2 Samuel Chapter 4
Showing all 12 verses for 2 Samuel Chapter 4.
The People's Bible is written by people, for the people. Each verse below shows:
"And when Saul’s son heard that Abner was dead in Hebron, his hands were feeble, and all the Israelites were troubled. "
"When Saul's son heard that Abner had died in Hebron, he lost his nerve, and all Israel was thrown into turmoil."
I want you to build your own inner steadiness on something that can't be taken away by someone else's death or departure - not on another person's strength standing in for your own. When the people or things you've been leaning on disappear, let that be a moment to find your footing in something more lasting.
"And Saul’s son had two men that were captains of bands: the name of the one was Baanah, and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Rimmon a Beerothite, of the children of Benjamin: (for Beeroth also was reckoned to Benjamin. "
"Saul's son had two men serving as raiding-party captains, one named Baanah and the other Rechab, sons of Rimmon from Beeroth, of the tribe of Benjamin (Beeroth being counted as part of Benjamin's territory)."
I want you to notice how the Bible takes care to name wrongdoers plainly rather than letting them hide in vagueness - truth-telling includes being willing to say clearly who did what. Don't let people, or yourself, escape responsibility for actions by hiding behind blurred details.
"And the Beerothites fled to Gittaim, and were sojourners there until this day.) "
"(The people of Beeroth had actually fled to Gittaim and have lived there as refugees ever since.)"
I want you to appreciate that truth often lives in the small, unglamorous details, not just the dramatic headlines. Pay attention to the ordinary facts of your own life and story - they matter, even when they seem like a minor footnote to someone else.
"And Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel, and his nurse took him up, and fled: and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth. "
"Jonathan, Saul's son, had a son who was lame in both feet. He was five years old when news came of Saul and Jonathan's deaths at Jezreel; his nurse snatched him up to flee, but in her hurry he fell and became crippled. His name was Mephibosheth."
I want you to remember the vulnerable ones who get hurt in the wreckage of other people's power struggles - the child, the bystander, the innocent caught in the crossfire. See them, don't overlook them, and when it's in your power, as David later shows towards this very boy, extend kindness rather than indifference.
"And the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, went, and came about the heat of the day to the house of Ishbosheth, who lay on a bed at noon. "
"Rechab and Baanah, sons of Rimmon from Beeroth, set out and arrived at Ishbosheth's house around the hottest part of the day, while he was resting on his bed at noon."
I want you to notice how timing and circumstance can reveal a person's true character - striking when someone is most vulnerable and unable to defend themselves is a particular kind of cowardice. Real courage never needs an unfair advantage.
"And they came thither into the midst of the house, as though they would have fetched wheat; and they smote him under the fifth rib: and Rechab and Baanah his brother escaped. "
"They went into the middle of the house as though they'd come to get some wheat, and they stabbed him in the stomach; then Rechab and his brother Baanah escaped."
I want you to be alert to the danger of betrayal from people closest to you, who use ordinary trust and access as cover for harm. And if you're ever tempted to use someone's trust in you as a way to hurt them, remember how deeply that kind of betrayal wounds - choose instead to be someone whose access to others is always used to protect, not exploit, them.
"For when they came into the house, he lay on his bed in his bedchamber, and they smote him, and slew him, and beheaded him, and took his head, and gat them away through the plain all night. "
"When they entered the house, he was lying on his bed in his bedroom; they struck him, killed him, cut off his head, and carried it away, travelling all night through the plain."
I want you to understand that an outcome that happens to benefit someone doesn't make the method used to achieve it right - the ends never simply justify brutal means. Judge actions by their own character, not merely by whether they happen to produce a result you wanted.
"And they brought the head of Ishbosheth unto David to Hebron, and said to the king, Behold the head of Ishbosheth the son of Saul thine enemy, which sought thy life; and the LORD hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul, and of his seed. "
"They brought Ishbosheth's head to David in Hebron and said to the king, 'Look - the head of Ishbosheth, son of Saul, your enemy who sought your life! Today the LORD has avenged my lord the king against Saul and his descendants.'"
I want you to be deeply suspicious of anyone, including yourself, who wraps a self-serving or violent act in the language of righteousness or divine approval. Genuine faith doesn't need to dress up murder as justice; watch for that gap between the claimed motive and the real one.
"And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said unto them, As the LORD liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity, "
"David answered Rechab and his brother Baanah, sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, saying, 'As the LORD lives, who has rescued me from every trouble,'"
I want you to notice the difference between using God's name to justify what you've already decided to do, and actually knowing, from lived experience, a faithfulness that shapes how you respond to injustice. Let your own history of being helped shape you towards mercy and justice, not self-serving claims.
"When one told me, saying, Behold, Saul is dead, thinking to have brought good tidings, I took hold of him, and slew him in Ziklag, who thought that I would have given him a reward for his tidings: "
"'When someone told me, Look, Saul is dead, thinking he was bringing me good news, I seized him and had him killed in Ziklag - that was the reward I gave him for his news.'"
I want you to aim for this kind of consistency in your own values - treating similar situations the same way, rather than bending your principles depending on who benefits. Real integrity shows up in how you respond the same way twice, not just once when it's convenient.
"How much more, when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon his bed? shall I not therefore now require his blood of your hand, and take you away from the earth? "
"'How much more, then, when wicked men have murdered an innocent man in his own house, on his own bed? Shouldn't I now demand his blood from your hands and remove you from the earth?'"
I want you to practise judging actions on their own moral weight, not on whether they happen to work out in your favour. It takes real integrity to call an act wrong even when it hands you exactly what you might have wanted - don't let convenience corrupt your sense of right and wrong.
"And David commanded his young men, and they slew them, and cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them up over the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ishbosheth, and buried it in the sepulchre of Abner in Hebron. "
"So David gave the order, and his men killed Rechab and Baanah, cut off their hands and feet, and hung their bodies up publicly by the pool in Hebron - but they took Ishbosheth's head and buried it respectfully in Abner's tomb in Hebron."
I want you to see that real justice sometimes means honouring someone even after conflict with them, refusing to let a rival's death become just another trophy. Extend dignity to people even in defeat or death - how you treat the fallen says everything about your own character.