1 Kings 2

1 Kings 2

1 Kings 2:1 As the time approached for David to die, he ordered his son Solomon,

1 Kings 2:2 “As for me, I am going the way of all of the land. Be strong and be a man,

1 Kings 2:3 and keep your obligation to Yahveh your God to walk in his ways and to keep his statutes, commands, ordinances, and decrees. This is written in the law of Moses, so that you will have success in everything you do and wherever you turn,

1 Kings 2:4 and so that Yahveh will fulfill his promise that he made to me: ‘If your sons guard their way to walk faithfully before me with all their heart and all their throat, you will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.’

1 Kings 2:5 “You also know what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me and what he did to the two commanders of Israel’s army, Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether. He murdered them in a time of peace to avenge blood shed in war. He spilled that blood on his own waistband and on the sandals of his feet.

1 Kings 2:6 Act according to your wisdom, and do not let his gray head descend to Sheol in peace.

1 Kings 2:7 “Show kindness to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite and let them be among those who eat at your table because they supported me when I fled from your brother Absalom.

1 Kings 2:8 “Keep an eye on Shimei son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim who is with you. He uttered malicious curses against me the day I went to Mahanaim. But he came down to meet me at the Jordan River, and I swore to him by Yahveh: ‘I will never kill you with the sword.’

1 Kings 2:9 So don’t let him go unpunished, for you are a wise man. You know how to deal with him to bring his gray head down to Sheol with blood.”

1 Kings 2:10 Then David rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David.

1 Kings 2:11 The length of time David reigned over Israel was forty years: he reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.

1 Kings 2:12 Solomon sat on the throne of his father David, and his kingship was firmly established.

1 Kings 2:13 Now Adonijah son of Haggith came to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother. She asked, “Do you come peacefully?” “Peacefully,” he replied,

1 Kings 2:14 and then asked, “May I talk with you?” “Go ahead,” she answered.

1 Kings 2:15 “You know the kingship was mine,” he said. “All Israel expected me to be king, but then the kingship was turned over to my brother, for Yahveh gave it to him.

1 Kings 2:16 So now I have just one request of you; don’t turn me down.” She said to him, “Go on.”

1 Kings 2:17 He replied, “Please speak to King Solomon since he won’t turn you down. Let him give me Abishag the Shunammite as a wife.”

1 Kings 2:18 “Very well,” Bathsheba replied. “I will speak to the king for you.”

1 Kings 2:19 So Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him about Adonijah. The king stood up to greet her, bowed to her, sat down on his throne, and had a throne placed for the king’s mother. So she sat down at his right hand.

1 Kings 2:20 Then she said, “I have just one small request of you. Don’t turn me down.” “Go ahead and ask, mother,” the king replied, “for I won’t turn you down.”

1 Kings 2:21 So she said, “Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to your brother Adonijah as a wife.”

1 Kings 2:22 King Solomon answered his mother, “Why are you requesting Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Since he is my elder brother, you might as well ask the kingship for him, for the priest Abiathar, and for Joab son of Zeruiah.”

1 Kings 2:23 Then King Solomon took an oath by Yahveh: “May God punish me and do so severely if Adonijah has not made this request at the cost of his throat.

1 Kings 2:24 And now, as Yahveh lives– the one who established me, seated me on the throne of my father David, and made me a dynasty as he promised– I swear Adonijah will be put to death today!”

1 Kings 2:25 Then King Solomon dispatched Benaiah son of Jehoiada, who struck down Adonijah, and he died.

1 Kings 2:26 The king said to the priest Abiathar, “Go to your fields in Anathoth. Even though you deserve to die, I will not put you to death today, since you carried the ark of Yahveh God in the presence of my father David and you suffered through all that my father suffered.”

1 Kings 2:27 So Solomon banished Abiathar from being Yahveh ‘s priest, and it fulfilled Yahveh ‘s prophecy he had spoken at Shiloh against Eli’s family.

1 Kings 2:28 The news reached Joab. Since he had supported Adonijah but not Absalom, Joab fled to Yahveh ‘s tabernacle and held strongly to the horns of the altar.

1 Kings 2:29 It was reported to King Solomon: “Joab has fled to Yahveh ‘s tabernacle and is now beside the altar.” Then Solomon sent Benaiah son of Jehoiada and told him, “Go and strike him down!”

1 Kings 2:30 So Benaiah went to the tabernacle and said to Joab, “This is what the king says: ‘Come out! ‘” But Joab said, “No, for I will die here.” So Benaiah took a message back to the king, “This is what Joab said, and this is how he answered me.”

1 Kings 2:31 The king said to him, “Do just as he says. Strike him down and bury him in order to remove from me and from my father’s family the blood that Joab shed without just cause.

1 Kings 2:32 Yahveh will bring back his own blood on his head because he struck down two men more righteous and better than he, without my father David’s knowledge. With his sword, Joab murdered Abner son of Ner, commander of Israel’s army, and Amasa son of Jether, commander of Judah’s army.

1 Kings 2:33 The responsibility for their deaths will come back to Joab and to his descendants forever, but for David, his descendants, his dynasty, and his throne, there will be peace from Yahveh forever.”

1 Kings 2:34 Benaiah son of Jehoiada went up, struck down Joab, and put him to death. He was buried at his house in the wilderness.

1 Kings 2:35 Then the king appointed Benaiah son of Jehoiada in Joab’s place over the army, and he appointed the priest Zadok in Abiathar’s place.

1 Kings 2:36 Then the king summoned Shimei and said to him, “Build a house for yourself in Jerusalem and live there, but don’t leave there and go anywhere else.

1 Kings 2:37 On the day you do leave and cross the Kidron Valley, know for sure that you will certainly die. Your blood will be on your own head.”

1 Kings 2:38 Shimei said to the king, “The sentence is fair; your servant will do as my lord the king has spoken.” And Shimei lived in Jerusalem for a long time.

1 Kings 2:39 But then, at the end of three years, two of Shimei’s slaves ran away to Achish son of Maacah, king of Gath. Shimei was informed, “Look, your slaves are in Gath.”

1 Kings 2:40 So Shimei saddled his donkey and set out to Achish at Gath to search for his slaves. He went and brought them back from Gath.

1 Kings 2:41 It was reported to Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and had returned.

1 Kings 2:42 So the king summoned Shimei and said to him, “Didn’t I make you swear by Yahveh and warn you, saying, ‘On the day you leave and go anywhere else, know for sure that you will certainly die’? And you said to me, ‘The sentence is fair; I will obey.’

1 Kings 2:43 So why have you not kept Yahveh ‘s oath and the command that I gave you?”

1 Kings 2:44 The king also said, “You yourself know all the evil that you did to my father David. Therefore, Yahveh has brought back your evil on your head,

1 Kings 2:45 but King Solomon will be blessed, and David’s throne will remain established before Yahveh forever.”

1 Kings 2:46 Then the king commanded Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and he went out and struck Shimei down, and he died. So the kingdom was established in Solomon’s hand.

links:

debugging Luke 23-43
dirty work
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Monday, October 24, 2016
problems before plans – Devotions
Sheol in the Bible- The Old Testament Consensus
thou shalt sleep
unfinished business

The 1 KINGS shelf in Jeff’s library

THE EVIL DAYS

^{THE EVIL DAYS}

Ecclesiastes 12:1-5 KJV.

¹Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; ²While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain: ³In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened, ⁴And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of musick shall be brought low; ⁵Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets.

Growing older is a strange experience.

One day you’re young and energetic, and the next day you make a noise when you stand up— a noise you didn’t practice, a noise you didn’t choose, a noise that happens because your joints have decided to speak in tongues.

But aging is not a punishment. It’s a privilege. It’s a long, winding testimony of God’s patience, provision, and sense of humor.

And if we’re wise, we learn to laugh along the way.

Solomon’s final chapter in Ecclesiastes gives us a blunt, unvarnished look at the so‑called “golden years.” He doesn’t soften the reality of aging with polite euphemisms or sentimental language. Instead, he offers a painfully accurate allegory—one only an older man could write. Every image, every metaphor, every fading sense and trembling limb reflects a stage of decline Solomon now knows firsthand. He doesn’t call them the golden years. He calls them the evil days.

This is Ancient Near Eastern humor. Solomon walks us through the slow unraveling of the body: the dimming eyes, the shaking hands, the failing teeth, the stooped back, the sleepless nights, the shrinking appetite, the fear of falling, the loss of desire. It is a house slowly collapsing, a once‑strong structure now creaking under the weight of time. Solomon is not mocking old age; he is describing his own.

Solomon’s honesty is not meant to depress us but to awaken us. He wants the young to understand what he did not: life is precious because it is temporary. Enjoy it while you have it. Honor God while your strength is still intact. Live fully, gratefully, and wisely before the days come when desire fades and opportunities close.

Old age is not a failure; it is a reminder.

A reminder that we are creatures, not gods.
A reminder that our days are numbered.
A reminder that the One who gave us life is the only One who can give it again.

Solomon’s final chapter is not just a description of aging—it is an invitation to live well now, while the light still shines.

Solomon contrasts the fading years of old age with the bright, energetic prime of life—when everything works, everything is clear, and everything feels possible. He has lived those years. He was a sprite young prince, courting a beautiful young shepherd girl. We have that story in the Bible, too. It’s Solomon’s song. We also have a book Solomon wrote in his middle years. It’s his magnum opus, his collection of proverbs. But this book of Ecclesiastes is Solomon’s last. It’s his final reflection.

In it, he teaches us that when we’re young, our eyes look out their windows and see the world in sharp detail. But as the years pass, the days grow dimmer. The world doesn’t change, but our ability to take it in does.

Our bladders become like rain clouds that fill up again almost as soon as they empty.
Our once‑strong legs—the guardians of our bodies, the pillars of our houses—turn soft and unsteady.
Our teeth become few and idle, no longer grinding our food with youthful strength.
Our doors of opportunity close; we no longer venture far from home.
We miss the sound of business and busyness, the hum of life we once took for granted.
We wake at the slightest chirp of a bird, yet we don’t hear nearly as much as we used to.

It is a portrait, both honest and compassionate. Solomon is not mocking old age; he is describing the slow unraveling of a body that was never designed to be immortal in its present form.

And that is his point. Life is short—don’t waste it. We shouldenjoy it fully, especially while we are young and able to savor its gifts. But as we enjoy the gift, we should remember the Giver. The Creator who gave us life is the One who will remain when everything else fades. Our relationship with Him is the one joy that does not diminish with age.

We do not possess endless life in ourselves. Our strength, our senses, our opportunities—all of them are temporary. We live because God gives life, and we will live again only because God gives life again.

So Solomon urges us to use our time wisely.

Don’t squander our prime years.
Don’t drift through life as if our days are unlimited.
Enjoy the world God made, but anchor our joy in the God who made us.

Not only is it appropriate for us to remember our creator in the days of our youth. It is also quite proper for us to remember God when we cannot seem to remember anything else.

Remember God when you can’t remember where you put your glasses, your phone, where you left your keys, or where you parked your car.
Remember God when you can’t remember why you walked into the kitchen, or why you opened the refrigerator.
Remember God when you can’t remember that you already told that story… twice.
Remember God when you cannot remember the name of that person you have known for 20 years, and the one you just met 20 seconds ago.
Remember God when you cannot remember that birthday, that anniversary, that doctor’s appointment, or what day it is.
Remember God when you cannot remember whether you have taken that pill or taken out the garbage.

And don’t get me started on punchlines to jokes, or travel directions, whether you locked the front door, or how to turn off notifications that won’t stop dinging. We are now living in the evil days when everything slips away. But the LORD is the One who remains—and the One who can give life that truly lasts.

Let’s pray:

LORD, thank you for life. Thank you for the air we breathe and the lives you have given us to live. Thank you that no matter where we are, you are there. Thank you also for no matter what point we are in our lives, you are with us and for us. Praise your holy name. Amen.

1 Kings 1

1 Kings 1

1 Kings 1:1 Now King David was old and advanced in age. Although they covered him with bedclothes, he could not get warm.

1 Kings 1:2 So his servants said to him: “Let us search for a virgin girl[1] for my lord[2] the king. She is to attend the king and be his caregiver. She is to lie by your side so that my lord the king will get warm.”

1 Kings 1:3 They searched for a beautiful girl throughout the territory of Israel; they found Abishag the Shunammite and brought her to the king.

1 Kings 1:4 The girl was of unsurpassed beauty, and she became the king’s caregiver. She attended to him, but he was not intimate with her.

1 Kings 1:5 Adonijah son of Haggith kept exalting himself, saying, “I will be king!” He prepared chariots, cavalry, and fifty men to run ahead of him.

1 Kings 1:6 But his father had never once infuriated him by asking, “Why did you do that?” In addition, he was quite handsome and was born after Absalom.

1 Kings 1:7 He conspired with Joab son of Zeruiah and with the priest Abiathar. They supported Adonijah,

1 Kings 1:8 but the priest Zadok, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, the prophet Nathan, Shimei, Rei, and David’s royal guard did not side with Adonijah.

1 Kings 1:9 Adonijah sacrificed sheep, goats, cattle, and fattened cattle near the stone of Zoheleth, which is next to En-rogel. He invited all his royal brothers and all the men of Judah, the servants of the king,

1 Kings 1:10 but he did not invite the prophet Nathan, Benaiah, the royal guard, or his brother Solomon.

1 Kings 1:11 Then Nathan said to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, “Have you not heard that Adonijah son of Haggith has become king and our lord David does not know it?

1 Kings 1:12 Now please come and let me advise you. Save your throat[3] and the throat of your son Solomon.

1 Kings 1:13 Go, approach King David and say to him, ‘My lord the king, did you not swear to your servant: Your son Solomon is to become king after me, and he is the one who is to sit on my throne? So why has Adonijah become king? ‘

1 Kings 1:14 At that moment, while you are still there speaking with the king, I’ll come in after you and confirm your words.”

1 Kings 1:15 So Bathsheba went to the king in his bedroom. Since the king was very old, Abishag the Shunammite was attending to him.

1 Kings 1:16 Bathsheba knelt low and paid homage to the king, and he asked, “What do you want?”

1 Kings 1:17 She replied, “My lord, you swore to your servant by Yahveh[4] your God, ‘Your son Solomon is to become king after me, and he is the one who is to sit on my throne.’

1 Kings 1:18 Now look, Adonijah has become king. And, my lord the king, you didn’t know it.

1 Kings 1:19 He has lavishly sacrificed oxen, fattened cattle, and sheep. He invited all the king’s sons, the priest Abiathar, and Joab the commander of the army, but he did not invite your servant Solomon.

1 Kings 1:20 Now, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you to tell them who will sit on the throne of my lord the king after him.

1 Kings 1:21 Otherwise, when my lord the king rests with his fathers, I and my son Solomon will be regarded as criminals.”

1 Kings 1:22 At that moment, while she was still speaking with the king, the prophet Nathan arrived,

1 Kings 1:23 and it was announced to the king, “The prophet Nathan is here.” He came into the king’s presence and paid homage to him with his face to the ground.[5]

1 Kings 1:24 “My lord the king,” Nathan said, “did you say, ‘Adonijah is to become king after me, and he is the one who is to sit on my throne’?

1 Kings 1:25 For today he went down and lavishly sacrificed oxen, fattened cattle, and sheep. He invited all the sons of the king, the commanders of the army, and the priest Abiathar. And look! They’re eating and drinking in his presence, and they’re saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’

1 Kings 1:26 But he did not invite me– me, your servant– or the priest Zadok or Benaiah son of Jehoiada or your servant Solomon.

1 Kings 1:27 I’m certain my lord the king would not have let this happen without letting your servant know who will sit on my lord the king’s throne after him.”

1 Kings 1:28 King David responded by saying, “Call in Bathsheba for me.” So she came into the king’s presence and stood before him.

1 Kings 1:29 The king swore an oath and said, “As Yahveh lives, who has redeemed my throat from every difficulty,

1 Kings 1:30 just as I swore to you by Yahveh God of Israel: Your son Solomon is to become king after me, and he is the one who is to sit on my throne in my place, that is exactly what I will do this very day.”

1 Kings 1:31 Bathsheba knelt low with her face to the ground, paying homage to the king, and said, “May my lord King David live forever!”

1 Kings 1:32 King David then said, “Call in the priest Zadok, the prophet Nathan, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada for me.” So they came into the king’s presence.

1 Kings 1:33 The king said to them, “Take my servants with you, have my son Solomon ride on my own mule, and take him down to Gihon.

1 Kings 1:34 There, the priest Zadok and the prophet Nathan are to anoint him as king over Israel. You are to blow the ram’s horn and say, ‘Long live King Solomon! ‘

1 Kings 1:35 You are to come up after him, and he is to come in and sit on my throne. He is the one who is to become king in my place; he is the one I have commanded to be ruler over Israel and Judah.”

1 Kings 1:36 “Amen,” Benaiah son of Jehoiada replied to the king. “May Yahveh, the God of my lord the king, so affirm it.

1 Kings 1:37 Just as Yahveh was with my lord the king, so may he be with Solomon and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.”

1 Kings 1:38 Then the priest Zadok, the prophet Nathan, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, the Cherethites, and the Pelethites went down, had Solomon ride on King David’s mule, and took him to Gihon.

1 Kings 1:39 The priest Zadok took the horn of oil from the tabernacle and anointed Solomon. Then they blew the ram’s horn, and all the people proclaimed, “Long live King Solomon!”

1 Kings 1:40 All the people went up after him, playing flutes and rejoicing with such a great joy that the land split open from the sound.

1 Kings 1:41 Adonijah and all the invited guests who were with him heard the noise as they finished eating. Joab heard the sound of the ram’s horn and said, “Why is the town in such an uproar?”

1 Kings 1:42 He was still speaking when Jonathan son of Abiathar the priest, suddenly arrived. Adonijah said, “Come in, for you are an important man, and you must be bringing good news.”

1 Kings 1:43 “Unfortunately not,” Jonathan answered him. “Our lord King David has made Solomon king.

1 Kings 1:44 And with Solomon, the king has sent the priest Zadok, the prophet Nathan, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and they have had him ride on the king’s mule.

1 Kings 1:45 The priest Zadok and the prophet Nathan have anointed him king in Gihon. They have gone up from there rejoicing. The town has been in an uproar; that’s the noise you heard.

1 Kings 1:46 Solomon has even taken his seat on the royal throne.

1 Kings 1:47 “The king’s servants have also gone to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘May your God make the name of Solomon more well known than your name, and may he make his throne greater than your throne.’ Then the king bowed in worship on his bed.

1 Kings 1:48 And the king went on to say this: ‘Blessed be Yahveh God of Israel! Today he has provided one to sit on my throne, and I am a witness.'”

1 Kings 1:49 Then all of Adonijah’s guests got up trembling and went their separate ways.

1 Kings 1:50 Adonijah was afraid of Solomon, so he got up and went to hold strongly to[6] the horns of the altar.

1 Kings 1:51 It was reported to Solomon: “Look, Adonijah fears King Solomon, and he has taken hold of the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon first swear to me that he will not kill his servant with the sword.'”

1 Kings 1:52 Then Solomon said, “If he is a man of character, not a single hair of his will fall to the ground, but if evil is found in him, he dies.”

1 Kings 1:53 So King Solomon sent for him, and they took him down from the altar. He came and paid homage to King Solomon, and Solomon said to him, “Go to your home.”

[1] נָעֲרָה = girl (young woman, servant). 1 Kings 1:2, 3, 4.

[2] אָדוֹן = lord (master, owner). 1 Kings 1:2, 11, 13, 17, 18, 20, 21, 24, 27, 31, 33, 36, 37, 43, 47; 2:38; 3:17, 26; 11:23; 12:27; 16:24; 18:7, 8, 10, 11, 13, 14; 20:4, 9; 22:17.

[3] נֶפֶשׁ = throat. 1 Kings 1:12, 29; 2:4, 23; 3:11; 8:48; 17:21, 22; 19:2, 3, 4, 10, 14; 20:31, 39, 42.

[4] יהוה = Yahveh. 1 Kings 1:17, 29, 30, 36, 37, 48; 2:3, 4, 8, 15, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32, 33, 42, 43, 44, 45; 3:1, 2, 3, 5, 7; 5:3, 4, 5, 7, 12; 6:1, 2, 11, 19, 37; 7:12, 40, 45, 48, 51; 8:1, 4, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 28, 44, 53, 54, 56, 57, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66; 9:1, 2, 3, 8, 9, 10, 15, 25; 10:1, 5, 9, 12; 11:2, 4, 6, 9, 10, 11, 14, 31; 12:15, 24, 27; 13:1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 9, 17, 18, 20, 21, 26, 32; 14:5, 7, 11, 13, 14, 15, 18, 21, 22, 24, 26, 28; 15:3, 4, 5, 11, 14, 15, 18, 26, 29, 30, 34; 16:1, 7, 12, 13, 19, 25, 26, 30, 33, 34; 17:1, 2, 5, 8, 12, 14, 16, 20, 21, 22, 24; 18:1, 3, 4, 10, 12, 13, 15, 18, 21, 22, 24, 30, 31, 32, 36, 37, 38, 39, 46; 19:4, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15; 20:13, 14, 28, 35, 36, 42; 21:3, 17, 19, 20, 23, 25, 26, 28; 22:5, 7, 8, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 28, 38, 43, 52, 53.

[5] אֶרֶץ = ground, land. 1 Kings 1:23, 31, 40, 52; 2:2; 4:10, 19, 21, 34; 6:1; 8:9, 21, 23, 27, 36, 37, 41, 43, 46, 47, 48, 53, 60; 9:8, 9, 11, 13, 18, 19, 21, 26; 10:6, 13, 15, 23, 24; 11:18, 21, 22; 12:28; 14:24; 15:12, 20; 17:7; 18:5, 6, 42; 20:7, 27; 22:36, 46.

[6] חָזָק= be strong, hold strongly to. 1 Kings 1:50; 2:2, 28; 9:9; 16:22; 20:22, 23, 25.

links:

awkward moments
best outcome – Devotions
I will be king
keeping one eye open
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Monday, October 2, 2023
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Tuesday, October 1, 2019
speak up

The 1 KINGS shelf in Jeff’s library

2 Samuel 24

2 Samuel 24

2 Samuel 24:1 Yahveh’s anger burned against Israel again, and he stirred up David against them to say: “Go, count the people of Israel and Judah.”

2 Samuel 24:2 So the king said to Joab, the commander of his army, “Go through all the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba and register the people so I can know their number.”

2 Samuel 24:3 Joab replied to the king, “May Yahveh your God multiply the people a hundred times more than they are– while my lord the king looks on! But why does my lord the king want to do this?”

2 Samuel 24:4 Yet the king’s order prevailed over Joab and the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army left the king’s presence to register the people of Israel.

2 Samuel 24:5 They crossed the Jordan and camped in Aroer, south of the town in the middle of the valley, and then proceeded toward Gad and Jazer.

2 Samuel 24:6 They went to Gilead and to the land of the Hittites and continued on to Dan-jaan and around to Sidon.

2 Samuel 24:7 They went to the fortress of Tyre and all the cities of the Hivites and Canaanites. Afterward, they went to the Negev of Judah at Beer-sheba.

2 Samuel 24:8 When they had gone through the whole land, they returned to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.

2 Samuel 24:9 Joab gave the king the total of the registration of the troops. There were eight hundred thousand valiant armed men from Israel and five hundred thousand men from Judah.

2 Samuel 24:10 David’s heart struck him after he had taken a census of the troops. He said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I’ve done. Now, Lord, because I’ve been very foolish, please take away your servant’s guilt.”

2 Samuel 24:11 When David got up in the morning, the word of Yahveh had come to the prophet Gad, David’s seer:

2 Samuel 24:12 “Go and say to David, ‘This is what Yahveh says: I am offering you three choices. Choose one of them, and I will do it to you.'”

2 Samuel 24:13 So Gad went to David, told him the choices, and asked him, “Do you want three years of famine to come on your land, to flee from your foes three months while they pursue you, or to have a plague in your land three days? Now, consider carefully what answer I should take back to the one who sent me.”

2 Samuel 24:14 David answered Gad, “I have great anxiety. Please, let us fall into Yahveh’s hands because his mercies are great, but don’t let me fall into human hands.”

2 Samuel 24:15 So Yahveh sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the appointed time, and from Dan to Beer-sheba seventy thousand men died.

2 Samuel 24:16 Then the angel extended his hand toward Jerusalem to put an end to it, but Yahveh relented concerning the destruction and said to the angel who was putting an end to the people, “Enough, withdraw your hand now!” The angel of Yahveh was then at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

2 Samuel 24:17 When David saw the angel striking the people, he said to the Lord, “Look, I am the one who has sinned; I am the one who has done wrong. But these sheep, what have they done? Please, let your hand be against me and my father’s family.”

2 Samuel 24:18 Gad came to David that day and said to him, “Go up and set up an altar to Yahveh on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.”

2 Samuel 24:19 David went up in obedience to Gad’s command, just as Yahveh had commanded.

2 Samuel 24:20 Araunah looked down and saw the king and his servants coming toward him, so he went out and paid homage to the king with his face to the ground.

2 Samuel 24:21 Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” David replied, “To buy the threshing floor from you in order to build an altar to the Lord, so the plague on the people may be halted.”

2 Samuel 24:22 Araunah said to David, “My lord the king may take whatever he wants and offer it. Here are the oxen for a burnt offering and the threshing sledges and ox yokes for the wood.

2 Samuel 24:23 Your Majesty, Araunah gives everything here to the king.” Then he said to the king, “May Yahveh your God accept you.”

2 Samuel 24:24 The king answered Araunah, “No, I insist on buying it from you for a price, for I will not offer to Yahveh my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for twenty ounces of silver.

2 Samuel 24:25 He built an altar to Yahveh there and offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. Then Yahveh was receptive to prayer for the land, and the plague on Israel ended.

links:

Maranatha Daily Devotional – Friday, September 29, 2023
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Monday, September 30, 2019
surrendering our sovereignty

The 2 SAMUEL shelf in Jeff’s library

2 Samuel 23

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2 Samuel 23

2 Samuel 23:1 These are the last words of David: The declaration of David son of Jesse, the declaration of the man raised on high, the one anointed by the God of Jacob. This is the most delightful of Israel’s songs.

2 Samuel 23:2 The Breath of Yahveh spoke through me, his word was on my tongue.

2 Samuel 23:3 The God of Israel spoke; the Rock of Israel said to me, “The one who rules the people with justice, who rules in the fear of God,

2 Samuel 23:4 is like the morning light when the sun rises on a cloudless morning, the glisten of rain on sprouting grass.”

2 Samuel 23:5 Is it not true my house is with God? For he has established a permanent covenant with me, ordered and secured in every detail. Will he not bring about my whole salvation and my every desire?

2 Samuel 23:6 But all the wicked are like thorns raked aside; they can never be picked up by hand.

2 Samuel 23:7 The man who touches them must be armed with iron and the shaft of a spear. They will be completely burned up on the spot.

2 Samuel 23:8 These are the names of David’s warriors: Josheb-basshebeth the Tahchemonite was chief of the officers. He wielded his spear against eight hundred men that he killed at one time.

2 Samuel 23:9 After him, Eleazar son of Dodo son of an Ahohite was among the three warriors with David when they defied the Philistines. The men of Israel retreated in the place they had gathered for battle,

2 Samuel 23:10 but Eleazar stood his ground and struck the Philistines until his hand was tired and stuck to his sword. Yahveh brought about a great victory that day. Then the people came back to him, but only to plunder the dead.

2 Samuel 23:11 After him was Shammah son of Agee the Hararite. The Philistines had gathered in formation where there was a field full of lentils. The people fled from the Philistines,

2 Samuel 23:12 but Shammah took his stand in the middle of the field, defended it, and struck down the Philistines. So Yahveh brought about a great victory.

2 Samuel 23:13 Three of the thirty leading warriors went down at harvest time and came to David at the cave of Adullam, while a company of Philistines was camping in the Valley of Rephaim.

2 Samuel 23:14 At that time David was in the stronghold, and a Philistine garrison was at Bethlehem.

2 Samuel 23:15 David was extremely thirsty and said, “If only someone would bring me water to drink from the well at the city gate of Bethlehem!”

2 Samuel 23:16 So three of the warriors broke through the Philistine camp and drew water from the well at the gate of Bethlehem. They brought it back to David, but he refused to drink it. Instead, he poured it out to the Lord.

2 Samuel 23:17 David said, “Lord, I would never do such a thing! Is this not the blood of men who risked their throats. So he refused to drink it. Such were the exploits of the three warriors.

2 Samuel 23:18 Abishai, Joab’s brother and son of Zeruiah, was leader of the Three. He wielded his spear against three hundred men and killed them, gaining a reputation among the Three.

2 Samuel 23:19 Was he not more honored than the Three? He became their commander even though he did not become one of the Three.

2 Samuel 23:20 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was the son of a brave man from Kabzeel, a man of many exploits. Benaiah struck two sons of Ariel of Moab down, and he went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion.

2 Samuel 23:21 He also struck an Egyptian, an impressive man. Even though the Egyptian had a spear in his hand, Benaiah went down to him with a club, snatched the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and then killed him with his own spear.

2 Samuel 23:22 These were the exploits of Benaiah son of Jehoiada, who had a reputation among the three warriors.

2 Samuel 23:23 He was the most honored of the Thirty, but he did not become one of the Three. David put him in charge of his bodyguard.

2 Samuel 23:24 Among the Thirty were Joab’s brother Asahel, Elhanan son of Dodo of Bethlehem,

2 Samuel 23:25 Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite,

2 Samuel 23:26 Helez the Paltite, Ira son of Ikkesh the Tekoite,

2 Samuel 23:27 Abiezer the Anathothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite,

2 Samuel 23:28 Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite,

2 Samuel 23:29 Heleb son of Baanah the Netophahite, Ittai son of Ribai from Gibeah of the Benjaminites,

2 Samuel 23:30 Benaiah the Pirathonite, Hiddai from the wadis of Gaash,

2 Samuel 23:31 Abi-albon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite,

2 Samuel 23:32 Eliahba the Shaalbonite, the sons of Jashen, Jonathan son of

2 Samuel 23:33 Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam son of Sharar the Hararite,

2 Samuel 23:34 Eliphelet son of Ahasbai son of the Maacathite, Eliam son of Ahithophel the Gilonite,

2 Samuel 23:35 Hezro the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite,

2 Samuel 23:36 Igal son of Nathan from Zobah, Bani the Gadite,

2 Samuel 23:37 Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, the armor-bearer for Joab son of Zeruiah,

2 Samuel 23:38 Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite,

2 Samuel 23:39 and Uriah the Hethite. There were thirty-seven in all.

links:

famous last words
mighty men

The 2 SAMUEL shelf in Jeff’s library