2 Samuel 21:7-14

Spend time in prayer and silence with God asking him to meet you and speak to you.

Bible Reading

But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathon the son of Saul, because of the oath of the Lord which was between them, between David and Saul’s son Jonathan. So the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, Armoni and Mephibosheth whom she had borne to Saul, and the five sons of Merab the daughter of Saul, whom she had borne to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite. Then he gave them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them in the mountain before the Lord, so that the seven of them fell together; and they were put to death in the first days of harvest at the beginning of barley harvest. And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until it rained on them from the sky; and she allowed neither the birds of the sky to rest on them by day nor the beast of the field by night. When it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done, then David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathon his son from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the open square of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them on the day the Philistines struck down Saul in Gilboa. He brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathon his son from there, and they gathered the bones of those who had been hanged. They buried the bones of Saul and Jonathon his son in the country of Benjamin in Zela, in the grave of Kish his father: thus they did all that the king commanded and after that God was moved by prayer for the land.

– 2 Samuel 21:7-14

Devotion

The Gibeonites demanded justice in keeping with the principle of Num. 35:31; a life demands a life. David complied with the Gibeonites’ request for justice and gave them seven two sons and five grandsons of Saul to execute. In due time the famine ended and God restored the land to prosperity. When justice is done on earth, vengeance from heaven ceases. Had the Gibeonites gone to David earlier and appealed their cause, perhaps the three years of famine could have been prevented. Also, had David gone to God earlier for answers, the famine could possibly have ended sooner.

The Big Question

What issues in your life need to be resolved? Is there someone that you need to go to and clear things up with? Why not talk to God and ask for His wisdom?

Conclude in prayer and silence reflecting on what you’ve learned.