DO NOT DECEIVE TO RECEIVE (4)

*WISDOM FOR TODAY.*

*DO NOT DECEIVE TO RECEIVE. (4)*

*Scripture Treasure.*

2 Sam 21:1-14

v1 *Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David enquired of the Lord. And the Lord answered, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites.*

v2 *And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them; (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.)*

v3 *Wherefore David said unto the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? and wherewith shall I make the atonement, that ye may bless the inheritance of the Lord?*

v4 *And the Gibeonites said unto him, We will have no silver nor gold of Saul, nor of his house; neither for us shalt thou kill any man in Israel. And he said, What ye shall say, that will I do for you.*

v5 *And they answered the king, The man that consumed us, and that devised against us that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the coasts of Israel,*

v6 *Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, whom the Lord did choose. And the king said, I will give them.*

v7 *But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of the Lord's oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.*

v8 *But the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bare unto Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth; and the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she brought up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite:*

v9 *And he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them in the hill before the Lord: and 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.*

v10 *And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth, and spread it for her upon the rock, from the beginning of harvest until water dropped upon them out of heaven, and suffered neither the birds of the air to rest on them by day, nor the beasts of the field by night.*

v11 *And it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done.*

v12 *And David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabeshgilead, which had stolen them from the street of Bethshan, where the Philistines had hanged them, when the Philistines had slain Saul in Gilboa:*

v13 *And he brought up from thence the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son; and they gathered the bones of them that were hanged.*

v14 *And the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son buried they in the country of Benjamin in Zelah, in the sepulchre of Kish his father: and they performed all that the king commanded. And after that God was intreated for the land.*

*Insight and Highlight.*

The misguided zeal by Joshua to help the Gibeonites without knowledge was a reflection of King Saul's misguided attempt to show zeal to Israel by destroying the Gibeonites without knowledge.

*Scripture Commentaries.*

It may have been better for Saul not be king at all. His reign was marked with God's forced and permissive will rather than His perfect will for him and Israel, 1 Sam 8:1-12.

His end was worse than his beginning. He was a king granted to the nation of Israel in His displeasure. Hoses 13:11 summarizes him when God spoke to the prophet about Saul saying *I gave thee a king in mine anger, and took him away in my wrath.*

God punished His own people for going against a 'misguided' covenant with an enemy (Gibeonites) pretending to be a friend, (ref Joshua 9, 2 Sam 21:1).

The Gibeonites had become so strong by virtue of the peace covenant they cuningly got from Joshua. They had grown to have a voice enough to decide the final and fatal fate of King Saul's children.

God is a covenant keeping God. It was not about the Gibeonites but about an oath sworn before the Lord to never harm, hurt or kill the Gibeonites (Joshua 9:15).

God said to David that the reason for the three years of famine was because of

*".....Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites.*( 2 Sam.21:1).

Israel’s hasty decision resulted in their inability to fulfil God’s command concerning all the inhabitants of the land.

This has now affected Saul in 2 Sam 21.

God called Saul "bloody" for killing the Gibeonites

David must make atonement for Saul's crime of killing the Gibeonites. He must atone at the Gibeonites' demand. This is to surrender seven of Saul’s descendants to the Gibeonites for execution, satisfying the blood debt owed by the "bloody house" of Saul.

Only this would lift the curse from God and God was pacified from His anger over Israel.

After this mass execution, 2 Sam 21:14 says "*.....God was intreated for the land.*

Truly God is not a respected of persons and He would not stand by anyone who transgresses His covenant.

God's face momentarily moved away from Saul and the Israelites.

Daniel 11:32 says *"And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries......."*...*but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.*

The Gibeonites were secure by a covenant that ought not to have been but Saul and Israel would not be protected for corrupting a covenant which God was at its center.

We must be careful that our zeal for God without knowledge will not work out the righteousness of God.

No matter who we are in the Kingdom of God our unguarded error, failure to seek God first for directives will not produce the righteousness of God.

In other words we can not expect to go against a covenant made before Him and expect His support or protection.

The enemy, Gibeonites, whom Joshua and the elders of Israel, were supposed to destroy, destroyed seven royal children of the Saul's dynasty.

God was not to blame.

The Gibeonites deceived them to receive. The Gibeonites suffered their consequences but the consequences the Israelites suffered cut into family grief but for God it could have been much worse than three years of famine, back to back, *".......three years, year after year....."* 2 Sam 21:1.

Joshua's peace treaty gave the Gibeonites too much ground and power they did not deserve to have. The consequences negatively impacted their future king and family.

Let us guide against hasty decision.

Let us guide against deception.

Let us seek God first in all things in order to avoid people who deceive to receive.

*Remorse corner.*

God will not compromise, not even for the Israelites. *".....now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them:......* 1 Sam 21:1.

*Call to Word action.*

Becareful what you say before or agree with God as a vow or covenant. He is faithful, He will.abide by it

*Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin, and do not say before the messenger that it was a mistake. Why should God be angry with your words and destroy the work of your hands?* — Eccl 5:6

*The Christian clarion duty.*

Psalm 138:2 *I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.*

*Prayer.*

Help me not to be hasty before You. Deliver me from error that will lead me to make

a rash vow or covenant of haste or error, in Jesus name.

Good morning all and have a blessed day.

God bless you.

Shalom.