Kings in a Cave

One of the most beautiful things about Scripture is the way it unfolds and redeems itself throughout the book. It is the most perfect book of alchemy, meaning everything has purpose and somehow or another it turns back on itself and shows you the true story again as it grows through the pace of the entirety of the Bible.

At church, we’ve been studying Joshua, and last week, I had an epiphany of sorts, so I thought I would share it about kings in a cave.

Now the five kings had fled and hidden in the cave at Makkedah. When Joshua was told that the five kings had been found hiding in the cave at Makkedah, he said, “Roll large rocks up to the mouth of the cave, and post some men there to guard it. But don’t stop; pursue your enemies! Attack them from the rear and don’t let them reach their cities, for the Lord your God has given them into your hand.”

So Joshua and the Israelites defeated them completely, but a few survivors managed to reach their fortified cities. The whole army then returned safely to Joshua in the camp at Makkedah, and no one uttered a word against the Israelites.

Joshua said, “Open the mouth of the cave and bring those five kings out to me.” So they brought the five kings out of the cave—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish and Eglon. When they had brought these kings to Joshua, he summoned all the men of Israel and said to the army commanders who had come with him, “Come here and put your feet on the necks of these kings.” So they came forward and placed their feet on their necks.

Joshua said to them, “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Be strong and courageous. This is what the Lord will do to all the enemies you are going to fight.” Then Joshua put the kings to death and exposed their bodies on five poles, and they were left hanging on the poles until evening.

At sunset Joshua gave the order and they took them down from the poles and threw them into the cave where they had been hiding. At the mouth of the cave they placed large rocks, which are there to this day.

Joshua 10:16-27

Every time you see a scene in Scripture, ask yourself if it sounds familiar. The above passage describes five kings who were being pursued by Israel. In this instance, the scene is gory and deadly. Many times, people do not like this passage. How, they say, could God ask Israel to kill the kings? This story has purpose within the book of Joshua and stands by itself for the purpose of Joshua. We will not examine that right now. This story also has purpose within the entirety of the Bible. Let’s look at how.

The First Cave: The five kings of Joshua

First, we see five kings hiding in a cave. In this story, the kings run from Israel and hide in order to survive whatever Israel does to their respective kingdoms. They cannot hide from God, and they meet their death. Large rocks which stood and maybe still stand as a monument to their deaths mark the cave where they lay. I suppose we could assume they are evil men as they stand in opposition to the God’s will.

What other kings have hidden in a cave?

The Second Cave(s): The caves of David

The most obvious king who hid in a cave was David.

You might be unfamiliar with that story, so let me tell you about it. The first Israelite anointed as king was Saul. He was not following God, so God chose another king. You can read about God choosing the boy David in 1 Samuel 16.  David grows up. Saul sees that David has favor with God and that God wants to usurp his kingship. Of course, Saul does not like this, so he wants to kill David. Many days and nights David flees for his life and hides in caves. Once Saul even comes into one of the caves David hides in. David misses the opportunity to kill him because he feels soft in his heart. He merely cuts the edge of Saul’s robe.

David writes many psalms while he hides in a cave. These psalms tell about how he is fleeing from his enemies and being held upright by God alone.

How David contrasts the five kings

This is where you can begin to see a twist in the story. The kings refuse to submit to God and Israel. They flee from their enemy, Israel, and they die. Stones at the cave entrance mark the death of the five kings. The enemy of God runs away, and God pursues.

David flees from his enemies, Saul and his men. Saul and his men are against Israel and God. The twist is this time the enemy is pursuing the righteous, who hides in the caves. David, the righteous one, lives and is celebrated. Note that David spends much of his time in caves relying upon the Lord and praying to Him. The caves become a place of David’s greatest weakness and his greatest strength. Unlike the five kings cowering in fear, David total waits on the Lord’s rescue. We have no evidence that the five kings acknowledged God in the cave.

The Third Cave: The cave of Jesus’s burial

The third and final cave that comes to mind is the one where Jesus is laid to rest upon His death. This cave is in direct contrast to the first cave of the five kings. Jesus enters the cave dead. He’s already fully submitted to whatever evils men want to do to Him. He’s already been pursued, caught, and killed. He is dead, and no one expects anything else to happen. A large stone is placed at the entrance to seal and mark the cave. Jesus, though, defeats death and walks away from the cave alive.

When we look at Jesus’s story in comparison, we always see redemption and the way Scripture comes back around to bring the beauty from the gory.

Five kings hide from Israel, die, and are buried in a marked cave. David twists the pattern and becomes the righteous in the cave. But Jesus redeems the cave because no grave cave can hold Him. This is great news for us all, because if we are Christians, we too, will follow the pattern of Christ.

These are just the three biblical images of kings in a cave that came to mind. It would be fun and worth some research to see if there are other kings mentioned in a cave and see what else there is to be gleaned from them as well.

What We Learn from the Kings in a Cave

• Men who do not acknowledge God die.
• Men who call upon the Lord’s name can be rescued, and they can find their greatest strength (Father/Jesus/Holy Spirit) in the midst of their greatest weaknesses.
• Those who know the Lord do not die, but live, even in the face of death.
• Because of the third cave, we can have the strength to live like King David, AND we can experience resurrection power.
• With God as our friend, we can offer life and mercy to others.
• No one has the power to overcome God. What He has planned will come to pass.
• It is best to stand with God and be rescued by Him.

Thoughts

• Do you see the alchemy and the way kings in a cave were redeemed as a result of looking at the bigger picture of the Bible narrative?
• Was this helpful, insightful, or simply obvious to you?