Then the men of David swore to him, saying, "You shall go out no more with us to battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel.". But certainly, David was. WebKing Saul later broke the treaty that Joshua had signed and attacked the Gibeonites. Hebrews 11 exhibits a whole chapter of men and women just like us who, despite their humanity and frequent foibles, fought the good fight of faith and were victorious in the end through the grace of God. King David is mentioned by name as a hero of faith. God would have said, "Kill them all!" It is not the sin of Adam and Eve; it is their own sin. They decided to fight with the Gibeonites and teach them a lesson. The Israelite version was a whole lot less absolute. Is there something I'm missing? He simply folded, giving the Gibeonites everything they wanted. Yet, the Bible specifically says in Hebrews 4:15 that He was without sin. It's much too heavy any more!" Report, August 29 2022 Israel and Judah," who may have fretted at the inconvenience of having the Gibeonites among them. He allowed his actions to be dictated by the Gentile principle of retributionvengeancerather than God's law on such matters. There were no conditions. WebThe alliance with the Gibeonites lasted for centuries, until Saul - in his zeal (21, 2) - decided that the ancient covenant was no longer binding. He wanted to go do something else. Moreover, Samuel said, "What have you done? Things were going wrong. He will not relent. He tried to come up with a compromise, and that was basically, "Whatever you want, you can have." Verse 5 does not say that the guilt of a person extends to his great-great grandchildren. Their special, if dishonest, dealings with the leaders of Israel gained them a notoriety that most of the tribes and clans of the ancient Mid-East never attained. And, it certainly does not record that David took this to God for His solution to it. David did not come to this with any regal neutrality in the least. Israel was totally swindled and bamboozled. Of course, a part of it is being able to look at ourselves and see how dirty, nasty, and rotten we are, and saying, "There is no way that anybody could live in this world without sin; even God's beloved Son.". In some ways, the story centers around covenants or treaties, one made between Israel and the Gibeonites in Joshua 9, another between Jonathan and David in 1 Sam. 1. Each generation had to live out its days as "hewers of wood and carriers of water". It is in II Samuel 21. He was tired, and wanted to get it out of the way. It would take three or four generations for perversion to be kicked out of a society. He did not do anything to directly intervene. To put it in a more modern time setting, a lot of people prefer Batman (the dark one), or Spiderman (the geek), to Superman for the very same reasons. They buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in Zelah, in the tomb of Kish his father. Evidently, this is what Saul and most of his family was like, except Jonathan. Ezekiel 18:19-20 Yet you say, 'Why should the son not bear the guilt of the father?' But talk about your flawed heroes! 2 So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. LAMECH: FALL OUT FROM POLYGAMY; Therefore, they arrive in the camp of Israel, and say, "Where's your leader? You are getting later and later in David's life here. God told Joshua to get rid of all these foreigners in the land. One other thing: Samuel said that God is not going to go back on His word. So, give or take, 40 to 50 years have passed. And that day Joshua made them woodcutters and water carriers for the congregation and for the altar of the LORD, in the place which He would choose, even to this day. They knew all the things God had stipulated about what they were to do when Israel was going to come into the land. If a person sins, he receives God's judgment for those sins. What we do inherit of their sin is consequences. He needed God to forgive him. The Israelites had been dealing with the Gibeonites, who were Hivitesand as it says here, they were a part of the Amorite peoplesince the first days in the land under Joshua. God only let the rain cycle start again. He got a little weird, throwing spears at David (and Jonathan too, once). They had a more bloody and violent systemwhich often led to blood feuds that may not ever end until a whole family or generation was gone. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown comments: It was a heathen practice to gibbet men with a view of appeasing the anger of the gods in seasons of famine, and the Gibeonites, who were a remnant of the Amorites, though brought to the knowledge of the true God, were not, it seems, free from this superstition. A lot can happen in two years. David was annonted by Sammuel Apr 10, 1035. He then tells David that he can't marry Michal until he brings Saul 100 Philistine foreskins, thinking that David will definitely die in this attempt. The last time Saul did swear not to kill David, Saul swore "by YHWH" not to kill david he broke it many times over since. Saul's bones are still in Jabesh-Gilead. Now, if they participated in his sin, then of course, they will bear the guilt for their participation in that sin. 2 Samuel 21:2 At this, David summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Then, I am sure, he started to think about other things that were happening, and he started to make some reforms in himself. WebThe consequences of Israels covenant with the Gibeonites were not short-term. The Gibeonites presented themselves to the invading Israelites, not as nearby neighbors, but as distant foreigners who lived in a far-off land. 12 Saul said, Listen now, son of Ahitub.. He shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation" Psalm 24:4-5. And King David rolled over and let this happen. Certainly, after three years you would. However, we have a great deal of trouble identifying with or understanding pure, innocent and perfect Galahad. They do what their flesh tells them to dowhat Satan inspires them to want to doand they do it. Wherever he turned, he harassed them. He could have done whatever he wanted. What should we get out of this? It says that they were Saul's sons. Why is it just now that you are waking up to this? I think he was distracted by all the cares of his office of being king. Jesus Christ should be everyone's ultimate hero. Or as the Gibeonites said Saul consumed them and tried to destroy them a people Israel had entered into a covenant with 400 years earlier. This has become known as the "eye for an eye principle." Web16 And it happened at the end of three days, after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors who dwelt near them. Up and down your family tree, sin does not go. The Gibeonites actually lived only a few miles from Jericho, the Twelve Tribes' designated entry point to Palestine. Why did he not seem to notice the first year and say to himself, "Hmm. If we would go back to Leviticus 26, we will see that David should have known that famine was no small thing in God's arsenal. We are starting to get some of the atmosphere around this event now. Webzeal of king Saul - who was a Benjaminite - against the Gibeonites. September 01 2013 We had before that the episode with Amnon and Tamar. But the king spared Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the LORD's oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul. Let's see what's in our bag of tricks. Probably what happened was that they put them on the top of the hill at Gibeah, so that God in the Tabernacle could "see" the execution being done. How many died in sicknesses? It is the time of the beginning of the barley harvest. Should the explanation in Genesis on how God created plants before the sun affect the understanding of creation? Only in one sense, there was a fall of man, but certainly not in the traditional sense. There is no record in the Bible of Saul killing Gibeonites. God tells us that, spiritually, we have to go and wipe them out. And with what shall I make atonement, that you may bless the inheritance of the LORD? They were the five sons of Merab, Saul's daughter. II Samuel 21:1-2 Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David inquired of the LORD. This would be in the spring during or after the Days of Unleavened Bread. Leviticus 26:3-4 If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments, and perform them, then I will give you rain in its season, the land shall yield its produce, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Now it came to pass, when Adonizedec king of Then they answered the king, "As for the man who consumed us and plotted against us, that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the territories of Israel, "let seven men of his descendants be delivered to us, and we will hang them before the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, whom the LORD chose." This is pretty clear. So you shall not pollute the land where you are [this is very important]; for blood defiles the land, and no atonement can be made for the land, for the blood that is shed on it, except by the blood of him who shed it. Jeiel, Sauls great-grandfather, was the progenitor of the Gibeonites ( 1 Chron 8:29-33; 9:35-39 ), so Saul slaughtered his own relatives! CONFLICT OF THE AGES ARTICLES And when Saul saw any strong man or any valiant man, he took him for himself. He realized how often, and how far, he strayed from God's way of life. Evidently, he thought that he could win back his kingdom if he zealously did God's will. He does not seem to have asked the priest who would know the law the best to find out what Scripture said about situations like this. WebNow, when they heard that the Gibeonites had made a special treaty with the Israelites they got very angry. The historical narrative of King David is drawing to a close. SERIES INTRODUCTION This incident of the famine took place rather late in David's life. It is his sin. And those two are questionable. The Gibeonites decided on a different strategy. Your threshing shall last till the time of vintage, and the vintage shall last till the time of sowing; you shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely. I think that this was a test from God, and David failed spectacularly, except in keeping his promise to Jonathan. by LeRoy Gardenier The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. About two years ago, Barry Watson, our lone member in Namibia, wrote me an email message in which this incident was at the heart of it. Much later, King Saul ignored this covenant of peace and killed some Gibeonites. David may have begun to think about this now, "What is going on here? The breach of contract was serious enough that God sent the famine in response. It is not pretty when we allow the people of the land to dictate to us. And the LORD answered, "It is because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house, because he killed the Gibeonites." So they fell, all seven together, and were put to death in the days of harvest, in the first days, in the beginning of barley harvest. It said earlier that they wanted them to be hung before the Lord in Gibeah of Saul. He resolved properlynot without a lot of death, with 70,000 dead in that plague, but at least he had the repentant attitude by the time it was over. Notice the timing and the manner of the execution. We have our own sins to pay for; we do not pay for theirs. Such a shame to destroy it all! I Samuel 14:47-48 So Saul established his sovereignty over Israel, and fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, against the people of Ammon, against Edom, against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines. God revealed that this calamity happened because of "Saul and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites ." In their poverty and slavery the bowed but ever proud Gibeonites refused financial and other forms of compensation for the attempted genocide on their tribe. That is the bottom line. It did not come the next week, or the next month, or the month after that, all through the summer and into the fall holy days. When did Saul kill these Gibeonites? The choice by Adam and Eve in the garden was a sin, and they paid for it through death. You're out of here!". Finally, someone says to David, "Hey, did you know that Rizpah has been out on a rock for six months, sitting there day after day, protecting the corpses from birds and such, because the Gibeonites won't let her take them down and bury them? The two hints are that Saul and his house had a reputation for violence"Saul and his bloodthirsty house." God punished the whole nation for breaking the covenant. So they answered Joshua and said, "Because your servants were clearly told that the LORD your God commanded His servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you.". Here are guidelines to help facilitate a meaningful learning experience for everyone. Those who believe that they can outsmart, outflank or in any way outmaneuver our Enemy through cerebral strategies are doomed to the slavery and destruction heaped upon Saul and the Gibeonites. THE STORY OF THE GIBEONITES - God extends blessings far farther into the future than He does the curses. It is easy to read this story blithely, and to think that David righted some longstanding wrongs that had happened, and then God happily sent rain to the parched land of Israel. That would be such a carnal thing to dojust let the Gibeonites kill seven of Saul's kids who could claim the Israelite throne and get them out of the way. Perhaps the Scriptures are contrasting the faithless actions of Saul and his house in regard to the covenant with the Gibeonites, with the faithful actions of David in regard to the covenant with Jonathan. There is demotion. So let seven of Sauls sons or grandsons be handed over to us, and we will execute them before the Lord at Gibeon, on the mountain of the Lord.. He had to sit there and judge people with all the little things they constantly brought up to him that seemed to need his decision on. However, if he did not lie in wait, but God delivered him into his hand, then I will appoint for you a place where he may flee.". God's correction may come a God spared them as a people, but His nation condemned them to endless servitude. We are not finished with that yet, because, who were the Gibeonites? In verse 7 we see the only thing in the entire situation that was any good at all. & "Take heed that you be not deceived." The Gibeonites merely asked for a mutual help pact that would guarantee not only mercy and aid from Israel, but protection from their common enemies. Why were two of Saul's sons and five of Saul's grandsons killed for a crime they didn't commit? God sent the rain, it says specifically, "from heaven," verse 10, "in the latter rains," which is their normal cycle. The time had passed. Then Gibeon was a mile or two more to the north-northwest. They had remembered it for 40 or 50 years. He decided to let the Gibeonites dictate everything. Other people do not carry the guilt for that person's sin. I do not know. He did not perform any miracle, or any other thing to show that He was happy with the way that things turned out. They got a couple of their men, maybe elders, and got them to appear like they came along distance. Does the Bible encourage the practice of Lent? Perhaps if I go and kill all the Gibeonites like Joshua was supposed to do, maybe God will let me back into the chair.". David represents usJoe Church Membertrue Christians in a time of spiritual famine, much like what Amos describes in Amos 8:11, with the famine of the word. There is less bloodshed, and there will not be much opportunity like in Gentile nations for these blood feuds to last for years and generations. If we would go through Luke 21:7-12, we would see that Jesus gave His disciples indications of what would happen if the time of the end began. Pagan cultures were killed because they were pagan cultures and they were making war on Gods people. It cut us off from God. Saul and the Pharisees persecuted and killed the Christians, The sons of King Saul were killed as a result of this attempted genocide, The non-Christian inhabitants of Jerusalem were destroyed in AD70 Gods judgment on them for murdering his son and doubtless, the early Christians. See? Our God has given us a law that says such and such, so this is what we are willing to do for you.". He was not thinking spiritually. When the Gibeonites heard that the other nations were going to attack them, they sent a message to Joshua and the people, Help! This poor man cried out, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. My reading between the lines concludes that King David was at a spiritual low point at this time. PHARAOH AND HAMAN - I think he was very low. Exodus 21:23-25 But if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe. They may not have been involved at all, depending on how early in Saul's reign this event took place. God!before the Lordin Gibeah of Saul. ", "She's been doing that for six months? As mentioned earlier, there was the rebellion of Absalom. Sheba's rebellion is in the previous chapter, II Samuel 20. This incident appears in time sequence toward the end of his life. He was distracted by the cares of this world, by the pulls of this, that, and the other thing, and so he gives in and compromises with the people of the land. Then there is another thing. God is not bloodthirsty, but He had told them what to do. And your strength shall be spent in vain; for your land shall not yield its produce, nor shall the trees of the land yield their fruit. They agree to the death of seven of Saul's descendants. WebThis points to their employment in the sanctuary; and possibly may shed some light on the massacre of the Gibeonites by Saul (2 Samuel 21:1). Israel plagued by allowing the deception What I am trying to show you by going through these different places is that there is plenty of law that King David could have looked back on. It was common knowledge. All answers are REVIEWED and MODERATED. By this time, having fought all his life since he was a teenagerup against Goliath when he was eighteen or soand here he was approaching 70 years old, and he was tired. They are still there. Only after three days did they discover that their "far-distant" allies were really next-door neighbors! One of the things He specifically mentions is famine, which happens to be the third sealphysical famine, but we remember from Amos that there is a spiritual famine as well. Perhaps he thought, "Hmm. I will break the pride of your power; I will make your heavens like iron and your earth like bronze. This is certainly not the David of Psalm 34, where he wrote. And the LORD answered, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites. "Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? 2Samuel 21:1, There is bloodguilt on Saul and on his house, because he put the Gibeonites to death.. You are no longer fit to be king." All I do know is that they do hold a solid place in world history and one of their offshoots or branches were the Gibeonites. And the Gibeonites said to him, "We will have no silver or gold from Saul or from his house, nor shall you kill any man in Israel for us." WebThe Gibeonites Hang Saul's Descendants 21 While David was king, there were three years in a row when the nation of Israel could not grow enough food. Moreover you shall take no ransom for the life of a murderer who is guilty of death, but he shall surely be put to death [he cannot buy his way out]. Deceit and delusion are powerful spiritual weapons of destruction but they pale in potency compared to the creative and edifying Word of God come alive by faith in believers' hearts! If He said that you are out of here, you are out of here. There is a great deal more than what meets the eye. These curses are things like diseases that might affect genetics, and they came as the result of sin. And they took old sacks on their donkeys, old wineskins torn and mended, old and patched sandals on their feet, and old garments on themselves; and all the bread of their provision was dry and moldy. But, the big thing was that he did not consult God about what he should do about it. 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