Category Archives: Justice / Judgment

All Powerful / King of All, Consequences of Sin, Discipline / Correction, Discipline / Guidance From God, Faith / Trusting God, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Justice / Judgment, Obeying God, Protector / Deliverer, Unteachable / Foolish, Wickedness / Evil

Why Would Yahweh Comes to Ahab’s Defense?

Ahab was a wicked king over Israel. We read about it throughout several chapters in 1 Kings preceding 1 Kings 20. It is interesting that when war was upon Israel, the LORD granted them victory anyway. Why did He do that?

1 Kings 20

War with Aram

      1Now Ben-hadad king of Aram gathered all his army, and there were thirty-two kings with him, and horses and chariots. And he went up and besieged Samaria and fought against it. 2Then he sent messengers to the city to Ahab king of Israel and said to him, “Thus says Ben-hadad, 3‘Your silver and your gold are mine; your most beautiful wives and children are also mine.’” 4The king of Israel replied, “It is according to your word, my lord, O king; I am yours, and all that I have.” 5Then the messengers returned and said, “Thus says Ben-hadad, ‘Surely, I sent to you saying, “You shall give me your silver and your gold and your wives and your children,” 6but about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants; and whatever is desirable in your eyes, they will take in their hand and carry away.’”

      7Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land and said, “Please observe and see how this man is looking for trouble; for he sent to me for my wives and my children and my silver and my gold, and I did not refuse him.” 8All the elders and all the people said to him, “Do not listen or consent.” 9So he said to the messengers of Ben-hadad, “Tell my lord the king, ‘All that you sent for to your servant at the first I will do, but this thing I cannot do.’” And the messengers departed and brought him word again. 10Ben-hadad sent to him and said, “May the gods do so to me and more also, if the dust of Samaria will suffice for handfuls for all the people who follow me.” 11Then the king of Israel replied, “Tell him, ‘Let not him who girds on his armor boast like him who takes it off.’” 12When Ben-hadad heard this message, as he was drinking with the kings in the temporary shelters, he said to his servants, “Station yourselves.” So they stationed themselves against the city.

Ahab Victorious

      13Now behold, a prophet approached Ahab king of Israel and said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I will deliver them into your hand today, and you shall know that I am the LORD.’” 14Ahab said, “By whom?” So he said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘By the young men of the rulers of the provinces.’” Then he said, “Who shall begin the battle?” And he answered, “You.” 15Then he mustered the young men of the rulers of the provinces, and there were 232; and after them he mustered all the people, even all the sons of Israel, 7,000.

      16They went out at noon, while Ben-hadad was drinking himself drunk in the temporary shelters with the thirty-two kings who helped him. 17The young men of the rulers of the provinces went out first; and Ben-hadad sent out and they told him, saying, “Men have come out from Samaria.” 18Then he said, “If they have come out for peace, take them alive; or if they have come out for war, take them alive.”

      19So these went out from the city, the young men of the rulers of the provinces, and the army which followed them. 20They killed each his man; and the Arameans fled and Israel pursued them, and Ben-hadad king of Aram escaped on a horse with horsemen. 21The king of Israel went out and struck the horses and chariots, and killed the Arameans with a great slaughter.

      22Then the prophet came near to the king of Israel and said to him, “Go, strengthen yourself and observe and see what you have to do; for at the turn of the year the king of Aram will come up against you.”

      23Now the servants of the king of Aram said to him, “Their gods are gods of the mountains, therefore they were stronger than we; but rather let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we will be stronger than they. 24“Do this thing: remove the kings, each from his place, and put captains in their place, 25and muster an army like the army that you have lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot. Then we will fight against them in the plain, and surely we will be stronger than they.” And he listened to their voice and did so.

Another Aramean War

      26At the turn of the year, Ben-hadad mustered the Arameans and went up to Aphek to fight against Israel. 27The sons of Israel were mustered and were provisioned and went to meet them; and the sons of Israel camped before them like two little flocks of goats, but the Arameans filled the country. 28Then a man of God came near and spoke to the king of Israel and said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because the Arameans have said, “The LORD is a god of the mountains, but He is not a god of the valleys,” therefore I will give all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the LORD.’” 29So they camped one over against the other seven days. And on the seventh day the battle was joined, and the sons of Israel killed of the Arameans 100,000 foot soldiers in one day. 30But the rest fled to Aphek into the city, and the wall fell on 27,000 men who were left. And Ben-hadad fled and came into the city into an inner chamber.

      31His servants said to him, “Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings, please let us put sackcloth on our loins and ropes on our heads, and go out to the king of Israel; perhaps he will save your life.” 32So they girded sackcloth on their loins and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel and said, “Your servant Ben-hadad says, ‘Please let me live.’” And he said, “Is he still alive? He is my brother.” 33Now the men took this as an omen, and quickly catching his word said, “Your brother Ben-hadad.” Then he said, “Go, bring him.” Then Ben-hadad came out to him, and he took him up into the chariot. 34Ben-hadad said to him, “The cities which my father took from your father I will restore, and you shall make streets for yourself in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria.” Ahab said, “And I will let you go with this covenant.” So he made a covenant with him and let him go.

      35Now a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to another by the word of the LORD, “Please strike me.” But the man refused to strike him. 36Then he said to him, “Because you have not listened to the voice of the LORD, behold, as soon as you have departed from me, a lion will kill you.” And as soon as he had departed from him a lion found him and killed him. 37Then he found another man and said, “Please strike me.” And the man struck him, wounding him. 38So the prophet departed and waited for the king by the way, and disguised himself with a bandage over his eyes. 39As the king passed by, he cried to the king and said, “Your servant went out into the midst of the battle; and behold, a man turned aside and brought a man to me and said, ‘Guard this man; if for any reason he is missing, then your life shall be for his life, or else you shall pay a talent of silver.’ 40“While your servant was busy here and there, he was gone.” And the king of Israel said to him, “So shall your judgment be; you yourself have decided it.” 41Then he hastily took the bandage away from his eyes, and the king of Israel recognized him that he was of the prophets. 42He said to him, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because you have let go out of your hand the man whom I had devoted to destruction, therefore your life shall go for his life, and your people for his people.’” 43So the king of Israel went to his house sullen and vexed, and came to Samaria.

The LORD gave victory to the people of Israel for His own glory and honor. He wanted Ahab to know that He was the LORD. Consider the following verses:

    13Now behold, a prophet approached Ahab king of Israel and said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I will deliver them into your hand today, and you shall know that I am the LORD.’”

28Then a man of God came near and spoke to the king of Israel and said, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because the Arameans have said, “The LORD is a god of the mountains, but He is not a god of the valleys,” therefore I will give all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the LORD.’

I believe this is truly by the grace and patience of our Father that He continued to give such opportunity to Ahab. But even after these chances, Ahab chooses again the wrong path before the LORD. He compromises and makes a treaty with the Beh-hadad, when the LORD already gave him victory. I believe this reflects what is still a lack of faith in Ahab for the LORD. He keeps wanting to do things his own way instead of fully submitting to and relying on Yahweh.

God had set aside Ben-hadad for destruction. Ahab missed that and did things his own way.  Further, when the prophet who is sent to rebuke him confronts him with a parallel situation, Ahab basically has no mercy. He says the man has decided his own judgment, to be killed for letting a prisoner go. Then we see another example of the forgiveness we have for others being the same standard by which we are judged. The prophet declares that because Ahab took this position, it shall stand likewise as his own punishment. Ahab just can’t seem to get things right and that is because he does not have a submitted relationship with the LORD. He is always doing things his own way.  Never do we see Ahab come before the LORD asking forgiveness, even when he is confronted by the prophet directly. It seems obvious that Ahab must have believed in God, witnessing the victory, and not striking down prophets who come against him. However he does not appear to have submitted to the LORD.

There is a lot to learn from this scripture. God will defend His name and reveal Himself to His people. He wants to be in relationship with us, even after we mess up and disobey. We should seek His help and do things His way. There is nothing which God can not make happen, no matter what the odds may seem to be that stack against us. When we mess up, be humble, repent, and ask forgiveness. Ahab never did.

One more observation I have not called out yet, but will not develop fully here. Verses 35-36 may be troubling to some of us. A man refused to strike a prophet and was killed by a lion as a result. Ouch. It sounds harsh for sure. We can make a lot of rationalizations about why the man may not have wanted to strike the prophet, but ultimately the LORD arranged for the lion to kill the man and thus reinforced that his action was wrong to not obey the prophet. I take this one to be one of obedience to the LORD and His servants, especially if the prophet was well known and recognized. We do see a clue that this may have been the case as Ahab recognizes him. That is the whole point of getting struck and going in disguise in the first place.

—-

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Discipline / Correction, Justice / Judgment, Obeying God, Rebuke Wrong Behavior, Repenting from Sin, Submitted / Servant, Teachable, Through Prophets

When You Sin, Accept Correction and Avoid Blaming Someone Else

Israel was experiencing  the punishment of a drought due to the wickedness of Ahab as king. Let us not forget that it was said of him in 1 Kings 16:33 that he “did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel than all the kings of Israel who were before him”.  It was not a secret. Elijah had confronted Ahab on behalf of Yahweh. With that in mind, let us read 1 Kings 18.

1 Kings 18:1-19

Obadiah Meets Elijah

      1Now it happened after many days that the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year, saying, “Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the face of the earth.” 2So Elijah went to show himself to Ahab. Now the famine was severe in Samaria. 3Ahab called Obadiah who was over the household. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly; 4for when Jezebel destroyed the prophets of the LORD, Obadiah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave, and provided them with bread and water.) 5Then Ahab said to Obadiah, “Go through the land to all the springs of water and to all the valleys; perhaps we will find grass and keep the horses and mules alive, and not have to kill some of the cattle.” 6So they divided the land between them to survey it; Ahab went one way by himself and Obadiah went another way by himself.

      7Now as Obadiah was on the way, behold, Elijah met him, and he recognized him and fell on his face and said, “Is this you, Elijah my master?” 8He said to him, “It is I. Go, say to your master, ‘Behold, Elijah is here.’” 9He said, “What sin have I committed, that you are giving your servant into the hand of Ahab to put me to death? 10“As the LORD your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not sent to search for you; and when they said, ‘He is not here,’ he made the kingdom or nation swear that they could not find you. 11“And now you are saying, ‘Go, say to your master, “Behold, Elijah is here.”’ 12“It will come about when I leave you that the Spirit of the LORD will carry you where I do not know; so when I come and tell Ahab and he cannot find you, he will kill me, although I your servant have feared the LORD from my youth. 13“Has it not been told to my master what I did when Jezebel killed the prophets of the LORD, that I hid a hundred prophets of the LORD by fifties in a cave, and provided them with bread and water? 14“And now you are saying, ‘Go, say to your master, “Behold, Elijah is here”’; he will then kill me.” 15Elijah said, “As the LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him today.” 16So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah.

      17When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, “Is this you, you troubler of Israel?” 18He said, “I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father’s house have, because you have forsaken the commandments of the LORD and you have followed the Baals. 19“Now then send and gather to me all Israel at Mount Carmel, together with 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of the Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

Obadiah was a god fearing man. He took personal risk to rescue prophets of Yahweh. He was clearly afraid of Ahab, but did so anyway. What a difficult position for him to have to have in serving such a wicked king. It is interesting to read about him and reflect on what this experience must have been like from his perspective.

However, let us also consider Ahab. Ahab’s attitude reflects the attitude of so many of us when we are confronted by our sin and called to repent, change our ways to follow Yahweh. Ahab did much evil, more than any other king before him. He was confronted by a highly respected prophet of Yahweh. He experienced the power of Yahweh first hand in the drought, predicted by Elijah. But how did Ahab internalize this series of events?

Rather than repenting, as David would have done, Ahab blames Elijah as a troublemaker for Israel. Ahab completely misses the point that it is his wickedness that causes this trouble. He stays anchored in doing things his way and blaming Elijah. This is like the criminal who blames the judge for going to prison rather than accepting that it was his choice to steal that put him there.

Prayerfully ask the LORD to help you to accept rebuke and correction and to change behavior. Ask him to show you where you are doing things your way, or the way of man in our culture around us. Ask Him to teach you the wonderful ways of His law.

Do not let pride or a fear of admitting that you have done things the wrong way all your life keep you from turning to our loving Father today and walking with Him for the time you have remaining!

—-

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Powerful / King of All, Blessed, Consequences of Sin, Government, Idols / False Gods, Justice / Judgment, Purposeful / Intentional, Rebuke Wrong Behavior, Repenting from Sin, Submitted / Servant, Through Prophets, Unteachable / Foolish, Wickedness / Evil, Worldliness

Do What Is Right in the Sight of the LORD. It Matters.

1 Kings 16 provides stark contrast for how a righteous leader and his reign contrasts to that of the wicked when Yahweh’s hand of blessing and/or curse are involved. It is dramatic.

As you read 1 Kings 16, keep in mind what was said about Asa.

1 Kings 15:11

 11Asa did what was right in the sight of the LORD, like David his father.

1 Kings 16

Prophecy against Baasha

      1Now the word of the LORD came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying, 2“Inasmuch as I exalted you from the dust and made you leader over My people Israel, and you have walked in the way of Jeroboam and have made My people Israel sin, provoking Me to anger with their sins, 3behold, I will consume Baasha and his house, and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. 4“Anyone of Baasha who dies in the city the dogs will eat, and anyone of his who dies in the field the birds of the heavens will eat.”

      5Now the rest of the acts of Baasha and what he did and his might, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

The Israelite Kings

      6And Baasha slept with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah, and Elah his son became king in his place. 7Moreover, the word of the LORD through the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani also came against Baasha and his household, both because of all the evil which he did in the sight of the LORD, provoking Him to anger with the work of his hands, in being like the house of Jeroboam, and because he struck it.

      8In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah the son of Baasha became king over Israel at Tirzah, and reigned two years. 9His servant Zimri, commander of half his chariots, conspired against him. Now he was at Tirzah drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over the household at Tirzah. 10Then Zimri went in and struck him and put him to death in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and became king in his place. 11It came about when he became king, as soon as he sat on his throne, that he killed all the household of Baasha; he did not leave a single male, neither of his relatives nor of his friends.

      12Thus Zimri destroyed all the household of Baasha, according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke against Baasha through Jehu the prophet, 13for all the sins of Baasha and the sins of Elah his son, which they sinned and which they made Israel sin, provoking the LORD God of Israel to anger with their idols. 14Now the rest of the acts of Elah and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

      15In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned seven days at Tirzah. Now the people were camped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines. 16The people who were camped heard it said, “Zimri has conspired and has also struck down the king.” Therefore all Israel made Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that day in the camp. 17Then Omri and all Israel with him went up from Gibbethon and besieged Tirzah. 18When Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went into the citadel of the king’s house and burned the king’s house over him with fire, and died, 19because of his sins which he sinned, doing evil in the sight of the LORD, walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin which he did, making Israel sin. 20Now the rest of the acts of Zimri and his conspiracy which he carried out, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

      21Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts: half of the people followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king; the other half followed Omri. 22But the people who followed Omri prevailed over the people who followed Tibni the son of Ginath. And Tibni died and Omri became king. 23In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri became king over Israel and reigned twelve years; he reigned six years at Tirzah. 24He bought the hill Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver; and he built on the hill, and named the city which he built Samaria, after the name of Shemer, the owner of the hill.

      25Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD, and acted more wickedly than all who were before him. 26For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat and in his sins which he made Israel sin, provoking the LORD God of Israel with their idols. 27Now the rest of the acts of Omri which he did and his might which he showed, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 28So Omri slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria; and Ahab his son became king in his place.

      29Now Ahab the son of Omri became king over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. 30Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD more than all who were before him.

      31It came about, as though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he married Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went to serve Baal and worshiped him. 32So he erected an altar for Baal in the house of Baal which he built in Samaria. 33Ahab also made the Asherah. Thus Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel than all the kings of Israel who were before him. 34In his days Hiel the Bethelite built Jericho; he laid its foundations with the loss of Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates with the loss of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.

Godlessness leads to unrest and anarchy. In this case it was more dramatic because the LORD Himself caused the punishment to fall on the wicked. He did not simply remove His hand of blessing but basically brought forth judgment and punishment.

On the other hand, Asa, who did what was right in the sight of the LORD, was reigning for 41 years. That did not mean he had an easy time. He had challenges, but what a stark contrast between the righteous and the wicked among God’s people.

Leadership matters. It influences what happens to the people and their relationship with the LORD. Yahweh will hold leaders accountable for not only their own bad choices but more so when they lead so many others astray. In our society today we have the opportunity to influence who gets put in leadership positions. Let us actively engage to influence elections to favor those who will not stand for false religion, homosexuality, abortion, and government control instead of relying on Yahweh.

It is also a reminder for each of us to seek to do what is right in the sight of the LORD.

As a closing thought, we also see that as each generation of wicked king did more and more evil, more than those who went before him. That is the way of sin and separation from God. Once you no longer submit to Him and His ways, what you deem acceptable continues to move farther and farther away from His ways. The path of the godless becomes more wicked over time, more separated from God.

—-

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

 

Discerning / Judging, Justice / Judgment

Another Look at “Do Not Judge Others”

In a recent article we discussed guidance in Matthew 7 about judging others. This area remains misunderstood by many followers of Christ. We encourage you to review the prior article, What Does it Mean That We Should Not Judge Others?, before reading on.

There remains yet another important context clue for those who are reading within Matthew 7 that we must use discernment and judge good vs. evil. Understanding the context is very important and since this is literally the same book and chapter in scripture we should take heed.

Matthew 7 (excerpts)

Judging Others

      1“Do not judge so that you will not be judged. 2“For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. 3“Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4“Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? 5“You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

—

 A Tree and Its Fruit

      15“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16“You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? 17“So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 18“A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. 19“Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20“So then, you will know them by their fruits.

      21“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22“Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ 23“And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’

Did you catch it? verses 1-5 speak about not judging others, until you remove the sin in your own life. Some take this to be never judging right from wrong in others. But then starting in verse 15 of the very same chapter we see that we are told to be cautious and judge prophets to determine who is true and who is false. I point out some additional considerations in What Does it Mean That We Should Not Judge Others? and if you did not read it yet from the link above, I would encourage you to read it now.

We are called to use discernment and wisdom and call upon the help of the Spirit to judge what and who is good and bad. That is an important part of our journey to live and walk with Christ. However, we must not be constantly judging rashly or hypocritically. We must work first on our own righteousness, remove the log in our eye, before we can truly be of help removing the speck in our brother’s eye.

—-

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Discerning / Judging, Grace / Patience, Justice / Judgment, Rebuke Wrong Behavior, Repenting from Sin, Share the Good News

Do Not Throw Pearls Before Swine

Our last article focused on Matthew 7:1-5 about judging others. We saved verse 6 to breakout in a separate article. Verses 1-5 are included again because they help set the right context for us as we read verse 6.

Matthew 7:1-6

  Judging Others

      1“Do not judge so that you will not be judged. 2“For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. 3“Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4“Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? 5“You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

      6“Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

We discussed last time that we are to use righteous judgment and discern good from evil. That is a consistent message throughout the Bible. How can we engage people to repent if we are silent on sin. Sin is defined by that which someone is doing wrong which does not line up with guidance from Yahweh. Matthew 18:15-18 even shows us how to rebuke our brothers or sisters, which would make no sense if we are not to judge others at all. Matthew 7:1-5 is more about how we approach someone, including our attitudes and our own walk with God before we approach others as hypocrites.

Verse 6 should be understood in the context of the preceding verses. When we have addressed sin in our life and we can see more clearly to help others remove the speck from their eye, we should seek to help them. However, there is a distinction being made between rebuking brethren and those who are referred to as swine or dogs. (This is not a compliment in the Hebrew culture of the time, quite the opposite.) There are some people, or perhaps in some situations, where our effort to help someone address sin in their life will be not only rejected outright, but they will turn against us and “trample” us. We actually see this quite clearly in our society today, in particular when we try to correct some who are truly lost. They do not want to hear it. They will take our “pearls” of wisdom and guidance (from God, not from us) and get angry or at times even violent. I believe that verse 6 is a warning to use discernment before correcting all people for all their sin.

Perhaps one well known example involving Paul is recorded in Acts.

Acts 17:22-23

      22So Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I observe that you are very religious in all respects. 23“For while I was passing through and examining the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, ‘TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.’ Therefore what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you.

I suppose Paul could have started with “You are all pagans and going to hell if you don’t repent and accept Jesus.”, but that likely would have triggered the violent response warned about where the swine turn and trample the pearls underfoot. At the least, they probably would not have listened.  Paul used wisdom in approaching them.

Of course, we can always ask Holy Spirit to guide us and help us in this discernment. There are times where the LORD may ask us to boldly address a situation that we may not think wise. In those cases, obey the LORD. In fact, the example above seems to be just that.  Acts 17:16 tells us Paul’s spirit was being provoked to take action. So even in this case Paul did not just act on his own but was following prompting from Holy Spirit (Ruach Chodesh in Hebrew).

—-

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Powerful / King of All, Consequences of Sin, Discipline / Guidance From God, Idols / False Gods, Justice / Judgment, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

Follow the LORD Wholeheartedly

I find it intriguing that Jeroboam, when tough time come, looks to YHWH through His prophet to seek help and clarity. However, when things are going ok for him prior to that he goes his own way, which was very bad and we can read more about by reading 1Kings 12 and 1 Kings 13.  Notice, the conflict within Jeroboam. He clearly must not think much of the prophet if he thinks he can fool him on who is asking the question, but at the same time he is drawn to him as he had properly prophesied about Jeroboam becoming king. Jeroboam seems to be trying to walk the fence… using YHWH when convenient but doing things his own way as seems beneficial to him.

As we quickly think about how foolish this may seem, let us take time to challenge ourselves that we do not also do likewise in our own lives. Do we go to church and claim the name of Yeshua when things suit us? Do we still do so when we face losing our job or getting harassed by people for our faith? Do we order our steps according to how the Bible instructs, even when it is not what we would like to do? If the Spirit guides us to do something that does not make sense to us, will we obey or rationalize that our way is better?

We also see in 1 Kings 14 how Jeroboam now faces consequences for his idolatry and rebellion against the LORD. We are all accountable before YHWH. It is just a question of when and how. To truly follow the LORD is to do so wholeheartedly, not sometimes “yes” and sometimes “no”. We should not take what YHWH tells us to do and then make our own version of it as Jeroboam did. That is idolatry. It does not go over well with the LORD. It is worth noting that we see no signs of repentance within Jeroboam after his mistakes… thus he remains in defiance against the LORD.

1 Kings 14: 1-20

Ahijah Prophesies against the King

      1At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam became sick. 2Jeroboam said to his wife, “Arise now, and disguise yourself so that they will not know that you are the wife of Jeroboam, and go to Shiloh; behold, Ahijah the prophet is there, who spoke concerning me that I would be king over this people. 3“Take ten loaves with you, some cakes and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy.”

      4Jeroboam’s wife did so, and arose and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. Now Ahijah could not see, for his eyes were dim because of his age. 5Now the LORD had said to Ahijah, “Behold, the wife of Jeroboam is coming to inquire of you concerning her son, for he is sick. You shall say thus and thus to her, for it will be when she arrives that she will pretend to be another woman.”

      6When Ahijah heard the sound of her feet coming in the doorway, he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam, why do you pretend to be another woman? For I am sent to you with a harsh message. 7“Go, say to Jeroboam, ‘Thus says the LORD God of Israel, “Because I exalted you from among the people and made you leader over My people Israel, 8and tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you—yet you have not been like My servant David, who kept My commandments and who followed Me with all his heart, to do only that which was right in My sight; 9you also have done more evil than all who were before you, and have gone and made for yourself other gods and molten images to provoke Me to anger, and have cast Me behind your back— 10therefore behold, I am bringing calamity on the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam every male person, both bond and free in Israel, and I will make a clean sweep of the house of Jeroboam, as one sweeps away dung until it is all gone. 11“Anyone belonging to Jeroboam who dies in the city the dogs will eat. And he who dies in the field the birds of the heavens will eat; for the LORD has spoken it.”’ 12“Now you, arise, go to your house. When your feet enter the city the child will die. 13“All Israel shall mourn for him and bury him, for he alone of Jeroboam’s family will come to the grave, because in him something good was found toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam. 14“Moreover, the LORD will raise up for Himself a king over Israel who will cut off the house of Jeroboam this day and from now on.

      15“For the LORD will strike Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water; and He will uproot Israel from this good land which He gave to their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the Euphrates River, because they have made their Asherim, provoking the LORD to anger. 16“He will give up Israel on account of the sins of Jeroboam, which he committed and with which he made Israel to sin.”

      17Then Jeroboam’s wife arose and departed and came to Tirzah. As she was entering the threshold of the house, the child died. 18All Israel buried him and mourned for him, according to the word of the LORD which He spoke through His servant Ahijah the prophet.

      19Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he made war and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 20The time that Jeroboam reigned was twenty-two years; and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his place.

—-

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

 

All Powerful / King of All, Consequences of Sin, Discipline / Guidance From God, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Idols / False Gods, Justice / Judgment, Lying / Deceiving, Obeying God, Spiritual Warfare, Through Prophets, Unteachable / Foolish, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

A King’s Idolatry in God’s Name and a Disobedient Prophet

1 Kings 13 has several important threads to pull on. The kingdom has just been divided between Rehoboam and Jeroboam due to Solomon’s rebellion against God, and Rehoboam’s arrogance and pride, mixed with some foolishness for listening to bad counsel instead of good counsel. Jeroboam set up his own altars and priests for the LORD, but this is truly idolatry as we do not get to change and adapt for our desires what the LORD has said… even if we still claim we do it for Him. Meanwhile, we also get an opportunity to explore the path of two prophets who are knitted together in this historical account.

1 Kings 13

Jeroboam Warned, Stricken

      1Now behold, there came a man of God from Judah to Bethel by the word of the LORD, while Jeroboam was standing by the altar to burn incense. 2He cried against the altar by the word of the LORD, and said, “O altar, altar, thus says the LORD, ‘Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, Josiah by name; and on you he shall sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense on you, and human bones shall be burned on you.’” 3Then he gave a sign the same day, saying, “This is the sign which the LORD has spoken, ‘Behold, the altar shall be split apart and the ashes which are on it shall be poured out.’” 4Now when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar in Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, “Seize him.” But his hand which he stretched out against him dried up, so that he could not draw it back to himself. 5The altar also was split apart and the ashes were poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD. 6The king said to the man of God, “Please entreat the LORD your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me.” So the man of God entreated the LORD, and the king’s hand was restored to him, and it became as it was before. 7Then the king said to the man of God, “Come home with me and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward.” 8But the man of God said to the king, “If you were to give me half your house I would not go with you, nor would I eat bread or drink water in this place. 9“For so it was commanded me by the word of the LORD, saying, ‘You shall eat no bread, nor drink water, nor return by the way which you came.’” 10So he went another way and did not return by the way which he came to Bethel.

The Disobedient Prophet

      11Now an old prophet was living in Bethel; and his sons came and told him all the deeds which the man of God had done that day in Bethel; the words which he had spoken to the king, these also they related to their father. 12Their father said to them, “Which way did he go?” Now his sons had seen the way which the man of God who came from Judah had gone. 13Then he said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” So they saddled the donkey for him and he rode away on it. 14So he went after the man of God and found him sitting under an oak; and he said to him, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?” And he said, “I am.” 15Then he said to him, “Come home with me and eat bread.” 16He said, “I cannot return with you, nor go with you, nor will I eat bread or drink water with you in this place. 17“For a command came to me by the word of the LORD, ‘You shall eat no bread, nor drink water there; do not return by going the way which you came.’” 18He said to him, “I also am a prophet like you, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the LORD, saying, ‘Bring him back with you to your house, that he may eat bread and drink water.’” But he lied to him. 19So he went back with him, and ate bread in his house and drank water.

      20Now it came about, as they were sitting down at the table, that the word of the LORD came to the prophet who had brought him back; 21and he cried to the man of God who came from Judah, saying, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because you have disobeyed the command of the LORD, and have not observed the commandment which the LORD your God commanded you, 22but have returned and eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which He said to you, “Eat no bread and drink no water”; your body shall not come to the grave of your fathers.’” 23It came about after he had eaten bread and after he had drunk, that he saddled the donkey for him, for the prophet whom he had brought back. 24Now when he had gone, a lion met him on the way and killed him, and his body was thrown on the road, with the donkey standing beside it; the lion also was standing beside the body. 25And behold, men passed by and saw the body thrown on the road, and the lion standing beside the body; so they came and told it in the city where the old prophet lived.

      26Now when the prophet who brought him back from the way heard it, he said, “It is the man of God, who disobeyed the command of the LORD; therefore the LORD has given him to the lion, which has torn him and killed him, according to the word of the LORD which He spoke to him.” 27Then he spoke to his sons, saying, “Saddle the donkey for me.” And they saddled it. 28He went and found his body thrown on the road with the donkey and the lion standing beside the body; the lion had not eaten the body nor torn the donkey. 29So the prophet took up the body of the man of God and laid it on the donkey and brought it back, and he came to the city of the old prophet to mourn and to bury him. 30He laid his body in his own grave, and they mourned over him, saying, “Alas, my brother!” 31After he had buried him, he spoke to his sons, saying, “When I die, bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32“For the thing shall surely come to pass which he cried by the word of the LORD against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places which are in the cities of Samaria.”

      33After this event Jeroboam did not return from his evil way, but again he made priests of the high places from among all the people; any who would, he ordained, to be priests of the high places. 34This event became sin to the house of Jeroboam, even to blot it out and destroy it from off the face of the earth.

Clearly we see Jeroboam is warned in dramatic fashion about his sin and idolatry… and he refuses to repent. This is not a man who is truly pursuing the LORD, despite the actions of setting up a priesthood and altars in His name. He is going through religious activity but missing on the main point of being in relationship and obedience to God. He is doing things his own way and damaging the name or reputation of God in the process. There are people doing this very commonly throughout our culture today! We should prayerfully reflect and ask God to show us if and how we are doing this in our lives today, by rationalizing how we mix and mingle obeying God with other cultural influences or personal desires. We should submit to and serve God and God alone.

In regards to the prophet, we can explore many different aspects. We could get focused on why the old prophet who lied was not punished. Maybe he was. That is not the focus God wanted us to have from this historical account. He wants us to focus on the young prophet. He knew clearly and firmly that he was not to eat or drink in that place. He said so firmly to both king and the older prophet. He allowed himself to be deceived. He chose to go against what God had clearly told him. God held him accountable for that. When we are in a mature relationship with the LORD where He does miracles through us and brings His word clearly through us, He also has high expectations that we obey. In that case, He knows we clearly understood Him and then disobeyed.

It is not written, but one can easily imagine the role of Satan playing out behind the scenes here. I imagine him influencing the king to tempt the prophet. As we learn from Satan’s temptation of Jesus in the wilderness, he always comes more than once and he gets trickier. You only defend by clearly understanding the word of God and obeying it. I can see Satan coming back with a trickier approach through the older prophet and he manages to get the younger prophet to disobey God and face the consequences. God sent the lion to cause death to the prophet. This was not simply the LORD removing his hedge of protection. The lion killed the man and then ate neither man nor donkey and just stayed there by the site where it happened. The LORD punished the prophet by bringing about his death.

If that seems harsh or makes us uncomfortable, then we should prayerfully reflect on it, but it is still true. Let us recognize that the LORD is to be respected and at times feared. That should encourage us in our obedience, in particular when He has clearly spoken to us what we are to do.

—-

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

 

Children, Consequences of Sin, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Fear / Reverence for God, Interceding for Others, Is the Old Testament Relevant Today?, Justice / Judgment, Learning To Pray Effectively, Loving / Kind, Merciful, Parenting, Repenting from Sin, Seeking God, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

Solomon’s Dedication Captures Timeless Principles We Should Study

It is worth reading and reflecting prayerfully on the prayer of dedication Solomon delivered for the temple. There is a lot of truth about our relationship YHWH that today people seem to have forgotten in mainstream Christianity. Our relationship with YHWH is not simply that He gives us all we want no matter what we do because of grace. It is a covenant. Both sides have a commitment. If we are His people and walk in His ways, then He will be our God.

Solomon recognizes that there will be sin. He further recognizes that there will be consequences for sin. He focuses then on the importance of repentance and turning away from sin and wholeheartedly back to YHWH as a key step in forgiveness.

These are timeless principles. The main change is that now we know who Messiah is in the person of Yeshua. We can accept forgiveness through His payment for our sins. However, we still need to repent genuinely and fully and come humbly before our God asking forgiveness in Yeshua’s name.

Incidentally, our relationship with our Father serves as a model for our earthly relationships as parents and children. Sin and disobedience has consequences. Full reconciliation requires repentance to a godly standard.  We do not do our children favors by accepting them fully and cheerfully in their rebellion as if there is no issue for them to change. It sets the stage for them to live in rebellion to YHWH throughout their lives.

1 Kings 8: 22-53

The Prayer of Dedication

      22Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven. 23He said, “O LORD, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and showing lovingkindness to Your servants who walk before You with all their heart, 24who have kept with Your servant, my father David, that which You have promised him; indeed, You have spoken with Your mouth and have fulfilled it with Your hand as it is this day. 25“Now therefore, O LORD, the God of Israel, keep with Your servant David my father that which You have promised him, saying, ‘You shall not lack a man to sit on the throne of Israel, if only your sons take heed to their way to walk before Me as you have walked.’ 26“Now therefore, O God of Israel, let Your word, I pray, be confirmed which You have spoken to Your servant, my father David.

      27“But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You, how much less this house which I have built! 28“Yet have regard to the prayer of Your servant and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to listen to the cry and to the prayer which Your servant prays before You today; 29that Your eyes may be open toward this house night and day, toward the place of which You have said, ‘My name shall be there,’ to listen to the prayer which Your servant shall pray toward this place. 30“Listen to the supplication of Your servant and of Your people Israel, when they pray toward this place; hear in heaven Your dwelling place; hear and forgive.

      31“If a man sins against his neighbor and is made to take an oath, and he comes and takes an oath before Your altar in this house, 32then hear in heaven and act and judge Your servants, condemning the wicked by bringing his way on his own head and justifying the righteous by giving him according to his righteousness.

      33“When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy, because they have sinned against You, if they turn to You again and confess Your name and pray and make supplication to You in this house, 34then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your people Israel, and bring them back to the land which You gave to their fathers.

      35“When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain, because they have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and confess Your name and turn from their sin when You afflict them, 36then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants and of Your people Israel, indeed, teach them the good way in which they should walk. And send rain on Your land, which You have given Your people for an inheritance.

      37“If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence, if there is blight or mildew, locust or grasshopper, if their enemy besieges them in the land of their cities, whatever plague, whatever sickness there is, 38whatever prayer or supplication is made by any man or by all Your people Israel, each knowing the affliction of his own heart, and spreading his hands toward this house; 39then hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive and act and render to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know, for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men, 40that they may fear You all the days that they live in the land which You have given to our fathers.

      41“Also concerning the foreigner who is not of Your people Israel, when he comes from a far country for Your name’s sake 42(for they will hear of Your great name and Your mighty hand, and of Your outstretched arm); when he comes and prays toward this house, 43hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to You, in order that all the peoples of the earth may know Your name, to fear You, as do Your people Israel, and that they may know that this house which I have built is called by Your name.

      44“When Your people go out to battle against their enemy, by whatever way You shall send them, and they pray to the LORD toward the city which You have chosen and the house which I have built for Your name, 45then hear in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause.

      46“When they sin against You (for there is no man who does not sin) and You are angry with them and deliver them to an enemy, so that they take them away captive to the land of the enemy, far off or near; 47if they take thought in the land where they have been taken captive, and repent and make supplication to You in the land of those who have taken them captive, saying, ‘We have sinned and have committed iniquity, we have acted wickedly’; 48if they return to You with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies who have taken them captive, and pray to You toward their land which You have given to their fathers, the city which You have chosen, and the house which I have built for Your name; 49then hear their prayer and their supplication in heaven Your dwelling place, and maintain their cause, 50and forgive Your people who have sinned against You and all their transgressions which they have transgressed against You, and make them objects of compassion before those who have taken them captive, that they may have compassion on them 51(for they are Your people and Your inheritance which You have brought forth from Egypt, from the midst of the iron furnace), 52that Your eyes may be open to the supplication of Your servant and to the supplication of Your people Israel, to listen to them whenever they call to You. 53“For You have separated them from all the peoples of the earth as Your inheritance, as You spoke through Moses Your servant, when You brought our fathers forth from Egypt, O Lord GOD.”

—-

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Consequences of Sin, Fear / Reverence for God, Grace / Forgiveness, Justice / Judgment, Merciful, Mercy, Offering Sacrifices, Pride, Repenting from Sin, Satan, Spiritual Warfare, Temptation/Tempting, Through Prophets

Dealing With Sin and Restoring Relationship with the Father

There is a lot going on in the last chapter of 2 Samuel. David sins against the LORD despite Joab trying to persuade him not to take a census.  When it is complete, David recognizes his sin and asks for forgiveness. The LORD gives David a choice for punishment. David’s punishment affects his people, not just him. (Others often share in consequences of our sin.) David throws himself on the mercy of the LORD, and receives it. He then gets closure by building an altar.

David does ask the LORD to let the punishment fall on him rather than others. I deeply respect this request. I also respect that David did not take for free the property and sacrifice offered to him, but rather paid a fair price for it. He did not take advantage of his position as king.

This chapter basically sums up David’s relationship with YHWH. What made him different from so many others? What made David a man after God’s own heart? I believe it was that when David sinned, he sought forgiveness and turned to YHWH and accepted consequences and changed his behavior.  That is something for us all to model.

We also see YHWH’s mercy at play as he stops the pestilence before it if fully rolled out.

Of course, we could also ask…”why is it a sin to take a census?”  “Was it YHWH who was angry that caused David to sin?”

If we cross reference with 1 Chronicles 21, we learn that it was Satan who rose up and incited David to conduct the census. It is likely that the sin here is not counting the people. There are other examples where the people were counted. Perhaps the sin here was pride growing within David and the people about their own might and power as a nation. Let us take care to avoid that trap (pride) that Satan sets for many of us.

Remember also that when sin occurs, and we repent, that does not mean we will not still experience consequences.

As perhaps a last thought, when David sinned with Bathsheba, there is no mention of Satan. That was just a sin motivated by David’s own sin nature. This event is different. This is an example of spiritual warfare in which Satan tempted or incited David to sin. We must be on guard for both.

2 Samuel 24

The Census Taken

      1Now again the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and it incited David against them to say, “Go, number Israel and Judah.” 2The king said to Joab the commander of the army who was with him, “Go about now through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and register the people, that I may know the number of the people.” 3But Joab said to the king, “Now may the LORD your God add to the people a hundred times as many as they are, while the eyes of my lord the king still see; but why does my lord the king delight in this thing?” 4Nevertheless, the king’s word prevailed against Joab and against the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army went out from the presence of the king to register the people of Israel. 5They crossed the Jordan and camped in Aroer, on the right side of the city that is in the middle of the valley of Gad and toward Jazer. 6Then they came to Gilead and to the land of Tahtim-hodshi, and they came to Dan-jaan and around to Sidon, 7and came to the fortress of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and of the Canaanites, and they went out to the south of Judah, to Beersheba. 8So when they had gone about through the whole land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. 9And Joab gave the number of the registration of the people to the king; and there were in Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men.

      10Now David’s heart troubled him after he had numbered the people. So David said to the LORD, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O LORD, please take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have acted very foolishly.” 11When David arose in the morning, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying, 12“Go and speak to David, ‘Thus the LORD says, “I am offering you three things; choose for yourself one of them, which I will do to you.”’” 13So Gad came to David and told him, and said to him, “Shall seven years of famine come to you in your land? Or will you flee three months before your foes while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days’ pestilence in your land? Now consider and see what answer I shall return to Him who sent me.” 14Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Let us now fall into the hand of the LORD for His mercies are great, but do not let me fall into the hand of man.”

Pestilence Sent

      15So the LORD sent a pestilence upon Israel from the morning until the appointed time, and seventy thousand men of the people from Dan to Beersheba died. 16When the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented from the calamity and said to the angel who destroyed the people, “It is enough! Now relax your hand!” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. 17Then David spoke to the LORD when he saw the angel who was striking down the people, and said, “Behold, it is I who have sinned, and it is I who have done wrong; but these sheep, what have they done? Please let Your hand be against me and against my father’s house.”

David Builds an Altar

      18So Gad came to David that day and said to him, “Go up, erect an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” 19David went up according to the word of Gad, just as the LORD had commanded. 20Araunah looked down and saw the king and his servants crossing over toward him; and Araunah went out and bowed his face to the ground before the king. 21Then Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” And David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you, in order to build an altar to the LORD, that the plague may be held back from the people.” 22Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up what is good in his sight. Look, the oxen for the burnt offering, the threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood. 23“Everything, O king, Araunah gives to the king.” And Araunah said to the king, “May the LORD your God accept you.” 24However, the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price, for I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God which cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. 25David built there an altar to the LORD and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. Thus the LORD was moved by prayer for the land, and the plague was held back from Israel.

—-

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Consequences of Sin, Justice / Judgment, Rebuke Wrong Behavior, Repenting from Sin, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

Seven Men Hanged for the Sins of a Family Member

2 Samuel 21 records a difficult series of events to digest.  YHWH puts a famine on the land because of the sin of Saul against the Gibeonites. David seeks to make things right after three years because the LORD is rebuking Israel. I find it curious, and a bit disappointing that David asks the Gibeonites what to do to reconcile. I would have preferred if he would have asked YHWH. Maybe he did and YHWH did not answer. The answer seems pointless and unfair to the descendants of Saul. They were not the ones at fault and they are executed. Saul was already dead.

Ultimately after some additional actions and prayer, the LORD removes the famine. However, I can’t help but wonder if there could have been another option on how to repent and make things right. My opinion does not matter, however, in this account. We are left to reflect on the recorded events and decide how to apply in our lives.

For me, I want to be close to the LORD and know when I am being rebuked, like David was close to Him. I want to seek His guidance on what actions to take, even if they are hard. I do not want to seek opinions of people per se, except to better understand what YHWH may want us to do. I also want to recognize that sometimes my sin may be revisited upon my sons or daughters. I want to walk with righteousness as best I can and seek grace and forgiveness along the way.

2 Samuel 21

Gibeonite Revenge

      1Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David sought the presence of the LORD. And the LORD said, “It is for Saul and his bloody house, because he put the Gibeonites to death.” 2So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons of Israel but of the remnant of the Amorites, and the sons of Israel made a covenant with them, but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah). 3Thus David said to the Gibeonites, “What should I do for you? And how can I make atonement that you may bless the inheritance of the LORD?” 4Then the Gibeonites said to him, “We have no concern of silver or gold with Saul or his house, nor is it for us to put any man to death in Israel.” And he said, “I will do for you whatever you say.” 5So they said to the king, “The man who consumed us and who planned to exterminate us from remaining within any border of Israel, 6let seven men from his sons be given to us, and we will hang them before the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of the LORD.” And the king said, “I will give them.”

      7But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of the oath of the LORD which was between them, between David and Saul’s son Jonathan. 8So the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, Armoni and Mephibosheth whom she had borne to Saul, and the five sons of Merab the daughter of Saul, whom she had borne to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite. 9Then he gave them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them in the mountain before the LORD, so that the seven of them fell together; and they were put to death in the first days of harvest at the beginning of barley harvest.

      10And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until it rained on them from the sky; and she allowed neither the birds of the sky to rest on them by day nor the beasts of the field by night. 11When it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done, 12then David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the open square of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them on the day the Philistines struck down Saul in Gilboa. 13He brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from there, and they gathered the bones of those who had been hanged. 14They buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in Zela, in the grave of Kish his father; thus they did all that the king commanded, and after that God was moved by prayer for the land.

—-

Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.