2 Samuel 4
Bible Passage: 2 Samuel 4
This is the last incident before David assumed his kingship over all of Israel. And for me, this chapter emphasises once again why he was indeed a man after God’s heart.
Do We Fear and Trust God? Seriously….
Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, had become king by taking his courage from another man (Abner) rather than from God. Now Abner was gone (dead) and Ishbosheth was left with nothing. He lost all heart and this in turn affected the whole of Israel (2 Sam 4:1).
In crisis and under pressure, it is very easy for us to be paralyzed with fear.
Although we may know God (I am sure Ishbosheth must have know the Lord God), but do we live our lives by trusting and depending on men and not God?
There is a saying that says that the true test of a man’s character is when he meets with a crisis. But this is also a time when It is a true test of his faith and trust in God. When bad things happen.. when things do not go our way…. when unexpected bad events surround us… do we draw further away from God and turn to men? Or do we take that one step towards God – no matter how difficult that step may be?
David was different.
Ok…. maybe that was a wrong statement. David was different from most men (including me). David was consistently the same in his faith and trust in God.
It was not that he was a reckless, fearless and courageous leader. He had his fears too but his faith in God helped him to overcome fear (2 Tim 1:6-8; Heb 13:6). We need that kind of faith today, don’t we?
David’s Heart
Reading this passage is like deja vu (think back 2 Sam 1:1-16) where a man proudly annouced to David that he had killed King Saul. Baanah and Rechab undoubtedly were seeking a reward or great recognition for killing David’s foe, but they misjudged greatly David’s character.
See what David said is v. 11.
He called Ishbosheth “a righteous person”. As Saul’s son, he had every right to think that he should be the next in line to the throne. He was not wicked in wanting to be king. But he was simply too weak to stand up against injustice.
Although David knew Ishbosheth was not the strong leader that Israel needed – and neither was he the anointed one of God to take the throne – David had no intention of killing him.
David knew clearly that God had promisd the kingdom to David and he knew that God would fulfill His promise. All he had to do was to wait for God’s time.
When David found out about Ishbosheth’s death, he was angry. He had never harmed Saul and he certainly thought that the assassin’s methods were cowardly and not the right thing to do.
David wanted to unite Israel, not continually have it divided.
So he took this opportunity to show the whole of Israel he had nothing to do with the death of Saul and his descendents. He had the assassins executed and then arranged for the burial of Ishbosheth.
I mentioned a few days ago about David’s genuine heart in the bible blog on 2 Samuel 2.
And once again we see what his heart was truly like. It is consistent. It is one with tender mercies. It is one that is for the truth. It is a heart that will not tolerate evil. It is a heart that waits for God.
I could go on and on… there are just so many qualities of David that we can learn from….
And we should… so that we too can be someone truly a man (or woman) “after the heart of God” (1 Sam 13:13-14).
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BRC's Companion
When we “are after the heart of God’, there will be battles to be fought. Important thing is, we do not and should not fight within – within the army of God (AOG). Ordinary members and leaders alike make up the AOG. Individually, everyone is responsible to work for his own salvation. Collectively, for the faith of all, the leaders are likened to shepherds providing a protective hand and a guiding light to their flock and the members possessing a heart of submission and respect for the annointed servants of God with regards to the God’s teachings and instructions. When either side fails, the evil hand of Satan can easily plough into our hearts and plant the seeds of dissension and cause us to strive against each other.
Much have been said about the failed leadership and misdeeds of King Saul and admirations kept pouring in on the qualities of David in his dealings with a leader like Saul. Do we have “modern day Sauls” in our midst? Perhaps not to the extent of calling mediums and slaying of “modern day Davids”. But just addressing the lack of leadership attitude in being the protective hand and a guiding light in every possible aspect. One character who gets very little mention is Samuel. Throughout the reign of Saul, Samuel was the mouth-piece of God constantly bringing His words and warnings to Saul. As much as we need to be like David, we also need Samuels. The Samuel in the bible was more or less of equal standing to Saul, in other words, Saul’s co-worker.
If we are in the capacity of Samuel, are we willing to do what he did, be a true messenger of God?
PS
Ishbosheth was forty years old when he began to reign over Israel (2 Sam 2:10)
If Saul reigned Israel for twenty years, Ishbosheth was already 20 years old when Saul was anointed King.
When Samuel pronounced the first judgement on Saul at Gilead (1 Sam 13:14), Ishbosheth might be aware.
When Samuel promised the second judgement on Saul, Ishbosheth might be aware too.
Ishbosheth might be aware that the LORD had rejected his father from being king of Israel and also torn the kingdom of Israel from him (1 Sam 15:26-28)
The Israelites are God’s chosen people. If Ishbosheth understood that God is the only sovereign Ruler of Israel and the kingship of Israel is a matter of anointment from God, not a matter of succession from father to son (unless so will by God 1 Kings 15:5), he might not accept Abner’s help in making him king over Israel, then he might not die at the hands of Baanh and Rechab.
Ishbosheth was already forty, he could not deny his responsibility with the simple claim that he was forced by circumstances.
When Saul and his 3 sons died at battle, Ishbosheth was also conveniently missing in action.
Wonder what kind of person was Ishbosheth.
As spiritual Israelites, we are princes together with Lord Jesus. What kind of “prince” m i?
m i slumbering in bed at noon and becoming an easy lunch for the roaring lion? (1 Thessalonians 5:6)