Don't rejoice over a fallen enemy - 2 Samuel 1-4

Proverbs 24:17, 18 - "Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles; Or the Lord will see it and be displeased, and turn His anger away from him." These are the words of Solomon, the son of David. These are great proverbs to commit to memory so that we are not caught in the worlds philosophical blunder of revenge and reprisal. We may wonder were Solomon came up with such a proverb. He easily could have read the account of his father David's transition into his kingship in 2 Samuel 1-4 and heard from his father first hand about David's practicing in life what son would eventually pen in Scriptures. David was not about to rejoice when his enemy fell. In fact, if you read his lament in chapter one of 2 Samuel you see the opposite: Rather than rejoicing over the death of his enemy, Saul, he rejoices over the mightiness of Saul's life. Later he does the same in the case of Abner's death, Saul's right hand warrior. And again when someone kills Saul's son - David will not join in the destruction of his enemy. David knew that God puts one leader up and takes another down. But, he also knew that God was in charge of that process and not David. We often look to rejoice when someone who is our foe has trouble or gets hurt or is disappointed. But, David gives us a great example of what his son eventually penned: Don't rejoice over a fallen enemy.