Now Jeroboam had sent troops around to the rear, so that while he was in front of Judah the ambush was behind them. – 2 Chronicles 13:13

Today’s Scripture Reading (November 20, 2019): 2 Chronicles 13

It happened during a “paintball” game. If you have never played paintball, it is a battle simulation where you are armed with guns that fires little balls of paint, instead of a more lethal ammunition. The paintball is fired out of a weapon and then explodes when it hits the target, leaving a spot of paint, and if that target happens to be you, then you are “dead” and out of the game. The game is played often in some sort of an arena with many things that a person can hide behind. Paintballs are non-lethal, but that does not mean that it is not painful to be hit by a paintball, especially if it is a point-blank shot or a shot fired over a very short distance. And so, often, if you have someone at close range, you allow them to surrender rather than shooting them.

The game in which I was involved was being played in an outdoor setting, and I had been working through a dense bush area to get at my targets. It was slow going, but eventually I arrived where I needed to be. I was standing just around the corner of a building from what sounded like three or four girls from the opposing team planning their next attack. As quietly as I could I rounded the corner and leveled my gun at the now confirmed three girls. Did I mention a point-blank paintball shot is painful? I didn’t want to hurt them, which was my first mistake. Instead, I asked a question. Mercy? Do you want to surrender here and now, or do you want me to shoot? The first girl wisely put her gun down and stood up with her hands in the air. The second girl silently did the same thing. And here I made my second mistake. They hadn’t said anything. They had simply risen and indicated with their actions that they were surrendering. As I watched the first two girls stand up, I missed the third girl had not put her gun down. Instead of rising had aimed her gun. As the second girl moved out of the way, the third girl fired and hit me point blank with a paintball. Instead of removing three players from the game, I had been removed from the game, with a lesson learned. Next time, mercy might not be offered.

The war between Jeroboam of Israel and Abijah of Judah was more serious than my paintball game. But Jeroboam employed a similar strategy. The two nations, complete with their armies, met on the battlefield. But first, the leaders held a conversation. Was this conflict something that could be worked out without the death of many of the soldiers on both sides? Abijah was negotiating in good faith. His army stood down while the conversation was going forward. But Jeroboam had decided to use a different strategy. For Jeroboam, the conversation was a ploy giving him time to surround the army of Judah with his men. 

It was a dishonorable ploy that took advantage of the momentary peace that existed while the terms of the battle were being negotiated, placing the Judean military at a severe disadvantage. But the problem with the tactic is that it only works once, because no one is going to trust you during a second negotiation.

In the case of Abijah and Jeroboam, Abijah was now at a severe disadvantage and would need a miracle if he was to make it through the coming battle.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 2 Chronicles 14