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Text: 2 Samuel 23:8-39
Joab is David’s nephew and one of his chief generals. He is a very capable military leader. David relies on Joab many times in his life. David uses Joab to lead armies and fight battles. Joab would be classified as a sociopath. (I thought psychopath, but when I read the differences between the two, Joab would be a sociopath. He’s not as good at hiding his feelings. His rage and outbursts are just beneath the surface.)
Joab’s uses his role to carry out personal vendettas
- 2 Samuel 3:17 Joab kills Abner after David made peace with him. Joab kills Abner because Abner killed Joab’s brother in battle. Actually Abner was retreating and telling Joab’s brother to lay off because the battle was over. But Joab’s brother kept pursuing and was killed.
- Joab’s relationship to the king has no power to overcome revenge.
- How about your relationship to the king?
Joab is not worried about wickedness
- 2 Samuel 11:14-17 Joab is the general that carries out David’s orders to kill Uriah in battle.
- Joab adds a little note with the messenger that if David gripes about how the battle went, just tell him Uriah is dead.
- Joab’s relationship to the king has no power to overcome wickedness.
- How about your relationship to the king?
Joab is self-willed
- 2 Samuel 18 Joab kills Absalom against David’s orders
- The king’s orders are bondage to Joab
- Joab’s relationship to the king has no power to overcome your self will.
- How about your relationship to the king?
Joab doesn’t want his authority undercut
- 2 Samuel 19 David quietly replaces Joab with Amasa (19:12-15). Joab is a loose canon that David can’t control, but David’s main concern is that he is mad at Joab because of Absalom’s death. So David replaces Joab with the man who lost the battle for Absalom. It’s a bad move that won’t last because now he’s infuriated Joab. Joab kills Amasa after David made Amasa captain instead of him.
- Joab’s relationship to the king has no power to overcome your own ambition.
- How about your relationship to the king?
Joab’s name is omitted from the list
- 2 Samuel 23:8-39
- It was left off because Joab had his own agenda. Joab comes to find out he has no part with the king.
- Is your name written there? Whosever’s name was not written in the book of life…
Joab is near the king, but his heart is far from him
- What a scary thought to be near the king, yet so far away.
- Depart from me ye workers of iniquity, I never knew you. But we prophesied in your name, we did mighty works in your name. Jesus the king says, I don’t know who you are.
- Some of you have a religion like Joab’s relationship to David. You have no power to root out revenge in your life. What you call Christianity has no power to overcome your will. You can’t stand when your authority is questioned. There is no repentance in your life. There is no power of the Holy Spirit. You are simply hanging around Jesus and when the day comes to bring to remembrance who belongs to Jesus Christ, your name won’t be there. You’ll be shocked and the LORD will say, I never knew you.
