2 Samuel 15:23-16:23
2 Samuel
15:23-37
Vs. 23-29
It had been a moment of great personal joy when David brought the ark into the
city. Now, it must have broken his heart to see these well meaning priests taking
it out of the city with him. David's heart is rightly humbled. David knew he
had brought this situation on himself and was willing to submit himself to
God's will and judgment. He sent the ark back into the city, hoping that the
Lord would bring him back.
What comes
from this is that both priests had sons who could bring him information.
Vs. 30-37
Jesus would one day weep on the Mount of Olives, but for a very different
reason. He would be entering Jerusalem to die for sin. These people, with
David, were leaving Jerusalem because of sin. I wonder why they were weeping. I
wonder if anyone was thinking in the back of their mind that this was the
result of what David did to Bathsheba and Uriah.
David’s
heart falls when he learns that Ahithophel was in league with Absalom. At that
moment, it seems God sent David the answer to his prayer. Hushai would become
the secret weapon against Ahithophel. Isn't it interesting that up until now,
we've never heard the name of Ahithophel. Now we're afraid of him. If this guy
was such a great counselor and such a wise guy, why did he turn against David
and side with a foolish man like Absalom? What would cause a wise man like
Ahithophel to oppose David and God and do something so irrational? Did you
figure it out?
2 Samuel
16
Vs. 1-4 So
here is Ziba, bearing gifts. I know he wasn't Greek, but the old adage applied
to him too. Maybe this was just "old world" kindness. Maybe he knew
the story of how Abigail’s gift had touched David's heart. Of course, hindsight
is always 20/20, but no one sees this yet as we will understand it in chapter
19.
Look at v.
3. All I want to say here is this, both in the law and in dealing with elders
in the NT, God says, Do not admit a
charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses. I
know I’m jading you, slanting your thinking a certain way, but I have not read
one commentary that catches what is happening here. This is where reading year
after year allows the Spirit to give you insight deeper than studying a passage
for only a few hours will give you.
So here
you have the word of Ziba, that the crippled son of David's best friend, a
godly friend, has said, "Good, now I'll become king." Especially
knowing that all Israel was following after that handsome, fully functional,
"dude's dude," Absalom. Really? A cripple was going to put himself
forward as king?
V. 4 To me
this ranks as a very sad verse in the Bible. David just broke the law of God by
accepting the testimony of one man against another. And look what he did. He
gave Ziba everything, and he never even asked Mephibosheth if this was true. I
mean, seriously. Obviously, I know what's coming in chapter 19, but suffice it
to say that David's judgment was damaged by his sin and his guilt. There is one
other little point to observe. According to “old world” custom and cleverness,
if you accepted the gift of a man, you were indebted to him.
Vs. 5-14
This guy was wrong and ranted at David for all the wrong reasons. Now, if he
had said something about killing Uriah and taking Bathsheba, that would have
been true and instructive, especially because, as you will see, God’s judgment
on David for his actions against Uriah and Bathsheba is being fulfilled here.
Back to Shimei. God will judge him for this, but God used him to provide some
"mood music" for David's march to the Jordan. David's words give us
the idea that he understood that God was motivating Shimei. Interestingly
enough, as David dies, he will give Solomon two assignments: one is to kill
Joab and the other is to kill this guy, but of course, to do it legally. Sounds
like a mafia movie.
Vs. 15-23
So now we look at the other side of this civil war. Hushai is in place to try
to save David, but Absalom looks to Ahithophel for counsel. Ahithophel's first
word to Absalom is that he should rape David's ten concubines (servant wives).
Verses 20-23 are a summary that he actually did this, probably the next day.
Presently however, the meeting isn't over.
Now, who
was Ahithophel?
When we first heard about Bathsheba in 2
Samuel 11:3, we learned “Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?” This
should have made David stop immediately. Why?
If you do
a search on the name "Eliam," you'll find it coming up later in 2
Samuel 23. The name is found in the list of David's mighty men. David's mighty
men were a select group of outstanding warriors and fighters, who were deeply
loyal to David, probably having joined David when he was still serving Saul.
David would have been very close to these men. These men were with him through
all the ten years of running from Saul. Now as king, some of them would have
been David's personal bodyguards. They would have been the men who ate daily
with David at his table (as we see Mephibosheth doing). He would have known
them and been close to these guys and their families. In putting together a
government back then, you went to your family and your friends and their
families. You chose men whom you knew and could trust. The world was small, and
so you surrounded yourself with your trusted, proven friends and their
families.
So, in 2 Samuel 23:34 you’ll see that Eliam,
one of David's mighty men, was the son of Ahithophel. So if Bathsheba was the
daughter of Eliam, she would be the granddaughter of Ahithophel. She was
Ahithophel's granddaughter! Look at the end of the list of David's mighty men.
The last hero listed is Uriah the Hittite. Uriah was in this select group and
known by David. Both
Eliam and Uriah were members of an elite group of soldiers, friends and
loyalists of David, known as David’s “mighty men.” Ahithophel was David's most
trusted counselor. These men sat at the table with David.
Did David
really not know who Bathsheba was? He knew she was the granddaughter of his
most trusted counselor, the daughter of one of his closest and most loyal men,
and the wife of one of his closest and most loyal men. He also knew they were
away from Jerusalem fighting a battle. David wasn't stupid, but what he did
was.
What would
cause a wise man like Ahithophel to join Absalom to oppose David and God and do
something so foolish? Ahithophel saw how David had sexually forced his
granddaughter, killed his "grandson-in-law," destroyed his family and
violated the trust and loyalty Eliam and Uriah had shown him when he was
running from Saul. How sad. Then notice that Ahithophel tells Absalom to rape
his father’s concubines. I don’t think Ahithophel was an evil man. He just
wanted justice in kind. David had raped his granddaughter, now David’s son
raped his wives. Poetic justice, just as God had promised to judge David. And
since David had killed Ahithophel's grandson-in-law, now Ahithophel hoped to
kill David.
When David
says in Psalm
51:4, Against You, You only, have I
sinned…, I have to respectfully disagree. David should have had long talks
with Ahithophel and Eliam and their families and apologized until his voice was
hoarse and he couldn't cry another tear. I don't think David did this. Look at
how David communicated with his own sons. David wrote songs, but he was a
basket case when it came to discussion for restoration.
Ahithophel
became a bitter man and will rightfully pay for his bitterness. His new great grandson,
Solomon, will become king; but where hearts are bitter, where there is no
justice, and where there is no repentance and honest communication, there is
seldom forgiveness or peace. David should have begged for their forgiveness.
When that didn't come, Ahithophel needed to have left Jerusalem and his service
for the king and gone to God and found solace in Him alone. I don't think he
did that.
So,
Ahithophel's first word of counsel to Absalom is to go and do publicly to 10 of
David's wives, what David had done secretly to Bathsheba. Remember too, that
this "just" punishment is exactly what God promised as judgment for
what David had done in secret. (2 Samuel 12:11-12) And as if that weren’t
enough, Absalom did this on the roof top where David had been watching
Bathsheba.
David is
still a great man of God, but this should be a caution for us to take God’s
Word seriously. This is a divine testimony to the corrupting power of sin in
the soul of a godly man and in the group that was around him. As disciples, not
only do we need to be in the Word daily, but we need to live in the fear of the
Lord. As a man sows, so shall he reap. And there is no partiality with God.
John 18:25-19:22
John
18:25-40
Vs. 25-27
It is interesting that all four Gospels record that Peter, who was a leader in
the church when these accounts were written, had failed Jesus. Isn’t it ironic
that a relative of the guy whom Peter “van Goghed” was present? God's record of
redemption includes a lot of failed men saved by grace. That men like Peter and
Paul ended well should be an encouragement to us all. It’s odd that we are
reading this about Peter, as we are dealing with the fallout of David’s
hormonal rampage.
Vs. 28-32
Pilate wanted to set Jesus free. He really didn't like the Jewish leaders. In
the process of Pilate’s journey he will say some immortal words. Almost
everything Pilate says is noteworthy.
V. 28
During this time in Israel's history, the Passover meal could be celebrated on
two days. Some say it was because of some technicality in the calendar. It
might have been because of the large number of people and the large number of
lambs that needed to be sacrificed. It might also have been because of the
scarcity of rooms in which to celebrate. Jesus and the disciples celebrated on
the early day. The Pharisees celebrated on the later day.
Vs. 33-40
Pilate was working to try to let Jesus go. It seems from Pilate's attitude that
he didn't take this very seriously, yet.
V. 38 This
famous quote comes from an arrogant ruler speaking to a Jewish peasant. Pilate
was an embattled, bitter, unpopular ruler. The Jewish lobby in Rome had made
his life miserable. What is truth? is
both the expression of Pilate’s bitterness and his mocking of this unfortunate,
uneducated Jew. Everything Jesus says to Pilate here will come back on Pilate
as the eerie events of this morning unfold. Apparently Pilate hadn’t drunk
enough coffee yet and gotten his other brain cell going.
John 19
Vs. 1-5
This beating was actually for show and was meant to make Jesus look broken and
humiliated. It was not the pre-crucifixion beating. Pilate still wanted to
release Jesus and make the Jews feel sorry for Him. Jesus would have been
maimed for life by this. Behold the man
is another one of Pilate’s memorable quotes.
Vs. 6-11
Pilate is not very arrogant now. This event is shaping up to be very
"spooky" for him. According to the other Gospels, his wife has even
told him to distance himself from this. While he wasn't a believer in Jesus, he
was a believer in divine forces.
V. 11
Notice that Pilate isn't laughing at Jesus any more.
Vs. 12-16 Caesar's friend was a political
designation of being in good standing. The Caesar in Rome was mentally
imbalanced and Pilate already had several strikes against him. When the Jews
threw this statement at Pilate, he knew he had lost. This event would go
straight back to Rome. Pilate still could have let Jesus go.
The irony
here is bitter. “Behold your King!” “We have no king but Caesar.” What
infamous statements.
V. 16 At
this point, Pilate hands Jesus over to his soldiers for the normal
pre-crucifixion beating. The effect of both of these beatings, humanly, explains
why Jesus couldn't carry His cross and why He died so quickly.
Vs. 19-22
God uses even the evil of men for His purpose. Pilate put the sign above Jesus
out of his hate for the Jewish leaders. He wanted to be ironic and irritating.
Yet, what was written, regardless of his motive, was exactly true and a
statement of judgment.
V. 22 When
I was in seminary with a full load and a family and a job, having way too many
papers to write, this was my key verse and biblical justification for never
writing a second draft of a paper. The first draft had to do the trick.
Psalm 119:113-128
These
verses, written by David and the Holy Spirit, are absolutely true, and
absolutely sobering. I hope they are as sobering for you as they are for me,
knowing that when David was close to God because of adversity and in the Word
daily, this is what his heart looked like. This should be a lesson for us all.
David’s success and busyness as an executive ruined him, because it took him
from the Word and from needing the Lord every day.
Vs.
113-120 If this were written during the time of the civil war with the house of
Saul, you could understand David’s frustration with the double-minded. This was
like Saul and others who swore to the Lord and promised something and then
reneged. God’s Word and God’s promise were sure and steady. David learned to
put his hope in God and His Word rather than in the word of men.
Vs.
121-128 David’s oppressors were still on his mind. I identify with vs. 123-125.
In all of the troubles the Lord leads us through, we all come to the same
place. We learn to find hope and comfort in His Word, which is actually the
sure and certain expression of His heart and character. I can falsely imagine a
lot of stuff about God because of my fear or emotions, but His Word is the
expression of the reality that is true about Him.
Proverbs 16:10-11
Before
David fell, his judgments, it is said, were like the words of an angel, meaning
He had keen insight. These verses would have been true of him at that point.
Sin, guilt, and the consequences of murder changed all that in David. As
disciples, we would be wise to learn from what the Lord is showing us from
David's life.
If you’re reading along and don’t have a One Year
Bible, click on this link http://www.esvbible.org/devotions/every-day-in-the-word/. If that doesn't
work, go to http://www.esvbible.org/devotions/
and click on “Every
Day in the Word.”
I'm writing these comments to and for those who are
following a One Year Bible and interested in growing deeper as a disciple,
following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see the growth of a discipleship
culture in the church. Groups of 3-4 disciples, meeting weekly, encouraging
each other to follow Christ and work to reach out and make disciples who make
disciples. The Bible itself is the most universal manual we have and key to our
growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused on why we are here
or what we are to be doing. My comments are only meant to provide some
explanation of the events or to show the flow of God's plan of redemption. My
comments are in no way exhaustive, but are designed to keep us focused on
Christ and our role in His harvest. My hope is that the people in these groups
will grow in Christ and be willing, after a year, to find 3 others to meet with
and encourage in their growth as disciples, disciples making disciples in the
harvest.
If you would like a complete description of this model
of being and making disciples you can find it in my book: Simply
Disciples*Making Disciples. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011WJIDQA?*Version*=1&*entries*=0
If you would like a more descriptive commentary that is
still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary. It's
keyed to the NIV, so the result is the commentators are constantly telling you
what the Greek or Hebrew is. That never hurts.
I am not endorsing any particular One Year Bible; in
fact, I read something you don't, die revidierte Lutherbibel 1984.
Anyone reading along with us is welcome to do so and is
encouraged to take their own notes and make their own observations. If the
comments made do not agree with your particular tradition or understanding,
that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to criticize any point of view, but
only to express the truth of what God has written to us, as I understand it.
Send comments or feedback to dgkachikis@gmail.com.
If you would like documents containing an entire month
of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes. You can download
these to use on your computer or to print.
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