Samuel 2:17 The battle that day was very fierce, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by David's men.
18 The three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab, Abishai and Asahel. Now Asahel was as fleet-footed as a wild gazelle. 19 He chased Abner, turning neither to the right nor to the left as he pursued him. 20 Abner looked behind him and asked, "Is that you, Asahel?"
"It is," he answered.
21 Then Abner said to him, "Turn aside to the right or to the left; take on one of the young men and strip him of his weapons." But Asahel would not stop chasing him.
22 Again Abner warned Asahel, "Stop chasing me! Why should I strike you down? How could I look your brother Joab in the face?"
23 But Asahel refused to give up the pursuit; so Abner thrust the butt of his spear into Asahel's stomach, and the spear came out through his back. He fell there and died on the spot. And every man stopped when he came to the place where Asahel had fallen and died.
24 But Joab and Abishai pursued Abner, and as the sun was setting, they came to the hill of Ammah, near Giah on the way to the wasteland of Gibeon. 25 Then the men of Benjamin rallied behind Abner. They formed themselves into a group and took their stand on top of a hill.
26 Abner called out to Joab, "Must the sword devour forever? Don't you realize that this will end in bitterness? How long before you order your men to stop pursuing their brothers?"
27 Joab answered, "As surely as God lives, if you had not spoken, the men would have continued the pursuit of their brothers until morning."
28 So Joab blew the trumpet, and all the men came to a halt; they no longer pursued Israel, nor did they fight anymore.
Vengeance - it never pays. One side will 'win' for a while, the other will retaliate and 'win' for a while, but the cycle will continue.
Both sides were fighting against people they knew. Joab was on 'David's team', Abner was on 'the other side'. But as you read this dialog, you see they knew each other well, since Abner knew Asahel's brother was Joab.
But communication, and taking a breather to think about what they were doing, caused the 'craziness' to stop. If all our disagreements could end so easily....
Because the blogs have been so long, I have not commented on some of the Psalms. Since this one is so short I'll back up to a couple from yesterday's reading.
Psalm 123
1 I lift my eyes to you,O God, enthroned in heaven.
2 We keep looking to the Lord our God for his mercy,
just as servants keep their eyes on their master,
as a slave girl watches her mistress for the slightest signal.
As I read this one, I thought of our dog when I have a treat in my hand. There she is...watching my every move - waiting for me to give her the signal. I know it's harder in the 'spiritual' realm because we can only see with 'eyes of faith' and not physical eyes, but I get the picture that we are to keep focused on God - anticipating his 'treat of mercy'. We need His mercy at all times.
And speaking of our need for His mercy, this next psalm reminds us of how much we need His mercy and forgiveness. I've personalized it at the end.
Psalm 130
1 From the depths of despair, O Lord,I call for your help.
2 Hear my cry, O Lord.
Pay attention to my prayer.
3 Lord, if you kept a record of our sins,
who, O Lord, could ever survive?
4 But you offer forgiveness,
that we might learn to fear you.
5 I am counting on the Lord;
yes, I am counting on him.
I have put my hope in his word.
6 I long for the Lord
more than sentries long for the dawn,
yes, more than sentries long for the dawn.
7 O Sandy, hope in the Lord;
for with the Lord there is unfailing love.
His redemption overflows.
8 He himself will redeem Sandy
from every kind of sin.
Psalm 9
9 The Lord is a shelter for the oppressed,a refuge in times of trouble.
10 Those who know your name trust in you,
for you, O Lord, do not abandon those who search for you.
And this last one again reminds us of how important God's word is to us, as does the one above. The way we search for God is through His word.
It is important to not allow sin to gain control of us. As Cooper and I were in the car yesterday, we were listening to Dr. Laura talking to a woman who had just realized that her husband had been lying to her, even before they were married. His life was a "lie". Dr. Laura commented that one possibility was that he had developed a pattern of lying from childhood. As I read verse 13 of the Psalm below this morning I thought of that, and of how one 'little' sin can lead to another 'little' sin until your heart is darkened to the point that you are blind to sin which leads to 'great' sin. We all have choices each and every day. May we not choose to 'deliberately sin'.
Psalm 19
7 The instructions of the Lord are perfect,reviving the soul.
The decrees of the Lord are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
8 The commandments of the Lord are right,
bringing joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are clear,
giving insight for living.
9 Reverence for the Lord is pure,
lasting forever.
The laws of the Lord are true;
each one is fair.
10 They are more desirable than gold,
even the finest gold.
They are sweeter than honey,
even honey dripping from the comb.
11 They are a warning to your servant,
a great reward for those who obey them.
12 How can I know all the sins lurking in my heart?
Cleanse me from these hidden faults.
13 Keep your servant from deliberate sins!
Don’t let them control me.
Then I will be free of guilt
and innocent of great sin.
14 May the words of my mouth
and the meditation of my heart
be pleasing to you,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
Why was Ashai trying to kill someone who was a general, a champion fighter? I think that he was trying to show off. Young men now are making stupid mistakes just to show off. Our culture even pushes it.
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