But when David’s ambassadors arrived in the land of Ammon, the Ammonite commanders said to Hanun, their master, “Do you really think these men are coming here to honor your father? No! David has sent them to spy out the city so they can come in and conquer it!” So Hanun seized David’s ambassadors and shaved off half of each man’s beard, cut off their robes at the buttocks, and sent them back to David in shame.
2nd Samuel 10:2c-4 NLT
David had only attempted to return the loyalty of King Nahash - one king to another - to offer condolences at the time of his death, but David's actions were egregiously misinterpreted.
Hanun's council of commanders gave him the wrong counsel. When he realized how angry David was, Hanun became more defensive and set himself for battle. He even went so far as to hire 43,000 additional men to fight. Forty-three thousand! And that was only for the first defensive round. They hired still more for the next battle - one in which 40,700 of Hanun's warriors were killed.
I wonder what would have happened if Hanun had admitted his mistake in following the wrong counsel, humbled himself to David and made restitution to those he had shamed, then tried to seek peace... I'm inclined to believe that David would have forgiven him because David would have sought the counsel of God. After all, he often liked to show and share the kindnesses of God.
How often do we misinterpret someone's actions toward us, seek ungodly counsel, then get angry and vindictive? How long do we carry a grudge or some form of unforgiveness? Do we "hire" others to be angry with us?
Whose counsel will you follow?
Prayer:
Father,
We choose to walk in forgiveness rather than bear the wrath of unforgiveness. Open our hearts to hear and follow only the counsel from the King of kings. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen
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