04/20 Thoughts & Comments By Dr. Daniel Daves

20-Apr Judges 19-21 Hebrews 11-12 Psalms 96-100 Proverbs 20

Judges 20:34-36 (NIV)34 Then ten thousand of Israel's finest men made a frontal attack on Gibeah. The fighting was so heavy that the Benjamites did not realize how near disaster was. 35 The Lord defeated Benjamin before Israel, and on that day the Israelites struck down 25,100 Benjamites, all armed with swords. 36 Then the Benjamites saw that they were beaten.

This is a long love story which ends in tragedy, but with resolve and completion.  A cycle of sin had been destroyed by God.  As you read today, you saw a good man trying to get his wife to come back home to live with him after she separated.  Unsuccessful, he took his servant and concubine back towards his home, and stayed in an Israelite town called Gibeah rather than choosing a Jebusite town where God and His laws were not respected.  They knew they would be safe in Gibeah.  However, there was a problem in Israel at this time. The story begins with "ISRAEL HAD NO KING IN THOSE DAYS".  And when you don't have a king, you have no rule of law to follow, no one to submit to, and no way to keep order, law, safety, and protection.  

This man and his servants stay in Gebeah, but can't find anyone to bring them into their home.  Finally an old man takes them in and before you know it, bands of party animal wicked men are banging at the man's door, wanting the visiting man to be brought out with him so they can have sex with him, and kill him.  There is a battle over who is going to go out and appease these idiots, and finally the concubine is sent out.  They raped and abused her all night long, and when she finally returned, she fell at the doorway and died.

The man loaded her dead body on his donkey, took her home, cut her into many pieces and sent them to all corners of israel.  Imagine the shock of the Israelite leaders to get the Federal Express package that day with a body part in it.  Upon assembling themselves together, they all quickly decided that the Lord wanted them to go up against their brothers (the Benjamites) and execute the murderous band of illicit, sinful, raping, murdering, men.  But they knew the Benjamites and that they might not get the men that they are looking for.  This is where the story gets very interesting and teaches kingdom principles.

1.  When there is sin in the camp, it must be purged completely.  Either the camp unites WITH GOD and drives the sinners out for execution, or the entire camp comes under the same penalty of their sin.  This means, houses, buildings, animals, men, women, and children.  If Benjamin resisted the arrest and execution of these murderous rapists who had done the crime, the entire tribe of Benjamin would become guilty of their sin.
    a.  Think of ABORTION, 40 years of murdering 55+ million innocent babies in America.  Those babies were the salvation for our country at this time when we need 55 million tax payers to stimulate the economy.
    b.  Think about the extensive national war machine in America which is killing 100 innocents by drone attack in order to get 1 terror "suspect".  This injustice is going to come home to America, and the principle of this story is on it's way.
    c.  Think about any sin that the people accept and protect, because they believe they are strong enough to protect their ill will, and the sin that is done under their care and covering.
    d.  Think about your own personal life.  When sin is revealed in you and the light exposes it, you have a decision to make.  Either you fall on the rock and become broken, and you give over the sinful lifestyle to God and allow Him to purge it and deal with it, or you defend and protect it.  If you protect that area of sin, your entire body and life becomes subject to the penalty of that sin.  In other words, you slide backwards completely into the world system of judgment, separation, pain, and eventual death and judgment for sins that you loved and protected.

The Benjamites protected their murderous, rapist brothers because they had 26,000 skilled swordsmen who could whip just about anyone.  They also had 700 left handed bad boys, equivalent to "Special Forces" which could take out dozens of regular fighters with little effort.  They used these soldiers to protect their sinful city and the men who had sinned.  Israel gave them ONE opportunity to bring the men out for execution, but instead the Benjamites attacked and killed 22,000 men from Judah on the first day.  Israel regrouped and encouraged themselves in the Lord.  FREEZE FRAME!

What?  These Benjamites had become very strong and able to defend their sinful cities.  They would not listen to the voice of God, nor His rules or statutes, and they would attack their brothers from Judah.  And Israel just lost 22,000 men in one day on the battle field!!  How did they encourage themselves in the Lord? God told them to send Judah out first, and the traditional "tribe of praise" got it's butt whipped! 22,000 dead in one day? That's almost one man per Benjamite.  But here's the key:

Judges 20:11 (NIV)11 So all the men of Israel got together and united as one man against the city.

All of Israel united as one man, and committed that they would not return until the injustice of murder was avenged and cleansed from the land.  They were willing to lay their lives down for the sake of God's cause.  They knew that if they let this cancer continue to grow that it would build and become an unstoppable force which God Himself would need to deal with.  Their resolve was, "Cleanse the land of sin or we die!"  With this resolve, hundreds of thousands of Israelites would go against Benjamin day after day until they finally one.

Day two, Israel lost 18,000 armed men.

Day three, Israel won the battle against Benjamin through God's secret military tactics.  When the fierce battle turned, the Benjamites saw that their city was being burned to the ground, and they started fleeing.  But Israel cut them down all the way through the desert.  Israel took the sword to every living thing in Benjamin.  Man, woman, grandma, children, donkeys, horses, cattle, sheep, and anything pumping blood - they all died by the sword that day.  The entire land was cleansed of the sin that they were guilty of, which they had bought and defended, and which they would pay the price of death for.

The cost was high.  ALL of Benjamin (except 600 who fled and escaped) would die.  Some 60,000 Israelites would lose their lives on the battlefield that week.  The death toll probably racked up towards 150,000 or more, all because of the sins of 5 or 10 men.  But Israel had resolved as one man, to cleanse the land of sin.  When this resolve comes on God's people, the deal is done even at the cost of their own lives!

Rev 12:11 (NIV)11 They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.

COMPASS GUIDE will position you against sin, and the comfort you have will be to live in the fire of God's Word.  It's not easy living in the fire, but it's worth it.  The fire will keep you clean, and will teach you how to deal with sin and impurity in your life.  At a point, you will BECOME a ministering flame of fire for God in a darkened world.  And that fire will take you to your land of promise where you will inherit God's ultimate promise for your life.  And it will have been inherited through honor, righteousness, and transparency.      

Tomorrow's Reading:
21-Apr Ruth 1-2 Hebrews 13 Psalms 101-105 Proverbs 21