Day #102 | "The Way of Forgiveness"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 2 Samuel 2-3, 1 Chronicles 3:1-9, and Psalms 25 and 26

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

1. When unforgiveness leads to wrongdoing on your own team (2 Samuel 2-3).

Joab and Abishai, the supporters (and nephews--see 1 Chronicles 2:13-16) of David, could not get past the death of their brother Asahel on the field of battle, and they held a personal hatred for Abner for killing him. We see the battle where that happened take place in 2 Samuel 2, and then we see Joab's retribution in 2 Samuel 3, after Abner had defected to David's side. While David was willing to forgive the death of his nephew at Abner's hands, Joab and Abishai could not forgive the bloodshed, and so they slew him by deception and treachery in the city gates. David could have covered this up. He could have protected his nephews. He could have excused their actions as regrettable, but understandable. But he did none of these things, because he wanted his kingdom to be founded on mercy and integrity. So he did something difficult: he publicized what his generals, who were his own family members, had done. And he denounced them. He held public mourning, and conducted a public funeral, and composed a song for Abner, and buried him in the (at that time) royal city of Hebron, and instituted public mourning, and fasted. David showed his people by his actions that it is not okay to excuse wrongdoing just because it was done by someone that you have a relationship with. And he showed that perpetuating the cycle of revenge is not the way.

2. David points to an even better forgiveness (2 Samuel 3).

David shows his integrity in his lack of favoritism here. He publicly mourns the man who killed his nephew, and he publicly rebukes his own family for taking revenge. His mercy was emblematic of the one who would later come from David's line -Jesus- who also counseled against taking revenge: "Then Jesus said to [Peter], 'Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword" (Matthew 26:52). Jesus also showed mercy to those who had been his enemies, as Romans 5:10 says "while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son." In these ways David's call for mercy points forward to the one who would show perfect mercy to us.

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR ATTITUDES, we can practice forgiveness towards those who have done wrong to us--and even to be willing to reestablish a relationship, though with appropriate boundaries. This does not diminish the seriousness of the other person's actions, but it does give us a chance to bring healing. IN OUR WORSHIP, it can be an awe-inspiring thing to just dwell on the mercy of God. He did not hold our sins against us, even though it would take the death of his own Son to make things right on our behalf.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean