Today is the 24th day of May.

Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible.

I'm Brian.

It's great to be here with you, all of you. You in particular, as we gather around the global campfire and take our next step forward in the drama and the journey and the adventure and the

Enlightenment that is the Bible or reading through through second Samuel as we know and we've turned our focus to King David.

He's not King King, like King of Israel, he's King of Judah, the tribe of Judah.

And there's this power struggle happening,

because King Saul has an heir who is trying to be king of Israel. The hearts of the people are

toward David. It's a bit of a mess. There's assassinations happening and

so let's pick up the story second Samuel

chapters four five and six today day.

When Ischbisheth, the son of Saul heard that his general Abner was dead, murdered in Hebron, he panicked, and so did all Israel.

Now the two captains of Ispishath's raiding parties were Beaena and Ricab, the sons of Ramon,

a Benjaminite from the town of Birot, which was considered to belong to

Benjamin, since the time its original inhabitants tricked the Israelites into making a pact of friendship

with them. The people of Birot fled to Gaitaeum, where they still live as aliens.

Saul's son Jonathan, David's friend, had a son named Mefibicheth, who was unable to use his feet.

When he was only five, the news of his father and grandfather's defeat came from Jezreel. In her rush to flee, his nurse grabbed him up and Mephebisheth fell. He had been lame ever since.

Bayana and Ricab, the sons of Ramon, the Birotite, hatched a plan.

They set out and they came to Ispisheth's residence during the noonday heat as he was taking a nap.

They crept inside the house as if to get some weeds. There they

stabbed Ispisheth in the abdomen while he lay asleep on his bed killing him.

...