1-2 Samuel Week Fifty: 2 Samuel 21:1-22

¹ Now 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.” ² So 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). ³ Thus 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?” ⁴ Then 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.” ⁵ So they said to the king, “The man who consumed us and who planned to exterminate us from remaining within any border of Israel, ⁶ let 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.”

⁷ But 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. ⁸ So 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. ⁹ Then 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.

¹⁰ And 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. ¹¹ When it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done, ¹² then 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. ¹³ 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. ¹⁴ They 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.

¹⁵ Now when the Philistines were at war again with Israel, David went down and his servants with him; and as they fought against the Philistines, David became weary. ¹⁶ Then Ishbi-benob, who was among the descendants of the giant, the weight of whose spear was three hundred shekels of bronze in weight, was girded with a new sword, and he intended to kill David. ¹⁷ But Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and struck the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, “You shall not go out again with us to battle, so that you do not extinguish the lamp of Israel.”

¹⁸ Now it came about after this that there was war again with the Philistines at Gob; then Sibbecai the Hushathite struck down Saph, who was among the descendants of the giant. ¹⁹ There was war with the Philistines again at Gob, and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim the Bethlehemite killed Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. ²⁰ There was war at Gath again, where there was a man of great stature who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also had been born to the giant. ²¹ When he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, struck him down. ²² These four were born to the giant in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.

—2 Samuel 21:1-22

Sermon Outline

1. The Reckoning for Sin (MULTILINE)
2. The Reckoning for Sin (MULTILINE)

References

Weekly Study Guide

Over the past few weeks, we have been exploring one crucial question: what is the Kingdom? We saw how the Kingdom is the most dominant theme in scripture. It is the thread that ties together the beginning of creation and the end of time. In the beginning, mankind forfeited the Kingdom that God had established in the Garden of Eden. As we progressed through history, we caught glimpses, in the reigns of David and Solomon, of what the Kingdom would eventually be like. The Kingdom then arrived with the first coming of Jesus as He offered it to Israel. This offer was rejected and thus, the offer was rescinded and the Kingdom was not established—until such time as Israel repented and acknowledged Jesus was, indeed, the Messiah. So, the Kingdom is currently in a state of postponement. We now anxiously await the time when Jesus will return and establish this promised Kingdom.

Along this journey, we have examined some misconceptions that the church has about the Kingdom and also began to explore the initial establishment of the Kingdom in the Garden of Eden. This is where we saw God vest authority in Adam and Eve to govern creation for God. God told them to rule over and subdue creation on His behalf. So right in the beginning, in the Garden of Eden, is where God introduces the Kingdom. And we discovered last time that the Kingdom that God inaugurated is the “Theocratic Kingdom,” where God governs indirectly through a person (or persons). Adam and Eve were the team in which God vested that ruling authority.

In the early chapters of Genesis, we see this intended authority revealed in a surprising place. In Genesis 2:19-20, God tells Adam to name the animals. And I don’t know about you, but when I was a child and first heard this story, I thought it was just a cute anecdote describing when Adam has to figure out what to call a giraffe and a zebra. I had always wondered how he could think of so many names. But this story is so much more than that. In Genesis chapter one, we get an overview of Creation Week. In Genesis 2:4 and following, God circles back to review Day Six in more detail. All throughout chapter 2 we see this elaboration unfold. Here is where we witness Adam naming the animals.

At this point in the unfolding story, Eve had not yet been created. God proclaimed that it was not good for Adam to be alone, so God created the animals. God then gave Adam the task of naming all these animals. God does not name them for Adam; He brings the animals to Adam for him to name. God had already done His own naming. One of the first things God does while creating the universe is to name the various elements of His creation. God called the light “day” and called the darkness “night”. He called the dry land “earth” and the waters He called “seas”. God then hands this naming task to Adam asking him to follow His example. When we simply view this as a cute little story we miss its significance.

In scripture, the act of naming something or someone carries important ramifications. When you name something, you are exercising authority over it. According to Arnold Fruchtenbaum, “The naming was the first exercise of man’s dominion and whatsoever man called every living creature that was the name thereof. Man begins exercising his dominion over the animal kingdom with the act of naming the animals. The ability to name or rename is the exercise of dominion and authority.” You see, God had already given Adam the authority and task of ruling, but here He is guiding Adam into the first exercise of that authority over creation.

We see the importance of names and naming all throughout scripture. We already saw God exercise authority over His creation in the naming that He did. Later, in Numbers chapter 32, as the tribes of Israel were conquering the land, we see the Reubenites rename the cities they captured. In 2 Kings 23, Pharaoh Neco exercised dominion over the Southern Kingdom of Judah by renaming King Eliakim to King Jehoiakim. In the book of Daniel, we recall the familiar stories of Daniel and his three friends, who originally had names that reflected the glory of God: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. When Nebuchadnezzar took them captive and began their training (brainwashing) program, the first thing he did was to give them new names—names that would reflect glory to the Babylonian gods instead. He called them: Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. By doing this, Nebuchadnezzar was saying “I am in charge of you. I have such authority over you that I can even change what people call you.” Nebuchadnezzar had also renamed King Mattaniah of Judah, changing his name to Zedekiah.

All throughout scripture, we see parents name their children. Why? Because it’s the parents who have authority over the children. With all of that in mind, we can see that Adam’s naming of the animals was more than a cute anecdote—it was a big deal. It was the first exercise of man’s authority over the animal kingdom. This is where it becomes clear that God has established His Kingdom here in the Garden. The office that God gave Adam and Eve was the office of Theocratic Administrator. This is where God governs a person—here it is Adam and Eve—and they then govern creation for God. And this structure is what Satan set about trying to destroy, starting in Genesis chapter 3. While he didn’t actually destroy it, he did upend it—so much so that the Theocratic Kingdom temporarily disappeared from planet Earth, and was put in a state of postponement. The way Satan went about this upheaval was to reverse the office of Theocratic Administrator. What did this look like?

We can see this play out in a couple of ways. First of all, what was the creation order, and what was the order of authority in the Garden? God created man first, and then woman. He commissioned man to be a covering over the woman and take the role of headship. The woman was to submit to the leading of the man. So, what does Satan do in response? He makes an end-run around this authority structure and goes to the woman first to get her to act on her own and ignore that authority. And he succeeded.

How else does Satan go about undermining this authority structure? He appeared to Eve (and then Adam) in the form of a serpent. Now, I have always wondered about this. Why did Satan appear to Adam and Eve as an animal? Satan could have appeared in any form he wanted. He was a glorious angel, after all, and not a serpent. But he chose to appear in the form of an animal. From other descriptions of Satan in scripture, we know that Satan was the anointed cherub that covers (Ezek 28). He was perfect in beauty and wisdom. He could have overwhelmed Adam and Eve in glory and majesty and appeared in a blinding light. But he didn’t. And the reason becomes clear when you look back at the role God had given Adam and Eve. They were to rule over the animals. But what did Satan get them to do here? They listened to the animals instead. They abdicated their authority over the animals by following instead of leading.

Do you see Satan’s strategy here? He attacks the office of Theocratic Administrator that God had established. Adam is supposed to be leading his wife, but she ends up leading him—thus rebelling against God in the process. They were both supposed to be in authority over and leading the animals but, instead, they let an animal lead them. Andy Woods describes the situation: “What the Devil has done so successfully is he has reversed the hierarchy that God established. And the moment that happened was the moment the office of Theocratic Administrator disappeared from planet Earth. This is why the world now largely becomes the devil’s playground.” Satan now has free reign over the earth. How do we know? Just a brief tour through scripture on this topic makes this clear.

In the book of Job, God asks Satan where he has come from. Satan replies by saying he has been walking to and fro on the earth. By doing this, he is saying that he has won. The office of Theocratic Administrator has been destroyed and the earth now falls under his authority. God’s initial moves to establish the Kingdom on earth had been blocked by mankind’s sin and rebellion. Then also, in Jesus’ temptation in the book of Luke, Satan offered Jesus the kingdoms of this world. Did Jesus say, “Sorry, they don’t belong to you”? No, that claim was never contested because it was true.

At the Fall, the world was placed into bondage. Romans 8:19-22 says:

“For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now.”

The creation is pictured as groaning, awaiting its liberation. Why? Because the devil is in charge over this world. He’s called “the prince (ruler) of this world” (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11); the “god of this age” (2 Cor 4:4); “the prince of the power of the air” (Eph 2:2); and we’re told the whole world lies in his power (1 John 5:19). The Theocratic Kingdom was lost in the Fall.

As a result of the Fall—as a result of the Theocratic Kingdom being put in abeyance—what does God do? What is His plan for rectifying the situation? In other words, what really is the goal of human history? As Andy Woods says: “It is to restore what was lost in Eden. There has to come a future time period where God governs a man and that man governs planet Earth for God.” This shows the necessity of the Kingdom program in the overarching plan of salvation. We could not go directly from our current situation straight into the Eternal State. We first need to experience the Kingdom when all wrongs are made right, and Christ fixes everything that Satan broke—on this earth. And that is the important part. It must happen on this earth, and not in the Eternal State. Dwight Pentecost writes:

“Apart from the reign of Christ here on earth and apart from His rule God’s purpose for man would never be brought to conclusion. God’s purpose for the earth would be unrealized and the problem generated by Satan’s rebellion would never be resolved … Thus the physical, literal reign of Christ on earth is a theological and biblical necessity unless Satan is victorious over God.”

Andy Woods points out that if we don’t reach a point in time where the office of Theocratic Administrator is restored, and God governs a man, and that man governs the earth on God’s behalf, then Satan wins. Thus, the goal of history is seen in how that office is restored. Who will accomplish this and when will it be done? Well, it was the first Adam who lost it, so it will be the last Adam (Jesus) who reclaims it. This will be done when Jesus sets up His Messianic Kingdom and reasserts that proper order as it was in the beginning. God will be ruling Christ, and Christ will be ruling over creation. The Kingdom will be restored.

Remember how I teased this upcoming week at the end of our intro last time? I said that the exciting part is that you are I are a part of that plan. How, you might ask? Remember back in Genesis 1 where Adam and Eve were ruling together? A question naturally follows from this story: once the Millennial Kingdom is established and Messiah restores what was lost, what becomes of Eve? We see Christ as the last Adam, perfectly fulfilling what Adam was supposed to do. But what of Eve and the role she plays? Is there a “last Eve”? That’s where you and I come in. We are the last Eve! The church is the bride of Christ. We will be co-ruling with the last Adam, just as Eve did with the first Adam. We will be ruling with delegated authority right alongside Jesus in the Theocratic Kingdom—the Kingdom that God had in mind all along. The trials that you and I are facing today are preparing us for that important role in the Kingdom. God always prepares us for what is to come. We’re being prepared through the circumstances of life for the wielding of that authority God had given to mankind in the beginning but had forfeited.

God’s plan is beautiful. It is well planned out, having a beginning, middle, and end. And it comes to a perfect conclusion in the Kingdom. We could easily do 50 more study guides on the enormous topic of the Kingdom, unpacking what the Bible reveals about this plan of God. But this brief introduction gives us a basic idea of what the Kingdom is and is not. Through the Davidic Covenant, God reveals with so much clarity, previously unknown details about how He is redeeming the world back to Himself. This covenant is one of the most important steps forward as God progressively unveils elements of His plan of salvation.

(MULTILINE)

Discussion Questions

1. When your prayers go unanswered, what do you assume? (MULTILINE)
2. The final four chapters of 2 Samuel are not chronological but serve as an epilogue of sorts, containing various stories from earlier in David’s reign. Even though it is not recorded in 1 Samuel, apparently, Saul had massacred many of the Gibeonites. Who were the Gibeonites and why was God holding Israel accountable for how they were treated? Read Joshua 9:1-27. Why did Israel make a covenant with the Gibeonites in the first place? How did David show wisdom in how he resolved the situation? (MULTILINE)
3. Why did David spare Mephibosheth and not the other sons of Saul? What do we learn here about how God feels about breaking covenants? Do you think it’s appropriate to see the hand of God in famines and other natural disasters we experience today? Why or why not? How should we go about looking for the hand of God in the circumstances of life? What passages come to mind that might help us understand this issue more clearly? (MULTILINE)
4. Where do you see people blaming God for things He didn’t do? Where do you see people not acknowledging God for the things He does do? How do you think people today view the importance of keeping their promises? Has this changed at all in your lifetime? (MULTILINE)
5. We can be confident that nothing happens in our lives that God does not allow. God will sometimes allow trials to teach us important lessons. But do we always recognize this as such? As one teacher asked: “How long does a trial have to persist in our life before we seek the Lord for its significance or for deliverance?” Did David wait for three years before earnestly entreating the Lord regarding this famine? When has God used trials to get your attention? How did you respond? What circumstances in your life demand your attention this week, that God might be using to direct your steps? (MULTILINE)

Going Deeper

1. Included in these “appendices” at the end of 2 Samuel are some additional colorful stories as the end of David’s life approaches. Israel faced the challenge of what they would do when they saw weakness in their leader. Even a great man of God grows old. Here we see Abishai come to David’s aid. When David’s strength failed, God protected him through the strength of others. What lessons can we learn here about coming alongside others to be their strength when their own strength fails? How do you think David felt about not being able to go to war anymore? (MULTILINE)
2. Even for all his faults and questionable leadership at times, we continue to see examples of the loyalty and truth that David’s leadership inspired. There is a stark contrast presented here between Saul’s and David’s leadership. When Saul was king, his soldiers cowered in the face of a giant. Under David’s leadership, his men killed giants. Why do you think these stories of David and his men vanquishing the giant sons of Goliath are included here at the end of the book of 2 Samuel? (MULTILINE)

Transformational Activity

Community

Once again, we see the importance of community in the life of David. As David grew old, his men recognized it, and had the courage to come alongside David and gently and respectfully help him to see his own limitations. When have you had the opportunity to play that role in a loved one’s life? Who do you have in your life that can fill that role for you when the time comes? Read Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 and pray that God would open your eyes to the importance of community and help direct your steps to make this a priority in your life.