With Enemies Like You, Who Needs Friends?
November 4, 2021 at 3:25 pm | Posted in Biblical friendship, II Samuel | 2 CommentsTags: 2 Samuel 19, Biblical friendship, commentary on 2 Samuel, Joab, King David, Sunday School lessons on 2 Samuel, true friendship
I have heard it said that your best friend is the person who tells you the most truth. My old Sunday School teacher used to say it another way: “A real friend is someone who stabs you in the front.” Certainly, the Bible bears this out:
Open rebuke is better than secret love. Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.
Proverbs 27:5-6
In II Samuel 19 King David was not acting like a king. Overcome with grief at the death of his son, he failed to do something that he had probably never failed to do before. He failed to give recognition and honor to those who had fought bravely on his behalf.
And the victory that day was turned into mourning unto all the people: for the people heard say that day how the king was grieved for his son.
II Samuel 19:2
Thankfully, David had someone who was willing to tell him the truth, as painful as that truth might be, and to sternly remind him of his duty.
And Joab came into the house to the king, and said, Thou hast shamed this day the faces of all thy servants, which this day have saved thy life, and the lives of thy sons and of thy daughters, and the lives of thy wives, and the lives of thy concubines; In that thou lovest thine enemies, and hatest thy friends. For thou hast declared this day, that thou regardest neither princes nor servants: for this day I perceive, that if Absalom had lived, and all we had died this day, then it had pleased thee well. Now therefore arise, go forth, and speak comfortably unto thy servants: for I swear by the LORD, if thou go not forth, there will not tarry one with thee this night: and that will be worse unto thee than all the evil that befell thee from thy youth until now.
II Samuel 19:5-7
Do you have someone in your life who is willing to hold you accountable, and to remind you when your behavior is affecting those whom the Lord has placed into your care?
Then the king arose, and sat in the gate. And they told unto all the people, saying, Behold, the king doth sit in the gate. And all the people came before the king: for Israel had fled every man to his tent.
II Samuel 19:8
The First Rock Star
September 27, 2021 at 1:53 pm | Posted in Biblical firsts, II Samuel | 6 CommentsTags: 1 Samuel 18, 2 Samuel 14, 2 Samuel 15, Absalom, Biblical celebrity, commentary on 2 Samuel, death of Absalom, Lester Roloff, Sunday School lessons on 2 Samuel
One of the interesting things to note in the thrilling, true, and historical accounts of the first earthly kings of Israel, Saul and David, in the Books of I and II Samuel, is the role of fame (and sometimes notoriety) as Israel takes on a real “national consciousness.” At first blush, it seems that Saul and David were, in some sense, the first “celebrities” of Israel. This can be seen in the way the people made songs to highlight their exploits.
And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of musick. And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.
I Samuel 18:6-7
However, closer inspection shows that, at least in the case of David, “hero,” might be a better description than “celebrity.” After all, David had done the great deeds the people ascribed to him by the power of God, and to the glory of God.
David’s son, Absalom, is another story. Absalom can be more properly described as a celebrity, for his reputation and popularity were more manufactured than earned.
But in all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Absalom for his beauty: from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him. And when he polled his head, (for it was at every year’s end that he polled it: because the hair was heavy on him, therefore he polled it:) he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels after the king’s weight.
II Samuel 14:25-26
And Absalom rose up early, and stood beside the way of the gate: and it was so, that when any man that had a controversy came to the king for judgment, then Absalom called unto him, and said, Of what city art thou? And he said, Thy servant is of one of the tribes of Israel. And Absalom said unto him, See, thy matters are good and right; but there is no man deputed of the king to hear thee. Absalom said moreover, Oh that I were made judge in the land, that every man which hath any suit or cause might come unto me, and I would do him justice! And it was so, that when any man came nigh to him to do him obeisance, he put forth his hand, and took him, and kissed him. And on this manner did Absalom to all Israel that came to the king for judgment: so Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.
II Samuel 15:2-6
In his sermon, “And the Mule Walked On,” Lester Roloff called Absalom the first “hippie,” because of his long (I Corinthians 11:14), luxuriant, red, and heavy hair, which he publicly combed out and trimmed once a year as the people admired and swooned. I think a better description of Absalom might be the first “rock star,” since his fame and popularity were based on vanity rather than substance.
When Absalom revolted and declared war on his father, King David, the Lord, in a classic case of “reaping what you sow” (or what you comb), arranged it so that Absalom’s hair got caught in the boughs of a tree as he rode underneath it on his mule. The mule kept going, and Absalom hanged there, helpless and ridiculous, until his enemies came and turned him into a human piñata, ending his life.
Let us remember Absalom, and be careful of seeking the praise of men over the approval of the Lord.
Foreshadowing a Greater Rebellion and Its Resolution
September 13, 2021 at 12:46 pm | Posted in II Samuel | 2 CommentsTags: 2 Sameul 18, 2 Samuel 13, 2 Samuel 14, 2 Samuel 15, 2 Samuel 16, 2 Samuel 17, Absalom, commentary on 2 Samuel, Shimei, Sunday School lessons on 2 Samuel
And Absalom her brother said unto her, Hath Amnon thy brother been with thee? but hold now thy peace, my sister: he is thy brother; regard not this thing. So Tamar remained desolate in her brother Absalom’s house.
II Samuel 13:20
Absalom might might have been furious about what Amnon had done to Tamar, but he saw an opportunity also – an opportunity to get closer to the throne. He began to plot revenge. Two years later he exacted that revenge: he had his servants kill Amnon.
And the soul of king David longed to go forth unto Absalom: for he was comforted concerning Amnon, seeing he was dead.
II Samuel 13:39
I believe that this description of David is intentionally vague – sort of a studied ambiguity. David longed for Absalom for two reasons. He longed to be reconciled to his son, and he longed to see justice done. This was a problem for David, and God faced a similar situation with you and me: how to execute justice and exercise mercy at the same time. God is the only one ever able to completely satisfy justice while graciously extending mercy, and He did this in the death of Christ Jesus on the Cross.
Joab convinced David to bring Absalom back, but Absalom stole the hearts of the people. Absalom was popular, purposeful, and patient, but why did Ahitophel, David’s best advisor, join Absalom’s rebellion? It may have been because Bathsheba was his granddaughter and he still harbored some resentment toward David.
David fled Jerusalem to protect the people of Jerusalem. He had been in the wilderness before, but he was 60 years old now. There was a time when he fled from Saul the spear-thrower, but now he was hounded by Shimei the rock-thrower.
And thus said Shimei when he cursed, Come out, come out, thou bloody man, and thou man of Belial:
II Samuel 16:7
Hushai, a double agent working for David, convinced Absalom to disregard Ahitophel’s advice, and to gather a large army and go into battle himself (mainly by appealing to his pride and imagination). Absalom was killed when his hair got caught in a tree.
An Idle Moment with Disastrous Consequences
August 26, 2021 at 4:43 pm | Posted in II Samuel | 3 CommentsTags: 2 Samuel 10, 2 Samuel 11, 2 Samuel 12, 2 Samuel 13, commentary on 2 Samuel, David and Bathsheba, James 1, Nathan and David, Sunday School lessons on 2 Samuel
In II Samuel Chapter 10 David sent ambassadors to King Hanun, but the king thought they were spies, and his treatment of them sounds almost as humorous to us as it must have been humiliating to them:
Wherefore Hanun took David’s servants, and shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut off their garments in the middle, even to their buttocks, and sent them away.
II Samuel 10:4
This led to war and the Lord gave David the victory, but the war against the Ammonites was still ongoing. The Ammonites were Lot’s descendants. Joab was besieging Rabbah, but David stayed in Jerusalem – idle. In Chapter 11 there is an emphasis on “sending” – the word “sent” is found at least 10 times. David, possibly aged 50 at this time, had fallen into the trap of over-delegating. In reality, when it came to spiritual warfare, David would have been safer on the battlefield than in his own palace.
And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem. And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king’s house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon. And David sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite? And David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him, and he lay with her; for she was purified from her uncleanness: and she returned unto her house. And the woman conceived, and sent and told David, and said, I am with child.
II Samuel 11:1-5
Bathsheba conceived a child, but that’s not all that was conceived here.
But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
James 1:14-15
It appears likely that Satan set a trap for David by observing him. He broke the second table of the 10 Commandments almost in reverse order. First he coveted his neighbor’s wife, then he committed adultery, then he bore false witness, and, finally, he committed murder. The prophet Nathan came to David to confront him.
And it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died. And the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead: for they said, Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spake unto him, and he would not hearken unto our voice: how will he then vex himself, if we tell him that the child is dead? But when David saw that his servants whispered, David perceived that the child was dead: therefore David said unto his servants, Is the child dead? And they said, He is dead.
II Samuel 12:18-19
Do you think David wished he could have that day when he first looked at Bathsheba back to do over again – that hour, that moment?
This is the price I pay —
Just for one riotous day —
Years of regret and of grief,
And of sorrow without relief.
Suffer it I will, my friend,
Suffer I will until the endSmall was the thing I bought,
Small was the thing at best,
Small was the debt, I thought,
But, O my Lord! — the interest.
Paul Lawrence Dunbar
But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.
II Samuel 12:23
David expected to see, and to be able to fully recognize, his infant son in Heaven one day.
And he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.
II Samuel 12:6 (emphasis added)
In Chapters 12 and 13 we start to see a fourfold loss experienced by David. First, his baby died. Second, the rape of Tamar resulted in Amnon being killed. Third, Absalom was killed. Fourth, Adonijah was killed. Absalom and Tamar were full brother and sister of royal blood; their mother was Maacah, a princess of Geshur. Amnon lusted for Tamar, but may not have acted upon it except:
But Amnon had a friend, whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimeah David’s brother: and Jonadab was a very subtil man.
II Samuel 13:3
Howbeit he would not hearken unto her voice: but, being stronger than she, forced her, and lay with her. Then Amnon hated her exceedingly; so that the hatred wherewith he hated her was greater than the love wherewith he had loved her. And Amnon said unto her, Arise, be gone.
II Samuel 13:14-15
Amnon’s “love” for Tamar is revealed as a hateful desire to use. God made things to be used; He made people to be loved.
Absalom was furious about what Amnon has done to Tamar, but he also saw it as an opportunity to get closer to the throne.
And Absalom her brother said unto her, Hath Amnon thy brother been with thee? but hold now thy peace, my sister: he is thy brother; regard not this thing. So Tamar remained desolate in her brother Absalom’s house.
II Samuel 13:20
A Much Better King
August 3, 2021 at 10:17 am | Posted in II Samuel | 5 CommentsTags: 2 Samuel 7, 2 Samuel 8, 2 Samuel 9, commentary on 2 Samuel, David and Mephibosheth, King David, Mephibosheth, Sunday School lessons on 2 Samuel
And it came to pass, when the king sat in his house, and the LORD had given him rest round about from all his enemies; That the king said unto Nathan the prophet, See now, I dwell in an house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains. And Nathan said to the king, Go, do all that is in thine heart; for the LORD is with thee.
II Samuel 7:1-3
David’s kingship did not go immediately to his head. He was the shepherd king and he wanted to feed God’s people and help them grow strong. The Lord told David through Nathan the prophet that He did not want David to erect a temple at this time (Saul had erected a monument to himself), but He wanted David to care for His people. Our “dis”appointment might be “His” appointment. He causes all things to work together for good – but sometimes what we think is good is a million miles from what He knows is truly good.
David’s military victories consolidated the kingdom and brought peace to the people. He won new territories and acquired treasure to be used to honor the Lord. The Davidic covenant announced in Chapter 7 lets us see how these things mirror our blessings under the New Covenant. We win victories, bring peace to people who are at war with God, consolidate the Kingdom, and acquire treasures to be used to honor the Lord.
And when the Syrians of Damascus came to succour Hadadezer king of Zobah, David slew of the Syrians two and twenty thousand men. Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus: and the Syrians became servants to David, and brought gifts. And the LORD preserved David whithersoever he went. And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.
II Samuel 8:5-7
David helped Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth, because of his love for Jonathan. This reminds us of how God dealt with us as sinners.
And the king said, Is there not yet any of the house of Saul, that I may shew the kindness of God unto him? And Ziba said unto the king, Jonathan hath yet a son, which is lame on his feet.
II Samuel 9:3
We were crippled with sin.
Then king David sent, and fetched him out of the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, from Lodebar.
II Samuel 9:5
Jesus us sought us and bought us with His redeeming blood. He loved us before we knew Him.
And David said unto him, Fear not: for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father’s sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually.
II Samuel 9:7
We will feast at the King’s table permanently – forever.
Dancing, Prancing, and a Lack of Romancing
July 13, 2021 at 5:14 pm | Posted in II Samuel | 5 CommentsTags: 2 Samuel 6, dancing in church, David's dancing, II Chronicles 15, King David, Michal, Obededom, The Ark of the Covenant, the Lord's work, wild worship
It had been approximately 75 years since the Ark of the Covenant had been taken by the Philistines, and David wanted to honor the Lord.
And David arose, and went with all the people that were with him from Baale of Judah, to bring up from thence the ark of God, whose name is called by the name of the LORD of hosts that dwelleth between the cherubims.
II Samuel 6:2
Since its return to the Israelites, the Ark had been kept most recently at the house of Abinadab. WHAT David wanted to do was right, but he forgot to ask the Lord about HOW to do it.
And they set the ark of God upon a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab that was in Gibeah: and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drave the new cart.
II Samuel 6:3
God’s work must be done God’s way. The Ark was not carried on the shoulders of the Levites as it should have been. It was carried on a cart drawn by oxen – the Philistine way. When God’s work is done the world’s way, it is a recipe for futility at best and disaster at worst.
And David and all the house of Israel played before the LORD on all manner of instruments made of fir wood, even on harps, and on psalteries, and on timbrels, and on cornets, and on cymbals.
II Samuel 6:5
Is this a picture of most modern churches? Making a whole lot of noise, but trying to do God’s work the world’s way? We’ve got plenty of new carts, and plenty of talented and enthusiastic people, but we are not looking in God’s Book, asking Him how He wants it done. They meant well – but, as a famous preacher used to say, it will not do to say of that which is ill done that it was well meant.
And when they came to Nachon’s threshingfloor, Uzzah put forth his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it; for the oxen shook it. And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God.
II Samuel 6:6-7
Uzzah had become too familiar with the Ark of God. He lost his sense of awe and treated it like a common thing – a piece of furniture. Nothing is so delicate as a sense of awe – trifle with it in the slightest and it flees. Seeing the Ark wobble, about to fall, he reached out his hand to steady it, and God killed him.
God’s work must be done God’s way by God’s people. You can’t anoint old Adam for the service of Christ. The problem wasn’t really that Uzzah wasn’t properly trained; the problem was that David had started out all wrong. He needed start all over again. The problem in churches today is not that we are not skillful enough or that we are not well-trained enough. It’s that we’re trying to honor God using worldly methods and the wrong workers.
David had the ark taken to the home of Obededom for three months.
Was Uzzah’s death overly harsh? It reminds us of the deaths of Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, in Leviticus 10, and the death of Achan when he took spoils from Jericho in Joshua 7, and the deaths of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5. God has shown a pattern in the Bible of getting people’s attention in a very strong way at the start of new dispensations.
Notice where David went to make things right.
And it was told king David, saying, The LORD hath blessed the house of Obededom…
II Samuel 6:12
He went to the Lord. This is where we need to go to learn what God will be pleased with in our church services.
In his exuberance over the second attempt at bringing the Ark from the house of Obededom, David danced.
And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David [was] girded with a linen ephod.
II Samuel 6:14
There is some debate among Bible scholars as to whether David’s showy display of excitement was in fact appropriate, but the Bible seems to place an emphasis on David’s linen ephod. This could be a reference to immodest dress or it could be a reference to the fact that the king (while not a priest himself) was inappropriately wearing a priestly garment.
And David was clothed with a robe of fine linen, and all the Levites that bare the ark, and the singers, and Chenaniah the master of the song with the singers: David also had upon him an ephod of linen.
I Chronicles 15:27
And as the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal Saul’s daughter looked through a window, and saw king David leaping and dancing before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart.
II Samuel 6:16
Again, there is some debate as to what it was that bothered Michal so much about David’s display. Was it jealousy over the attention that he was getting (perhaps from female spectators)? Was it pride-wounding humiliation that her husband, the king, was behaving in a way that she considered undignifed, thereby embarrassing her? Did she object to David’s display of a garment that was supposed to be exclusively for priests, not kings? Many Charismatics take David’s behavior as a Scriptural prescription for wild dancing during church worship services, and they take Michal’s attitude as an indication that anybody who would question or challenge such behavior is a judgmental intimidator trying to quench the Holy Spirit. Whatever the particulars of Michal’s motivation, the Bible makes it clear that her underlying problem was her own heart.
Then David returned to bless his household. And Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David, and said, How glorious was the king of Israel to day, who uncovered himself to day in the eyes of the handmaids of his servants, as one of the vain fellows shamelessly uncovereth himself! And David said unto Michal, It was before the LORD, which chose me before thy father, and before all his house, to appoint me ruler over the people of the LORD, over Israel: therefore will I play before the LORD.
II Samuel 6:20-21
When Verse 20 specifies that Michal is “the daughter of Saul” it seems to indicate that the Holy Spirit is making a point. Michal, despite her marriage to David, still felt some allegiance to her father, Saul, who was a very different type of king from David, and who she may have felt was being dishonored by the celebration, or at least the raucous nature of it. David did not miss this point when he took offense to Michal’s criticism, and twisted the knife, saying, “It was before the LORD, which chose me before thy father…”
There is no good evidence that I can see to indicate that David was lying, though, when he said that his dancing was “before the Lord,” which seems to indicate that in his heart he wasn’t trying to please the spectators or to insult the memory of Saul. Nor do I see anything to indicate that the Lord was displeased with the fact that he leapt or danced.
However, the nature and tone of David’s response to Michal’s criticism is more difficult to defend.
And I will yet be more vile than thus, and will be base in mine own sight: and of the maidservants which thou hast spoken of, of them shall I be had in honour.
II Samuel 6:22
David’s awareness of the maidservants may have revealed something about David to Satan, which could later be used against him, and this was definitely not the right way for a husband to speak to his wife.
Therefore Michal the daughter of Saul had no child unto the day of her death.
II Samuel 6:23
It is fairly common to hear Bible commentators and preachers say that Michal was “struck barren” because of her mean-spirited and supposedly Spirit-quenching rebuke of David, but the Bible doesn’t say that. The “therefore” in Verse 22 may in fact indicate that David, angry with her over this incident, chose to never have sexual relations with her again.
The Transfer of the Kingdom
May 24, 2021 at 3:32 pm | Posted in II Samuel | 5 CommentsTags: 2 Samuel 3, 2 Samuel 4, 2 Samuel 5, Abner, commentary on 2 Samuel, David, King David, Sunday School lessons on 2 Samuel
For a long time there were battles back and forth between the “house of David” and the “house of Saul.” During this time, the Bible portrays Abner as this sort of Machiavellian character who liked scheming better than fighting.
And it came to pass, while there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, that Abner made himself strong for the house of Saul.
II Samuel 3:6
During complex negotiations between David and Abner, David tried to unite the kingdom without too much bloodshed, but the problem was that Joab and Abishai still wanted to kill Abner, and David began marrying multiple wives for political purposes. This complicated his family relations.
The negotiation involved the return of his wife, Michal. Joab and Abishai succeeded in killing Abner, but in a devious way which angered David.
David was a man who searched the Scriptures.
Let it rest on the head of Joab, and on all his father’s house; and let there not fail from the house of Joab one that hath an issue, or that is a leper, or that leaneth on a staff, or that falleth on the sword, or that lacketh bread.
II Samuel 3:29
This was from the Covenant in the 28th Chapter of Deuteronomy.
David fasted, and:
And all the people took notice [of it], and it pleased them: as whatsoever the king did pleased all the people.
II Samuel 3:36
He made it clear to the people that, although he was now king, he was God’s king, he loved God’s law, and, to the best of his ability, God and God’s Word will be the standard of rule in Israel.
In II Samuel Chapter 4 Ishbosheth was left helpless and powerless like a puppet without his puppetmaster (Abner). In his city, the people were afraid that David would invade and kill him, and deal with them harshly. Two opportunists who did not know David very well decided to curry favor wtih him. They were Baanah and Rechab, and they went about it the wrong way. They went to Ishbosheth’s house and they lied about why they were there, then they sneaked into his room while he was sleeping, killed him, and cut off his head to show David.
And they brought the head of Ishbosheth unto David to Hebron, and said to the king, Behold the head of Ishbosheth the son of Saul thine enemy, which sought thy life; and the LORD hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul, and of his seed.
II Samuel 4:8
They blamed their deed on the Lord, but David was consistent. He dealt with them the same way he had dealt with the Amalekite messenger who told him he had killed Saul. After having them killed, he had their hands and feet cut off, and their corpses placarded in public to show the people that he did not condone their type of treachery.
In Chapter 5 David was anointed king for the third time, this time by all the elders of Israel. He established a new capital in Jerusalem by consulting the Lord and instructing Joab on how to drive out the Jebusites. Jerusalem became the most important city in the Bible.
David then began a series of battles to defeat the Philistines and take back what Saul had lost. He consulted the Lord in these battles.
And David came to Baalperazim, and David smote them there, and said, The LORD hath broken forth upon mine enemies before me, as the breach of waters. Therefore he called the name of that place Baalperazim. And there they left their images, and David and his men burned them. And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. And when David enquired of the LORD, he said, Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees. And let it be, when thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself: for then shall the LORD go out before thee, to smite the host of the Philistines. And David did so, as the LORD had commanded him; and smote the Philistines from Geba until thou come to Gazer.
II Samuel 5:20-25
What was the sound in the tops of the mulberry trees? Wind? The Lord? Angels? We can only speculate.
Fall in All
May 6, 2021 at 2:38 pm | Posted in II Samuel | 4 CommentsTags: 2 Samuel 1, 2 Samuel 2, commentary on 2 Samuel, death of Saul, fallen, King David, King Saul, Sunday School lessons on 2 Samuel
At the start of II Samuel an Amalekite messenger told David that Saul was dead, but lied and said that he was the one who killed him. David and his men grieved for Saul and Jonathan, and then David had the messenger killed. In the last part of II Samuel Chapter 1 David sang a song of tribute to Saul and Jonathan.
Note the repetition of the word “fallen.”
And David said unto him, How went the matter? I pray thee, tell me. And he answered, That the people are fled from the battle, and many of the people also are fallen and dead; and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also.
II Samuel 1:4
So I stood upon him, and slew him, because I was sure that he could not live after that he was fallen: and I took the crown that was upon his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them hither unto my lord.
II Samuel 1:10
And they mourned, and wept, and fasted until even, for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the people of the LORD, and for the house of Israel; because they were fallen by the sword.
II Samuel 1:12
The beauty of Israel is slain upon thy high places: how are the mighty fallen!
II Samuel 1:19
How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle! O Jonathan, thou wast slain in thine high places.
I Samuel 1:25
How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished!
II Samuel 1:27
Saul, who once was head and shoulders above all the people of Israel, was now fallen – in every sense of the word.
In II Samuel Chapter 2 David and his men moved to Judah, and, more specifcally, to Hebron. He should have now been clearly recognized as the king, but there was still trouble. Abner, the commander of Saul’s army and his nephew, named Saul’s weak son, Ishbosheth, as king. This started a battle between Abner’s army and David’s army, commanded by David’s nephew, Joab. Abner was then chased by another nephew of David’s, Asahel, and they wound up calling a truce, but Joab and his brother, Abishai, plotted to kill Abner.
The Deep End 
Samuel the Sequel
November 23, 2021 at 3:41 pm | Posted in II Samuel | 4 CommentsTags: 2 Samuel, commentary on 2 Samuel, David, King David, life of David, Sunday School lessons on 2 Samuel
The Book of I Samuel introduces King David, that key figure in the Biblical narrative, who was used by the Lord to illuminate and point toward the greater King over all the kings, the Lord Jesus Christ. In II Samuel, the true historical record of David’s reign reaches its zenith, but, alas, David, despite all his magnificent accomplishments, accolades, and acquisitions for God’s Kingdom was still – just like you and me – a human sinner. Therefore, there are both examples to emulate, and cautionary lessons, in II Samuel. Below is a list of links to posts in this category:
1. Fall in All (1)
2. The Transfer of the Kingdom (3 – 5)
3. Dancing, Prancing, and a Lack of Romancing (6)
4. When the Worship Wars become Domestic (6:12-23)
5. A Much Better King (7 – 9)
6. Graded by God: Turning Your “F”s into “A”s (Part One) (8 – 9)
7. Graded by God: Turning Your “F”s into “A”s (Part Two) (9:1-13)
8. Warning Sign #4: Fear of Curses (9:5-7)
9. An Idle Moment with Disastrous Consequences (10 – 13)
10. You the Man! (12:1-7)
11. Clean and New (12:1-13)
12. The Consequences of Forgiven Sins (12:18-19)
13. Foreshadowing a Greater Rebellion and Its Resolution (13:20-39; 16:7)
14. The First Rock Star (14:25 – 15:6)
15. With Enemies Like You, Who Needs Friends? (19:2-8)
16. Respect Your Elders (19:30-39)
17. A Kite that Soars (22:1-11)
18. Stand Your Ground (23:11-12)*
*most-viewed post in category