“Israel’s soldiers had been driven to exhaustion that day; but Sha’ul issued this warning to the people: ‘A curse on any man who eats any food until evening, when I will have finished taking vengeance on my enemies.’ So none of the people even tasted food.”-1 Samuel 14:24
Here’s what you’ve got to know about the battles that took place in the Biblical era.
They took a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG time…
Ya feel me?
They usually began from sunrise and didn’t finish until sundown when darkness set in and the soldiers couldn’t see well enough to continue.
More than fancy pants military strategies and tactics, it was stamina that ruled the day.
At the end of the day, both sides were worn out and on the verge of starvation.
It was normal for soldiers to just keel over out of exhaustion.
Saul, on the other hand, had servants protecting him and supplying him with all the food and drink his greedy little heart desired.
On top of that, he issued one of the most ridiculous rules ever made in the history of mankind.
At a time when what his men needed most was food and drink, he forced his soldiers to take an oath to not eat and drink until the enemy was conquered.
What a selfish SOB!
On top of that, look at how he phrased the situation:
“A curse on any man who eats any food until evening, when I will have finished taking vengeance on my enemies.”
Notice he said “my” enemies…
Not “Israel’s enemies” or “God’s” enemies, but MY enemies.
What an egocentric, selfish person.
Within only a couple of years on the throne, Saul had transformed into a cruel and oppressive ruler.
His men were just pawns in his hand to do his bidding…
And all battles were about bolstering up his personal pride and status among the gentile nations.
By making his men take a vow to not eat and drink, Saul probably thought he was doing a pious thing…
Like he was impressing the Lord and that he’d somehow get on God’s good side with this ridiculousness.
What made matters worse was that as dumb and impulsive as that vow was, Saul wouldn’t be able to take it back even if he came to his senses.
Why?
Because of good ole’ testosterone-filled male Middle Eastern pride…
If Saul took back that vow, not only would he lose face among his men, but he knew he’d be held responsible for the sin of reneging on that vow…
And that’s your takeaway for today.
Or maybe I should say more of a reminder because we’ve discussed this before.
Nine times out of ten, it is best to NOT make a vow or an oath.
Because uncontrollable circumstances may arise that force you to break it…
Or maybe you’ll realize that what you vowed on was a stupid thing in the first place…
Like what happened here with Saul.
Ya feel me?
Done.
CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT
“‘Again, you have heard that
our fathers were told,
‘Do not break your oath,’
and ‘Keep your vows to Adonai.’
But I tell you not to swear at all —
not ‘by heaven,’
because it is God’s throne;
not ‘by the earth,’
because it is his footstool;
and not ‘by Yerushalayim,’
because it is the city of the Great King.
And don’t swear by your head,
because you can’t make
a single hair white or black.
Just let your ‘Yes’ be a simple ‘Yes,’
and your ‘No’ a simple ‘No’;
anything more than this
has its origin in evil.”
-Matthew 5:33-37
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