The United Kingdom of Israel:
Saul, David & Solomon
Foreshadow Christ the King

Lesson 20 Dissension: Jacob’s Descendants Disagree
the Second Book of Samuel 19:41—21:20

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)*
New American Bible Revised Edition (NABRE)*
Catechism of the Catholic Church
ex libris (in our library)
glossary for The United Kingdom of Israel
cross references in The United Kingdom of Israel
next lesson: The Sweet Psalmist of Israel

This material coordinates with Lesson 20 on pages 120–125 in The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King.

“When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever.”
—the Second Book of Samuel 7:12–13

welcome to our in-depth study of Saul, David & Solomon
We invite interested groups and individuals to check out the sample first lesson from this 28-lesson Turning to God’s Word Catholic Bible study. These online study pages link to our free lesson videos, as well as to a glossary and cross references in the biblical text. Other study aids include maps, additional commentary, and prayers based on the primary Scripture in each lesson. The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King has been granted an imprimatur and may be purchased from our website shop. If you have a Bible-related question or comment, click on the “ask us your question” or “what do you think” button on any study page.

open with prayer
It’s always wise to begin any Bible study with prayer, whether reading the Scriptures alone or meeting with others in a discussion study group. You can pray using your own words or use one of the opening prayers on our website. We especially like the following:

Lord Jesus, you promised to send your Holy Spirit
to teach us all things.
As we read and study your word today,
allow it to touch our hearts and change our lives. Amen.

let’s review—the Second Book of Samuel 18:19—19:40
In Lesson 19 David Mourns the Death of Absalom, Joab tries to prevent Zadok’s son Ahima-az from carrying news of battle victory to David. Ahima-az feigns ignorance about what’s happened to Absalom. A Cushite tells David that Absalom has been killed. David heeds Joab’s advice to set aside his mourning in order to avoid serious political problems. Meanwhile, Absalom’s death has caused strife throughout Israel. David sends the priests Abiathar and Zadok to persuade the elders of Judah to support David’s return to power, and David appoints Absalom’s general Amasa to replace Joab as commander over his own forces. Men of Judah go to escort David back to Jerusalem. Shime-i, who previously cursed David, reappears as a supporter, bringing with him a thousand members of the tribe of Benjamin. Abishai urges David to have Shime-i killed, but David refuses. Ziba, head servant of the house of Saul, also shows up to support David, as does Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth, who explains why he failed to go along when David fled Jerusalem. David previously had awarded all of Mephibosheth’s property to Ziba, but he now decides Mephibosheth and Ziba should divide the land. Mephibosheth, expressing relief at David’s safety, lets Ziba keep everything. Barzillai, one of David’s supporters, declines David’s offer to provide for him and asks David to instead provide for Chimham, Barzillai’s son. 

map notes—Abel of Beth-Maacah
The people of Abel of Beth-Maacah play a significant part in the defeat of Sheba, the Benjaminite who challenges David’s rule over all descendants of Jacob. Abel of Beth-Maacah is located in the northernmost area of Israel in territory allotted to the tribe of Naphtali. Members of that tribe have no strong ties to Sheba, and—after a discussion between Joab and a wise woman who lives in Abel of Beth-Maacah—they willingly slay Sheba to prevent destruction of their city. This brings an end to the last challenge to David’s rule posed by the tribe of Benjamin. From this time on, the two tribes will be aligned. Click on the map (right) to enlarge it. The original map is on page 123 in The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King.

tension over who has the greater claim to David as king (19:08)
As Turning to God’s Word author Matthew Phelps points out in the video overview for Lesson 20, “Dissension: Jacob’s Descendants Disagree,” the tribe that the king belongs to will become more significant as we move forward. This question causes permanent tension between Judah (with whom the tribe of Benjamin has aligned) and the remaining descendants of Jacob, referred to as Israel in this section of the Old Testament. Because the word Israel also is used to refer to the united kingdom of all of the descendants of Jacob, including Judah and Benjamin, it’s important to pay attention to every context in which the word Israel is used.


The Scripture ranges for the videos that accompany this Catholic Bible study match the Scripture ranges for the sets of questions in The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King. You can follow along as Turning to God’s Word author Matthew Phelps discusses Lesson 20, “Dissension: Jacob’s Descendants Disagree,” on pages 120–125 in the study book.

WHAT DO YOU THINK about the dissension between Judah & Israel?
In the Old Testament books written during and after the reign of David, there’s strong evidence of increasing tension between the tribe of Judah (which eventually is joined by the tribe of Benjamin) and the other descendants of Jacob.

?  Why do you think that David sought support from the tribe of Judah before he asked for support from the rest of the descendants of Jacob?
?  Consider what the men of Israel mean when they claim to have 10 shares in the king.
?  On what do you think that they’re basing their argument?
?  Compare what the men of Judah say to the men of Israel in the Second Book of Samuel 19:41–42 with the words that Saul used when he attempted to bribe his relatives in the tribe of Benjamin, as recorded in the First Book of Samuel 22:7–8?
?  What other words might the men of Judah have said to win the day?

WHAT DO YOU THINK is going on with Amasa?
A number of questions spring to mind concerning Amasa, who, like Joab, is one of David’s nephews.

?  Consider whether it’s likely that David is unaware of Joab’s role in the death of Absalom when he names Amasa to replace Joab as his military commander.
?  How do you imagine that Amasa feels being asked to take command of the same forces that recently defeated the army he was leading for Absalom?
?  What do you think causes Amasa to fail to complete the task he was assigned, which was to call the army of Judah together in three days?
?  Consider the multiple reasons Joab might have for slaying Amasa. Which of these reasons do you think most likely was Joab’s primary motivation?
?  How many named people is Joab responsible for personally slaying so far?
?  Describe David’s relationship with each person killed by Joab. Why do you think it is that David continues to tolerate Joab’s predilection for bloodshed?

pray with the Psalms—God’s holy city
Psalm 124 focuses on David’s recognition that the LORD is in control of all of the events in David’s life—and indeed in control of all events related in any way to life. The twentieth and twenty-first chapters in the Second Book of Samuel describe the civil strife, unrest, and bloodshed unleashed with Absalom’s attempt to unseat his father as king. Prayed at Friday Vespers (Week I), Psalm 124 is included as part of Lesson 13 Our Help Is in the Name of the LORD in the Turning to God’s Word Catholic Bible study Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers.

WHAT DO YOU THINK about David’s inner circle?
The Second Book of Samuel 20:23–26 contains an updated list of David’s closest advisers, which supersedes the list in the Second Book of Samuel 8:15–18.

?  What changes do you spot when comparing the two lists?
?  What reasons can you suggest to explain these changes?
?  Are there any positions left unfilled in the new list?
?  Are there any new positions?
?  Who shows up on both lists, and what might explain why that is?
?  Who are some people who aren’t on the new list but might reasonably be expected to be there?
?  Is there any evidence of nepotism?

what’s up with Saul’s slaughter of Gibeonites?
Gibeon is a designated Levitical city located within territory allotted by God to the tribe of Benjamin. The Gibeonites were living in the region when the descendants of Jacob settled in the land of Canaan. There’s no earlier biblical mention of Saul putting many of the Gibeonites to death, but the Second Book of Samuel 21:1 records the LORD telling David that Saul’s behavior is responsible for a three-year famine ravaging God’s people. To learn more about the history of the Gibeonites and why it was imprudent of Saul to slay many of them, read the ninth chapter in the Book of Joshua. Why do you think that Saul apparently was so willing to go against an established covenant to murder the Gibeonites?

zeal—you could look it up in our archives
The Second Book of Samuel 20:1–14 refers to a previously unrecorded overzealous act of Saul against the Gibeonites. To learn how the word “zeal” is connected to jealousy, read Lost in Translation, an online column in which Turning to God’s Word author Matthew Phelps helps readers connect with ideas expressed in the original languages of the Scriptures. New Lost in Translation entries are posted on Mondays, and past entries are archived on our website. Contact us if you’d like to receive Lost in Translation by email every week.

watch those proper names
Be alert when reading names of people David hands over to be slain in reparation for Saul’s ill-advised slaughter of Gibeonites. All seven men designated to be slain are descendants of Saul, and while one of them is named Mephibosheth, this isn’t the same lame Mephibosheth who’s Jonathan’s son. Two of the descendants of Saul given to the Gibeonites are sons of Saul’s concubine Rizpah, and their names are Armoni and Mephibosheth. The remaining five descendants of Saul given over to be killed are sons of Saul’s daughter Merab and Adri-el, the son of Barzillai the Meholathite. This isn’t the same Barzillai who long has been a supporter of David. Brief definitions of all the proper names in this lesson can be found by clicking on the link to the online glossary. 

what’s happened to the line of Saul?
The Second Book of Samuel makes no further mention of Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth or of Mephibosheth’s son Mica, who’s referred to in the Second Book of Samuel 9:12. It’s certain that these two of Saul’s descendants escaped the fate of the seven given over to be killed by the Gibeonites. David intentionally spared Mephibosheth, the son of his friend Jonathan. The First Book of the Chronicles 8:35–38 records that Mephibosheth’s son Mica fathered four sons, and that Mephibosheth’s descendants are named for eight generations, one of whom had many sons and grandsons.

Although it’s impossible to know whether Paul in the New Testament is a descendant of Saul, we do know from the Letter to the Philippians 3:5 that Paul himself claims to be a member of the tribe of Benjamin. Because Saul’s line clearly didn’t die out at the time of David, it’s not outside the realm of possibility that Paul was born into the line of Saul. We know for a certainty that his Hebrew name was Saul, suggesting that his parents at least admired the first king to rule over all the tribes of Israel.

the best Catholic commentary about Scripture
To find out more about how Church teaching is supported by Scripture passages in The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King, check out the Index of Citations in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Links to the primary Scripture passages in the lesson (Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition [RSVCE*]) and relevant paragraphs in the Catechism are provided here. Not every passage in the biblical text for this Catholic study is referenced in a Catechism paragraph, however, including the passage in this lesson from the Second Book of Samuel 19:41—21:20.

ways our glossary might prove helpful
In addition to providing extra information about geographical locations, our glossary also points out persons and places mentioned in the biblical text under multiple names or spellings. If you can remember a name but aren’t sure in which lesson it shows up, you can find it in the glossary, which lists every proper noun that appears in the primary biblical text for The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King.

to learn more, read more Scripture
If you’re having difficulty with a particular passage of Scripture, it can be helpful to read the relevant cross references—but looking these up can take time. To make that easier, we’ve compiled the cross references from the Revised Standard Version Second Catholic Edition (RSV2CE)—the translation that we reprint in our study books. That list can be found at the top of every online study page, and it includes links to cross references in the primary biblical text for The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King.

don’t forget about our indexes & extra online material
If you’re trying to locate information about a specific Scripture passage, you can look it up in the index at the back of the study book or sample lesson. If you want to find a particular commentary, you can look up its title in the topics index. To learn more about another book of the Bible for which there’s a Turning to God’s Word study, visit the online study directories to read the commentaries and watch any accompanying videos. Finally, if you have a question or would like to make a comment about any of our studies, you can use one of the “ask us your question” or “what do you think” buttons to email our authors.

ex libris—Church documents & books about religious topics
Link to magisterial documents referred to in our Bible studies at ex libris—magisterial documents. This listing includes significant recent encyclicals as well as a number of historical Church documents. Recommended books related to Scripture study can be found at ex libris—main bookshelf.

wondering how to pronounce some of these words?
The following link is to a reading from the New International Version (NIV) Bible. To listen, click on the audio icon above the printed text. Although not taken from the translations used in our study materials, the NIV reading provides an audio guide to pronunciation of words in this lesson’s primary biblical text. A close online version of the translation of the Bible used in Catholic liturgy in the United States as well as an audio guide for daily Mass readings for the current month can be found on the website of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

the Second Book of Samuel 19:41—21:20 (NIV)

close with Bible-based prayer related to this lesson
Many of our Catholic study groups like to conclude their discussions with a prayer based on the round black dovescriptural focus of their lesson, and some participants include Scripture-specific prayer in their individual study. If you’re uncomfortable composing your own Bible-based prayers you can follow our four easy steps. If you prefer, you can use the following prayer based on the biblical text in this lesson in the study book The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King.

O God, you created men and women to live together in harmony and peace.
Grant us the knowledge, understanding, and wisdom
to treat others as you would wish us to do.
Teach us to turn to you for direction and guidance
when we’re faced with necessary but unpleasant tasks.
We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ,
who always acted out of love
and never out of cowardice. Amen.

Lesson 21 The Sweet Psalmist of Israel—the Second Book of Samuel 22:1—23:7
Lesson 19 David Mourns the Death of Absalom—the Second Book of Samuel 18:19—19:40

you also may like our two-part study of the prophets
Thus Says the LORD: God Speaks Through His Servants the Prophets—Volume I: A Kingdom Divided examines the prophets in their historical context using the First and Second Books of the Kings and other Old Testament passages written before the Babylonian Exile in 586 B.C. Volume II: Restoration & Redemption looks at the post-exilic prophets. This 51-lesson Catholic Bible study builds on The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King. Click on the books’ covers to view a sample lesson from each volume.

start a Turning to God’s Word Bible study
Thank you for your interest in The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King. Information about beginning a Turning to God’s Word Bible study can be found at start a Bible study. Tami, Matthew, and I are available to answer questions. Contact us if you’d like to start one of our studies or have your schedule listed with other TtGW study groups on our website. —Jennifer

*There are seven deuterocanonical books in the Old Testament—the Books of Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, and First and Second Maccabees, as well as some passages in the Books of Esther and Daniel. Protestants usually refer to these works as “apocryphal,” a word that means “outside the (Protestant) canon” because they’re excluded from most Protestant Bibles. The word “deuterocanonical” means “second canon”; Catholics use that word to refer to any section of the Catholic Old Testament for which there are no extant, or existing, Hebrew manuscripts. All of the deuterocanonical books appear in the Septuagint, the earliest remaining versions of which date to the 1st century B.C. This Greek translation of the Old Testament was in common use by Jews at the time of Jesus. Learn more by reading How Do Catholic & Protestant Bibles Differ?

Turning to God’s Word printed Bible studies use the 2006 Revised Standard Version Second Catholic Edition (RSV2CE) translation for all Scripture references except those to the Psalms, which are taken from The Abbey Psalms and Canticles, prepared by the Benedictine monks of Conception Abbey and published in 2020 by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). All Scripture links for the online study pages for The United Kingdom of Israel: Saul, David & Solomon Foreshadow Christ the King are to the 1966 Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE) translation. The New International Version (NIV) audio recordings follow the same chapter and verse numbering as the RSV Catholic translations, but the NIV translation doesn’t include the deuterocanonical books and passages.

The 1966 RSVCE uses archaic pronouns and verb forms such as “thee,” “thou,” “didst” in the Psalms and in direct quotations attributed to God. The 2006 RSV2CE replaces these with more accessible English. The few significant translation changes in the RSV2CE include rendering almah as “virgin” in the Book of Isaiah 7:14 and restoring the term “begotten” in the Gospel According to John 3:16.

Numbering varies for some passages in this Bible study. Turning to God’s Word studies (print and digital) follow the numbering in the Revised Standard Version Catholic translations (RSV2CE and RSVCE). Discrepancies in the New American Bible Revised Edition (NABRE) are noted in the Index of Scripture Citations in the study book and the online sample.

You can learn more about the Psalms by viewing a sample lesson from the Turning to God’s Word Catholic Bible study Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume I: Lauds & Vespers. The second part of that study, Sing a New Psalm: Communicating with God Through the Prayers of the Church—Volume II: Vigils, Day Prayer & Compline, is scheduled for publication in 2025. Some verse numbers may vary in different translations of the Psalms.