Chapter Twenty-One
David Avenges the Gibeonites
The last four chapters of the book of 2 Samuel have very few clues as to when these events took place. Many believe that they occurred earlier in David’s reign, possibly shortly after David showed kindness to Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth recorded in chapter nine. This chapter begins with a sequence of events that likely took place very early in his reign, while the last segment appears to have taken place much later when David was older.
21:1 Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year. And David sought the face of the LORD. And the LORD said, “There is bloodguilt on Saul and on his house, because he put the Gibeonites to death.”
We are told about a famine in the days of David that lasted for three years. Famines in the Bible can either be due to: 1) a naturally occurring event such as a drought;[1] 2) God stopping rain as a form of punishment; or 3) a city is under siege by an enemy that does not allow food or water into a city (see 2 Kings 6:25; 7:4; 25:3). Perhaps David believed that the famine was from a natural occurring drought for the first two years since it appears that he waited until the third year to inquire from YHWH as to why the famine occurring. David is told that there is bloodguilt (Hebrew dā·mîm’, blood) on Saul and his house, because he killed many of the Gibeonites. God was telling David that Saul and his blood-stained house was to blame for this famine.
To understand this judgment we need to go back to the time of Joshua to a time when the Israelites entered the Promised Land. They were instructed by God to eliminate the current inhabitants of the land as those people’s pagan ways had corrupted and spiritually polluted the land. God identified the people groups and nations that needed to be purged several times before they entered (see Exodus 3:8, 17; 13:5; 23:23, 28; 33:2; 34:11; Deuteronomy 7:1; 20:17; Joshua 3:10; 9:1), most lists included the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and the Jebusites. Shortly after Joshua and the Israelites successfully conquered Jericho and Ai, the inhabitants of Gibeon (who were Hivites) knew they would not survive any battle against Joshua, so they tried another tactic, deception. A small group of Gibeonites encountered Joshua on the road and acted as if they were from a distant land, and suggested that they create a peace covenant between the two groups. Joshua was told not to make a covenant with anyone in the land, but since he thought these travelers were from a great distance, he agreed. In God’s eyes, an oath, promise, or a covenant is binding, even when lied to (see Numbers 30:2; Leviticus 27:1-34; Numbers 6:1-21; Deuteronomy 23:21-23; Psalm 50:14; 61:8; 65:1; 66:13; 116:14-18; Ecclesiastes 5:4-6; Jonah 2:9). That covenant promise allowed the Gibeonites to remain in the land (see Joshua 9:1-27), even after several hundred years had passed (click here to read commentary).
Now we fast-forward to Saul, at some point in his reign, Saul likely driven to seek favor from the people of Israel and Judah (see verse 2), he tried to eradicate the Gibeonites from Israel, but that action was a violation of the still-standing covenant made between the people of Israel (that Joshua agreed to) and the Gibeonites. This slaughter of Gibeonites is not recorded anywhere in Scripture, just this retrospective reference. God is now calling attention to the fact that the people of Israel were still guilty of that bloodshed.
21:2 So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites were not of the people of Israel but of the remnant of the Amorites. Although the people of Israel had sworn to spare them, Saul had sought to strike them down in his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah.
The text here refers to the Gibeonites as being a remnant of the Amorites, but in Joshua 11:19 they are identified as being Hivites. Both the Hivites and the Armorites were descendants of Canaan, the son of Ham, one of the sons of Noah (see Genesis 10:1, 6, 15-17). Since the city of Gibeon is identified as a Hivite city and the people of Gibeon are called Hivites several times in Joshua chapter nine, that they are likely Hivites, the use of the term Amorite in this verse is considered to be a metonym, a commonly used general term instead of a specific, but related word.
The author tells us that even though the Gibeonites had a sworn agreement with the people of Israel that protected them from Israel ever annihilating them, Saul, in his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah, had sought to strike them down.
21:3 And David said to the Gibeonites, “What shall I do for you? And how shall I make atonement, that you may bless the heritage of the LORD?”
David asks the Gibeonites, what could he do for them, how could he make atonement (Hebrew ʾǎḵǎp·pēr’, to reconcile, to cover, to forgive) so that they may bless YHWH’s heritage (His people).
21:4 The Gibeonites said to him, “It is not a matter of silver or gold between us and Saul or his house; neither is it for us to put any man to death in Israel.” And he said, “What do you say that I shall do for you?”
They responded that the matter cannot be resolved with money or riches, nor do they desire to have someone unrelated to Saul be put to death. David asks again, “What do you want me to do for you?”
21:5 They said to the king, “The man who consumed us and planned to destroy us, so that we should have no place in all the territory of Israel, 6 let seven of his sons be given to us, so that we may hang them before the LORD at Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of the LORD.” And the king said, “I will give them.”
The Gibeonites reiterate by saying that the man, Saul, tried to destroy them so that they would no longer have any territory in Israel, therefore they now ask that seven of Saul’s sons be given to them, so that they could hang them before YHWH at Gibeah, Saul’s home town, in lieu of Saul, the chosen one of YHWH. David agrees and tells them he will hand the men over to them.
21:7 But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Saul’s son Jonathan, because of the oath of the LORD that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul. 8 The king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth; and the five sons of Merab the daughter of Saul, whom she bore to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite; 9 and he gave them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them on the mountain before the LORD, and the seven of them perished together. They were put to death in the first days of harvest, at the beginning of barley harvest.
David did not give them Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth because of the oath he gave to Jonathan years ago (plus David promised Mephibosheth that he would take care of him, see 1 Samuel 18:3; 20:14, 15, 42; 2 Samuel 9:7; 19:29). But David did send Armoni, Mephibosheth (there were two men named Mephibosheth, one was Jonathan’s son and this man, the son of Saul) sons of Rizpah, and five unnamed sons of Merab, the daughter of Saul. The Gibeonites hanged all seven of them on the mountain before YHWH . We are told that this execution took place in the first days of the barley harvest (Hebrew qā·ṣîr’, refers to the time of the year, a time to reap a harvest) but since there was a famine in the land for three years there would not have been any harvest, the barley harvest would normally have been harvested in the spring near Passover.
21:10 Then Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until rain fell upon them from the heavens. And she did not allow the birds of the air to come upon them by day, or the beasts of the field by night. 11 When David was told what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done, 12 David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of his son Jonathan from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the public square of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them, on the day the Philistines killed Saul on Gilboa. 13 And he brought up from there the bones of Saul and the bones of his son Jonathan; and they gathered the bones of those who were hanged. 14 And they buried the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan in the land of Benjamin in Zela, in the tomb of Kish his father. And they did all that the king commanded. And after that God responded to the plea for the land.
Rizpah, the mother of Armoni and Mephibosheth, went to where the bodies of her sons were and stayed there night and day preventing them from being disturbed by the birds or any other wild animals, while they waited until for the rain to start falling. When David heard about what Rizpah was doing, he had the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan dug up from where they were buried by the men of Jabesh-gilead. He then gathered the bones of the seven men that were hanged in Gibeah and had all of them buried in the the tomb of Kish, Saul’s father.
We are told that after all these events, God responded to the plea of the land. The words, “responded to the plea” is one Hebrew word (yē·ʿā·ṯēr’, to entreat, to pray, to cry out for deliverance), as God could now respond to the earlier prayers for the famine to stop. Many believe that He was waiting for the proper burial of the seven men to end the famine.
Considerations
What Happened Here?
This sequence of events is troublesome to many readers as the solution seems to them as being unfair and peculiar (odd Biblically, as there are a few anomalies). But we need to remember that this entire sequence is of God's making, He prompted David to fix the problem, the reason that there was a famine in the land. Let's take a close look at the problem.
We are told that there is "bloodguilt on Saul and on his house." What does that mean? When someone is murdered in the land, we know that the land would be defiled. The Bible teaches us that there are three things that can corrupt the land: 1) Idolatry (see Jeremiah 3:9; Ezekiel 36:17-18); 2) Sexual immorality (see Leviticus 18; Jeremiah 3:1); and 3) Murder (see Numbers 35:30–34; Psalm 106:38; Ezekiel 36:18). We also see that 'defiling' is a serious matter, for example when Achan found and kept for himself some items from Jericho that were to be destroyed, thirty-six men died in the battle at Ai. And then later Achan, his entire family, and all their livestock were killed, plus all their possessions were destroyed. Why? Because the items that were to be destroyed defiled the people of Israel (see Joshua 7:1-26). According to Numbers 35:33 the only way to purify the land after a murder is to execute the murderer.
Another element that is potentially confusing to readers is that the people of Gibeon at this time would have been essentially slaves and subservient to the Israelites, but that relationship did not matter to God. They did, however, understand that they did not have any right to collect any riches, nor demand that someone not related to the guilty person be killed, but nonetheless they did dictate a solution by asking for seven of Saul's offspring to be executed, and David listened. We are not told why that number was selected, but we do know that Biblically that number is significant and represents completion (click here to read about the number seven in Scripture).
Plus, after the execution we read that the bodies were not buried as the Torah requires, as they were left out left exposed to the weather, birds, and wild animals. Some believe that since the law states, “And if a man has committed a crime punishable by death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain all night on the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is cursed by God. You shall not defile your land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance.” (Deuteronomy 21:22-23, ESV, emphasis added), and since these seven men were not ‘criminals’ the law may not pertain to them. But it still tells us that a hanged man is cursed by God, meaning the bodies, regardless of crime or not, should have been buried. Others believe that the extended exposure was a Gibeonite protocol. The phrase in verse nine, “Before the LORD” tells us that these men were killed, not as sacrifices, but presented to God as an appeasement to atone for the deaths of the Gibeonites Saul killed, in order to remove the bloodguilt from the land. And as such the bodies may have been left exposed until the first rain which would indicate that the bloodguilt was removed and the famine was over. From God's perspective the land was now purified and the famine would come to an end.
Perhaps one reason we have difficulty in understanding passages like these in the Bible, is due to our not fully understanding the seriousness of sin. One commentator noted, "Atonement is never nice, but always gruesome. Sin, whatever its form, is ugly and atonement for sin is costly."[2] That is why God sent His Son to die for our sins, as we simply could never pay the cost!
A Blocked Prayer?
To say that the above sequence of events could be considered somewhat unusual would likely not be argued against by most readers. But the underlining issue can be perceived by some as being somewhat disturbing, that being of God not answering prayers. God sent a famine on the land and it took three years before someone, in this case, David, to inquire as to why.
It wasn’t as if from the time Saul massacred the Gibeonites until David’s day that God did not answer any of Israel’s prayers. Yet there came a time when God wanted to deal with this sin, and at that time He would not answer their prayers until they dealt with it...There are many reasons for unanswered prayer. When we see that our prayers are not answered we should seek God to address the problem.[3]
Can something block our prayers? The answer to that question may not be what we want to hear, but it is true, the answer is yes. The greatest barrier is our own sin! In the Old Testament it was clear that when the Israelites would disobey, it would often prevent God from responding to their prayers (for example see Leviticus 26:14-46; Deuteronomy 28:15-68). We also read in Psalm 66:18-19; Proverbs 28:9; Isaiah 59:2; and Jeremiah 5:25, that sin, especially unconfessed sin, can effectively render prayer ineffectual. Perhaps the most important element in prayer is what James wrote about, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.” (James 4:3, ESV) But what about today, do any of those still apply? Our sin, our disobedience, our lack of faith, our not praying in His will, our not expecting an answer, etc., are all things that can potentially affect our prayer life. But if we repent of our sins, and then humbly and earnestly seek God, He will answer.
More Battles with the Philistines
[Verses 15-22 parallel 1 Chronicles 20:4-8]
21:15 There was war again between the Philistines and Israel, and David went down together with his servants, and they fought against the Philistines. And David grew weary.
The word that is translated as ‘war’ in this verse is mil·ḥã·mā(h)’, it refers to a military conflict which can be translated as war, battle, or even a skirmish. In this battle David joins his men to fight against the Philistines, but he grew weary (Hebrew yā’·ʿǎp̄, to flutter, to flicker, make a motion like flying, to become tired, to lose consciousness).
21:16 And Ishbi-benob, one of the descendants of the giants, whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of bronze, and who was armed with a new sword, thought to kill David.
When one of the Philistines Ishbi-benob, a descendant of the giants (Hebrew rā·p̄ā(h)’, the father of several giants known as the Rephaim), whose spear weighed more than seven pounds and was armed with a new sword, saw David in the battle and probably could also see that he was fatigued, so he started to pursue him.
21:17 But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid and attacked the Philistine and killed him. Then David’s men swore to him, “You shall no longer go out with us to battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel.”
Abishai was able to intercede and kill the approaching Philistine. After the battle was over, David’s men told him that he should no longer go into battle, as he now, being older and easily tired, can be an easy target, and if he dies it would devastate many. His death would “quench the lamp of Israel,” a phrase only used this one time in the Bible, but the often used metaphor of leadership being a light (see 1 Kings 11:36; 15:4; 2 Kings 8:19; 2 Chronicles 21:7; Psalm 132:7) implies that his leadership was like a lamp to the people of Israel, God’s representative for the nation.
21:18 After this there was again war with the Philistines at Gob. Then Sibbecai the Hushathite struck down Saph, who was one of the descendants of the giants.
Later another war between the Philistines erupted (same Hebrew word) at Gob (an unknown location, but 1 Chronicles 20:4 records that this encounter occurred in Gezer, a city approximately 18 miles northwest of Jerusalem). It was during this battle when Sibbecai, one of David’s “mighty men” (see 1 Chronicles 11:26-29), killed Saph (also known as Sippai, see 1 Chronicles 20:4) a descendant of the giants (Hebrew rā·p̄ā(h)’, same as Ishbi-benob in verse sixteen, from a line of giants).
21:19 And there was again war with the Philistines at Gob, and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim, the Bethlehemite, struck down Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.
Then a third encounter with the Philistines, again at Gob. This time we are told that Elhanen the son of Jaare-oregim (also known as Jair, see 1 Chronicles 20:5) killed Goliath the Gittite, but we know that Goliath was killed by David many years earlier (see 1 Samuel 17:1-58). It appears that a few words were omitted, as the parallel account states, “Elhanan the son of Jair struck down Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.” (1 Chronicles 20:5b, ESV), which is likely the more accurate account.
21:20 And there was again war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each hand, and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number, and he also was descended from the giants. 21 And when he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, struck him down.
This fourth battle took place at Gath where there was a large man who had six fingers on each hand, six toes on each foot, and also descended from the giants (the Rephaim). We are told that when he taunted Israel (reminiscent of Goliath and his taunts, see 1 Samuel 17:8-11), Jonathan, the son of Shimei, killed him.
21:22 These four were descended from the giants in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.
The four giants identified in this section were all called descendants of rā·p̄ā(h)’ members of the Rephaim. Even though only one is identified as a brother of Goliath (Lahmi, see 1 Chronicles 20:5), many speculate that they were all brothers of Goliath, which is often presented as the reason David picked up five stones before killing Goliath (see 1 Samuel 17:40). All five of these giant men (Goliath and these four) were killed by David and his men.
Considerations
Giants and Rephaim
The Bible speaks of strange beings that may have only been partially human. We first encounter them in Genesis chapter six where we read the account of the condition of the world just prior to the worldwide flood. Most Bible translators prefer a less explicit approach to verse two, which defines an unholy union between dark angels and human women. The name of their offspring is typically transliterated instead of translated, they are called the Nephilim (click here to read more about the Nephilim).
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[1] Technically there is no such thing as a naturally occurring event without God, while He does set things into motion on earth, and while there is a natural order and motion to our world, including droughts, etc., He does use weather, like droughts, for His purposes, including testing people’s faith (for example see Genesis 12:10-20; 26:1-5; Ruth 1:1) and moving His people to Egypt (Genesis 41:1-46:27). These should not be considered judgment or punishment.
[2] Vannoy, J. R. (2009). Cornerstone Biblical Commentarya: 1-2 Samuel (Vol. 4, p. 398). Tyndale House Publishers.
[3] Guzik, D. (2013). 2 Samuel (2 Sa 21:14b). David Guzik.