2 Samuel 23:8-39
Notes
Transcript
Let’s talk human achievement. Humanity has amazing potential. Think about all the incredible stuff men and women have done...
Discovered how to make fire and put it to use in cooking and heating. Mankind observed and then learned how to harness electricity. Now it’s in our homes and cars and is part of nearly everything we do.
Man split the atom and invented the meme. Cat videos and Star Wars and German Chocolate cake. What tremendous feats of human achievement.
Athletically speaking, think about the great achievement of say, the best team in the history of sport: the New York Yankees (27 World Series, Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Mariano Rivera, Aaron Judge).
Or consider Jesse Owens in 1935 breaking 4 track world records in the span of an hour. And then the next year winning four gold medals in the Olympics.
It’s incredible what man can achieve. We put a man on the moon and built the pyramids. We came up with Spider Man (and the lesser-known Man Spider).
Mankind has achieved much—we’ve built empires and kingdoms. Bottom line: we’re pretty impressive.
Humanly speaking, David’s life and kingdom was pretty impressive, but it was thoroughly human.
David, with all of his faults, led a people, with all of their faults. Looking back at David’s time as king and David’s kingdom, historically, we can see a lot of disappointment.
David’s kingdom was a human kingdom. But, on the other hand, it was also the anticipation of God’s Kingdom.
The LORD was with David in remarkable ways. As we look at David’s kingdom, we see (and have seen) something—some small glimpse, a shadow, a hint—of what God’s Kingdom will be like.
Here in 2 Samuel 23:8-39, we have mostly a lot of names. It doesn’t seem all that inspiring. One of those “maybe-we-can-just-skim-this-and-move-on-to-the-next-part” chapters.
But I believe this chapter will help us to gain some perspective—much needed and very applicable.
If you have your Bibles (and I hope you do), please turn with me to 2 Samuel 23. We’re going to pick up where we left off last week. 2 Samuel 23, starting with verse 8.
8 These are the names of David’s mighty warriors:
Josheb-Basshebeth, a Tahkemonite, was chief of the Three; he raised his spear against eight hundred men, whom he killed in one encounter.
9 Next to him was Eleazar son of Dodai the Ahohite. As one of the three mighty warriors, he was with David when they taunted the Philistines gathered at Pas Dammim for battle. Then the Israelites retreated, 10 but Eleazar stood his ground and struck down the Philistines till his hand grew tired and froze to the sword. The Lord brought about a great victory that day. The troops returned to Eleazar, but only to strip the dead.
11 Next to him was Shammah son of Agee the Hararite. When the Philistines banded together at a place where there was a field full of lentils, Israel’s troops fled from them. 12 But Shammah took his stand in the middle of the field. He defended it and struck the Philistines down, and the Lord brought about a great victory.
There are three men listed here, in some detail. Three men in David’s employ who accomplished some great things, and who have their names memorialized here in God’s Word.
Think about that. Otherwise unknown, but we’re talking about them here today, several thousand years after they were alive. That’s pretty cool.
These are some of David’s “mighty men.” (Men in tights, tight tights! -Mel Brooks, anyone)
David had mighty men and David himself was known as a “mighty man”.
1 Samuel 16:18 speaks of David as “a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the lyre. He is a brave man and a warrior. He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the Lord is with him.”
David was mighty, and among his band of merry men, the three that are given some column inches here in 2 Samuel, must be the mightiest.
To even carry around his name, Josheb-Basshebeth would qualify in my book to be a “mighty” fella. I’ve been saddled with “Barrett” all my life, but man…Josheb-Basshebeth is rough.
What he lacked in name, Josheb-Basshebeth more than made up for in might. He was chief of the Three. Dude killed 800 men in one encounter.
I’d love to know more, but just that summary is impressive. That’s something people are going to talk about for a while. Josheb-Basshebeth struck down 800 men. No fuss. No extraneous details. Just the pure heft of it all.
Josheb-Basshebeth is rightly remembered for what he did. Talk about a great human accomplishment.
Then there’s Eleazar, son of Dodai. Eleazer stood his ground and struck down the Philistines after the rest of the Israelites had retreated.
He, too, it seems single-handedly struck down a large number of the enemy. A great and memorable display of strength.
So much so, great detail is given to the hand he held the sword in. He fought until his hand grew tired, but he didn’t let go of his sword.
The troops who had retreated and let Eleazar take care of the Philistines returned to strip the dead. But it’s clear: Eleazar had won the day. So Eleazar is remembered and praised. Quite the accomplishment.
The third member of the three is Shammah (vv. 11-12). Shammah is known for defending a field of lentils—strange thing to defend, but significant enough that God’s Word records for us what he did.
The Philistines had their eye on this field full of lentils. They were a large (and likely hungry) army and they wanted some legumes. The scared the Israelite army; the troops fled.
The lentils, it seemed, would soon belong to the enemy.
But in steps Shammah. He takes his stand in the middle of the field. No weapon is mentioned, but Shammah defended those lousy beans and struck down the Philistines. He defeated the enemy and saved the crop.
These three mightiest of the mighty men are indeed “mighty.” What they accomplished, each one, was remembered by the people of their time, to be sure.
But, not just then; we’re still talking about them today.
You might have noticed in the summary of these three, we didn’t talk about the most important part.
Look with me again at verse 10 and verse 12.
10 but Eleazar stood his ground and struck down the Philistines till his hand grew tired and froze to the sword. The Lord brought about a great victory that day. The troops returned to Eleazar, but only to strip the dead.
12 But Shammah took his stand in the middle of the field. He defended it and struck the Philistines down, and the Lord brought about a great victory.
There’s nothing more significant than that phrase right there—The LORD brought about a great victory.
Josheb-Basshebeth, Eleazar, and Shammah were rightly deemed mighty. Props.
But their accomplishments were more than they seemed. They are far more than outstanding feats of human strength and courage (though they were that).
What each of these fellas did was incredible, sure. But it’s not just about what each of these guys did.
It’s the LORD who brought about great victory that day. This is the saving work of God. God did this!
The LORD Yahweh, the One True God, gave the might, the means, and the courage. Whatever amazing deed took place, the source and the skill belong to the LORD.
The greatness and importance really lies in what the LORD was doing, how He determined to act on behalf of His people.
The Kingdom of God puts the greatness of all human accomplishment in perspective.
It’s not about us. It’s not “Look what I’ve done!”
It’s not about us. It’s about Him and the incredible things He has done.
“Behind all such daring courage and dogged combat stands the fact that the victory was the LORD’s gift. He used their courage and gall to bring His great salvation, but in the last analysis, the deliverance was HIS doing. All God’s servants must recognize this secret lest we fail to see our successes as gifts and turn them—or ourselves—into idols.” -DRD.
What the LORD has done puts all of our human accomplishments in perspective.
Let’s read about three more of David’s mighty men:
13 During harvest time, three of the thirty chief warriors came down to David at the cave of Adullam, while a band of Philistines was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim. 14 At that time David was in the stronghold, and the Philistine garrison was at Bethlehem. 15 David longed for water and said, “Oh, that someone would get me a drink of water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem!” 16 So the three mighty warriors broke through the Philistine lines, drew water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem and carried it back to David. But he refused to drink it; instead, he poured it out before the Lord. 17 “Far be it from me, Lord, to do this!” he said. “Is it not the blood of men who went at the risk of their lives?” And David would not drink it.
Such were the exploits of the three mighty warriors.
Three more mighty men and their stories grace the pages of Scripture. These three together show incredible devotion to their king, to David.
It’s hard to say if David—or any king, for that matter—had ever had more dedicated subjects than these three men.
We need to get the scene set in our minds:
David was in the cave of Adullam. Philistine enemies everywhere—in the valley of Rephaim and in Bethlehem. Adullam was around 20 miles southwest of Jerusalem. Bethlehem, 6 miles south of Jerusalem.
David and his people are surrounded by Philistines; holed-up in the stronghold. And David, apparently, at some point muttered something about water from Bethlehem.
It was 15 miles or so from where David was to Bethlehem. And the enemy stationed all around, all along the way.
What David says in verse 15 reflects his deep longing, a nostalgic, homesick thought. Almost no one thinks David actually wanted anyone to go get him a drink.
He was merely thinking of his hometown, his life there as a boy. Simpler times. How good it would be to be in Bethlehem again, drinking from the well.
In a surprise turn, the three men here decided to go get David that water. They broke through the Philistine lines, grabbed some water, and brought it back to David.
With force and fortitude, the men face the Philistines to get David some water.
They’d do anything for David. Go all that way for David. Do all that just to give David a drink of water. A show of devotion and dedication. It’s incredible—but they wanted to honor their king, and they did this unbelievable thing for him.
Incredible, unbelievable act. And what does David do?! He refuses to drink the water.
That’ll make you scratch your head and think.
The reason David would do this?
“David considered the water that had been obtained by such an act to be too precious for something as trivial as his own refreshment.” -Robert P. Gordon
Not only does David refuse to drink it; he poured it out before the LORD.
What is going on!?!? They went all that way, risked life and limb to fill David’s Stanley Cup, only for David to pour it out on the ground...?!?!
David just pours it out.
The significance is seen in the last words of verse 16: before the LORD.
David’s not just pouring out the water these men so carefully secured and delivered to David. That would have been a real jerk move.
David explains himself (verse 17). He honors the devotion of these three men more than they would ever think.
It’s not about the water; it’s about the sacrifice and the love they showed him.
For David, the water represented the blood of his men. It was, therefore, something that had to be given to God.
“David poured it out, not because it was trash but because it was treasure—it belonged to the LORD.” - DRD.
I’m not sure we get this. I’ve been working through this odd moment for several days. I toss it back and forth in my head, hoping to eventually make sense of it.
David gave what these men had done to the LORD.
It’s almost as if David was saying such devotion, such love, such sacrifice really belongs to God.
I can look out over the faces in this room and see so many people who have done for me and my family far more than we deserve.
Naturally, I’m thankful to each of you; but I’m obligated to far more than that. In those moments of realization of undeserved kindness, all the love and care expressed to us only really belongs to the LORD.
I can’t—or shouldn’t—accept it for myself as if I deserve such things. I don’t deserve it any more than David deserved the water.
The only One deserving is the LORD.
David turned great human devotion to the LORD, where it truly belongs.
18 Abishai the brother of Joab son of Zeruiah was chief of the Three. He raised his spear against three hundred men, whom he killed, and so he became as famous as the Three. 19 Was he not held in greater honor than the Three? He became their commander, even though he was not included among them.
20 Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant fighter from Kabzeel, performed great exploits. He struck down Moab’s two mightiest warriors. He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion. 21 And he struck down a huge Egyptian. Although the Egyptian had a spear in his hand, Benaiah went against him with a club. He snatched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear. 22 Such were the exploits of Benaiah son of Jehoiada; he too was as famous as the three mighty warriors. 23 He was held in greater honor than any of the Thirty, but he was not included among the Three. And David put him in charge of his bodyguard.
Here we have the tale of two more who served David well.
We know Abishai. He’s shown up in several moments of David’s life as it’s recorded for us here in 2 Samuel. Abishai had saved David’s life, likely more than once. And he’s David’s nephew. We shouldn’t be surprised to see his name here.
Like Josheb-Basshebeth, Abishai knocked-off a bunch of enemies; three hundred men with his spear. Pretty good for a day’s work! He was quite the guy, the commander of some of the men, but not included among the Three.
Kill a few more men and we’ll talk.
Benaiah we also know. He’s shown up in a few different spots. Here, we read he performed great exploits.
Struck down Moab’s two mightiest warriors.
Killed a lion in a pit on a snowy day. Nothing intimidated the guy.
Struck down a huge Egyptian. He brought a club to a knife-fight and came out on top.
That’s the kind of guy you put in charge of your bodyguard if you’re the king.
Find the guy who takes on a lion and huge Egyptian and lives to tell about it. Put that mighty man in charge of your care.
We’re most of the way through Chapter 23. All that’s left is a long list of names. What is there to glean from this chapter?
For one, we are struck with the truth that David lived in violent times.
These stories are mostly violent in nature. Violent men overcoming violence with more violence.
As much as I like stuff like this and want to know more about each story, the point is this: David’s kingdom doesn’t live up to God’s promise.
What God said to David and his people was this:
10 And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning 11 and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies.
God had promised rest. No disturbance, no oppression, no enemies to reckon with.
It’s not until much later, long after David lived, that a KING would come whose kingdom would surpass David’s kingdom.
It would be everything David’s kingdom failed to be:
6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
And the angels would announce this King’s birth with these words:
11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
Neither David, nor any of David’s men, bring about the Kingdom of God—not until Jesus comes does the Kingdom of God appear in its fullness.
Let’s finish the chapter:
24 Among the Thirty were:
Asahel the brother of Joab,
Elhanan son of Dodo from Bethlehem,
25 Shammah the Harodite,
Elika the Harodite,
26 Helez the Paltite,
Ira son of Ikkesh from Tekoa,
27 Abiezer from Anathoth,
Sibbekai the Hushathite,
28 Zalmon the Ahohite,
Maharai the Netophathite,
29 Heled son of Baanah the Netophathite,
Ithai son of Ribai from Gibeah in Benjamin,
30 Benaiah the Pirathonite,
Hiddai from the ravines of Gaash,
31 Abi-Albon the Arbathite,
Azmaveth the Barhumite,
32 Eliahba the Shaalbonite,
the sons of Jashen,
Jonathan 33 son of Shammah the Hararite,
Ahiam son of Sharar the Hararite,
34 Eliphelet son of Ahasbai the Maakathite,
Eliam son of Ahithophel the Gilonite,
35 Hezro the Carmelite,
Paarai the Arbite,
36 Igal son of Nathan from Zobah,
the son of Hagri,
37 Zelek the Ammonite,
Naharai the Beerothite, the armor-bearer of Joab son of Zeruiah,
38 Ira the Ithrite,
Gareb the Ithrite
39 and Uriah the Hittite.
There were thirty-seven in all.
It’s quite a list. Who knows if I pronounced the names correctly; I know I got some of them…but most of them, whew.
There’s a lot to say, I’m sure, about these men (the ones we know something about about). These names aren’t here, just taking up space. The Bible loves lists; these men are worthy of honor. And honored they are by their place in Scripture.
Some of these names, however, function in different ways. Some of these names are intended to make us think.
Did you notice the last name in the list? It’s hard to miss.
“And Uriah the Hittite.”
That’s a rather gloomy note. All the mighty men in the chapter are devoted, courageous, faithful servants of David.
David, however, murdered one of them.
David slept with Uriah’s wife and then had Uriah killed in an attempt to cover-up the whole thing.
The name Uriah at the end of the list leads us to recall everything associated with that name.
The last name screams at us, “Don’t forget what David did!”
As we read that, we’re reminded—prohibited even!—from making heroes of David and his mighty men.
This is the perspective we need, even at end of a chapter that has recorded the mighty deeds of mighty men.
Even here, we should realize that history was not made by men, but by the grace of God, whose help and forgiveness are so desperately needed—by David, his men, and each of us today.
The wickedness of David should lead us on to the grace of God.
When our most appalling memories are immersed in God’s grace, there is still a holy sadness, a godly grief, a broken heart.
But there’s meant to be a deeper realization of God’s grace and forgiveness that changes us completely.
God’s grace gives us somewhere to point. There is much in my life that saddens me as I think back over my sinfulness and myriad failures.
But I’m forced here to point to God’s grace and mercy and forgiveness in my life.
I’m continually pointed to the grace of God expressed for me in Christ Jesus, our King. “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus our LORD.”
> 2 Samuel 23 is all about perspective.
Here’s the Biblical perspective we need:
These mighty men are only mighty and only do mighty things because the LORD Almighty was working to bring victory.
No man, no woman, no human being is worthy of being our hero.
It’s good to wait for God’s King and God’s Kingdom, and not put any hope in the kings and kingdoms of this world.
God’s grace is greater than all our sin.
Thank you, LORD, for much needed perspective.
