Men of War

2 Samuel 3:38

“Then the king said to his men, ‘Do you not realize that a prince and a great man has fallen in Israel this day’?”

I’m happy to be married to a homebody. In our six years of marriage, I never had to worry of his whereabouts and who-abouts, haha :> We both love movie nights and long walks and eat outs. It has always been shared experiences. Until he discovered ‘Wings of Prey’ - - a flight simulator. There was nothing in my blood that ticks interest to it. After weeks of sort outs and cry-ola sessions, I decided to be understanding, haha :> Because I love movies, my orientation phase was Pearl Harbor and Top Gun.  His new passion opened my world to flight terms and fight tactics. I still don’t like it but I can see why he’s hooked. At least now he got my respect and his peace :>

There was nothing in Abner that should have moved David to honor him at his death. He was Saul’s commander of the army - - a wing man in pursuit of David’s life; He was responsible for making Ish-Bosheth, Saul’s son, king over the rest of Israel - - a head-on attack that delayed David’s full ascension to the throne; He dared Joab’s men to a play fight, killing Asahel the brother - - shouldn’t David favor the Zeruiah’s instead? I think David still didn’t like him when he mourned for him. At his death, all the more he can’t prove Abner’s turned allegiance to him, but still ‘he himself walked behind the bier, wept aloud at the tomb, and sang a lament for him’. It seems men of war have such unspoken lifelines that beat respect for each other. Terms where discipline, loyalty and honor are shared experiences and most upheld. David saw this man’s value to Saul and his family and he acknowledged that. Same reason why he rewarded the men of Jabesh Gilead last time. He valued the man for his contributions, even if it paid him no interest.

Loyalty is a good thing. Preference is understandable. But it doesn’t mean that those great men not fighting alongside us, or sharing opinions and convictions with us, are undeserving of merits. Jesus himself acknowledged a man driving out demons even if he’s not part of the twelve. ‘Whoever is not against us is for us.’ It is still God who is glorified whenever excellence is pursued, order is achieved and when breakthroughs happen. Content and morality is another issue of course. But at least give credit to the ingenuity of your competition. Or be fair in evaluating the work performance of your backstabber. It may not be for your interest, but it will sure pay you back with respect. We do can learn from these men of war :>