>> Jen: Hello there, faithful listener. You've tuned in to season seven of the Bible explained podcast. So make sure to grab your cup of coffee, because today we are going to be discussing the book of second Samuel. Hey guys, welcome to the Bible explain podcast on this lovely Wednesday morning. I've got some announcements coming up regarding the podcast, and I think I will share today a little bit of what I am going to be doing for season eight. Because
season eight is coming up. Season eight will be, I believe, at the end of August is when we will be switching seasons. So that is a big deal because the podcast will be changing. And here's how it will be changing. I will no longer be doing a Friday episode m on the podcast. I'm just going to rip that band aid off real quick. Now, that does not mean that I'm going to be, you know,
skipping Friday's episode. Instead, that means that the episode that I would normally do on Fridays will be done on the following Monday, if that makes sense. So we'll still be going through the Old Testament in order like I'm doing now. It's just there won't be a Friday episode anymore. So on Mondays and Wednesdays, I'll be doing an Old Testament episode, and then on Tuesdays and Thursdays will still
be the New Testament episodes. The reason I decided to no longer do a Friday episode is because I'll be doing another podcast for those who are ko fi members on Kofi. So I will be going through the Book of Psalms on Kofi on Fridays. Now, eventually, those psalms episodes will be released to the public once we go through the Book of Psalms. But after the Psalms, I will be potentially doing Friday episodes that
never get released to the public. For example, I'm thinking of redoing my Genesis episodes and also my Matthew episodes, as well as potentially talking about the Septuagint. And those episodes will possibly never be released for free. Now, the reason for this change is because we are about to celebrate the 1000th episode of this podcast, which is on Friday, by the way. And also, I'm about to celebrate my four years on this podcast. And quite honestly, the
worker is worthy of his wages. I have so many wonderful people that donate to the business and purchase things, and I've been able to sustain the business through those sales. But I don't take a paycheck. My sister does not take a paycheck, and she puts in hours of work weekly for the podcast also, and my mom as well, puts in hours of work weekly for the podcast,
producing all of those YouTube videos that I do. And so I would like to be able to pay the workers that have been doing this ministry for so many years. So that is the main reason. But the other reason is that I already have some members on Ko fi who have been supporting this podcast and receiving nothing back other than the free content that I put out for everybody. And I'd like to do something special for the people who have been supporting this podcast so faithfully over these many months as
well. So those are the two reasons why I'm going to be no longer doing a Friday episode. But that does not mean I'm not still going to be coming out with episodes almost daily. It's just instead going to be Mondays through Thursdays. Then Friday will be a special podcast episode for members over on Ko Fi. Now that that band aid is ripped off, let's go ahead and discuss two Samuel 1931 through 43. Today we're going to talk about how Israel and Judah get into a pretty heated conflict over
David. So let's read this. I'll be reading from the web as always, but feel free to grab the version of the Bible that you prefer, and let's read God's word together. Barzilai the Gileadite came down from Roglum, and he went over the Jordan with the king to conduct him over the Jordan. Now Barzilai was a very aged man, even 80 years old. He had provided the king with sustenance while he stayed at Mahanaim, for he was a very great
mandeh. The king said to Barzilai, come over with me and I will sustain you with me in Jerusalem. Barzilai said to the king, how many are the days of the years of my life that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem? I am 80 years old today. Can I discern between good and bad? Can your servant taste what I eat or what I drink? Can I hear the voice of singing men and singing women any more? Why then, should your servant be a burden to my lord the king? Your servant would
just but go over the Jordan with the kingdom. Why should the king repay me with such a reward? Please let your servant turn back again, that I may die in my own city by the grave of my father and my mother. But behold your servant Chimham. Let him go over with my lord the king and do to him what shall seem good to you. The king answered, Chimham shall go over with me, and I will do to him that which will seem good to you. Whatever you request of me,
that I will do for you. All the people went over the Jordan, and the king went over. Then the king kissed Barzillai and blessed him, and he returned to his own place. So the king went over to Gilgal, and Shimham went over with him. All the people of Judah brought the king over, and also half the people of Israel. Behold, all the men of Israel came to the king and said to the king, why have
our brothers, the men of Judah, stolen you away? And brought the king and his household over the Jordan and all of David's men with him? All the men of Judah answered the men of Israel, because the king is a close relative to us. Why, then are you angry about the matter? Have we eaten at all at the king's cost, or has he given us any gift? The men of Israel answered the men of Judah and said, we have ten parts in the king, and we also have
more claim to David than you. Why, then did you despise us that our advice should not be first had in bringing back our king? The words of the men of Judah were fiercer than the words of the men of Israel. Okay, so this is the funny part that I've been telling you guys about how Judah, uh, and the rest of Israel are fighting over King David. But we'll get to that in a second. First, I want to talk about this man named
Barzillai. It says, Barzilai, the Gileadites came down from Rogilum, and he went over the Jordan with the king to conduct him over the Jordan. Then it describes who Barzillai was. Apparently, Barzillai was a very old man. It says he was 80 years old, but he was a very rich and well to do man who was a big supporter of King David. In fact, he was the guy who pretty much solely took care of David while David was in Mahanaim.
So Mahanaim was the area where David was staying when he had crossed over the Jordan river out of Jerusalem to get away from Absalom, his son. And so he needed provisions. Him and all of his men needed provisions while he was in Mahanaim. And it looks like Barzilai, who was extremely wealthy, took care of David and all of David's family and maybe even all of David's, uh, men who had traveled with him as well. So this was a huge thing that Barzilai had done for
David. Very big thing. So Barzillai, big supporter of David. Very nice, wealthy old man is what it sounds like. And he decided to travel with David over the Jordan river. But David was hesitant to let Barzilai go. So it sounds like David had built up this relationship with Barzillai, and they became more like friends, and also they became political friends as well, because if Barzilai was this famous in his own city and this wealthy, he would have made a very good addition, probably
to David's court. So that is why David was hesitant to let Barzilai go. So he invites Barzilai to move his entire family to Jerusalem to stay with David. And so David presents this offer to Barzilai, and he's like, look, Barzilai, I can take care of you 100%. Come on over with me. I will sustain you just like you sustained me and my family when I was in Mahanaim. So why don't you come on over with
me? So Barzillai, in the most honorable language he can possibly muster to King David, says no, in, like, the most roundabout way as possible. So Barzillai is like, look, I am old. I am very old. He says, how many are the days and the years of my life that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem? I am 80 years old today. Now, it does not mean that this was Barzillai's 80th birthday, you know, when he was saying this, it just means that at that time, Barzilai was 80 years old.
And so he says, look, I am very aged, and so I shouldn't come over the Jordan river with you. He says, you know, my life and my years are fleeting. And he says, I can't even discern between good and bad anymore, which is obviously untrue, because Barzillai was able to distinguish between good and bad when it came to David, and also absalom. And Barzilai purposefully decided to be a David supporter. So clearly, Barzillai could discern between good and bad.
But what Barzili is doing here is he's humbling himself so much before David because he's trying to say no to this very kind offer as respectfully as he possibly can. And at this point, it just turned into a lie, actually. So he says, you know, I'm so old that I can't even discern between good and bad anymore. You know, my mind is going, David. And then he says, I can't taste what I eat or what I
drink. Then he says, I can't even hear the voices of singing men and the lovely voices of these singing women anymore. So I would just be a burden to you because I can't hear, I can't taste, I can't think. I am just an old, decrepit man. And so I don't think I should go over with you. King David. This sounds like something my mom would say. My mom is in her sixties, okay? And I'm telling you, like, she thinks that she is like 600 years old. The way she talks, she's like, oh,
I can't do that anymore, Jen. I can't walk that far anymore. I can't do this. I can't do that. I'm like, mom, you are so healthy. I've seen you walk way longer distances than this short little walk that I wanna take with the dogs with you. That's like, how my mom acts. I feel like, all right, so this guy, you know, bar's a lie, nice old man, but he clearly just wants to stay in his own city of Mahanaim and is just doing his best to say no to David, very
respectfully. So he says, you know, I'm going to be nothing but a burden to you, King David, um, even though he was strong enough, you know, to cross the Jordan river with King David. But, um, it is possible, you know, that Barzilai was, because he was old, had, um, some problems with walking or, you know, any other kind of issues that might have been going on where he felt that he would be a burden. So maybe that is truly the reason that he didn't want to go with King
David. But it could also be that, um, you know, he just loved his family, he loved his hometown, and he didn't really want to move. So he says, why should the king repay me with such a reward just because I'm crossing the Jordan river with you today? He says, please let your servant turn back again, that I may die in my own city by the grave of my father and my mother. So that sounds to me like this is the true reason why Barzillai just wants
to stay at home. Maybe it just sounds exhausting for him to have to travel to a new city and relocate his family with King David. Um, and he just wants to stay at home and die a good old age and be buried next to his own father and his own mother. He says, behold, though your servant Chimham, let him go over with my lord the king and do to him what shall seem good to you.
So there is some debate on who Chimham is. Most people think that Chimham is Barzillai's son, and he could have also been an heir to some of his father's wealth. So Chimham would have been like an ambassador in the place of Barzillai so he offers possibly his son to go with King David. It could have also been a servant, but most people think that it was a son who was offered to King David. And so the king answers, Chimham shall go over with me and I will do to him, which shall seem good to you.
Now, when Barzillai first offered Chimham to David, he's like, do whatever you want to him. Sounds like a dad. But then, uh, David was like, no, I will do whatever you want me to do with him. He says, whatever you request of me, that I will do for you. So David and Barzilai had very, very good relations. And David wanted to keep this up. So it says in verse 39, all the people went over the Jordan and the king went over. Then the king kissed Barzillai and blessed him, and he returned to his
own place. And I believe that's the last we're going to hear of Barzillai. But it does say that Chimhamdez went with King David over to Gilgal. So David now still has a connection with Barzilai through Chimham. And it's possible that Chimham, hm, served maybe on David's court or was just an ambassador or something along those lines. So now the story changes to some infighting between
Judah and the rest of Israel. I, uh, discussed on Monday how Israel at this point in time, was beginning to refer to itself as the house of Joseph. And that included all of the tribes except Judah. So already Israel and Judah were beginning to, um, like kind of split off from one another. Now that could be that Judah was the largest tribe of all of Israel. And it could also be because King David had been the king of just Judah back, uh, in
the beginning of two Samuel. So it's possible that that was when Judah and the rest of Israel started separating themselves from each other. But you can see the split beginning to happen between Israel and Judah. And that's very important moving forward because Israel is going to split away from Judah in just a short bit. But right now it says there's some fighting that's happening between Israel and the rest of Judah. So apparently Judah had been supporting King David through
most of this. And so Judah went to go get KinG David and help him cross the Jordan river. Now, this does not mean, by the way, that all, every single person in Judah went to go see KinG David. Most likely this means that the leaders of Judah, you know, the elders of Judah, were the ones who represented the people and went to go see KinG David. Now, it could be that also normal, ordinary citizens of Judah decided to go and help David as well.
But this does not mean when it says that all of Judah went to go see King David, that every single person in Judah showed up for this. Same with when it says that half of Israel showed up. But anyway, Judah was there first, very clearly. Because when Israel shows up, half of Israel rather shows up to, you know, receive King David. Judah is already there. And so Israel gets really mad. They're like, what are these Judah people doing
here? They say, why have our brothers, the men of Judah, stolen you away, King David, and brought the king and his household over the Jordan and with all of David's men with him? And David doesn't answer them. Instead, the men of Judah answered the men of Israel in verse 42, because the king is a close relative to us. Why then are you angry about this matter? Have we eaten at all at the king's cost?
Or has he given us any gift? So the men of Judah are like, well, because the king himself is of the tribe of Judah and we support him. We like him, and that is why we are here. And he didn't give us any gift to come along with him. He hasn't given us any food. We aren't here to exploit KIng David, if that's what you're getting at. So then Israel gets mad when they hear this. They say, well, we have ten parts in the king, and we also have more claim to David than
you. Why then did you despise us that our advice should not be firsthand in bringing back our king? So they're basically saying, well, we have ten tribes here, so we have ten parts in the king. So what makes you think you're better than us, Judah? Why do you have more claim to David than we do? Why didn't you contact us and ask us for advice when bringing David back? Now, this is not the first time we have seen, uh, fighting
between the tribes. Actually, back in the book of judges, in judges eight and also in judges twelve, the tribe of Ephraim specifically always got really mad whenever the other tribes would like, go to war without them. But what was interesting about the tribe of Ephraim is that they did get the call to go to war and just decided not to do it. But then when they saw how successful that war was, they got angry that the other tribes went out without them to go
fight this war and they got the glory. Whereas Ephraim, who didn't go out to fight this battle, didn't get any of the glory. So they would get all mad and butt hurt. And that was back in the book of judges eight and also judges twelve. If you want to read about how Ephraim gets angry when the other tribes go out to battle without them. And that's kind of the same thing that's happening here, though. In two, Samuel 19, Judah did something right. You know, they
went to go get their king. They supported King David throughout all of this. But Israel, the rest of Israel supported Absalom the entire time. It actually says that Israel anointed Absalom as the king and rejected King David. But now they're all mad at Judah because Judah did the right thing at the very beginning, and Judah was getting the glory that Israel wasn't getting. So Israel's basically taking half measures here, but expecting a full reward. And that
is what we often do as well. When something is hard, we don't want to do it. We expect somebody else to do it, maybe. Or maybe we just take half measures. But then when somebody else who doesn't take a, uh, half measure goes out and does something good, we get all angry because that person was succeeding. You can see this in the culture right now with the hatred of people who have built something and who have found success.
I see this a lot online where, you know, certain people get so angry when somebody has a successful career. They're just like, oh, well, you know, they were born into a rich family and that's how they gain success. Or, you know, they just got lucky or they had the stars fall into place, or whatever they might say. They think of every single excuse to make themselves feel better for not finding success themselves. It all comes back down to
jealousy. People are jealous of other people and so they have to tear them down. That's kind of what Israel is doing here to Judah. Israel is implying that Judah was in it to exploit KIng David, which was why Judah was like, no, we didn't receive a gift for helping King David here. But then after they hear that Israel makes another excuse, they say, well, we have more tribes than you, Judah. You just have one tribe, but we've got a whole ten up here
in the north. So we have more claim to David than you have. And that is absolutely not true. David was the king of both Judah and all of Israel. And Judah could help David and so could Israel. And this just shows where Israel's heart really was. They were angry that Judah was helping King David when they didn't get the same opportunity because they didn't take the action steps to actually help King David themselves. And this is a really good action step for us to take
as well. We need to stop being so jealous of other people, especially when those other people are working hard themselves and building something very successful for themselves. We can't get angry at that. Instead, we need to focus on our own lives and we need to just take the right steps ourselves in order to be successful in what we do in life. There is a proverb that says, commit your actions to the Lord and he will establish your
plans. So if we stay rooted in faith and we ask for guidance in every single thing that we do in our lives, and we just do our best to follow what scripture says. That proverb says God will establish our plans, he will show us the right way to go in life. That proverb does not say to look at other people's social media accounts and feel jealousy over them. It says that we ourselves need to be committing our plans to the Lord. That means planning things out. That
means staying faithful. And that also means taking action steps. Not just planning and thinking about it, but actually doing something. And that is where God will establish what path we should take. This episode kind of turned into a life coaching session, but hey, I mean, we can learn many things about, uh, how to live our lives according to scripture. Scripture is full of wisdom, of how to live, and it's also full of stories like
this of how not to live. So I hope you enjoyed today's episode, but also if you love this podcast, then share it with everybody everywhere you go by getting a Bible explained podcast bumper sticker and they are nice little additions to your car. And I can honestly say that they are great stickers. They last for a very long time through the elements and also through the car washes. The stickers hold up pretty well, so everybody, everywhere you go will be able to know what
your favorite podcast is. Faithful listeners, have a fantastic rest of your day. I will see you tomorrow for an episode from the Book of Romans. Happy listening and God bless.