January 3, 2024

Should you keep a promise when it was based on a lie? My first reaction is absolutely not! I would think that you could renege on that promise because of their deceitfulness, but it seems that we must consider the entire picture and the reason they felt compelled to tell the lie in the first place. 

The Gibeonites were a part of Canaan and had seen the destruction of many other countries around them and didn’t want to face annihilation at the hands of Israel. They sent a delegation who acted as ambassadors from a faraway land and played the part as if they had journeyed long, all the way down to worn-out clothes and moldy bread. They said they came because of the fame of Lord thy God and wanted a deal for peace. Obviously, the princes of Israel didn’t consult God over this deal and made a rash decision. A few days later, they found out that they lived close. The congregation got angry at the lie and the agreement that was made. However, they decided to keep their promise and not kill them, probably because they invoked the name of the Lord. However, they made them servants for the Levites, doing the most demanding work of cutting wood and drawing water for the service of the Tabernacle. 

There are three lessons in this story:

*Always consult God about your decisions.

*Don’t make a promise you can’t keep.

*Consider the reason someone would lie to you. In this case, it was out of self-preservation. 

And now, behold, we are in thine hand: as it seemeth good and right unto thee to do unto us, do. And so did he unto them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, that they slew them not. Joshua 9:25-26