Nov20–26: Rizpah: The Influence of Faithfulness

Teaching Points

1. Read 2 Samuel 3:6–11. What can we learn about Rizpah and about her circumstances in that particular time?

ANSWER:

• She was a concubine of Saul (who’s dead) and is now the cause of an angry dispute between Abner and Ishbosheth. 

OBSERVATION:

• Saul is dead and his youngest son, Ishbosheth, accuses Abner of having an affair with Rizpah.
• Because of this, Abner gets upset and now turns on Ishbosheth to side with David. 

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

• Why would Ishbosheth accuse Abner of having an affair with Rizpah? (See 1 Kings 2:17, 22) What might he be afraid of?

2. Read 2 Samuel 21:9, 10. What does Rizpah do when her sons are killed? What does this tell us about her?

SIDE NOTE:

• Read 2 Samuel 21:1-8. The seven men chosen must have been involved with Saul in the attack of the Gibeonites. Read Deuteronomy 24:16 and Ezekiel 18:20. There’s no way for innocent lives to bear the guilt of their fathers. Since the Bible does not contradict itself, it must be that these seven men assisted Saul in attacking the Gibeonites. 

ANSWER:

• She protects their dead bodies from the birds or animals feeding on them. This shows that she had respect for the remains of the deceased. 

OBSERVATION:

• Verse 10 says that Rizpah did this “from the beginning of the harvest until water dropped...”
• I am not sure how long this is, but from the beginning of the harvest until rain comes is probably a long time, at least weeks, and perhaps even months.
• This action of Rizpah shows the respect she had for the remains of the deceased.

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

• What are some other biblical examples of showing respect for the remains of the dead? What can we learn from those examples?

3. Read 2 Samuel 21:11–14. How was David affected by Rizpah’s actions?

ANSWER:

• He also showed respect for the remains of the dead. 

OBSERVATION:

• Verse 14 says that, “After that, God answered the prayers for the land” (GWV).
• It’s interesting to notice that the land was healed not after the execution of the sons but after respect was shown to the remains of Saul and his children.
• Saul was called “the anointed of the Lord.” And he was not the best of persons, yet respect was still shown him and his descendents, even after death.

CONCLUSION:

• Rizpah had a hard life. She lived with a man who couldn’t control his own passions (Saul). She then was the cause of the rift between Abner and Ishbosheth, which resulted in Abner’s siding with David. Her entire life seems to be controlled by circumstances and causes outside of her control. Yet this did not stop her from doing what was right, even when it seemed no one else would.

APPLICATION QUESTION:

• When you are put into positions that you cannot control, how do you react? Do you get defensive? How would others view you in those situations?
• Rizpah and David showed respect to Saul and his family—do you show respect to those in authority, even if you disagree with them?

Nov13–19: Joab: David’s Weak Strongman

Teaching Points

1. Read 2 Samuel 2:17–23 and 3:1-22 and summarize what takes place.

ANSWER:

• After David’s men, including Asahel the brother of Joab, defeated Israel, Asahel made a fatal chase after Abner, who slew Asahel in the chase.
• After a time, Abner deserts Ishbosheth and offers Israel to David; David accepts this offer.

OBSERVATION:

• 2Sa 2:17 And there was a very sore battle that day; and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David. 

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

• Abner was defeated. Why do you think Asahel pursued after him? Hint: Look at the description of Asahel in verse 18. 

2. How did Joab respond to the accepted proposal by Abner?

ANSWER:

• 2Sa 3:25 Thou knowest Abner the son of Ner, that he came to deceive thee, and to know thy going out and thy coming in, and to know all that thou doest.
• 2Sa 3:30 So Joab and Abishai his brother slew Abner, because he had slain their brother Asahel at Gibeon in the battle. 

OBSERVATION:

• Joab first tells David that Abner was deceiving him. But the reason why Joab killed Abner was to revenge himself of his brother Asahel, whom Abner killed in an earlier battle.

• “But the favorable reception of so valiant and famed a warrior excited the jealousy of Joab, the commander-in-chief of David's army. … Now Joab, seeing an opportunity to avenge his brother's death and rid himself of a prospective rival, basely took occasion to waylay and murder Abner.”—Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 699.
• Jealousy over a position and a desire for justice led Joab to murder Abner. 

APPLICATION QUESTION:

• Are you reading into the motives of others because you are jealous of them?

3. Read 2 Samuel 11:15–25. What does this passage tell us about Joab?

ANSWER:

• Joab clearly shows that his allegiance is to the king rather than God.

OBSERVATION:

• Perhaps Joab felt obligated to do what David said because of how David rebuked him for the murder of Abner.

SPIRITUAL LESSON:

• Sometimes it’s hard to do what is right when we want to please those we admire, especially when those we admire fall into the same sins as us.
• What we need to do is focus on doing what is right because it is right so that we may avoid the folly of following the conscience and judgment of men.

4. In the previous example Joab obeyed David’s orders. Now read 2 Samuel 18:5–15. What does his action here tell us about him? How might he have rationalized this deed, as well?

ANSWER:

• Joab chooses when he wants to obey or disobey. For protecting the nation and his men (see 2 Samuel 19:5, 6), he could have a good reason for slaying Absalom. 

CONCLUSION:

• Joab’s story is a sad one. He chose to obey when it was convenient with his own desires and ambitions. He killed Abner out of his own desire for personal revenge as well as to rid himself of a possible rival of position; he obeys the king, even if it goes against what is right; and he disobeys the king according to what he thinks is right.

Nov6–12: Abiathar: The Priest

Teaching Points

1. What were some of the functions of Abiathar when he was priest?

ANSWER:

• 1Sa 23:6, 9–13 – brought the ephod to David
• 2Sa 15:24, 29 – carried the ark of God
• 2Sa 17:15–22 – working for David from inside the city 

OBSERVATION:

• Both the ephod and ark were emblems of God’s presence and directive will. Without these, the nation of Israel seemed to be without divine aid.
• It’s also interesting to see how Abiathar secretly worked for David while he was outside the city.
• “In the city the priests might do him good service by learning the movements and purposes of the rebels, and secretly communicating them to the king by their sons, Ahimaaz and Jonathan.”—Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 735. 

APPLICATION:

·      Sometimes God works for us when we cannot see Him doing it. We may be like David—in danger and outside the city, feeling rejected and alone—yet God sets in order things according to His providence on our behalf that we just cannot see or understand.

APPLICATION QUESTION:

·      Are you trusting in God even when you feel He’s not working for you?

·      What can you practically do to help you remember His love and care for you, even when it seems like He doesn’t?

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

·      Do you think what Abiathar was doing for David was deceitful? Please explain why or why not with the class.

2. Read 2 Samuel 15:13–29. What does this passage teach us about the character of David, even at this time of peril? What role does Abiathar play in this episode?

ANSWER:

• David:
• 2Sa 15:19 Then said the king to Ittai the Gittite, Wherefore goest thou also with us? return to thy place, and abide with the king: for thou art a stranger, and also an exile. 2Sa 15:20 Whereas thou camest but yesterday, should I this day make thee go up and down with us? seeing I go whither I may, return thou, and take back thy brethren: mercy and truth be with thee.
• 2Sa 15:25 And the king said unto Zadok, Carry back the ark of God into the city: if I shall find favour in the eyes of the LORD, he will bring me again, and shew me both it, and his habitation: 2Sa 15:26 But if he thus say, I have no delight in thee; behold, here am I, let him do to me as seemeth good unto him. … 2Sa 15:28 See, I will tarry in the plain of the wilderness, until there come word from you to certify me.
• Abiathar:
• 2Sa 15:24 And lo Zadok also, and all the Levites were with him, bearing the ark of the covenant of God: and they set down the ark of God; and Abiathar went up, until all the people had done passing out of the city.
• 2Sa 15:29 Zadok therefore and Abiathar carried the ark of God again to Jerusalem: and they tarried there.

OBSERVATION ON DAVID:

·      David must have been totally unselfish here. He could’ve rallied for himself all the men on his side and create a great divide in the kingdom.

·      But instead he asks Ittai and his men to go back. But they pleaded to stay and David lets them.

·      His unselfish spirit is also seen in that he asks Zadok the priest to take back the ark into the city Jerusalem.

·      This ark was a symbol of God’s victorious guidance and will on behalf of the king and the people.

·      Yet David lets this go, for he perhaps considers the place of the ark more necessary than himself in this situation.

·      David clearly shows the true spirit of humiliation and contrition. Remember how his sin with Bathsheba was still being visited upon. Therefore, he must’ve felt that all that was happening to him was just.

SOP ON DAVID’S CHARACTER:

·      2Sa 15:19, 20:

·      But David, with characteristic unselfishness, could not consent that these strangers who had sought his protection should be involved in his calamity. He expressed surprise that they should be ready to make this sacrifice for him.  {PP 731.3}

These men had been converted from paganism to the worship of Jehovah, and nobly they now proved their fidelity to their God and their king. David, with grateful heart, accepted their devotion to his apparently sinking cause, and all passed over the brook Kidron on the way toward the wilderness.  {PP 732.1}

• 2Sa 15:25, 26, 28:
• At sight of the ark joy and hope for a brief moment thrilled the heart of David. But soon other thoughts came to him. As the appointed ruler of God's heritage he was under solemn responsibility. Not personal interests, but the glory of God and the good of his people, were to be uppermost in the mind of Israel's king. God, who dwelt between the cherubim, had said of Jerusalem, "This is My rest" (Psalm 132:14); and without divine authority neither priest nor king had a right to remove therefrom the symbol of His presence. And David knew that his heart and life must be in harmony with the divine precepts, else the ark would be the means of disaster rather than of success. His great sin was ever before him. He recognized in this conspiracy the just judgment of God. The sword that was not to depart from his house had been unsheathed. He knew not what the result of the struggle might be. It was not for him to remove from the capital of the nation the sacred statutes which embodied the will of their divine Sovereign, which were the constitution of the realm and the foundation of its prosperity.  {PP 732.3} 

APPLICATION:

• David sensed his own just judgment in his fleet, yet didn’t try to revert the sentence by retaliating against the rebels.

APPLICATION QUESTION:

• How do you react in similar situations? When you know you’ve done wrong and someone else does wrong to you, do you retaliate back at them?
• Or do you, like David, accept the seeming “injustice” done to you and seek to glorify God in patiently enduring the test? Something to think about.

3. Read 1 Kings 1:1–8. What could have caused Abiathar, who had been so loyal to David, to do what he did here?

ANSWER:

• We are not too sure about why Abiathar did this. All we know is that somehow he turned from his loyalty by choosing to side with Adonijah. 

OBSERVATION:

• It’s interesting to this action by Abiathar. He was with David in all his trouble and pain. He was faithful, we can say, almost to the end of David’s life.

SPIRITUAL LESSON:

• Even though we prove valiant and faithful today as God’s ambassadors and representatives, we can still fall from grace.

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

• What are some possible reasons for Abiathar to support Adonijah? Please try to stay as close to the Bible as possible when sharing your answers with the class. 

CONCLUSION:

• Abiathar the priest played a great supporting role for David. His life testifies of the kind of service God requires of His “priesthood” of believers today—a life willing to take risks for the glory of God.
• But we should not think it okay to venture off in our own way when we know and understand the revealed will of God. 

Oct30–Nov5: Uriah: Faith of a Foreigner

Teaching Points

1. Make a chapter outline of 2 Samuel 11.

ANSWER:

• 2Sa 11:1-5 David commits adultery with Bathsheba
• 2Sa 11:6-13 David tries to get Uriah to go to his house
• 2Sa 11:14-17 David sets up Uriah to be killed
• 2Sa 11:18-27 David learns of Uriah’s death and marries Bathsheba

OBSERVATION:

• This chapter is about David’s sin of adultery and murder.

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

• Look at 2 Samuel 12. Why do you think God would wait to send a message to David? Why not try to warn David beforehand, like Cain was warned?

2. Read 2 Samuel 11 and ask yourself, How could someone so honored of God stoop so deep into sin? What warning should this present to all of us?

ANSWER:

• 2Sa 11:1 “tarried still” – This phrase in Hebrew has the implications of “sitting still,” “ease self,” and to be “situated”—basically, to let your guard down.
• So it was at a time of ease that caused David to let his guard down and then to fall into sin.

3. What would make David to let his guard down and be at ease?

ANSWER:

• 2Sa 10:18 And the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew the men of seven hundred chariots of the Syrians, and forty thousand horsemen, and smote Shobach the captain of their host, who died there. 2Sa 10:19 And when all the kings that were servants to Hadarezer saw that they were smitten before Israel, they made peace with Israel, and served them. So the Syrians feared to help the children of Ammon any more.
• 2Sa 11:1 And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem.

OBSERVATION:

• 2Sa 11:1—the Ammonites have just been destroyed and their chief city surrounded.
• 2Sa 10:18, 19—but just before the destruction of the Ammonites, David obtained victory over the Syrians, even killing their captain.
• David has been obtaining victory after victory right before he came to “ease self,” become “situated,” and let his guard down.
• It seems to be that when experiencing his victories that he relaxed his efforts to stay his trust upon God. 

SPIRITUAL LESSON:

• It’s very easy to trust in our own ability when we experience great victories in our spiritual walk. But this spirit of trusting to ourselves will prepare us to fall.
• It is at our highest spiritual point when we need to be the most humble. When we are experiencing victory after victory, it is then that we need to stay our dependence upon God even more. 

SOP ON DAVID BEFORE HIS SIN:

• “David was surrounded by the fruits of victory and the honors of his wise and able rule. It was now, while he was at ease and unguarded, that the tempter seized the opportunity to occupy his mind…. But when in ease and self-security he let go his hold upon God, David yielded to Satan and brought upon his soul the stain of guilt.”—Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 718.

APPLICATION QUESTION:

• What spiritual victories have you gained in the recent past? Did they lead you to feel better about yourself, or did you rely on God even more? 

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

• What could David have done in order to avoid his downfall?

4. What do we know about Uriah from 2 Samuel 11?

ANSWER:

• 2Sa 11:3 “Uriah the Hittite”
• 2Sa 11:7 “David demanded of him how Joab did, and how the people did, and how the war prospered”— Uriah was one of the “valiant men” of the army of Israel (see 1Ch 11:26, 41), he had military strength and intellect.
• 2Sa 11:8-13—Even though Uriah had two chances to stay at home to be with his wife, he decided to not take the comfort while the rest of his army was still in the battlefield.

OBSERVATION:

• There’s a definite contrast between Uriah’s conduct and that of David’s.
• Uriah would not take comfort or ease himself while the rest of his men were at war. Yet David took ease and comfort, and was thus led into sin.
• In the motives and character of Uriah lays a rebuke to David. David should have also been explicitly loyal to God in his conduct, as Uriah was loyal to him and Israel.

CONCLUSION:

• Pr 6:32 “But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.”
• “Had King David been engaged in some useful employment, he would not have been guilty of the murder of Uriah.”—Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, Volume 4, p. 412.

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

• What are some ways you or your church can help those who are in danger of becoming idle?