Dealing with sin of the Past

Read 2 Samuel 21.

For three years the nation suffered through a famine.  David prayed earnestly to the LORD for relief.  The famine was not the problem, only the symptom.  God used the famine to gain the attention of the nation and its leader.  Once He had their attention, they were then ready to hear His message.  The reason God inflicted them with the famine had to do with Saul's killing of some Gibeonites years prior.  The incident is not recorded in scripture.

In Joshua 9, the Gibeonites used a cunning ruse to make a covenant with Israel in order to spare their lives.  A few hundred years had passed, but a promise is a promise and Saul violated this covenant.  King Saul had been dead for decades, yet this sinful injustice had not been resolved.  God forced the nation to make it right. 

Once David understood the root problem, he took action.  The king asked the Gibeonite leaders, not what would appease them, but what he could do so they would "bless" the people of Israel.  This wisdom goes far beyond a judicial act.  David sought to restore Israel's good name, resolve a broken relationship, and please God in the process.

Their request seems harsh.  It was a different time in a different culture.  The punishment hearkened back to the law in Exodus of "an eye for an eye."  Perhaps, Saul had killed seven of their own.  We have to trust God that He was at the same time dealing with the sin of these seven male descendants of Saul.  The proof that this was what God wanted done is evident in the resulting rain that came.  Finally, they could grow their crops again.

Personal and national lessons to learn:

1. God want us to keep promises.

One of the primary characteristics of God is that He is faithful.  He keeps His word.  He cannot lie, nor violate what He said.  His followers are to be faithful people and to keep their promises to Him and to others.

2. In plenty people play; in pain people pray.

3. God wants us to know His message.

He has always wanted people to know what He wants done.  In times past, He used visions, prophets, and sent the Messiah.  Today, we have the written Word of God and the indwelling Holy Spirit.  The first step is gaining our attention so we will listen.

4. Individuals and nations pay for unresolved injustices in future generations.

This passage in 2 Samuel makes one wonder how much of the world's grief and conflict is the result of unrepented sin of the past.  On one hand, it seems unjust that one generation would pay for the sin of another, but this chapter is an example.  It should drive us to inquire of God like David did.

5. Sometimes, it is not your fault, but it becomes your responsibility.

Psalm 139:23-"Search me, O God, and know my heart!  Try me and know my thoughts!  And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!"