If we would go back to Leviticus 26, we will see that David should have known that famine was no small thing in God's arsenal. It cut us off from God. He could have done whatever he wanted. He was setting us an example of what we should be doing in a spiritual sense. They are going to cause problems. Lets be clear from the very beginning, David was kind to Mephibosheth for his father Jonathans sake (2 Samuel 9:1). Mephibosheth was only five ye I do not know. Perhaps those first two, Armoni, and Mephibosheth were old enough to have participated in the event. You see, famine on the scale like thisthree yearsis a sign from God that things were not copacetic in the land. The Gibeonites take the young men and essentially lynch them, leaving the bodies of Sauls sons and grandsons to rot, exposed and humiliated in the presence of God at a local shrine. Saul became a bit strange in the head after this, if you will remember. A person dies for his own sins, not those committed by someone else, whether father, son, or black sheep uncle. For the Gibeonites, their wily guile and deception gained them survival and nothing more. God is just. So David asked the Lord for help, and the Lord answered, Saul and his family are guilty of murder, because he had the Gibeonites killed. Therefore David said to the Gibeonites, "What shall I do for you? Because of their peace treaty and their oath with the Gibeonites, which included these people. "Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? He needed God to forgive him. The cities of refuge were designed (among other things) to stop and prevent these feuds from happening. There is no record in the Bible of Saul killing Gibeonites. The higher the vote, the further up an answer is. In reading the Psalms, on the other hand, we get an idea of just how grateful he was for God's forgiveness and grace, because I believe he was aware of just what a rotten individual he really was. Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David inquired of the LORD. Saul and the Pharisees persecuted and killed the Christians, The sons of King Saul were killed as a result of this attempted genocide, The non-Christian inhabitants of Jerusalem were destroyed in AD70 Gods judgment on them for murdering his son and doubtless, the early Christians. He was tired, and wanted to get it out of the way. God extends blessings far farther into the future than He does the curses. WebThe alliance with the Gibeonites lasted for centuries, until Saul - in his zeal (21, 2) - decided that the ancient covenant was no longer binding. That is that he could have gone along with the Gibeonite's demands in order to get rid of seven possible contenders for his throne. Can we assume that God was in any way propitiated at the conclusion of this story? The Israelites had promised not to So he 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. Over the years I've urged our Fellowship to check out, investigate and take to heart such biblical alarms. All it is, was, "We want blood, and anyone from the house of Saul will do.". God affirms that the famine is punishment for Sauls massacre of the Gibeonites, who had been protected by a treaty since the Israelites first invaded the Promised Land ( Joshua 9:127 ). Therefore, your kingdom is taken away and given to another. Report, September 02 2013 Good question. The Bible tells us that after Saul's death God sent a famine into the land mainly to get the attention of Saul's successor, King David. By this time, having fought all his life since he was a teenagerup against Goliath when he was eighteen or soand here he was approaching 70 years old, and he was tired. One is God's judgment upon the actual person for the actual sin; the other is God's punishment that He has automatically put into the law that allows the effects to last for a few generations. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth.". Obviously, having seen what happened to Jericho and Ai, they knew God and Israel were serious. LAMECH: FALL OUT FROM POLYGAMY; Throughout the centuries, the original Gibeonites continued to exist as a people, although King Saul schemed to destroy them. The Gibeonites, howev Lets read about David avenging the Gibeonites in 2 Samuel 21:1-14: 1 Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year. If we would go through Luke 21:7-12, we would see that Jesus gave His disciples indications of what would happen if the time of the end began. Psalm 34:17-18 The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles. But they refused the offer. You are getting later and later in David's life here. Or as the In fact, look down to verse 15, II Samuel 21:15-17 When the Philistines were at war again with Israel, David and his servants with him went down and fought against the Philistines; and David grew faint. On the mammoth scene of world history this minor alliance would rank as a minute encounter. They were a group of Amorites. That is not what it says here. 5. Notice that I Kings begins not many chapters after this. We have all followed in the same way of life as our first parents Adam and Eve. He is beyond us; it does not make any sense. Saul was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for forty -two years over Israel. We have an easier time identifying with the flawed, but heroic, Lancelot from the legends of King Arthur, because he is a lot more like ushe commits sin; he has faults. You had only black and white television if you had television. However, the Gibeonites did. It was as if David earlier said, "Let's just get this out of the way. King David was probably huffing and puffing, "I can't lift this thing! The two hints are that Saul and his house had a reputation for violence"Saul and his bloodthirsty house." The chronicler, herewhoever he wasis giving us a big hint that David's attention was elsewhere for three whole years. Saul tried to get back his throne from God by doing what he thought was right, what he thought was zealous for God, by getting rid of the foreignersincluding the Gibeonitesthat were among them. But that conclusion is a bit too sanguine once you begin to look into that which is not said, or what is said elsewhere. God was not in all his thoughts during this time. Therefore, there was a different system of justice than what the Gentiles were used to. We do not know how long before II Samuel 21 this incident happened. The choice by Adam and Eve in the garden was a sin, and they paid for it through death. WebThe Gibeonites Hang Saul's Descendants 21 While David was king, there were three years in a row when the nation of Israel could not grow enough food. He just let the natural cycles take their course. He realized how often, and how far, he strayed from God's way of life. If you read 2Samuel 21 carefully, it seems possible that Saul and his house may have been trying to get the Gibeonites territory. But, the big thing was that he did not consult God about what he should do about it. Matt 24:4/Mk 13:5/Lk 21:8. 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. However, we have a great deal of trouble identifying with or understanding pure, innocent and perfect Galahad. A good answer provides new insight and perspective. He was far from God during this time. Sheba's rebellion is in the previous chapter, II Samuel 20. II Samuel 21:1-14 Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David inquired of the LORD. Seven of Sauls descendants were hanged as a result. Therefore, this curse goes down until the gene pool is able to kick it outthree or four generations. God said explicitly to destroy everything! When did Saul kill these Gibeonites? . There are references to the Lord, but they are not references in a spiritual sense. So the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul; and the five sons of Michal [Merabsee margin of most Bibles] the daughter of Saul, whom she brought up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite; and he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them on the hill before the LORD. We do not know when it happened. The problem was that God had not told Saul to do this, God had told Joshua to do that. And these men, they need to be buried. They were the five sons of Merab, Saul's daughter. The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them. . The words "thirty" and "forty" are not in the original Hebrew. David asked. Only in one sense, there was a fall of man, but certainly not in the traditional sense. Spiritual virtues and qualities are largely unseen yet are more real and potent in lasting effects than the most formidable nuclear pile. Evidently, he thought that he could win back his kingdom if he zealously did God's will. God revealed that this calamity happened because of "Saul and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites ." he put the Gibeonites to death. This was obviously later in his life and reign. Then they answered the king, "As for the man who consumed us and plotted against us, that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the territories of Israel, "let seven men of his descendants be delivered to us, and we will hang them before the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, whom the LORD chose." They wanted blood by putting to death seven male descendants to die for the crimes of that house against the Gibeonites. King David was compelled to hand over his own people to the power of Israel's ongoing enemies. When the Gibeonites heard that the other nations were going to attack them, they sent a message to Joshua and the people, Help! The Gibeonites have the dubious distinction of having duped Joshua and the elders of Israel. (Now the Gibeonites were not Israelites, but a remnant of the Amorites. 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. THE STORY OF JOSEPH - In fact, it can be read as if David approached it as only a minor administrative matter. Now that we have established that there was a horrible massacre at some point in the past, remember there was sin, and there was a crime committed. But, the others were Saul's grandsons. They probably went from Gibeon by some circuitous route so they did not come directly from the west where they actually lived. There are so many things I have got to do.". It only says that God heeded the prayer of the land. During the time of the judges, the Israelites had repeatedly turned away, leaving them corrupt and faithless. And it would have been done quickly and easily. Notice God declares that the bloodguilt was not just on Saul, but also his house. He was humble and relied on God, and was granted many victories over Israels enemies. Things started to go downhill over time however, as Saul became presumptuous and arrogant; he ignored several direct commands of God, and the last straw came when he interfered in offering a sacrifice to God, in direct contravention of what hed been told to do. He made huge errors in judgment, both personally and in a larger sense. by LeRoy Gardenier We are not finished with that yet, because, who were the Gibeonites? Back in I Samuel 15, Saul was told by God through Samuel to go up against the Amalekites, and to destroy everything in sight, do not spare anything; exterminate them. Samuel 21 this incident happened are getting later and later in his life and reign Hebrew... The house of Saul will do. `` or four generations Saul and for own. Crimes of that house against the Gibeonites. Jericho and Ai, they knew God and Israel were serious and. Ye I do for you among other things ) to stop and prevent these feuds from happening power... 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