SERIES K --- ISRAEL’S GOLDEN AGE --- LESSON 15
ANOTHER INSURRECTION
SHEBA’S REBELLION
From 2 Samuel 20
In the heat of the argument between the leaders of Judah and the leaders of the other ten tribes of Israel, a man named Sheba became so angry that he blew a trumpet and called for the people of Israel to follow him. ‘Back to your tents, men!’ he cried out. ‘Let’s have nothing more to do with this fellow David. He won’t be our king anymore.’ The leaders of Israel followed Sheba the son of Bichri while the leaders of Judah stayed with David. Then the leaders of Judah escorted him back to his palace in Jerusalem. David had a problem when he returned. He could not take back the ten concubines whom Absalom had defiled and he did not want to harm them. He ordered them to live in seclusion, with all their needs cared for and they lived like widows until they died. Then David ordered Amasa, his new commander-in-chief, to gather an army from the men of Judah and report back in three days. Amasa went away, but he did not come back in the time David had indicated. David summoned Abishai and ordered him to pursue Sheba, which is what he had wanted Amasa to do. ‘Sheba is going to harm us more than Absalom did,’ David said. ‘Take my bodyguard and go after him before he secures himself in some fortified city.’ Abishai joined Joab, his brother and David’s former army commander and they marched out after Sheba. With them went a group of Cherethites and Pelethites [the king’s bodyguard], as well as David’s mighty men. At the great stone in Gibeon, Amasa caught up with them, along with a small army of men he had gathered from Judah. Joab was dressed in his military cloak with a dagger at his side. As Joab went to greet Amasa, he secretly slipped the dagger from its sheath. ‘Is it well with you, my brother?’ Joab asked. Then Joab took him by the beard with his right hand, pretending that he was going to greet Amasa with a kiss. Amasa did not notice the dagger that Joab was holding in his left hand. Then Joab plunged the dagger under Amasa’s fifth rib and tore a hole in his abdomen until the insides came out. The blow was so deadly that Joab did not need to strike Amasa again. Joab and Abishai then pursued Sheba, leaving a young officer to stand by Amasa’s body and call for the people of Judah to join Joab. ‘Follow Joab if you are loyal to King David!’ he cried. The men of Judah however, gathered around Amasa’s body and stared at it. Then the officer dragged the body off the road into a field and threw a cloak over it. That cleared the way for the men of Judah to follow Joab, which they did. By this time Sheba had gone all the way north to Abel in the region of Beth-maacah, where all the members of his own clan joined him. When Joab and his warriors reached the city, they built a mound against it as high as the top of the wall. Then they began battering the wall to break it down. About that time a wise woman of the city called out from the wall. ‘Listen! I want to speak to Joab!’ she said. Joab went to talk with her. ‘Are you Joab?’ she asked. ‘Yes,’ he answered. ‘Then listen to me,’ she said. ‘There are old sayings that if you want advice, come here, for we are wise people. Now why are you trying to destroy one of Adonai’s ancient cities which have always been loyal to Israel?’ ‘We don’t want to destroy your city,’ Joab answered. ‘We just want a man named Sheba who has rebelled against King David. Give us this man and we will go away.’ ‘Watch! We will throw his head over the wall to you,’ the woman said. Then she persuaded the leaders of the town and they executed Sheba and threw his head to Joab. Following that, Joab blew the trumpet, gathered his warriors together and left the city. These went back to Jerusalem and all the other men returned to their tents. Joab remained the commander of the army while Benaiah was in charge of the king’s bodyguard, the Cherethites and Pelethites. Adoram was in charge of the labour crews, Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder of the king’s archives, Sheva was the scribe or secretary and Zadok and Abiathar were the priests. David’s chief assistant was a man from Jair named Ira.
COMMENTARY
THE HARD SONS OF ZERUIAH
Much of the fighting in Bible times was hand-to-hand combat. The outcome depended largely on two factors: physical strength and the weapons and skill with which they were used. Since war was common, boys learned to use weapons early by practicing on wild animals. The sling was popular both among shepherds and on the battlefield. The Benjaminites had a company of slingers who could use the weapon in either their right or left hand. The bow and arrow were also an effective part of ancient weaponry. The bow was made with a single or double curve. The Egyptians had them as long as five feet. The dart, made of iron or wood, was a small knife that could be easily hidden under the soldier’s clothing. The darts Joab used to kill Absalom may have been of this sort, or of the type meant to be thrown. The most frequently mentioned weapon in the Bible is the sword. It was made of iron and hung on the warrior’s left side, usually in a sheath. The sheath was fastened to a girdle or belt. The sword was longer and wider than the spear, and sometimes was double-edged. In addition to these basic hand weapons, ancient warriors wore armour. Both large and small shields were common. They were made from wood and then overlaid with leather. The large shield sometimes was carried by a special shield-bearer, as in Goliath’s case. Archers carried a small shield. Some soldiers wore protective armour. Leaders might wear a bronze coat of mail and foot soldiers a leather covering. Helmets were generally worn only by the leaders. They were made of bronze, as was Saul’s or of leather. The sons of David’s sister Zeruiah; Asahel, Joab and Abishai; were loyal to David throughout his time as king. They were skilled warriors and David’s success and stability were greatly dependent on their loyalty and military ability. The loyalty of these three can be explained by their being relatives of David, yet David’s personality also played a part; he knew how to treat his warriors and commanders to keep their devotion. The three nephews worked as a team, although Joab was David’s commander in chief. After the death of Asahel, Joab and Abishai still provided leadership for David’s army. As commander in chief, Joab was very effective, although David did not always approve of what he did.
The priest who made the sin offering for the worshiper was required to eat it, symbolically taking it into himself. Likewise, Yeshua takes our sin on himself.
Anything that touches the sin offering or its blood becomes holy (separated) until it's washed or destroyed. It was cooked in a pot, and if the pot was clay, the pot must be broken afterward. Is this another oblique reference to #yeshua, the Vessel broken for our sin?
Is #Yeshua's offering of bread to his disciples related to the grain offering of Leviticus 6?
I think it is in a sense, but it is reversed. A grain offering can only be consumed by someone holier (more set apart) than the one who brings it. Yeshua can only be consumed by us and we will never be as holy as he is. It's also interesting that both Yeshua and the grain offering make a person holy.
"Now THAT'S just disgusting!", "That is not even the same, this isn't even a fair comparison!", "You're taking things way off base here!"
Did you think of any of these or similar statements? If so, good. That was the point of the comic. Remember that outrage and how you felt. Now let's talk.
In the last comic I brought up what the Bible defines as disgusting, or depending on your translation, what is an abomination. Can something that is an abomination be made clean? After all, a common rebuttal to eating only what the Bible calls clean is Mark 7:18-19.
18 He said to them, “Are you also without understanding? Don’t you perceive that whatever goes into the man from outside can’t defile him, 19 because it doesn’t go into his heart, but into his stomach, then into the latrine? (making all foods clean) [WEB]
While there are some pretty good arguments out there about the part in parenthesis being added later and not in the original text, that is not going to be our focus here. We are going to take it as this was what was written by Mark. So then, what is food? The outrage initial expressed at the first of the comic was due to knowing excrement is not food. Going back to the question of the first comic in the Food section, where is the list of what is food?
The only place we find a list of food in the Bible is in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14. There is no other list ever given. Not in the Prophets and not in the New Testament. So, if Jesus is making all foods clean in Mark 7, then all things that are considered food in Lev. 11 & Deut. 14 are what He is speaking about. Adding to this list to include things that are not considered food (i.e. pigs) would be adding to God's commands.
2 You shall not add to the word which I command you, neither shall you take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of Yahweh your God which I command you. [Deut. 4:2 WEB]
Adding to God's commands would be sinning. Would Jesus sin?
The obvious answer should be "no". However, some would say "Jesus is God and can change what He wants."
8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. [Hebrews 13:8 WEB]
19 God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. [Numbers 23:19 ESV]
I don't think He would. He tells us He doesn't.
https://thestraightandnarrow.cfw.me/comics/600
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Do you ever struggle with anxiety? I think we all do, but the Bible calls it a sin. That's why we're going to think about overcoming it today. https://archive.aweber.com/awlist6425868/IVTik
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"Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they that love it, shall eat the fruit thereof."
Pr 18
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