By Mary Fairchild
1581 Bunting Clover Leaf Map; Israel in the center.
SCRIPTURE MEMORY: ROMANS 8:35-37
“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For THY SAKE WE ARE KILLED ALL THE DAY LONG; WE ARE ACCOUNTED AS SHEEP FOR THE SLAUGHTER. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”
2 SAMUEL 20-21—REBELLION AND REAPING: Jealous over the action of the men of Judah in bringing David back to Jerusalem to be king, Israel was ready for another schism. Sheba took the leadership. The people were quite fickle and David knew not to put confidence in man but rather in God.
When Amasa was slow in getting the army organized, Joab took over and got the job done—he deceived Amasa and killed him. The population escaped slaughter through the wisdom of woman in Abel. Sheba’s head was thrown over the wall to Joab and David was again the king of Judah and Israel.
Sheba championed the wrong cause. There are always jealous feelings, rebellious attitudes, and negative responses lurking about just waiting for a champion. We must refuse to respond and reject such thoughts.
When David asked the Lord why the nation continued to suffer, God recounted Saul’s disobedient action against the Gibeonites (Josh. 9). When David asked the Gibeonites what action would dissolve Saul’s offense they asked that seven members of Saul’s family be delivered to them. The Gibeonites hanged these offspring of Saul.
2 SAMUEL 22-23—DAVID’S TRUTH AND TROPHIES: The Lord is our only security when days are rough and we experience terrible difficulties. We may never experience the depths of David’s trials—violence, waves of death, torrents of destruction, distress, and calamity. David was under extreme pressure and the Lord was his remedy. He is our “rock,” “fortress,” “deliverer,” “refuge,”—He rescues us…. these truths bring us through hard times.
The Word of God brings light when our days are dark. God’s Word is “refined”; it is “tested.” WHEN WE ARE CONFUSED AND UNABLE TO SEE, THE WORD OF GOD IS OUR LAMP. A lamp only reveals what we need to see. If we were revealed all of our future we would have no need to fellowship with Him each day….
The Lord is strong when we are weak. When David was powerless, the Lord was powerful.
The Lord deserves our praise, our thanks, and our confidence. David died with a song of praise because he lived with a song in his heart. Our confidence is God, and our praise to Him will continue eternally; our difficulties and weaknesses will end with this life.
1) David was Israel’s greatest king.
2) The wicked will be destroyed.
3) The righteous will be rewarded. (37 men named were acknowledged for faithfulness and fervent
in carrying out the will of God)
A great man will usually inspire other men to take on the qualities of greatness. Seek companions that will build you up, inspire you to be better, and bring out the best in you. David’s slightest wish was their desire—they even risked their lives to bring him water from his home town well. David felt he did not deserve such honor and symbolically gave the water to God by pouring it on the ground and denying himself.
2 SAMUEL 24—DAVID’S CENSUS: David sins and numbers the people. He commanded Joab to direct a census of the soldiers in Israel and Judah. The census was incomplete because it did not include the men of Benjamin and Levi. David’s sensitive conscience prompted him to respond to conviction and he openly confessed his sin. As consequence of the census the prophet of Gad came to David and gave him God’s message and punishment. Seventy thousand men died before the death angel reached Jerusalem.
Like Joab questioning David, don’t ignore when your actions are questioned. If in doubt, don’t. Be accountable to your parents and to those in authority over you—this will protect you from going the wrong way. David’s motive for numbering the people must have been to reinforce his sense of security and pride. WE NEED TO EXAMINE THE MOTIVES OF OUR ACTIONS—IF THEY ARE WRONG DON’T PROCEDE…. DON’T TRUST YOUR OWN FLESH. Any sin that any sinner ever committed, if under provocation you could also commit.
The nation was in a backslidden condition, so God permitted Satan to tempt or test David and he failed his test. 1 Chron. 21 gives the parallel account, “And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.” Pride and vainglory led David to trust in numbers and bigness rather than to the glory of God—even after being advised not to. Mercifully, God allowed David to choose his punishment. David knew it was better to be dealt with by God than by men. PEOPLE CAN BE CRUEL, WITHOUT MERCY; GOD IS FULL OF MERCY. The punishment came, David confessed his sin, and a sacrifice (atonement) had to be made. The offering was made and the plague was stopped after 70,000 people had died. Though Araunah kindly offered his possessions for sacrifice, David refused to offer to God what belonged to someone else. He felt he must pay the cost in his spiritual sacrifices. DAVID THEN DECIDED THAT THIS VERY SPOT WHERE HE HAD SEEN THE ANGEL OF THE LORD AND WHERE GOD HAD SHOWED MERCY WOULD BE THE SITE FOR THE FUTURE TEMPLE THAT HIS SON SOLOMON WOULD LATER BUILD.
Like David, we need to immediately confess and repent. Get things right with God and others immediately. Delay will allow the devil to gain an advantage in our lives and blind us and defeat us. KEEP SHORT ACCOUNTS WITH GOD. Like David, have a constant dependence upon God’s mercy. David believed that God’s mercy endures forever; therefore, his sins made him a constant recipient of that mercy. When you feel there is no hope, “hope thou in God” is our encouragement (Ps. 42:5). You are in “spiritual danger” when you see no need for repentance or for the mercy of God in your life.
WORKS CITED
- Revelation and Church History
- Church Age
- Old Testament Study
- KING JAMES BIBLE
- MATTHEW HENRY COMMENTARY
- A Beka Book High School Bible Series “United Kingdom: Kings of Israel A;” 1995 Pensacola Christian College.