But talk about your flawed heroes! Where are they from? In verse 7 we see the only thing in the entire situation that was any good at all. It would be the equivalent of an event somewhere between the Korean War and the Vietnam War. You shall make no covenant with them nor show mercy to them. WebSaul slew the Gibeonites, not simply as the son of Kish, but as the king of Israel, and therefore involved all Israel with him in the violation of the national oath; and hence, until the evil should be put away by the execution of the immediate offender or his representatives, all Israel must suffer. Berean Literal Bible Acts 13:21. Saul became a bit strange in the head after this, if you will remember. There is another thing that needs to be thrown out there as a possible scenario, and this would have been the very worst and lowest that David could have sunk to. He apparently killed He did this "in his zeal for. II Samuel 21:10-11 Now Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until the late rains poured on them from heaven. They may not have been involved at all, depending on how early in Saul's reign this event took place. 3:6: "for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life"? We are not finished with that yet, because, who were the Gibeonites? Joshua 9:3-6 But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, they worked craftily [remember that], and went and pretended to be ambassadors. (Mark 6:20). A lot can happen in two years. For unknown reasons, Joshua and the elders of Israel quickly bit on this proposal. They didn't present themselves in a truthful light saying that they were neighbors who respected Israel's strength and godly advantage and were suing for peace. fit into Creation? They were a group of Amorites. The world's arsenal is growing daily in material strength and sophisticated intimidation. 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. THE STORY OF JOSEPH - One other thing: Samuel said that God is not going to go back on His word. He will not relent. There is a very important difference. Therefore, your kingdom is taken away and given to another. 6. Should the explanation in Genesis on how God created plants before the sun affect the understanding of creation? Asked August 31 2013 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. But, they like the dark one because he is moody, and doing things not for quite the right reasons. We are getting toward the end of King David's life. He did not do anything to directly intervene. It is for Saul. 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." Then Gibeon was a mile or two more to the north-northwest. All it is, was, "We want blood, and anyone from the house of Saul will do.". Eisenhower was still in office. Verse 1 did say that it was "Saul and his bloodthirsty house" who had massacred the Gibeonites. 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.". 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. Israel and Judah," who may have fretted at the inconvenience of having the Gibeonites among them. There were no conditions. And, it certainly does not record that David took this to God for His solution to it. Seven of Sauls descendants were hanged as a result. WebA three years' famine in the days of David was attributed to God's anger at the unexpiated crime of Saul in slaying the Gibeonites. I do not know if that was the case, but he had just gone through Absalom's rebellion, and Sheba's rebellion, and maybe he allowed that to cross his mind too. It certainly happened because it says there in verses 1 and 2 that Saul killed a lot of Gibeonites at some point in his reign. They knew all the things God had stipulated about what they were to do when Israel was going to come into the land. Guilt for sin is not hereditary. We have our own sins to pay for; we do not pay for theirs. There is more space given to David's flaws than anyone else in the whole Bible. Let's see what's in our bag of tricks. You see, famine on the scale like thisthree yearsis a sign from God that things were not copacetic in the land. WebWe will attack Gibeon, because they have made peace with Joshua and the Israelites." Jesus Christ should be everyone's ultimate hero. And they sent them to Joshua at Gilgal. How do other hominoids (e.g homo erectus, homo neanderthalensis, etc.) Wherever he turned, he harassed them. These conflicting views on Saul would continue long past the biblical era and into modern times. But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid, and struck the Philistine and killed him. Saul's bones are still in Jabesh-Gilead. The Gibeonites presented themselves to the invading Israelites, not as nearby neighbors, but as distant foreigners who lived in a far-off land. God is warning here that sin has consequences. 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. Vote Up Finally the light came on, and David said, "I had better ask what is going on here. So he did to them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, so that they did not kill them. What might he have done? Saul had four sons. * Jonathanhe befriended David, died with Saul on Mount Gilboa * Abinadabdied with Saul on Mount Gilboa * Malchishuadied with God isn't very pleased that these bodies have been exposed for six months against His law.". With all the recent rebellions, he was probably worried that his alliances were going to fail, because he may have appeared to weaken. 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. And David sought the face of the Lord. WebSaul kills the gentile Gibeonites (2 Sam 21) & banishes mediums in preparation for Tabernacle being moved from Nob to Gibeon. So Joshua made peace with them, and made a covenant with them to let them live; and the rulers of the congregation swore to them. In fact, it can be read as if David approached it as only a minor administrative matter. What do we do in a time of spiritual famine? When the Gibeonites heard that the other nations were going to attack them, they sent a message to Joshua and the people, Help! After 7-10 years of war, David has solidified his empire Mar 2, 2022. There is no record in the Bible of Saul killing Gibeonites. Israel was totally swindled and bamboozled. He sees the hearts of men and the hidden actions of men. He says that He visits the iniquity upon them. This does not make any sense. When He visits the iniquity upon successive generations, He is saying is that the results and curses that come automatically often go down a handful of generations. It shows you just how far things had sunk in the land. Forty years, at least, has passed, and had they been involved in it back when Saul was still kinglet us say they were 18 to 20 years oldthese men involved in this massacre, should they still be alive, might be 60, 65, or even 70 years old. WebAnd the Lord answered, Saul and his family of murderers are the reason for the famine, because he killed the Gibeonites. 2 (The Gibeonites were not Israelites. There is a great deal more than what meets the eye. How many died in sicknesses? "No, we don't do things like that in Israel. 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. Although the people of Israel had sworn to spare them, Saul had sought to strike them down in his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah. Jerusalem is almost directly west a few miles, but it is quite high from the Jordan to the Jerusalem. However, we have a great deal of trouble identifying with or understanding pure, innocent and perfect Galahad. He could have done whatever he wanted. The young lions lack and suffer hunger; but those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing. 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. According to a May 2007 George Barna Poll, 63% of Americans, mostly professing Christians, believe that Jesus sinned during His physical life! We are talking about the possibility of only two of the seven even remotely having any guilt in this matter whatsoever. The Bible does not provide us the details of this killing. Share WebTheir apostasy began with the Hivites from Gibeon, and in time, the leaven slowly spread. Then they were able to pick up the pieces of their lives and move forward by the strength that God gave them to overcome and to grow, and to put on the mindthe characterof Christ. King David, for example, made huge errors in judgment and committed colossal sins. And after that God heeded the prayer for the land. But, the big thing was that he did not consult God about what he should do about it. I think he was very low. The problem was that God had not told Saul to do this, God had told Joshua to do that. King David came at it from a position of weakness, not of one who knew God's law and could answer these people from spiritual strength. God took the initiative in this matter, by afflicting the nation of Israel with a famine because the house of Saul had put the Gibeonites to death. The Gibeonites left their mark on Israel's history in another wretched incident involving A person dies for his own sins, not those committed by someone else, whether father, son, or black sheep uncle. The Bible helps us in this way, because it is full of examples of flawed heroes of faith. And David sought the face of the Lord. The Gibeonites joined in the fight against the Philistines B. God punished the whole nation for breaking the covenant. God told Joshua to get rid of all these foreigners in the land. 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. However there is nothing in the text that indicates he did this. King David was perhaps the only converted person in the entire nationmaybe besides the high priest of the time, but we do not know. God says very clearly that Israel was to conquer them, destroy them, and make no covenant with them. God took the initiative in this matter, by afflicting the nation of Israel with a famine because the house of Saul had put the Gibeonites to death. God extends blessings far farther into the future than He does the curses. It says a bit later that somebody told him what that woman was doing out there protecting the bodies of the slain men of Saul's house for the past six months and it was as though he said, "Oh really? So he said, "Whatever you say, I will do for you." The "Great Debate" between Nixon and Kennedy had not occurred yet. The prophet Zechariah asks a question that is forever pertinent to all spiritual considerations and decisions: "For who hath despised the day of small things?" They fell for it hook, line, and sinker, and they were stuck. How many wars were fought? Now it came to pass, when Adonizedec king of It does not require at all times that a person guilty of bloodshed die. Our God has given us a law that says such and such, so this is what we are willing to do for you.". Report, September 02 2013 but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah. 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. But, you would think that after two years you would get the idea that this was not breaking. (4:10). He understood it. The historical narrative of King David is drawing to a close. 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