2 Samuel 8 - Remember, You're at War!
- Chad Werkhoven
- 17 hours ago
- 5 min read
Why does the Old Testament seem so violent?!?
2 Samuel 8:1-15 (NIV)
8 In the course of time, David defeated the Philistines and subdued them, and he took Metheg Ammah from the control of the Philistines.
2 David also defeated the Moabites. He made them lie down on the ground and measured them off with a length of cord. Every two lengths of them were put to death, and the third length was allowed to live. So the Moabites became subject to David and brought him tribute.
3 Moreover, David defeated Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah, when he went to restore his monument at the Euphrates River. 4 David captured a thousand of his chariots, seven thousand charioteers and twenty thousand foot soldiers. He hamstrung all but a hundred of the chariot horses.
5 When the Arameans of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck down twenty-two thousand of them. 6 He put garrisons in the Aramean kingdom of Damascus, and the Arameans became subject to him and brought tribute. The LORD gave David victory wherever he went.
7 David took the gold shields that belonged to the officers of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem. 8 From Tebah and Berothai, towns that belonged to Hadadezer, King David took a great quantity of bronze.
9 When Tou king of Hamath heard that David had defeated the entire army of Hadadezer, 10 he sent his son Joram to King David to greet him and congratulate him on his victory in battle over Hadadezer, who had been at war with Tou. Joram brought with him articles of silver, of gold and of bronze.
11 King David dedicated these articles to the LORD, as he had done with the silver and gold from all the nations he had subdued: 12 Edom and Moab, the Ammonites and the Philistines, and Amalek. He also dedicated the plunder taken from Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah.
13 And David became famous after he returned from striking down eighteen thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
14 He put garrisons throughout Edom, and all the Edomites became subject to David. The LORD gave David victory wherever he went.
15 David reigned over all Israel, doing what was just and right for all his people.
Heidelberg Catechism
Q&A 123
Q. What does the second request of the Lord's Prayer mean?
A. “Your kingdom come” means,
Rule us by your Word and Spirit in such a way
that more and more we submit to you.
Keep your church strong, and add to it.
Destroy the devil’s work;
destroy every force which revolts against you
and every conspiracy against your Word.
Do this until your kingdom is so complete and perfect
that in it you are
all in all.
Summary
Passage like today's, which tell of Israel's conquest over Canaan, grate upon our modern ears. Our modern translations try to soften a passage like this by using words like subdue and defeat rather than ugly and aggressive words like smite or smote that the old KJV used.
But no matter how elegant the words used to translate episodes like today's are, it's hard to read that David made the Moabites lie down on the ground and measured them off with a length of cord. Every two lengths of them were put to death, and the third length was allowed to live. Not even the horses escaped such torture: David hamstrung all but a hundred of the chariot horses [this prevented the speed necessary for pulling a chariot, but preserved some utility for the horses for other uses].
Even more surprising is the central verse of this chapter. It would seem shocking enough if David's military campaigns came as a product of his own ego or desire to dominate everything around him that had gotten out of hand, and that the LORD would later take him to task for his brutality and excesses. But it's quite the opposite! David was waging these wars in the LORD's name! Verse 6 makes this crystal clear: The LORD gave David victory wherever he went.
Dig Deeper
Christianity has become very personalized in our own day and age. Our evangelism often centers around inviting others into a personal relationship with Jesus, not inviting others to take up their cross and follow Jesus as He battles the forces of evil. The primary purpose of the Bible for so many is simply a guide to experiencing personal peace and fulfillment.
While the Bible does certainly give this guidance, it's important to remember that it comes packaged in an ongoing story of cosmic conflict and war. Because we live in such a blessed time where evidence of this war is repressed or twisted into something that seems far less insidious, it's so easy to forget this.
Dale Ralph Davis helps puts this all in perspective:
David’s kingdom is not a perfect but a preliminary and principial form of Christ’s kingdom. The kingdom pattern, however, is the same: conflict precedes conquest. Both Old and New Testaments testify that, on the whole, men and nations do not long to receive but live to resist Christ’s reign and that he will establish his rule at the last not by popular demand but by armed might (see, e.g. Ps.2; Isa. 11:3b–5; Joel 3:9–17; Zech. 14:1–5, 12–15; 2 Thess. 1:7b–8, 2:8–10). The church tends to mute this virile biblical note and thereby emasculates the doctrine of the kingdom. Sometimes this bland sentimentality has become canonized in our hymns, e.g: For not with swords’ loud clashing Nor roll of stirring drums, With deeds of love and mercy The heavenly kingdom comes. There is a tad of truth in this but a great deal of distortion, as if should people only be nice enough the kingdom would arrive. But surely the cross has taught us that no one defeats the dominion of darkness in a bloodless coup. Nor will history simply ooze into the kingdom of God. That kingdom will come at the last because Christ, David’s seed, imposes it over all objection and opposition and conquers all his and our enemies.
By God's amazing grace, you and I no longer need to smite the Moabites or hamstring chariot horses. But Paul reminds us that the battle continues. It's being fought externally: our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 6:12).
It's also being waged - almost more fiercely - internally. Sarx (your old sinful nature) is waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me (Romans 7:23).
So realize these battles are being fought all around you. You can either surrender or fight back. So take courage that the same LORD who gave David victory also will carry you to victory in Christ.
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, the God of Angel Armies, who gives victory to His covenant people;
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you'll put on your Spiritual Armor and take your stand;
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
