2 Samuel 20:1-3

V. DAVID'S LAST DAYS AND SONG, 2 Samuel 20:1 to 2 Samuel 24:25.

1. The Reorganization of the Kingdom, 2 Samuel 20:1-26.

Sheba's Revolt. 2 Samuel 20:1-3

And there happened to be there a man of Belial, whose name was Sheba, the son of Bichri, a Benjamite: and he blew a trumpet, and said, We have no part in David, neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: every man to his tents, O Israel.

2 So every man of Israel went up from after David, and followed Sheba the son of Bichri: but the men of Judah clave unto their king, from Jordan even to Jerusalem.

3 And David came to his house at Jerusalem; and the king took the ten women his concubines, whom he had left to keep the house, and put them in ward, and fed them, but went not in unto them. So they were shut up unto the day of their death, living in widowhood.

1.

Who was Sheba? 2 Samuel 20:1

Sheba is described as being a man of Belial, another way of saying that he was a shameful and worthless man. His genealogy is given, and he is described as being the son of Bichri, a word meaning first-born in the original language. This is the only reference found to the man's name in the Bible. Being a Benjaminite, Sheba was the catalytic agent for solidifying the opposition to David as expressed by Shimei when Shimei said that David was ruling in the place of the house of Saul. Although Shimei rescinded his action and asked for David's forgiveness, Sheba was more base and resolute. He championed the cause of all who supported the house of Saul by saying, We have no part in David, neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse. He asked every man of Israel to return to his home and refuse to participate further in the affairs of David's kingdom.

2.

Why were the men of Judah left alone? 2 Samuel 20:2

Judah had occasioned the dispute between her people and the Israelites living in the northern tribes; and when Sheba led a revolt, many of the men from the other bordering tribes joined him, thus leaving Judah as the main support for David. Although every man of Israel went up from after David and followed Sheba and only the men of Judah were loyal to their king, the revolt was not open enough to prevent David's going on up from the Jordan valley to Jerusalem. Once again David was able to rule from the great city.

3.

Why did David isolate the concubines? 2 Samuel 20:3

Absalom had gone into his father's concubines when he spread a tent on the roof of the palace and took them as members of his own household, in the sight of all the people who followed him (2 Samuel 16:21-22). This rebellious act on the part of Absalom was designed to indicate that Absalom was taking over everything which had belonged to his father; and although David had left them behind to pursue their normal activities of keeping the house, he felt that they had been shamed and it would not be proper for him to reinstate them to their former positions. He did not turn them out to fend for themselves but put them in separate quarters and ordained that they should be provided for but left to live as widows.