2 Samuel 18:6-8 Devoured!

 ”So the people went out into the field of battle against Israel. And the battle was in the woods of Ephraim. The people of Israel were overthrown there before the servants of David, and a great slaughter of twenty thousand took place there that day. For the battle there was scattered over the face of the whole countryside, and the woods devoured more people that day than the sword devoured.“

‭‭II Samuel‬ ‭18‬:‭6‬-‭8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. So the people went out into the field of battle against Israel: Those loyal to David fought against Israel, because Israel was not loyal to David. Israel was seduced by Absalom’s charisma and power.

b. The people of Israel were overthrown there before the servants of David: The experienced leadership of David and his captains was probably the main reason for their overwhelming victory.

i. “David had arranged that the battle should take place in this terrain, where the experience and courage of each individual soldier counted more than sheer numbers.” (Baldwin)

c. The woods devoured more people that day than the sword devoured: This phrase implies that God fought for David in unusual ways. Soldiers loyal to Absalom seemed to be “swallowed up” by the woods.

i. “Perishing not only by the sword, but among the thick oaks and tangled briers of the wood, which concealed fearful precipices and great caverns, into which the rebels plunged in their wild fright when the rout set in.” (Spurgeon)

ii. “It is generally supposed that, when the army was broken, they betook themselves to the wood, fell into pits, swamps, and so forth, and being entangled, were hewn down by David’s men; but the Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic, state that they were devoured by wild beasts in the wood.” (Clarke)

(Guzik)

Devoured!

This isn’t the first time God has used wild beasts to devour man and it won’t be the last. Birds will be used during Armageddon to devour man but there’s one time God used a wild beast of a fish for a stubborn man that ran in an opposite direction!

”Now the Lord had appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the fish.“ ‭‭Jonah‬ ‭1‬:‭17‬ ‭BSB‬‬

The question is, will God use a wild beast to get your attention?

Blessings