The Berean Pursuit
During the reign of David there was a famine for three successive years, and David sought the face of the LORD.
And the LORD said, "It is because of the blood shed by Saul and his family, because he killed the Gibeonites."
At this, David summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not Israelites, but a remnant of the Amorites. The Israelites had taken an oath concerning them, but in his zeal for Israel and Judah, Saul had sought to kill them.)
So David asked the Gibeonites, "What shall I do for you? How can I make amends so that you may bless the inheritance of the LORD?"
The Gibeonites said to him, "We need no silver or gold from Saul or his house, nor should you put to death anyone in Israel for us."
"Whatever you ask, I will do for you," he replied.
And they answered the king, "As for the man who consumed us and plotted against us to exterminate us from existing within any border of Israel, let seven of his male descendants be delivered to us so that we may hang them before the LORD at Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of the LORD."
"I will give them to you," said the king.
Now the king spared Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath before the LORD between David and Jonathan son of Saul. But the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, the two sons whom Rizpah daughter of Aiah had borne to Saul, as well as the five sons whom Merab daughter of Saul had borne to Adriel son of Barzillai the Meholathite. And he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them on the hill before the LORD. So all seven of them fell together; they were put to death in the first days of the harvest, at the beginning of the barley harvest.
And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on a rock. From the beginning of the harvest until the rain from heaven poured down on the bodies, she did not allow the birds of the air to rest on them by day, nor the beasts of the field by night.
When David was told what Saul's concubine Rizpah, daughter of Aiah, had done, he went and took the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the public square of Beth-shan where the Philistines had hung the bodies after they had struck down Saul at Gilboa.
So David had the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan brought from there, along with the bones of those who had been hanged. And they buried the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan in Zela in the land of Benjamin, in the tomb of Saul's father Kish.
After they had done everything the king had commanded, God answered their prayers for the land.
Once again the Philistines waged war against Israel, and David and his servants went down and fought against the Philistines; but David became exhausted.
Then Ishbi-benob, a descendant of Rapha, whose bronze spear weighed three hundred shekels and who was bearing a new sword, resolved to kill David. But Abishai son of Zeruiah came to his aid, struck the Philistine, and killed him.
Then David's men swore to him, "You must never again go out with us to battle, so that the lamp of Israel may not be extinguished."
Some time later at Gob, there was another battle with the Philistines. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Saph, one of the descendants of Rapha.
Once again there was a battle with the Philistines at Gob, and Elhanan son of Jair the Bethlehemite killed the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver's beam.
And there was still another battle at Gath, where there was a man of great stature with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot-twenty-four in all. He too was descended from Rapha, and when he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son of David's brother Shimei killed him.
So these four descendants of Rapha in Gath fell at the hands of David and his servants.
And David sang this song to the LORD on the day the LORD had delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said:
"The LORD is my rock,
my fortress, and my deliverer.
My God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation.
My stronghold, my refuge, and my Savior,
You save me from violence.
I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised;
so shall I be saved from my enemies.
For the waves of death engulfed me;
the torrents of chaos overwhelmed me.
The cords of Sheol entangled me;
the snares of death confronted me.
In my distress I called upon the LORD;
I cried out to my God.
And from His temple He heard my voice,
and my cry for help reached His ears.
Then the earth shook and quaked;
the foundations of the heavens trembled;
they were shaken because He burned with anger.
Smoke rose from His nostrils,
and consuming fire came from His mouth;
glowing coals blazed forth.
He parted the heavens and came down
with dark clouds beneath His feet.
He mounted a cherub and flew;
He soared on the wings of the wind.
He made darkness a canopy around Him,
a gathering of water and thick clouds.
From the brightness of His presence
coals of fire blazed forth.
The LORD thundered from heaven;
the voice of the Most High resounded.
He shot His arrows and scattered the foes;
He hurled lightning and routed them.
The channels of the sea appeared,
and the foundations of the world were exposed
at the rebuke of the LORD,
at the blast of the breath of His nostrils.
He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
He drew me out of deep waters.
He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from foes too mighty for me.
They confronted me in my day of calamity,
but the LORD was my support.
He brought me out into the open;
He rescued me because He delighted in me.
The LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness;
He has repaid me according to the cleanness of my hands.
For I have kept the ways of the LORD
and have not wickedly departed from my God.
For all His ordinances are before me;
I have not disregarded His statutes.
And I have been blameless before Him
and kept myself from iniquity.
So the LORD has repaid me according to my righteousness,
according to my cleanness in His sight.
To the faithful You show Yourself faithful,
to the blameless You show Yourself blameless;
to the pure You show Yourself pure,
but to the crooked You show Yourself shrewd.
You save an afflicted people,
but Your eyes are on the haughty to bring them down.
For You, O LORD, are my lamp;
the LORD lights up my darkness.
For in You I can charge an army;
with my God I can scale a wall.
As for God, His way is perfect;
the word of the LORD is flawless.
He is a shield to all
who take refuge in Him.
For who is God besides the LORD?
And who is the Rock except our God?
God is my strong fortress
and He makes my way clear.
He makes my feet like those of a deer
and stations me upon the heights.
He trains my hands for battle;
my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
You have given me Your shield of salvation,
and Your gentleness exalts me.
You broaden the path beneath me
so that my ankles do not give way.
I pursued my enemies and destroyed them;
I did not turn back until they were consumed.
I devoured and crushed them so they could not rise;
they have fallen under my feet.
You have armed me with strength for battle;
You have subdued my foes beneath me.
You have made my enemies retreat before me;
I put an end to those who hated me.
They looked, but there was no one to save them-
to the LORD, but He did not answer.
I ground them as the dust of the earth;
I crushed and trampled them like mud in the streets.
You have delivered me from the strife of my people;
You have preserved me as the head of nations;
a people I had not known shall serve me.
Foreigners cower before me;
when they hear me, they obey me.
Foreigners lose heart
and come trembling from their strongholds.
The LORD lives, and blessed be my Rock!
And may God, the Rock of my salvation, be exalted-
the God who avenges me
and brings down nations beneath me,
who frees me from my enemies.
You exalt me above my foes;
You rescue me from violent men.
Therefore I will praise You, O LORD, among the nations;
I will sing praises to Your name.
Great salvation He brings to His king.
He shows loving devotion to His anointed,
to David and his descendants forever."
These are the last words of David:
"The oracle of David son of Jesse,
the oracle of the man raised on high,
the one anointed by the God of Jacob,
and the sweet psalmist of Israel:
The Spirit of the LORD spoke through me;
His word was on my tongue.
The God of Israel spoke;
the Rock of Israel said to me,
'He who rules the people with justice,
who rules in the fear of God,
is like the light of the morning
at sunrise of a cloudless dawn,
the glistening after the rain
on the sprouting grass of the earth.'
Is not my house right with God?
For He has established with me
an everlasting covenant,
ordered and secured in every part.
Will He not bring about my full salvation
and my every desire?
But the worthless are all like thorns raked aside,
for they can never be gathered by hand.
The man who touches them must be armed with iron
or with the shaft of a spear.
The fire burns them to ashes
in the place where they lie."
These are the names of David's mighty men:
Josheb-basshebeth the Tahchemonite was chief of the Three. He wielded his spear against eight hundred men, whom he killed at one time.
Next in command was Eleazar son of Dodo the Ahohite. As one of the three mighty men, he went with David to taunt the Philistines who had gathered for battle at Pas-dammim. The men of Israel retreated, but Eleazar stood his ground and struck the Philistines until his hand grew weary and stuck to his sword. The LORD brought about a great victory that day. Then the troops returned to him, but only to plunder the dead.
And after him was Shammah son of Agee the Hararite. When the Philistines had banded together near a field full of lentils, Israel's troops fled from them. But Shammah took his stand in the middle of the field, defended it, and struck down the Philistines. So the LORD brought about a great victory.
At harvest time, three of the thirty chief men went down to David at the cave of Adullam, while a company of Philistines was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim. At that time David was in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was at Bethlehem. David longed for water and said, "Oh, that someone would get me a drink of water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem!"
So the three mighty men broke through the Philistine camp, drew water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem, and brought it back to David. But he refused to drink it; instead, he poured it out to the LORD, saying, "Far be it from me, O LORD, to do this! Is this not the blood of the men who risked their lives?" So he refused to drink it.
Such were the exploits of the three mighty men.
Now Abishai, the brother of Joab and son of Zeruiah, was chief of the Three, and he lifted his spear against three hundred men, killed them, and won a name along with the Three. Was he not more honored than the Three? And he became their commander, even though he was not included among the Three.
And Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a man of valor from Kabzeel, a man of many exploits. He struck down two champions of Moab, and on a snowy day he went down into a pit and killed a lion. He also killed an Egyptian, a huge man. Although the Egyptian had a spear in his hand, Benaiah went against him with a club, snatched the spear from his hand, and killed the Egyptian with his own spear. These were the exploits of Benaiah son of Jehoiada, who won a name alongside the three mighty men. He was most honored among the Thirty, but he did not become one of the Three. And David appointed him over his guard.
Now these were members of the Thirty:
Asahel the brother of Joab,
Elhanan son of Dodo of Bethlehem,
Shammah the Harodite,
Elika the Harodite,
Helez the Paltite,
Ira son of Ikkesh the Tekoite,
Abiezer the Anathothite,
Mebunnai the Hushathite,
Zalmon the Ahohite,
Maharai the Netophathite,
Heled son of Baanah the Netophathite,
Ittai son of Ribai from Gibeah of the Benjamites,
Benaiah the Pirathonite,
Hiddai from the brooks of Gaash,
Abi-albon the Arbathite,
Azmaveth the Barhumite,
Eliahba the Shaalbonite,
the sons of Jashen,
Jonathan son of Shammah the Hararite,
Ahiam son of Sharar the Hararite,
Eliphelet son of Ahasbai the Maacathite,
Eliam son of Ahithophel the Gilonite,
Hezro the Carmelite,
Paarai the Arbite,
Igal son of Nathan of Zobah,
Bani the Gadite,
Zelek the Ammonite,
Naharai the Beerothite, the armor-bearer of Joab son of Zeruiah,
Ira the Ithrite,
Gareb the Ithrite,
and Uriah the Hittite.
There were thirty-seven in all.
For the choirmaster. Of David the servant of the LORD, who sang this song to the LORD on the day the LORD had delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said:
I love You, O LORD, my strength.
The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer.
My God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold.
I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised;
so shall I be saved from my enemies.
The cords of death encompassed me;
the torrents of chaos overwhelmed me.
The cords of Sheol entangled me;
the snares of death confronted me.
In my distress I called upon the LORD;
I cried to my God for help.
From His temple He heard my voice,
and my cry for His help reached His ears.
Then the earth shook and quaked,
and the foundations of the mountains trembled;
they were shaken because He burned with anger.
Smoke rose from His nostrils,
and consuming fire came from His mouth;
glowing coals blazed forth.
He parted the heavens and came down
with dark clouds beneath His feet.
He mounted a cherub and flew;
He soared on the wings of the wind.
He made darkness His hiding place,
and storm clouds a canopy around Him.
From the brightness of His presence
His clouds advanced-
hailstones and coals of fire.
The LORD thundered from heaven;
the voice of the Most High resounded-
hailstones and coals of fire.
He shot His arrows and scattered the foes;
He hurled lightning and routed them.
The channels of the sea appeared,
and the foundations of the world were exposed,
at Your rebuke, O LORD,
at the blast of the breath of Your nostrils.
He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
He drew me out of deep waters.
He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from foes too mighty for me.
They confronted me in my day of calamity,
but the LORD was my support.
He brought me out into the open;
He rescued me because He delighted in me.
The LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness;
He has repaid me according to the cleanness of my hands.
For I have kept the ways of the LORD
and have not wickedly departed from my God.
For all His ordinances are before me;
I have not disregarded His statutes.
And I have been blameless before Him
and kept myself from iniquity.
So the LORD has repaid me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands in His sight.
To the faithful You show Yourself faithful,
to the blameless You show Yourself blameless;
to the pure You show Yourself pure,
but to the crooked You show Yourself shrewd.
For You save an afflicted people,
but You humble those with haughty eyes.
For You, O LORD, light my lamp;
my God lights up my darkness.
For in You I can charge an army,
and with my God I can scale a wall.
As for God, His way is perfect;
the word of the LORD is flawless.
He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.
For who is God besides the LORD?
And who is the Rock except our God?
It is God who arms me with strength
and makes my way clear.
He makes my feet like those of a deer
and stations me upon the heights.
He trains my hands for battle;
my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
You have given me Your shield of salvation;
Your right hand upholds me,
and Your gentleness exalts me.
You broaden the path beneath me
so that my ankles do not give way.
I pursued my enemies and overtook them;
I did not turn back until they were consumed.
I crushed them so they could not rise;
they have fallen under my feet.
You have armed me with strength for battle;
You have subdued my foes beneath me.
You have made my enemies retreat before me;
I put an end to those who hated me.
They cried for help, but there was no one to save them-
to the LORD, but He did not answer.
I ground them as dust in the face of the wind;
I trampled them like mud in the streets.
You have delivered me from the strife of the people;
You have made me the head of nations;
a people I had not known shall serve me.
When they hear me, they obey me;
foreigners cower before me.
Foreigners lose heart
and come trembling from their strongholds.
The LORD lives, and blessed be my Rock!
And may the God of my salvation be exalted-
the God who avenges me
and subdues nations beneath me,
who delivers me from my enemies.
You exalt me above my foes;
You rescue me from violent men.
Therefore I will praise You, O LORD, among the nations;
I will sing praises to Your name.
Great salvation He brings to His king.
He shows loving devotion to His anointed,
to David and his descendants forever.
What, then, is the advantage of being a Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? Much in every way. First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God.
What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God's faithfulness? Certainly not! Let God be true and every man a liar. As it is written:
"So that You may be proved right when You speak
and victorious when You judge."
But if our unrighteousness highlights the righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unjust to inflict His wrath on us? I am speaking in human terms. Certainly not! In that case, how could God judge the world? However, if my falsehood accentuates God's truthfulness, to the increase of His glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner? Why not say, as some slanderously claim that we say, "Let us do evil that good may result"? Their condemnation is deserved!
What then? Are we any better? Not at all. For we have already made the charge that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin. As it is written:
"There is no one righteous,
not even one.
There is no one who understands,
no one who seeks God.
All have turned away,
they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
not even one."
"Their throats are open graves;
their tongues practice deceit."
"The venom of vipers is on their lips."
"Their mouths are full
of cursing and bitterness."
"Their feet are swift to shed blood;
ruin and misery lie in their wake,
and the way of peace they have not known."
"There is no fear of God
before their eyes."
Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be justified in His sight by works of the law. For the law merely brings awareness of sin.
But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been revealed, as attested by the Law and the Prophets. And this righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
God presented Him as the atoning sacrifice through faith in His blood, in order to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance He had passed over the sins committed beforehand. He did this to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and to justify the one who has faith in Jesus.
Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of works? No, but on that of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the law.
Is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith.
Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Certainly not! Instead, we uphold the law.