My best friend in the Bible outside my Lord and personal Saviour, the Lord Jesus, is David. I talk about him without getting tired. One weekend, as if they knew, the Men’s Fellowship of New Realm Baptist Church invited me for a weekend ministration from Friday evening through Sunday morning. It was all about David, the man after God’s heart.
One unique feature of him was that he never repeated any sin, which is evidence of a teachable spirit. One day he goofed. On his deathbed, he told Solomon, his son, who had succeeded him to the throne, to retaliate the wrong things done to him {David) by two men. One of them was Shimel, a man that cursed him when he was running away from Absalom, his rebellious son, who had wanted to usurp the throne. ‘Now therefore,’ he told Solomon, ‘do not hold him (Shimel) guiltless, for you are a wise man and know what you ought to do to him, but bring his gray hair down to the grave with blood’.
This was demeaning of a man of his spiritual stature. Parents should leave behind good and not evil legacies. There is no doubt that Shimel wronged him and Absalom’s conduct was repulsive, but none would have driven him to error. David did not ascend the throne by coup or rebellion as Absalom had schemed. He was contented in the bush as a shepherd when God caused Prophet Samuel to anoint him king. It did not bother him that Jessie, his dad, did not even shortlist him for selection for the exalted position. God made all the choice. If a man could know what happens during his funeral, Absalom would have refrained from his evil ambition. His dad, David, he had wanted, not only to wrestle power from his hand, but also to murder, mourned for him.
David, as a man of God, therefore, would have forgiven Shimel and not to have pushed his son, King Solomon, for retaliation. As an example, to follow, the Lord Jesus on the cross, prayed for the forgiveness of His murderers. Deacon Stephen did the same. This is another example to follow.
David also told Solomon to kill General Joab, who was once his Commander-in-Chief. ‘Therefore, do according to your wisdom, and do not let his gray hair go down to the grave in peace.’ That was his handover note to Solomon concerning Joab. There is no doubt that Joab killed General Abner, who crowned Ishbosheth, Saul’s son, king before he defected to David’s camp. Yes, he also killed Abner and his younger brother, Asahel, in a circumstance he was compelled by Abner to fight. It was all for and in defence of David, who cursed him and his unborn generations. It was the same Joab, who went the extra mile to reconcile David with Absalom, after he had murdered Amnon, his half-brother, for raping Tamar, his sister.
David was a great man. He fought all the battles Solomon would have fought so that Solomon would reign in peace. When God stopped David from building the temple for Him, David still went ahead to do the same indirectly by providing all the materials Solomon needed for the project. It is strange that he did not apply the same love and wisdom in reconciliation with these two men. It is not the best for the new king to start governance with blood – killing his subjects. Forgiveness would have been a better legacy to leave behind.
In December 1963, someone gave me poison. It was from a man who laughed at my mother when she sent me to school. ‘All that Ogoma did was to let Osondu know the road to school, then he will come back,’ he ridiculed. It pushed my mother beyond her ambition for me. She determined that I would reach Standard Four, instead of Standard Two she had had in mind. As painful as that ridicule was, until her death, she never told me and nobody did. That was why I continued to relate with the man and his children until he lifted up his hand to harm me. It was at that time that my eldest sister could no longer keep quiet. In agony, she said, ‘So this man has not stopped his mischief?’ My mother was wise to hide it from me so that she would not poison my innocent mind.
What we pass on to our children should go through certain crucibles. ‘Is it true? Is it just? Is it wise? Is it honest? Has it a good report? Has it any virtue? Know that a thing can be true but not be a good report. If it does not edify the children, then it should not be given to them. I do not see the rationale of doing what David did, handing over the heads of two men to his son. How could the heads of these men promote God’s Kingdom or that of the new king?
There are people who insist that people coming after them must pass through the painful tunnels they passed through. If they suffered, every other person must suffer. They feel cheated when people coming after them enjoy certain things they did not. It is a bad example to follow. It is better that we pay the price for the generation coming behind us to enjoy.
Thank God that King David also recommended to Solomon some people he would bless. They showed kindness to him when he was in need. ‘But show kindness,’ he said, ‘to the sons of Barzillai, the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at your table, for so they came to me when I fled from Absalom, your brother’. This is an example to follow. Our children should know, through us, various individuals that helped us at various stages in our life. It does not matter whether our relationship with them has changed to day. That should not preclude us from telling the story as it was.
Unfortunately, most children carry religiously the counsel of people to crucify than of those to reward. This is not right. Let us rather ignore any counsel to crucify, no matter where it is coming from, and be quick in blessing people.
For further comment, Please contact: Osondu Anyalechi: 0909 041 9057; [email protected]