Today, we begin 2nd Samuel Chapter 24.
For the Complete Jewish Bible, click HERE.
For the King James Version, click HERE.
“The anger of Adonai blazed up against Israel,
so he moved David to act against them by saying,
‘Go, take a census of Israel and Y’hudah.'”
-2 Samuel 24:1
Okay, so the first thing I wanna say is we’re gonna encounter a ton of figurative speech concerning the characteristics of God in these passages.
For instance, in the opening verse, we read that, “The anger of Adonai blazed up against Israel.”
Now, that’s not what the literal Hebrew actually says.
The actual Hebrew says that Yahweh’s nostrils (APH) “burned” or became “inflamed.”
As you may know, if you’ve been following me for any length of time, “nostrils” is a common metaphor used in the Middle East when expressing intense anger.
The Jewish sages tell us that when human emotions such as anger, jealousy, joy, and sadness are applied to the Lord, we should treat these expressions as figures of speech.
That’s an important point.
As human beings restricted to the earthly realm, we face serious limitations when it comes to describing God and his divine attributes and behavior.
In other words, human language is the only tool we have at our disposal to describe the Lord.
So right off the bat, we’re told two things.
First, the Lord is seriously ticked off about something.
And, second, His anger is connected to the census David is about to take of his people.
What exactly is the Lord so enraged about?
Here’s your answer:
NOBODY KNOWS.
Yeah, I know there are a ton of scholars, both Hebrew and Gentile, who will get creative and spew forth a wide variety of ideas all supported by their fancy-pants academic logic.
What they say may be entertaining, but at the end of the day, it IT’S ALL GUESSWORK.
We’re simply not given a reason why the Lord’s nostrils burned with anger towards Israel here.
However, there is one thing I can say for sure, and this is a principle we see throughout the Tanakh.
The Lord’s anger is always triggered by two and only two things:
The disobedience of His people to His commands in Torah.
And persecution of His people.
The Lord does not take it lightly when Gentiles (those who are not His) mistreat Israel.
It is that second point in particular concerning anti-Semitism that leads to the takeaway for today.
You have no future if you turn against Israel.
You never have.
And you never will.
This is a lesson history keeps shouting, whether people want to hear it or not.
From ancient empires to modern regimes, the pattern is painfully consistent.
Nations, leaders, and movements that set themselves against the Jewish people eventually collapse, fracture, or pay a price far heavier than they imagined.
Some perished quickly.
Others rotted slowly from within.
But none escaped the cost.
Just look at the state of Hamas and its ridiculous allies today to see what I mean.
Remember, anti-Semitism ain’t merely political or cultural, homies.
It is spiritual rebellion!
It is aligning yourself against a people God has publicly bound by His name and covenant…whether you understand that or not.
The Scripture makes this plain.
You can scoff at that.
You can rationalize it away.
You can call it a coincidence or superstition.
It doesn’t matter.
History will still stand there with arms crossed, unmoved and unimpressed.
That’s your lesson for today.
If you bless Israel, you position yourself for blessing.
If you oppose Israel, well, best of luck to you, man!
You’ve just set your life on a collision course with the Creator that will result in dire consequences in this age and the one to come.
God does not grade on a curve here.
So choose carefully who you stand with.
Done.
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