II Samuel 21
Remember the Gibeonites? They are the people who escaped the violent conquest of the Promised Land by dressing up in old rags and claiming to be from a far off country, tricking Joshua and the people of Israel into agreeing to spare them. (If you need a refresher, see Joshua 9 and the March 6 post.) Joshua entered into that covenant with the Gibeonites under their false pretenses and without consulting the LORD. I am guessing that Saul took that as sufficient grounds to nullify the covenant and to start killing off the Gibeonites (II Sam. 21:2), but the LORD evidently disagreed and instead affirmed the covenant, bringing judgment in the form of a three-year famine upon Israel for their bloodguilt in violating the covenant. David makes atonement to the Gibeonites by handing over seven descendants of Saul for execution. (II Sam. 21:6) Then he subsequently gathers the bones of Saul, Jonathan, and those seven men and gives them a proper, honorable burial, after which the LORD lifts the famine. (II Sam. 21:14)
Before we get all bent out of shape regarding the fates of Saul’s descendants, let me redraw the scene in more contemporary terms. Saul is guilty of a war crime. All his family members are coconspirators, supporters of his brutal pogrom against the Gibeonites. Now consider the Nuremburg trials and the subsequent executions of the Nazi leadership. Is our (relatively) modern sense of justice really all that different from what David and the Gibeonites do? (If we are still howling in protest, perhaps we should take a moment and go brew ourselves a cup of humility and drink it down. And then maybe go brew another and prayerfully consider that maybe, just maybe, the Judge of all the earth and God of all righteousness knows better than we.)
So how about the famine? How do you really think about the weather, or climate change, or natural disasters in general (e.g., earthquakes)? Are all these things mere physics, with God standing aloof, thoroughly detached? Or is our natural environment available for God to use as He sees fit? Is He in control or not? If God is not in control or stands aloof, then nature is morally neutral and whatever happens just happens. But the Bible clearly teaches otherwise.
We all know climate change is currently a major political issue. Some deny that there is any such thing. Others acknowledge that the climate is changing but that humans have little or nothing to do with it. And still others say that human use of fossil fuels is entirely to blame and that we have only a few years before the whole world literally goes up in smoke. I am not here to stake out a position on that. But let’s suppose, for the sake of argument, that climate change is in God’s hands and that it is His instrument of judgment. Perhaps, then, the real solution to the problem has less to do with finding ways to reduce our carbon footprint and more to do with repentance. Maybe we need to stop thumbing our national (or worldwide) nose at God. Maybe we need to turn away from immorality. Maybe we need to heed His voice. Maybe we need to bow before Him. Maybe we need to repent.