OLD TESTAMENT SURVEY

Transcription

1 OLD TESTAMENT SURVEY By Rev. LeRoy Davis BSc. and Glenn Davis copyright 2003 by Rev. LeRoy Davis and Glenn Davis Lesson 10 2 SAMUEL It is possibly called Samuel because it was Samuel who anointed the king who dominates in the book. The Septuagint probably has the best name, calling it The Second Book of Kings. 2 Samuel 1. Contains 24 chapters. 2. Some suggest that it was written by the same author as 1 Samuel but Samuel died before the events of 2 Samuel; therefore, he is not the author. Possible writers are Nathan or Gad. 3. Covers a period of forty years from the death of Saul to the purchase of the temple site. THEME The reign of David - God's grace and government. CHRIST Jesus Christ is seen as sitting on the throne of David. He is also seen as the Son of David, and the Greater David, who establishes the New Covenant. The Davidic Covenant is the covenant of Messiah or the New Covenant foretold [see Covenants course]. KEY WORDS used. The key word is David(`s) [286]. The word king(`s,dom) [290] is also frequently KEY VERSE 2 Sam.5:12 And David perceived that the Lord had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for His people Israel's sake. PURPOSE 1. To establish the Davidic seed, covenant, throne, and kingdom. 2. To record the reign of David including both his triumphs and his trials. LESSONS TO REMEMBER 1. We conquer as long as we trust God. 2. David paid for his great sins with Bathsheba and his murder of Uriah. Murder and Adultery came again and again.

2 3. David knew about confession, a key in life's success 2 Sam.12:13; Psa David's throne is a perpetual one, 2 Sam.7:8-17; Acts 2:29-31; Mt. 25:31; 19:18; and is now being sat on by Jesus, at he right hand of the Father. 5. Patience and dependence upon God are necessary for the fulfillment of the promises. 6. Obedience will bring blessing to those in the covenant relationship. 7. Sometimes pardoned sin is still punished. OUTLINE I The Patient Years 1-14 A. Lament for Saul 1 B. The House of Saul 2-4 II The Prosperous Years 5-12 A. David's Coronation 5 B. David's Conviction 6 C. David's Covenant 7 D. David's Conquest 8 E. David's Compassion 9 F. David's Critics 10 G. David's Crime 11 III The Perilous Years A. Troubled with His Kinsmen B. Troubled with His Kingdom OUTLINE (ALTERNATE) I David's Triumphs (20 years of blessing) 1-10 A. David King over Judah (7 years) 1-4 B. David King over all Israel (33 years) 5-10 I David's Trials (20 years of judgment) A. David's Downfall Pardon and Punishment COMMENTS 1: David returned to Ziglag and there got the news that Saul and his sons were dead. The one who brought the news, and Saul s crown, to David thought he would get a reward. He lied about how Saul had died for Saul had committed suicide and the man claimed have killed him personally. He also greatly misunderstood David. David was not like other leaders of the time. He mourned Saul and had the man killed for daring to kill Saul. 1: David s lament over Saul and Jonathan. 2:1-7 - After consulting God - David did that all the time - David went up to Hebron where he was anointed king over Judah. He also sent to honour the men of Jabeshgilead for their burying of Saul and his sons. 2: Saul s general, Abner, made Saul s son king of Israel so Judah followed David and the rest followed Ishbosheth. 2: Abner and Joab, David s general, with their men met. Abner suggested a deadly contest. Twelve men from each side faced off and they were all killed. This erupted into a full-fledge battle with Joab s men defeating Abner s. Abner and his men fled. Joab s

3 little brother Asahel pursued Abner to kill him. Abner tried to talk him out of it but he wouldn t listen so Abner was forced to kill him. Later Abner plead with Joab to call his men off and he did. But Joab never forgave Abner for killing his little brother. 3:1-5 - David had several wives and some of his children are listed here. 3: Abner took Saul s concubine and Ishbosheth questioned him about it. In that culture, taking a king s wife or concubine was the same a claiming his throne. Abner was offended that, after all he had done for Ishbosheth, that he would make an issue of this. Ishbosheth was too cowardly to pursue the issue but from that time on Abner wanted to make a covenant with David and switch sides. Abner talked to the different tribes to persuade them to come over to David and then he met with David in Hebron. Abner committed to bringing all Israel over to David and David sent him away. 3: Joab returned from a raid and learns that Abner had been and gone. He challenged David and claimed Abner only came to spy on them. He also secretly sent messengers after Abner to convince him the David wanted him to return. Joab met him when he returned and murdered him for killing his little brother in battle. Abner had acted in a battle and in self-defense, Joab acted in cold-blooded murder. When David learned about it he mourned and fasted for Abner to show that he was innocent of the murder. The people were glad that it was not David who had betrayed Abner. David, who loved the law of God, failed to keep it here. Joab should have been tried and executed as a murderer - if there were no witnesses he should have at least been dismissed - but David kept him on as his general. David s claim [vs. 39] that Joab and his bother Abishai controlled the army and were too powerful for him should not have stopped him from trusting in God and doing the right thing. Nevertheless, it was a very hard decision to make. 4: Two of Ishbosheth s former army leaders return and assassinated him in bed. They then took his head to David thinking he would reward them. Again they have misunderstood the great man that David was. He had them killed as murderers. It s easier to pass judgment on people who aren t close to you but justice should be the same on everyone. 5:1-5 - David was now recognized king over all of Israel. Altogether he reigned 40 years [40 again!]. 5:6-9 - Since the days of Joshua Jerusalem had remained unconquered. Now David conquered it and made it his capital city. 5: David was established by God in the kingship. David took even more wives and concubines and had more children. Solomon later would follow David s example to his own destruction. We have to be careful what kind of example we set for our children. What we do in moderation, they may do in excess. Again this was in violation of the Law of God which stated the king was not to multiply wives. 5: The Philistines were not impressed with the success of David and so they went to war with him. David defeated them in two decisive battles. He consulted God before the battles and was given two different but winning strategies. 6: David was a great worshipper and he desired the Ark of God s presence to be where he was. So with great celebration he went to collect it. If he had consulted the Law first, he would have known that the Ark was to be carried on the shoulder s of the priests. Instead, he placed it on a cart. In one place the oxen stumbled and it looked as if the Ark was going to fall. Uzzah put out his hand and touched the Ark to steady it. No one

4 can touch the holy presence of God. He was killed instantly. David was forced to realize that God was not only his Shepherd and Friend but also God was Holy and couldn t be treated lightly. David stored the Ark in a nearby home and returned to Jerusalem. 6: Three months later David heard God was blessing that home and decided to bring the Ark properly to Jerusalem. Again there was much celebration. David s first wife, Saul s daughter, saw his excited, uninhibited dancing and despised him. She criticized him to his face but David refused to be moved from celebrating God. God cursed Michal with barrenness for the rest of her life for her attitude. We must be careful in criticizing people expressing themselves to God. Somethings may seem strange to us but as long as it is not in violation of the Word of God, we need to be very careful in judgment lest we reap judgment in our own lives. 7: David desired to build a house for God. At first Nathan the prophet agreed then God sent him back to tell David that he was not the one to build the temple but his son would. Then we have the establishment of the Davidic Covenant and David s grateful response to it. 8: Various military exploits of David and his army. 9: Normally a king would murder all his rivals to protect his throne but David had been in a blood covenant with Jonathan [see The Making Of A Blood Covenant]. According to the terms of the covenant he would have to look after and provide for Jonathan s family. So David searched to see if there was a survivor in the family of Jonathan. He found Mephibosheth and treated him as his own son. 10: The king of Ammon had been kind to David. When he died David sent some men to give his condolences to his son. The new king s advisors advised him that David was only sending the men to spy out the land before invading. So he took the men and humiliated them and sent them back. Then they realized they have greatly offended David and the Israelites. They prepare for war, even hiring mercenaries. David heard about it and sent out his army. David, as king, should have been leading the army but instead he sent out Joab and stayed home. Ammon and its allies are defeated. 11: Here we come to the famous story of David and Bathsheba. Again, Joab was sent out to war but David remained home. One day David is on the roof of his house relaxing and he happened to look down into a neighbouring courtyard and saw a beautiful woman. Bathsheba wasn t doing anything wrong, as far as she knew she was in the privacy of her own home. David found out who she was and wanted her, not caring that she is already married. He committed adultery with her. Bathsheba really had no choice in the matter - you don t refuse a king. When she found out she was pregnant she lets David know. Now his one night stand was getting complicated. Her husband, Uriah, was out at the battle front so David called for him to come

5 and give a report. He hoped Uriah would go home in the evening and then think the child was his. Uriah doesn t. His friends were out on the battle front, he was not going to enjoy home life when they couldn t. The next night David got him drunk hoping that would motivate him to go home. It doesn t. David saw only one choice left: kill Uriah and then marry Bathsheba. David instructed Joab to put Uriah in the battle where he was sure to be killed. David had a murderer as a general and now he becomes one himself. Everything went according to plan this time...except that God was displeased. 12: The prophet Nathan came to David with a case of injustice. A rich man with many sheep had taken the one pet lamb of a poor man and killed it so he could feed a guest. David was outraged at such cruelty. He declared that not only should the man repay 4 times what he took but he should also die. Nathan put his boney finger in David s face and declared: Thou art the man! David did not die but God severely punished him: 1] there would be violence and fighting within his own family for the rest of his life, 2] some of his wives would be forced lie with another man and it would be public knowledge, and 3] Bathsheba s son would die - the innocent for the guilty. Unlike others when confronted with their sin, David confessed and repented - but that did not change the consequences. 12: As soon as Nathan left the child became sick. While the child was sick, David prayed and fasted hoping God would change His mind. When the child died David got back to normal life. David had another son by Bathsheba: Solomon. 12: Another battle. When Joab was on the verge of winning he sent for David to come and finish the job so David could get the credit. 13: The beginning of the family wars. David s first-born, Amnon, thought he loved his half-sister, Tamar. It was lust disguised as love but it became an all-consuming passion. Amnon tricked David into letting Tamar come to him and then he got her alone and raped her. After which the nature of lust was revealed and he hated her and threw her out of his house. She retired in mourning to the house of her full brother, Absalom. David was very angry when he heard about it but he did nothing. Again, for those close to him, he failed to enforce the Law of God. 13: This burned in Absalom. Later, at the time of sheepherding, Absalom threw a party and invited David and all his sons to it.

6 David refused but was talked into letting his sons go. Absalom had his servants murder Amnon. The rest of the sons flee. The rumor reached David that Absalom had killed all the rest of his sons but he discovered it is only Amnon who was killed. Absalom fled to his mother s home town. After a time David missed him but refused to call him back because of the murder. 14: Joab, through the use of a woman and an illustration, convinced David to bring Absalom back to Jerusalem but he was not to come into the king s presence. 14: Absalom was a handsome man - movie star material but he didn t need the make-up. 14: After two years Absalom was tired of not being allowed into the king s presence so he sent for Joab twice. Joab ignored him. Absalom then had Joab s field set on fire to get his attention. Joab then makes peace between Absalom and David. 15:1-16:4 - Absalom was a good politician and he wins the hearts of the people. Later, through trickery, he went to Hebron and had himself announced king. When David heard this he fled the city and those faithful to him followed him. A few people he sent back to set up a spy system so he could know what Absalom is doing. 16: A man by the name of Shimei stood on the cliff sides taunting, cursing, and throwing stones at David. David s men wanted to kill him but David wouldn t let them. 16: Absalom publicly had sex with some of David s concubines to show that he is now king. 17: Ahithophel, David s close friend who betrayed him, gave Absalom the advice to pursue David immediately to destroy him. David s spy, Hushai, said that David and his men would fight like cornered animals and it would be better to wait and get a bigger army. Absalom decided to follow Hushai s advice. Hushai let David know what was happening so he could prepare himself. 17:24-18:33 - Absalom gathered his army. David instructed his general s not to harm Absalom. Absalom s army was defeated and in fleeing

7 Absalom got hung up in a tree by his hair. Someone saw him and told Joab. Joab went and murdered him. When David was told all he could do was mourn for his traitorous son, Absalom. Even his victorious army slinks home feeling like they have been defeated. 19: Joab was angry with David for his actions. He told him unless he does something all his men will desert him. David goes to meet with his people. After discussion Israel reunited under David. He returned to Jerusalem. 19: On the way back Shimei came to get David s forgiveness and David let him live. We also see others who came to David. The jealousy between Israel and Judah also came to the surface. 20: Because of the conflict a man named Sheba tried to start a rebellion against David. David gave Amasa, one of his generals, three days to gather the troops so they could pursue Sheba. Amasa took longer so David sent Joab out with the men he had. He is afraid Sheba will have time to prepare formidable defenses. On the way Joab met up with Amasa and murdered his rival. Joab s hands were full on innocent blood. 20: Joab came to the city that Sheba had taken refuge in. A wise woman spoke to Joab asking why he was attacking an ancient and peaceable city in Israel Joab responded that he is really interested in Sheba not the city. The city people beheaded Sheba and tossed his head over the wall to Joab who then called off the attack. 21: For three years a famine was in the land. When David inquired of God for the reason he discovered it is because Saul had violated the covenant Joshua had made with the Gibeonites. Saul had tried to wipe them out when they had been promised safety. David asked the surviving Gibeonites when he could do to make it right. They wanted the death of seven of Saul s sons to balance the blood that Saul shed. David granted it but made sure he spared Mephibosheth because of his own covenant with Jonathan. He then gave their bones and the bones of Saul and Jonathan a good and proper burial. We see here that God even controls natural disasters and we have to seek the face of God to understand current events. Who would have connected a famine with the violent breaking of a covenant perhaps 40 years before? Only by going to God was the connection revealed and only then

8 could the solution come. 21: David entered into more battles with the Philistines. In one he was almost killed and the people didn t want him to risk his life in war in more. 22: A song of praise from David to God. 23:1-7 - Some of the last words of David, praising God for the everlasting covenant God has made with him. 24: Here we have a list of David s mighty men - which included Uriah - with a list of some of the famous deeds. In one case [vs. 14] David was longing for a drink of water from the well of Bethlehem. Three of his mighty men heard his desire, fought their way through the Philistine garrison that was there, got the water, and returned. David, in honour of their risking their lives for him, refused to drink the water but poured it out as an offering to God. Those three men picture what our devotion to Christ is to be like. No sacrifice or danger is too great to met the desire of our Lord. Our commitment and willingness to serve is to be complete. 25: Israel offended God - we aren t told how - and God moved it on David s heart to number Israel. We see that the heart of the king is in the hand of God and sometimes God uses political oppression as a means of punishment. Joab objected to David s command but was overruled. When the counting was done, David was sorry that he has done it. God sent the prophet Gad to David with three choices of punishment: 1] 7 years of famine, 2] 3 months of military defeat, or 3] 3 days of plague. David chose the 3 days of plague, trusting in God s mercy. The plague came. 70,000 men died but when the angel of Death reached Jerusalem God did in mercy stop him. David bought the land over which the angel is standing and offered sacrifice. This site later became the site of the temple. Assignment: Draw a timeline [you don t need the dates] and place the events of David s life on the line in chronological order from his anointing under Samuel to his death. You are now ready to download lesson 11. God bless,

9 Glenn Davis