oath

Failure to Believe

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36 Then the king sent and summoned Shimei and said to him, “Build yourself a house in Jerusalem and dwell there, and do not go out from there to any place whatever. 37 For on the day you go out and cross the brook Kidron, know for certain that you shall die. Your blood shall be on your own head.” 38 And Shimei said to the king, “What you say is good; as my lord the king has said, so will your servant do.” So Shimei lived in Jerusalem many days.

39 But it happened at the end of three years that two of Shimei’s servants ran away to Achish, son of Maacah, king of Gath. And when it was told Shimei, “Behold, your servants are in Gath,” 40 Shimei arose and saddled a donkey and went to Gath to Achish to seek his servants. Shimei went and brought his servants from Gath. 41 And when Solomon was told that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and returned, 42 the king sent and summoned Shimei and said to him, “Did I not make you swear by the LORD and solemnly warn you, saying, ‘Know for certain that on the day you go out and go to any place whatever, you shall die’? And you said to me, ‘What you say is good; I will obey.’ 43 Why then have you not kept your oath to the LORD and the commandment with which I commanded you?” 44 The king also said to Shimei, “You know in your own heart all the harm that you did to David my father. So the LORD will bring back your harm on your own head. 45 But King Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before the LORD forever.” 46 Then the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he went out and struck him down, and he died.

So the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon. – 1 Kings 2:36-46 ESV

There was one last piece of unfinished business that Solomon had to attend to. Just before his death, David had charged Solomon with the task of repaying Shimei for the disrespectful way he had treated him as he was evacuating Jerusalem after Absalom’s takeover of the kingdom (2 Samuel 16:5-14). This relative of David’s predecessor, King Saul, had held a grudge against David ever since he had supplanted Saul as the king of Israel. He was overjoyed to see David having to suffer the indignity of sneaking out of the capital city because his own son had stolen his kingdom. Shimei even threw stones at David, hurling insults and curses as he did so.

“Get out of here, you murderer, you scoundrel!” he shouted at David. “The LORD is paying you back for all the bloodshed in Saul’s clan. You stole his throne, and now the LORD has given it to your son Absalom. At last you will taste some of your own medicine, for you are a murderer!” – 2 Samuel 16:7-8 NLT

Shimei wrongly assumed that David’s fall was the work of Yahweh. Some of David’s faithful soldiers, who had accompanied him out of the city, offered to strike Shimei down, but David would not allow it. Instead, he told them, “My own son is trying to kill me. Doesn’t this relative of Saul have even more reason to do so? Leave him alone and let him curse, for the LORD has told him to do it. And perhaps the LORD will see that I am being wronged and will bless me because of these curses today” (2 Samuel 16:11-12 NLT).

David could empathize with Shimei’s anger and resentment. He understood why Shimei was so upset and had also concluded that God was behind it all. When Shimei called David a murderer, he had struck a very sensitive nerve. David would have immediately recalled his complicity in the death of Uriah, the husband of Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:14-17). Shimei was right; he was a murderer, and perhaps God was still repaying him for his sinful actions against an innocent man. So, David refused to punish Shimei for his actions.

But some time later, when the attempted coup had been thwarted, and Absalom had been killed, David returned to the city of Jerusalem. And one of the first people to greet him upon his arrival was Shimei.

As the king was about to cross the river, Shimei fell down before him. “My lord the king, please forgive me,” he pleaded. “Forget the terrible thing your servant did when you left Jerusalem. May the king put it out of his mind. I know how much I sinned. That is why I have come here today, the very first person in all Israel to greet my lord the king.” – 2 Samuel 19:18-20 NLT

With the news of Absalom’s death and David’s return to Jerusalem, Shimei feared for his life. He knew he was a dead man unless he could convince David of his remorse and regret for his previous actions. Feigning sorrow for his emotionally driven display of anger, Shimei begged the king for forgiveness.

Though Shimei deserved punishment, David was unwilling to spoil the joy of the occasion by meting out judgment. He could have had Shimei executed on the spot, but instead, “the king said to Shimei, ‘You shall not die.’ And the king gave him his oath” (2 Samuel 19:23 ESV).

David kept that oath, but on his deathbed, it became clear that he had never really forgiven Shimei for what he had done. He allowed Shimei to live, but he intended to repay his accuser in the end. So, years later, as he neared death, David gave Solomon a not-so-subtle hint about what should be done with Shimei.

“And remember Shimei son of Gera, the man from Bahurim in Benjamin. He cursed me with a terrible curse as I was fleeing to Mahanaim. When he came down to meet me at the Jordan River, I swore by the LORD that I would not kill him. But that oath does not make him innocent. You are a wise man, and you will know how to arrange a bloody death for him.” – 1 Kings 2:8-9 NLT

David didn’t tell Solomon what to do. He simply reminded Solomon of what Shimei had done. He fully expected Solomon to defend his honor by having Shimei put to death. But Solomon had other plans. Rather than subjecting Shimei to capital punishment, he had him confined to the city of Jerusalem. Shimei, as a Benjamite, lived within the territory of his tribe. But Solomon ordered that he relocate within the city walls, where his actions could be carefully monitored. Shimei was given strict instructions never to venture outside the walls of the city for any reason, under penalty of death.

“Build a house here in Jerusalem and live there. But don’t step outside the city to go anywhere else. On the day you so much as cross the Kidron Valley, you will surely die; and your blood will be on your own head.” – 1 Kings 2:36-37 NLT

Solomon graciously spared Shimei’s life but placed him under house arrest. This arrangement seemed to work well for Shimei. For three years, he enjoyed a peaceful and prosperous life. But then, the unexpected happened. Two of his servants ran away and, without thinking about it, Shimei saddled a donkey and pursued his missing property. When he had recaptured his runaway servants and returned to Jerusalem, he was surprised to learn that he had been summoned to the king’s palace.

By this time, Shimei must have understood the gravity of his situation. He had violated the oath he had made, and Solomon reminded him of their agreement.

“Didn’t I make you swear by the LORD and warn you not to go anywhere else or you would surely die? And you replied, ‘The sentence is fair; I will do as you say.’ Then why haven’t you kept your oath to the LORD and obeyed my command?” – 1 Kings 2:42-43 NLT

Notice that Solomon describes Shimei’s oath as having been made to the LORD. When he agreed to the stipulations handed down by the king, he had been swearing an oath before Yahweh. Solomon had been acting as God’s appointed leader, and when Shimei agreed to the terms of the contract, he made a binding covenant with God Almighty. Now he had broken that vow and failed to keep his word, and he would have to suffer the consequences. Solomon ensured that Shimei understood the seriousness of his situation.

“You certainly remember all the wicked things you did to my father, David. May the LORD now bring that evil on your own head. But may I, King Solomon, receive the LORD’s blessings, and may one of David’s descendants always sit on this throne in the presence of the LORD.” – 1 Kings 2:44-45 NLT

David had kept his word and allowed Shimei to live. Now, Solomon was going to keep his word and have Shimei executed for the violation of his oath. Shimei’s death would not be because he had left the confines of the city of Jerusalem. The death sentence that hung over his head was due to his unlawful treatment of and rebellion against the LORD’s anointed, King David. He deserved to die because he was a rebel, but Solomon had shown him grace and mercy. The city of Jerusalem had become a city of refuge, a place where he could find release from the condemnation of death he so richly deserved. As long as he remained within the walls of the city, he would be spared. His confinement was not imprisonment, but a form of protection. As long as Shimei remained faithful to reside within the confines of the city, he would be spared the penalty of death. But as soon as he walked outside the gates, he violated his oath and forfeited his right to live.

In so many ways, this narrative foreshadows what Jesus Christ would do for guilty sinners. He would become the place of refuge, the living Jerusalem, where those condemned to death could find mercy, grace, and life. As long as Shimei remained within Jerusalem’s protective walls, he would be spared the penalty he deserved. But when he allowed himself to be distracted by the cares of this world and went in pursuit of his runaway servants, Shimei revealed his true heart. He placed a greater value on material things than he did on the gift of life he had been offered by the king.

Jesus would later remind His disciples about the necessity of abiding in Him. He would challenge them to remain faithful, recognizing that their hope of eternal life was found in Him alone.

“Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!” – John 15:5-7 NLT

Shimei had failed to remain in Jerusalem, and it cost him his life. He had seen the walls of the city as a prison rather than a source of protection. He had seen his agreement with the king as restrictive rather than redemptive. How often do those who are offered the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ come to see that offer as a burden rather than a blessing? They prefer the “freedom” of sin over the emancipation from death that is offered within the protective walls of God’s gracious love. Like Shimei, they ultimately forfeit their lives.

In the passage above, Jesus is not teaching the possibility of losing one’s salvation. He is calling for faith that stands the test of time. It endures the trials and temptations of this life because it is based on the hope of eternal life. The apostle John described those who give the appearance of abiding faith, but walk away at the first sign of trouble.

These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us. – 1 John 2:19 NLT

Jesus used agrarian imagery to describe those who will claim to have faith in Him but eventually turn away.

The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they don’t last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God’s word. – Matthew 13:20-21 NLT

The author of Hebrews provides a powerful warning against professing a false faith that fails to stand the test of time and the inevitability of trials. He encourages his audience to seek a faith that endures to the end.

Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ. – Hebrews 3:12-14 NLT

It seems that Shimei never really believed that Solomon would put him to death. When his slaves ran away, Shimei never stopped to consider the danger he faced if he left the confines of Jerusalem. His possessions meant more to him than the threat of death. Jesus spoke of those who place a higher priority on this life than the one to come.

“If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?” – Matthew 16:24-26 NLT

In capturing his runaway slaves, Shimei got what he was looking for, but he also got what he deserved: Death. He failed to take his oath to Yahweh seriously because he never really believed his life was on the line. He regained his slaves but lost his soul; a high price to pay.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Good Intentions Are Never Good Enough

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1 On the seals are the names of Nehemiah the governor, the son of Hacaliah, Zedekiah, 2 Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah, 3 Pashhur, Amariah, Malchijah, 4 Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch, 5 Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah, 6 Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch, 7 Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin, 8 Maaziah, Bilgai, Shemaiah; these are the priests. 9 And the Levites: Jeshua the son of Azaniah, Binnui of the sons of Henadad, Kadmiel; 10 and their brothers, Shebaniah, Hodiah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan, 11 Mica, Rehob, Hashabiah, 12 Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah, 13 Hodiah, Bani, Beninu. 14 The chiefs of the people: Parosh, Pahath-moab, Elam, Zattu, Bani, 15 Bunni, Azgad, Bebai, 16 Adonijah, Bigvai, Adin, 17 Ater, Hezekiah, Azzur, 18 Hodiah, Hashum, Bezai, 19 Hariph, Anathoth, Nebai, 20 Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir, 21 Meshezabel, Zadok, Jaddua, 22 Pelatiah, Hanan, Anaiah, 23 Hoshea, Hananiah, Hasshub, 24 Hallohesh, Pilha, Shobek, 25 Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah, 26 Ahiah, Hanan, Anan, 27 Malluch, Harim, Baanah.

28 “The rest of the people, the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the temple servants, and all who have separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the Law of God, their wives, their sons, their daughters, all who have knowledge and understanding, 29 join with their brothers, their nobles, and enter into a curse and an oath to walk in God’s Law that was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our Lord and his rules and his statutes. 30 We will not give our daughters to the peoples of the land or take their daughters for our sons. 31 And if the peoples of the land bring in goods or any grain on the Sabbath day to sell, we will not buy from them on the Sabbath or on a holy day. And we will forego the crops of the seventh year and the exaction of every debt.

32 “We also take on ourselves the obligation to give yearly a third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God: 33 for the showbread, the regular grain offering, the regular burnt offering, the Sabbaths, the new moons, the appointed feasts, the holy things, and the sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, and for all the work of the house of our God. 34 We, the priests, the Levites, and the people, have likewise cast lots for the wood offering, to bring it into the house of our God, according to our fathers’ houses, at times appointed, year by year, to burn on the altar of the Lord our God, as it is written in the Law. 35 We obligate ourselves to bring the firstfruits of our ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of every tree, year by year, to the house of the Lord; 36 also to bring to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God, the firstborn of our sons and of our cattle, as it is written in the Law, and the firstborn of our herds and of our flocks; 37 and to bring the first of our dough, and our contributions, the fruit of every tree, the wine and the oil, to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and to bring to the Levites the tithes from our ground, for it is the Levites who collect the tithes in all our towns where we labor. 38 And the priest, the son of Aaron, shall be with the Levites when the Levites receive the tithes. And the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes to the house of our God, to the chambers of the storehouse. 39 For the people of Israel and the sons of Levi shall bring the contribution of grain, wine, and oil to the chambers, where the vessels of the sanctuary are, as well as the priests who minister, and the gatekeepers and the singers. We will not neglect the house of our God.” – Nehemiah 10:1-39 ESV

For 70 years, God set the people of Judah aside and forced them to live as exiles in the land of Babylon. He warned them about the consequences of their disobedience, and this was the fulfillment of the warning they received when He first gave them His Law. Centuries earlier, Moses had shared the blessings and curses that accompanied God’s commands. If the people willingly obeyed God’s holy code of conduct, they would experience His abundant blessings. But disobedience would prove costly.

“…if you will not obey the voice of the Lord your God or be careful to do all his commandments and his statutes that I command you today, then all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you.” – Deuteronomy 28:15 ESV

“The Lord will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You shall go out one way against them and flee seven ways before them. And you shall be a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.” – Deuteronomy 28:25 ESV

“The Lord will bring you and your king whom you set over you to a nation that neither you nor your fathers have known. And there you shall serve other gods of wood and stone. And you shall become a horror, a proverb, and a byword among all the peoples where the Lord will lead you away.” – Deuteronomy 28:36-37 ESV

“The Lord will bring a nation against you from far away, from the end of the earth, swooping down like the eagle, a nation whose language you do not understand, a hard-faced nation who shall not respect the old or show mercy to the young.” – Deuteronomy 28:49-5-7 ESV

When the returned exiles stood for six hours listening to Ezra recite the Mosaic Law, they recognized that God had kept His word. Every warning had become a reality. The threats were no longer faint possibilities; they were history. Everything had happened just as God said it would. God had fulfilled His warning of punishment but had also kept His promise of restoration. The 70 years had passed and God allowed a remnant of His people to return to the land of Judah. These descendants of the original exiles had made their way to Jerusalem and, against all odds, rebuilt the Temple and restored the city’s walls. They had re-established the Levitical priesthood, reinstituted the sacrificial system, and reacquainted themselves with the Mosaic Law. Now it was time to commit.

A covenant was drawn up and written down. This document was then ratified and signed by Nehemiah and other prominent leaders. These men affixed their names to the document on behalf of the people of Judah, committing the entire community to live according to God’s commands. This official signing ceremony was followed by a corporate oath of commitment.

They swore a curse on themselves if they failed to obey the Law of God as issued by his servant Moses. They solemnly promised to carefully follow all the commands, regulations, and decrees of the LORD our Lord. – Nehemiah 10:29 NLT

The curse they swore reflects their understanding of Deuteronomy 28:15-68). They understood that nothing about the Law had changed. During their time in captivity, God had not revised the Law or lessened the intensity of the curses. Obedience would still result in blessings and disobedience would bring about curses. By swearing an oath, they acknowledged their understanding of the covenant’s conditions. They were willing to accept the consequences.

Their oath contained the following verbal commitments:

  1. They agreed to maintain the purity of their community by refusing to give their sons and daughters in marriage to outsiders.
  2. They agreed to honor the sabbath day by keeping it holy.
  3. They agreed to restore the observance of the sabbatical year.
  4. They agreed to fund the care and maintenance of God’s house by paying the Temple tax.
  5. They agreed to give their firstborn and firstfruits to God.
  6. They agreed to supply the needs of the Levitical priests.
  7. They agreed to never neglect the Temple of God.

It’s impossible to know whether the people understood the gravity of the oath they were swearing. The mention of the curses reveals that they understood the consequences but it is difficult to believe that they fully grasped the weight of their commitment. Perhaps they assumed they had no choice. The Law had been read and explained and its requirements were non-negotiable. It wasn’t a list of options from which to choose. They couldn’t opt out or self-select the laws they wanted to obey. It was all or nothing.

“See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it.” – Deuteronomy 30:15-16 ESV

Their ancestors had also made an oath to keep God’s law.

Then Moses went down to the people and repeated all the instructions and regulations the Lord had given him. All the people answered with one voice, “We will do everything the Lord has commanded.” – Exodus 24:3 NLT

But they failed miserably. From the moment they entered the land of Canaan to the day God cast them out, they had lived in disobedience to His laws. Jeremiah prophesied that Judah would be held captive for 70 years because of their disobedience to God’s laws, including the Sabbath-rest ordinance.

“When you have entered the land I am giving you, the land itself must observe a Sabbath rest before the Lord every seventh year. For six years you may plant your fields and prune your vineyards and harvest your crops, but during the seventh year the land must have a Sabbath year of complete rest. It is the Lord’s Sabbath. Do not plant your fields or prune your vineyards during that year. And don’t store away the crops that grow on their own or gather the grapes from your unpruned vines. The land must have a year of complete rest.” – Leviticus 25:2-5 NLT

From the time of Israel’s first king to the Babylonian captivity, 490 years passed. During that time, the people of Israel failed to observe a single sabbatical year and their 70-year captivity was God’s way of allowing the land to “rest” in their absence. God had warned the Israelites that all His laws must be obeyed.

“You shall follow my rules and keep my statutes and walk in them. I am the Lord your God.” – Leviticus 18:4 ESV

Failure to obey would result in their forceful rejection, a sudden and violent act that God compares to vomiting.

“…do not defile the land and give it a reason to vomit you out, as it will vomit out the people who live there now.” – Leviticus 18:28 NLT

Nehemiah and the people knew that if God had done it once, He could do it again. So, they swore an oath to keep His commands. They meant well. But their well-intentioned efforts were doomed to fall short. The apostle Paul later wrote “no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are” (Romans 3:20 NLT).

As a former Pharisee, Paul was an expert in the Mosaic Law. He had been a faithful law-keeper. But upon coming to faith in Christ, he realized the futility of trying to gain a right standing with God through obedience to the law. He wrote the following insight to the believers in Galatia:

But those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse, for the Scriptures say, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the commands that are written in God’s Book of the Law.” So it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” This way of faith is very different from the way of law, which says, “It is through obeying the law that a person has life.” – Galatians 3:10-12 NLT

Moses had told the people of Israel, “Cursed is he who does not put the words of this law into practice” (Deuteronomy 27:26 BSB). But Paul revealed the good news that the curse has been lifted by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. – Galatians 3:13 NLT

The law can’t save, it can only convict. Obedience to the law can’t justify, it can only condemn. So, while the people of Judah sincerely meant to fulfill their oath, they would never be able to pull it off. God required complete obedience. There could be no grey areas. To disobey one law was to disobey them all (James 2:10).

God knew the people of Judah would never keep their oath. He was well aware of their shortcomings and the law’s impossible standards. But in His grace and mercy, God has promised a future day when He will do for His chosen people what they could never have done for themselves.

“The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant, though I loved them as a husband loves his wife,” says the Lord.

“But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel after those days,” says the Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.” – Jeremiah 31:31-33 NLT

The people of Judah ratified a covenant and swore an oath. But without God’s help, they would never be able to keep their commitment. No one can earn a right standing with God through human effort. No one can live up to His holy standards in their own strength. That’s why He sent His Son to take on human flesh and do what no other man had ever done: Live a sinless life that reflected full obedience to the law of God. It was His sinlessness that made Him the perfect sacrifice. He became the unblemished Lamb of God who paid for the sins of the world (John 1:29).

The people of Judah meant well, but God knew the truth.

“These people say they are mine.
They honor me with their lips,
    but their hearts are far from me.” – Isaiah 29:13 NLT

They didn’t just need the law, they needed a lawkeeper. They needed the Messiah, the Savior who would come to make righteousness and holiness available through the offering of His sinless life as a substitute for their own.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

One Bad Decision Leads to Another.

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16 At the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, they heard that they were their neighbors and that they lived among them. 17 And the people of Israel set out and reached their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim. 18 But the people of Israel did not attack them, because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel. Then all the congregation murmured against the leaders. 19 But all the leaders said to all the congregation, “We have sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel, and now we may not touch them. 20 This we will do to them: let them live, lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath that we swore to them.” 21 And the leaders said to them, “Let them live.” So they became cutters of wood and drawers of water for all the congregation, just as the leaders had said of them.

22 Joshua summoned them, and he said to them, “Why did you deceive us, saying, ‘We are very far from you,’ when you dwell among us? 23 Now therefore you are cursed, and some of you shall never be anything but servants, cutters of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.” 24 They answered Joshua, “Because it was told to your servants for a certainty that the Lord your God had commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you—so we feared greatly for our lives because of you and did this thing. 25 And now, behold, we are in your hand. Whatever seems good and right in your sight to do to us, do it.” 26 So he did this to them and delivered them out of the hand of the people of Israel, and they did not kill them. 27 But Joshua made them that day cutters of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the Lord, to this day, in the place that he should choose.  – Joshua 9:16-27 ESV

Had there been an Academy Awards ceremony in those days, the entire nation of Gibeon would have not only have been nominated for a Best Actor award, they would have taken home the Oscar. Their portrayal of a poor, disheveled people who had traveled many miles in order to secure a peace treaty with Israel was so convincing that Joshua and the elders of Israel had been duped into believing them. And not only did they make a treaty of non-aggression with the Gibeonites, they swore an oath before God.

“We have sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel, and now we may not touch them.” – Joshua 9:19 ESV

 

By invoking the name of God, Joshua and the leaders of Israel had bound themselves to Him, not the Gibeonites. They were now obligated to God. If they broke their commitment, they would answer to God. And it is important to note that this vow or oath was in direct violation of God’s command that they completely destroy and eliminate all the nations living in the land of Canaan. They had made a vow to God obligating themselves to disobey the command of God. We can attempt to excuse their behavior by pointing out that they had been deceived by the Gibeonites. But their real sin was that they had failed to seek the counsel of God (vs 14).

One of the things that stands out in this chapter is the seeming incongruity of the opening verses. It opens with a rather ominous announcement that when the nations west of the Jordan heard about Israel’s conquests and the building of their altar at Mount Ebal, they formed alliances against Israel.

As soon as all the kings who were beyond the Jordan in the hill country and in the lowland all along the coast of the Great Sea toward Lebanon, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, heard of this, 2 they gathered together as one to fight against Joshua and Israel. – Joshua 9:1-2 ESV

Perhaps news of these military alliances had reached Joshua and the elders of Israel and had played a role in their decision to make a treaty with the Gibeonites. The temptation would have been great to form an alliance with another nation in the hopes of avoiding yet another conflict and of having someone to come to their aid should they need it. But God had clearly forbidden the making of alliances. He wanted the Israelites to depend upon Him. And the fact that the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites were joining forces against the Israelites was no concern to God. And it should have been no concern to Joshua. God had promised to give them ALL the land and ALL the nations living in the land.

But the oath was made and the treaty sealed. The Israelites were committed to sparing the lives of the Gibeonites. And when they discovered that they had been lied to and that the Gibeonites were actually inhabitants of the land of Canaan and not foreigners from a distant nation, all the Israelites could do was get angry. The people of Israel turned their anger against Joshua and the elders, questioning their leadership and the wisdom behind their decision. This passage forms a turning point in the corporate history of Israel. The defeats of the cities of Jericho and Ai should have been an example of how things were going to go from that point forward. Those two victories were to have been the first of many God-ordained battles. But with the swearing of the oath to spare the people of Gibeon, Israel set a new standard of partial obedience and dangerous compromise that would haunt them for years to come. In fact, when Saul became the first king of Israel, he had violated the oath made by Joshua and put some of the Gibeonites to death. And as a result, God was forced to bring a famine on the nation of Israel for their breaking of the alliance and of their oath to God.

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.” 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. – 2 Samuel 21:1-2 ESV

The fateful decision made by Joshua and the elders of Israel had long-term ramifications. And once they had made their choice to spare the people of Gibeon, they were forced to make yet another decision: What to do with them. And once again, it appears that Joshua did not seek the counsel of God, but made a unilateral decision to turn the Gibeonites into servants, humiliating them for their deception by forcing them into a life-long role of subjugation and servitude. He made them “cutters of wood and drawers of water.” But look closely at what Joshua decided to do and the exact nature of the role he assigned to these pagan idol-worshipers.

Joshua made them that day cutters of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the Lord, to this day, in the place that he should choose. – Joshua 9:27 ESV

While these people had feigned a fear of God, they had no love for God. They had only hoped to escape annihilation at the hands of Israelites. When Joshua had questioned them about the motive behind their deception, they had responded:

“Because it was told to your servants for a certainty that the Lord your God had commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you—so we feared greatly for our lives because of you and did this thing.” – Joshua 9:24 ESV

They had feared for their lives, but they had no fear of or love for God. And yet, Joshua was giving them access to the altar of God. He was making a decision to allow these pagan foreigners to play a part in the worship of God even though, as idol worshipers, they were unholy and unacceptable to God. On top of that, Joshua was contaminating the people of God by allowing the inhabitants of Gibeon and the surrounding cities to remain alive, risking the influence of their idolatrous habits and setting up the potential for intermarriage. Joshua had compromised the integrity of his own people by refusing to seek the counsel of God. He and the elders of Israel had made a decision without God that could only lead to future decisions that violated the will of God.

The people of God have always faced the temptation to compromise with the world. Even today, we find ourselves living in a land that is hostile to our faith and our God. And while some oppose us, others seek to make alliances with us. They call on us to compromise our convictions in order that we might all “just get along.” They challenge our beliefs and tempt us to question the validity of God’s commands regarding everything from the sanctity of life to His ban on same-sex marriage. They ask us to join them in their effort to create a more loving and tolerant society. But we must seek God’s will. We must ask what He would have us do. Our decisions will have long-lasting and far-reaching ramifications. The little compromises we make today will cost us dearly tomorrow.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)  Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson