2 Samuel 10:9-19
I believe in the past I’ve divulged I once
was in the army of the USA, but I was never a warrior, never in battle, I was a
pretend soldier and not a very good one. But even Sargent Rice knew that
it was not a good thing to have the enemy at your back and front at the same
time. Joab, the general of the army of Israel, found he was in a difficult
position, this is the action recorded that he took. “When Joab saw that the battle was set against him both in
front and in the rear, he chose some of the best men of Israel and arrayed them
against the Syrians. The rest of his men he put in the charge of Abishai, his
brother, and he arrayed them against the Ammonites. And he said, “If the
Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the Ammonites are
too strong for you, then I will come and help you. Be of good courage, and let
us be courageous for our people, and for the cities of our God, and may the Lord do what seems good to him.” (2
Samuel 10:9-12)
Now one thing is clear, Joab is not a
pretend soldier he is a great general and knows that the resource he needs is
not more men, not high ground, but the Lord God of Israel fighting for
him. Now, do you recall that we talked about a hireling and how when the
battle gets tough they have no skin in the game and will run, not stand and
fight? We shall see that lived out with the army of the Syrians in verse
13, “So Joab and the people who were with him drew
near to battle against the Syrians, and they fled before him.”
The Ammonites saw the Syrians turn tail and
run, they took off for home and all ran into a walled city. So Joab
returns home, but the Syrians called all the other Syrians, and together they
had a vast army. This is the account in verses 13-19, “And Hadadezer sent and brought out the Syrians who were
beyond the Euphrates. They came to Helam, with Shobach, the commander of the
army of Hadadezer at their head. And when it was told David, he gathered all
Israel together and crossed the Jordan and came to Helam. The Syrians arrayed
themselves against David and fought with him. And the Syrians fled before Israel,
and David killed of the Syrians the men of 700 chariots, and 40,000 horsemen,
and wounded Shobach the commander of their army so that he died there. And when
all the kings who were servants of Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by
Israel, they made peace with Israel and became subject to them. So the Syrians
were afraid to save the Ammonites anymore.”
If you are an Ammonite and your defender has
just been whipped real good, and you have become a stench to King David, that’s
not a place to find yourself.
From the Back Porch,
Bob Rice
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