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Hear the devotional here: https://bit.ly/3gVqiB4
1 Shortly after Saul died, David returned to Ziklag from his rout of the Amalekites. 17 Then David sang this lament over Saul and his son Jonathan, 18 and gave orders that everyone in Judah learn it by heart. Yes, it's even inscribed in The Book of Jashar. 19 Oh, oh, Gazelles of Israel, struck down on your hills, the mighty warriors - fallen, fallen! 20 Don't announce it in the city of Gath, don't post the news in the streets of Ashkelon. Don't give those coarse Philistine girls one more excuse for a drunken party! 21 No more dew or rain for you, hills of Gilboa, and not a drop from springs and wells, For there the warriors' shields were dragged through the mud, Saul's shield left there to rot. 22 Jonathan's bow was bold - the bigger they were the harder they fell. Saul's sword was fearless - once out of the scabbard, nothing could stop it. 23 Saul and Jonathan - beloved, beautiful! Together in life, together in death. Swifter than plummeting eagles, stronger than proud lions. 24 Women of Israel, weep for Saul. He dressed you in finest cottons and silks, spared no expense in making you elegant. 25 The mighty warriors - fallen, fallen in the middle of the fight! Jonathan - struck down on your hills! 26 O my dear brother Jonathan, I'm crushed by your death. Your friendship was a miracle-wonder, love far exceeding anything I've known - or ever hope to know. 27 The mighty warriors - fallen, fallen. And the arms of war broken to bits. (2 Samuel 1:1, 1:17-27 The Message Bible)
A Blessed Wednesday be wonderful to you all, ConCafe Family. And may you, dear Friend, be a wonderful blessing to God in all you do today. Please continue to hold others in prayer as has been asked of us; pray for your needs, and the needs of others in this devotional family.
If death has ever visited you, you know it comes usually loaded with bad; the memories of a lost loved one, the absence of a dear one at your table or in your family; a co-worker who brightened your work life now gone; and the list goes on and on. For some, death comes as a welcome guest, and sometimes not soon enough; a cancer patient whose last days were wracked with pain, a patient whose once beautiful mind taken away by dementia now free to be in God's presence. And, with those memories, we usually tend to erase the bad and celebrate, while we mourn, the positive memories. Case in point; David was the target of Saul's anger and wrath, the wanted victim of several manhunts in which the sole object was to kill him, so that Saul's kingdom could continue and Jonathan, his son, be his successor. Yet, David remembers only the good attributes of Saul to stay in his mind, and he sings praises with those fresh in his mind. We sometimes have attended those funerals where, the old story goes, the accolades and tributes are so strong toward the deceased the widow asks the young son to check again to make sure it was Daddy that was in the coffin.
King Saul was a public figure, and like most public figures there were those who loved him and those who could not stand him. Yet, in the time of death it becomes a time for public mourning in a positive way that sometimes helps unites the nation. David has ordered the nation to learn a song that mourns both Saul and Jonathan. The song has specific memories and commands; places where it shall not be sung, even ordering nature to withhold rain and dew from the hills of Gilboa; even springs and well should dry up as a form of mourning. Those with Jewish heritage in our backgrounds know how seriously our times of mourning are for following. I've shared how with the death of my maternal grandfather we refrained from listening to music and viewing the television for 30 days; our mirrors were covered up, and the women wore black. It made an already rough time become even rougher. David asks for women to weep for their king, reminding them of the good Saul had brought to them, and the better known refrain from other versions of the Bible, "How the mighty have fallen." Then David turns his attention to his beloved friend, Jonathan, whom he called brother, and miracle-worker because of his friendship with "love far exceeding anything I've known - or ever hope to know." Again, "How the mighty have fallen." And, with these deaths, David hopes, so have the weapons of war died a death too.
King David's saga was an interesting one. Anointed as king at a young age, defeated a giant, married into royalty, received the throne upon the death of his father-in-law and brother-in law, writer, poet, songwriter, and man of God, for the major part of his life, knew the good and the bad of life and love. His own son rose up against him in later years to challenge his throne; one of his daughters violated by another son, and his own failings as king, taking the wife of another man, then setting up the murder of that husband, and losing the child conceived in that illicit affair. I can say that David is still revered in the nation of Israel for all he did that blessed the country, and research on his life will never end. The fact that he was one of the fathers of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ also factors in greatly in this life. Another example of no perfect person has ever existed, just Jesus. Yet, God used this man, and continues to, as people turn to the Psalms for inspiration, hope, deeper faith, etc. Just like you and me, he faced so many things as I tried to list above, but still he held on to his faith and to his God, as should we.
PRAYER: Loving God, You know better than we, all about the human condition. What we have read and shared during this devotional has been about the grief, pain, and hurt that death brings; no one is immune, not even kings or queens. What is precious is faith and how we can find in You the One to cling to and depend. David knew You and knew just how to call and cry to You. May we learn those things too. Bless us where we are, and lead us to where you would like for us to be. Be with those here and everywhere who mourn; and shower them with comfort. Lead us to where we can share Your love; we pray in Christ Jesus' strong name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Be a source of comfort to someone today.
Receive my blessings of comfort and joy,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
