THE INSANITY OF THE KINGS
In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes. Judges 21:25 (KJV)
The book of Judges talks about God raising
leaders at different times for Israel following the death of Joshua. The people
however found it either difficult to listen to or pleasurable to disobey the
directives of these leaders; Judges 2:17 identifies the cause of this as sin of
spiritual immorality perpetuated when people follow and worship other gods. The
18th verse of Judges 2 pointed out that God was moved with
compassion by the intermittent groaning of his people hence the need to frequently
stir up deliverers for them. At times I wonder if we indeed groan for our
nation even though it is one without any divine proclamation of adoption.
The Lord ceased from expelling the remaining
foreign nations from the Promised Land to test if His people would adhere to His
dictates but they sadly continued to do evil yet the Lord responded to their cries
and put His spirit in certain individuals to rescue Israel. This stop-start mechanism
went on for years until the prophet and judge, Samuel appointed his two sons as
judges over Israel. These men according to 1Sam 8:3 pursued dishonest gain,
took bribes and perverted justice; critical pointers for assessing success or
failure of leadership. The elders in the very next verse confronted Samuel and
brought up their reservations about his sons but they in addition to that made
a demand for Samuel to appoint a King for them in the stead of judges just as was
practiced in other nations.
The God of Israel was displeased at their
rejection but still gave Samuel insight to who would be appointed (1Sam
9:15-17). He did this solely because of the suffering and cry of his people;
some things that characterize many parts of the present day world. The people
approved of what they saw about their new King; he fitted accurately into the
profile of the kind of leader they wanted to lead them out into battle. 1Sam
10:23-24 describes Saul as being a head taller than any other Israelite at the
time. As misguided as the elders were in their “rejection” of God, the people
still wanted a leader who would be first to the battle line which is not
necessarily a bad thing.
Samuel’s farewell speech in chapter 12 recorded
him asking the people to speak up against him if he had defrauded, cheated or obtained
anything forcefully from anyone. There was no charge against him and his
accountability test was passed. He thereafter informed them about their wrong move
in demanding for a monarch which translated to a rejection of God. There was a
request for their undivided attention to be directed to God; a responsibility
that was to be shouldered by the King as well. The failures of the sons of
Samuel provoked the anointing of a king who was now expected to ensure justice
and abstain from dishonest gain.
Saul began to err when he became more or less
self-conscious and self-centered (1Sam 13:11).Even a king appointed by God and
anointed can be rejected; an earthly throne is not a permanent asset (1 Sam
15:23). It baffles me when people describe earthly leaders like they were infallible
spirit beings, quoting scripture passages to back ineptitude, incompetence and
often times abuse of their offices. An evil spirit tormented a supposedly anointed
king even though he remained on the throne (1Sam 16:14); a possible explanation
for irrational or inconsistent utterances or behavior in this present age? Saul
was tormented even on the throne but was still able to listen to and approve
recommendations for solution that emanated from his servants. It is remarkable that
such servants were brave enough to tell their king about his true spiritual
condition. I wonder if leaders in our days are humble enough to listen to sound
advice or recommendations from those beneath them but designated to help the
leader. We sadly have sycophants in our corridors of leadership, those who
withhold the truth from and elaborate falsehoods and fantasies to those they
ought to assist. It is worse when there is in fact truthful counsel but an
unresponsive and/ or arrogant leader.
1 Sam 17 introduces the warrior of Gath who is
described in some manuscripts as being 4 cubits and a span or 7 feet tall. Assuming
Goliath was stripped of his heavy gear, he would have looked like someone who
King Saul could have taken on in a height contest. If the average height of Israelite
men was about 5 feet 8inches; then Saul could easily have been nothing less
than 6 feet 2inches tall or thereabout considering the fact that he was said to
have been a good head taller than any other person in Israel. This was billed
to be a heavyweight contest between the champion of the Philistines and the
deliverer of Israel but alas, the king was oppressed and shuddered at the
reverberation of the voice from the valley. Other manuscripts however have
Goliath’s height at just less than 10 feet which would render all the above arithmetic
impractical. Notwithstanding, Goliath seemed familiar with Saul and addressed
the Israelite soldiers as soldiers of Saul and called them out to fight for 40
days until David appeared on the scene.
David was just a rookie with a public resume
that only read “Armor Bearer to the king”; there was however a qualification
that people did not know about especially his brothers. He was already a killer
of lions and bears in the wild at a very young age. David was disqualified
because of his age and relative inexperience but not because of his size. I want
to believe that he perhaps had similar traits to his three brothers who were in
Saul’s army. David’s brother Eliab was acknowledged for his height by God in 1
Sam 16:7 and I want to believe that there is slight chance at least. David was
faithful in his father’s sheep business and was described at his anointing as handsome
and dark in complexion perhaps attesting to his dedication to tending to sheep
out in the open. He was abreast of the dangers mere sheep were exposed to and
was available to rescue them. A leader cut off from the issues confronting his
followers would surely be unaware when they become prey for predators.
David had the experience of an armor bearer and
most likely not as an armor wearer. The man with such experience was too timid
to venture out of his tent. David went out the way he knew how to but was full
of confidence in his God and the expectation that the nations around would become
aware of the God in Israel (1Sam17:46). Despite the controversies over the
height of Goliath, I make bold to say it was not about the target being too big
to miss or a structural defect in Goliath’s armor; it was more about the
courage of the lad and complete trust in the God that saves. David actually
charged at the Philistine aggressor before launching his missile that was effective
enough to cause a forward fall the physics of which I cannot explain. David
then took Goliath’s sword and killed him before taking his head (v55-58). David
was one person who had a special relationship with God; he knew exactly who the
real King was. He had genuine concern for the things of God and even when he
committed grave sins or acts of omission; he always fell back into the hands of
the true King unlike Saul. His desperate desire to build a befitting abode for
God’s ark was deflated and that privilege was bequeathed to his son Solomon who
had emerged out of a quagmire of murder, rebellion and deceptive manipulation
to emerge as king in his father’s stead.
Solomon started out well by relating with God
and his actions were rewarded with concrete approval and assurances albeit with
a condition of maintaining integrity, uprightness and dedication to God’s
statutes. The word of God is a double edged sword and God usually offers two options;
be hot or cold, choose good or evil etc. There is no middle ground with God.
Solomon got his own stern warnings (1Kgs 11:6-8) which he ultimately failed to
abide by. God is not sentimental but compassionate. He is just and does not
change His mind like man does. Our responsibilities and influence as parents
ought to extend fully to our children; biological or otherwise. I believe
failure in this responsibility will count against us. There seems to be a failure of parentage in our
nation at the moment which is probably the cause of the exceptional levels of
impunity, corruption and lawlessness. We may say that Nigeria is theoretically better
off than certain liberal nations that appear to be more acceptable of
controversial stances regarding sexuality, marriage and others. These societies
are not necessarily ceremonially religious like we are but indulge in practical
deeds that are undeniably propelled by deep rooted religious values. They
appear to be far more humane than we are upholding values as equity, justice,
dignity of labour and respect for life. They do not abandon their aged or children
and fight hard to maintain a system that encourages continuity and progress. Where
is our humanity in Nigeria? I fear that what we think is elaborate worship and
offering to God regularly practiced in Nigeria may not necessarily be pleasing
and acceptable in its entirety. The stench of injustice, corruption and the
volume of bloodshed that occurs on a daily basis whilst “spirits” stay mute may
just be the inhibiting factor to our anticipated redemption as a people. Some people
we loathe still have a remnant that is apologetic on the side of truth.
Our duties as parents should be geared at influencing
our children to choose good over evil. Evil has unfortunately been accepted as a
phenotype of good in our nation. Many of our leaders have lost their way
unfortunately; even those who are more popular and influential. They may have
become like Samson after the locks of his hair were shaved off; shaking
themselves but not realizing how tightly bound they are. It is difficult to
explain how we are blessed with such “glorious” vessels and the politicians err
constantly and do as they please ignoring the essence of accountability to the
people and God if they believe in him. Even Saul’s servants were concerned and
brave enough to diagnose their King’s condition and recommend therapy. In our
clime, no one wants to cause offence or disturb their much needed source of “divine”
provision to sustain their personal ministries. If we had genuine fathers, we
would not have many zombies as followers constantly giggling and irresponsible
like Ham who did nothing about his father’s nakedness. Nigeria is naked,
repeatedly raped, battered and bruised but all I hear are words of ecstasy or
deafening silence. When people start to demand answers, hypnotized bigots
remind them to sheath their swords and respect the clerical monarchs whose word
is law.
Solomon amassed great wealth, wisdom and
strange problems before his errors caught up with him in his old age. God himself
raised up adversaries to jolt him before a home grown rebel came on the scene. You
do not handle a challenge to personal deficiency by concealing cracks; you
address the failures completely instead of trying to quell the rebellion. A
well positioned individual can soon become a tool for fulfilling divine agenda
even without anointing. Jeroboam got 10 territories and received his
warnings just like any divinely ordained leader would. Solomon got wind of this
development and tried in vain to eliminate him. Rehoboam assumed the throne
after his father and opted to ignore credible counsel from elders; instead he settled
for reckless fantasies from his peers and subordinates. He was out of touch
with normalcy and Jeroboam assumed the throne of Israel only to later follow
the same trend of wrong counsel as well. He took Israel back in time to the
wilderness on two golden oxen.
The bible chronicles God’s relationship with
his people and also with their kings. The summary of their reigns was either
about doing right or evil in the sight of God irrespective of whether they were
anointed or not; divinely ordained or enthroned by force. Leadership is about being accountable, to the
people and ultimately to God.
SOMETHING
HAS GOT TO GIVE
The level of corruption that ravages our land cannot
be quantified on any graduated scale. We have become a laughing stock to our neighbors
and the world in general. They wonder why we are unmoved by the status quo;
they wonder why such a great nation stands on the brink of desolation and
oblivion. Those who ascribe divine ordinations to their thrones have continued
to molest Nigerians with their arrogance and insensitivity. They have mocked us
endlessly with their actions and their fellowship with impunity. Who leaves
hundreds of girls to their fate for months and yet funds a host of students
from a certain ethnicity to choice schools abroad to pursue undergraduate
degrees? Those canvassing for a non-performer to be brought back from Orion;
singing praise and worship should be reminded that they did the same when Sani
wanted to remain emperor. The clergy who have allowed their “anointings” to be
used as laundering conduits should remember that judgment in the house would be
even more severe; God is not asleep.
There does not seem to be hope for Nigeria
coming out of this present congestion intact. Those who run things may have
assured themselves that they have everything all figured out, history however
tells me we are in for some ride as long as groanings still proceed from
closets and hearts. Something is definitely going to give.
Jide Akeju
14/09/2014
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