Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Peter Kirk <peterkirk AT qaya.org>]

On 22/04/2005 14:30, George F Somsel wrote:

> ...
>
> > In 2Sam21, David did not recognize that Gibeonites have a right to 
> > punish
> > Saul's children. Indeed, Gibeonites were not bound by Hebrew 
> > commandments.
> > David rather recognized the merits of their vengeance. Saul, of 
> > course,
> > committed idolatry by sparing the animals for sacrifice, thus 
> > imagining that
> > sacrifices, the material, are more important than obedience.
> >
> > Vadim Cherny
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> >    
>
> Vadim,
>
> I think you misinterpret the passage.  It begins
>
> WaY:HiY Rf(fB B.iYM"Y DfWiD . . . WaY:BaQ."$ D.fWiD )eT_P.:N"Y YHWH
>
> and concludes 
>
> W:H"M.f HuM:TW. B.iYM"Y QfCiYR B.fRi)$ONiYM T:XiL.aT Q:CiYR #:(oRiYM
>
> This would serve to connect it to the judgment of God as well as David's
> recognition.
>
>  
God told David that he had to do something about the situation. But that 
doesn't mean that what David did was correct or that he was carrying out 
God's judgment. For God didn't tell him to kill anyone. As the 
Gibeonites recognised (v.4), they had no right to demand the death of 
anyone, but David nevertheless responded to their request. And the 
Gibeonites had already suggested silver or gold as an alternative. Why 
didn't David pay them off in that way? Well, we can't understand the 
politics in detail, but it seems to me that David was at that time 
acting unrighteously, and using this as an excuse to get rid of his 
potential enemies. And there are rulers today, even in democratic 
countries, who conveniently hand over to less scrupulous foreigners 
their potential enemies, such as terrorist "suspects" against whom there 
is no evidence.

--
Peter Kirk
peter AT qaya.org (personal)
peterkirk AT qaya.org (work)
http://www.qaya.org/



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