Unwise fathering
I Samuel 14
24. Saul had declared, "A curse upon anyone who eats anything before
evening - before I have full revenge on my enemies." So no one ate
anything all day, even though they found honeycomb on the ground
in the forest,
26. for they all feared Saul's curse.
27. Jonathan, however, had not heard his father's command; so he
dipped a stick into a honeycomb, and when he had eaten the honey
he felt much better.
28. Then someone told him that his father had laid a curse upon
anyone who ate food that day, and everyone was weary and faint
as a result.
29. "That's ridiculous!" Jonathan exclaimed. "A command like that
only hurts us. See how much better I feel now that I have eaten
this little bit of honey.
30. If the people had been allowed to eat freely from the food they
found among our enemies, think how many more we could have slaughtered!"
37. So Saul asked God, "Shall we go after the Philistines? Will you
help us defeat them?" But the Lord made no reply all night.
38. Then Saul said to the leaders, "Something's wrong! We must find
out what sin was committed today.
39. I vow by the name of the God who saved Israel that though the
sinner be my own son Jonathan, he shall surely die!" But no one
would tell him what the trouble was.
42. Then Saul said, "Now draw lots between me and Jonathan." And
Jonathan was chosen as the guilty one.
43. "Tell me what you've done," Saul demanded of Jonathan. "I
tasted a little honey," Jonathan admitted. "It was only a little
bit on the end of a stick; but now I must die."
44. "Yes, Jonathan," Saul said, "you must die; may God strike me
dead if you are not executed for this."
45. But the troops retorted, "Jonathan, who saved Israel today,
shall die? Far from it! We vow by the life of God that not one
hair on his head will be touched, for he has been used of God to
do a mighty miracle today." So the people rescued Jonathan.
Living Bible
As a father, Saul probably caused a generational heart disconnect
by being overly harsh with his son, Jonathan.
To his credit, Jonathan never fell into the trap of cursing his
father. Indeed, Jonathan always tried to think the best of his
father. But he began to understand that God could not continue to
support Saul as king of His nation much longer.
Jonathan understood before most people did, that David was to be
the next king, and he fully supported that outcome.
So as a father, how do you treat your son? Are you unnecessarily
harsh, like Saul was here?
You may be setting yourself up for a generational heart disconnect,
which releases the curse.
Or can God trust you to be wise and keep the relationship between
the generations in tact within your family?
Prayer:
Father, thank You for wisdom today to heal relationships
between the generations in my family,
in Jesus' name,
Amen.
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