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2 Samuel Chapter 23
The Last Words of David
- 2Samuel 23:1 Now
these be the last words of David. David the son of Jesse said,
and the man who was raised up on high, the anointed of the God
of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel, said,
- 2 The Spirit of the
LORD spake by me, and his word was in my tongue.
He is writing or speaking now by the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit in these first 7 verses.
-
2Samuel 23:3 The God of
Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me, He that ruleth over
men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.
I pray that all the nations and
countries of the world could be ruled by those that feared the Lord
and were kind to their citizens.
- 2Samuel 23:4 And he
shall be as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, even
a morning without clouds; as the tender grass springing out of
the earth by clear shining after rain.
- 5 Although my house
be not so with God; yet he hath made with me an everlasting
covenant, ordered in all things, and sure: for this is all my
salvation, and all my desire, although he make it not to grow.
- 6 But the sons of
Belial shall be all of them as thorns thrust away, because they
cannot be taken with hands:
- 7 But the man that
shall touch them must be fenced with iron and the staff of a
spear; and they shall be utterly burned with fire in the same
place.
There seems to be many that do evil but
it will not last. They will be destroyed in the end. God made an
everlasting covenant with David. From his seed after him shall come
the Messiah, the hope of all salvation we now know as Jesus our
Christ.
David's Mighty Men
Here we see David acknowledging the mighty
men that were faithful to him and sort of what we call heroes. David
remembers every single one.
- 2Samuel 23:8 These
be the names of the mighty men whom David had: The Tachmonite
that sat in the seat, chief among the captains; the same was
Adino the Eznite: he lift up his spear against eight hundred,
whom he slew at one time.
- 9 And after him was
Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men
with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there
gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone
away:
- 10 He arose, and
smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand
clave unto the sword: and the LORD wrought a great victory that
day; and the people returned after him only to spoil.
- 11 And after him was
Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were
gathered together into a troop, where was a piece of ground full
of lentiles: and the people fled from the Philistines.
- 12 But he stood in
the midst of the ground, and defended it, and slew the
Philistines: and the LORD wrought a great victory.
- 13 And three of the
thirty chief went down, and came to David in the harvest time
unto the cave of Adullam: and the troop of the Philistines
pitched in the valley of Rephaim.
- 14 And David was
then in an hold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in
Bethlehem.
- 15 And David longed,
and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the
well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate!
- 16 And the three
mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew
water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and
took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not
drink thereof, but poured it out unto the LORD.
- 17 And he said, Be
it far from me, O LORD, that I should do this: is not this the
blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives? therefore
he would not drink it. These things did these three mighty men.
They were so faithful they risked their
lives just to get David water to drink. Yet he poured it out as a
drink offering filling so awed that they risked lives to get water
for him.
-
2Samuel 23:18 And Abishai,
the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief among three.
And he lifted up his spear against three hundred, and slew them,
and had the name among three.
In chapter 21 of 2 Samuel we read where
Abishai saved David's life when the son of Goliath tried to kill
David when David was tired in battle.
- 2Samuel 23:19 Was he
not most honourable of three? therefore he was their captain:
howbeit he attained not unto the first three.
- 20 And Benaiah the
son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man, of Kabzeel, who had
done many acts, he slew two lionlike men of Moab: he went down
also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow:
- 21 And he slew an
Egyptian, a goodly man: and the Egyptian had a spear in his
hand; but he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the
spear out of the Egyptian's hand, and slew him with his own
spear.
- 22 These things did
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and had the name among three mighty
men.
- 23 He was more
honourable than the thirty, but he attained not to the first
three. And David set him over his guard.
- 24 Asahel the
brother of Joab was one of the thirty; Elhanan the son of Dodo
of Bethlehem,
Asahel was killed by Abner the leader
of Saul's army when Asahel refused to stop chasing him down. This
caused Joab to plot Abner's death and killed him in revenge.
Asahel's story is in 2 Samuel chapter 2.
- 2Samuel 23:25
Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite,
- 26 Helez the Paltite,
Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite,
- 27 Abiezer the
Anethothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite,
- 28 Zalmon the
Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite,
- 29 Heleb the son of
Baanah, a Netophathite, Ittai the son of Ribai out of Gibeah of
the children of Benjamin,
- 30 Benaiah the
Pirathonite, Hiddai of the brooks of Gaash,
- 31 Abialbon the
Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite,
- 32 Eliahba the
Shaalbonite, of the sons of Jashen, Jonathan,
- 33 Shammah the
Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Hararite,
- 34 Eliphelet the son
of Ahasbai, the son of the Maachathite, Eliam the son of
Ahithophel the Gilonite,
- 35 Hezrai the
Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite,
- 36 Igal the son of
Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite,
- 37 Zelek the
Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, armourbearer to Joab the son
of Zeruiah,
- 38 Ira an Ithrite,
Gareb an Ithrite,
- 39 Uriah the
Hittite: thirty and seven in all.
Uriah was the husband of Bathsheba.
David remembered all the faithful men that served him for years.
David included Uriah in this list of his mighty men. I find it
strange that Joab was not mentioned here. Perhaps because Joab
killed Abner the leader of Saul's army and Amasa the one who joined
Absalom in his rebellion against David. David had pardoned and
forgiven both of those men. Somehow David turned against Joab. In 1
Kings 2:5, he instructed Solomon to deal with Joab who was put to
death by Solomon's orders. Joab was loyal to David but he acted on
his own when at times departing from David's directions. He had a
mind of his own sort of like King Saul had. David didn't
sanction many of his actions. I think perhaps David was trying to
make sure Solomon didn't have any that would betray him or depart
from his own ruling. DC
2 Samuel Chapter 24
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