Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 18-19.

Today’s passage once again shows us the contradictions in King David’s complicated relationship with the sons of Zeruiah, David’s sister, which makes them his nephews.  While fleeing Jerusalem ahead of Absalom, David had reprimanded Abishai for suggesting that Shimei should be killed for cursing David.  And in his reprimand David had expressed unhappiness with both Abishai and his brother Joab.  No sooner had David established himself in Mahanaim then he appointed Joab and Abishai as two of the three commanders over his army.  Then, after the victory of David’s army over Absalom’s army, and Absalom’s death, Joab confronts David over the way his mourning for Absalom is disheartening his army, and the threat that poses to David’s safety.  Finally, Abishai once more called on David to have Shimei killed as David re-establishes himself as king of Israel, a recommendation which David gets angry about.  Abishai’s argument for executing Shimei echoes David’s condemnation of wanting to kill King Saul when the two of them had  snuck into Saul’s camp, and David’s justification for ordering the execution of the Amalekite who claimed to have administered the coup-de-gras to King Saul.  I would struggle more to understand David’s hostility towards Joab and Abishai were it not for the two occasions where Joab killed the men David had attempted to replace Joab with as commander over his armies.  As I said on the 12th, I think David’s hostility has to do with Joab and Abishai only being concerned with what they perceived as best for themselves, David, or the kingdom rather than giving any thought to what was the right thing to do.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 16-17.

When Hushai presented himself to Absalom, Absalom was initially skeptical of Hushai.  However, when Ahithophel, who was generally considered to be a very wise advisor, advised Absalom to give him a small force to pursue David, Absalom sought Hushai’s advice before taking Ahithophel’s advice, and then chose Hushai’s advice over that of Ahithophel.  Let’s look at this a little closer.  Absalom followed Ahithophel’s advice to sleep with David’s concubines without question or delay.  But when Ahithophel advised Absalom to send a force under someone else’s command after David, he balked.    One of the things which Ahithophel advised was to only kill David and to welcome those of his followers who turned to follow Absalom after David’s death. While Hushai advised killing all of those who had chosen to follow David as he fled from Absalom.  I believe that this played almost as much of a role in Absalom heeding Hushai’s advice as the glory he felt he would receive as leader of the army which defeated David.  It seems likely that Absalom wanted to see those who did not abandon his father to follow him pay a price for their loyalty to David.  Perhaps Absalom blamed his father, and those who remained loyal to him, for Amnon raping his sister.  Or, perhaps he just wanted vengeance on them because they had not immediately come over to his side.  In either case, Absalom provides a case study in making bad decisions.  He rejected good advice in favor of bad advice which stroked his ego.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 14-15.

We know from other passages that David would have liked to reduce Joab’s influence (and that of Joab’s brother) over his policies.  Yet, when I read this passage, and a couple of others which describe Joab’s actions, Joab appears to have acted in David’s interest (or, at least, what Joab perceived to be David’s interest) in every occasion but one (and in that one, Joab appears to have acted in what he believed to be the kingdom’s interest).  In this case, Joab recognized that David was saddened by Absalom being exiled.  So, Joab took action to convince David to end Absalom’s exile.  Every time I have read this passage I have wondered at David’s hostility towards Joab and his brothers.  Then today, as I was trying to put this together I realized the answer.   While Joab did what he thought was best for David and his kingdom, and sometimes got David to do what Joab knew he wanted to do, he did not seek God’s guidance in deciding what those things were.  Take this incident as an example, Joab convinced David to bring Absalom back from exile because he knew that David desired to do so.  And Joab got David to not only bring Absalom back from exile, but to recognize him as his son, and heir, once more.  These two things led to Absalom plotting to take the throne by force.  Perhaps it was this sort of encouragement by Joab which led David to sin with Bathsheba in the first place.  It was certainly Joab’s willingness to carry out David’s commands, even when they were wrong, which led to David killing Uriah.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 12-13.

Part of me wants to write about Amnon and Tamar and how that led to Absalom killing Amnon (and later to Absalom’s rebellion), but I am really struck by David’s reaction to Nathan’s confrontation and the following illness and death of his son with Bathsheba.  When Nathan confronted David, David confessed his sin.  At which point Nathan tells David that God has taken away his sin.  However, that did not mean that David would not suffer any consequences from his sin.  In fact, Nathan told David that the consequences of his sin would follow him for the rest of his life.  So, we learn from this that we must confess that we have sinned (and part of that confession is regretting that we had done wrong, not just regretting that we got caught).  If we do confess our sin, God will forgive our sins.  However, we will still need to live with the consequences of our sins.

Which brings me to David’s reaction to one of the consequences of his sin, the son he had with Bathsheba became sick and then died.  When David learned of the child’s illness, he prayed and fasted begging God to heal the child and mourning the boy’s illness.  Then, when he learned that the child had died, he gave up his fasting and mourning.  While the child was ill, David petitioned God for healing, but once the child had died David recognized that the time for mourning was over.  He saw that the boy would not return to this life, but that he would in time join the child with God.  We should think and behave similarly.  While those we care for live, we should pray for their well-being, to the point of fasting and mourning for them if they are ill and/or suffering.  Once those we care for have died, in most cases, we should set aside our mourning and get on with our lives, not necessarily as quickly as David appears to have done here.   I will note that even though David gave up his mourning after his son’s death, he did not fault Bathsheba for mourning their son’s death.  Instead David comforted her in her loss.  We also should strive to comfort those who mourn the loss of their loved ones.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 4-7.

Shortly after the death of Abner, two brothers killed Ish-Bosheth, cut off his head, and took it to David, expecting to be rewarded for doing so (at least, I assume that is what they expected).  Instead David had them executed for the murder of Ish-Bosheth.  I mention this only because it continues the pattern I referred to in yesterday’s blog.  However, I want to focus on the interaction between Michal and David after David brought the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem.  While the ark was being transported, David became caught up in the celebration and worship, completely forgetting himself and his dignity.  When Michal, David’s wife and King Saul’s daughter, became embarrassed by David’s behavior (and perhaps a little jealous).  She appears to have felt that his behavior was beneath the dignity of a king.  Then, when David came into his palace, intending to bring the celebration to his own household, Michal rained on his parade and disparaged him and his joy.  David responded by saying that he would be humiliated in order to bring praise to God.  David also made another important point.  Michal was concerned that David had made a fool of himself in front of “slave girls”, those of lower status than herself (and David).  David claimed that he would humiliate himself even further in order to praise God, and would be honored by those “slave girls” for it.  So, we should keep in mind these lessons.  First, we should not be ashamed to express our joy as we worship the Lord.  Second, we may be surprised by how much others respect us for being willing to express our love of God.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 1-3.

In today’s passage we have two accounts about how David reacted to the deaths of his political enemies (although the death of Abner occurred after Abner had reconciled with David).  When an Amalekite brought David the news of King Saul’s death, claiming to have administered the coup-de-gras, David ordered him executed.  Later, when Joab murdered Abner, David forced Joab to put on a show of mourning for Abner’s death.  After Abner’s burial, David laments his inability to control Joab and Abishai.  In both cases, the death of Saul and the death of Abner, David mourned the loss of those he counted as great men.

One thing which often seems odd to me is the verse which tells us that Joab and Abishai murdered Abner in vengeance for Abner killing their brother.  Yet, one would have thought that if Joab sought vengeance for his brother’s death he would have continued the pursuit of Abner on the day when Abner had killed him, rather than calling off the pursuit.  Instead we have Joab killing Abner after Abner had made an agreement with David to turn over the kingship still held by the House of Saul in return for David giving him Joab’s job as commander of David’s armies.  I realized today that the reference to Joab killing Abner as revenge for the death of his brother records Joab’s defense against a murder charge.  Mosaic law gives implied permission to the family of someone killed by another the right to take the life of the killer.  So, the writer is not claiming that Joab murdered Abner to revenge his brother.  Rather, the writer is explaining, in part, why David could not execute Joab for doing so.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 23-24.

I enjoy reading here about some of the exploits of David’s mighty men.  I also often struggle to understand what sin King David had committed by ordering the census of Israel (the passage never clearly tells us what that sin was).  I even find the accounts about how David chose the site on which he built an altar of interest.  However, I want to focus on what the passage records as David’s last words (I suspect that the writer here does not mean what we usually mean by “last words”).   David tells us that a one who rules with righteousness is like the light of the dawn, or that of the sun breaking through the clouds after a storm.  Those who govern in fear of God bring forth growth like the sun breaking forth after spring rains.   If one seeks to govern with righteousness, one needs to reveal that which is hidden just as the sun at dawn does.  Then he tells us that evil men will be cast aside like thorns, which are burned where they lie.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 18-19.

After the death of Absalom the people of Israel debated whether or not to invite David to come back as king over Israel.  The debate appears to have been between those who wanted to call David back to resume being king and those who wished some other solution.  David resolved the issue by reaching out to the leaders of the tribe of Judah through the priests who had remained loyal to him.  As part of his campaign to regain the support of the tribe of Judah, David offered Amasa, who had been commander of Absalom’s army, the title of commander of his army in place of Joab.  David did this despite, or maybe because of, the fact that Joab had saved him from himself by forcing him out of his funk over the death of Absalom.  I am not sure if it has any significance, but Shimei is identified as a member of the tribe of Benjamin, but he declared himself the first from among the tribes of Joseph to come and greet David upon his return.  So, does this mean that all of the tribes which were not part of the tribe of Judah considered themselves as tribes of Joseph?  The final element of this I want to point out is what the writer says about Mephibosheth.  The writer tells us that Mephibosheth had not taken care of his feet, nor trimmed his mustache, nor washed his clothes since David had fled Jerusalem.  All of which lends credence to Mephibosheth’s claim that he intended to join David when he fled, but was unable to do so because Ziba had left without him to curry favor with David.

The last few days I have found myself writing about the historical events, and the politics of ancient Israel, when what I really want to study are the spiritual lessons we can take from these accounts.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 16-17.

Once again I start my comments by talking about something I never noticed before.  As David left Jerusalem fleeing from Absalom’s forces he was approached by two men of the tribe of Benjamin, Ziba and Shimei.  Ziba had been a servant of the House of Saul and David made him steward of Mephibosheth’s household (Saul’s grandson).  Shimei we are told was part of clan from which King Saul came.  So, today I noticed for the first time that these two represent two factions from the tribe of Benjamin.  One faction, represented by Ziba, strongly supported King David.  The other faction, represented by Shimei, resented David for taking the kingship away from the tribe of Benjamin.  I wonder if perhaps Ziba’s comment to David about Mephibosheth here resulted from Mephibosheth “courting” the faction which opposed David’s kingship.  I think that perhaps Mephibosheth thought that ,since he was crippled and could therefore never aspire to the throne, catering to the whims of his fellow Benjaminites who looked back to the days of King Saul with nostalgia was harmless and spent time entertaining, and being entertained by members of that faction.  Ziba concluded that Mephibosheth would welcome Absalom’s coup, perhaps even believed that Mephibosheth thought he might be made king in the turmoil which followed.  In a way, the differences between Ziba and Shimei illustrate why Absalom’s coup failed.  Ziba brought provisions for King David and his men as they fled Jerusalem.  Shimei merely offered insults.  Later in the passage several more prominent citizens who provided provisions to David’s forces are mentioned.  Absalom had sought to garner support from the common people but failed to undermine support for David among those who had the ability to get things done.

And once again I have to say that I really thought this was going somewhere very meaningful, but it never seemed to come together.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  2 Samuel 14-15.

As I read today’s passage I find myself thinking about several questions.  First, I wonder when Absalom began plotting his coup.  Did he begin plotting as soon as King David called him back from exile?  It appears to me that Absalom had begun plotting a coup when he reached out to Joab to enlist Joab’s aid in being allowed to leave his own estate.  Which raises the question in my mind as to what degree Joab was aware of Absalom’s efforts to become king and to what degree he approved of them?  From there I wonder whether Joab would have thrown his support behind Absalom if Absalom had asked for it?  If the answer to that question is “yes”, then Absalom’s failure to ask for Joab’s support was his first mistake.  As I think about it, I conclude that Joab would not have thrown his support behind Absalom.  If Joab would have been willing to support Absalom’s coup, Absalom would not have needed to burn Joab’s fields to get Joab to listen to him.  In another vein, I wonder as I read this if Absalom plotted to overthrow his father because he blamed David for Amnon raping his sister, or perhaps just for David’s failure to punish Amnon for that rape.

The final point I want to touch on is not a question, but a thought about why Absalom failed.  Absalom has a strategy for getting the people to back him once he had overthrown his father.  The passage describes how he had ingratiated himself with the common people.  However, the description of what happened when David fled Jerusalem illustrates Absalom’s miscalculation.  I have already touched on Absalom’s failure to get Joab’s backing for his coup, but he apparently failed to gather support from any of the other power bases of the kingdom (If I remember I may compare how those power bases split differently when I read the passage about Solomon becoming king).   First the writer highlights how the elite soldiers of King David’s army remain loyal by pointing out how a unit of Philistine mercenaries went with David into exile.  Additionally, Absalom had failed to gather any support from among the priestly caste.  The whole account of Absalom’s coup indicates that while King David had done a good job of gaining the backing of those who controlled the levers of power in Israel, he had left the rest feeling left out.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.