Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 167 (A Host of Troubles) for week of 28 September, 2025

A Host of Troubles   Then the LORD sent Nathan to David. And he came to him and said,   “There were two men in one city, the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had a great many flocks and herds. But the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb which he bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and his children. It would eat of his bread and drink of his cup and lie in his bosom, and was like a daughter to him. Now a traveler came to the rich man, and he was unwilling to take from his own flock or his own herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him; rather he took the poor man’s ewe lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”   Then David’s anger burned greatly against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the LORD lives, surely the man who has done this deserves to die. He must make restitution for the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing and had no compassion.”   Nathan then said to David, “You are the man!      The rich man was quite a host! The hospitality he offered his guest was not real hospitality at all. He faked his compassion for the weary traveler. He was so stingy that he killed another man's beloved pet and passed it off as his own sacrificial gift for the guest's benefit.   This would be a prime place for a political commentary on the current state of affairs in the United States' political situation, but the reader is intelligent enough to understand that facet of the parable. Fake hospitality deceives people into thinking the host really cares and has compassion. What the wicked host offers is nothing more than someone else's hard work and property.   To review from last week's text in this heavenly hospitality series, a righteous guest seeks a righteous home for hospitality, and he/she has the authority to bless that home with peace:   “Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support. And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city. As you enter the house, give it your greeting. If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.” (Mt 10:9-15)     Yeshua sent out his disciples as his messengers. They were to practice what they'd seen Yeshua do: teach, preach, immerse, comfort, exhort, rebuke, heal, and so on.   "Let love of the brethren continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it." (He 13:1-2)   These are not random strangers who visit, but "brothers" in the faith. No doubt the rich man had some level of acquaintance with the poor man he robbed. He knew where and when to steal the poor man's lamb, perhaps while the poor man was working or gone to the market. A lamb who was raised like his own daughter would not have been left unguarded very often. The rich man's act was premeditated, cunning, a masquerade of righteousness over a filthy act of cruel robbery.   Strangely, Scripture links two concepts in the same neighborhood, called smikhut (placement). Those two concepts are lack of hospitality and fornication/adultery.   In David’s case, he was the adulterer “rich man” who slaughtered the poor man’s lamb to prepare for the guest. This was also in the neighborhood of hospitality to strangers and "angels" in Hebrews Thirteen. Just skip one verse down:   “Marriage is to be held in honor among all, and the marriage bed is to be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge.” (He 13:4)   A wicked person may seem to offer ho