Gospel Reflections #1025: What do we tend to be judgmental about?

1 Samuel 31:12 All the warriors set out and marched through the night. They took the bodies of Saul and his sons down from the wall of Beth-shean and brought them to Jabesh, where they cremated them.’

This scene depicts the loyalty and gratitude of the ‘mighty men of Jabesh-Gilead’, who risked their lives to recover the bodies of Saul, the first king of Israel, and his sons, who had lost their lives after being defeated by the Philistines.

In the Battle of Mount Gilboa, the Israelite army suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Philistines, and King Saul and his son Jonathan were killed in action.

To flaunt their victory, the Philistines beheaded Saul and hung his body on the walls of Beth-shean, an enemy stronghold, to put him on public display. This was the greatest insult to the dead and represented a national disgrace for all of Israel. 

The reason the inhabitants of ‘Jabesh-Gilead’ risked their lives upon hearing this tragic news was a deep sense of gratitude for a past favour. 

Shortly after Saul ascended the throne, Jabesh-Gilead had been besieged by the Ammonites, who had threatened to ‘gouge out the right eye’ of every inhabitant.

At that time, Saul, burning with righteous indignation, led his army and saved them from the brink of annihilation.

They had not forgotten that act of kindness from decades earlier.

Walking through enemy territory all night to infiltrate their lines meant certain death if caught, yet they risked their lives to recover Saul’s body. 

In the tradition of Israel (the Jewish people), bodies are usually buried rather than cremated; however, it is thought that they were respectfully cremated to avoid burying the body as it was, having been exposed and severely mutilated.

Furthermore, they reduced the body to ashes beforehand to prevent the Philistines from exhuming and desecrating the remains again.

Subsequently, the bones were reverently buried beneath a tree, and the inhabitants observed a seven-day fast to express their mourning.

In his later years, Saul is portrayed as an arrogant king who rebelled against God and harboured jealousy towards David.

However, the inhabitants of Jabesh remained true to their sense of duty towards ‘the Saul who had once risked his life to save them’, rather than ‘the Saul who had turned bad’.

Every person, whether good or evil, possesses other facets to their character.

We tend to judge others based on preconceptions formed solely from what we have heard or seen; yet, I hope we can be the sort of people who, through our personal interactions with others, are able to recognise both their weaknesses and strengths, as well as our own weaknesses and prejudices.

AUTHOR'S BIO: This Gospel Reflections page is written by Masae San, who resides in Hiroshima, Japan. Masae is a dedicated student of the Bible with a deep passion for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She shares her daily reflections on Gospel perspectives to reach out to others and spread the message of God's true love through a Christ-centered approach. We are sharing her insights here so that you, too, can experience the joy that comes from knowing and understanding the true Gospel and the love of God through Jesus Christ.