THE SCENE NOW MOVES TO MAHANAIM, NORTH OF DAVID OVER IN THE TRANS-JORDAN, WHERE ISHBOSHETH RULES FROM, AND THIS IS ALL HAPPENING AT THE SAME TIME AS THE FINAL EVENTS OF OUR LAST CHAPTER. THAT IS, WHILE ABNER’S FUNERAL IS GOING ON AND THEN AFTERWARDS DAVID IS LAMENTING HIS SITUATION, ISHBOSHETH AND THE PEOPLE OF THE NORTH HAVE RECEIVED WORD OF THE ABNER’S MURDER AND ARE REACTING IN SHOCK TO IT. NEWS TRAVELED VERY FAST IN THOSE DAYS AND IT’S UNIMAGINABLE THAT ANY MORE THAN A DAY PASSED BEFORE THE STORY OF ABNER’S DEMISE REACHED THE CITIZENS UP NORTH.
REBELLION (2 SAM.4)
When King Ishbosheth (son of Saul) heard that his general Abner was dead (murdered by Joab in Hebron), he panicked, and so did all of Yisharal. ISHBOSHETH WAS WEAK BECAUSE HE’D TRUSTED IN A MAN (ABNER) TO GAIN AND PROP UP HIS ROYAL POSITION, SO WHEN THAT MAN WAS GONE, HE KNEW HIS POSITION WOULD BE GONE SOON TOO. AS FOR YISHARAL (THIS WAS THE NORTHERN TRIBAL COALITION), THEY FEARED THAT ABNER’S DEATH WAS MERELY THE OPENING VOLLEY OF DAVID TAKING REVENGE FOR ALL THOSE YEARS THAT THEY CHASED AND FOUGHT AGAINST HIM.
Now the two Captains of Ishbosheth’s raiding parties were Baanah and Rechab, the sons of Rimmon (a Benjaminite from the town of Beeroth, which was considered to belong to Benjamin since the time its original inhabitants tricked the Yisharalites into making a pact of friendship with them, and the people of Beeroth had fled to Gittaim, where they still lived as foreigners).
Saul’s son Jonathan (David’s dear friend) had a son named Mephibosheth who was unable to use his feet, for when he was only five, the news of his father and grandfather’s death came from Jezreel. And in her rush to flee the Philistines, his nurse had grabbed him up, and Mephibosheth had fallen, suffering a spinal injury and had been lame ever since. MEPHIBOSHETH WAS SAUL’S GRANDSON, BUT HIS MOTHER WAS RIZPAH (YES, THE RIZPAH OF SAUL AND ISHBOSHETH’S HAREM THAT ABNER HAD JUST RECENTLY SLEPT WITH).
THIS INFO ABOUT MEPHIBOSHETH IS TO HELP EXPLAIN THE SADNESS OF (SPOILER ALERT) ISHBOSHETH’S COMING DEATH. THERE IS NO HEIR TO SAUL’S THRONE ONCE ISHBOSHETH IS DEAD. MEPHIBOSHETH IS THE LAST PERSON WHO HAS A CLOSE ENOUGH TIE TO SAUL TO PASS ON THE ROYAL DYNASTY. BUT THERE IS NO WAY THAT A MAN LAME FROM CHILDHOOD CAN BE MADE KING, SO THE END OF SAUL’S HOUSE IS ALMOST HERE. ISHBOSHETH’S COMING DEMISE SIGNALS THE DEATH-BLOW TO THE ENTIRE HOUSE OF SAUL. AND IN TRIBAL SOCIETY THIS IS A GREAT TRAGEDY, BUT ALAS, IT WAS PROPHESIED BY SAM BECAUSE OF SAUL’S DISOBEDIENT BEHAVIOUR.
And Baanah and Rechab hatched a plan. They set out, and came to King Ishbosheth’s residence during the midday heat as he was taking a nap. Then they crept inside the house as if to get some wheat and there they stabbed Ishbosheth in the abdomen while he lay asleep on his bed, killing him.
Then they cut off Ishbosheth’s head and escaped, carrying his head away and traveled all night across the Arabah desert plains. And when they arrived at Hebron, they brought Ishbosheth’s head before David, saying, “Here is the head of your enemy, Ishbosheth, son of Saul, who tried to kill you. Today Yahuah has given my Master the King vengeance against Saul and his seed”.
KNOWING THAT ABNER WAS DEAD AND THAT ISHBOSHETH HAD NO HOPE OF RULING, THESE TWO MEN WANTED TO ATTRACT DAVID’S FAVOUR BY ELIMINATING HIS RIVAL FOR THE THRONE, THINKING THEY WERE DEMONSTRATING THEIR LOYALTY TO THE NEW KING AND SO EXPECTED A HIGH REWARD (CONSISTING OF HIGH-RANKS IN DAVID’S ADMINISTRATION). BUT EVEN IF THEY WERE RIGHT IN THEIR CLAIM THAT SAUL HAD DESERVED TO DIE BECAUSE OF HIS IRRATIONAL PURSUIT OF DAVID, WHAT HAD ISHBOSHETH DONE TO DESERVE SUCH TREATMENT? PEOPLE TEND TO AUTOMATICALLY ASSUME THAT OTHERS HAVE THE SAME TWISTED MINDSET AND CHARACTER FLAWS AS THEY HAVE, DON’T THEY. THEY ASSUMED THAT SINCE THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN THRILLED IF SOMEONE HAD DONE FOR THEM WHAT THEY HAD DONE FOR DAVID (REMOVING ANY RIVAL FOR THE THRONE), THAT DAVID WOULD APPLAUD THIS TREACHEROUS AND VILE ACT. BUT HOW DID DAVID FEEL? REMEMBER HE SPENT A LONG TIME IN SAUL’S COURTS AND WAS BEST MATES WITH JONATHON, SO HE WOULD HAVE HAD SOME FORM OF AQUAINTANCE WITH HIS BRO ISHBOSHETH TOO.
And David was horrified, “As Yahuah lives, the One who has redeemed my life from every danger so far, don’t you remember when the messenger brought me the news, “Saul is dead” as though that would be some reason for me to rejoice, thinking he’d be rewarded? No! I seized him and had him killed at Ziklag. That was his reward for bringing me such news. So how much more do you two deserve to be punished, you wicked men who just murdered an obedient, righteous man in his own bed? Didn’t think that through did you? Didn’t you think I’d make you answer for his blood with your own and wipe you from the face of the earth”?
And David commanded his young men, and they killed Baanah and Rechab, cutting off their hands and feet and hung their bodies as an example beside the pool at Hebron. But Ishbosheth’s head they took and buried in Abner’s tomb in Hebron.
WE END THIS CHAPTER WITH ANOTHER REMINDER OF HOW THE TURAH-LAW HAD BECOME CORRUPTED BY MIXING IT WITH MAN-MADE MIDDLE-EASTERN TRADITION AND CUSTOM. IT WAS INDEED RIGHT FOR DAVID TO EXECUTE TWO MURDERERS, HOWEVER MUTILATION (EVEN OF A CORPSE) ISN’T PERMITTED! THE FACT THAT DAVID CUT OFF THEIR HANDS AND FEET IS NOT PERMITTED BY THE TURAH, BUT IT WAS CUSTOMARY IN THAT ERA AND MEANT TO BE SYMBOLIC, BECAUSE THEY USED THEIR FEET TO RUN TO COMMIT MURDER AND THEIR HANDS TO DO THE EVIL DEED.
"REVOLUTION IS NOT REBELLION"
HEBREW UNDERSTANDING:
"REVOLUTION"- a revolution of time, an age or generation, exceedingly, gladness, greatly, joy, rejoice, dwelling, posterity, a year (as a revolution of time), whole age, a revolution, i.e. (of the sun).
"REBELLION"- sedition, bitterness, apostasy, crime, revolt, turn away, wrong, sin, transgression, trespass.
SCRIPTURE UNDERSTANDING:
Philippians 4:8 "Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is righteous, whatever is clean, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good report, if there is any uprightness and if there is any praise, think on these".
THIS BEHAVIOUR IS A TRUE REBELLION TOWARDS THE ENEMY THAT SURROUNDS US.
What is revolution? 'In the fields of history and political science, a revolution is a radical change in the established order, usually the established government and social institutions. ... The people who start revolutions have determined the institutions currently in place in society have failed or no longer serve their intended purpose'.
The thing is, we are a Behaviour Revolution and don't wish to live the way religion and establishments are telling us to do.
REBELLION - 1 Sam 15:23 "For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as wickedness and idolatry, because you have rejected the word of Yahuah, He also rejects you". GOING AGAINST THE TURAH IS TRUE REBELLION.
Cunning lying carpetbaggers are standing in the doorway of entering Yahusha's presence, urging us to walk with them, rather than entering the throne room boldly, trusting in Yahusha's promise that we will be set free from our sins, if we follow and trust Yahusha.
Yahusha came to reveal a NEW COVENANT as the OLD COVENANT never brought anyone to this goal of deliverance. Carpet-baggers have coupled with the Jews, Messianics, and Natsarim believers, as they stand in the doorway entrance of the Kingdom of Yahuah, while peddeling their works of deceit which are a BLOCK in the true way.
They are wanting us to follow them as they "RE-ENTER," the old and dying covenant of Moses (by way of receiving the SHADOW BELIEFS of the Feasts of Israel) which we already know points to Yahusha who fulfilled them while He was on earth. The Jews already spitefully reject Yahusha as Messiah and His NEW COVENANT of deliverance from sin, meaning there is no need for slaughter offerings.
Why would we RE-ENTER shadow beliefs which never brought anyone to the goal of deliverance from sin, through obedience to Yahusha's NEW COVENANT? Yahusha did a NEW THING with His NEW COVENANT and showed us a NEW and LIVING WAY, He revealed that our bodies are now the temple, and we worship Him in spirit and truth through our behaviour, which is the TRUE BEHAVIOUR REVOLUTION.
TRUE REBELLION is disobedience to the New Covenant, rejecting Yahusha's Words. Yahusha opened a door/portal into His presence for us through His flesh (the temple veil), where we may commune with and love Him, and also receive instruction.
A REBELLIOUS WAY IS A BAD WAY TO LIVE, WHILST TO BE REVOLUTIONISED WITH JOY TO FOLLOW THE NEW AND LIVING WAY WITH YAHUSHA.