Day 226—We are in the eighth month of Bible reading, with more of Israel’s history and prophecy.
Day 226 – Jeremiah 26 – 29 (Jeremiah threatened & spared, Zedekiah & Nebuchadnezzar, a false prophet, letter to the exiles)
Jeremiah 26 repeats the message and threat to our prophet from 11 years earlier when God offered the relenting of the disaster if the people would repent. (More recently, there is no such offer.) Jeremiah’s life is/was threatened, but the city officials spare him, listing other prophets whose lives were spared in the days of Hezekiah and Jehoiakim.
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Jeremiah 27. Jeremiah’s message now is to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon. As the object lesson to accompany the message, Jeremiah was to make and wear a wooden yoke on his neck.
The message from the Creator of earth and everything in it, “I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, MY SERVANT, (in that he serves God’s plans). All the nations shall serve him, and his son, and his grandson until the time of his own land comes. Then, many nations and great kings shall make him their slave.
BUT if any nation or kingdom will NOT serve this Nebuchadnezzar and put its neck UNDER THE YOKE OF THE KING OF BABYLON, I will punish that nation with sword, famine, and pestilence.”
“But any nation that WILL bring its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will leave on its own land to work it and dwell there,” declares the LORD.
Then Jeremiah warns the people of Judah and Jerusalem not to listen to false prophets and priests but to submit to Nebuchadnezzar’s yoke. God promises to bring back the vessels of the House of the Lord when He brings back the exiles…in 70 years. (One year for every Sabbath year they did not honor.)
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Jeremiah 28. In that same year when Zedekiah (the last king to reign), the false prophet, Hananiah spoke against what Jeremiah said, saying instead that the LORD would break the yoke of Babylon and bring back the people in TWO YEARS. To illustrate his false prophecy, he went to Jeremiah, took the yoke off his neck, and broke it.
Soon after Jeremiah went to Hananiah with this word from the LORD, “You have broken wooden bars, but you have made in their place bars of iron. I have put upon the neck of all these nations an iron yoke to serve Nebuchadnezzar, and they shall serve him.”
“Furthermore, listen Hananiah, the LORD has not sent you, and you have made this people trust in a LIE. Therefore, behold, I will remove you from the face of the earth. This year you shall die, because you have uttered rebellion against the LORD.”
Hananiah died in the seventh month.
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Jeremiah 29. Then Jeremiah sends a letter to the exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, along with King Jehoiachin, the queen mother, and all the officials and craftsmen.
Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem.…
” Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters, multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart, I will be found by you, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.”
Jeremiah 29:5-14
But to those who refused to surrender to Nebuchadnezzar, the LORD said…
“Behold I’m sending on them sword, famine, and pestilence, and I will make them like vile figs that are so rotten they cannot be eaten. I will pursue them with sword, famine, and pestilence and will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, a terror, a hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them because they did not pay attention to my words.”
The LORD trashes the lying words of the false prophets Ahab and Zedekiah. Then the king of Babylon “roasts them in the fire!!!” God also curses the false prophet Shemaiah, and all his descendants, none of whom will see the return from exile…. for speaking “rebellion against the LORD.”
Day 180—We are in the 6th month of Bible reading and continue with the history of Israel.
Day 180 – 1 Kings 22, 2 Chronicles 18. (Both of these chapters tell of the end of King Ahab.)
Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, the southern kingdom, made a marriage pact with Ahab, king of Israel, the northern kingdom.
(Big mistake! 2 Kings 8:18 says that the son Jehoshaphat married off to Ahab’s daughter, “walked in the ways of Ahab, doing what was evil in the sight of the LORD.”)
In-laws now, Jehoshaphat visited Ahab and agreed to go to war with Syria with him. But first, the godly Jehoshaphat wanted to inquire of the LORD concerning the battle. Ahab brought out his 400 prophets.
(These could have been the 400 prophets of Asherah that “ate at Jezebel’s table,” who were on Mt. Carmel when Elijah showed who was the REAL God by fire from heaven, but who escaped being killed when Elijah slaughtered the prophets of Baal. See 1 Kings 18:17-18 and 40.)
These 400 prophets all said Ahab should go to battle because he would be victorious. However, Jehoshaphat was suspicious of all the duplicate messages and asked if there was ANOTHER prophet. Ahab said there was, but he didn’t like Micaiah because that prophet always had terrible news for him. Nevertheless, the prophet of the LORD was brought, and he said that Ahab WOULD DIE in battle.
400 to 1? Nope. Ahab wouldn’t listen to Micaiah and put him in jail “till I return safely.” Ha!
And off the two kings went to fight the Syrian despot. Just before entering the fray, Ahab told Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle, but YOU wear your robes.”
What?? Surely Jehoshaphat saw through that ploy! But no, the southern king rode out in his royal chariot in his royal robes and crown. Then he wondered why all the enemy chariots and arrows were aimed at HIM! “Help, LORD!” he cried, and God drew them away.
Then, a random soldier shot a random arrow in a random direction… and it struck the disguised King Ahab between his breastplate and his shoulder chainmail and mortally wounded him. As his chariot driver raced him out of the war zone, Ahab’s blood poured out on the chariot floor…until he died.
As Micaiah, the prophet of the LORD, said.
And as had been prophesied by Elijah, when the workers washed Ahab’s blood from the chariot by the pool of Samaria, dogs came and licked it up. (1 Kings 21:19)
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AHAZIAH, son of Ahab, began to reign in Samaria in the 17th year of Jehoshaphat’s reign. He reigned for TWO YEARS. He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and walked in the way of this father and mother, Jezebel, who walked in the way of Jeroboam. Ahaziah served and worshiped Baal and provoked the LORD to anger in every way.
Jehoshaphat reigned for 25 years, walking in the way of his father, Asa, and doing what was right in the sight of the LORD. He died and was buried in the city of David. JEHORAM, his son (married to a daughter of Ahab), reigned in his place.
Day 159—We are in the 6th month of Bible reading. We are also reading the 16th book in the Bible this week: PROVERBS.
Day 159 – Proverbs 16 – 18. (More of Solomon’s words of wisdom)
Chapter 16 shows God’s sovereignty in many of its proverbs.
Verse 1 – “The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD.” Verse 4 – “The LORD has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble.” Verse 9 – “The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.” Verse 33 – “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.
Look to God first in your ways and plans, and he will bless you.
Verse 3 – “Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established.” Verse 7 – “When a man’s ways please the LORD, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.” Verse 20 – “Whoever gives thought to the Word will discover good, and blessed is he who trusts in the LORD.”
Sweetness in gracious speech.
Verse 21 – “The wise of heart is called discerning, and sweetness of speech increases persuasiveness.” Verse 24 – “Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.”
“Gray hair is a crown of glory…“
Verse 31a
Chapter 17 contains some very familiar sayings.
Verse 1 – “Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting and strive.”
“Grandchildren are a crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers.”
Verse 7
Verse 9 – “Whoever covers an offense seeks love, but he who repeats a matter separates close friends.”
Verse 17 – “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.”
Verse 22 – “A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”
Good words are described, and bad words are illustrated by the fool in Chapter 18.
‘The words of a man’s mouth are deep waters; the fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook.” “A fool’s lips walk into a fight, and his mouth invites a breathing.” “A fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul.” “The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels; they go down into the inner parts of the body.” “If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame.” “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.” (Verses, 4, 6 – 8, 13, 21)
“He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord.”
Day 157—We are in the 6th month of Bible reading. We are also reading the 16th book in the Bible this week: PROVERBS.
Day 157 – Proverbs 10 – 12. (General Proverbs by Solomon)
Today, we leave the specific advice of a wise father to his son in this book and look at Solomon’s more general proverbs.
Chapter 10. If you underline or take notes, observe how many of them talk about the mouth and what we say. For instance, in 10:11, “The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence,” and 10:30-31, “The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, but the perverse tongue will be cut off. The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse.”
10:1 is a segue from a father’s wise advice to the plain and pithy remaining proverbs of section two. It says, “A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.”
Remember, these proverbs are examples of general common sense. They are probabilities, not promises. They are often true, but not always. They are general rules on how to live in a way that honors God and others.
10:4-5: “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich. He who gathers in summer is a prudent son, but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame.”
10:12: “Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.”
Chapter 11 contrasts the righteous and upright with the wicked, the generous and stingy, the industrious and the slothful. There are very good truths here, but remember, it doesn’t mean they are promises or prophecies.
11:1: “A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, but a just weight is His delight.”
11:2:“When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with the humble is wisdom.”
11:14:“Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors, there is safety.”
11:24-25: “One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want. Whoever brings blessings will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered.”
Chapter 12 contains more contrasts in discipline, humility, mercy, truth-telling, and other matters of the heart. Many of these are familiar and have been memorized.
12:1: “Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid.”
12:4: “An excellent wife is the crown of her husband, but she who brings shame is like rottenness in his bones.”
12:9-10: “Better to be lowly and have a servant than to play the great man and lack bread. Whosoever is righteous has regard for the life of his beast, but the mercy of the wicked is cruel.”
12:20, 35: “Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil, but those who plan peace have joy.” “Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad.”
12:28:“In the path of righteousness is life, and in its pathway there is no death.”
Day 149—We are in our FIFTH month of Bible reading and we have begun our 13th book – 1 Kings. Are you loving God more each day? What are you learning about Him? Share in the comments section.
Day 149 – 1 Kings 1 – 2, Psalms 37, 71, 94. (David dies, but first stops a coup)
1 Kings 1. David is old and frail and can’t get warm. The court brings a young and beautiful woman to care for him and keep him warm at night. (No hanky-panky, however.)
Taking advantage of his father’s advanced age, Adonijah, next in line to be king, claims himself the heir to the throne by collecting chariots, and soldiers, one of the high priests, and even the aging Commander of David’s army, Joab. They hold a huge festival with loads of sacrifices.
But when the prophet Nathan hears of it, he enlists Bathsheba in a plan to officially crown the LORD’s choice, Solomon, as king after David. The old king musters enough strength to do just that, authorizing them to have Solomon ride through town on his royal donkey, the priests to anoint him king in front of all the people, encourage them to shout, “Long live King Solomon” and to sit him on his father’s throne.
Adonijah hears the commotion and knows what it means. He makes a wild dash for the horns of the altar at the Tabernacle (a place he can claim clemency). Solomon grants him that… IF HE WILL SHOW HIMSELF A WORTHY MAN.” (We’ll see about that in a bit.)
By the way, verse 6 points out a fault of David with ALL his sons and probably the reason so many went wrong. It’s a warning to parents today. “His father had never at any time displeased him by asking, ‘Why have you done thus and so?“ Not only was Adonijah handsome like Absalom, he was spoiled rotten.
1 Kings 2. Like all Jewish patriarchs, King David calls for Solomon when he knows he is dying. He blesses Solomon and encourages him in the LORD. “Be strong, and show yourself a man, and keep the charge of the LORD your God, walking in His ways and keeping His statutes, His commandments, His rules, and His testimonies…. that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever your turn, that the LORD may establish His Word that He spoke to me…. ‘you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel’.”
HOWEVER, the old king then instructs Solomon to assassinate two men “according to your wisdom, for you are a wise man.”
He is to kill Joab for revenge-killing the commanders of Saul’s and Absalom’s armies (Abner & Amasa) IN TIME OF PEACE.
He is also to kill Shimei, the Benjamite, who cursed David as he fled from Absalom. David had sworn that HE himself would not kill the man but now instructs Solomon to do it.
Then David dies – after reigning for 40 years as king. He was buried in Jerusalem, the City of David. And Solomon’s kingdom is firmly established…almost.
Next, that slippery Adonijah comes to Bathsheba and asks HER to ask SOLOMON to pretty please give him Abishai as his wife. TWO THINGS TO REMEMBER: 1. Abishai was the beautiful woman given to David to keep him warm and was considered a concubine.. 2. Someone who wanted to claim the kingdom for himself would sleep with the former king’s wife/concubine.
ADONIJAH WAS ATTEMPTING A SNEAKY COUP TO STEAL THE CROWN FROM SOLOMON!!
Solomon sends his commander, Benaiah. to kill Adonijah.
Solomon sends Benaiah to kill Joab.
After giving Shimei a narrow place to live, and the man leaves it, Solomon sends Benaiah to kill him.
His oaths to his father accomplished, the kingdom was now established in the hand of Solomon.
Psalm 37. “Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. Trust in the LORD and do good…” “Delight yourself in the LORD…” “Commit your way to the LORD…” “Be still before the LORD….”
“The steps of a man are established by the LORD, when he delights in His way; though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the LORD upholds his hand.”
“I have young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread.”
Psalm 71. “For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O LORD, from my youth.” “Do not cast me off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent.” “Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
Psalm 94. “He who planted the ear, does He not hear? He who formed the eye, does He not see? He who disciplines the nations, does He not rebuke? He who teaches man knowledge – the LORD – knows the thoughts of man, that they are but breath.”
“Blessed is the man whom You discipline, O LORD, and whom You teach out of your law, to give him REST from the days of trouble…” “If the LORD had not been my help, my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence. When I thought, ‘My foot slips,’ your steadfast love, O LORD, held me up. When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.”
Day 139—We are in our FIFTH month of Bible reading. Are you loving God more each day? What are you learning about Him? Share in the comments section.
Day 139 – 2 Samuel 19 – 21 (Aftermath of Absalom’s coup)
Chapter 19. The rebellious, arrogant, murdering son, Absalom, is dead at the hands of Commander Joab. The war is over. The coup is stopped. There should be a celebration. And yet the king is in his room, weeping, moaning, and wailing. “O Absalom, my son! Wish I had died.” His troops hear him and slink away.
Joab goes to him and basically slaps him alongside the head. “What are you doing? Your enemy is dead. The people are ashamed and leaving you. Get up and ACT LIKE A KING!” And David does. But he fires his successful commander-in-chief and replaces him with Absalom’s commander, Amasa. SERIOUSLY DAVID??? (Joab takes care of that later in chapter 20.)
The priests and people of Judah call the king back to Jerusalem, and David magnanimously pardons his enemies. (Remember Shimei, who cursed David as he was fleeing? And Ziba, who (maybe falsely) bad-mouthed Mephibosheth? Even the crippled son of Jonathan got the benefit of the doubt about seizing the kingdom.) Then there is a tug-of-war between Judah and the other 10 tribes about WHO should be helping King David and his entourage back over the Jordan River. Sheesh!
Chapter 20. Then “a worthless man” named Sheba musters a rebellion of the Benjaminites, saying it should be a descendant of King Saul (A Benjamite) who rules. Again, the tribes align themselves on one side or the other, and King David sends Amasa and his troops to take care of Sheba.
For some dumb reason, Amasa procrastinates (can’t make up his own mind?), and Joab, dressed only as a soldier now, follows him. “Hey, Dude, how ya doing?” he says as he grabs Amasa’s beard and stabs him in the gut. Joab then slips back into his role of Commander-in-chief and, with his co-commander brother, Abishai, takes care of the task. Instead of attacking the city that Sheba is hiding in, a wise woman persuades Joab to let her take care of it. He does. She does. And soon Sheba’s head is tossed over the wall. Joab leads the entire army of Israel home.
Chapter 21. Next, there is a three-year famine, and the king inquires of the LORD in case there is something else he has done wrong. It turns out King Saul had treated the Gibeonites cruelly, and that needed to be fixed.
(Remember when Joshua began conquering the land? The Gibeonites had tricked him, and he had made a covenant with them not to attack them. Joshua 9:14-15! Since then, Israel had honored that covenant and had not warred against them, only made them servants.) But Saul had sought to strike them down in his zeal.” King David makes it right, but not without them hanging seven of Saul’s 15 remaining sons. Later David collects their bones and those of Saul and Jonathan and buries them in a respectful manner.
The last of the chapter is a recap of Israel’s wars with the Philistines and their champion giants, all of which are now dead.
Day 137—We are in our FIFTH month of Bible reading. Are you loving God more each day? What are you learning about Him? Share in the comments section.
Day 137 – 2 Samuel 16 – 18 (Absalom’s take-over & Fall, David’s friends & sorrow)
You may need to read these chapters twice to keep track of all that is happening, but basically, they are about Absalom vs David (their counsel & battles, and their loyalties & betrayals), and God’s sovereign oversight.
Chapter 16. As David and his entourage pass over the Mount of Olives, a man meets him with supplies for the exiled King and his men. It’s Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth (Saul’s remaining disabled son, whom David has been more than generous with), and along with supplies, he brings news that Mephibosheth is taking advantage of the situation to reclaim the throne of his father, Saul. On hearing this, the exiled King transfers all the blessings he gave to Saul’s son to Ziba. However….,this is just another incident of betrayal, which we’ll see in chapter 19.
As they go, Shimei, a Benjamite from Saul’s family, travels along with them on the hillside, cursing David. Joab’s brother and second-in-command, Abishai, offers to go and kill the fellow, but David stops him, recognizing that perhaps he deserves the cursing.
Meanwhile, Absalom and all his followers enter the city, and Ahithophel, David’s former counselor, advises him to “take” his father’s concubines in the sight of all Jerusalem. This will fix him firmly in the place of king. (This is part of the “consequences” God spoke to David.)
Chapter 17. Next, Ahithophel gives Absalom good military advice, but the proud usurper asks for a second opinion from Hushai (David’s spy in the court). Hushai gives him bad military advice, which plays to Absalom’s ego, so he takes it. Hushai tells Zadok, the priest who secretly sends the news and some advice via messengers to David. Ahithophel sees the writing on the wall, goes home, and hangs himself.
One of Absalom’s loyal men sees the messengers and tells his master. The messengers are pursued, but the wife of a loyal-to-David man hides them in a well until the danger passes (much like Rahab in Joshua’s time). David listens to Zadok’s advice and flees over the Jordan River. Again, men loyal to David bring them all food and supplies.
Chapter 18 tells of the battle between David’s army and commander Joab and Absalom’s army, led by his commander Amasa (a distant relative of Joab). Before the battle begins, king-in-exile David tells Joab in the hearing of all the men NOT TO KILL Absalom.
God allows Joab a resounding success, and in the middle of the battle, Absalom’s donkey runs a bit too close to a low-hanging branch of a tree in the forest. Absalom’s gorgeous, thick hair – which he is so proud of – catches in a branch, and he is left hanging there and vulnerable while the donkey keeps going. It is told to Joab by a soldier who scolds him for not killing the usurper. Immediately, Joab, wisely but contrary to David’s specific command, thrusts a javelin through Absalom’s heart. Several of his men surround the body and finish him off (to cover for who actually killed him??).
Commander Joab then blows a trumpet to call his men off and tell them of the victory. Another of Zadok’s sons, Ahimaaz, asks to be the messenger of good news to David. However, Joab sends another messenger. He knows King David will not be happy to hear that Absalom is dead, against his specific orders. BUT he allows Ahimaaz to also run after the first messenger has a head start. However, Ahimaaz is a faster runner and charges ahead.
Meanwhile, back in the city where David is staying, a watchman sees the first runner and tells the King. Then he sees another runner passing the first. Ahimaaz arrives and says, “All is well. Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delivered up the men who raised their hand against my lord the king.”
But David is only concerned about Absalom. “Is it well with the young man, my son?” he asks. Ahimaaz, who knows very well what has happened, says he only saw a commotion when he left, so he doesn’t know, trying to be gentle with his king. But the second messenger soon arrives (the one who began first) and gives David the news, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up against you for evil be like that young man!”
David, the king, sinner, adulterer, murderer, and failure as a father to his sons, goes up to his chamber and weeps for his arrogant and betraying son. “O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!”
Day 111—Today we begin the eleventh book in the reading plan. We have been reading the Bible daily for a third of the year. What have you learned about God and yourself?
Day 111 – 2 Samuel 1 – 4 (David as king, ending Saul’s dynasty)
1 Samuel ends with the death of Saul in a battle with the Philistines. Saul is fatally wounded and ends his own life. Three of his sons also die in battle, including Jonathan.
Meanwhile, David battles the Amalekites and has a resounding victory.
In 2 Samuel 1, a warrior comes to David with the news that King Saul and Jonathan are dead. Thinking he will garner some favor with David, he claims that HE killed them. David inquires who the man is and finds he is an Amalekite. David mourns the death of Saul and Jonathan and has this man killed for what he thinks is his part in the death of “the LORD’s anointed.” David then laments Saul and Jonathan with a beautiful song eulogizing them.
In 2 Samuel 2, David asks, and the LORD tells him to go to Hebron, where the tribe of Judah anoints him their king. Meanwhile, Saul’s son Ish-bosheth is proclaimed king in Israel by Saul’s commander, Abner. (Where was Abner in the battle that killed his king?) Then Abner, with the servants of Ish-bosheth, meets Joab with the servants of David and they face off. They decide that 12 from each group will fight. They do and kill each other. Then they all fight and Abner’s group is defeated and runs. Joab’s men chase them, with Joab’s brother Asahel personally chasing Abner. Twice, Abner warns him away, but Asahel persists, so Abner turns around and kills him. (Oops. Not good!)
Joab’s men keep after Abner until a group of Benjaminites (Saul’s tribe) stand with him to fight. They call a truce, and Joab and crew return home.
2 Samuel 3 tells us that there was a long war between the house of Saul and the house of David, with David growing stronger. Abner attempts a coup by sleeping with Saul’s concubine, and Ish-bosheth calls him on it. Abner then vows to take all of Israel to David and sends this message to David. Judah’s king agrees to meet Abner but requires him to bring David’s first wife, Michal, whom Saul gave to another man. Abner grabs her and goes south, with the grieving husband following behind, crying. David is pleased to get Michal back and sends Abner away in peace.
Joab is horrified that David made peace with the man who killed his brother and follows him. He beckons Saul to a private conversation by the wall, where he kills him. David becomes angry with Joab and curses him and his family. Then David makes them all mourn for Abner and bury him in Hebron, and so lets the people know it was not HIS fault that Abner is dead.
(Even though David does not punish his commander for going behind his back, his last word to his son Solomon before he died was to KILL JOAB.)
2 Samuel 4 tells how Ish-bosheth is murdered by two of his own men. These men took Ish-bosheth’s head to David, and much like the Amalekite, claimed they killed David’s last enemy. And, like before, David has THEM killed for assassinating the young man in his own bed, and buries the head.
Day 109 — We have been reading the Bible daily for almost a third of the year. What have you learned about God? About yourself?
Day 109 – 1 Samuel 28 – 31, Psalm 18 (Ending 1 Samuel, King Saul, and David’s persecution. David’s song)
1 Samuel 28 tells of the Philistines gathering to war against Israel and Saul in a panic. Since his failure to kill the Amalekite king and God “tearing” the kingdom from him (and no repentance) Saul has been like King Ludwig – mad. Now, faced with a huge attack, he tries everything he can to learn what he should do. But God is silent.
Compounding sin on sin, Saul meets with a Medium (witch) at Endor. (Israel was supposed to have killed all of them, but again, they didn’t complete that order.) He tells her to call up Samuel so he can get “some word from the LORD.” She obeys, but instead of the regular evil spirit she is used to, Samuel actually does appear and she screams in terror.
Saul asks what he should do. Samuel basically tells the king that it is too late. He and all his sons are to die that very day, and Israel will go into the hands of the Philistines. He is terrified and later goes away into the night.
1 Samuel 29 tells of King Achish preparing to battle Israel and enlisting his “favorite Israelite bodyguard,” David, to help him in battle. But his commanders refuse to take a “spy” with them, so David and his 600 men are set back to Ziklag.
1 Samuel 30 tells of David’s shock when he and his men arrive “home” to find that the Amalekites (whom Saul was supposed to have killed) had come, burned the city, looted, and taken all their wives and kids captive. His men are about to mutiny, but David “strengthens himself in the LORD his God.” He goes to the priest to inquire what he should do and is told to pursue and overtake the marauders. Two hundred of his men are too exhausted to fight, so they stay “with the baggage.”
David finds an Egyptian lying by the roadside who had served the Amalekites, but been left behind. He promises to lead David to him if he spares his life. And so David and his 400 men defeat the Amalekites, take back their families, their own things, and lots of other loot. There is a squabble about the “baggage men” also getting loot, but David quashes that and says everyone shares in the spoils of war.
1 Samuel 31, the last chapter, tells about Saul going to battle, taking heavy losses from the Philistines, and how all three of his sons – including Jonathan – are killed. King Saul is cornered and an arrow badly wounds him. He begs his armor bearer to finish him off, but the fellow refuses, so Saul kills himself. Then the armor bearer, no doubt fearing he will be blamed for killing the king, also kills himself.
Later, the Philistines find their bodies and take them as trophies of the battle, putting Saul’s head in the temple of Dagon, their god, and hanging all the bodies on the wall. But some valiant Israelite men came at night, took down the bodies, burned them, and buried the bones.
What a sad ending to Israel’s first king, and the nation as a whole.
Psalm 18 is a psalm of praise for God’s love, care, protection, and reward.
Verse 1-3: I love you, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised. And I am saved from my enemies.
Verse 6: In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I cried for help. From His temple He heard my voice, and my cry to Him reached his ears.
Verse 17: He rescued me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me.
Verse 28: For it is you who light my lamp; the LORD my God lightens my darkness.
Verse 30: This God - His way is perfect: The word of the LORD proves true; He is a shield for all those who take refuge in Him.
Verse 46: The LORD lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation.
Day 107 — We have been reading the Bible daily for almost a third of the year. What have you learned about God? About yourself?
Day 107 – 1 Samuel 25 – 27 (Samuel dies, Nabal/Abigail, David/Saul, David/Philistines)
Away from those lovely Psalms and back to history.
The first thing we read in Chapter 25, is that the prophet, Samuel dies and is mourned. It’s another end of an era, where Israel will have kings alone to lead them. (Yes, there will be prophets, but not a prophet/priest like Samuel.)
David is still running from Saul, hiding wherever he and his 600 men can find. In this story, they protect a very wealthy man’s livestock for a season. No animal or human predator had harmed a single one of them. So when the thousand sheep are brought in to be sheered, David sends men to Nabal to collect food for his men as payment for their service.
But the “foolish” Nabal, holds tight to his pennies and refuses to give a single fig. Angered by his refusal to compensate, David gathers 400 of his men to pay back the ingrate. (Kill every last one of them.) But Abigail, Nabal’s wise wife, hears and immediately remedies the situation by loading multiple donkeys with enough food to feed David and his army. Plus, she runs ahead and bows before the kingly commander and begs his forgiveness. David admires her for her peacemaking, accepts the loot, and praises God for using her to keep him from sin. And… after her husband, the fool, dies, David takes Abigail as his wife. Whoa! Fairy tale story!
A short note at the end of the chapter tells us that David took a third wife, Ahinoam. and that his first wife, Saul’s daughter, Michal, had been taken from him (while he was on the run) and given to another man.
Chapter 26 shows David again running from the mad King Saul (and 3,000 of his men) after the people of Ziph tattle about his whereabouts. David again spares Saul’s life when he could easily have taken it. While the king and his soldiers slept a “deep sleep from the LORD,” David crept down to within a foot of where Saul snored. He took his spear and water bottle and left.
Then, on a hill with a “great deal of space” between him and Saul, David calls out and chides Abner, his captain for not protecting his lord. When Abner and the groggy king see David waving the spear and water bottle, they recognize that God kept David from killing him. Saul apologizes, packs up, and goes home, with even a blessing for David.
Chapter 27 shows that Saul’s change of heart doesn’t last and that he soon pursues David again. And David AGAIN escapes to the land of the Philistines. Achish, the king of Gath, allows him to stay, believing wrongly that David and his men are warring against their own people. In reality, David is attacking smaller Gershurites, Girzites, and Amalekites towns, killing all so there are no witnesses, and bringing the loot back to Achish.
While God commanded Israel to do this when they first conquered the land, David’s deception was wrong. However, the king of Gath was happy and even gave David and his men the town of Ziklag, which became David’s official “fort.”
Day 226 – Jeremiah 26 – 29 (Jeremiah threatened & spared, Zedekiah & Nebuchadnezzar, a false prophet, letter to the exiles)
Day 111 – 2 Samuel 1 – 4 (David as king, ending Saul’s dynasty)
Morning Meditations 