An Exposition of Second Samuel

By Tim James

In 1978, Tim James sold his butcher shop in Ogburn Station, NC and moved with his wife, Debbie, to Cherokee, North Carolina. A small group on the reservation had invited him to pastor their church. Over 42 years later, Tim continues to pastor at Sequoyah Sovereign Grace Baptist Church.

For all of those years, Tim has preached expositorily through books of the Bible, having preserved his notes in large three-ring binders. Although visitors to his home have seen them, none had read them. In 2018, a pastor friend asked Tim if he could use his notes for reference in his expositions through a book of the Bible at his church. Astounded at the narrative style in which he had written them along with their simplicity, he could not keep them secret. As a result, Tim has graciously given permission for his entire library of notes to be scanned and published.

You need not expect his expositions to be a lesson in history from the Old Testament, nor a list of goals for posting to your refrigerator from the New Testament. No matter the book or text reference on which you read Tim’s expositions, Old Testament or New Testament, you will rejoice as you read of the glorious faithfulness and work of the Lord Jesus Christ for God’s elect.

In simple but profound everyday language you will be comforted in reading of Christ’s fulfillment of God’s law on behalf of the elect. Whether you read his expositions of the Old Testament or New Testament, you will see the revelation of Christ, the justification of his elect through his imputed righteousness and the glorious liberty and freedom he has obtained for them.

In speaking of the true Christian experience of grace from his own experience of gospel freedom in Christ, Tim’s writings may well cause you to pump your fist and declare, “That is me!” God’s revelation of his electing grace in Christ has enabled Tim to write a commentary that captures the spirit and meaning of the Old Testament and New Testament alike—Christ is all!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Feb 27, 2023
• ISBN: 9781312934849

Tim James

Tim James is a certified Cape Wine Master and freelance wine journalist. He is the regional consultant on South Africa for The World Atlas of Wine and a taster and associate editor on the annual Platter Guide to South African Wine. In addition to his weekly column for the Mail & Guardian, his work also appears regularly in The World of Fine Wine and online at www.grape.co.za.

Book preview

Tim James

Copyright

© 2022 Tim James

ISBN: 978-1-312-93484-9

This book contains an exposition of the book of First Samuel as delivered in a series of messages to the congregation of Sequoyah Sovereign Grace Baptist Church, Cherokee, NC. You may contact the author via email at [e-mail]

Other Books by The Author

An Exposition of Numbers

An Exposition of Deuteronomy

An Exposition of Joshua

An Exposition of Judges

An Exposition of 1st Samuel

An Exposition of Ruth

Galatians: The Biblical Precept of Freedom

An Exposition of Hebrews

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations

in this publication are from the Holy Bible, Authorized King James Version.

Acknowledgements

With special gratitude to all who gave of their time and efforts in the creation of this book.

May our God continue to make his work appear unto [his] servants, and [his] glory unto their children. And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it (Psalm 90:16-17).

From The Publisher

In 1978, Tim James sold his butcher shop in Ogburn Station, NC and moved with his wife, Debbie, to Cherokee, North Carolina. A small group on the reservation had invited him to pastor their church. Over 42 years later, Tim continues to pastor at Sequoyah Sovereign Grace Baptist Church.

For all of those years, Tim has preached expositorily through books of the Bible, having preserved his notes in large three-ring binders. Although visitors to his home have seen them, none had read them. In 2018, a pastor friend asked Tim if he could use his notes for reference in his expositions through a book of the Bible at his church. Astounded at the narrative style in which he had written them along with their simplicity, he could not keep them secret. As a result, Tim has graciously given permission for his entire library of notes to be scanned and published.

You need not expect his expositions to be a lesson in history from the Old Testament, nor a list of goals for posting to your refrigerator from the New Testament. No matter the book or text reference on which you read Tim’s expositions, Old Testament or New Testament, you will rejoice as you read of the glorious faithfulness and work of the Lord Jesus Christ for God’s elect.

In simple but profound everyday language you will be comforted in reading of Christ’s fulfillment of God’s law on behalf of the elect. Whether you read his expositions of the Old Testament or New Testament, you will see the revelation of Christ, the justification of his elect through his imputed righteousness and the glorious liberty and freedom he has obtained for them.

In speaking of the true Christian experience of grace from his own experience of gospel freedom in Christ, Tim’s writings may well cause you to pump your fist and declare, That is me! God’s revelation of his electing grace in Christ has enabled Tim to write a commentary that captures the spirit and meaning of the Old Testament and New Testament alike—Christ is all!

Grace-eBooks.com

The Comforting Lie

2 Samuel 1

    1, Now it came to pass after the death of Saul, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had abode two days in Ziklag;

    2, It came even to pass on the third day, that, behold, a man came out of the camp from Saul with his clothes rent, and earth upon his head: and so it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the earth, and did obeisance.

    3, And David said unto him, From whence comest thou? And he said unto him, Out of the camp of Israel am I escaped.

    4, And David said unto him, How went the matter? I pray thee, tell me. And he answered, That the people are fled from the battle, and many of the people also are fallen and dead; and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also.

    5, And David said unto the young man that told him, How knowest thou that Saul and Jonathan his son be dead?

    6, And the young man that told him said, As I happened by chance upon mount Gilboa, behold, Saul leaned upon his spear; and, lo, the chariots and horsemen followed hard after him.

    7, And when he looked behind him, he saw me, and called unto me. And I answered, Here am I.

    8, And he said unto me, Who art thou? And I answered him, I am an Amalekite.

    9, He said unto me again, Stand, I pray thee, upon me, and slay me: for anguish is come upon me, because my life is yet whole in me.

    10, So I stood upon him, and slew him, because I was sure that he could not live after that he was fallen: and I took the crown that was upon his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them hither unto my lord.

    11, Then David took hold on his clothes, and rent them; and likewise all the men that were with him:

    12, And they mourned, and wept, and fasted until even, for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the people of the LORD, and for the house of Israel; because they were fallen by the sword.

    13, And David said unto the young man that told him, Whence art thou? And he answered, I am the son of a stranger, an Amalekite.

    14, And David said unto him, How wast thou not afraid to stretch forth thine hand to destroy the LORD'S anointed?

    15, And David called one of the young men, and said, Go near, and fall upon him. And he smote him that he died.

    16, And David said unto him, Thy blood be upon thy head; for thy mouth hath testified against thee, saying, I have slain the LORD'S anointed.

    17, And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son:

    18, (Also he bade them teach the children of Judah the use of the bow: behold, it is written in the book of Jasher.)

    19, The beauty of Israel is slain upon thy high places: how are the mighty fallen!

    20, Tell it not in Gath, publish it not in the streets of Askelon; lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.

    21, Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew, neither let there be rain, upon you, nor fields of offerings: for there the shield of the mighty is vilely cast away, the shield of Saul, as though he had not been anointed with oil.

    22, From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the mighty, the bow of Jonathan turned not back, and the sword of Saul returned not empty.

    23, Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they were not divided: they were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions.

    24, Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, who clothed you in scarlet, with other delights, who put on ornaments of gold upon your apparel.

    25, How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle! O Jonathan, thou wast slain in thine high places.

    26, I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: very pleasant hast thou been unto me: thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women.

    27, How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished!

This first chapter of 2 Samuel is an introduction to the reign of David as the King of Judah—the rightful king—an anointed king as a type of Christ and His eternal reign. It is also the record of the lamentation of David on behalf of Saul and Jonathan set forth in poetic song. This song is not a Psalm because it is not about God’s bringing an end to Saul as He had promised, but rather a record of David’s personal emotions and sentiments concerning the death of one dear to him and the fall of a king. The overall theme of these words of David are to comfort the people concerning the death of the king.

Though the children of God are people of faith, for the most part that faith is little faith. Likewise, though we believe, we often find ourselves anxious about how things are going to turn out. What we know by faith is always assaulted by what we experience in the flesh. The constant barrage of hard circumstance, and the tumult of the tempest of trouble that attends being born of woman, challenge what we know. This is revealed in the Word both in the Old Testament and New Testament as we find our Lord as well as His apostles telling believers to fear not. Such language would be foolish if the people did not actually fear. Faith is about trusting Christ. The flesh is about destroying that trust and causing the believer to logically assess circumstance.

So, David, the true king, takes his office as comforter of the people. His poem is a eulogy that gives one king the authority to declare his kingdom has begun because the former king is dead. Even taking the human emotion of the moment, these words reflect the future King of kings in his greatest hour of royalty and humanity. David is saying, concerning the reign of Saul, It is finished. . . How the mighty are fallen. The words of kindness toward his fallen enemy are comparable to the words of the great King when He said, Father forgive them for they know not what they do. David’s words were designed to allay the fears of the people who at that moment had no coronated king, much as our Lord told John to take care of His mother and His mother to care for John. That He spoke as King was not a matter of doubt to those who heard Him, as on the cross the penitent thief cried, Lord, remember me when thou comest into that kingdom. Our Lord said to his disciples, fear not little children, for it is the Lord’s pleasure to give you the kingdom.

I want—or rather, sadly feel it necessary—to address the words of David concerning Jonathan in verse 26. I say sadly because of the evolution of language. In this day there is an element of society that cannot use the word love except in reference to sexuality. In fact, that blessed word has fallen on difficult times in this day. David is not talking about sex when he said that Jonathan’s love to him was wonderful, passing the love of women. He was speaking of love in its true and actual meaning. The word wonderful means extraordinary or surpassing. Jonathan had chosen David even above his father Saul, had willingly cast his lot with David at the expense of even his family and his rightful ascendancy to the throne. The wonder of Jonathan’s love for Dave exemplifies what love really is. It is an interest in the glory of David’s throne. It has to do with putting the loved one first, or for being concerned for the well-being of the loved one more one’s own life. Hereby we perceive the love of God, that He laid down his life for us. As to passing the love of women, you’ll notice that women is plural and that word is translated wife, or in this case wives, more than any other way in the Bible. The Targum translates these words as the love of two women. David had two wives, so his words reflect that his perception of Jonathan’s allegiance and love surpassed even that of his two wives.

Also, the word love in Scripture is rarely used to even hint as having to do with sexuality. Gomer spoke of her lovers, and that was used in reference to adultery. When the act of sex is referred to, it is spoken of as knowing, not loving. Knowing has to do with intimate knowledge. Loving has to do with extraordinary concern accompanied with always acting in the best interest of the one loved. Love is not about feeling; it is about action. Jonathan’s love for David was revealed in his extraordinary actions toward David.

What I want us to consider primarily is the words of this Amalekite who brought a tall tale to David, and his lie cost him his life (vv. 2-16). What, I ask, prompted this fellow to take credit for the death of one king and bring his crown to another? We will not deal with the inconsistencies of this fellow’s story to show that it was a lie; the record in the last chapter of I Samuel reveals that. The why of the lie is what is important in this context. This man’s actions paint an accurate picture of the motive of freewill religion. Actions are weighed by God because they reveal motive. The motive of freewill religion is to take credit for salvation. Whether in part or in full-out blasphemy, false Christianity must make God a receiver rather than a giver. Freewill religion must hold that the glory of God is dependent upon its actions. This man had a plan that involved the exaltation of self under the guise of doing a good thing for the king. This man could have gone on his way and blended into society without any recognition, and that would have been what he deserved. But he saw an opportunity (or at least thought it so) to ingratiate himself with the king, or to obligate the king to give him recognition. He wanted to be named in transactions with which he had nothing to do. He wanted to insinuate himself into something that he had absolutely no part in. And so does everyone who believes that salvation is conditioned on man’s choice or decision rather than the singular act of God.

The plan was well-rehearsed. The lie rose to the heights of great fiction. The approach rather than faith. First, he came as a penitent man, bowing to the king. His clothing and his appearance were indicative of one seeking to prove his sincerity. He tore his clothes, feigning an attitude of horror at what had transpired. He put dirt on his head, feigning repentance and unworthiness. He paid obeisance to David, feigning that he acknowledged David was rightful king. Adherents of freewill religion thrive on the accouterments of repentance. They sound and appear humble as they boast of the sin that they have overcome. They cry mea culpa, mea culpa, mea culpa maxima at testimony meetings. They weep and bawl because tears make people think they are sincere.

When asked how Saul died, the pretending penitent man became the brave warrior. I killed the king, said he. We know that Saul is a picture of our flesh, and no religious story is more exalted than the ex-story. Religion drools over the ex-drunk, the ex-hooker, and the ex-thief because it is like proof of repentance to the unbelieving mind. I killed the king is the same as saying I got right with God, or I straightened up and flew right, or I turned my life around, or I turned over a new leaf, or I got religion, or I decided for Jesus. This man didn’t kill the king. The king killed himself to protect his own self-image. Thus, religion will self-murder rather than have its presumed honor destroyed. This man took credit that was not due him.

Also note that he took possession of the crown and the bracelet of the warrior king and presented them to David. This was his way of acknowledging David as king. What’s wrong with that? In this man’s mind, he had the power to crown David as king. According to the principles of war, the spoils belonged to him who took them. This was his crown and his bracelet, and they would be David’s only by the possessor’s decision. This man, by his will, was going to make David king of his life. Have you ever wondered why phrases like Make Jesus your Lord, Won’t you invite Jesus into your heart? or Won’t you let Jesus save you? are such basic tenets of freewillism. It is because the power belongs to the one who can accept or reject, who can give or withhold. This man’s plan was to make David king, but the problem was that God had already beat him to it.

The end of this man is the end of all such presumed falsehood; and make no mistake, from the beginning, any endeavor to take credit for anything that the Scripture squarely declares belongs only to God is a lie. It is not an opposing theory of theology, or a differing opinion. It is a lie, and the end of that lie is death (Luke 19:27¹). I do not wish ill to anyone, but glory belongs to God. In the end, the elaborate plan of this man earned him what he was due: the wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23). This man’s lie was born of no fear toward God (v. 14; Prov. 9:10; Rom. 3:18²).

The Fallen Mighty

2 Samuel 1:19, 25, 27

19, The beauty of Israel is slain upon thy high places: how are the mighty fallen!

25, How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle! O Jonathan, thou wast slain in thine high places.

27, How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished!

The poetic lamentation of David in vv. 17- 27 is very intriguing. There is no doubt as to its sincerity. I believe the sorrow was expressed primarily for the loss of Jonathan, but that does not diminish what David felt for the death of Saul. One of the reasons it intrigues me is that I’m not sure I could be so gracious at the demise of the man who had hounded me and sought to kill me on so many occasions. There is no doubt that David was acting according to the will of God concerning our attitude toward those whom God has appointed to governmental rule over us (Rom. 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:17-18³). Saul had been anointed as king in the governmental sense but not as a picture of the coming King of kings. David’s lamentation was in many ways a politically astute poem, and it was spoken as a new king who must unite a kingdom under his rule.

As the new king, he must consider that many who had followed Saul still hold him (David) in low esteem. I say this lamentation is political not to diminish David’s true feelings but to assert that the duties of a king often do not reflect the personal feelings of the king. These words are not included in the Psalms because they do not reflect the shepherd-psalmist’s feelings but rather the king-poet’s duty to his kingdom. The Psalms more readily reflect the psalmist’s relationship to God rather than the king’s relationship to his kingdom (Psa. 119:158; 139:19-22⁴). The words of the lamentation of our text do not mention Saul or Jonathan’s actions toward God but rather their benefits and actions toward the people and the enemies of the kingdom. David did not mention Saul’s enmity and hatred for him. This may appear a small distinction, but it is worthy of consideration.

I say this because of a thrice-repeated phrase in this lovely poem of sorrow. David repeated this phrase, How the mighty are fallen. This phrase found purchase in my mind because, in a very true sense, it is the end of all who oppose God and of everything that is born in the vast realm of humanity. It is the epitaph of the carnal creature, and it might be placed on every headstone and emblazoned on the door of ever mausoleum that peppers the earth with sepulchers. How the mighty are fallen! This is our history, the history of fallen humanity.

This is the history of Adam, the first man: Made in God’s image, ruler of the world, caretaker of paradise, having dominion over all of God’s creation, the federal head and representative of mankind. What true thing can be said of this great one, this mighty one? Only this: How the mighty are fallen. In the blink of an eye the mighty is reduced to hiding his sin with fig leaves, to trying to escape blame for his sin by blaming God for giving him a wife who he likewise blames for his fall.

It is the history of Lucifer, a mighty angel, one whose might could be challenged by no other creature (Jude 1:9⁵). This one harbored pipedreams of deity and thought no creature could withstand him. Yet he was of little consequence and certainly no match for his maker (Isa. 14:14-20; Rev. 8:10; 9:1; Luke 10:18; John 12:31⁶). Now he is chained and made to do the bidding of his maker, crawling on his belly, and reduced to begging to touch one of the Lord’s anointed; and his touch, though malicious with intent, does but serve and help those whom he despises (Heb. 1:14⁷; i.e. Job and Peter). How the mighty are fallen!

This is the history of every saint. The children of God are a veritable fallen hall of fame—Adam’s sin; Noah’s drunkenness after the flood; Abraham’s lies; Lot’s choice of Zoar after Sodom; Jacob’s trickery and subtle supplanting; Samson’s weakness before Delilah; David’s trek in Gath and his obsequiousness before Achish, his adultery with Bathsheba and murder of Uriah; Simon Peter’s denial of Christ and his quitting the ministry; Paul’s misguided employment of Jewish ceremony; Mark’s refusal to serve; the apostle’s desire to have a higher place in glory than others; every believer’s efforts of the flesh to accomplish the will of God. And the cards and letters keep coming, and all redound with one sentiment: How the mighty are fallen! Oh, but how the saints are raised up in spite of themselves (Psa. 37:23-24; 2 Tim.2:13⁸).

This is the history of all false, works-based, freewill religion. What a mighty thing is carnal religion. Man is born with it, and though it has taken on a multitude of titles and denominations, it is just one religion: The religion that opposes Christ. This is Armageddon, the battle that began in Eden, which rages in our bosoms and will culminate when the word of the Lord decimates Great Babylon, the harlot religion of the human heart (Rev. 18:1-10⁹). How the mighty are fallen!

Every endeavor of humanity (in the flesh) has this tag line—this stinger—inscribed upon its foul record of rebellion: How the mighty are fallen! Humanity is not a success story. It is a story replete with multiple recordings of complete failure, save for one human being. This one human being—born of a woman, the seed of woman, born without the taint of Adam’s transgress, born among sinners, numbered with the transgressors yet was without sin—lived a perfect life and died a perfect (and perfecting) death in the place and stead of his people. In His weakest moment He did not fall, nor was He discouraged. This man gave His life, was buried, resurrected, and ascended on high, having lead captivity captive (Psa. 68:18¹⁰), who sits at the right hand of the majesty on high; of Him only can it be said, The mighty is not fallen. The mighty is exalted (Phil. 2:5-11; Rev. 5:9-10¹¹).

Two Kingdoms

2 Samuel 2:1-11

    1, And it came to pass after this, that David enquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah? And the LORD said unto him, Go up. And David said, Whither shall I go up? And he said, Unto Hebron.

    2, So David went up thither, and his two wives also, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail Nabal's wife the Carmelite.

    3, And his men that were with him did David bring up, every man with his household: and they dwelt in the cities of Hebron.

    4, And the men of Judah came, and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah. And they told David, saying, That the men of Jabeshgilead were they that buried Saul.

    5, And David sent messengers unto the men of Jabeshgilead, and said unto them, Blessed be ye of the LORD, that ye have shewed this kindness unto your lord, even unto Saul, and have buried him.

    6, And now the LORD shew kindness and truth unto you: and I also will requite you this kindness, because ye have done this thing.

    7, Therefore now let your hands be strengthened, and be ye valiant: for your master Saul is dead, and also the house of Judah have anointed me king over them.

    8, But Abner the son of Ner, captain of Saul's host, took Ishbosheth the son of Saul, and brought him over to Mahanaim;

    9, And made him king over Gilead, and over the Ashurites, and over Jezreel, and over Ephraim, and over Benjamin, and over all Israel.

    10, Ishbosheth Saul's son was forty years old when he began to reign over Israel, and reigned two years. But the house of Judah followed David.

    11, And the time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.

This is the historical account of the division of Israel into two kingdoms, and it pictures the truth of glorious success of our Lord in the salvation of His people and the subsequent reaction of the intractable carnal mind against Christ. When Paul said, With my mind I serve the law of God but with my flesh I serve the law of sin and death, he was declaring what was pictured years before in these eleven verses. Likewise, this is a picture of the bruising of Satan’s head and his utter defeat at the hands of Christ, and it is the story of the masses that will not willingly have Christ rule over them but will blindly follow the prince of the power of the air (Eph. 2:2¹²). Also in these verses we see the immediate reaction of the flesh to any victory of the spirit. No sooner is David, the rightful king of Israel, made king in Judah, Abner—the captain of the host of the former king (now dead)—raises up another king in the place of Saul. All this true history is indeed specific concerning Christ, His people, and those that oppose Him.

David, having mourned the death of Saul with a poem of lamentation, is now returned to Ziklag, and inquires of the Lord concerning what to do (v. 1). His actions picture the mind of Christ as He walked upon the earth, always about the Father’s business. We read of the Lord that He pleased not Himself (Rom. 15:3¹³), that He resigned His will to the will of the Father (Psa. 40:7-8; Heb. 10:7¹⁴), and that the words He spoke were not His own but that He spoke what the Father told Him to say (John 14:24¹⁵), and that He did not come by His own will but by the will of the Father which had sent Him (John 5:30¹⁶). Christ—though God, the Son of God, and the anointed King—was the obedient servant of the Father. David does not strike out on his own, nor does he apply to the wisdom of the flesh. He in effect is saying, Not my will but thine be done.

The LORD directs David to go to Hebron, a city or group of cities in the tribal province of Judah. Hebron means association or gathering. This is prophetic of the gathering of the people to Christ (Gen. 49:10; Isa. 11:10¹⁷). We see this taking place and described more fully in 1 Chronicles 12:23-40. Also significant is the fact that Hebron is one of the cities of refuge. In Hebron David will be designated as King of Judah.

The actions of David in verses 2-7 reveal the work of Christ on behalf of His people. Verses 2-3 are descriptions of those who were with Christ when He was anointed King. In verse 2, his wives are with him. This pictures the church, the bride of Christ, being with Him and in Him; it is a picture of all His intercessory work. In verse 3, the church is again represented as all those who follow Christ: His army, and all the families from each of the tribes (Rev. 5:9¹⁸). They have suffered with Him and now shall reign with Him (Rom. 8:17; Matt. 19:28¹⁹). The fact that substitution pictures the entirety of Christ’s life for His people (and their being in Him) is seen in His words when He was baptized by John: "Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness."

In verse 4, the men of Judah come and anoint Him as king of Judah. This anointing is not like that of Samuel or of God but is rather a recognition and a declaration of faith that David is the one who God has anointed, much like the words of Peter in Matthew 16 and John 6: Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. Believers do not make Christ to be king; by faith they acknowledge that God has anointed Him King.

In verses 5-6, David recognized the men of Jabesh-Gilead for their honor and loyalty to the government of God in retrieving the body of Saul from the Philistines and burying his bones. They did not do what they did because they sought recognition but rather for love of the honor of the king. It is not they who recognize this as a good work; it is king David who puts his stamp of approval upon it. David prays the Lord’s blessings upon them.

In verse 7, David sets things in their proper order. Christ did this in all His ministry on this earth (John 5:39; Matt. 9:13, 12:34; Luke 16:13; Col. 3:1-3²⁰).

As soon as word gets out that David has been anointed as King of Judah, the enemy immediately responds. This is always the course of things in this world. How many have personally experienced this? Being a product of false religion since early on, you hear the gospel at an appointed time and immediately declare Christ—the sovereign Christ—to be King of salvation. But they who believe what you now reject go to war, immediately take up arms, and try to resurrect the dead king. Abner, the dead king’s captain, anoints Ishbosheth as king of the Israel (vv. 8-9). Immediately after our Lord was coronated at His baptism, the next words we read are that He was led into the wilderness to be tempted of Satan. Religion will not give up on the dead king and will never recognize the One to whom you bow as king. The name Ishbosheth is another name for the son of Saul who was also called Eshbaal. Ishbosheth means man of shame. Eshbaal means man of Baal. In other words, he is a man of the shameful idol Baal. The false king is therefore resurrected in the mind of the infidel.

This is how it is, and how it will remain, until the truly anointed King destroys the false one. The flesh will always oppose the spirit, but the spirit will ultimately prevail. God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36).

The Battle Continues

2 Samuel 2:12-32

    12, And Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ishbosheth the son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.

    13, And Joab the son of Zeruiah, and the servants of David, went out, and met together by the pool of Gibeon: and they sat down, the one on the one side of the pool, and the other on the other side of the pool.

    14, And Abner said to Joab, Let the young men now arise, and play before us. And Joab said, Let them arise.

    15, Then there arose and went over by number twelve of Benjamin, which pertained to Ishbosheth the son of Saul, and twelve of the servants of David.

    16, And they caught every one his fellow by the head, and thrust his sword in his fellow's side; so they fell down together: wherefore that place was called Helkathhazzurim, which is in Gibeon.

    17, And there was a very sore battle that day; and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David.

    18, And there were three sons of Zeruiah there, Joab, and Abishai, and Asahel: and Asahel was as light of foot as a wild roe.

    19, And Asahel pursued after Abner; and in going he turned not to the right hand nor to the left from following Abner.

    20, Then Abner looked behind him, and said, Art thou Asahel? And he answered, I am.

    21, And Abner said to him, Turn thee aside to thy right hand or to thy left, and lay thee hold on one of the young men, and take thee his armour. But Asahel would not turn aside from following of him.

    22, And Abner said again to Asahel, Turn thee aside from following me: wherefore should I smite thee to the ground? how then should I hold up my face to Joab thy brother?

    23, Howbeit he refused to turn aside: wherefore Abner with the hinder end of the spear smote him under the fifth rib, that the spear came out behind him; and he fell down there, and died in the same place: and it came to pass, that as many as came to the place where Asahel fell down and died stood still.

    24, Joab also and Abishai pursued after Abner: and the sun went down when they were come to the hill of Ammah, that lieth before Giah by the way of the wilderness of Gibeon.

    25, And the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together after Abner, and became one troop, and stood on the top of an hill.

    26, Then Abner called to Joab, and said, Shall the sword devour for ever? knowest thou not that it will be bitterness in the latter end? how long shall it be then, ere thou bid the people return from following their brethren?

    27, And Joab said, As God liveth, unless thou hadst spoken, surely then in the morning the people had gone up every one from following his brother.

    28, So Joab blew a trumpet, and all the people stood still, and pursued after Israel no more, neither fought they any more.

    29, And Abner and his men walked all that night through the plain, and passed over Jordan, and went through all Bithron, and they came to Mahanaim.

    30, And Joab returned from following Abner: and when he had gathered all the people together, there lacked of David's servants nineteen men and Asahel.

    31, But the servants of David had smitten of Benjamin, and of Abner's men, so that three hundred and threescore men died.

    32, And they took up Asahel, and buried him in the sepulchre of his father, which was in Bethlehem. And Joab and his men went all night, and they came to Hebron at break of day.

In our last lesson we saw the true source of trouble between truth and error and the flesh and the spirit. The source of the trouble is always the same: Declaration of the gospel. When the gospel is declared, the first thing proclaimed and acknowledged is that Jesus Christ is the rightful sovereign, the anointed, the Christ, and is Lord over all creation, providence, and salvation. Ultimately this is the thing that sticks in the craw of anyone that feels that they have something to do with their salvation. The damage that the truth does to those who hold themselves in such high esteem causes a visceral, immediate response. They come against the truth with a king of their own making. They refuse to acknowledge that Jesus is king, though they may apply that title to Him. Their words and methods betray them.

No matter how much they may claim to follow Christ, and invoke His name in what they do, it is they who make him what He is—it is they who make the decision of whether they are saved. It is they who can give Jesus power to save by their will. It is they who control the efficaciousness of salvation. It is they who rip salvation, already accomplished in the past, and deposit it squarely in the present. It is they who by words, works, message, and methods oppose and exalt themselves above all that is called God or that is worshipped and, as if they were God, sit in the temple of God, showing themselves that they are God (Rom. 1:20-24; 2 Thess. 2:3-4²¹). We see this in the first