Alrighty, let’s get back to the story of the famine.
David had inquired of the Lord why Israel was suffering three years without any rain.
The Lord made it clear it was because of Saul and his household.
Israel was under the curse of blood-guilt due to Saul’s unjustly slaughtering the citizens of Gibeon.
The fact that these particular Gibeonites weren’t Hebrews is also important to note.
They were Amorites.
Part of the problem was that under Joshua’s rule, the Israelites had long ago entered into a peace treaty with these people.
But now, they had broken that promise.
What makes this more complex is that the treaty was based on a deception.
The Amorites led Joshua to believe they were residents of a nation far away, outside of the land of Canaan.
Why did they lie?
The answer is simple.
They feared extermination at the hands of Joshua and his men.
We can understand why they feared Israel.
The Amorites were one of the groups targeted to be booted out of the land per God’s original instructions to Moses.
That was no big secret.
So, Joshua and Israel’s elders screwed up big time by failing to consult the Lord in advance before entering into a peace treaty with these Amorites.
Afterward, they made matters worse by sealing the agreement with a vow in Adonai’s holy name.
Once that happened, there was no turning back
It didn’t matter that Joshua and his men had discovered they had been duped afterward.
It was too late to reverse anything.
Onward.
Fast forward four centuries to when Saul became King of Israel.
The descendants of the Amorites who deceived Joshua were now living in peace among the Israelites in the Benjamite city of Gibeon.
Now, let’s pause here for a sec.
Don’t overlook just how long four centuries really are!
That period is longer than the United States has been a country.
Ya feel me?
So all of a sudden, after hundreds of years, these Amorites were suddenly viewed as a hated enemy race by Saul, who then went ballistic and slaughtered them because of their ethnic heritage.
So again, to be clear.
These Amorites had been law-abiding, peaceful citizens.
They were far from the Palestinians living in the Holy Land today.
They didn’t go around committing suicide bombings or other acts of terror.
All we’re told is that Saul was suddenly seized by patriotic zeal and set out to massacre the descendants of the Amorites who had deceived Joshua centuries earlier.
We’ll continue with this the next time we meet.
But for now, let’s switch over to the takeaway.
When you really think about it, this whole mess with the Gibeonites isn’t any different from what we see in the Middle East today.
Centuries of conflict, alliances made and broken, innocent blood spilled, and everyone claiming they’re fighting for what’s right.
But peel back all the layers, and the root problem is the same as it’s always been.
Disobedience to God.
Joshua’s crew didn’t consult God before making that treaty, and the ripple effects stretched out for hundreds of years.
It’s the same story playing out across our world right now.
All of the politics, wars, and social chaos are born from decisions made without God’s counsel.
Because when we don’t ask Him first, we end up sowing the seeds of big-time confusion.
Disobedience doesn’t just cause trouble.
It creates a world that doesn’t make sense.
Ya feel me?
Done.
Leave a Reply