21:4
Again there is another key difference. The Gibeonites do not want money! Indeed they say that they have no right to demand silver or gold. Given what they end up asking for, the statement “nor do we have the right to put anyone in Israel to death” seems a little out of place, unless it means that they needed David to agree to them putting people to death. David asks what they want then?
21:5,6
They ask for seven of Saul’s descendants to be handed over to be killed. This is where the major problems arise. It is not the death penalty itself that is the key issue. There are many Christians who see the death penalty as simply wrong. I don’t think the matter is that simple. In saying that we won’t have the death penalty, it can be argued that we are devaluing the lives that have been taken. Clearly the matter is way more complicated, but this latter point should, at least, be borne in mind. The major problem here is that in agreeing to their demand David is acting in direct contravention of Deut 24:16, “nor shall children be put to death because of their fathers”. It should be noted that it does not say here that God approved of David’s actions, nor, having discovered the root problem, did Davd inquire of the Lord as to how to deal with it.
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