Would you turn to 2 Samuel chapter
21. This morning I was thinking about us singing hymns. I was thinking about Cody singing
hymns in glory. And it was just so blessed to
think of that. Funeral, I did the eulogy and
it was so sad, but David Pleasure brought such a great message.
It was a real blessing to hear that. I'm happy and sad. Happy and sad, that's about the
only way you can describe it. 2 Samuel chapter 21. Let's pray together. Lord, we come into your presence. With Thanksgiving. Lord, we thank
you that salvation is in your son. And Lord, our only desire
is to be found in him. Lord, we pray that You would
bless us with your presence, that your gospel would be preached,
that we would be given hearing ears and receptive hearts. Lord, we pray for the Groover
family. We pray that you would be especially near to them. And
Lord, why we would even say that, because you're always especially
near to your people through thy son. Lord, we give thanks for
the privilege of knowing Cody. And we pray for your continued
blessing according to your will on the churches in Mexico. Lord. You said in your word in
everything, give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ
Jesus concerning you and Lord, we give thanks. Oh, how we thank
you for your son, how we thank you for his sacrifice, how we
thank you for the gift of your grace. Bless us for the Lord's
sake. In his name we pray, amen. I think it's interesting that this chapter that we're going
to look at is used by many to try to prove that the Bible is
not the word of God. And there are several things
in here that people say, see, there's a contradiction. For
instance, in Deuteronomy it says, Children
are never to be made to suffer for the sins of the fathers.
And in this chapter, we see where God sends a famine on some people
because of a sin somebody else had committed. It's also said
in the Bible that no one can hang on a tree overnight. They're
taken off. And here we have some people
hanging on a tree for seven months. That's how long their bodies
were left. And then God was not entreated for the land until
all these things take place. And they say, see, this proves
that the Bible is not truly inspired because you have these contradictions. This is a given. Anything God
does is right. Amen. Anything he does is right. He doesn't have a law over his
head. He's the law giver. And whatever
he does is right. Now just take that as a given.
Anything we see in the scriptures and someone says, well, that's
contradictory. No, you're contradictory. The
Bible's not contradictory. Now let's look at this passage
of scripture together. Chapter 21, verse one. Then there
was a famine. in the days of David, three years,
year after year. Now at this time, the earth had
gone, or at least Israel had gone three years without rain. Can you imagine what that was
like? Three years without rain, no
crops, the misery that was going on at this time, three years
without rain. Year after year, and David inquired
of the Lord. He asked the Lord, why is it
that you're withholding rain? And the Lord answered, it's for
Saul and for his bloody house because he slew the Gibeonites. I think it's interesting, I read
several commentators and so on, and all of them talked about
when bad things are happening in your life, it's because of
sin. I won't deny that, but that's
not what this passage of scripture is teaching. This passage of
scripture is teaching the importance of covenants. Do you remember
the Gibeonites? I preached on it about six months
ago. The Gibeonites are those people, and we're gonna look
at it in a few moments, who came and acted like they came from
a far country. And they came with molded provisions and their shoes
all torn up. And they said, we need to be
in covenant with you. Have mercy on us. We know how
you've destroyed everybody else. We're your slaves, we're your
servants. Have mercy on us and enter into a covenant with us.
And Israel did it. 200 years before this took place. Now sometime during Saul's reign,
he reigned in Israel for 40 years. He'd already been dead for 25
or 30 years when this took place. But sometime during his reign,
and we don't have it recorded, but it happened, he slew a bunch
of Gibeonites against that covenant. And so now God has sent a famine
in the land because that covenant had been broken. Now, how could it be fair if
Saul did this, and Saul's been dead for 25 or 30 years, and
now he sends a famine on Israel to punish them for a sin they
didn't commit but somebody else committed? Now, before we go
on, number one, whatever God does is fair. Number two, these
people were not that experienced this famine. They weren't innocent
victims. They were sinners just like you
and I. If God withheld something from you, would he be just? Well,
he was with them. They were sinners just like us and they deserved
whatever took place. So you can't ever call into question
God's fairness. Whatever God does is right. And
these people, no doubt, Let me put it in real common
language. If God withheld something from
you, would he be just? Absolutely. Absolutely. Whatever God does is right. But
here he withholds the rain from these people because of this
wrong treating of the Gibeonites. Now turn with me to Joshua chapter
nine for a moment. I love this story. Joshua chapter 9. And it came to pass, when all
the kings which were on this side of Jordan, in the hills
and in the valleys and in all the coasts of the great sea over
against Lebanon, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the
Perizzite, the Hivite, the Jebusite, heard thereof, they heard about
Joshua and the Israelites having the Jordan River parted. And
they marched through and they heard about the utter destruction
of Jericho. They heard about the utter destruction
of Ai. And we know as we go on in reading
in this passage, they heard about what the Lord did to the Egyptians
and how Egypt was destroyed by the might of God. So they hear
about how they've come in to destroy our country. And God
told them, kill them all. And they heard all of this. So
what did they do? They gathered themselves together
to fight with Joshua and with Israel with one accord. Now,
this was stupid. How could they win? The only
thing they should have done is sued for mercy. But instead,
they get together to fight a battle they couldn't possibly win against
Jehovah. I mean, Israel was just the instruments.
They were fighting against the Lord. Verse three. And when the inhabitants of Gibeah
heard what Joshua had done unto Jericho and to Ai, now this Gibeon
was a city of the Hivites. It was only 18 miles from where
they were. But they heard about all this
and they had a different reaction than all the other countries.
And when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done unto
Jericho and to Ai, they did work wildly, deceitfully. You ever been deceitful? They were. I remember when I
preached this message, I entitled it, Hope for Deceivers. Hope for Deceivers. Now let's
go on reading. And they did work wildly and
went and made as if they had been ambassadors and took old
sacks upon their asses and wine bottles old and rent and bound
up and old shoes and clouded upon their feet and old garments
upon them and all the bread of the provision was dry and moldy.
They wanted to look as bad as they could. Now, when you come
into the Lord's presence, don't come talking about how good you
are. You're going the wrong direction. Verse six, and they went to Joshua
into the camp of Gilgal and said unto him and to the men of Israel,
we become from a far country. Now therefore, make ye a league
with us. And that word league is covenant. Make a covenant
with us, an agreement to not kill us. And the men of Israel
said unto the Hivites, peradventure you dwell among us and how shall
we make a league with you? And they said unto Joshua, we're
thy slaves. That's the word, we're thy slaves. were utterly in your hands for
you to do with us whatever you're pleased to do. They didn't say,
we're gonna let you come into covenant with us. We're gonna
of our free will decide to let you have mercy on us. Nothing
like that. We are your slaves. We're from a far country, we're
your slaves or because of the name. And here's why we came.
They said unto him from a very far country, thy servants are
come because of the name of the Lord thy God, for we have heard.
Here's why they came like this. We have heard the fame of him
and all that he did in Egypt and all that he did to the king
of the Amorites. Notice he doesn't think Joshua
did this. They knew God did this. They knew this was a battle they
could not win. Now, if you and I ever see who
God is, and who we are, we will know that if salvation is by
works in any way, we don't have a chance. We'll know that if
we ever see who he really is. Now, this is how they come. And
all that he did to, verse 10, all that he did to the two kings
of the Amorites that were beyond Jordan, to Sion and king of Heshbon
and Og, king of Bashan, what was at Ashotroth, wherefore our
elders and all the inhabitants of our country spake to us saying,
take vittles with you for the journey and go to meet them and
say unto them, We're your slaves. Therefore now, make a covenant
with us. Make a covenant. They knew that
they couldn't cause this to be, but they said, please make a
covenant with us and enter into an agreement to not to destroy
us. We know that's what we deserve. We know we can't whip you. We know that you're going to
win if we go into battle. Make a covenant with us. And that's whatever believer
says, Lord, I'm your slave. You can do with me whatever you
please to do. Would you be pleased to enter
into covenant with me for Christ's sake and not destroy me? Verse 12. This our bread we took
hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we came
forth to go into you. But now behold, it's dry and
it's moldy. And these bottles of wine which
were filled were new and behold, they'd be ripped. These are garments,
our shoes are become old by reason of their very long journey. They
were trying to deceive them. And the men took of their vittles
and asked not counsel at the mouth of the Lord. They didn't
ask the Lord about this. They accepted them at face value.
And Joshua made peace with them and made a league with them to
let them live. And the princes of the congregation
swear unto them, okay, we're going to enter into league with
you. We're gonna have mercy on you. We're not gonna destroy
you. And it came to pass at the end of the three days, after
they made a league with them, that they heard that they were
their neighbors, and they dwelt among them. And the children
of Israel journeyed and came into their cities on the third
day. Now their cities were Gibeon, and Jephirah, and Beeroth, and
Kirjath-Jerim. And the children of Israel smote
them not, because the princes of the congregation had sworn
unto them by the Lord God of Israel. Now all the congregation
murmured against the princes. They were upset. They thought,
you know, Why'd you make this agreement? But all the princes
said unto the congregation, we have sworn unto them by the Lord
God of Israel. Now, therefore we may not touch
them. This we will do to them. We'll
even let them live, lest wrath be upon us because of the oath,
which we swear unto them. And the princes said unto them,
let them live, but let them be ewers of wood and drawers of
water unto all the congregation. As the princes had promised them,
they're going to be slaves. And Joshua called for them and
spake unto them, saying, Wherefore have you beguiled us, saying,
We're very far from you when you dwell among us? Now therefore
you're cursed, and there shall none of you be freed from being
bondmen and hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house
of my God." That's pretty good, isn't it? I mean, they're going
to be in the house of God preparing the wood for the altar sacrifice
instead of being dead. Verse 24, and they answered,
Joshua said, because it was certainly told by servants how that the
Lord thy God commanded his servant Moses to give you the land and
to destroy all the inhabitants of land from before you. Therefore,
we were sore afraid of our lives because of you and have done
this thing. And now behold, we are in thine hand as it seemeth
good and right unto thee, do unto us. Isn't that the way we
come into the Lord's presence? Exactly like that. Verse 26, And so he did unto
them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of
Israel, but they slew them not. And Joshua made them that day
ewers of wood, and drawers of water for the congregation, and
for the altar of the Lord, even unto this day in the place which
he should choose. Here this covenant is made with
them. Now I need to read something
in chapter 10. And it came to pass when Adonai Zedek, king
of Jerusalem, had heard how Joshua had taken Ai and had utterly
destroyed it, as he had done to Jericho and her king, and
so he'd done to Ai and her king, and how the inhabitants of Gibeon
had made peace with Israel and were among them, that they feared
greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, is one of the royal cities,
and because it was greater, and you can go on reading, they all
made an agreement, let's put Gibeon out of business. All the
kings of the land said, we're going to destroy them because
of this covenant that was made with them. And you know, the
children of Israel at this time could have, I would think, say,
well, this is our time to get rid of the Gibeonites. We made
that covenant, but we didn't make a covenant with these people
and they can destroy them if they want to. But God was so
particular about this covenant that he made Israel protect the
Gibeonites. Look in verse 6, And the men
of Gibeon sent unto Joshua to the camp to Gilgal, saying, Slighten
off thy hand from thy servants, come up to us quickly, and save
us, and help us. For all the kings of the Amorites that dwell
in the mountains are gathered together against us. So Joshua
ascended from Gilgal, he and all the people of war with him,
and all the mighty men of valor. And the Lord said unto Joshua,
Fear them not, for I have delivered them into thine hand. there shall
not a man of them stand before thee. Joshua therefore came unto
them suddenly, and went up from Gilgal all night. And the Lord
disconfited them before Israel, and slew them with a grave slaughter
at Gibeon, and chased them along the way that goeth up to Betharon,
and smote them to Asca and Maked. And it came to pass as they fled
from before Israel and were going down to Bethlehem, that the Lord
cast down great stones from heaven upon them unto Azekiah, and they
died. And there were more which died
with the hell stones than they which the children of Israel
slew with the sword. Then spake Joshua to the Lord in that day,
when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the children
of Israel, And he said in the sight of Israel, son, stand thou
still upon Gibeon, and thou moon in the valley of Asurion. And
the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, and the people had
avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is this not written
in the book of Jasher, so that the sun stood still in the midst
of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day, and
there was no day like it, before it or after it, that the Lord
hearkened unto the voice of man, for the Lord fought for Israel.
Now, here we see the Lord's respect to that covenant. Isn't that
a beautiful picture of the gospel? Two hundred years later. Back to our text. Two hundred
years later. Verse 1, then there was a famine
in the days of David three years, year after year, and David inquired
of the Lord, and the Lord answered, it's for Saul and for his bloody
house, because he slew the Gibeonites. And the king called the Gibeonites. I think it's interesting how
they never addressed David about this. Saul had done them greatly
wrong. But now David comes to them.
And remember, these are slaves. They're slaves in Israel. They're
still ewers of wood and haulers of water. And David, the king,
comes to them. I just think this is amazing,
his humility, the way he addresses them. 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. That's what
we just read about. And Saul, sought to slay them in his zeal
to the children of Israel and Judah. He didn't have any zeal
for God. This was some kind of political maneuver at the time.
He thought this will ingratiate me with the people. I'll kill
a bunch of these Gibeonites. And that's what he did. Wherefore
David said unto the Gibeonites, what shall I do for you? And
wherewith shall I make the atonement that you may bless the inheritance
of the Lord. Now this is interesting. He says,
What can I do to make this right? What can make atonement? Because
we're not gonna be blessed until justice is satisfied. What do
you want me to do for you? What can I do to make atonement
so the Lord will once again bless us? And after what was done was
done, look in verse 14. And the bones of Saul and Jonathan,
his son, buried there in the country of Benjamin, in Zila,
in the sepulchre of Kish, his father. And they performed all
that the king commanded. And after that, God was entreated
for the land. This is when the rains began
to fall. God wouldn't be entreated to
the land until all of this was done. So this has something to
do with justice being satisfied. That's what atonement is about.
Verse four. And the Gibeonites said unto
him, we'll have no silver nor gold of Saul, nor of his house.
We're not interested in that. Neither for us shall thou kill
any man in Israel. And he said, what you shall say,
what you shall say, that will I do for you. And they answered
the king, the man that consumed us, talking about Saul, and that
devised against us that we should be destroyed from remaining any
of the coasts of Israel, let seven men of his sons be delivered
unto us. He's not asking David to do anything.
You bring seven descendants of Saul unto us, and we'll hang
them unto the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, whom the Lord did choose. And the king said, I'll give
them. But the king spared Mephibosheth. Remember Mephibosheth? That oath,
that covenant that was made years and years before when David was
a young man. Is there any of the house of
Saul that I can show the kindness of God to for Jonathan's sake? Yeah, there's one, Mephibosheth.
You remember him. Years later, he still preserved. Why? Verse 7, 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. That's the only reason he was
spared. You see, this passage of scripture is teaching God's
respect of the covenant. This is that covenant that David
said on his dying bed, although my house be not so with God,
yet hath he made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things
and sure. And this is all my salvation.
Well, I think it's all my salvation too. It's all my desire. Me too, David. The only way I
desire to approach God is through the covenant of grace, the covenant
he made with his son. Oh, that I might simply be found
in him. Now, somebody says, what about
these poor fellows that get killed, these seven guys? They were sinners. Don't think
that these fellows were innocent victims. You can be sure that
they were sinners, just like I am, just like you are. Whatever
God does is right. Whatever God does is just. Verse
eight, but the king took of the two sons of Rizpah, the daughter
of Ai, whom she had bared unto Saul. It was one of Saul's concubines,
Armoni and Mephibosheth. You say, is this another Mephibosheth? Yeah, well, why was he named
that? I don't know. And the five sons of Michael, the daughter
of Saul, whom he brought up for Adriel, the son of Barzillai,
the Meholadite, you remember Michael, Her five sons, he gathered
them up and he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites
and they hanged them in the hill before the Lord. And there fell
all seven together and were put to death in the days of the harvest."
When there should have been a harvest. In the first days, in the beginning
of the barley harvest. And this is one of the saddest
things. I don't even know what all to say about it in Rizpah.
The daughter of Ahai took sackcloth and spread it up for her onto
the rock. She put a tent around the two
places where her sons were impaled. from the beginning of the 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." She saw her two boys hang there and she
stayed there to make sure the vultures didn't get to them or
beasts at night. And she stayed there for seven
months in that tent that she made. And what are you gonna
say about that? I don't know. But I know that
David looked at it and he was moved by it. Look at verse 11,
it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiai, the concubine
of Saul, had done. And David went and took the bones
of Saul and the bones of Jonathan, his son, from the men of Jabesh-gilead,
which had been stolen them from the street of Beth-ashan, where
the Philistines had hanged them. And when the Philistines had
slain Saul and Goboah, 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, all seven of them, and then they
were given a proper burial. and the bones of Saul and Jonathan,
his son, buried they in the country of Benjamin, in Zila, in the
sepulchre of Kish, his father. And they performed all that the
king had commanded. And after that, after that, God
was entreated for the land. And that's when the reigns came,
when justice was satisfied, when atonement was made. Those seven sons, seven represents
the number of perfection. When perfect atonement, and this
is just a gospel type, when perfect atonement is made, God can be
approached by every sinner looking only to the atonement of Christ
and be entreated for the land. And the reins of his grace fell
after atonement was made. Now, people say there's a chapter
that proves the Bible's not the Word of God. Well, all I say
is that's another chapter that proves it is.