Now the Philistines fought against Israel; the Israelites fled before them, and many fell dead on Mount Gilboa. The Philistines were in hot pursuit of Saul and his sons, and they killed his sons Jonathan, Abinadab and Malki-Shua. The fighting grew fierce around Saul, and when the archers overtook him, they wounded him critically.
Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and run me through, or these uncircumcised fellows will come and run me through and abuse me.”
But his armor-bearer was terrified and would not do it; so Saul took his own sword and fell on it. When the armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he too fell on his sword and died with him. So Saul and his three sons and his armor-bearer and all his men died together that same day.
When the Israelites along the valley and those across the Jordan saw that the Israelite army had fled and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned their towns and fled. And the Philistines came and occupied them.
-1 Samuel 31:1-7.
The Philistines were the people who lived along the Mediterranean Sea and as the Hebrews transitioned from a loose confederation of tribes towards being a unified kingdom, (books of Judges and Samuel) the Philistines would attempt to use their advanced military (The Philistines had iron technology and a monopoly on blacksmithing in the region, while the Hebrews were still using bronze age technology and weaponized farm tools.) and economic power to control and oppress the Hebrew people and to disrupt the expansion of their kingdom and influence in the region.
During the time of the first Israelite king, Saul, this conflict came to a head at the battle of Gilboa, where the Philistines devastated the Israelite defenders, killed the sons of the king, and trapped Saul in a place where suicide was his only way out.
But the Philistines don’t stop – they push their advantage. Having defeated the army at Mt. Gilboa, they continued about five miles to the Jordan river and occupied the Israelite towns and villages there.
This was a tremendous amount of defeat to face in one day, and as bodies the entirety of the royal bloodline are carried away as trophies, what’s left of the army scatters, and the people abandon their homes and flee the region.
Disaster, after disaster, after disaster.
One day … a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, and the Sabeans attacked and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The fire of God fell from the heavens and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, “Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
-Job 1:13-19
At the very start of the book of Job, we meet the book’s titular character: Job.
We are told that he is not just a good man, but the best man around. Job 1:2 says: “This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil.” Job was faithful to God and lived a comfortable life of blessing and prosperity.
But all of Job’s goodness can’t shield him from what is to come, in one day he receives the news that he has lost his oxen and donkeys, sheep, camels, his agricultural servants, and all of his children.
The loss of his status, the loss of his wealth, the loss of his business, the loss of his children.
Disaster, after disaster, after disaster.
With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
-John 19:38-42
John 18 and 19 give us the full account of Jesus’ passion. From his arrest, to his trial, to his torture, humiliation, his crucifixion, his slow public death, and his hasty burrial in a borrowed tomb.
We also see Judas’ betrayal, Peter’s denial, the three Marys’ (including Jesus’ mother) and the disciple John’s terror in watching him die.
This was the worst day for the followers of Jesus.
Disaster, after disaster, after disaster.
This past Sunday brought six more mass shootings in a single day across our nation. One day.
Six communities ripped apart. Mothers and fathers weeping, children hiding, neighborhoods forever changed. It feels relentless, like wave after wave of violence battering the shore of our common life. And here we sit, the people of God, called not to look away, not to grow numb, but to name this as what it is—evil, sin, death-dealing powers that mock the God of life.
Disaster, after disaster, after disaster.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. -Ephesians 6:12
But we are not alone in our heartbreak, our fear, our frustration, our anger, or our grief.
The Bible gives us tools for how to navigate these times.
In the three stories shared above, we saw really hard days. Hard days for the Israelites, hard days for Job, and a hard day for the first followers of Jesus.
Disaster, after disaster, after disaster.
But none of those passages were the end of the story.
For the Israelites, the dark day at the battle of Gilboa was the end of Saul’s rule, but would usher in the rule of King David.
For Job, this day of great loss would start him on a journey that would lead him to a new understanding of who he is in relation to God and his vindication.
For the disciples, the cross and tomb were necessary waypoints on the road to the resurrection.
None of this alleviates the suffering of the moment, but it does give us tools for how to deal with these moments.
We rebuild like the Israelites.
We sit in the ashes and the reality of suffering like Job.
We wait expectantly outside of the garden tomb like the women in the Gospels.
Weeping may endure for a night,
but joy comes in the morning. -Psalm 30:5
We face the reality of what has happened, we build towards a better future, and we wait expectantly for Jesus to move.
We face reality. We build with hope. We wait for resurrection.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Jeremy Hall