November 7, 2012
The Beginning of the End for Saul
1st Samuel 13:1-14:52
I Saul's Lack of Faith 13:1-23
II Jonathan's Display of Faith 14:1-52
A. A Sign That Inspired Action 14:1-14
B. God Joins the Battle 14: 15-23
C. Saul's Foolish Vow 14: 24-35
D. Jonathan is Saved 14: 36-52
People do some crazy things!!!!! In 1982, there was a man named Larry Walters, who became famous, at the age of 33, when he tried to become a lawn-chair pilot. In July of that year, Larry tied 42 helium-filled weather balloons, to a Sears lawn chair, in San Pedro, California. He thought he was going to sail across the desert, and hopefully, make it to the Rocky Mountains. He took supplies with him----which included a parachute, a citizens band radio, and a BB gun to shoot the balloons, when he was ready to descend.
Larry's flight, didn't go, quite like he had planned it. When they released the tethers, holding the lawn chair down, Larry and the lawn chair, shot into the sky, at over a 1000 feet, per minute. Eventually, he leveled out around 16,000, feet. The flying lawn chair was spotted by TWA and Delta Airline pilots. And can you imagine, how unbelievable it must have looked, and how incredulous, the air traffic controllers must have been, when those 2 pilots radioed into the tower, to tell them what they had seen at 16,000 ft.
When Larry's hands became numb, he began to shoot out a few balloons, to start his descent. But then, he accidentally, dropped his BB gun. He used his radio to to call in a mayday, before he and his flying lawn chair, became tangled in a power line. Larry was able to get down safely, but he did succeed in blacking out a small area of Long Beach, California.
Larry, set the altitude-record, for gas-filled clustered balloons, but, he was also arrested for violating Los Angeles airspace; and he was fined $1,500, by the FFA.
He also, won the top prize, that year, from the Bonehead Club of Dallas, and was a guest, on several daytime and late-night talk shows. But the fame wound up being too much for Larry----eleven years later, he hiked to a remote spot in the Los Angeles National Forest and committed suicide.
It's easy to laugh at Larry Walters, and his dream of flying a lawn chair, powered by weather balloons---- because he had no clue, that so many balloons would catapult him to such a height. And it's just as easy to feel sad for Larry, because he obviously, was so lost, in this world, that he felt like he had no recourse, but take his own life.
Hopefully, none of us would ever pull such a stunt, or find ourselves so broken, that we would go to such lengths----but the truth is----anybody, given any situation, will do anything!
In a spiritual sense----we all know better, than to disobey God and His perfect will, for this world, and for our lives----but, we still persist, in doing crazy things.
We wind up acting like Saul did ----we allow our egos and our self-centeredness, to control our thoughts and our actions. When that happens, we shoot up, to dizzying heights, really really quickly, and then, eventually, we crash and burn, because hot air, can only hold us aloft, for just a little while.
Its easier to say, that we are walking with the Lord, and easier to go through the motions of obeying Him, than it is, to actually be accountable to Him, and live our lives with compassion, courage and faithfulness.
Every day, we need to wake up---- and before our feet, even hit the floor, we need to beg the Lord, to help us be submissive to His perfect will, for this day-----and we need to ask Him, to help us be accountable to Him, for everything, in every way, for this day-----and we need to ask Him, for this day, to help us pattern our obedience to the Father, after Jesus' own obedience to Him, which never faltered, even as He walked to the cross.
I Saul's Lack of Faith 13:1-23
Saul's first battle against Nahash and the Ammonites had resulted, in a great victory for the Israelites. But instead of striking fear into the enemy's hearts, it just served to stir up more hatred of the Israelites, especially, from the Philistines. The Israelites were vastly outnumbered by them--- so, the Philistines were able, just to sit back and control the whole area, from their various outposts, that they had scattered throughout the region; and from their monopoly on the blacksmith trade, which allowed them to control the number and the type of tools and weapons, that the Israelites were allowed to have. Historians believe, that the Philistines, didn't really want to get rid of the Israelites----they just wanted to use them, as a buffer between themselves, and other more aggressive nations. And that's, mostly, the reason why, the Israelites were in constant conflict, with them, and why they chafed so miserably, under the Philistine yoke of submission.
The Israelite desire, to be free from oppression and fear, was why they so desperately wanted a human king---- they wanted him to lead them into battle, against their enemies. And after the Ammonite victory, they were thrilled, to have Saul be that king.
This passage, in most versions, says, that Saul was 30 years old, when he was anointed king and that he reigned for 42 years. When you go back to the original Greek, though, what the text actually says, isn't clear. It leads you to believe, that what happened in this passage, actually happened only a year or two into Saul's reign, because Samuel was still alive and serving as priest and prophet. It's just interesting to me, that this passage, is where we find out that Saul had a son, who was old enough, to lead an army into battle. (I think scripture gives us names and ages and locations and distances, to help us understand, that these things really happened, to real people, in real time.)
We may not know the exact age Saul was, when he became king----- but since scripture teaches scripture, we can be fairly sure, of the number of years that he reigned. Because Paul, in Acts 13:21, says it was 40 years. But, I love and agree with what our workbook commentary says, "that if his age and the exact length of his reign were important for us to know, God would have made sure that we had the information". We can rest assured, that If there is something that God wants us to know, then He will make sure we know it. James 1:5-6 says clearly---"if anyone lacks wisdom, ask God, believing, without any doubt…and He will give it to them…."
The Philistines had been somewhat subdued, under Samuel. And it must have been the same way under Saul, in the beginning of his kingship. Until the day that his son, Jonathan, led the attack on the Philistine garrison, which destroyed the delicate de'tente, between the two nations. Scripture says, that a group of 1000 Israelite soldiers, attacked the Philistine garrison, at Gibeah, without Saul's permission. And what began as a minor skirmish, ignited an all-out war between the Israelites and the Philistines. And, it sparked the beginning of the end, of what could have been, Saul's family dynasty.
Jonathan's reasoning, for attacking the garrison, isn't provided to us. So the only thing we can do, is speculate and assume, that he was acting in faith, believing, that God still wanted His people to drive out the evil, pagan nations, that were inhabiting the land that He'd given to Israel.
But regardless of Jonathan's motivation, the Philistine response was predictable----they went crazy!!!!----At the time---- between them, Jonathan and Saul, only commanded 3000 soldiers. But that didn't deter, or even check, the bloodthirsty Philistines at all. They bore down on the comparatively, minuscule Israelite army, with an angry swarm of 30,000 chariots, 6000 horsemen and countless foot soldiers.
Saul prepared for the major battle, assembling his troops at Gillgal, the site of his coronation. And the Philistines amassed their troops at Michmash, which was about 3 miles from Gibeah. This battle, played out in a very different way, than the one against the Ammonites had.
Before that battle, the Holy Spirit had come upon Saul and empowered him in a mighty way; and had enabled him to lead 330,000 soldiers, to defend God's people and to win. But in the battle, we've studied about this week, there wasn't anything, said at all, about God's spirit coming upon him, to give him power.
And clearly, the number of Israelite fighting men, was much lower. And the soldiers who did show up, were tentative at first, and then, quite understandably terrified, when they discovered the size of the opposing forces. They took "bomb shelter" coverage, wherever they could find it. Most of them deserted, and hid in caves, thickets, cliffs, cellars and pits. Many of them escaped across the Jordan River and some even joined the Philistines. The ones who stayed with Saul, must have been trembling with fear!
We get a picture, of King Saul! the acclaimed king of the Israelites, who's reputation, for great military prowess against the Ammonites, totally defined him----being suddenly, threatened, from a gigantic, frenzied, Philistine army and almost certain defeat. (When we forget who is on our side, or only see our own resources, we tend to panic at the sign of the opposition. The Israelites forgot that God was on their side and that He couldn't be defeated. When we face problems and temptations, we need to keep our focus on God and trust Him, to deliver us, because greater is He who is in us, than He who is in the world".)
Saul had been given specific instructions by Samuel to go to Gilgal, and wait 7 days for him to get there, so that Samuel could offer the necessary sacrifices and hear from God, about how they were to execute the battle. Saul went, but as the 7 days went by, he agonized over his shrinking army. He managed to make it through 6 days and most of the 7th----
I imagine, as the light of day began slipping away, so did Saul's desire to be obedient to the Lord---- he couldn't stand it anymore----he called for the burnt and peace offerings to brought to him. And it looks like he made the offerings himself---there is no mention of a priest. But, just when Saul was finishing the burnt offering, Samuel arrived, in plenty of time, to have made the offerings himself. When we're faced with difficult situations, we have to be careful not to let our impatience drive us to disobedience. When we know what God wants, we need to follow His plan regardless of the the circumstances around us.
Saul and Samuel had been given their jobs by God----Saul was in charge of fighting and Samuel was in charge of praying-----and Saul had not kept his part of the bargain. When Samuel hadn't gotten there, by the time Saul thought t hat he should have, Saul took over. He stuck his nose into a place, where he had no business. His offering, of the sacrifices, wasn't, just a technical violation of an agreement-----it was a lack of trust in God. Saul was afraid, and he knew that Samuel always made sacrifices before battles, so he was trying to do the same thing. He was trying to cover all his bases. He forgot, that God always acts in His time, and that, sometimes, we have to wait for Him.
He stepped over the line-----in playing the part of Samuel, he was playing the part of God. Our true spiritual character, will be revealed when we're under pressure. We need to remember, that the methods we use, to accomplish our goals; are every bit as important, as achieving our goals.
It's like, Saul thought, that by burning the offerings, he could manipulate God; in the same way, that the Israelites had thought, earlier, that they could manipulate God, by bringing the Ark of the covenant to the battlefield.
To be honest, it's really hard to resist the temptation, to manipulate circumstances and situations and events, especially when we think we've been called to a special task by God or when we are serving Him for a specific purpose. We expect Him to do us special favors----we think He owes it to us------we don't mean to play that kind of game with God, we just let our wants and our needs and our fears, get in the way. But God is the ruler of the universe and He called the world into being, with just a word-----He will not be forced and He will not be coerced, He will not go back on His word and He will not play favorites.
Samuel was supposed to give spiritual instruction, offer sacrifices to God and bless the people before they went into a battle. But Saul was impatient and wouldn't wait. His impatience resulted in disobedience, because, "waiting on the Lord" is an act of faith. How often do we find it difficult to wait on God? What we have to trust, is that God's timing is always perfect… and it is always the right thing… (tell about double-faced clock)
Samuel's response to Saul was direct and stern. He told Saul that his actions were foolish and willfully disobedient, to him, and to God. If Saul had obeyed the command of God, his kingdom would have endured forever. But as it was, his disobedience cost him, a dynasty-----Samuel prophesied, that there would be no son who would succeed him---the house of Saul would die with Saul. God had already chosen another leader whose heart was more in tune with His. And although Saul's kingdom would last for a number of years, we will see, that it did end with Saul.
Samuel departed without giving Saul any guidance, for how to handle the Philistine threat. When Saul counted heads, he discovered that he only had 600 fighting men, left in his army, and they were scared to death. To top it off, the Philistines were camped nearby, with an array of modern instruments of warfare, at their finger tips. In the whole Israelite army, no one even had swords, except Saul and Jonathan. Suddenly, instead of living in fear of God, Saul was living in fear of the Philistines. When you step in front of God and try to do things in your own strength and your own way----it is never good, and it never works, the way you think it will.
And if the difficulty, with the mainline Philistine army, wasn't enough of a challenge, they started sending raiding parties, out in various directions, throughout the land. They seemed to be special troops, whose task it was, to destroy human life, cattle, buildings and crops. But Saul just continued on, with business as usual. Listening doesn't seem to be one of Saul's strong points-----I don't know if he paid attention to a single word that Samuel said!
If you don't know God's character, when you read this account, it seems like He was being unnecessarily harsh. Saul had only made one little mistake and had lost his kingdom for it----But God isn't like that---He isn't capricious or fickle and he doesn't wax and wane, in the wind and the circumstance.
The truth is, it was Saul's duty as king, to know God's laws, and to carefully observe them, and to teach them to the people, with words and with actions. Saul ignored those general commands, as well as, the very specific instructions from Samuel. He had no real understanding of his calling and the gift he'd been given. And I don't think he really understood who God was. I don't think He understood His sovereignty or His power or His character or His love.
And like Saul, if we don't have an understanding of our calling, and an understanding of who God is, and who we are in Him----we'll be headed for trouble. The emergencies of life are not excuses to disobey God's commands; they're tests of our faith and our obedience. God chooses to work through us, even though we aren't perfect. If we could just learn to be more obedient through our difficulties, then we would become more effective, in our witness to the people we come in contact with. ( I have a friend who lost her son in a tragic car accident----throughout the long days that followed his funeral, and even on into years, now----I've often asked her how she gets up with a smile on her face and goes on about her business---- and her answer has never wavered----"I'm being obedient…it's a conscious choice--- the Lord has said "to count it all joy", so that is what I'm doing---- I'm going about my Father's business, so that I can bring some peace and comfort to someone else, and I count it as joy, that my pain, has made me more compassionate and loving to other people.)
II Jonathan's Display of Faith 14:1-52
A. A Sign That Inspired Action 14: 1-14
Up until now, we've only seen glimpses of the fact, that Saul didn't seem to be a deeply spiritual man. The
Holy Spirit, initially, came upon him, to prove that he had been chosen by God to be king; and then He came upon him, to rally the troops, so the Israelites could be saved, from the Ammonites.
We don't know a whole lot about him, other than this, but when you compare what little we do know about him, to what little we know about Jonathan, there is a big difference!!!!!
Saul's hometown of Gibeah, is only 3 miles from Samuel's hometown of Ramah, but he didn't know who Samuel, the holy man, was, when he first met him. And, God's Spirit helped him recruit 330,000 men to defeat the Ammonites, but Saul didn't keep them together, so that they could continue to be strong and destroy the Philistines and the other nations who didn't fear God----he sent them home except for 3000 of them. (sounds like President Obama--wanting to downsize our military----it sends the message that we are weak, not strong). Saul was sending the message that they didn't really have to worry about the Israelite's God----that He wasn't serious about getting rid of the paganism and the idolatry in their land. It seemed like Saul, wanted to do, just enough to get by, but not step out and do the hard things, that would please the Lord and bring glory to Him.
And he misused the things of the Lord----burning the offerings, instead of waiting for Samuel, was an indication, that he didn't value God's words or His law and that he was going to do what he wanted to do, oblivious, or maybe, ambivalent, to his own disobedience.
Its no wonder that Samuel goes to such great lengths to remind Saul and Israel, that always and only, God has been their deliverer and their protector and their Savior-----it has never been human leaders, unless God allows them to be His voice and His hands. Saul seemed to have a hard time embracing that simple truth-----but Jonathan seems to have understood it very well, and with his whole heart.
There is quite a contrast between the father and son in this passage. With Israel at war, desperately outnumbered, and miserably equipped with weapons, Saul was seen under a pomegranate tree----out of the sun and safely out of reach of the Philistines-----I think he wanted to lay low and not call any attention to himself---it makes you wonder if he was trying not to fight in a war, unless he had to, or unless God made him.
Samuel hadn't given him any guidance after his disobedience at Gilgal, but Saul had a priest with him wearing the ephod---the piece of priestly clothing that stored the urim and thumin(the means of discerning the Lord's will), but he never got around, to telling the priest to take out the urim and thumin, and use them, to ask God what to do. He didn't make it a priority.
Jonathan, on the other hand, had a definite sense of God's will, that prompted him to take action. He seemed to have been troubled by the influence, the Philistines held over Israel and was eager to do something about it. He recruited his armor-bearer to go out on a mission with him. He didn't ask permission and he didn't inform his father of what they were going to do. While Saul seemed to do anything he could, to keep from causing trouble for the Philistines, Jonathan seemed to do just the opposite-----he did anything he could, to antagonize them. He wanted them out of the lives of the Israelites.
Jonathan didn't have the authority to lead all of Saul's troops into battle, but he could start a small skirmish, in a corner of the enemy camp-----so that's what he did-----When we face difficult situations that are beyond our control, we need to ask the Lord, what steps we can take, to begin to work toward a solution. A few small steps, one at at a time, one foot, in front of the other, can be footsteps of faith, that begin a chain of events, that will lead to to eventual victory.
Jonathan appeared to know a lot about the will and character of God whether it was from Israel's history, or from the nature of God Himself, we don't know. But, his words to the armor-bearer from 14:6, are filled with a sense of faith and duty, to the Lord, he said "perhaps the Lord will help us, for nothing can hinder the Lord. He can win a battle, whether He has many warriors or only a few!" ( He will do this for us too, and this is true for physical, emotional, cognitive and spiritual battles) The question in Jonathan's mind was not whether or not God could deliver the Philistines into the Israelite's hands, it was whether or not it was God's intention to deliver them, at that time.
Jonathan had another way to figure out the Lord's will----and his hope was so sure in the Lord, that He was ready to trust and accept, which way the Lord answered his prayer. That's the way we have to pray to, with such trust, that, whatever the answer to the prayer is, we know that it's from God, and and we know that it's for our good-----it is ok and right, to specifically ask him, boldly, for a positive answer, to our prayers----but its also right that we ask Him in Jesus' name and in His will----trusting and believing, that whatever His will is, is what needs to happen---even if it isn't what we think we want.
(The Lord taught me this, very tenderly, and very clearly, in the middle of a heartbreak-----about 25 years ago, my friend Mary Katherine, had a brain tumor----she had had surgery and chemotherapy and radiation----she was doing great! And I believed, from the bottom of my heart, that the Lord had healed her----if anybody, from sheer will, could have made it be true---it was me-----one day we were just sitting, playing with our children, and out of the blue, she said to me, "I'm going home." and I laughed and said, "You are home" and she said, "no, hear me and understand, I'm going home." I realized that she was talking about heaven. Of course, I immediately protested, and started reminding her, of all the good things that were happening with her condition----but she didn't say another word, she just smiled.
Not long after that day---the doctors discovered that the tumor had come back, and that there was nothing else, that they could do. I prayed and prayed for the Lord to heal her, but she kept fading away----and then, late, the night before she died, I was at the hospital, alone with her in the room. She had just slipped into a coma, and I heard the Lord speak to my heart, that He was going to heal her, but not on this earth, He was going to give her perfect healing, and that it was time-----suddenly, I found myself praying different words---instead of praying to keep her, I started praying for Him to take her home, "not my will, but thine be done". I learned, that God's will, is God's will and that no matter what it is, or how it affects me, it is right----- and ultimately, it will be for His glory and for my good.)
There was a group of Philistines, who were stationed at Michmash, at the top of a very narrow pass. Jonathan's plan was to make his presence known---if the Philistine soldiers came down to fight him, He would know that God wasn't going to deliver them; and if they called him to come up to where they were, that would mean, that God was going to give them the victory.
The Philistines did tell Jonathan and the armor-bearer to come up. The two men began wielding their swords, as soon as they had climbed to the top. And before long, 20 Philistines were dead. Jonathan had started the fight that had resulted in the massive mobilization, of the Philistine troops, and a retaliation of revenge, from them, that spelled what seemed like certain doom for the Israelites. And then Jonathan ended it, with his daring, God-blessed assault, on the Philistines, which quickly turned into a full-scale battle----leaving the Michmash Pass open, so that the Israelites could pursue the fleeing enemy.
B. God Takes Over the Battle 14: 15-23
It's a testimony, to the power of Almighty God, and to His sense of humor, that one minute we've seen the Israelites trembling in fear of the Philistines, and hiding from them anywhere they could; and the next minute, we've seen the ground trembling from a God-sent earthquake, that left the Philistines running for cover, when their smug sense of security, up there on that Pass, became the most dangerous place to be, in the area. The scripture describes the confusion that seized the Philistines as "a panic sent by God." The Philistines were terrified and disabled, but at first, the Israelites were too----The earthquake seemed to have been limited to the place where the Philistines were -----so the Israelites couldn't really tell what was happening----they just knew that something, was making the Philistine army disintegrate before their eyes.
Saul did a quick inventory of his army and discovered that Jonathan and the armor-bearer were missing. Saul didn't seem too happy about it! That was the second time that Jonathan had initiated conflict, which wound up involving the whole army; and had taken Saul outside off his comfort zone. (nobody likes to have to step outside of their comfort zone, especially if it's prompted by someone who shows us up)
Finally, Saul decided to consult God. My Bible says that Saul called for the ark---but I don't believe that it was the Ark of the Covenant----David, when he was king, retrieved the ark and brought it back to the center of the people, in Jerusalem. The Greek actually says, that Saul called for the priest, wearing the ephod, so that they could consult the urim and the thumin----The priest was standing there,holding out his hand, so that he could cast the lots, but Saul felt like the process was taking too long, and the commotion in the Philistine camp just kept escalating, so he told the priest "to just forget it".
So, once again, without consulting God---Saul sent the Israelite army, in hot pursuit, after the panic-stricken Philistines, with Jonathan and the armor-bearer leading the charge. And just like God had given Jonathan the victory, over the 20 men, he had just killed----and he had caused the earthquake that had thrown the Philistines into chaos, He also chose to swell the Israelite army that day, the 600 soldiers were joined by the deserters, who had been hiding, and the ones, who had defected---- and they thoroughly routed the Philistines.
Israel, was vastly outnumbered, by the Philistines, and pitifully unequipped to fight them. How often do we feel overwhelmed by what is threatening us? Do we react like Saul, or Jonathan, when we face overwhelming odds. Saul panicked! and Jonathan, went forward to meet them, knowing that God was in control! (Zechariah 4:6 " ..Its not by force, nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven's armies." Matthew 19:26, "Jesus looked at them intently and said, humanly speaking, its impossible but with God, everything is possible." ( Romans 8:31 "…If God is for us, who could ever be against us.") God is never intimidated by the size of the enemy or the complexity of a problem. God always has enough resources, to resist the pressures and win the battle. We need to commit whatever we have, to the Lord, and then trust Him, to give us the victory.
C. Saul's Foolish Vow 14: 24-35
I don't know if Saul, had the desire to have a real relationship with the Lord; but just didn't want it bad enough, to commit himself 100%. I don't know if he just played lip-service to it, because the role of king, had been chosen for him, and he was such a coward, that he couldn't bring himself to embrace it and trust that God would see him through, anything He called him to -----I don't know if God had chosen him to be king, because He knew, that Saul would go his own way and that He would be able to use that, to discipline the Israelites, for their disobedience.
What ever it was, Saul, the young man who had started out, with such promise; the young man who had been given such opportunity to trust the Lord and build a relationship with Him; the young man who only had to trust God's hand and His heart, to be able to see the power of the universe, displayed, as a love letter to his people----- chose to go his own way. (I don't think there's anything in the world that is sadder than that---the Lord promising Himself to us, and we choose to turn our backs on him and walk away----its easy to point our fingers, at other people, when it seems like, that's what they're doing---I think of the pop-singer Katy Perry---she was raised in an evangelical home---I have no idea where her heart is and its not my place to judge her---but her life style and her song lyrics and her behavior, don't match the ways of the Lord-----
But are we any different----how many of us are like Saul---we look good on the outside---we know all the right things to say and do-----but when push comes to shove, we choose to go our own way, and ignore the Lord in the process? It might be in a little thing or it might be in a big thing, but it doesn't really matter--- because disobedience is disobedience…
"Life goes up and it goes down, and how we ride that roller coaster, is what defines our faith.")
Even though the Israelites took advantage of the situation, their victory was not what it could have been. Their soldiers were not in top form, largely, because of Saul's foolishness.
Reading between the lines, it looked like Saul was intimidated by the Philistines. And he must have felt humiliated, too, by their ability, to keep the him and the people, under their thumb, because of the monopoly, on the iron trade. So, when he saw his greatest enemy had begun to suffer defeat, he felt a little braver, and decided to turn the screw just little tighter.
Without any real thought, he placed his soldiers under a ridiculous oath, forbidding them to eat until it was too dark to battle anymore. His reasoning, appeared to be, so that they could avoid wasting valuable time and daylight by stopping for a meal. (the action had begun suddenly and spontaneously, so neither he nor his men were prepared.)
But Saul was dead wrong, on two counts. 1st--He wasn't able to maximize the daylight hours well enough, because the fighting spread eastward, and the Israelites had to pursue the Philistines, over 20 miles of mountainous territory. And without food, they had just gotten tireder and weaker. 2nd---Saul had just assumed, that there wouldn't be any time for his soldiers to stop for food. But God had provided the fastest and best food available in nature---a reserve of honey. The soldiers could have dipped their staffs into the honey and transferred it to their mouths, for a boost of energy, as they were moving forward.
Saul's real reason for the vow, was, that he wanted to defeat the Philistines, in order to carry out his own vengeance. He even said, in verse 24, "Let a curse fall on anyone who eats before evening----before I have full revenge on my enemies." He was fine with putting the lives of his men in jeopardy, in order to satisfy his own selfish desire. (Regardless of who you think should be president this was a bad move on Obama's part and right on Romney's----- The whole Obama issue of " voting for revenge" and Romney's response "vote cause you love this country"….) Romans 12:19-21 tells us what our attitudes are supposed to be when we face an enemy. "Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the scriptures say, "I will take revenge; I will pay them back, says the Lord. Instead, "If your enemies are hungry; feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads." Don't let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good."
But Jonathan benefited from the honey, because he hadn't heard his father's edict. He said what a lot of the other soldiers must have been thinking, "that Saul wasn't the source of Israel's military successes, he was more like a hindrance to them."
The other soldiers, complied with Saul's senseless order, not to eat until evening---- but there were fewer Philistines killed, as a result. And more importantly, the ridiculous oath, was the means, of leading the Israelites into sin. The Mosaic Law strictly forbid them, from eating meat, while it was still dripping with blood. Blood represented the sanctity of life and life belongs to God, and they were to respect that. But the Israelites were so hungry and so battle-weary, that when they came upon the Philistine cattle, they couldn't wait to prepare it, in the way they were supposed to---so they killed it and ate it with the blood still flowing, which was, in clear defiance, of God's law. It was a very telling and unfortunate thing, that they feared disobeying Saul's commands, more than they did, breaking God's law. (We should always follow the laws of our land, and the wishes, of the leaders over us, unless they conflict with God's laws----we should never choose the laws of this world, over what God tells us to do.)
When their atrocious behavior was brought to Saul's attention, he self-righteously, pointed an accusing finger at his famished men, and blamed them for their misconduct. Even though his foolish demand had started the whole thing. Maybe on some level, he recognized that, and he wanted to make amends; or maybe he was scared that God would punish them, right then and there, for their disobedience, him included; or maybe he just wanted to look like he was more spiritual than his men. Whatever it was, he tried to effect damage control, by building an altar, so that the soldier's appetites, could be sanctified, and they wouldn't be sinning, any further.
See, you can tell that Saul knew what he was supposed to do. He just didn't do it. The Israelites worshiped God by their sacrifice ritual----and that was the first altar, that we've seen Saul build. And we know, that he had a priest there with him------so there must have been many times, when Saul could have led the people, in worship, but he didn't. It makes you wonder if it had to take a crisis, for him to finally seek to worship God. God is too great to be an afterthought----things would have been so different, if Saul had built Him an altar, as his first official act as king. If we would turn to God first, we would never need to turn to Him, as our last resort.
D. Jonathan is Saved 14: 36-52
When their meal was over, the Israelites were ready to fight again, and that time, the priest did try to get direction from the Lord. (This reminds me, of when we barrel on ahead with some plan, and then, after the fact, ask God to bless it.)
But the Lord didn't provide an answer for them. Saul immediately jumped to a number of conclusions: that someone had sinned; that the sin was a violation of his own foolish order, rather than God's law; and that the sin was worthy of death.
I don't know why he singled out Jonathan-----maybe because he had been the instigator the last two battles, without any input from Saul.
I think the discord between the father and son, was more indicative, about what was going on inside Saul's heart, than almost anything else that happened, in this story. Whatever it was, we can tell it wasn't good!
After Jonathan was identified by the casting of lots, he confessed that he had eaten a little bit of honey. And even though, Jonathan hadn't known about his father's command and they had still won the battle-----Saul decided, that the reason that Israel, hadn't totally annihilated the Philistines and had left some, to fight another day, was because of Jonathan's infraction. He decided that Jonathan would have to die.
The defining line between these two men is getting clearer and clearer----Saul is starting to look like a selfish, arrogant coward, and Jonathan, is starting to look like a man of honor--- Jonathan didn't make any excuses for himself and he didn't make any accusations against his father, either.
With great flair, Saul pontificated about the certainty and necessity of Jonathan's death. But, thank goodness, the other soldiers recognized, the foolishness of Saul's words and actions and they wouldn't let him put Jonathan to death. The men credited Jonathan with their victory, not Saul. Clearly Jonathan had been working with God, not against Him.
Its a funny thing-----God will carry out His plan, with or without us---- and when we fail to do what God calls us to do, He will raise up another person to accomplish it instead.
Jonathan was allowed to live, and that marked the end, of that particular battle with the Philistines. It ended sooner and less decisively than it should have. The war could have been over, but the door was left open, so Saul spent the rest of his life, in one conflict after another, with the Philistines. And in spite of Saul's glaring shortcomings, he had a reputation as an excellent fighter. There have been other men in history that were moral and spiritual failures, but that were great military leaders, too. God doesn't just restrict Himself to using godly people, to accomplish his promises and purposes.
And from a historian's point of view, when battles are won or lost, regardless of who the general is that achieved the victory, the credit goes to the man calling the shots---the Commander in Chief---------so, all of Israel's victories were credited to Saul. We don't know why God allowed Saul to reign for so long and gave him such military success. It could have been for the sake of the people; and it could have been to make the nation politically secure, before David came to power, so that he could concentrate on the nation's spiritual battles.
We have no way of knowing; but we do know, that the timing of God's plans and promises are known only to Him. Our responsibility is to commit ourselves to Him, and then trust Him for the outcome.
Saul did have the title of king and the responsibility of leading the nation, but from the minute Jonathan appeared in the pages of scripture, he consistently demonstrated a strength of faith and character, that upstaged his father. And this gives us an early insight, into why it was no surprise, that he and David had an almost immediate bond.
How often do we find ourselves, today, in a place like Jonathan did -----with no official power or control over our circumstances. In those situations, we have to make sure that we act faithfully, and winsomely and truthfully, so that the Holy Spirit, in our hearts, will spill over, and make a difference in the lives of the people around us.
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