PT Jan-67 - Herbert W. Armstrong Library and Archives

January, 1967
Th, PLAIN TRUTH
37
"We killed him while he was asleep in his bed," was the abrupt answer. "We
have brought proof with us so that you will appretiate that we have avenged you,
our king, of the offspring of your enemy'" ( II Samuel 4:5-8.)
One of the murderers abruptly opened a sack he had been holding, Aicking it so
that a head rolled out on the ground I David was startled to recognize it as Ishbosheth's
head. But his anger turned out to be greater than his snrprise. David realized
these wicked men had cunningly murdered their master although he had put great
trust in them.
"This miserable kind of a situation came to
me at a former time," David said, staring stemly
at Rechab and Baanall. "A man came to me at
Ziklag to tell me that he was the one who had
killed Saul. He expected some kind of reward, just
as you two now hope to be rewarded. There wasn't
any reason for me to be happy when I learned that
Saul was dead. 10 fact, I was so unhappy that r
ordered the man to be executed. Neither am I
pleased to see Ish-bosheth's head before me. You
claim to be his murderers, so you shall be treated
as murderers. Murdering an honest man in his
sleep can have only one reward."
Baanah and Rechab drew back in sudden,
desperate fear. They
never wouLd have
shown up in Hebron
if they had known
that David wouldn't
gloat over Ish-bosheth's
death. At a
signal from David,
soldiers moved in to
seize the cowering,
whimpering killers to
execute them.
To sh ow
respect
for Ish-bosheth,
David decreed that
To point out what co uld happen to a ny who were guilty of treason
in Israel, the bodies of Baanah and Rechab were deprived of their
feet a nd hands and strung up over one of the main streets of
Hebron.