Create In Me a Clean Heart
Old Testament: Lesson 24
by Ted L. Gibbons
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Introduction
William Shakespeare wrote:
What win I if I gain the thing I seek?
A dream, a breath, a froth of fleeting joy?
Who buys a minute's myrth to wail a week
Or sells eternity to get a toy?
For one sweet grape, who would the vine destroy?
Or what fond beggar but to touch the crown,
Would with the scepter straight be stricken down?
The willingness of some people to place the things of eternity—the things of true joy—on the altar of their desire for immediate pleasure and the gratification of appetites, passions, and desires, is terrifying. This poem could have been written as an additional psalm, not a psalm by David, but a psalm for him.
The poem and the events of 2 Samuel 11-13 remind me of this statement attributed to Stirling W. Sill: "Be careful what you want, because you'll probably get it." [I do not have a source for this quote. If any of you do, please let me know at tedgibbons@yahoo.com.
I. DAVID COMMITS ADULTERY WITH BATHSHEBA AND ARRANGES THE DEATH OF URIAH, BATHSHEBA'S HUSBAND.
Samuel described David as "a man after [God's] own heart" (1 Sam 13:14). And he was. For so many years he was. His devotion and discipline are a standard for faithful disciples. His life was a pattern of piety and purity until that evening on his roof when he looked into his neighbor's yard . . .
The story of the decline of David is a warning for all of us. The tragic ending of this story may obscure another message here. David could have fixed this problem so many times before Uriah died and he lost his exaltation. Let us review the scriptures and analyze the areas where David could have done things differently and changed the history of his family and his nation.
And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem (2 Sam. 11:1).
I remember hearing President Packer say "it is a good feeling to know you are where the Lord want's you to be." David wasn't. I wonder how many times he regretted his decision to tarry at Jerusalem. Both power and safety come from being where we are supposed to be.
And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house . . . (2 Sam. 11:1)
Many mid-eastern homes had flat roofs and external staircases. In the heat of a late afternoon and early evening, a walk on the roof would give a chance for cool breezes and reflection. While he was walking he glanced over at his neighbor's house "and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself . . ." (2 Sam. 11:2)
This may be perfectly innocent. There is no inclination that David is looking for anything like this. He is just looking around, and sees something unexpected. There is a golden opportunity here for David to avoid the problems that are coming. All David has to do is take himself and his mind somewhere else. Well, I guess I'll go read the book of Genesis, or I'll to visit my son Amnon and see how he is doing. Or, I'll write a message to Joab and see how the war is going . . . David did none of these things. Instead, he continued to look, at least long enough to see that "the woman was very beautiful to look upon" (1 Sam 11:2).
I believe that this is the commencement of the problems. When I was dating the wonderful woman who is now my wife, I took her to a few movies. One of them was called Bonnie and Clyde. We had been in the theater for about the first 10 minutes when something was presented that was unacceptable to my future bride. I no longer remember what it was, but I remember what happened. Lydia stood up and said, "I'm leaving; are you coming?" and started for the door. She did not wait to see what I would do. She left, with me scurrying in her wake assuring her that I was about to leave also. A few weeks later we went to Grand Prix, and had a similar experience. I learned some important lessons about my wife. She has "zero tolerance." No movie, no TV show, no piece of literature gets a second chance. As Hugh B. Brown said, "Personally, I shall rebel if anyone tries to hold my head over a manhole into a sewer . . ." ("Purity is Power," BYU, Sept. 30, 1962). Lydia will not remain over the sewer to see if the smell improves. But David did. He watched long enough to see how attractive she was, and to become interested.
What counsel would you give David at this point. Take a cold shower! Play Racquetball! Go look at some family photographs! It would have been so easy, even at this point, to solve the problem. And it was a problem. David had some images in his mind that he ought to have evicted. A certain level of repentance is appropriate here. But David does something else:
And David sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite? (2 Sam. 11:3)
I hope you who are reading this recognize that I am embellishing shamelessly. The only things we know for sure about this story are those we read in 2 Samuel 11. But if I offer a few conjectures, remember they are only that, and only intended to help us understand the story and the lessons.
I do not think David left the roof wondering how he could get his neighbors wife to commit an awful, immoral act with him. I know there are men who do this kind of thing. But not David. His problem was that he allowed those powerful, unexpected images to take up space and time in his mind. Finally, perhaps having convinced himself that his only motivation was neighborly interest, he make inquiries about her. He learned her name and that her husband was away serving the king and the kingdom. Time must have passed here. Elder Packer said,
People don't get in serious trouble in one step. I don't think anyone steps off a precipice into the depths of immorality and apostasy. They slide down the slippery sides of the chasm . . . (Improvement Era, May 1970, p. 7)
And now?
David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him . . . (2 Sam. 11:4).
What was he thinking? What was his intent here? In the compressed language of the scriptures, his sending for her and his adultery with her come in the same verse, but I have difficulty believing that he sent for her with that intent. He probably found a way to rationalize the invitation. He may have wanted a closer look at the woman he saw from his roof. But I doubt he sent for her so filled with lust that he had abandoned all concern for his own worthiness and eternal blessings.
She came. The king had sent for her. She had to come. And then, on that night or a later night, it happened. "[S]he came in unto him, and he lay with her . . . and she returned unto her house" (2 Sam. 11:4).
Even now this problem can be fixed. David and Bathsheba had committed a huge sin, but it was not larger than the atonement. I do not know what it might have cost David to confess and repent, but it would not have exacted the payment finally required of him. His intent to protect his name and his image—to cover his sins—in the end cost him almost everything, including Bathsheba.
When Bathsheba sent word that she was pregnant, David acted at once.
And David sent to Joab, saying, Send me Uriah the Hittite. And Joab sent Uriah to David. And when Uriah was come unto him, David demanded of him how Joab did, and how the people did, and how the war prospered. And David said to Uriah, Go down to thy house, and wash thy feet. And Uriah departed out of the king's house, and there followed him a mess of meat from the king (2 Sam 11:6-8).
David's intent is transparent. If Uriah spends the night at home, he will think the child to be born is his child. But Uriah did not go home. He slept on the King's porch. There is a hero in 2 Samuel 11, but it is not David. It is Uriah. Uriah is a faithful, disciplined, trusting servant. He stands in glaring contrast to the king himself, who is unfaithful and undisciplined and certainly not trustworthy. David tried a second time.
And when they had told David, saying, Uriah went not down unto his house, David said unto Uriah, Camest thou not from thy journey? why then didst thou not go down unto thine house? And Uriah said unto David, The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide in tents; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open fields; shall I then go into mine house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I will not do this thing. And David said to Uriah, Tarry here to day also, and to morrow I will let thee depart. So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day, and the morrow. And when David had called him, he did eat and drink before him; and he made him drunk: and at even he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but went not down to his house (2 Sam. 11:10-13).
I hate to keep playing the same song on my harp. But I will. David can still repent. Anyone could, even this far into the minefield, he could find his way to safety without a cataclysmic explosion. But he would not.
And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah. And he wrote in the letter, saying, Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die (2 Sam. 11:14,15).
David has, by this command to Joab, come a great distance from the inadvertent glimpse of a woman washing in a neighbor's back yard. David is on the verge of an unforgivable sin (D&C 42:18).
And when word came that Uriah was dead, David placed a final stone on the mountain of his hypocrisy when he declared to the messenger
Thus shalt thou say unto Joab, Let not this thing displease thee, for the sword devoureth one as well as another: make thy battle more strong against the city, and overthrow it: and encourage thou him (2 Sam 11: 25).
The text of the announcement of Uriah's death implies that other mighty men were killed with Uriah that might have been safe were it not for the king's command (1 Sam. 11:16,23,24). The Lord imposed the punishment required by divine law.
David's wives and concubines were given unto him of me, by the hand of Nathan, my servant, and others of the prophets who had the keys of this power; and in none of these things did he sin against me save in the case of Uriah and his wife; and, therefore he hath fallen from his exaltation, and received his portion; and he shall not inherit them out of the world, for I gave them unto another, saith the Lord (D&C 132:39, emphasis added).
II. DAVID IS TOLD THAT HE WILL BE PUNISHED BECAUSE OF HIS SINS.
When all is said and done, there is nothing gained from pre-marital adventure except immediate pleasure, and that at tremendous risk and exorbitant cost. No really intelligent person will burn a cathedral to fry and egg, even to satisfy a ravenous appetite (Henry A. Bowman, cited by Hugh B. Brown in "Purity is Power," BYU, Sept. 30, 1962, pp. 10,11).
David's adventure was not pre-marital, but the risk and the cost were the same: tremendous and exorbitant! The cathedral of David's hopes and eternal aspirations was a raging inferno now.
Nathan the prophet came to see David and warn him of the Lord's judgements upon him. The text of 2 Sam. 12 implies that many knew what had happened. ". . . by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme . . ." (2 Sam. 12:14).
Among the most chilling of all the statements in the scriptures is the one in 2 Sam. 12:7: "Thou art the man." Nathan then proceeded to prophesy of the exorbitant cost of David's transgressions.
"the sword shall never depart from thine house . . ." (2 Sam. 12:10)
"I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house . . ." (2 Sam. 12:11)
"I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbor . . ." (2 Sam. 12:11)
"the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die." (2 Sam. 12:14)
David acknowledged his sin, but that did not change the nature of the sin nor the Lord's judgement.
And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said unto David, The Lord also hath not put away thy sin that thou shalt not die (2 Sam. 12:13, JST).
We live in a world where immoral images can be seen from almost every rooftop. Proverbs 7, in an allusion to the temptation to immorality tells us
Now is she without, now in the streets, and lieth in wait at every corner (Prov. 7:12).
President Benson, speaking 42 years ago warned us that
No sin is causing the loss of the Spirit of the Lord among our people more today than sexual promiscuity. It is causing our people to stumble, damning their growth, darkening their spiritual powers and making them subject to other sins.
Recently, a young man commented that if he quit reading books, watching TV, seeing movies, reading newspapers and magazines, and going to school, there was a chance he might live a clean life. And this explains, in large part, the extent to which this insidious evil has spread . . . (C.R., October 1964).
The message of the story of David and Bathsheba is repeated 2 chapters later in 2 Samuel 13. The participants are different, but the lessons have a familiar sound to them. And in the telling of this version, we find David's two oldest sons guilty of the same crimes committed by David: immorality and murder.
Amnon was in love (love is the word used in the scriptures. It is not my word) with his half-sister Tamar. He found a way to get her in his bedroom, ignored her pleas, and raped her.
Then Amnon hated her exceedingly; so that the hatred wherewith he hated her was greater than the love wherewith he had loved her. And Amnon said unto her, Arise, be gone (2 Sam. 13:15).
He then had her thrown out of his house. How could hatred come so quickly?
I heard Elder John A. Widtsoe, who at one time presided over the University of Utah, say, "It is my observation that a young man and a young woman who violate the principles of morality soon end up hating one another." I have observed the same thing. There may be words of love to begin with, but there will be words of anger and bitterness later (Gordon B. Hinckley, "True to the Faith," Ensign, June 1996, p. 5).
David knew what had happened. "But when king David heard of all these things, he was very wroth" (2 Sam. 13:21). Wroth, yes, but also paralyzed. David did nothing about this terrible act of the crown prince. Why do you think David would not, or could not, act?
After two full years (13:23), Absalom, a full brother to Tamar and half-brother to Amnon, had Amnon murdered in retaliation for what he had done (2 Sam. 13:28,29).
III. A REPENTANT DAVID SEEKS FORGIVENESS.
The heading of Psalm 51 indicates that David's plea for forgiveness is in the matter of Bathsheba. When David composed this I do not know, but certainly he knew that there was no forgiveness in the matter of Uriah. Read this Psalm as a recipe for forgiveness. Wonderful doctrine can be found here. Note (mark?) the things David asks the Lord to do for him:
"Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness" (Ps. 51:1).
"Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin" (Ps. 51:2).
"Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow" (Ps. 51:7).
"Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice" (Ps. 51:8).
"Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities" (Ps. 51:9).
"Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me" (Ps. 51:10).
"Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me" (Ps. 51:11).
"Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit" (Ps. 51:12).
All of us have sought forgiveness. David's words are a powerful description of what the Lord and the Atonement can do for the repentant. But in addition, David promises to do some things to show the reality of his repentance.
"Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee" (Ps. 51:13).
"my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness" (Ps. 51:14).
"my mouth shall shew forth thy praise" (Ps. 51:15).
"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise" (Ps. 51:17).
A willingness to teach and to testify, to praise and to be humble, are evidences of true repentance. David has taught us great lessons here. Similar feelings appear in Psalm 38. You might want to read and mark that passage as well.
Conclusion
The Bible gives powerful warnings about the dangers of immorality. Let us conclude with a couple of passages and comments from Proverbs. Understanding these passages will be easier if you will think of the feminine pronouns as references not to gender but to immorality, and references to the male pronouns as allusions to anyone tempted by immorality. The first passage comes from Proverbs 7.
21 With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him.
22 He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks;
23 Till a dart strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for his life.
24 Hearken unto me now therefore, O ye children, and attend to the words of my mouth.
25 Let not thine heart decline to her ways, go not astray in her paths.
26 For she hath cast down many wounded: yea, many strong men have been slain by her.
27 Her house is the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death.
Verse 26 is thought-provoking. Certainly David is one of those "strong men" who "has been slain by her." The second passage is from Proverbs 9. Apply the same rules to the pronouns here.
14 For she sitteth at the door of her house, on a seat in the high places of the city,
15 To call passengers who go right on their ways:
16 Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: and as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him,
17 Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.
18 But he knoweth not that the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depths of hell.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
"The Lord Be Between Me and Thee For"
The Lord Be Between Me and Thee Forever
Old Testament: Lesson 23
by Ted L. Gibbons
Introduction
Zoram, we are told, was a "true friend" to Nephi (see 2 Nephi 1:30), as was Amulek to Alma. Hyrum was a true friend and brother to Joseph. Likewise, the friendship of David and Jonathan has become a standard. Rarely have two individuals been as devoted to one another as these two.
As we study what they did for each other, we can learn principles that will assist us as we evaluate our own friendships and the influences they have on us.
We need to measure very carefully who our true friends are. The measure of a true friend is one who will not have us choose between his way and the Lord's way. A true friend makes it easier for us to live the commandments of the Lord. A true friend will not let us do anything we want. True friends will correct us when we do something wrong and bring us back on the straight and narrow path that leads to exaltation.
Every one of us needs to know when to walk or run away from those who would call themselves friends but in reality are not. Joseph of old recognized the evil in Potiphar's wife and ran from it (see Gen. 39:7—12). We too must recognize evil and shun it. If we allow machoism to overtake our personal lives and influence choices and decisions we make, we can severely limit our progression in this life and in the eternities (Robert D. Hales, "Return with Honor," Ensign, June 1999, 12).
There are those kinds of friends from whom we we should run. Judah's friend Hirah, the Abdullamite, was willing to pay Judah's debt to a harlot (Genesis 38:20). Jonadab, the friend of Amnon, counseled Amnon on how to put himself in a position to take advantage of his half-sister, Tamar (see 2 Sam. 13). Job's three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, came to comfort Job in his misery, and then added to his misery by telling him he was suffering because he was so wicked.
I. JONATHAN AND DAVID MAKE A COVENANT OF FRIENDSHIP. SAUL BECOMES JEALOUS OF DAVID AND TRIES TO KILL HIM.
And it came to pass. . . . that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul . . . Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul (1 Sam 18:1,3)
The fact that the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David just after the defeat of Goliath is interesting. Jonathan and his armourbearer, with only a few weapons and their faith in God, had attacked and routed the Philistine garrison (see 1 Sam. 14 and Old Testament lesson 22 from last week). David, armed with a staff and a sling, had gone against the Philistine champion, a man from whom the other Israelites had all fled. It is not hard to imagine that common faith and courage drawing these two young men together.
What does the final phrase of 1 Sam. 18:3 ("he loved him as his own soul") suggest about true friendship?
Jonathan was the crown prince of Israel. David and Samuel knew that Jonathan was not next in line for the throne, and it is likely that Jonathan knew it also.
And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle (1 Sam. 18:4).
Saul also was pleased with David. He took him into his own service after the death of Goliath "and would let him go no more home to his father's house" (1 Sam 18:2). David served Saul well.
And David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, and behaved himself wisely: and Saul set him over the men of war, and he was accepted in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul's servants (1 Sam. 18:5).
But something caused Saul to turn against David.
And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of musick. And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands. And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom? (1 Sam. 18:6-8).
What was the initial cause of Saul's anger at David? The final phrase of 18:8 suggests that perhaps at this time Saul had begun to suspect that the neighbor mentioned by Samuel in 1 Sam. 15:8—the neighbor who would take the throne from Saul—was none other than David.
Reading these passages reminded me of the talk given by Elder Holland in April Conference about the parable of the two sons.
The younger son has returned, a robe has been placed on his shoulders and a ring on his finger, when the older son comes on the scene. He has been dutifully, loyally working in the field, and now he is returning. The language of parallel journeys home, though from very different locations, is central to this story.
As he approaches the house, he hears the sounds of music and laughter.
"And he called one of the servants [note that he has servants] and asked what these things meant.
And [the servant] said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound.
And [the older brother] was angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and intreated him."
You know the conversation they then had. Surely, for this father, the pain over a wayward child who had run from home and wallowed with swine is now compounded with the realization that this older, wiser brother, the younger boy's childhood hero as older brothers always are, is angry that his brother has come home.
No, I correct myself. This son is not so much angry that the other has come home as he is angry that his parents are so happy about it. (Ensign, May 2002, pp. 62,63).
Can you see Saul in these paragraphs? Saul is angry that his people are happy with David's success. How insidious a jealous heart can be!
Who is it that whispers so subtly in our ear that a gift given to another somehow diminishes the blessings we have received? Who makes us feel that if God is smiling on another, then He surely must somehow be frowning on us? You and I both know who does this—it is the father of all lies. It is Lucifer, our common enemy, whose cry down through the corridors of time is always and to everyone, "Give me thine honor."
It has been said that envy is the one sin to which no one readily confesses, but just how widespread that tendency can be is suggested in the old Danish proverb, "If envy were a fever, all the world would be ill" (Ensign, May 2002, p. 63).
There must be a warning here for all of us. We are required by our religion to rejoice in, rather than resent, the good fortune of others.
Saul will later have other excuses for his hatred of David, but for now it is enough for him that Davis is doing well and is loved. "And Saul eyed David from that day and forward" (1 Sam. 18:9).
David knew of this burgeoning animosity. Saul had tried to kill him.
And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul's hand. And Saul cast the javelin; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it. And David avoided out of his presence twice (1 Sam. 18:10,11).
How did he respond?
And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the LORD was with him. Wherefore when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he was afraid of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and came in before them (1 Sam. 18:14 -16; see also 18:5, 30).
Brigham Young said something about behaving ourselves wisely when others speak and think evil of us. He was giving instructions to departing missionaries in 1861. He said:
You will have all manner of evil spoken against you, and all I ask of you and all that God or angels will ask of you is that not one word spoken against you shall be true; and I want you for my sake and for your own sake and for the sake of Christ and the Kingdom of God to live so that the wicked shall have no cause to speak evil against you. (cited in Wilford Woodruff: History of His Life and Labors, pp. 412-413).
II. SAUL FAILS IN THREE MORE ATTEMPTS TO TAKE DAVID'S LIFE.
The account of David's marriage to Saul's daughter, and the events surrounding that marriage, sound very much like the plot of a poorly written soap-opera. What purpose did Saul have in offering his daughter to David? What was the underlying reason for the dowry he required of David? (see 1 Sam. 18:17,21,25)
When the Philistines failed to accomplish Saul's objective, his subtlety vanished. "And Saul spake to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, that they should kill David" (1 Sam. 19:1).
But Jonathan was a true friend to David and he knew what was right.
But Jonathan Saul's son delighted much in David: and Jonathan told David, saying, Saul my father seeketh to kill thee: now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thyself until the morning, and abide in a secret place, and hide thyself: And I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where thou art, and I will commune with my father of thee; and what I see, that I will tell thee. And Jonathan spake good of David unto Saul his father, and said unto him, Let not the king sin against his servant, against David; because he hath not sinned against thee, and because his works have been to thee-ward very good: For he did put his life in his hand, and slew the Philistine, and the LORD wrought a great salvation for all Israel: thou sawest it, and didst rejoice: wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause? And Saul hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan: and Saul sware, As the LORD liveth, he shall not be slain. And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan shewed him all those things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence, as in times past (1 Sam. 19:2-7).
However, Saul's oath, sworn by the life of God, was soon forgotten.
And there was war again: and David went out, and fought with the Philistines, and slew them with a great slaughter; and they fled from him.
And the evil spirit which was not of the LORD was upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his javelin in his hand: and David played with his hand [I have copied this verse from the JST; note that the JST always indicates that this evil spirit was not from God. See 16:14,15,16,23; 18:10]
And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with the javelin; but he slipped away out of Saul's presence, and he smote the javelin into the wall: and David fled, and escaped that night.
Saul also sent messengers unto David's house, to watch him, and to slay him in the morning: and Michal David's wife told him, saying, If thou save not thy life to night, to morrow thou shalt be slain.
So Michal let David down through a window: and he went, and fled, and escaped.
And Michal took an image, and laid it in the bed, and put a pillow of goats' hair for his bolster, and covered it with a cloth.
And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, He is sick.
And Saul sent the messengers again to see David, saying, Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may slay him.
And when the messengers were come in, behold, there was an image in the bed, with a pillow of goats' hair for his bolster (1 Sam. 19:8-16).
Michal also turns out to have been a true friend to her husband, David.
III. DAVID AND JONATHAN RENEW THEIR COVENANT OF FRIENDSHIP, AND JONATHAN SAVES DAVID'S LIFE.
The foundation of the friendship of David and Jonathan is the Rock of Christ. Before this bulwark, all other considerations must defer. Thus Jonathan feels a greater responsibility to David than to his own father. The issue is not a generation gap. It is not a matter of filial rebellion against parental authority. It is not a matter of Jonathan's appreciation of David's personality more than that of his father. It is a matter of right and wrong.
Saul had planned to kill David at the three-day feast of the new moon. But David suspected perfidy and did not come. In his anger, Saul told Jonathan:
For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground, thou shalt not be established, nor thy kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me, for he shall surely die (1 Sam. 20:31).
We were told in 1 Sam 16:14 that Saul lost the Spirit. Have you seen evidence enough of this to convince you? Samuel thought his life was threatened by Saul (see 1 Sam. 16:2); Saul tried repeatedly to kill David; and now . . .
And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said unto him, Wherefore shall he be slain? what hath he done? And Saul cast a javelin at him to smite him: whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of his father to slay David (1 Sam 20:32-33).
David fled from the household and presence of Saul for the final time. Future attempts to kill David would be made in locations of David's choosing.
IV. SAUL IS CONSUMED BY HATRED FOR DAVID. DAVID SPARES SAUL'S LIFE.
Saul's maniacal rage continued even with David gone from his presence. What happened to the priests of Nob who gave David assistance? (see 1 Sam. 22:18,19). What did Saul intend to do to the city of Keilah where David had found assistance? (see 1 Sam 23:10).
What would cause a man to be so destitute of basic values and Christian principles that he would destroy a city to kill a single man? But Saul, even though he was conducting a war against the Philistines, was consumed by a different passion. "And David abode in the wilderness in strong holds, and remained in a mountain in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God delivered him not into his hand" (1 Samuel 23:14, emphasis added).
We are told that Satan had great hold on the hearts of the people of Ammonihah (see Alma 8:9). Can you see this same reality in the heart of Saul. Here is a man who has been willing to kill the Prophet, his own son, and the man anointed by the Lord to become king in his place.
These chapters are great advertisements for the teachings of God regarding forgiveness. How badly is David being hurt by all of this? He is spending time in the wilderness and in hiding, but his heart is good and his people are trusting and happy. Saul, on the other hand, is being consumed by bitterness and the bile of festering hatred. It is as though he is being eaten up from the inside out. The Lord's teachings constitute an eternal principle. We must love our enemies, and forgive those who trespass against us, or the poison of our perversity will drain the life and joy and usefulness from our souls.
Think of Jonathan again. If anyone was truly threatened by David, it was Jonathan. Saul was safe, and had nothing to fear. David had never been a danger to Saul, and refused to injure him even when he had the opportunity. But Jonathan was the crown prince. The throne and kingdom, according to the expected order of things, should come to him. But it would not: rather, because of the wickedness of his father, the crown would go to David, his friend. What was Jonathan's response to this? And "Jonathan Saul's son arose, and went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God" (1 Samuel 23:16).
I love Jonathan, who was so utterly selfless and submissive to the Lord's will.
In 1 Samuel 24, Saul made another attempt to find and destroy David. He brought 3000 men (1 Sam 24:2) to go against David's 600 (1 Sam 23:13) into the wilderness of En-gedi. While he was in a cave "covering his feet" (which can mean, according to the interpretation you favor, either to sleep, massage his feet, or go to the bathroom), David, who was also in the cave, hiding, cut the hem from his robe but left Saul unharmed once again.
David is a great example of one who trusts the Lord. He knows he is to be king, but he is content to let the Lord handle the matter in his own due time. Saul was chosen by the Lord to be king, and Davis is content to let the Lord remove him when the time is right.
Conclusion
Who are your friends? Would they consider you a "true friend" in the spirit of the quote from Elder Hales in the introduction to this lesson? Do you make it easier for them to be obedient and to follow the Lord? Like all of you, I have had friends of both kinds. These chapters have encouraged by to want to be a friend like Jonathan—one whose entire will is swallowed up in the will of the Lord, and whose only desire is that his friend should reach his highest potential.
Are those whom you call friends, true friends? Do your associates come to you and strengthen your hand in God? If not, it is probably time to find new associates with whom to spend your time.
Old Testament: Lesson 23
by Ted L. Gibbons
Introduction
Zoram, we are told, was a "true friend" to Nephi (see 2 Nephi 1:30), as was Amulek to Alma. Hyrum was a true friend and brother to Joseph. Likewise, the friendship of David and Jonathan has become a standard. Rarely have two individuals been as devoted to one another as these two.
As we study what they did for each other, we can learn principles that will assist us as we evaluate our own friendships and the influences they have on us.
We need to measure very carefully who our true friends are. The measure of a true friend is one who will not have us choose between his way and the Lord's way. A true friend makes it easier for us to live the commandments of the Lord. A true friend will not let us do anything we want. True friends will correct us when we do something wrong and bring us back on the straight and narrow path that leads to exaltation.
Every one of us needs to know when to walk or run away from those who would call themselves friends but in reality are not. Joseph of old recognized the evil in Potiphar's wife and ran from it (see Gen. 39:7—12). We too must recognize evil and shun it. If we allow machoism to overtake our personal lives and influence choices and decisions we make, we can severely limit our progression in this life and in the eternities (Robert D. Hales, "Return with Honor," Ensign, June 1999, 12).
There are those kinds of friends from whom we we should run. Judah's friend Hirah, the Abdullamite, was willing to pay Judah's debt to a harlot (Genesis 38:20). Jonadab, the friend of Amnon, counseled Amnon on how to put himself in a position to take advantage of his half-sister, Tamar (see 2 Sam. 13). Job's three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, came to comfort Job in his misery, and then added to his misery by telling him he was suffering because he was so wicked.
I. JONATHAN AND DAVID MAKE A COVENANT OF FRIENDSHIP. SAUL BECOMES JEALOUS OF DAVID AND TRIES TO KILL HIM.
And it came to pass. . . . that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul . . . Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul (1 Sam 18:1,3)
The fact that the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David just after the defeat of Goliath is interesting. Jonathan and his armourbearer, with only a few weapons and their faith in God, had attacked and routed the Philistine garrison (see 1 Sam. 14 and Old Testament lesson 22 from last week). David, armed with a staff and a sling, had gone against the Philistine champion, a man from whom the other Israelites had all fled. It is not hard to imagine that common faith and courage drawing these two young men together.
What does the final phrase of 1 Sam. 18:3 ("he loved him as his own soul") suggest about true friendship?
Jonathan was the crown prince of Israel. David and Samuel knew that Jonathan was not next in line for the throne, and it is likely that Jonathan knew it also.
And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle (1 Sam. 18:4).
Saul also was pleased with David. He took him into his own service after the death of Goliath "and would let him go no more home to his father's house" (1 Sam 18:2). David served Saul well.
And David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, and behaved himself wisely: and Saul set him over the men of war, and he was accepted in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul's servants (1 Sam. 18:5).
But something caused Saul to turn against David.
And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of musick. And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands. And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom? (1 Sam. 18:6-8).
What was the initial cause of Saul's anger at David? The final phrase of 18:8 suggests that perhaps at this time Saul had begun to suspect that the neighbor mentioned by Samuel in 1 Sam. 15:8—the neighbor who would take the throne from Saul—was none other than David.
Reading these passages reminded me of the talk given by Elder Holland in April Conference about the parable of the two sons.
The younger son has returned, a robe has been placed on his shoulders and a ring on his finger, when the older son comes on the scene. He has been dutifully, loyally working in the field, and now he is returning. The language of parallel journeys home, though from very different locations, is central to this story.
As he approaches the house, he hears the sounds of music and laughter.
"And he called one of the servants [note that he has servants] and asked what these things meant.
And [the servant] said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound.
And [the older brother] was angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and intreated him."
You know the conversation they then had. Surely, for this father, the pain over a wayward child who had run from home and wallowed with swine is now compounded with the realization that this older, wiser brother, the younger boy's childhood hero as older brothers always are, is angry that his brother has come home.
No, I correct myself. This son is not so much angry that the other has come home as he is angry that his parents are so happy about it. (Ensign, May 2002, pp. 62,63).
Can you see Saul in these paragraphs? Saul is angry that his people are happy with David's success. How insidious a jealous heart can be!
Who is it that whispers so subtly in our ear that a gift given to another somehow diminishes the blessings we have received? Who makes us feel that if God is smiling on another, then He surely must somehow be frowning on us? You and I both know who does this—it is the father of all lies. It is Lucifer, our common enemy, whose cry down through the corridors of time is always and to everyone, "Give me thine honor."
It has been said that envy is the one sin to which no one readily confesses, but just how widespread that tendency can be is suggested in the old Danish proverb, "If envy were a fever, all the world would be ill" (Ensign, May 2002, p. 63).
There must be a warning here for all of us. We are required by our religion to rejoice in, rather than resent, the good fortune of others.
Saul will later have other excuses for his hatred of David, but for now it is enough for him that Davis is doing well and is loved. "And Saul eyed David from that day and forward" (1 Sam. 18:9).
David knew of this burgeoning animosity. Saul had tried to kill him.
And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul's hand. And Saul cast the javelin; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it. And David avoided out of his presence twice (1 Sam. 18:10,11).
How did he respond?
And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the LORD was with him. Wherefore when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he was afraid of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and came in before them (1 Sam. 18:14 -16; see also 18:5, 30).
Brigham Young said something about behaving ourselves wisely when others speak and think evil of us. He was giving instructions to departing missionaries in 1861. He said:
You will have all manner of evil spoken against you, and all I ask of you and all that God or angels will ask of you is that not one word spoken against you shall be true; and I want you for my sake and for your own sake and for the sake of Christ and the Kingdom of God to live so that the wicked shall have no cause to speak evil against you. (cited in Wilford Woodruff: History of His Life and Labors, pp. 412-413).
II. SAUL FAILS IN THREE MORE ATTEMPTS TO TAKE DAVID'S LIFE.
The account of David's marriage to Saul's daughter, and the events surrounding that marriage, sound very much like the plot of a poorly written soap-opera. What purpose did Saul have in offering his daughter to David? What was the underlying reason for the dowry he required of David? (see 1 Sam. 18:17,21,25)
When the Philistines failed to accomplish Saul's objective, his subtlety vanished. "And Saul spake to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, that they should kill David" (1 Sam. 19:1).
But Jonathan was a true friend to David and he knew what was right.
But Jonathan Saul's son delighted much in David: and Jonathan told David, saying, Saul my father seeketh to kill thee: now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thyself until the morning, and abide in a secret place, and hide thyself: And I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where thou art, and I will commune with my father of thee; and what I see, that I will tell thee. And Jonathan spake good of David unto Saul his father, and said unto him, Let not the king sin against his servant, against David; because he hath not sinned against thee, and because his works have been to thee-ward very good: For he did put his life in his hand, and slew the Philistine, and the LORD wrought a great salvation for all Israel: thou sawest it, and didst rejoice: wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause? And Saul hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan: and Saul sware, As the LORD liveth, he shall not be slain. And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan shewed him all those things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence, as in times past (1 Sam. 19:2-7).
However, Saul's oath, sworn by the life of God, was soon forgotten.
And there was war again: and David went out, and fought with the Philistines, and slew them with a great slaughter; and they fled from him.
And the evil spirit which was not of the LORD was upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his javelin in his hand: and David played with his hand [I have copied this verse from the JST; note that the JST always indicates that this evil spirit was not from God. See 16:14,15,16,23; 18:10]
And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with the javelin; but he slipped away out of Saul's presence, and he smote the javelin into the wall: and David fled, and escaped that night.
Saul also sent messengers unto David's house, to watch him, and to slay him in the morning: and Michal David's wife told him, saying, If thou save not thy life to night, to morrow thou shalt be slain.
So Michal let David down through a window: and he went, and fled, and escaped.
And Michal took an image, and laid it in the bed, and put a pillow of goats' hair for his bolster, and covered it with a cloth.
And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, He is sick.
And Saul sent the messengers again to see David, saying, Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may slay him.
And when the messengers were come in, behold, there was an image in the bed, with a pillow of goats' hair for his bolster (1 Sam. 19:8-16).
Michal also turns out to have been a true friend to her husband, David.
III. DAVID AND JONATHAN RENEW THEIR COVENANT OF FRIENDSHIP, AND JONATHAN SAVES DAVID'S LIFE.
The foundation of the friendship of David and Jonathan is the Rock of Christ. Before this bulwark, all other considerations must defer. Thus Jonathan feels a greater responsibility to David than to his own father. The issue is not a generation gap. It is not a matter of filial rebellion against parental authority. It is not a matter of Jonathan's appreciation of David's personality more than that of his father. It is a matter of right and wrong.
Saul had planned to kill David at the three-day feast of the new moon. But David suspected perfidy and did not come. In his anger, Saul told Jonathan:
For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground, thou shalt not be established, nor thy kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me, for he shall surely die (1 Sam. 20:31).
We were told in 1 Sam 16:14 that Saul lost the Spirit. Have you seen evidence enough of this to convince you? Samuel thought his life was threatened by Saul (see 1 Sam. 16:2); Saul tried repeatedly to kill David; and now . . .
And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said unto him, Wherefore shall he be slain? what hath he done? And Saul cast a javelin at him to smite him: whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of his father to slay David (1 Sam 20:32-33).
David fled from the household and presence of Saul for the final time. Future attempts to kill David would be made in locations of David's choosing.
IV. SAUL IS CONSUMED BY HATRED FOR DAVID. DAVID SPARES SAUL'S LIFE.
Saul's maniacal rage continued even with David gone from his presence. What happened to the priests of Nob who gave David assistance? (see 1 Sam. 22:18,19). What did Saul intend to do to the city of Keilah where David had found assistance? (see 1 Sam 23:10).
What would cause a man to be so destitute of basic values and Christian principles that he would destroy a city to kill a single man? But Saul, even though he was conducting a war against the Philistines, was consumed by a different passion. "And David abode in the wilderness in strong holds, and remained in a mountain in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God delivered him not into his hand" (1 Samuel 23:14, emphasis added).
We are told that Satan had great hold on the hearts of the people of Ammonihah (see Alma 8:9). Can you see this same reality in the heart of Saul. Here is a man who has been willing to kill the Prophet, his own son, and the man anointed by the Lord to become king in his place.
These chapters are great advertisements for the teachings of God regarding forgiveness. How badly is David being hurt by all of this? He is spending time in the wilderness and in hiding, but his heart is good and his people are trusting and happy. Saul, on the other hand, is being consumed by bitterness and the bile of festering hatred. It is as though he is being eaten up from the inside out. The Lord's teachings constitute an eternal principle. We must love our enemies, and forgive those who trespass against us, or the poison of our perversity will drain the life and joy and usefulness from our souls.
Think of Jonathan again. If anyone was truly threatened by David, it was Jonathan. Saul was safe, and had nothing to fear. David had never been a danger to Saul, and refused to injure him even when he had the opportunity. But Jonathan was the crown prince. The throne and kingdom, according to the expected order of things, should come to him. But it would not: rather, because of the wickedness of his father, the crown would go to David, his friend. What was Jonathan's response to this? And "Jonathan Saul's son arose, and went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God" (1 Samuel 23:16).
I love Jonathan, who was so utterly selfless and submissive to the Lord's will.
In 1 Samuel 24, Saul made another attempt to find and destroy David. He brought 3000 men (1 Sam 24:2) to go against David's 600 (1 Sam 23:13) into the wilderness of En-gedi. While he was in a cave "covering his feet" (which can mean, according to the interpretation you favor, either to sleep, massage his feet, or go to the bathroom), David, who was also in the cave, hiding, cut the hem from his robe but left Saul unharmed once again.
David is a great example of one who trusts the Lord. He knows he is to be king, but he is content to let the Lord handle the matter in his own due time. Saul was chosen by the Lord to be king, and Davis is content to let the Lord remove him when the time is right.
Conclusion
Who are your friends? Would they consider you a "true friend" in the spirit of the quote from Elder Hales in the introduction to this lesson? Do you make it easier for them to be obedient and to follow the Lord? Like all of you, I have had friends of both kinds. These chapters have encouraged by to want to be a friend like Jonathan—one whose entire will is swallowed up in the will of the Lord, and whose only desire is that his friend should reach his highest potential.
Are those whom you call friends, true friends? Do your associates come to you and strengthen your hand in God? If not, it is probably time to find new associates with whom to spend your time.
"The Lord Looketh On the Heart"
The Lord Looketh On the Heart
Old Testament: Lesson 22
by Ted L. Gibbons
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Introduction
I was reading the Book of Mormon a few days ago, when a familiar passage was clarified. The passage from Mormon 7 teaches:
For behold, God hath said a man being evil cannot do that which is good; for if he offereth a gift, or prayeth unto God, except he shall do it with real intent it profiteth him nothing. For behold, it is not counted unto him for righteousness. For behold, if a man being evil giveth a gift, he doeth it grudgingly; wherefore it is counted unto him the same as if he had retained the gift; wherefore he is counted evil before God. And likewise also is it counted evil unto a man, if he shall pray and not with real intent of heart; yea, and it profiteth him nothing, for God receiveth none such. Wherefore, a man being evil cannot do that which is good; neither will he give a good gift (Moroni 7:6-10).
The message here is the message of this lesson. Our attitude is more important than our actions. Why we do a thing has more significance than the thing wen do. The text of Moroni 7 makes it perfectly clear than an evil man could do a really good thing, and even though others might be blessed or benefitted by that thing, he himself would not be—the act would not be a righteous act.
People might be deceived by such actions. We are trained to look only at the surfaces of people. We judge them by their body odor and their clothes and their friends and their employment and their hair and their families and their homes. But we hardly ever judge them by their hearts.
I. SAUL SEEKS GUIDANCE FROM SAMUEL AND IS ANOINTED KING.
If our own children sought an opportunity from us to which we were openly and deeply opposed, and if we expressed our opposition and they persisted still in demanding their own way, we might be inclined to offer them their desires in such a way that failure would quickly follow. All right, I'll buy you a car. Here is a 1974 Ford Pinto with a cracked windshield and a cracked block. Good luck! But the Lord, even though he had unmistakably declared is opposition to an earthly king for Israel, still offered them the best man he could find.
Saul was a choice and goodly young man (1 Sam 9:2)
He was obedient (1 Sam 9:3)
He was diligent and reliable (1 Sam 9:4)
He had and demonstrated faith in the prophet (1 Sam 9:10)
He was chosen by the Lord (1 Sam 9:16,20; 10:1).
He was humble (1 Sam 9:21 ; 10:16 ; 10:22)
He was worthy to be born again and have a change of heart (1 Sam 10:6,9)
As a king he, like Benjamin, labored with is own hands for his own support (1 Sam 10:26 ; 11:5; see Mosiah 2:14)
He was forgiving to those who opposed him (1 Sam 10:27 ; 11:13 )
What lesson can we learn about the Lord and about ourselves from this event? If serving others is like serving God, and if the second great commandment to love our neighbors is "like unto" the first to love God, how should we serve others. What should we be willing to do for those whose interests do not exactly coincide with our own?
There is evidence that the Lord will condemn us for withholding our best efforts because of the sins or weaknesses in others.
Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore I will stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart unto him of my substance that he may not suffer, for his punishments are just—But I say unto you, O man, whosoever doeth this the same hath great cause to repent; and except he repenteth of that which he hath done he perisheth forever, and hath no interest in the kingdom of God (Mosiah 4:17,18)
II. SAUL OFFERS A BURNT OFFERING WITHOUT PROPER AUTHORITY. The Philistines had "gathered themselves together to fight with Israel." Look at 1 Sam 13:5. How large was the army that had come to battle? How did the soldiers of Israel respond? In 1 Sam 13:6, we learn that they hid in caves and thickets and high places and rocks. In 1 Sam 13:7, they fled across the Jordan River to less dangerous country.
Saul watched his army diminish as "he tarried seven days" waiting for Samuel to come as he had indicated he would. During that time, "the people were scattered from him." (1 Sam 13:8) It was then, in a moment of fear, that Saul made a great mistake.
And Saul said, Bring hither a burnt offering to me, and peace offerings. And he offered the burnt offering (1 Sam. 13:9).
Saul had no authority to offer sacrifice. The Aaronic priesthood was for the tribe of Levi and Saul was a son of Benjamin (1 Sam. 9:1,2). He certainly did not have the Melchizedek Priesthood like Samuel. But he acted anyway. In his efforts to explain himself to a disappointed Samuel, he offered four excuses.
"The people were scattered" (1 Sam 13:11)
"Thou camest not" (1 Sam 13:11)
"The Philistines gathered themselves together" (1 Sam 13:11)
The fourth excuse may open a window and give us a useful glimpse into the soul of this man.
"I forced myself" (1 Sam 13:12)
What did Saul mean when he told Samuel that he had to force himself to offer a sacrifice? Does it sound to you like he is saying this? "I did not want to be disobedient, but I had to do what I had to do because the Prophet and the Lord clearly weren't ready to deal with the Philistine invasion."
I think this may be a fairly common excuse for disobedience. "I did what God would have wanted me to do if he had all the facts." A son of mine told me the other day that he would have attended Stake Priesthood Meeting, but a girl friend needed help moving out of an apartment. Well, maybe she did. But it is hard to imagine that the packing and moving could only happen during a gathering of priesthood holders.
Samuel, who arrived on the scene "as soon as [Saul] had made an end of offering the burnt offering . . ." (1 Sam. 13:10 ), said, "What hast thou done?" (1 Sam 13:11).
Saul prepared the burnt offering himself, forgetting that though he occupied the throne, wore the crown, and bore the scepter, these insignia of kingly power gave him no right to officiate even as a deacon in the Priesthood of God . . . (James E. Talmage, Articles of Faith, pp. 184,185).
Saul knew what he had done was wrong, but he did it anyway. What did it cost Saul to be disobedient?
And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the Lord thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the Lord have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the Lord hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the Lord commanded thee (1 Sam 13:13,14).
Disobedience might likewise make it impossible for us to inherit a throne. In fact, your future throne may be the price for your disobedience. The Lord said,
To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne (Rev. 3:21).
The account of this tragic error by Saul is followed at once by the story of what Saul ought to have done. Saul, fearful of the decreasing size of his forces, relied on his own wisdom and power to solve the problem. But in 1 Sam 14, Jonathan, the son of Saul, armed with faith and the power of God, defeats a Philistine army with only one other soldier to aid him.
Jonathan, observing the enemy garrison,
said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the Lord will work for us: for there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few (I Sam 14:6).
It is clear that Jonathan did not yet know the Lord's will in this matter. He therefore said, "it may be that the Lord will work for us" (emphasis added).
What he did know was that if the Lord worked with them, the two of them could defeat the entire Philistine army, for "there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few." He had no doubt heard the stories of Gideon and Joshua and Moses to fortify his faith in this truth. Why didn't Saul know that? Or did he know it and ignore the knowledge?
I really like Jonathan's armorbearer. His master had just suggested to him that the two of them make plans to attack and rout the Philistine army. How would you have responded? How many reasons can you think of not to go along with such an endeavor? But this young man, who certainly knew the goodness of Jonathan and the rectitude of his heart, said, "Do all that is in thine heart: turn thee; behold, I am with thee according to thy heart" (1 Sam 14:7). Wow!
Saul's son devised a plan to ascertain whether or not the Lord would assist them. Here is is:
Then said Jonathan, Behold, we will pass over unto these men, and we will discover ourselves unto them. If they say thus unto us, Tarry until we come to you; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up unto them. But if they say thus, Come up unto us; then we will go up: for the Lord hath delivered them into our hand: and this shall be a sign unto us (1 Sam. 14:8-10).
How do you like that plan? From the safety of a rocking chair in Riverton, Utah, it might seem all right, but how would it sound if you were out in the rocks creeping up on the Philistine outposts?
You know how this story will end. Even if you have never read it you know. The Philistines called to the two young me to "Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing" or two. And Jonathan turned to his companion and said, "Charge!"
Come up after me: for the Lord hath delivered them into the hand of Israel (1 Sam 14:12).
They attacked and before they had finished, "the multitude [of Philistines] melted away, and they went on beating down one another" (1 Sam 14:16).
Some lessons from this story:
Be like the armorbearer, follow righteous men even when the desired outcome seems impossible.
There is no restraint in the Lord. He does not need an army to defeat an army. How many missionaries did he send to the land of the Lamanites? How many men did Gideon take with him? How many buckets did the Israelites need to open a path through the Red Sea?
You may not always know what the Lord wants you to do, but when you do know, do it!
It is unfortunate that Saul did not learn these lessons.
III. SAUL DISOBEYS THE LORD IN THE BATTLE WITH THE AMALEKITES AND IS REJECTED FROM BEING KING.
Meanwhile, back at the story of Saul: the unauthorized sacrifice was not his only problem. In 1 Sam. 15 he was sent on a mission by Samuel to destroy the Amalekites. There was no ambiguity in the direction given to Saul.
Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass (1 Sam. 15:3).
But something had happened to Saul since those days when he first met the prophet and was anointed king. There had been a time when Saul "was little in [his] own sight" (1 Sam 15:17), but not now. Now Saul was great, victorious king, no longer as willing to follow counsel. He had become proud.
But Saul and the people spared Agag [the king], and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly (1 Sam. 15:9).
The Lord told Samuel what had happened, and the prophet went out to meet the king, who said, "Blessed be thou of the Lord: I have performed the commandment of the Lord" (1 Sam. 15:13).
Samuel pointed out that he had not. They could both hear the bleating of sheep and the lowing of oxen. Saul offered another excuse. "We kept the best of the animals for sacrifice." he said, "and the rest we have utterly destroyed" (1 Sam. 15:17).
"We almost kept the commandment," Saul claimed. What a frightening idea. What will it mean if we say to the Lord or to his servants, "My spouse and I almost served a mission when we retired." Or "I was almost morally clean." Or "I almost got to the temple when I was married." Or "I almost fulfilled my calling."
You probably remember the language of Paul and Agrippa at Caesarea:
Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian. And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds (Acts 26: 28,29).
Saul tried to blame the people: "the people took of the spoil" (1 Sam 15:21), he protested. And he let them "because [he] feared the people and obeyed their voice" (1 Sam 15:24).
But Samuel (and Saul) knew who was really responsible:
For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king (1 Sam. 15:23).
The use of the words "stubborn" and "rebellious" are great insights into what was wrong with King Saul.
IV. THE LORD CHOOSES DAVID AS KING.
Samuel gave us another a rather frightening look at the heart of Saul when the Lord told him to go anoint a new king. "And Samuel said, How can I go? if Saul hear it, he will kill me" (1 Sam. 16:2). Samuel had grieved and prayed all night for Saul (15:11), and he had mourned for him in his wickedness (15:35;16:1). But Saul was nearly beyond redemption. He was now willing to kill the prophet to assure his family's continuity on the throne of Israel.
When Samuel got to Bethlehem and began to meet the sons of Jesse, he thought he could select the new king on his own.
And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord's anointed is before him (1 Sam. 16:6).
But even the prophet Samuel could not see all the things God could see.
But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart (1 Sam 16:7).
What lesson do you think we ought to learn from this declaration. What would the Lord like us to do in our interpersonal relationships that we are not doing? How should this lesson impact those searching for an eternal spouse? In what ways can we enable ourselves to better see the hearts of people. The Lord has given us some hints:
Wherefore, I would speak unto you that are of the church, that are the peaceable followers of Christ, and that have obtained a sufficient hope by which ye can enter into the rest of the Lord, from this time henceforth until ye shall rest with him in heaven. And now my brethren, I judge these things of you because of your peaceable walk with the children of men. For I remember the word of God, which saith by their works ye shall know them; for if their works be good, then they are good also (Moroni 7:3-5).
It fascinates me that Mormon is able to determine that these people will "enter into the rest of the Lord" only because he has observed their "peaceable walk with the children of men."
Conclusion
What is in our hearts is more important that what is in our hands or our heads. We ought to pause from time to time in the midst of the mad mortal dash to accumulate more and better stuff to take a careful look at our innards. Where have we placed the affections of our hearts? If someone were to create a list of all the things we want, and organize that list in order of importance to us, what would be at the top?
We would want to be careful about making critical judgements based on a single act, of course, but even that has happened. Brigham Young declared that a single act of three young men would enable them to "enter into the rest of the Lord." When the Martin handcart company arrived at the crossing of the Sweetwater, it was running fast and carrying great chunks of ice. Men and women sat in the snow and wept at the impossilbe ordeal represented by that river. Then,
Three 18-year-old boys belonging to the relief party came to the rescue, and to the astonishment of all who saw, carried nearly every member of that ill-fated handcart company across the snowbound stream. The strain was so terrible and the exposure so great, that in later years all the boys died from the effects of it. When President Brigham Young heard of this heroic act, he wept like a child, and later declared publicly, 'that act alone will ensure C. Allen Huntington, George W. Grant and David P. Kimball an everlasting salvation in the Celestial Kingdom of God, worlds without end' (Gordon B. Hinckley, Church News, 7-29-95: "Prophet Pays Tribute to Utah's Pioneers").
Old Testament: Lesson 22
by Ted L. Gibbons
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Introduction
I was reading the Book of Mormon a few days ago, when a familiar passage was clarified. The passage from Mormon 7 teaches:
For behold, God hath said a man being evil cannot do that which is good; for if he offereth a gift, or prayeth unto God, except he shall do it with real intent it profiteth him nothing. For behold, it is not counted unto him for righteousness. For behold, if a man being evil giveth a gift, he doeth it grudgingly; wherefore it is counted unto him the same as if he had retained the gift; wherefore he is counted evil before God. And likewise also is it counted evil unto a man, if he shall pray and not with real intent of heart; yea, and it profiteth him nothing, for God receiveth none such. Wherefore, a man being evil cannot do that which is good; neither will he give a good gift (Moroni 7:6-10).
The message here is the message of this lesson. Our attitude is more important than our actions. Why we do a thing has more significance than the thing wen do. The text of Moroni 7 makes it perfectly clear than an evil man could do a really good thing, and even though others might be blessed or benefitted by that thing, he himself would not be—the act would not be a righteous act.
People might be deceived by such actions. We are trained to look only at the surfaces of people. We judge them by their body odor and their clothes and their friends and their employment and their hair and their families and their homes. But we hardly ever judge them by their hearts.
I. SAUL SEEKS GUIDANCE FROM SAMUEL AND IS ANOINTED KING.
If our own children sought an opportunity from us to which we were openly and deeply opposed, and if we expressed our opposition and they persisted still in demanding their own way, we might be inclined to offer them their desires in such a way that failure would quickly follow. All right, I'll buy you a car. Here is a 1974 Ford Pinto with a cracked windshield and a cracked block. Good luck! But the Lord, even though he had unmistakably declared is opposition to an earthly king for Israel, still offered them the best man he could find.
Saul was a choice and goodly young man (1 Sam 9:2)
He was obedient (1 Sam 9:3)
He was diligent and reliable (1 Sam 9:4)
He had and demonstrated faith in the prophet (1 Sam 9:10)
He was chosen by the Lord (1 Sam 9:16,20; 10:1).
He was humble (1 Sam 9:21 ; 10:16 ; 10:22)
He was worthy to be born again and have a change of heart (1 Sam 10:6,9)
As a king he, like Benjamin, labored with is own hands for his own support (1 Sam 10:26 ; 11:5; see Mosiah 2:14)
He was forgiving to those who opposed him (1 Sam 10:27 ; 11:13 )
What lesson can we learn about the Lord and about ourselves from this event? If serving others is like serving God, and if the second great commandment to love our neighbors is "like unto" the first to love God, how should we serve others. What should we be willing to do for those whose interests do not exactly coincide with our own?
There is evidence that the Lord will condemn us for withholding our best efforts because of the sins or weaknesses in others.
Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore I will stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart unto him of my substance that he may not suffer, for his punishments are just—But I say unto you, O man, whosoever doeth this the same hath great cause to repent; and except he repenteth of that which he hath done he perisheth forever, and hath no interest in the kingdom of God (Mosiah 4:17,18)
II. SAUL OFFERS A BURNT OFFERING WITHOUT PROPER AUTHORITY. The Philistines had "gathered themselves together to fight with Israel." Look at 1 Sam 13:5. How large was the army that had come to battle? How did the soldiers of Israel respond? In 1 Sam 13:6, we learn that they hid in caves and thickets and high places and rocks. In 1 Sam 13:7, they fled across the Jordan River to less dangerous country.
Saul watched his army diminish as "he tarried seven days" waiting for Samuel to come as he had indicated he would. During that time, "the people were scattered from him." (1 Sam 13:8) It was then, in a moment of fear, that Saul made a great mistake.
And Saul said, Bring hither a burnt offering to me, and peace offerings. And he offered the burnt offering (1 Sam. 13:9).
Saul had no authority to offer sacrifice. The Aaronic priesthood was for the tribe of Levi and Saul was a son of Benjamin (1 Sam. 9:1,2). He certainly did not have the Melchizedek Priesthood like Samuel. But he acted anyway. In his efforts to explain himself to a disappointed Samuel, he offered four excuses.
"The people were scattered" (1 Sam 13:11)
"Thou camest not" (1 Sam 13:11)
"The Philistines gathered themselves together" (1 Sam 13:11)
The fourth excuse may open a window and give us a useful glimpse into the soul of this man.
"I forced myself" (1 Sam 13:12)
What did Saul mean when he told Samuel that he had to force himself to offer a sacrifice? Does it sound to you like he is saying this? "I did not want to be disobedient, but I had to do what I had to do because the Prophet and the Lord clearly weren't ready to deal with the Philistine invasion."
I think this may be a fairly common excuse for disobedience. "I did what God would have wanted me to do if he had all the facts." A son of mine told me the other day that he would have attended Stake Priesthood Meeting, but a girl friend needed help moving out of an apartment. Well, maybe she did. But it is hard to imagine that the packing and moving could only happen during a gathering of priesthood holders.
Samuel, who arrived on the scene "as soon as [Saul] had made an end of offering the burnt offering . . ." (1 Sam. 13:10 ), said, "What hast thou done?" (1 Sam 13:11).
Saul prepared the burnt offering himself, forgetting that though he occupied the throne, wore the crown, and bore the scepter, these insignia of kingly power gave him no right to officiate even as a deacon in the Priesthood of God . . . (James E. Talmage, Articles of Faith, pp. 184,185).
Saul knew what he had done was wrong, but he did it anyway. What did it cost Saul to be disobedient?
And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the Lord thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the Lord have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the Lord hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the Lord commanded thee (1 Sam 13:13,14).
Disobedience might likewise make it impossible for us to inherit a throne. In fact, your future throne may be the price for your disobedience. The Lord said,
To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne (Rev. 3:21).
The account of this tragic error by Saul is followed at once by the story of what Saul ought to have done. Saul, fearful of the decreasing size of his forces, relied on his own wisdom and power to solve the problem. But in 1 Sam 14, Jonathan, the son of Saul, armed with faith and the power of God, defeats a Philistine army with only one other soldier to aid him.
Jonathan, observing the enemy garrison,
said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the Lord will work for us: for there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few (I Sam 14:6).
It is clear that Jonathan did not yet know the Lord's will in this matter. He therefore said, "it may be that the Lord will work for us" (emphasis added).
What he did know was that if the Lord worked with them, the two of them could defeat the entire Philistine army, for "there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few." He had no doubt heard the stories of Gideon and Joshua and Moses to fortify his faith in this truth. Why didn't Saul know that? Or did he know it and ignore the knowledge?
I really like Jonathan's armorbearer. His master had just suggested to him that the two of them make plans to attack and rout the Philistine army. How would you have responded? How many reasons can you think of not to go along with such an endeavor? But this young man, who certainly knew the goodness of Jonathan and the rectitude of his heart, said, "Do all that is in thine heart: turn thee; behold, I am with thee according to thy heart" (1 Sam 14:7). Wow!
Saul's son devised a plan to ascertain whether or not the Lord would assist them. Here is is:
Then said Jonathan, Behold, we will pass over unto these men, and we will discover ourselves unto them. If they say thus unto us, Tarry until we come to you; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up unto them. But if they say thus, Come up unto us; then we will go up: for the Lord hath delivered them into our hand: and this shall be a sign unto us (1 Sam. 14:8-10).
How do you like that plan? From the safety of a rocking chair in Riverton, Utah, it might seem all right, but how would it sound if you were out in the rocks creeping up on the Philistine outposts?
You know how this story will end. Even if you have never read it you know. The Philistines called to the two young me to "Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing" or two. And Jonathan turned to his companion and said, "Charge!"
Come up after me: for the Lord hath delivered them into the hand of Israel (1 Sam 14:12).
They attacked and before they had finished, "the multitude [of Philistines] melted away, and they went on beating down one another" (1 Sam 14:16).
Some lessons from this story:
Be like the armorbearer, follow righteous men even when the desired outcome seems impossible.
There is no restraint in the Lord. He does not need an army to defeat an army. How many missionaries did he send to the land of the Lamanites? How many men did Gideon take with him? How many buckets did the Israelites need to open a path through the Red Sea?
You may not always know what the Lord wants you to do, but when you do know, do it!
It is unfortunate that Saul did not learn these lessons.
III. SAUL DISOBEYS THE LORD IN THE BATTLE WITH THE AMALEKITES AND IS REJECTED FROM BEING KING.
Meanwhile, back at the story of Saul: the unauthorized sacrifice was not his only problem. In 1 Sam. 15 he was sent on a mission by Samuel to destroy the Amalekites. There was no ambiguity in the direction given to Saul.
Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass (1 Sam. 15:3).
But something had happened to Saul since those days when he first met the prophet and was anointed king. There had been a time when Saul "was little in [his] own sight" (1 Sam 15:17), but not now. Now Saul was great, victorious king, no longer as willing to follow counsel. He had become proud.
But Saul and the people spared Agag [the king], and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly (1 Sam. 15:9).
The Lord told Samuel what had happened, and the prophet went out to meet the king, who said, "Blessed be thou of the Lord: I have performed the commandment of the Lord" (1 Sam. 15:13).
Samuel pointed out that he had not. They could both hear the bleating of sheep and the lowing of oxen. Saul offered another excuse. "We kept the best of the animals for sacrifice." he said, "and the rest we have utterly destroyed" (1 Sam. 15:17).
"We almost kept the commandment," Saul claimed. What a frightening idea. What will it mean if we say to the Lord or to his servants, "My spouse and I almost served a mission when we retired." Or "I was almost morally clean." Or "I almost got to the temple when I was married." Or "I almost fulfilled my calling."
You probably remember the language of Paul and Agrippa at Caesarea:
Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian. And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds (Acts 26: 28,29).
Saul tried to blame the people: "the people took of the spoil" (1 Sam 15:21), he protested. And he let them "because [he] feared the people and obeyed their voice" (1 Sam 15:24).
But Samuel (and Saul) knew who was really responsible:
For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king (1 Sam. 15:23).
The use of the words "stubborn" and "rebellious" are great insights into what was wrong with King Saul.
IV. THE LORD CHOOSES DAVID AS KING.
Samuel gave us another a rather frightening look at the heart of Saul when the Lord told him to go anoint a new king. "And Samuel said, How can I go? if Saul hear it, he will kill me" (1 Sam. 16:2). Samuel had grieved and prayed all night for Saul (15:11), and he had mourned for him in his wickedness (15:35;16:1). But Saul was nearly beyond redemption. He was now willing to kill the prophet to assure his family's continuity on the throne of Israel.
When Samuel got to Bethlehem and began to meet the sons of Jesse, he thought he could select the new king on his own.
And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord's anointed is before him (1 Sam. 16:6).
But even the prophet Samuel could not see all the things God could see.
But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart (1 Sam 16:7).
What lesson do you think we ought to learn from this declaration. What would the Lord like us to do in our interpersonal relationships that we are not doing? How should this lesson impact those searching for an eternal spouse? In what ways can we enable ourselves to better see the hearts of people. The Lord has given us some hints:
Wherefore, I would speak unto you that are of the church, that are the peaceable followers of Christ, and that have obtained a sufficient hope by which ye can enter into the rest of the Lord, from this time henceforth until ye shall rest with him in heaven. And now my brethren, I judge these things of you because of your peaceable walk with the children of men. For I remember the word of God, which saith by their works ye shall know them; for if their works be good, then they are good also (Moroni 7:3-5).
It fascinates me that Mormon is able to determine that these people will "enter into the rest of the Lord" only because he has observed their "peaceable walk with the children of men."
Conclusion
What is in our hearts is more important that what is in our hands or our heads. We ought to pause from time to time in the midst of the mad mortal dash to accumulate more and better stuff to take a careful look at our innards. Where have we placed the affections of our hearts? If someone were to create a list of all the things we want, and organize that list in order of importance to us, what would be at the top?
We would want to be careful about making critical judgements based on a single act, of course, but even that has happened. Brigham Young declared that a single act of three young men would enable them to "enter into the rest of the Lord." When the Martin handcart company arrived at the crossing of the Sweetwater, it was running fast and carrying great chunks of ice. Men and women sat in the snow and wept at the impossilbe ordeal represented by that river. Then,
Three 18-year-old boys belonging to the relief party came to the rescue, and to the astonishment of all who saw, carried nearly every member of that ill-fated handcart company across the snowbound stream. The strain was so terrible and the exposure so great, that in later years all the boys died from the effects of it. When President Brigham Young heard of this heroic act, he wept like a child, and later declared publicly, 'that act alone will ensure C. Allen Huntington, George W. Grant and David P. Kimball an everlasting salvation in the Celestial Kingdom of God, worlds without end' (Gordon B. Hinckley, Church News, 7-29-95: "Prophet Pays Tribute to Utah's Pioneers").
Sunday, June 6, 2010
"God Will Honor Those Who Honor Them"
God Will Honor Those Who Honor Them
Old Testament: Lesson 21
by Ted L. Gibbons
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Introduction
The Lord spoke powerfully about the idea of honor. He said
Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed (1 Sam 2:30).
President Karl G. Maeser said this:
"I have been asked what I mean by word of honor. I will tell you. Place me behind prison walls—walls of stone ever so high, ever so thick, reaching ever so far into the ground—there is a possibility that in some way or another I may be able to escape; but stand me on the floor and draw a chalk line around me and have me give my word of honor never to cross it. Can I get out of that circle? No, never! I'd die first!" (Vital Quotations, comp. Emerson Roy West, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1968, p. 167).
This is how the dictionary defines the word honor:
Honor: v.t. 1. to respect greatly; regard highly; esteem. 2. to show great respect or high regard for; treat with deference or courtesy. 3. to worship. 4. to confer an honor on; exalt; ennoble.
The stories from the first chapters of 1 Samuel can teach us great lessons about the importance of honoring the Lord and his servants.
I. THE SONS OF ELI HONOR THEMSELVES ABOVE THE LORD.
Eli had two sons who assisted him the work, particularly the ordinance work, of the tabernacle. What does 1 Sam 2:12 tell you about these boys? The word Belial means 'worthless' or 'wicked.' What office did these sons hold according to 1 Samuel 1:3? 1 Samuel 2 suggests that there were a number of problems in the family of Eli, all of them related to these boys in some way. The first we have already mentioned.
(1 Sam 2:12) Hophni and Phinehas were worthless, wicked men.
(1 Sam 2:13-16) These two boys refused to be satisfied with the portion of the offerings that belonged to the priest. They wanted the best parts and they wanted them cooked in the way they preferred. If people offering sacrifices refused to comply with their demands, they said things like this: "Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I will take it by force" (1 Sam 2;16).
(1 Sam 2:17) How would such conduct make people feel who came to worship and offer sacrifice? "Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD: for men abhorred the offering of the LORD."
There was more than an unacceptable culinary practice going on here. In 1 Samuel 2:22 we are told that these priests ". . . lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation." By the way, in that same verse we are told that "Eli . . . heard all that his sons did unto all Israel . . ."
(1 Sam 2:24) What did the degenerate actions of these boys cause to happen? Eli told them, " . . . ye make the Lord's people to transgress."
(1 Sam 2:25) Eli told them they were wrong, but they would not repent. "Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto the voice of their father . . ."
(1 Sam 2:27-29) The Lord sent a messenger to Eli who asked, "Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine offering, which I have commanded in my habitation . . ." What does the verb kick suggest in this context? What did the Lord mean when he said to Saul, "It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks"? (Acts 9:5). Do we ever "kick" at the requirements of the Lord and his servants?
(1 Sam 2:27-29) The messenger made a further accusation against Eli: [Thou] "honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people."
(1 Sam 2:31) What did the Lord declare that he would do as a result of this continuing transgression?
Does all of this make you think of the words of Alma to his wayward son Corianton?
O my son, how great iniquity ye brought upon the Zoramites; for when they saw your conduct they would not believe in my words (Alma 39:11). Who did Hophni and Phinehas honor? Not the Lord. They honored themselves.
What happens to a person who puts his or her own desires about everything else? How will such an attitude affect friends and associates? How will the Lord deal with such a person. What examples of this problem have you observed in yourselves and others?
II. ELI HONORS HIS SONS ABOVE THE LORD.
A great question about parental responsibility appears in these chapters. Eli had sons who were sinning grievously. What was his responsibility? He spoke to them (1 Sam 2:22-24). Was that enough? What calling did Eli have at this time (1 Sam 1:9) The Bible Dictionary tells us that he was "high priest and judge" over Israel. Does the reality of those responsibilities change the duty of a father with regard to his sons?
A great many people have had wicked children, but very few were ever rebuked and punished the way Eli was punished. Read 1 Sam 2:29-35 and ponder the depth of the Lord's disappointment in the conduct of Eli. And be assured that the problem is not that he had wicked sons. Samuel, the successor to Eli, also had wicked sons (see 1 Sam 8:3), but the Lord did not respond to their wickedness as he did to that of Hophni and Phinehas. The difference had to be in the way these fathers dealt with the wickedness of their sons.
What specific thing did the Lord say Eli had not done about the iniquity of his sons?
I will judge his [Eli's] house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not (1 Sam 3:13).
What restraint was lacking?
If a man is a bishop and knows that one of his sons is unworthy to participate in the blessing or passing of the sacrament, what must he do? Is it enough to talk, to warn, to call to repentance? If, as he waits for a sacrament meeting to start, a bishop sees his unworthy son sitting at the sacrament table, should he say or do anything?
Who did Eli honor "above" the Lord (see 1 Sam 2:29)? Are we ever guilty of trying to please others more than the Lord? In the language of D&C 121:35, do we ever "aspire to the honors of men"?
III. SAMUEL HONORS THE LORD.
What did the Lord say he would do in Israel in 1 Sam 2:35? Who would that faithful priest be? Samuel, the son of Hannah.
Learning to honor the Lord must be the polar star of our lives. We must move ever closer to him rather than moving toward the satisfaction of our own desires or toward the praise and honor of others.
There is an attitudinal and behavioral bridge that we need to build in order for us to draw closer to Him, and thus be ready to return Home — cum laude or summa cum laude — to receive of His loving fulness, we must want to do this more than we want to do anything else. Otherwise, even if we avoid wickedness, our journey will end in the suburbs, somewhere short of the City of God (Neal A. Maxwell, All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience, p.4).
From that first night at the Tabernacle when Samuel responded to the Lord's voice by saying, "Speak; for thy servant heareth," until the final curtain fell in 1 Samuel 25:1, this great man was a pillar of obedience and righteousness and integrity. His entire life was one of honor to the Lord, as were the lives of Ruth and Hannah and Naomi. As Samuel honored the Lord in his prophetic calling, he demonstrated many of the qualitites of a prophet.
(1 Sam 9:6) He was a man of God
(1 Sam 9:6) He was honorable
(1 Sam 9:6) Everything he prophesied would in fact happen
(1 Sam 9:6) He showed people the way to go
(1 Sam 9:9) He was called a prophet and a seer
(1 Sam 9:19) He could tell people things that were in their hearts
(1 Sam 9:27) He would show the word of God
(1 Sam 12:4) He would never defraud people
(1 Sam 12:4) He would never oppress people
(1 Sam 12:4) He would never take anything from anyone
(1 Sam 12:7) He would reason with the people
(1 Sam 12:23) He would never cease to pray for the people
(1 Sam 12:23) He would teach the good and right way
What events now occurring in your life and your world give you the opportunity to demonstrate whom you honor?
IV. THE ISRAELITES HONOR THE WORLD.
Israel's government at this time was a rule of judges, but in a very real way they were also a monarchy. Who was their king? 1 Sam. 12:12; see also Ps. 47:7; 89:18; 149:2) When they informed Samuel that they wanted a king rather than a judge, the Lord said,
Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them (1 Sam 8:7)
Why did they want a king? The matter came up with the wickedness of the sons of Samuel, but there was another, more significant reason:
" . . . now make us a king to judge us like all the nations" (1 Sam 8:5).
"Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, Nay; but we will have a king over us; That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles" (1 Sam 8:19,20).
They wanted to be like all the other nations. Have you seen some of that among our own people? We sometimes want to watch the same movies, wear the same clothes, listen to the same music, read the same books as all the other nations.
This challenge can remain a stumbling block for Abraham's seed today. The temptation to be "like all the nations" is ever present. The standards and images of the world are not to become the ideals of Abraham's seed. The Old Testament in particular offers a warning to the Lord's covenant people of today as it chronicles the people of the past. In it we see the results of failing to bless all the families of the world because one desires to be like the world. Eventually Abraham's seed were lost, scattered, and taken captive by the world they so anxiously tried to imitate (S. Michael Wilcox, "The Abrahamic Covenant," Ensign, Jan. 1998, 47).
Conclusion
Alma counseled his son Helaman,
O, remember, my son, and learn wisdom in thy youth; yea, learn in thy youth to keep the commandments of God. Yea, and cry unto God for all thy support; yea, let all thy doings be unto the Lord, and whithersoever thou goest let it be in the Lord; yea, let all thy thoughts be directed unto the Lord; yea, let the affections of thy heart be placed upon the Lord forever. Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day (Alma 37:35-37).
How can we honor the Lord more faithfully? What attitudes and efforts will keep us from honoring ourselves or others or the world in inappropriate ways?
Captain Moroni in the Book of Mormon put honor and humility in perspective: "Behold, I am Moroni, your chief captain. I seek not for power, but to pull it down. I seek not for honor of the world, but for the glory of my God, and the freedom and welfare of my country" ( Alma 60:36).
The scriptures teach us that honor includes such things as faith and trust in the Lord, payment of tithes and offerings, fear of the Lord, humility, and obedience.
We honor the Lord by placing our faith and trust in Him: "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding" (Prov. 3:5).
We show our honor for Him by paying tithes and offerings: "Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase" (Prov. 3:9).
We honor the Lord with our obedience to His commandments: "Forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments" (Prov. 3:1) [Robert D. Hales, "Return with Honor," Ensign, June 1999, 7].
Old Testament: Lesson 21
by Ted L. Gibbons
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Introduction
The Lord spoke powerfully about the idea of honor. He said
Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed (1 Sam 2:30).
President Karl G. Maeser said this:
"I have been asked what I mean by word of honor. I will tell you. Place me behind prison walls—walls of stone ever so high, ever so thick, reaching ever so far into the ground—there is a possibility that in some way or another I may be able to escape; but stand me on the floor and draw a chalk line around me and have me give my word of honor never to cross it. Can I get out of that circle? No, never! I'd die first!" (Vital Quotations, comp. Emerson Roy West, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1968, p. 167).
This is how the dictionary defines the word honor:
Honor: v.t. 1. to respect greatly; regard highly; esteem. 2. to show great respect or high regard for; treat with deference or courtesy. 3. to worship. 4. to confer an honor on; exalt; ennoble.
The stories from the first chapters of 1 Samuel can teach us great lessons about the importance of honoring the Lord and his servants.
I. THE SONS OF ELI HONOR THEMSELVES ABOVE THE LORD.
Eli had two sons who assisted him the work, particularly the ordinance work, of the tabernacle. What does 1 Sam 2:12 tell you about these boys? The word Belial means 'worthless' or 'wicked.' What office did these sons hold according to 1 Samuel 1:3? 1 Samuel 2 suggests that there were a number of problems in the family of Eli, all of them related to these boys in some way. The first we have already mentioned.
(1 Sam 2:12) Hophni and Phinehas were worthless, wicked men.
(1 Sam 2:13-16) These two boys refused to be satisfied with the portion of the offerings that belonged to the priest. They wanted the best parts and they wanted them cooked in the way they preferred. If people offering sacrifices refused to comply with their demands, they said things like this: "Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I will take it by force" (1 Sam 2;16).
(1 Sam 2:17) How would such conduct make people feel who came to worship and offer sacrifice? "Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD: for men abhorred the offering of the LORD."
There was more than an unacceptable culinary practice going on here. In 1 Samuel 2:22 we are told that these priests ". . . lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation." By the way, in that same verse we are told that "Eli . . . heard all that his sons did unto all Israel . . ."
(1 Sam 2:24) What did the degenerate actions of these boys cause to happen? Eli told them, " . . . ye make the Lord's people to transgress."
(1 Sam 2:25) Eli told them they were wrong, but they would not repent. "Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto the voice of their father . . ."
(1 Sam 2:27-29) The Lord sent a messenger to Eli who asked, "Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine offering, which I have commanded in my habitation . . ." What does the verb kick suggest in this context? What did the Lord mean when he said to Saul, "It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks"? (Acts 9:5). Do we ever "kick" at the requirements of the Lord and his servants?
(1 Sam 2:27-29) The messenger made a further accusation against Eli: [Thou] "honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people."
(1 Sam 2:31) What did the Lord declare that he would do as a result of this continuing transgression?
Does all of this make you think of the words of Alma to his wayward son Corianton?
O my son, how great iniquity ye brought upon the Zoramites; for when they saw your conduct they would not believe in my words (Alma 39:11). Who did Hophni and Phinehas honor? Not the Lord. They honored themselves.
What happens to a person who puts his or her own desires about everything else? How will such an attitude affect friends and associates? How will the Lord deal with such a person. What examples of this problem have you observed in yourselves and others?
II. ELI HONORS HIS SONS ABOVE THE LORD.
A great question about parental responsibility appears in these chapters. Eli had sons who were sinning grievously. What was his responsibility? He spoke to them (1 Sam 2:22-24). Was that enough? What calling did Eli have at this time (1 Sam 1:9) The Bible Dictionary tells us that he was "high priest and judge" over Israel. Does the reality of those responsibilities change the duty of a father with regard to his sons?
A great many people have had wicked children, but very few were ever rebuked and punished the way Eli was punished. Read 1 Sam 2:29-35 and ponder the depth of the Lord's disappointment in the conduct of Eli. And be assured that the problem is not that he had wicked sons. Samuel, the successor to Eli, also had wicked sons (see 1 Sam 8:3), but the Lord did not respond to their wickedness as he did to that of Hophni and Phinehas. The difference had to be in the way these fathers dealt with the wickedness of their sons.
What specific thing did the Lord say Eli had not done about the iniquity of his sons?
I will judge his [Eli's] house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not (1 Sam 3:13).
What restraint was lacking?
If a man is a bishop and knows that one of his sons is unworthy to participate in the blessing or passing of the sacrament, what must he do? Is it enough to talk, to warn, to call to repentance? If, as he waits for a sacrament meeting to start, a bishop sees his unworthy son sitting at the sacrament table, should he say or do anything?
Who did Eli honor "above" the Lord (see 1 Sam 2:29)? Are we ever guilty of trying to please others more than the Lord? In the language of D&C 121:35, do we ever "aspire to the honors of men"?
III. SAMUEL HONORS THE LORD.
What did the Lord say he would do in Israel in 1 Sam 2:35? Who would that faithful priest be? Samuel, the son of Hannah.
Learning to honor the Lord must be the polar star of our lives. We must move ever closer to him rather than moving toward the satisfaction of our own desires or toward the praise and honor of others.
There is an attitudinal and behavioral bridge that we need to build in order for us to draw closer to Him, and thus be ready to return Home — cum laude or summa cum laude — to receive of His loving fulness, we must want to do this more than we want to do anything else. Otherwise, even if we avoid wickedness, our journey will end in the suburbs, somewhere short of the City of God (Neal A. Maxwell, All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience, p.4).
From that first night at the Tabernacle when Samuel responded to the Lord's voice by saying, "Speak; for thy servant heareth," until the final curtain fell in 1 Samuel 25:1, this great man was a pillar of obedience and righteousness and integrity. His entire life was one of honor to the Lord, as were the lives of Ruth and Hannah and Naomi. As Samuel honored the Lord in his prophetic calling, he demonstrated many of the qualitites of a prophet.
(1 Sam 9:6) He was a man of God
(1 Sam 9:6) He was honorable
(1 Sam 9:6) Everything he prophesied would in fact happen
(1 Sam 9:6) He showed people the way to go
(1 Sam 9:9) He was called a prophet and a seer
(1 Sam 9:19) He could tell people things that were in their hearts
(1 Sam 9:27) He would show the word of God
(1 Sam 12:4) He would never defraud people
(1 Sam 12:4) He would never oppress people
(1 Sam 12:4) He would never take anything from anyone
(1 Sam 12:7) He would reason with the people
(1 Sam 12:23) He would never cease to pray for the people
(1 Sam 12:23) He would teach the good and right way
What events now occurring in your life and your world give you the opportunity to demonstrate whom you honor?
IV. THE ISRAELITES HONOR THE WORLD.
Israel's government at this time was a rule of judges, but in a very real way they were also a monarchy. Who was their king? 1 Sam. 12:12; see also Ps. 47:7; 89:18; 149:2) When they informed Samuel that they wanted a king rather than a judge, the Lord said,
Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them (1 Sam 8:7)
Why did they want a king? The matter came up with the wickedness of the sons of Samuel, but there was another, more significant reason:
" . . . now make us a king to judge us like all the nations" (1 Sam 8:5).
"Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, Nay; but we will have a king over us; That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles" (1 Sam 8:19,20).
They wanted to be like all the other nations. Have you seen some of that among our own people? We sometimes want to watch the same movies, wear the same clothes, listen to the same music, read the same books as all the other nations.
This challenge can remain a stumbling block for Abraham's seed today. The temptation to be "like all the nations" is ever present. The standards and images of the world are not to become the ideals of Abraham's seed. The Old Testament in particular offers a warning to the Lord's covenant people of today as it chronicles the people of the past. In it we see the results of failing to bless all the families of the world because one desires to be like the world. Eventually Abraham's seed were lost, scattered, and taken captive by the world they so anxiously tried to imitate (S. Michael Wilcox, "The Abrahamic Covenant," Ensign, Jan. 1998, 47).
Conclusion
Alma counseled his son Helaman,
O, remember, my son, and learn wisdom in thy youth; yea, learn in thy youth to keep the commandments of God. Yea, and cry unto God for all thy support; yea, let all thy doings be unto the Lord, and whithersoever thou goest let it be in the Lord; yea, let all thy thoughts be directed unto the Lord; yea, let the affections of thy heart be placed upon the Lord forever. Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day (Alma 37:35-37).
How can we honor the Lord more faithfully? What attitudes and efforts will keep us from honoring ourselves or others or the world in inappropriate ways?
Captain Moroni in the Book of Mormon put honor and humility in perspective: "Behold, I am Moroni, your chief captain. I seek not for power, but to pull it down. I seek not for honor of the world, but for the glory of my God, and the freedom and welfare of my country" ( Alma 60:36).
The scriptures teach us that honor includes such things as faith and trust in the Lord, payment of tithes and offerings, fear of the Lord, humility, and obedience.
We honor the Lord by placing our faith and trust in Him: "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding" (Prov. 3:5).
We show our honor for Him by paying tithes and offerings: "Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase" (Prov. 3:9).
We honor the Lord with our obedience to His commandments: "Forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments" (Prov. 3:1) [Robert D. Hales, "Return with Honor," Ensign, June 1999, 7].
"All the City Doth Know That Thou Art a Virtuous Woman"
All the City Doth Know That Thou Art a Virtuous Woman
Old Testament: Lesson 20 (Ruth 1; 1 Samuel 1)
by Ted L. Gibbons
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Personal note: My dear friend and neighbor Maren Hale has been called into our Ward Primary as a Counselor. We will all miss her lesson but continue to have the wonderful lesson given by Ted Giboons. Ted is also a beloved friend who with his wife have 12 children... I long ago lost count of his grandchildren. ps
Introduction
About fifty years ago, Mr. F. M. Bareham wrote the following:
"A century ago men were following with bated breath the march of Napoleon and waiting with feverish impatience for news of the wars. And all the while in their homes babies were being born. But who could think about babies? Everybody was thinking about battles.
In one year between Trafalgar and Waterloo there stole into the world a host of heroes: Gladstone was born in Liverpool; Tennyson at the Somersby Rectory, and Oliver Wendell Holmes in Massachusetts. Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky, and music was enriched by the advent of Felix Mendelssohn in Hamburg."
And we might add, and Joseph Smith was born in Vermont, four years earlier.
Quoting Bareham further:
"But nobody thought of babies, everybody was thinking of battles. Yet which of the battles of 1809 mattered more than the babies of 1809? We fancy God can manage his world only with great battalions, when all the time he is doing it with beautiful babies.
When a wrong wants righting, or a truth wants preaching, or a continent wants discovering, God sends a baby into the world to do it." (Spencer W. Kimball, Faith Precedes the Miracle: pp, 84,85)
One of the messages of the Old Testament is that God prepares great mothers for great children. In this lesson we get an discerning look at three remarkable Christians, who are women and mothers: Ruth, Naomi, and Hannah.
I wonder if the placement of these stories is coincidental. If we examine the final chapters of Judges together with Ruth and 1 Samuel 1, we find these evidences of greatness:
RUTH: THE ANCESTOR OF DAVID AND CHRIST
NAOMI: THE MOTHER-IN-LAW OF RUTH
HANNAH: THE MOTHER OF THE PROPHET SAMUEL
SAMSON: HE HAD BIG MUSCLES
In fact, the book of Ruth is a great contrast to the wickedness of Judges. Whether intended or not, there are great lessons here about the things that matter most.
I. RUTH LEAVES HER HOME TO GO TO BETHLEHEM WITH NAOMI.
[If you have not already done so, take a break now and read the book of Ruth and the 1st chapter of 1 Samuel. I will not spend much time here on the history, but you will need that background to understand what is being taught.]
Elimlech took his family to Moab for a decade. While there he died and his sons died. Naomi, wife and mother, was left with great sorrow. To her daughters-in-law she said, "the hand of the Lord is gone out against me" (Ruth 1:13).
Knowing that there was little in Israel for Moabite widows, Naomi encouraged her daughters to remain in Moab while she returned to her home in Bethlehem. Orpah agreed, but Ruth refused to leave Naomi. The content of Ruth suggests two reasons for this. First, she love Naomi, and would not send her away alone to a life without offspring or opportunity. Second, she had been converted to the God of Naomi.
And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me (Ruth 1:16,17).
Life is filled with opportunities to make choices about the things that matter most. Orpah chose family, friends, familiarity. Ruth chose love and faith. Consider this:
The adversary is delighted when we act like sightseers, meaning those who are hearers rather than doers of the word (see James 1:22), or shoppers, meaning those preoccupied with the vain things of this world that suffocate our spirits. Satan baits us with perishable pleasures and preoccupations --our bank accounts, our wardrobes, even our waistlines--for he knows that where our treasure is, there will our hearts be also (see Matt. 6:21). Unfortunately, it is easy to let the blinding glare of the adversary's enticements distract us from the light of Christ (Sherrie Dew, Ensign, Nov. 1999, p. 97).
Ruth would not be distracted by the "perishable pleasures." She left for Bethlehem with her mother-in-law.
Ruth's willingness to follow has been duplicated in the lives of so many wonderful women. Since my marriage I have lived in 13 homes. Each of them has been selected on the basis of my work and my requirements. My bride has never asked when we will get to live where she wants to live. "Whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge . . ." she said. And then she did.
When they returned to Bethlehem, there seems to have been a great outpouring of sympathy for them. "All the city was moved about them, and they said, is this Naomi?" (Ruth 1:19)
Naomi responded, "Call me not Naomi, call me Mara" [the word means bitter] (Ruth 1:20) ". . . I went out full and the Lord hath brought me home again empty."
Certainly life had dealt roughly with Naomi. It often does with all of us.
Just when all seems to be going right, challenges often come in multiple doses applied simultaneously. When those trials are not consequences of your disobedience, they are evidence that the Lord feels you are prepared to grow more (see Prov. 3:11-12). He therefore gives you experiences that stimulate growth, understanding, and compassion which polish you for your everlasting benefit. To get you from where you are to where He wants you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails discomfort and pain (Elder Richard G. Scott, C.R., Oct 1995, p.18).
But Naomi was not as empty as she thought she was. She had one of the great daughters of all time, one who would give her an immortal scriptural legacy; and she had the honor of being an ancestor of the Son of God.
These are also lessons worth learning. As we walk down the sidewalk of sorrows that so often defines our mortal experiences, we must remember that we are loved by beings with absolute power, who know our needs and our limits, and who know what we can, with proper preparation, become.
Take a moment here to consider how good Ruth really was. In addition to her willingness to change her life and her religion and to stay with her destitute mother-in-law, we learn these wonderful things about Ruth:
She was willing to go into the fields and glean for food (Ruth 2:2).
Boaz, the owner of the field where she gleaned, knew of all that she had done for her mother in law (Ruth 2:11).
She sought a husband who would preserve her mother-in-law's inheritance in Israel rather than one who was young or rich (Ruth 3:10).
The entire city of Bethlehem knew how good she was (Ruth 3:11).
Naomi's friends told her that Ruth was better to her than seven sons (Ruth 4:15).
II. RUTH AND BOAZ MARRY AND HAVE A CHILD.
The following is from the Bible Dictionary.
Levirate Marriage: The custom of a widow marrying her deceased husband's brother or sometimes a near heir. The word has nothing to do with the name Levi or the biblical Levites, but is so called because of the Latin levir, meaning husband's brother, connected with the English suffix ate, thus constituting levirate. This system of marriage is designated in Deut. 25:5-10 (cf. Gen. 38:8), is spoken of in Matt. 22:23 ff.; it also forms a major aspect of the story of Ruth (Ruth 4:1-12).
There is an allusion to this practice in Naomi's declaration to her widowed daughters-in-law.
And Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters: why will ye go with me? are there yet any more sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? Turn again, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to have an husband. If I should say, I have hope, if I should have an husband also to night, and should also bear sons; Would ye tarry for them till they were grown? would ye stay for them from having husbands? (Ruth 1:11-13)
When Ruth met Boaz as she gleaned in his fields, he treated her kindly, fed her, and praised her for her goodness. When Ruth reported this, Naomi, who had though she was "empty," now saw a ray of hope for herself and her daughter.
And Naomi said unto her daughter in law, Blessed be he of the LORD, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. And Naomi said unto her, The man is near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen (Ruth 2:20).
There were no brothers of Ruth's dead husband to fulfill the levitate custom, but in the absence of a brother, a near kinsman could accept the obligation to marry the widow and raise up seed to the departed man.
Then Naomi her mother in law said unto her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee? And now is not Boaz of our kindred . . . ? (Ruth 3:1,2)
Ruth presented herself to Boaz and invited him to accept the duty of a near kinsman by marrying her. He was willing, but, he said, "there is a kinsman nearer than I." (Ruth 3:12) He took witnesses and approached the nearer kinsman and told him that the property of Elimelech was available for purchase, but, he warned, the purchase also involved a marriage.
What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance. And the kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: redeem thou my right to thyself; for I cannot redeem it (Ruth 4:5,6).
Boaz agreed and said to the witnesses,
Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day (Ruth 4:10).
What comes next sounds almost like a blessing.
The LORD make the woman that is come into thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem . . . (Ruth 4:11).
And a similar thing was said to Naomi:
And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the LORD, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel (Ruth 4:14).
You may remember that Samson imitated the world until he became "like any other man" (Judges 16:17), but Ruth and her husband and Naomi would, by their righteouesness, "be famous in Israel" (Ruth 4:11,14).
III. HANNAH IS BLESSED WITH A SON WHOM SHE LENDS TO THE LORD AS SHE PROMISED.
Hannah's longing for children is a marked contrast to the attitudes of many women in our day. The desire of hers to be a mother was so strong that she presented herself before the Lord at the Tabernacle in fasting and prayer as she sought this blessing in her life (1 Samuel 1:7-15).
She had to know that a child would require years of attention, innumerable batches of laundry (without a Kenmore), sleepless nights and tear-filled days, and yet she wanted a child. Perhaps she saw what so many cannot: children are a blessing more than a burden. My daughter and her husband have 7 little children. An eighth is due at any moment. They require astounding amounts of patience and care and attention. But her husband said to me some time ago, "if someone were dropping gold coins in your hand one at a time, when would you close your hand and say, 'that's enough?'"
I like Hannah! Even though her husband's other wife maked her life miserable with the mockery of her barrenness, Hannah turned to the Lord. She prayed in her sorrow (1 Sam 1:10); she vowed a vow that if given a son, she would give him to the Lord and make him a Nazarite all the days of his life (1 Sam 1:11); she poured our her soul to God (1 Sam 1:15); the Lord remembered her (1 Sam 1:19); she cherished her son and held him close until he was weaned (1 Sam 1:22); she brought him to the house of the Lord (1 Sam 1:24); and she lent the child to the Lord (1 Sam 1:28;2: 20).
You remember Hannah who wanted a child and she went to the sanctuary to pray . . . a prayer from her heart to God that she might bear a child. And how earnest she was in that prayer, so earnest, so sincere, that she said, "If God will give me this child, I will lend him to the Lord for this life." (See 1 Sam. 1:11.) How well the mothers know that life is eternal. How well she knew that in lending this child to the Lord for this life, that beyond and down through the ages of eternity, he would be her child, and she would be his mother (Matthew Cowley: C.R., Oct. 1953, p. 108).
After the birth of her son and his presentation at the tabernacle,
Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the LORD, mine horn is exalted in the LORD: my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation (1 Samuel 2:1).
Take a moment to read the entire record of her rejoicing in 1 Samuel 2:1-11.
Hannah is another who might have believed, like Naomi, that the Lord had left her empty. But instead she believed and exercised faith and waited on the Lord, and the blessings came in abundance. First came Samuel. Then, later,
the LORD visited Hannah, so that she conceived, and bare three sons and two daughters (1 Samuel 2:20).
Conclusion
The stories remind me of the promise made by the Lord in 1 Nephi 21:15,16 and Isaiah 49:14-16.
But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.
We must believe that he will never forget us or leave us empty if we seek him. Sister Sherrie Dew said,
We no longer have the luxury of spending our energy on anything that does not lead us to Christ (Ensign, Nov. 11999, p. 98).
How well Ruth and Naomi and Hannah understood that, and how blessed they were for making the journey.
Old Testament: Lesson 20 (Ruth 1; 1 Samuel 1)
by Ted L. Gibbons
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Personal note: My dear friend and neighbor Maren Hale has been called into our Ward Primary as a Counselor. We will all miss her lesson but continue to have the wonderful lesson given by Ted Giboons. Ted is also a beloved friend who with his wife have 12 children... I long ago lost count of his grandchildren. ps
Introduction
About fifty years ago, Mr. F. M. Bareham wrote the following:
"A century ago men were following with bated breath the march of Napoleon and waiting with feverish impatience for news of the wars. And all the while in their homes babies were being born. But who could think about babies? Everybody was thinking about battles.
In one year between Trafalgar and Waterloo there stole into the world a host of heroes: Gladstone was born in Liverpool; Tennyson at the Somersby Rectory, and Oliver Wendell Holmes in Massachusetts. Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky, and music was enriched by the advent of Felix Mendelssohn in Hamburg."
And we might add, and Joseph Smith was born in Vermont, four years earlier.
Quoting Bareham further:
"But nobody thought of babies, everybody was thinking of battles. Yet which of the battles of 1809 mattered more than the babies of 1809? We fancy God can manage his world only with great battalions, when all the time he is doing it with beautiful babies.
When a wrong wants righting, or a truth wants preaching, or a continent wants discovering, God sends a baby into the world to do it." (Spencer W. Kimball, Faith Precedes the Miracle: pp, 84,85)
One of the messages of the Old Testament is that God prepares great mothers for great children. In this lesson we get an discerning look at three remarkable Christians, who are women and mothers: Ruth, Naomi, and Hannah.
I wonder if the placement of these stories is coincidental. If we examine the final chapters of Judges together with Ruth and 1 Samuel 1, we find these evidences of greatness:
RUTH: THE ANCESTOR OF DAVID AND CHRIST
NAOMI: THE MOTHER-IN-LAW OF RUTH
HANNAH: THE MOTHER OF THE PROPHET SAMUEL
SAMSON: HE HAD BIG MUSCLES
In fact, the book of Ruth is a great contrast to the wickedness of Judges. Whether intended or not, there are great lessons here about the things that matter most.
I. RUTH LEAVES HER HOME TO GO TO BETHLEHEM WITH NAOMI.
[If you have not already done so, take a break now and read the book of Ruth and the 1st chapter of 1 Samuel. I will not spend much time here on the history, but you will need that background to understand what is being taught.]
Elimlech took his family to Moab for a decade. While there he died and his sons died. Naomi, wife and mother, was left with great sorrow. To her daughters-in-law she said, "the hand of the Lord is gone out against me" (Ruth 1:13).
Knowing that there was little in Israel for Moabite widows, Naomi encouraged her daughters to remain in Moab while she returned to her home in Bethlehem. Orpah agreed, but Ruth refused to leave Naomi. The content of Ruth suggests two reasons for this. First, she love Naomi, and would not send her away alone to a life without offspring or opportunity. Second, she had been converted to the God of Naomi.
And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me (Ruth 1:16,17).
Life is filled with opportunities to make choices about the things that matter most. Orpah chose family, friends, familiarity. Ruth chose love and faith. Consider this:
The adversary is delighted when we act like sightseers, meaning those who are hearers rather than doers of the word (see James 1:22), or shoppers, meaning those preoccupied with the vain things of this world that suffocate our spirits. Satan baits us with perishable pleasures and preoccupations --our bank accounts, our wardrobes, even our waistlines--for he knows that where our treasure is, there will our hearts be also (see Matt. 6:21). Unfortunately, it is easy to let the blinding glare of the adversary's enticements distract us from the light of Christ (Sherrie Dew, Ensign, Nov. 1999, p. 97).
Ruth would not be distracted by the "perishable pleasures." She left for Bethlehem with her mother-in-law.
Ruth's willingness to follow has been duplicated in the lives of so many wonderful women. Since my marriage I have lived in 13 homes. Each of them has been selected on the basis of my work and my requirements. My bride has never asked when we will get to live where she wants to live. "Whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge . . ." she said. And then she did.
When they returned to Bethlehem, there seems to have been a great outpouring of sympathy for them. "All the city was moved about them, and they said, is this Naomi?" (Ruth 1:19)
Naomi responded, "Call me not Naomi, call me Mara" [the word means bitter] (Ruth 1:20) ". . . I went out full and the Lord hath brought me home again empty."
Certainly life had dealt roughly with Naomi. It often does with all of us.
Just when all seems to be going right, challenges often come in multiple doses applied simultaneously. When those trials are not consequences of your disobedience, they are evidence that the Lord feels you are prepared to grow more (see Prov. 3:11-12). He therefore gives you experiences that stimulate growth, understanding, and compassion which polish you for your everlasting benefit. To get you from where you are to where He wants you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails discomfort and pain (Elder Richard G. Scott, C.R., Oct 1995, p.18).
But Naomi was not as empty as she thought she was. She had one of the great daughters of all time, one who would give her an immortal scriptural legacy; and she had the honor of being an ancestor of the Son of God.
These are also lessons worth learning. As we walk down the sidewalk of sorrows that so often defines our mortal experiences, we must remember that we are loved by beings with absolute power, who know our needs and our limits, and who know what we can, with proper preparation, become.
Take a moment here to consider how good Ruth really was. In addition to her willingness to change her life and her religion and to stay with her destitute mother-in-law, we learn these wonderful things about Ruth:
She was willing to go into the fields and glean for food (Ruth 2:2).
Boaz, the owner of the field where she gleaned, knew of all that she had done for her mother in law (Ruth 2:11).
She sought a husband who would preserve her mother-in-law's inheritance in Israel rather than one who was young or rich (Ruth 3:10).
The entire city of Bethlehem knew how good she was (Ruth 3:11).
Naomi's friends told her that Ruth was better to her than seven sons (Ruth 4:15).
II. RUTH AND BOAZ MARRY AND HAVE A CHILD.
The following is from the Bible Dictionary.
Levirate Marriage: The custom of a widow marrying her deceased husband's brother or sometimes a near heir. The word has nothing to do with the name Levi or the biblical Levites, but is so called because of the Latin levir, meaning husband's brother, connected with the English suffix ate, thus constituting levirate. This system of marriage is designated in Deut. 25:5-10 (cf. Gen. 38:8), is spoken of in Matt. 22:23 ff.; it also forms a major aspect of the story of Ruth (Ruth 4:1-12).
There is an allusion to this practice in Naomi's declaration to her widowed daughters-in-law.
And Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters: why will ye go with me? are there yet any more sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? Turn again, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to have an husband. If I should say, I have hope, if I should have an husband also to night, and should also bear sons; Would ye tarry for them till they were grown? would ye stay for them from having husbands? (Ruth 1:11-13)
When Ruth met Boaz as she gleaned in his fields, he treated her kindly, fed her, and praised her for her goodness. When Ruth reported this, Naomi, who had though she was "empty," now saw a ray of hope for herself and her daughter.
And Naomi said unto her daughter in law, Blessed be he of the LORD, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. And Naomi said unto her, The man is near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen (Ruth 2:20).
There were no brothers of Ruth's dead husband to fulfill the levitate custom, but in the absence of a brother, a near kinsman could accept the obligation to marry the widow and raise up seed to the departed man.
Then Naomi her mother in law said unto her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee? And now is not Boaz of our kindred . . . ? (Ruth 3:1,2)
Ruth presented herself to Boaz and invited him to accept the duty of a near kinsman by marrying her. He was willing, but, he said, "there is a kinsman nearer than I." (Ruth 3:12) He took witnesses and approached the nearer kinsman and told him that the property of Elimelech was available for purchase, but, he warned, the purchase also involved a marriage.
What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance. And the kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: redeem thou my right to thyself; for I cannot redeem it (Ruth 4:5,6).
Boaz agreed and said to the witnesses,
Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day (Ruth 4:10).
What comes next sounds almost like a blessing.
The LORD make the woman that is come into thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem . . . (Ruth 4:11).
And a similar thing was said to Naomi:
And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the LORD, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel (Ruth 4:14).
You may remember that Samson imitated the world until he became "like any other man" (Judges 16:17), but Ruth and her husband and Naomi would, by their righteouesness, "be famous in Israel" (Ruth 4:11,14).
III. HANNAH IS BLESSED WITH A SON WHOM SHE LENDS TO THE LORD AS SHE PROMISED.
Hannah's longing for children is a marked contrast to the attitudes of many women in our day. The desire of hers to be a mother was so strong that she presented herself before the Lord at the Tabernacle in fasting and prayer as she sought this blessing in her life (1 Samuel 1:7-15).
She had to know that a child would require years of attention, innumerable batches of laundry (without a Kenmore), sleepless nights and tear-filled days, and yet she wanted a child. Perhaps she saw what so many cannot: children are a blessing more than a burden. My daughter and her husband have 7 little children. An eighth is due at any moment. They require astounding amounts of patience and care and attention. But her husband said to me some time ago, "if someone were dropping gold coins in your hand one at a time, when would you close your hand and say, 'that's enough?'"
I like Hannah! Even though her husband's other wife maked her life miserable with the mockery of her barrenness, Hannah turned to the Lord. She prayed in her sorrow (1 Sam 1:10); she vowed a vow that if given a son, she would give him to the Lord and make him a Nazarite all the days of his life (1 Sam 1:11); she poured our her soul to God (1 Sam 1:15); the Lord remembered her (1 Sam 1:19); she cherished her son and held him close until he was weaned (1 Sam 1:22); she brought him to the house of the Lord (1 Sam 1:24); and she lent the child to the Lord (1 Sam 1:28;2: 20).
You remember Hannah who wanted a child and she went to the sanctuary to pray . . . a prayer from her heart to God that she might bear a child. And how earnest she was in that prayer, so earnest, so sincere, that she said, "If God will give me this child, I will lend him to the Lord for this life." (See 1 Sam. 1:11.) How well the mothers know that life is eternal. How well she knew that in lending this child to the Lord for this life, that beyond and down through the ages of eternity, he would be her child, and she would be his mother (Matthew Cowley: C.R., Oct. 1953, p. 108).
After the birth of her son and his presentation at the tabernacle,
Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the LORD, mine horn is exalted in the LORD: my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation (1 Samuel 2:1).
Take a moment to read the entire record of her rejoicing in 1 Samuel 2:1-11.
Hannah is another who might have believed, like Naomi, that the Lord had left her empty. But instead she believed and exercised faith and waited on the Lord, and the blessings came in abundance. First came Samuel. Then, later,
the LORD visited Hannah, so that she conceived, and bare three sons and two daughters (1 Samuel 2:20).
Conclusion
The stories remind me of the promise made by the Lord in 1 Nephi 21:15,16 and Isaiah 49:14-16.
But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.
We must believe that he will never forget us or leave us empty if we seek him. Sister Sherrie Dew said,
We no longer have the luxury of spending our energy on anything that does not lead us to Christ (Ensign, Nov. 11999, p. 98).
How well Ruth and Naomi and Hannah understood that, and how blessed they were for making the journey.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)