Today’s selected reading continues in the Old Testament prophetic book of Micah, and more specifically, begins with the first verse of the third chapter, and continues through to the thirteenth verse of the fourth chapter. When you begin reading this particular passage of Scripture, the first thing you are confronted with is who these words are directed to. “And I said, Hear, I pray you, O heads of Jacob, and ye princes of the house of Israel” (Micah 3:1). It is absolutely obvious when reading this passage that the prophet—according to the word of the Lord—was instructed to speak directly to and concerning the heads of Jacob, and the princes of the house of Israel. In essence, the prophet Micah was instructed to speak directly to the leaders of that generation—a task and assignment that is in all reality one of the most challenging and daunting assignments. One of the most intriguing realities surrounding the prophetic writings found within the Old Testament is the tremendous assignment that was upon their lives. The prophet Jonah was instructed to travel to the capital city of a heathen and Gentile nation, and to not only pronounce judgment, but also to call for repentance from all those who heard his words. When men and women think of and consider the prophetic assignment and ministry, they often times think of it as something glamourous, and perhaps even attractive. The truth of the matter, however, is that being commissioned and called by the Lord of hosts to stand before Him within a generation and proclaim His words is more often than not one of—it not the most challenging tasks one can and will face. If you read the prophetic writings of the ancient Hebrew prophets you will quickly discover that more often than not they were required and commanded to go directly to the throne and proclaim the word of the Lord. I can’t help but be reminded of Nathan the prophet who was instructed by the Lord to declare unto David, “You are that man.” I can’t help but be reminded of Elijah who was sent unto Ahab king of Israel and declare that it would not rain upon the earth except by the word of his mouth. This same prophet Elijah also openly declare unto Ahab that both he and his wife Jezebel were single-handedly responsible for bringing corruption within and upon the land.Consider what it would be like to be instructed by the Lord to go and stand before a king and pronounce unto them their sin and their transgression. Taking this a step further, one would need to journey back to the first king of Israel—Saul—in order to encounter the reality of prophets confronting the throne. WHEN PROPHETS CONFRONT THE THRONE! WHEN PROPHETS ARE HEARD IN THE PALACE! There is a tendency to think of the prophetic ministry as being within the streets of an individual city, yet the truth of the matter is that there were times when the prophetic ministry can and will set one before kings. I am reminded of the words which are recorded for us in the eighteenth chapter of the Old Testament book of Proverbs where the author writes these words—“A man’s gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men” (Proverbs 18:16). Now, the author of the Old Testament book of Proverbs speak of a man’s gift bringing them before great men, and in another translation, we read “before kings” instead of “before great men.” What adds even more weight and volume you to this particular reality is when you come to the twelfth chapter of the New Testament book of First Corinthians. In the twelfth chapter of the apostle Paul’s first epistle to the Corinthian congregation we read his inspired words regarding spiritual gifts found within the body of Christ. Beginning with the first verse of the chapter we read these words—“Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant. Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led. Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost. Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: but all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will” (1 Corinthians 12:1-11).

If you study the books of First and Second Samuel, you will encounter two distinct prophets whose prophetic gift and anointing set them before the king of Israel. The prophet Samuel—the same prophet who anointed Saul as king over the nation of Israel—would later be sent by the Lord to rebuke Saul for his disobedience to the word of the Lord. Consider the account as it is presented unto us in the fifteenth chapter of the book of First Samuel—“Then came the word of the Lord unto Samuel, saying, It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the Lord all night. And when Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he set him up a place, and is gone about, and passed on, and gone down to Gilgal. And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the Lord: I have performed the commandment of the Lord. And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed. Then Samuel said unto Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what the Lord hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, Say on. And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the Lord anointed thee king over Israel? And the Lord sent thee ona journey, and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed. Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the Lord, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the Lord? And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, have gone the way which the Lord sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God in Gilgal. And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Becauuse thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, He hath also rejected thee from being king” (1 Samuel 15:10-23).

The prophet Samuel would be the first prophet to anoint a king within and over the nation of Israel, and the same prophet would be the first to be sent unto that very same king with a strong rebuke from the Lord concerning his disobedience before the Lord. Within the fifteenth chapter of the book of First Samuel we find God’s prophetic voice within a generation being sent before the king of Israel who was the most powerful ruler within the entire kingdom. The prophet Samuel would be the first prophetic voice to stand before the king with an urgent message from the Lord of hosts, yet the pattern of standing before kings as the prophetic voice of the Lord would continue in the very next generation. It would be in the next generation that we find David reigning as king over the nation of Israel, and Nathan serving as the prophetic voice—both unto the nation, and unto the king himself. It’s actually quite interesting to consider that with that new generation would come a new king who would sit upon the throne in Jerusalem, and a new prophetic voice that was present within the land. Fast forward to the days of the next king and you will find that king guilty of transgressing the law of the Lord. In the twelfth chapter of the book of Second Samuel you will encounter the prophet Nathan being instructed to go unto David with an urgent message from the Lord. IN order to truly understand Nathan’s journey to confront David, you must first underscore the final verse in the previous chapter. In the final verse of the eleventh chapter you will read these words concerning David king of Israel:

“And the Lord sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him, and said unto him, There were two men in one city; the one rich, and the other poor. The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds: but the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up: and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own meat, and drank of his own cupt, and lay in his bosom, and was unto his as a daughter. And there came a traller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him; but took the poor man’s lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him. And David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die: and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity. And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul; and I gave thee thy master’s house, and thy master’s wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things. Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in his sight? Thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to by thy wife. Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbor, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun” (2 Samuel 12:1-12).

Within these two chapters—one found within the book of First Samuel, the other found in the book of Second Samuel—we find two different reigns of two different kings. These chapters bring us face to face with two different monarchs who both sat upon the throne over the people of God, and yet both would find themselves being confronted with and by the prophetic word of the Lord. The prophet Samuel would be the first prophet to confront a monarch within the nation and kingdom of Israel, while Nathan would be the second prophet who would confront the monarch with his transgression and iniquity. CONFRONTING THE THRONE! WHEN THE PROPHET CONFRONTS THE THRONE! WHEN THE PROPHET FACES THE THRONE! What is absolutely incredible to consider, is that when instructed and commanded by the Lord in confront the king who sat upon the throne within the heritage of the Lord, both men rose immediately and did so—without fear and without hesitation. Pause for a moment and consider what a tremendous assignment that would be to confront the throne with the transgression that was committed from it. In the case of Saul, his transgression was deliberate and willful, and was done openly and publicly, as his act of sparing the best of the sheep, the best of the cattle, the best of the oxen from Amalek was a deliberate transgression against the Lord of hosts. David’s transgression was committed privately, yet it would ultimately affect one of his own soldiers within the army who fought to maintain the authority and dominion of the kingdom. What’s so incredibly interesting about both of these accounts is that they both touched the battlefield—albeit one indirectly. Saul’s transgression would be committed on the battlefield, as the Lord had instructed him to utterly destroy all of Amalek. David’s transgression would be committed on the battlefield, yet not by David on the battlefield himself, but rather by David from his throne. It’s quite interesting that David used the authority of the throne to commit his transgression before and against the Lord, and did so at the time when king’s go out to battle. Consider how at the time when kings go out to war, David chose to remain behind in Jerusalem, yet would ultimately use the battlefield to cover up his son. David had reached the point where he didn’t want to engage in the conflict or struggle of the battlefield, yet he would use the battlefield to accomplish and achieve his own selfish gain.

I have to admit that I am quite intrigued and fascinated by this concept of David reaching the point and place where he no longer wanted to step on to the battlefield, or perhaps even to engage in conflict and struggle, and yet David would not only use the battlefield, but also his authority to further compound his transgression and iniquity. I can’t help but see a tremendous picture found within the account of David of those among us may very well feel tired and weary from years of wrestling, battling, warring, and fighting. I can’t help but get the strong sense that there are a great number of us who have reached the point in our lives where we have grown weary from battle and feel as though we need to rest from all conflict and struggle. There are many who in and from that place have let their guard down, and as a result, have found themselves engaging in actions against the command of the Lord. It’s actually quite astounding to consider that when David refused to take up the sword, he ultimately and inevitably let his guard down. WHEN YOU REFUSE TO TAKE UP THE SWORD, YOU LET YOUR GUARD DOWN! WHEN YOU REFUSE TO ENGAGE IN BATTLE, YOU ARE ALLOWING YOUR GUARD TO COME DOWN! David chose not to go out with the army to battle and engage in conflict against the enemies and adversaries of Israel, and as a result, he found himself being engaged in a conflict with enemies and adversaries that could not be seen by the natural eye. We find and place ourselves in a dangerous place when we reach the point where we no longer want to engage the enemy in battle, for it is in and from that place we allow our guard to come down. It is in and from that place where we no longer fight and engage in warfare and battle that we actually allow our guard down. There are those among us who would think that if they let their sword come down—even if it’s for a single moment—their shield will remain active and raised within their lives. I am convinced that when the hand the holds the sword is no longer raised, the hand that holds the shield is immediately affected. There are many who are deceived into thinking and believing that they can choose to note use the sword in conflict and battle, and that by doing so, they can and will still hold their shield up high. I am utterly and completely convinced that those who allow the sword to fall to their sides—or perhaps even wrapped in a cloth within their tent—can and will find themselves in the place where the shield also suffers.

 WHEN THE SWORD DROPS, THE SHIELD SUFFERS! I am utterly and completely convinced that the sword and the shield are utterly and completely connected, and that when the apostle Paul wrote of the sword of the Spirit, as well as the shield of faith, he recognized and understood how interconnected they were. I am convinced the apostle Paul recognized and understood that one could not hope or even expect to use the sword without and part from the shield, and one could not hope or expect to use the shield without and apart from the sword. David chose to not accompany the army of Israel, chose night to fight, chose not to engage in conflict, chose not to join the struggle, and as a result, he allow his guard to come down. In all reality, David’s actions, and his confrontation with the prophet Nathan isn’t and wasn’t so much about David’s actions per se, as much as they were about David letting his guard go down. I am firmly convinced that when we choose to hang our sword up, or when we choose to drop our sword to our sides, we almost immediately begin letting our guard down. It is absolutely and completely inevitable that when the sword drops, the shield drops. The reason I mention the sword and the shield is because the shield is used to defend against all the fiery darts of the enemy. When we drop our sword, and when we allow it to fall to our side—when we choose to no longer fight—we ultimately allow the shield to fall to our side as well. If the sword is used to attack and launch a frontal assault against the enemy, the shield is used to guard and protect us from that which the enemy attempts to overcome us with. We cannot, we dare not, we must not expect to stop engaging the enemy in conflict and battle and expect to at the same time guard and protect ourselves from the counter attacks he launches against us. The day, the hour, the minute we choose to no longer fight—regardless of what the reason might be—we choose to allow our guard to also go down. The minute we choose to no longer fight against the enemy is the same minute we also choose to no longer guard and protect ourselves from the enemy. There are a number of men and women who are deceived into thinking that they can cease from fighting the enemy and adversary in battle and somehow manage to keep their guard up against the enemy. You want to drop the sword that’s in your hand, do you? You want to cease from all conflict(s), struggle(s), and battle(s) within your life? You simultaneously choose to let your guard down, and choose to open yourself up to anything and everything the enemy can and will throw against you.

There is not a doubt in my mind that while David thought he was somehow avoiding the conflict and struggle that was associated with the battlefield upon the earth, he was completely unaware of an even greater conflict and struggle that remained behind with him in the city of Jerusalem. WHEN THE CITY OF JERUSALEM IS TRANSFORMED INTO A BATTLEFIELD! WHEN SEEKING TO AVOID THE PHYSICAL ENEMIES UPON THE BATTLEFIELD OPENS US UP TO THE SUPERNATURAL ENEMIES BEHIND THE SCENES! David thought he was somehow avoiding the conflict and struggle of the battle(s) the army of Israel would fight by staying behind in the city of Jerusalem, and yet what he ultimately found himself doing was letting his guard down. Tell me dear brother, tell me dear sister—have you let your guard down? Have you grown tired or weak or weary from days, weeks, months, perhaps even years of fighting, and struggling and resisting, and you have chosen to no longer fight? Have you taken the sword that was once held firmly within your hand and wrapped it in a cloth and placed it within your tent? Have you chosen to watch the countless soldiers and army around you go out to battle, and yet you choose to remain behind within the walls of your own Jerusalem, and the comfort of your own palace? How incredibly telling it is that the walls of Jerusalem and the palace of the king would become a battlefield in and of itself, and the king would find himself in a tremendous place of vulnerability. The tragedy of Nathan’s words to David wasn’t merely that he had committed adultery, or that he had conspired to murder another human, or even that he attempted to lie about and cover it up. The tragedy of Nathan’s confrontation and rebuke of David was that David had allowed his guard to come down by choosing not to go out to battle. I can’t help but wonder how many men and women find themselves in this very same place right now, as they have chosen to remain behind in Jerusalem rather than going out with the soldiers and army to battle. Scripture doesn’t reveal why David chose to remain behind in Jerusalem rather than joining the army of Israel in battle against the enemies and adversaries. Perhaps he felt he had conquered all his enemies. Perhaps he had grown tired and weary of the battle. Perhaps he grew bored with battle and it no longer thrilled and excited him the way it once did. Beware of waning excitement and enthusiasm, for such is the breeding ground for letting your guard come down. Beware of believing the lie and the deception that you no longer have any more enemies and adversaries to fight and engage in battle. I am convinced that waning passion, waning excitement, waning enthusiasm can very well be the breeding ground for letting your guard down, and thus exposing yourself to that which you perhaps didn’t even think was possible.

I am reminded of another prophetic showdown and confrontation of a king who sat upon the throne in Samaria within the northern kingdom of Israel. The king was Ahab, and he reigned over the northern kingdom of a divided house of Israel. The account goes on to reveal how Ahab sought Naboth’s vineyard, and offered to either pay him its worth, or give him something equivalent in value. When Naboth refused to give Ahab his vineyard, Ahab become sullen and sorrowful, and found his way into the presence of his wife Jezebel. Jezebel immediately went to work upon discovering the cause for her husband’s demeanor and mood, and she conspired against Naboth to have him killed. Jezebel conspired to have Naboth falsely accused, and then as a result of those accusations, to have him killed. Naboth would be falsely accused, and would ultimately be killed, and immediately following that, Jezebel instructed him to rise and take the vineyard. Consider how the Lord raised up the prophet Elijah to confront Ahab concerning his actions toward and against Naboth—“And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria: behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it. And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the LORd, In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine? And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee: because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the Lord. Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy posterity, and will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will make thine house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked me to anger, and made Israel to sin” (1 Kings 21:17-25). This account of the confrontation between Ahab and Elijah is only the third of a number of confrontations between the prophet and the monarch—between the authority and government of heaven and the authority and government upon the earth. David used his authority to cover up his adultery and the consequence of that adultery, and Ahab used his authority to conspire—with the help of his wife Jezebel—against Naboth to confiscate his vineyard. It is a dangerous thing when one uses the authority entrusted into their hands and into their care to obtain their own desires and pleasures. It is a tragic day when leaders and rulers alike use the authority invested to them to take advantage of the people within the land.

I would close with the reality and concept of David choosing to stay behind in Jerusalem while the army of Israel went out to engage in the battles that were before and around them. I am convinced the prophetic word that is found within this passage is the deliberate and intentional decision to cease engaging in warfare and battle within the earth. It is a tragic day within the life of an individual when they have grown tired, weak and weary from the battle, and as a result—either have no desire to engage in the conflict anymore, or if they do engage, they don’t engage with all their heart. HALF-HEARTED SOLDIERS! DIVIDED HEART SOLDIERS! I am convinced there are many churches and ministries today that have among them and in their midst half-hearted soldiers—those who may engage in some type of conflict and battle against the enemy and adversary, but their effort is very minimal. I am convinced there are those among us who are actively and proactively engaged in the conflict and battle, and who fight with everything they have, and until they have nothing left. I am convinced there are others who may engage in some type of conflict and warfare upon the battlefield, but their hearts are divided, and they aren’t giving everything they have into the fight. Still there are others who have grown tired and weary, or have lost all excitement and enthusiasm in the fight, and as a result, have chosen to cease fighting altogether. There is a passage that is found in the Old Testament that describes certain of the mighty men which fought for David—men who undoubtedly went out at the time kings went out to war, and the time when David stayed behind in Jerusalem. The account of their lives brings us face to face with the incredible reality that we must never cease engaging in the conflict and struggle. Consider if you will the text that is found in the eleventh chapter of the book of First Chronicles concerning David’s mighty men:

“These also are the chief of the mighty men whose David had, who strengthened themselves with him in his kingdom, and with all Israel, to make him ing, according to the word of the Lord concerning Israel. And this is the number of the mighty men whom David had; Jashobeam, an Hacmonite, the chief of the captains: he lifted up his spear against three hundred slain by him at one time. And after him was Eleazer the son of Dodo, the Ahohite, who was one of the three mighties. He was with David at Pas-dammim, and there the Philistines were gathered together to battle, where was a parcel of ground full of barley; and the people fled from before the Philistines. And they set themselves in the midst of that parcel, and delivered it, and slew the Philistines; and the Lord saved them by a great deliverance. Now three. Of the thirty captains went down to the rock to David, into the cave of Adullam; and the host of the Philistines encamped in the valley of Rephaim. And David was then in the hold, and the Philistines’ garrison was then at Beth-Lehmann. And David longed, and said, O that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Beth-lemme, that is at the gate! And the three break through the host of the PHIlistines, and drew water out of the well of Bath-lemme, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: but David would not drink of it, but poured it out to the Lord, and said, My God forbid it me, that I should do this thing: shall I drink the blood of these men that have put their lives in jeopardy? For with the jeopardy of their lives they brought it. Therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mightiest. And Abishai the brother of Joab, he was chief of the three: for lifting up his spear against three-hundred, he slew them, and had a name among the three Of the three, he was more honourable than the two; for he was their captain: howbeit he attained not to the first three. Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, who had done many acts; he slew two lionlike men of Moab: also he went down and slew a lion in a pit in a snow day. And he slew an Egyptian, a man of great stature, five cubits high; and in the Egyptian’s hand was a spear like a weaver’s beam; and he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and slew him with his own spear. These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and had the name among the three mighties. Behold, he was honourable among the thirty, but attained not the first three: and David set him over his guard” (1 Chronicles 11:1-25).

Consider also the text which is found in the twenty-third chapter of the book of Second Samuel concerning these mighty men—“These be the names of the mighty men whom David had: The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite: he lift up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time. And after him was Eleazer the son of Dodo the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away: he arose, and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clave unto the sword: and the Lord wrought a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to spoil. And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Harareite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a piece of ground full of lentils: and the people fled form the Philistines. But he stood in the midst of the ground, and defended it, and slew the Philistines: and the Lord wrought a great victory. And three of the thirty chief went down, and came to David in the harvest time unto the cave of Adullam: and the troop of the Philistines pitched in the valley of Rephaim. And David was then in an hold, and the garrison of the Philsitines was then in Beth-Lehmann. And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Beth-lemme, which is by the gate! And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Beth-lemme, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to EDavid: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the Lord. And he said, Be it far from me, O Lord, that I should do this: is not this the blood of the men that went in jeapoard of their lives? Therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mighty men. And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief among three. And he lifted up his spear against three hundred, and slew them, and had the name among three. Was he not most honourable of three? Therefore he was their captain: howbeit he attained not unto the first three. And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man, of Kabzeel, who had done many acts, he slew two lionlike men of Moab: he went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow: and he slew an Egyptians, a goodly man: and the Egyptian had a spear in his hand; but he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and slew him with his own spear. These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and had the name among three mighty men. He was more honourable than the thirty, but he attained not tot the first three. And David set him over his guard” (2 Samuel 23:8-23).