Bethlehem Baptist Church
Sunday Evening 03/30/2025
      • Bible Trivia
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  • Down At The Cross
  • The Way Of The Cross Leads Home
  • Psalm 23: Surely Goodness Surely Mercy
  • Christ Our Wisdom
  • Introduction:
    What is the most embarrassing moment you’ve ever had? If you share it with us, I promise we won’t tell anybody.
    I could share several with you tonight. Some people learn to embrace these moments in their lives, but if we are honest, they all can still make us blush.
    No matter what your most embarrassing moment may be, there is a difference between embarrassment and shame. Embarrassment comes when we have something happen to us that might not have been under our control to prevent.
    When I was a teenager, the house we lived in had steep stairs that went straight down to the front door and they were carpeted. I remember once taking a plate of food downstairs that I had been eating and missing a step only to bump and slide right down to the front door. I looked to my right into the living room and there was a church member sitting in a chair visiting my parents and looking at me with food all on my shirt. That was an embarrassing moment.
    Shame is entirely different. We feel shame when we’ve done something we know we shouldn’t have done. We feel shame when we are caught, having broken God’s commandments.
    In fact, shame can be so powerful that it can cause people to take their own lives.
    Tonight, maybe when I mention shame you drop your head a little and an incident in your own life comes to mind. You hope and pray nobody looks at you or can see your face to see if you might be trying to hide. You squirm a little in your seat.
    I want to give you some peace tonight. I want to introduce you to the King who covers your shame.
    Let’s take a look at 2 Samuel 10 tonight as we continue our study through the Book of 2 Samuel.
    2 Samuel 10 ESV
    1 After this the king of the Ammonites died, and Hanun his son reigned in his place. 2 And David said, “I will deal loyally with Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father dealt loyally with me.” So David sent by his servants to console him concerning his father. And David’s servants came into the land of the Ammonites. 3 But the princes of the Ammonites said to Hanun their lord, “Do you think, because David has sent comforters to you, that he is honoring your father? Has not David sent his servants to you to search the city and to spy it out and to overthrow it?” 4 So Hanun took David’s servants and shaved off half the beard of each and cut off their garments in the middle, at their hips, and sent them away. 5 When it was told David, he sent to meet them, for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, “Remain at Jericho until your beards have grown and then return.” 6 When the Ammonites saw that they had become a stench to David, the Ammonites sent and hired the Syrians of Beth-rehob, and the Syrians of Zobah, 20,000 foot soldiers, and the king of Maacah with 1,000 men, and the men of Tob, 12,000 men. 7 And when David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the host of the mighty men. 8 And the Ammonites came out and drew up in battle array at the entrance of the gate, and the Syrians of Zobah and of Rehob and the men of Tob and Maacah were by themselves in the open country. 9 When Joab saw that the battle was set against him both in front and in the rear, he chose some of the best men of Israel and arrayed them against the Syrians. 10 The rest of his men he put in the charge of Abishai his brother, and he arrayed them against the Ammonites. 11 And he said, “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will come and help you. 12 Be of good courage, and let us be courageous for our people, and for the cities of our God, and may the Lord do what seems good to him.” 13 So Joab and the people who were with him drew near to battle against the Syrians, and they fled before him. 14 And when the Ammonites saw that the Syrians fled, they likewise fled before Abishai and entered the city. Then Joab returned from fighting against the Ammonites and came to Jerusalem. 15 But when the Syrians saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they gathered themselves together. 16 And Hadadezer sent and brought out the Syrians who were beyond the Euphrates. They came to Helam, with Shobach the commander of the army of Hadadezer at their head. 17 And when it was told David, he gathered all Israel together and crossed the Jordan and came to Helam. The Syrians arrayed themselves against David and fought with him. 18 And the Syrians fled before Israel, and David killed of the Syrians the men of 700 chariots, and 40,000 horsemen, and wounded Shobach the commander of their army, so that he died there. 19 And when all the kings who were servants of Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and became subject to them. So the Syrians were afraid to save the Ammonites anymore.
    Pray.
    One of the key concepts to keep in mind as we study 2 Samuel is that of God’s honor. Honor plays a big role in the passage we are looking at tonight and God’s honor is tied to the king that God puts on the throne.
    There are undertones of Psalm 2 that run throughout the course of this passage.
    Last week we looked at the kindness that King David sought to bestow on Mephibosheth and the house of Saul. Tonight we are going to see that kindness offered again, only the reception of that kindness was much different.

    1. The King Who Shows Kindness (vv.1-2)

    2 Samuel 10:1–2 ESV
    1 After this the king of the Ammonites died, and Hanun his son reigned in his place. 2 And David said, “I will deal loyally with Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father dealt loyally with me.” So David sent by his servants to console him concerning his father. And David’s servants came into the land of the Ammonites.
    David is looking to show kindness once again
    The word used for kindness is “hesed” so it is a kindness that comes from the giver and not the receiver.
    The person hear that David seeks to show kindness to is an interesting character. It is an Ammonite, a descendant of Lot through his relationship with one of his daughters, and this king is first mentioned in 1 Sam. 11.
    1 Samuel 11:1–4 ESV
    1 Then Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh-gilead, and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, “Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you.” 2 But Nahash the Ammonite said to them, “On this condition I will make a treaty with you, that I gouge out all your right eyes, and thus bring disgrace on all Israel.” 3 The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Give us seven days’ respite that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will give ourselves up to you.” 4 When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul, they reported the matter in the ears of the people, and all the people wept aloud.
    Nahash seems like such a lovely person doesn’t he?
    This was Saul’s first major battle and test as the newly anointed King of Israel and God gave Saul the victory
    It seems that Nahash and David had an alliance as the phrase, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend” was true for David. Perhaps Nahash hid David as he fled from Saul
    Illustration:
    Imagine for a moment a king who has a bitter rival in his kingdom and instead of drawing up the battle lines with weapons of war, he invites his enemy to a feast that he holds in his honor.
    That is essentially what David was doing by offering kindness to Hanun. Hanun and his people had tried to have the people of Israel gouge out their eyes and become subjects to them. These are distant relatives of the Israelites and they treated them with such hatred.
    Application:
    God shows kindness on those who don’t deserve it
    Matthew 5:44–45 ESV
    44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
    Who do you need to show kindness to?
    How has God shown you His kindness thought you didn’t deserve it?

    2. The King Who Covers Our Shame (vv. 3-5)

    2 Samuel 10:3–5 ESV
    3 But the princes of the Ammonites said to Hanun their lord, “Do you think, because David has sent comforters to you, that he is honoring your father? Has not David sent his servants to you to search the city and to spy it out and to overthrow it?” 4 So Hanun took David’s servants and shaved off half the beard of each and cut off their garments in the middle, at their hips, and sent them away. 5 When it was told David, he sent to meet them, for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, “Remain at Jericho until your beards have grown and then return.”
    Hanun’s advisers think that David is sending spies to see how weak they were
    They refused a genuine offer of wellbeing from the king. The results would be disastrous.
    If we refuse God’s free offer of salvation, the same can be said of us, only the stakes are far higher
    They shamed the men.
    Beards were and still are a sign of masculinity. It is the man-mane
    To shave a person’s beard in the culture of the ancient world was worse than killing them.
    They didn’t shave them clean, only half their faces.
    Illustration of half-beard
    They also cut their pants out so that their midsection was exposed, if you get the draft, or drift
    David hears of it and prevents the men from coming to Jerusalem and being shamed.
    They can change clothes immediately, but a replacement beard would take a few weeks
    David is covering their shame and having compassion on them
    Application
    God covers our shame as well, doesn’t He?
    Remember what we said shame is. Shame is that feeling of dejection because we know we have done something wrong. These men did not do anything wrong, but you and I have.
    If we belong to Christ, we will be hated and shamed by the world. We should not be surprised by this but in the end our shame will be turned into victory.
    We have greatly sinned against God, but the Lord says
    Psalm 103:12 ESV
    12 as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
    Micah 7:19 ESV
    19 He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.

    3. The King Who Routes His Enemies (vv.6-19)

    2 Samuel 10:6–14 ESV
    6 When the Ammonites saw that they had become a stench to David, the Ammonites sent and hired the Syrians of Beth-rehob, and the Syrians of Zobah, 20,000 foot soldiers, and the king of Maacah with 1,000 men, and the men of Tob, 12,000 men. 7 And when David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the host of the mighty men. 8 And the Ammonites came out and drew up in battle array at the entrance of the gate, and the Syrians of Zobah and of Rehob and the men of Tob and Maacah were by themselves in the open country. 9 When Joab saw that the battle was set against him both in front and in the rear, he chose some of the best men of Israel and arrayed them against the Syrians. 10 The rest of his men he put in the charge of Abishai his brother, and he arrayed them against the Ammonites. 11 And he said, “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will come and help you. 12 Be of good courage, and let us be courageous for our people, and for the cities of our God, and may the Lord do what seems good to him.” 13 So Joab and the people who were with him drew near to battle against the Syrians, and they fled before him. 14 And when the Ammonites saw that the Syrians fled, they likewise fled before Abishai and entered the city. Then Joab returned from fighting against the Ammonites and came to Jerusalem.
    map of the battle
    Joab and Abishai have a moment of great honor defending the king and the kingdom
    They fight back to back and trust the Lord to deliver them
    Joab is the stronger warrior and takes some of the elite forces and they fight back to back against this joint coalition of Syrians and Ammonites
    God delivers them into the hands of Joab and Abishai
    Leviticus 26:8 ESV
    8 Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall chase ten thousand, and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.
    Deuteronomy 32:30 ESV
    30 How could one have chased a thousand, and two have put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, and the Lord had given them up?
    Joab defeats them and returns to Jerusalem, only to have one more battle that would put the final nail in the coffin killing Shobach the commander of the army of the Syrians
    This would end the coalition and secure the victory for David
    Application
    Remember that David represents God in this passage. This is recorded to be a reminder that God will conquer all of His enemies.
    God has called us to abandon all for the sake of his kingdom in taking the gospel to the nations. We aren’t fighting with swords and spears but on our knees in prayer and with the words of God that save souls.
    What unholy alliances have you formed in your life?
    How do you need to repent and submit to Christ as King?
    Conclusion
    You know all of this is not in the Bible to record a series of battles for us. While this passage does give us the background of the tragedy that is going to happen in the next chapter, it is not just filler.
    God really does delight to show the undeserving His kindness.
    The greatest way He has done this is in seeking us out and saving us
    We either receive or reject His kindness by what we do with Christ.
    God covers our shame by becoming the one shamed.
    Isaiah 53:2–3 ESV
    2 For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
    3. God will win the war. Whose side will you be on?
  • The Savior Is Waiting
Bethlehem Baptist Church
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