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BARZILLAI’S REWARD. II Samuel 19:31-40. 11/28/2021. #47.
2 Samuel 19:31-40 [New King James Version]
31 And Barzillai the Gileadite came down from Rogelim and went across the Jordan with the king, to escort him across the Jordan. 32 Now Barzillai was a very aged man, eighty years old. And he had provided the king with supplies while he stayed at Mahanaim, for he was a very rich man. 33 And the king said to Barzillai, “Come across with me, and I will provide for you while you are with me in Jerusalem.” 34 But Barzillai said to the king, “How long have I to live, that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem? 35 I am today eighty years old. Can I discern between the good and bad? Can your servant taste what I eat or what I drink? Can I hear any longer the voice of singing men and singing women? Why then should your servant be a further burden to my lord the king? 36 Your servant will go a little way across the Jordan with the king. And why should the king repay me with such a reward? 37 Please let your servant turn back again, that I may die in my own city, near the grave of my father and mother. But here is your servant Chimham; let him cross over with my lord the king, and do for him what seems good to you.” 38 And the king answered, “Chimham shall cross over with me, and I will do for him what seems good to you. Now whatever you request of me, I will do for you.” 39 Then all the people went over the Jordan. And when the king had crossed over, the king kissed Barzillai and blessed him, and he returned to his own place. 40 Now the king went on to Gilgal, and Chimham went on with him. And all the people of Judah escorted the king, and also half the people of Israel.
- Barzillai, volunteer chief quartermaster of the army
- Barzillai was an elderly Gileadite (trans-Jordan where the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and one-half Manasseh settled)
- Not only did he provide food for David’s army when he fled Absalom, but this rich man continued to provide for them throughout the war
- God in his providence raises up support for his own from unsuspected sources
- Providence is an expression of God’s mercy, grace, and support
- Not only did he provide food for David’s army when he fled Absalom, but this rich man continued to provide for them throughout the war
- Most rich men are self-oriented, selfish, and arrogant
- Luke 12 the man who decides to pull down his barns to build bigger barns for his crops
- The rich young ruler
- King Ahab
- Luke 12 the man who decides to pull down his barns to build bigger barns for his crops
- Jam. 2 = do not show favoritism to the rich–are they not the very ones who take you to court?
- The rich tend to persecute, take advantage of, and despise the poor
- I Corinthians 1 God has not chosen many who are rich and powerful for eternal life
- Proverbs 13:8-14 a man’s wealth ransoms his life
- The rich tend to persecute, take advantage of, and despise the poor
- God did use some selected rich men to further his well
- Job sustained many widows and poor
- Abraham gave a tithe of all that he had (Genesis 14)
- Joseph of Arimathea provided a tomb and burial spices for Jesus
- Job sustained many widows and poor
- Barzillai was an elderly Gileadite (trans-Jordan where the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and one-half Manasseh settled)
- David seeks to reward Barzillai
- Barzillai sustained David’s army, but expected nothing in return (was doing God’s will)
- Showed his loyalty and support for the king
- In service of God by supporting God’s anointed
- Showed his loyalty and support for the king
- Barzillai’s reward was to see David return as king
- David wants to show his appreciation by taking Barzillai back to Jerusalem to sit at his table
- Bar. would be an honored guest at David’s table
- This honor is the highest David could offer a man who had everything
- Bar. would be an honored guest at David’s table
- Barzillai protests the honor
- He is 80 years old and could not distinguish what food he was eating or discern what was being sung
- He would soon die and wants to do so in the city of his parents
- Barzillai suggests that the honor be given to his son, Chimham, who could appreciate the amenities
- He is 80 years old and could not distinguish what food he was eating or discern what was being sung
- Barzillai sustained David’s army, but expected nothing in return (was doing God’s will)
- The sons of Barzillai
- Chimham goes with David to sit at his table
- David wants to give more honor to Barzillai’s family
- Jeremiah 41:17 David gives Chimham the inn in Bethlehem
- The inn is where Joseph and Mary arrive 1000 years later and Jesus is born in the inn’s stable
- Barzillai’s kindness to David is honored by his family being a part of the Christmas story, as the Messiah from David’s family is born on the property of Barzillai’s descendants
- Jeremiah 41:17 David gives Chimham the inn in Bethlehem
- An odd twist to the story
- Barzillai’s other son, Adriel, marries Saul’s daughter, Merab, who had been offered to David twice
- All five of Adriel’s sons were given to the Gibeonites to be executed as payment for Saul’s massacre of Gibeonite men
- Both Saul’s and Barzillai’s grandsons
- This is a strange payback to Barzillai
- All five of Adriel’s sons were given to the Gibeonites to be executed as payment for Saul’s massacre of Gibeonite men
- Barzillai’s other son, Adriel, marries Saul’s daughter, Merab, who had been offered to David twice
- Politics entail odd twists and turns
- Chimham is honored and Adriel is victimized
David made no connection between Bar. and Adriel