PSALM SIXTY ONE ISHBOSHETH'S KINGDOM! The story behind this psalm is that of one of Saul's sons - Ishbosheth. When Saul had been slain, and his army decimated, the struggle was not over because there was among the great warriors of Saul a man called Abner. He was very strongly at odds with David. The full story is told in 2 Samuel 2. This Abner took Ishbosheth and made him king over Judah. This immediately split the nation - a king over Israel and a king over Judah. It was a deliberate act of rebellion. It is recorded that later two young men decided to slay Ishbosheth so that David could be king over all the nation. Knowing that Abner was by this time dead, they decided to take matters into their own hands. They discovered where Ishbosheth was, and in the heat of the day, when everyone was having their siesta, they entered the house, and finding Ishbosheth in bed at noon, they slew him. They then cut off his head and took it to king David. The king slew the young men for their vile action. At the time of this psalm David is in great trouble. He is at Mehanain, fleeing from his own son Absalom. Mehanain was Ishbosheth's kingdom. What memories this would stir up for David. The man who sought his life had lost his head. David opens his Ode, "Hear my cry O God; attend unto my prayer. From the end of the earth will I cry unto Thee." We ought ever to bear in mind that it is not the prayer that brings the blessing, but the answer. It is possible to say many prayers and get nowhere. Here was a cry for protection. Ishbosheth had slept and died. David prayed - and his life was prolonged. 'Ishbosheth's Kingdom' is where you get so discouraged. We are informed about Ishbosheth, that "he had no strength in his hands." The life went out of him long before he died. There are situations in life where everything you have planned seems to go to pieces. The enemy seems strong. David, even in his circumstances where it seemed that God's purpose was at last being fulfilled in his life, realised that his life could be taken at any moment. His son Absalom was in revolt. But, in that situation he did not give up and go to bed like Ishbosheth. Going to sleep is no answer to our problems - David prayed. Ishbosheth's kingdom is described by David as "The end of the earth." Have you ever been to the World's End?. It is not a geographical site, it is a place in your mind when you say, "This is the end! I can't go any further!" Ishbosheth got there. He did not know which way to go, which way to turn. The man who had been behind him - the man who put him on his throne - the man who won his battles for him - WAS DEAD. All Israel was troubled because the hands of Ishbosheth were weak. He was not able to do what a King ought to do. There are circumstances in life to which we all come when we feel incapable of meeting the situation. The tendency is to give up. Beware, Ishbosheth's Kingdom is the end of the world. David was in the same place. He sings, "My heart is overwhelmed. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I." When David found no help in himself, he recalled what God had always been to him. How he longed to be at Jerusalem and worship the Lord at the temple. But this place, Ishbosheth's Kingdom, was a wearying place, "O God, I will make my refuge in the covert of Thy Wings." This is our only protection when we come to Ishbosheth's Kingdom, when we face the World's End - THE SHADOW OF HIS WINGS. It is easy to talk glibly of dying, but when the end is in sight we all long for an extension. "Thou wilt prolong the king's life!"- that is how David expresses his desire - "and his years as many generations." David knew how Ishbosheth's life had ended in that land. He would never forget that severed head those wretched men had placed before him. "O God," he says "you have heard my vows." It was customary to make vows in circumstances of great distress. He reminds the Almighty of a prophecy in his Psalm (Vs.5.) "Thou hast given me the heritage of those that fear Thy Name." The Lord had told him that he would make of him an house - 1 Chronicles 7:11-12. "I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall be of thy sons; and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build me an house, and I will establish his throne for ever." David never forgot this prophecy. Yet at this time his own son was pursuing him. In the Kingdom of Ishbosheth he was fleeing from his own son. He is remi! nding himself of God's promise. "Thou wilt prolong the king's life." Little did David know that of his lineage would be born THE MAN who would fulfil all the hopes of humanity. His kingdom shall be without end - THE MAN CHRIST JESUS - great David's greater Son. Such an experience at the World's End, Ishbosheth's Kingdom, is not one way. God makes promises to us, and we make promises to Him. "I will sing praises unto Thy Name for ever," this is David's promise to God, and he qualifies it with, "That I may daily perform my vows." The life of Christ is lived daily, not from Christmas to Christmas, or Easter to Easter, or Sunday to Sunday. Letting God into our lives is the guarantee of constant protection. As we perform our daily promises, we let God RULE in our lives, and the end of the world can be the beginning of something gloriously new. Copyright (c) 1996, Hedley Palmer. All rights reserved. ---------------------------------------------------- file: /pub/resources/text/hpalmer/psalms: ps-061.txt .