The Living Bible (99 page)
Authors: Inc. Tyndale House Publishers
Tags: #BIBLES / Other Translations / Text
When King Ish-bosheth heard about Abner’s death at Hebron, he was paralyzed with fear, and his people too were badly frightened.
2-3
The command of the Israeli troops then fell to two brothers, Baanah and Rechab, who were captains of King Ish-bosheth’s raiding bands. They were the sons of Rimmon, who was from Beeroth in Benjamin. (People from Beeroth are counted as Benjaminites even though they fled to Gittaim,
*
where they now live.)
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(There was a little lame grandson of King Saul’s named Mephibosheth, who was the son of Prince Jonathan. He was five years old at the time Saul and Jonathan were killed at the battle of Jezreel. When the news of the outcome of the battle reached the capital, the child’s nurse grabbed him and fled, but she fell and dropped him as she was running, and he became lame.)
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Rechab and Baanah arrived at King Ish-bosheth’s home one noon as he was taking a nap.
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They walked into the kitchen as though to get a sack of wheat, but then sneaked into his bedroom and murdered him and cut off his head. Taking his head with them, they fled across the desert that night and escaped.
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They presented the head to David at Hebron.
“Look!” they exclaimed. “Here is the head of Ish-bosheth, the son of your enemy Saul who tried to kill you. Today the Lord has given you revenge upon Saul and upon his entire family!”
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But David replied, “I swear by the Lord who saved me from my enemies,
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that when someone told me, ‘Saul is dead,’ thinking he was bringing me good news, I killed him; that is how I rewarded him for his ‘glad tidings.’
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And how much more shall I do to wicked men who kill a good man in his own house and on his bed! Shall I not demand your lives?”
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So David ordered his young men to kill them, and they did. They cut off their hands and feet and hanged their bodies beside the pool in Hebron. And they took Ish-bosheth’s head and buried it in Abner’s tomb in Hebron.
Representatives of all the tribes of Israel now came to David at Hebron and gave him their pledge of loyalty.
“We are your blood brothers,” they said.
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“And even when Saul was our king you were our real leader. The Lord has said that you should be the shepherd and leader of his people.”
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So David made a contract before the Lord with the leaders of Israel there at Hebron, and they crowned him king of Israel.
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(He had already been the king of Judah for seven years, since the age of thirty. He then ruled thirty-three years in Jerusalem as king of both Israel and Judah; so he reigned for forty years altogether.)
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David now led his troops to Jerusalem to fight against the Jebusites who lived there.
“You’ll never come in here,” they told him. “Even the blind and lame could keep you out!” For they thought they were safe.
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But David and his troops defeated them and captured the stronghold of Zion, now called the City of David.
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When the insulting message from the defenders of the city reached David, he told his troops, “Go up through the water tunnel into the city and destroy those ‘lame’ and ‘blind’ Jebusites. How I hate them.” (That is the origin of the saying, “Even the blind and the lame could conquer you!”)
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So David made the stronghold of Zion (also called the City of David) his headquarters. Then, beginning at the old Millo section of the city, he built northward toward the present city center.
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So David became greater and greater, for the Lord God of heaven was with him.
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Then King Hiram of Tyre sent cedar lumber, carpenters, and masons to build a palace for David.
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David now realized why the Lord had made him the king and blessed his kingdom so greatly—it was because God wanted to pour out his kindness on Israel, his chosen people.
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After moving from Hebron to Jerusalem, David married additional wives and concubines, and had many sons and daughters.
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These are his children who were born at Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, Elishama, Eliada, Eliphelet.
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When the Philistines heard that David had been crowned king of Israel, they tried to capture him; but David was told that they were coming and went into the stronghold.
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The Philistines arrived and spread out across the valley of Rephaim.
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Then David asked the Lord, “Shall I go out and fight against them? Will you defeat them for me?”
And the Lord replied, “Yes, go ahead, for I will give them to you.”
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So David went out and fought with them at Baal-perazim and defeated them. “The Lord did it!” he exclaimed. “He burst through my enemies like a raging flood.” So he named the place “Bursting.”
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At that time David and his troops confiscated many idols that had been abandoned by the Philistines.
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But the Philistines returned and again spread out across the valley of Rephaim.
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When David asked the Lord what to do, he replied, “Don’t make a frontal attack. Go behind them and come out by the balsam trees.
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When you hear a sound like marching feet in the tops of the balsam trees, attack! For it will signify that the Lord has prepared the way for you and will destroy them.”
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So David did as the Lord had instructed him and destroyed the Philistines all the way from Geba to Gezer.
Then David mobilized thirty thousand special troops and led them to Baal-judah to bring home the Ark of the Lord of heaven who is enthroned above the Guardian Angels.
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The Ark was placed upon a new cart and taken from the hillside home of Abinadab. It was driven by Abinadab’s sons, Uzzah and Ahio.
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Ahio was walking in front
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and was followed by David and the other leaders of Israel, who were joyously waving branches of juniper trees and playing every sort of musical instrument before the Lord—lyres, harps, tambourines, castanets, and cymbals.
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But when they arrived at the threshing floor of Nacon, the oxen stumbled and Uzzah put out his hand to steady the Ark.
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Then the anger of the Lord flared out against Uzzah and he killed him for doing this, so he died there beside the Ark.
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David was angry at what the Lord had done, and named the spot “The Place of Wrath upon Uzzah” (which it is still called to this day).
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David was now afraid of the Lord and asked, “How can I ever bring the Ark home?”
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So he decided against taking it into the City of David, but carried it instead to the home of Obed-edom, who had come from Gath.
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It remained there for three months, and the Lord blessed Obed-edom and all his household.
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When David heard this, he brought the Ark to the City of David with a great celebration.
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After the men who were carrying it had gone six paces, they stopped and waited so that he could sacrifice an ox and a fat lamb.
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And David danced before the Lord with all his might and was wearing priests’ clothing.
*
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So Israel brought home the Ark of the Lord with much shouting and blowing of trumpets.
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(But as the procession came into the city, Michal, Saul’s daughter, watched from a window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord; and she was filled with contempt for him.)
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The Ark was placed inside the tent that David had prepared for it; and he sacrificed burnt offerings and peace offerings to the Lord.
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Then he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of heaven
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and gave a present to everyone—men and women alike—of a loaf of bread, some wine, and a cake of raisins. When it was all over, and everyone had gone home,
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David returned to bless his family.
But Michal came out to meet him and exclaimed in disgust, “How glorious the king of Israel looked today! He exposed himself to the girls along the street like a common pervert!”
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David retorted, “I was dancing before the Lord who chose me above your father and his family and who appointed me as leader of Israel, the people of the Lord! So I am willing to act like a fool in order to show my joy in the Lord.
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Yes, and I am willing to look even more foolish than this, but I will be respected by the girls of whom you spoke!”
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So Michal was childless throughout her life.