land”. We might have expected that it would be joyful and triumphant. But in many respects it had been a varied mixture of both success and failure. At this particular time in their history, the disputing and anger among the population was widespread. King David had successfully united the kingdom as one under his leadership. Many Israelites who had gloried in the conquests of David over Israel’s enemies, had now openly turned against David because he had fled from a conflict with Absolom. And at this time, David was still in the city of Mahanaim, east of the Jordan.
Then King David was served a ‘dose o f reality’ by Joab, the commander in chief of his army. In effect, Joab reminded David that Absolom had turned himself into an enemy in his attempt to wrest the throne from David. And the people who had risked, and in some cases lost, their lives to protect him, had every reason to feel aggrieved. There is a lesson to be learned here … and not an easy one to grasp. I write with personal experience. Losing a loved one is a heart wrenching experience. It hurts. But the lesson is this. There IS life after the death of a loved one, for the one that remains. It’s different, but life goes on … and it is a life (for the believer) to be lived to the glory of God. King David was ‘crippled’ by his own grief. Understandably so. Joab took on the task of reminding him that role he had been given by God Himself had not ended. And many hundreds of thousands still relied on him to carry on the task God had assigned to him. And in David’s case it amounted to a role reversal! Joab told his King that his task now was to speak comfort and encouragement to his people, not to wallow in his own self pity. “go out now and speak comfort to your servants”.
To his enormous credit, “King David arose and sat in the gate”. (of the city of Mahanaim) The importance of that act is a bit obscure to us today, but in that day, it not only symbolised, but demonstrated, that the king was available to hear and to discuss the day to day issues which concerned the people. It was, after all, the way in which Absolom had ingratiated himself with the people. It was an act of comforting leadership. Probably the more so at this time because the people were acutely aware of David’s grief. Coincident with this, back in Israel there was dispute between the tribes of Israel about what to do. Many had embraced Absalom as their leader, and now he was dead. David’s informants in Jerusalen evidently passed this news on to him because David sent word through Zadok and Abiathar, the priests ,that he was waiting to receive the call from the people of Israel, and specifically the people of Judah, to return to Jerusalem. At the same time it was made clear to Amasa, (his nephew) that whereas he had been commander of Absolom’s army, he would be honoured by replacing Joab (also David’s nephew) as the commander of the national army when David returned to Jerusalem. That proved pivotal in the decision to welcome David back. However, it also sowed the seeds of discontent in Joab ! (I am reminded here of that old saying by Sir Walter Scott ‘O what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive’)
AS David prepared to return to Jerusalem, many of those who had previously followed Absalom, chose to demonstrate their allegiance by visiting Mahanaim in order to accompany David back to Judea. They included Shimei, a devotee of king Saul, who had hurled abuse and stones at David. He turned up with 1,000 followers . Then Ziba, who had told David a big fib about Mephi Bosheth,with his clan. And Mephi Bosheth himself, who had remained in Jerusalem when David fled. And others not named. So it was that King David returned with the support of “all the people of Judah, and half the people of Israel (Samaria, the northern tribes)”. Which indicated that there was still division, and jealousy, in this “united” kingdom. A rebel named Sheba, an Israelite who was the son of a Benjamite of Judah, took opportunity to ferment that division into a full on rebellion which resulted in the the Israelites of the north abandoning David, whilst the Judeans remained loyal.
Then King David recognised the harm that Sheba could do to the nation, and made the decision to eliminate him and put down the rebellion. He called his new commander in chief, Amasa, to assemble the troops before the rebel leader could get properly set. But Amasa evidently did not act with the urgency David required. So he appointed Joab, his former commander to the task. Then in some acts of pure treachery, (2 Sam 20:4-26) the killing continued, allowing Joab to succeed in the task he had been set by David, and at the same time eliminate his rival for the coveted role as commander in chief of the army. One can only be astonished at chain of events which occurred in David’s life since the Lord uttered those terrible words to David. “Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you despised Me”. (2 Sam 12:10) At this point, I find myself wondering if David can possibly recover from this situation … and how?
Shabbat Shalom
RS
REFLECTIONS ON LIFE IN THE PROMISED LAND
The Promised Land “reflections” 30
S a m u e l .. King David 1
Ziba, a loyal follower of king Saul, with fifteen sons and twenty slaves, had been instructed by King David to farm land, formerly owned by king Saul, which David had generously given to Mephi Bosheth, the lame son of Johnathan, to provide him with a livelihood. Now, as King David fled from Jerusalem to avoid conflict with his son Absolom, he was met after he passed the Mount of Olives, by Ziba. And from the wealth of Mephi Bosheth, Ziba provided donkeys for transport, and food and drink for David’s companions, to assist them on their flight from Absolom. But then he told David a big fib! He said that Mephi Bosheth had remained in Jerusalem in the expectation that he would replace David as king, since he was the grandson of king Saul. The deceit is breathtaking, but David accepted Ziba’s story without enquiry, and given the extent of the generous provision made by Ziba, he promptly gifted to him the land Ziba had been farming on behalf of Mephi Bosheth.
We gain an insight into the mind and demeanour of David as he travels further. Read the account of the rantings of Shimei (2 Sam 16:5-14). We find that the King David who chose to deal with Nabal (1 Sam 25) so decisively (apart from the protective intervention of his wife Abigail) was now a hesitant contemplative man, conscious of his own failings before the Lord and deserving of the rebuke which Shimei levelled at him. One might consider David to be a ‘broken man’. And that, for me, constitutes another lesson to be learned from this episode in David’s life. The arrogance and confidence of military success had departed. The rebuke of the Lord weighed so heavily on him. He might have longed again for the wise counsel of his trusted priestly friends Zadok and Nathan.
But King David did have a friend, Hushai, a trusted confidant and advisor, whom he had prevailed upon to remain in Jerusalem in order keep him informed of developments there regarding Absalom. Now Absalom was quite suspicious of Hushai and challenged him regarding his loyalties. Hushai’s response was masterly. He pledged allegiance to “whom the Lord and this people and all the men of Israel choose, his will I be, and with him I will remain”. Then Absolom set a test for him by seeking his advice to compare it with the favourable advice he had received from Ahithophel, his own counsellor. That advice was that Ahithophel should quickly assemble an army of twelve thousand men to immediately to pursue David. But Hushai played up the strength of King David and his battle prowess. He advised the more cautious course of assembling a large national army, commanded by Absolom himself, before engaging in battle with David’s loyal band of followers. Absolom considered this advice to be superior to that of Ahithopel’s, so Hushai gained his confidence, and was able to pass that intelligence on to David through Zadok. Upon learning this, the dispirited Ahithopel, left the court of Absolom, went to his home, and hanged himself !
“Then David went to Mahanaim.” That’s the place where Jacob camped after he had left, and made a treaty with, Laban, his father-in-law. (Gen 32:2) Situated where we know today as ‘the Golan Heights’. There David was joined by friendly, wealthy, benefactors who provided food and other provisions for David’s army of followers. And with the intelligence provided by Hushai, David, intending to lead the people into battle, set about preparing to meet the army of Absolsom. But David was prevailed upon to remain in the camp since his battle commanders considered that to be best for their own survival in case of loss in the battle. But David had one more plea to his battle commanders. “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absolom.”
The battle took place in Gilead, east of the Jordan River. It was a heavily wooded area known as ‘the woods of Ephraim”. In that large wooded area it was so difficult to manoeuvre that we are told “the woods devoured more people that day than the sword devoured”. Twenty thousand Israelite followers of Absolom died that day. Absolom himself, riding on a mule, (one assumes in retreat), got his long hair (2 Sam 14:25,26) caught in a fork of a branch of an Oak tree. The mule continued on his way and left Absolom hanging there, One of the soldiers spotted him, and because he heeded the words of King David to “beware lest anyone touch the young man Absolom” he promptly told Joab, David’s battle commander. Now, even though Joab had gone to great lengths to reconcile David with Absolom by bringing him back from Geshur after he had killed Amnon, he could no longer countenance the treachery of Absolom in seeking to depose his father David. So he chastised the faithful soldier who had found Absolom, and then had the king’s son killed, and called his troops from the battle, and ordered Absolom buried in a pit in the woods, and covered it with stones. (Absalom had, during his lifetime had set up a monument to himself in Jerusalem in King’s Valley .. thought to be at the junction of the Kidron and Hinnom valleys).
Joab delayed telling King David about Absalom’s death, because he knew how painful that news would be received. Additionally, Joab had to contend with the fact that he had killed Absolom in direct disobedience to the King’s command … even though it was with the King’s longer term interests and survival at heart. IF there is a lesson in the reading this week, it is that the consequences of sin and disobedience, as David had engaged in with Bathsheba, are long and painful. If only David could have that time over again !!! I wonder.
Shabbat Shalom
RS
REFLECTIONS ON LIFE IN THE PROMISED LAND
The Promised Land “reflections” 29
S a m u e l .. King David 1
People often remark on the decadence and immorality evident in society at large today. A situation which appears to get worse with time. Then, as we ‘reflect’ on the Scripture passage today, we might identify with “The preacher” who wrote in Ecclesiastes 1:9 “There is nothing new under the sun”.
The events described in our study passage are unseemly. There doesn’t appear to be much by way of encouragement … and yet, it is a passage filled with lessons to be learned. And those lessons can only be learned by those willing to be honest with themselves. The specifics are graphically described. Mercifully, very few of us encounter such experiences in our lifetime. But the principles of behaviour are symptomatic of many other comparable situations, and provide a warning regarding consequential outcomes. In this situation, for King David, ‘catastrophic’ appears to be an apt description. Envy, jealousy, malice, and pride. Throw in a case of incestuous rape, followed by malicious rejection, and it’s hard to imagine a more volatile and poisonous mixture. So let’s look at what we can learn from this.
David became King in Hebron at the age of 30 years. He lived there for about 7 1/2 years, during which time he had six sons. First Amnon, followed by Daniel, then Absalom, Adonijah, Shephatia and Ithream. Each one with a different mother. Absalom also had a sister Tamar, but we are not told exactly when she was born, but assume her to be much younger. She certainly was a granddaughter of the king Talmai of Geshur. These are the principal people concerned in the events we ‘reflect’ upon this week. David had many other children after he moved to Jerusalem, where he reigned for a further 33 years.
Now here is a lesson that we can learn. Is it possible that King David, that ‘man after God’s own heart’, could have taken his relationship with God for granted? Could he have become complacent in that relationship? Because the consequences of his action were catastrophic, and bore grave consequences for others. It would be naive to think that the ‘sin of David’ on which we ‘reflected’ last week was not widely known. It is also reasonable to consider that, such was the horror and enormity of it, that David’s standing was diminished as a result. In the words of Nathan “the enemies of the Lord had been given great occasion to blaspheme” … and some of those ‘enemies’ were evidently to be found within David’s own family. I speculate that they were emboldened to take license where previously they would not have. And of one thing we may be sure, where a weakness appears, so does Satan, to exploit that weakness.
The first ‘victim’ was the innocent Tamar, the younger half sister of Amnon. He had a willing accomplice in David’s nephew, the scheming Jonadab. A family affair we might think. We know very little about Tamar after this, other than “she remained desolate in her brother Absolom’s house”, rather than have the life she might have anticipated as a daughter of the King. Appearing so soon in the narrative after David’s gross indiscretion, makes it impossible not to connect the two matters. And it didn’t end there. Remember the Lord had told David “the sword shall never depart from your house” (ch 12:10). Amnon’s brother Absolom, brooded over the matter for two full years before finding the occasion to have him killed. Not by his own hand directly, but by others, just as David had dealt with Uriah the husband of Bathsheba. This slaughter of Amnon was witnessed by “all the King’s sons”, who promptly fled the scene. That led to David being informed that ALL his sons had been killed. What anguish that caused him. In the event, the sons eventually returned to Jerusalem, but Absolom fled to Geshur, the home of his maternal grandfather, Talmai, where he remained for three years.
Are you getting the thread of the evil and discord which is unfolding as a direct result of the ‘sin of David’? For me, this adds to the important lesson of caution this narrative brings about behavioural requirements on those who belong to the Lord. And if it can happen in David’s life …..!
Joab, the commander of David’s army, was a complex character who seemed to have a great loyalty to David, but at the same time was not averse to being disobedient if he considered that to be in David’s best interest. David longed to be reunited with his favoured son Absolom, and Joab knew it. Thus it was that Joab concocted a scenario whereby he coached a lady from Tekoa to spin a tale to David which resulted in David authorising Joab to go to Geshur to bring Absolom back. However, on his return, Absolom did not meet his father David for some few years, during which time he grew resentful of his father and began a long plot of stealth and deceit to take over the kingdom. Eventually, David was persuaded that such an event was possible, so rather than engage in hostilities within the city of Jerusalem, he chose to leave altogether. This was an almost unthinkable situation when one considers the relationship David had enjoyed with the Lord. And yet, as we have noted, the consequences of David’s great sin, appear endless.
The detail in our passage today is worth reading in order to understand the way in which matters began to unravel, and how King David completely lost control of the situation. For any willing to learn, this provides the most solemn lesson of how important it is to “stay within the boundaries where God’s love can reach and protect us”. (Jude 21 Living Bible)
Shabbat Shalom
RS