As we began 2 Samuel this week, I made a point about how we go straight through books of the Bible, so that we interact with all of it. Then I skipped over the end of the first chapter, which is especially awkward because the title of the sermon came from this section.
We are going to move on to chapter 2 next week, but I wanted to go through this song of David here, because before he becomes king and begins to rule, it is important to see how he followed when he wasn’t in authority. He says
[19] “Your glory, O Israel, is slain on your high places!
How the mighty have fallen!
[20] Tell it not in Gath,
publish it not in the streets of Ashkelon,
lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice,
lest the daughters of the uncircumcised exult.
Here David points to the fact that the death of Saul is a terrible loss for Israel and something that will bring great joy to her enemies. He goes on:
[21] “You mountains of Gilboa,
let there be no dew or rain upon you,
nor fields of offerings!
For there the shield of the mighty was defiled,
the shield of Saul, not anointed with oil.
David rebukes the place of Saul’s death, because it is a place where what should not happen did. To say that the shield of Saul was defiled is to point out that the outcome did not honor Saul in the way he deserves. He continues:
[22] “From the blood of the slain,
from the fat of the mighty,
the bow of Jonathan turned not back,
and the sword of Saul returned not empty.
[23] “Saul and Jonathan, beloved and lovely!
In life and in death they were not divided;
they were swifter than eagles;
they were stronger than lions.
David celebrates Saul and Jonathan both for their effort and strength. He also want to make it clear that their deaths were not in vain. Now he mourns the loss:
[24] “You daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,
who clothed you luxuriously in scarlet,
who put ornaments of gold on your apparel.
[25] “How the mighty have fallen
in the midst of the battle!
“Jonathan lies slain on your high places.
[26] I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan;
very pleasant have you been to me;
your love to me was extraordinary,
surpassing the love of women.
[27] “How the mighty have fallen,
and the weapons of war perished!”
David ends by pointing to all of the benefits of life that Israel experiences because of Saul. He also addresses the very personal benefit Jonathan was to his life.
One of the things that is so amazing about this song is that it is written about someone who spent a great deal of time trying to kill David. As I mentioned Sunday, David respected and honored Saul as king out of reverence to God. There were certainly aspects of Saul that he did not agree with (including his kill David policy), but this did not entirely taint how he viewed him. David was able to have a nuanced perspective in which he hated aspects of what Saul did, while still treating his kingship with dignity.
This is a model for us when we read things like Romans 13, Titus 3, and 1 Peter 2, and we think: God can’t expect us to honor and submit to authority that is wrong so much of the time. We tend to withhold our respect and honor from those we do not agree with. We feel justified in not honoring those we don’t deem worthy of it.
What we see David do here is look for the aspects of Saul that are worthy of honor. Saul was a great warrior and he provided for the people of Israel. He gave his life defending his people. He was far from flawless, but he did do many good things as king. When we choose to honor and respect the good, it helps keep us from creating a caricature of our leaders. It is not hard to find problems and mistakes. It is hard to follow someone when we see their flaws. This is what we are called to fight for.
I have written about this topic HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE, the most common response is: yeah, but…Rather than responding with what you think is a situation where this does not fit, simply sit in David’s honoring song for a while. Reflect on what he chose to say about a man who had made his life so difficult. Think through how you can show more honor to those who are in authority over you.