Joab is the one who was most responsible for David forgiving
and reconciling with Absalom over the murder of Amnon and now perhaps he feels
most betrayed by him. The scene begins
comically with Absalom riding along helmetless and that mass of hair we heard
about a few days ago catching in a tree.
The soldier who first observed this bizarre sight obeys the king's
command to deal gently with the young man and so tells Joab what he has
seen. Joab's anger demands retribution
for the continuing treachery of Absalom and so he and his men kill him and bury
him in a deep pit with a great heap of stones over him. Without their leader the men who were
following Absalom flee the battle and return to their homes to await what will
happen next. In murder investigations
the details are always important as to who might be responsible for the
crime. The passion with which this one
was carried out, ten spears, a deep pit and a great heap of stones tell us that
this is most likely a personal matter
rather than simply a casualty of war.
The leaders of the Jews come to assert their authority over
the temple and those who would teach there.
Their question is simple, who gave you authority to do what you're doing
here? The premise is clear, if we didn't
then who did? They are the ones who are
the gatekeepers and they have not recognized Jesus as someone who is allowed to
teach, much less throw out the moneychangers and sellers of sacrificial animals
from their assigned places. Those were
given the right to be there but Jesus has no such warrant. As we saw with Paul, Jesus knows how to
divide them and frustrate their counsel.
They lead because the people accept their authority but so did John and
without their approval. Jesus speaks and
acts because the people accept Him. The
parable of the tenants is clear to all, no further explanation is necessary,
His teaching is plain, these leaders will be thrown down. They know it and they also know that they
have to do something to get back their authority.
These forty men have definitely got an obsession with
Paul. The anger directed his way is
similar to Joab's in that it is intensely personal. They consider him a betrayer of the nation. He had been persecutor in chief of this sect
who believe Jesus is/was Messiah and now he not only is a leader in the
movement but also is bringing Gentiles to the table and treating them as
members of the same covenant and his own people who do not accept Jesus as if
they were Gentiles with respect to God.
Their hatred is such that they have decided not to eat or drink until
they have killed the man. One assumes
that they broke this vow at some point since Paul lived quite a long time after
this and it is curious to think how they may have absolved themselves from vow
keeping. Fortunately, Paul's nephew
heard of the plot and told the tribune.
Did you notice the huge guard Paul had with him as he was sent to
Caesarea under cover of darkness? Two
hundred soldiers, with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen. That is some serious security.
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