II Samuel 3:39 …the LORD shall reward the doer of evil according to his wickedness
I am currently reading the story of a man whose father was one of the cofounders of Hamas. He claims his experience was much like something out of the seventh century with violence, manipulation, fighting, and the quest and desire for power. That is exactly what came to mind as I read II Samuel about the beginning of the kingdom of David. It is no wonder that Marxists and Communists view history as conflicts for gain of power. Whether you believe there to be a right or wrong, you just want power. There is a finite pie, so if you have power, I don’t, and if I have power, you can’t have it. When you look at the story of almost any nation, state, people group, or kingdom, you can see why some people think that way.
In II Samuel you read the story of the beginning of David’s kingdom. You see a lot of players who seem to be like hamsters on a wheel, knocking themselves out to gain power and place. They would be deceitful, commit murder, or take a wife in order to gain power. Such people have an exhausting life because once you become the old hamster, the wheel just takes over and your world goes topsy-turvy like you are stuck in a washing machine.
In II Samuel 3 David made a backroom deal with Abner, Saul’s former lieutenant. He said, “If we are going to make some kind of deal, first you bring back Saul’s daughter to me.” Saul had taken his daughter, David’s wife, away from David. Now, there are a number of things going on here. I’m not trying to second guess David. I don’t know his heart, but it is true that to have Saul’s daughter as his wife once again would be helpful to him as he took the kingdom of Israel. Abner himself was a man who made a play to take one of Saul’s concubines. That was seen, rightly I think, as a play for power. If you had Saul’s daughter or concubine, that was a kind of claim to the throne.
Verse 30 says, “So Joab [David’s lieutenant] and Abishai his brother slew Abner.” Verse 36 says David mourned for his former enemy Abner, and “all the people took notice of it, and it please them.” Verse 37 says, “It was not of the king to slay Abner.” II Samuel 3 is full of all these snapshots of people who in their own way, by marriage, murder, and even mourning, are trying to take control and power. Now, I don’t know anyone’s heart. I think David did the right thing here, but it also helped him gain more influence over those who weren’t sure about his leadership.
In II Samuel 4 it says that when Ishbosheth, whom Abner had originally backed as the king since he was Saul’s son, heard that Abner was dead “his hands were feeble, and the Israelites were troubled.” The reason was because his power was even more in question. Things got worse. There were two men who went and in deceit murdered Ishbosheth in his own bed. They then came to David for some kind of reward.
If you are not careful, even if you don’t have a sword in your hand, your entire life is just burning itself out trying to get ahead, to be in charge, to have power until you are too old, then someone else does the same thing to you. There is a better way to live. There is a contrast here of force and faith. You can either force your way on life or faith your way through life by trusting God. Which most characterizes your life, force or faith?
If you ask whether a man like Abner was good or bad, well, even though I don’t like him, there was some good in him. Did he live by force or faith? It seems apparent that he lived largely by force. The two men who murdered Ishbosheth were obviously bad characters, but I have been told that even terrorists sometimes have compassion for their own family. Perhaps the better question is, “What about David?” David was a good man and clearly lived by faith, but at times he had lapses where he was living by force. That is probably more like you and I. We want to do the right thing, but the question at any given moment is, “Am I living by force or am I living by faith?”
The power you need today rests in the omnipotence of God. Omnipotence means God’s all-power. Who is more powerful, you or God? God is. So, where do you get more power? Is it by exerting yourself or by trusting God? The answer is that power rests in the omnipotence of God. I think David understood this, though he did not always live up to it. You see this in two high points in chapters 3 and 4.
The end of II Samuel 3:39 says, “The LORD shall reward the doer of evil according to his wickedness.” David is talking about those who had murdered Abner when he said, “The LORD shall reward.” That is important to remember. God is in control. The beginning of verse 39 says, “And I am this day weak…” So, David is on top, the king, yet there is weakness. But God shows His power in our weakness when we acknowledge our need and His power.
David goes on to say, “These men be too hard for me: the LORD shall reward the doer of evil according to his wickedness.” Are you always living in an endless cycle of trying to get even, to be right, or to exact revenge? Will you yield that to the God who is the Judge of the universe and who will do what is right by those who do what is wrong. David came to a point where he realized that God would reward and repay.
Again, in II Samuel 4:9 when two opportunists thought they could gain favor by murdering his apparent foe, David says, “As the LORD liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity.” He goes on to say, “Look, I don’t need your help in murdering a righteous man.” So, God will repay evil and rescue what is right. David came to a point, though he faltered at times, where he lived by faith and not by force.
What about you? Is your first instinct when you are in trouble, have competition, or are trying to gain a foothold to harm others and exert yourself, or is your instinct to look to the God who has all knowledge and power? I’m not suggesting we sit on our hands. I’m suggesting we access power that is far greater than our own by putting our faith and trust in God by doing the right thing in the right way at the right time. Why? Because the power you need rests on the omnipotence of God.