Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Vadim Cherny" <VadimCherny AT mail.ru>]

I tend to disregard numerous rationalizations of human actions by divine
will contained in Tanakh, but that's not the point.
Here it goes about the wicked house of Saul. David was right to exterminate
the house to eliminate future claims. Saul did not commit the crime alone,
like common murderer. Rather, the crime was committed by royal
establishment, a corporate body. This establishment had to be eliminated in
full. Relatives of Saul were eliminated not because they were his
descendants, but because they were members of royal house, a body that
committed the crime.
Israelites suffered famine not for Saul's crime, but for failure to purify
their community of that crime by timely killing his relatives.

Vadim Cherny



> The text I read is this, in English (ASV) and Hebrew:
>
> Now there was a famine in the days of David for three
> years, year after year; and David sought the presence of
> the LORD. And the LORD said, "It is for Saul and his bloody
> house, because * he put the Gibeonites to death."
>
> $eQbyw hn$ yerx) hn$ eyn$ $l$ dwd yemyB b(r yhyw
> lW)$-l) hwhy rm)Yw hwhy yenP-t) dwD
> . eyn(bGh tymeh-r$)-l( eymDh tyeB
>
> It would seem that there was a famine (drought?) in Isreal.
> David asked Yahweh why there was such a long famine.
> Yahweh answered that the famine was brought on my Saul's
> crimes against the Gibeonites.  It is the Isrealites
> (probably the Gibeonites as well) who are suffering from
> the famine which was the result of Saul's crimes.  Saul is
> of course dead at this point.  David kills Saul's two sons
> and five grandsons both to appease the Gibeonites and
> Yahweh.  This seemed to have been effective as it says at
> the end of 2 Sam 21:14.
>
> and after that God was moved by prayer for the land.
>
> aek-yerx) ur)l eyhl) ret(eYwjlMh hWc-r$) lK
>
> Once more, I do not mean to offend anyone but the story
> seems quite transparent.  Saul commits a crime.  There is a
> famine as a result of that crime (causing much suffering no
> doubt).  The children and grandchildren of the criminal are
> killed.  The crime is avanged and the famine is lifted.
>
>
> Jack Tladatsi
>
>