II Samuel 15:1-16:14

Dear RTB’ers,

I said yesterday that Absalom was not looking good. Today we see an even worse side of his behavior. And tomorrow we’ll see that there are no real limits to his bad behavior. Day by day for us, Absalom goes from bad to worse to worst. But I’m getting ahead…

Absalom asks leave of David to go to Hebron. You may recall that Hebron was where David first became king: David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. At Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and at Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah thirty-three years. (II Samuel 5:4-5) So Absalom begins his rebellion in David’s homeland. Presumably he figures that if Hebron will follow him, then the rest of Judah will go along, then the remaining eleven tribes will also follow.

David is on the run – again! He has had relative peace these many years since Saul’s death, but now it’s Absalom pursuing him. It’s honorable of David to leave Jerusalem instead of making the capital city the site of the fiercest fighting. Plus, David is leaving it with the Lord: Then the king said to Zadok, “Carry the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the eyes of the LORD, He will bring me back and let me see both it and His dwelling place. But if He says, ‘I have no pleasure in you,’ behold, here I am, let Him do to me what seems good to Him.” (vv. 15:25-26)

In all this David is a good model for us to follow. He could have stayed in Jerusalem and fought and either won or lost. But rather than pursuing his own ends, He relies on the Lord to act. In the face of adversity I often find it hard to make a decision one way or the other. I reason things out the best I can and pray hard that God will guide me, “Not my will but Your will be done.” Rarely do I get a solid yes-or-no from the Lord, and in the end I must act. Somehow, in moving forward I get the sense that I am either on the correct path or that I have made a wrong decision. Either way, the Lord has been leading me instead of me charging forward on my own. David is a good model to follow.

Blessings!

---

See also: April 14 (2023) / II Samuel 15:1-16:14; Psalms 3, 7.

II Samuel 13:38-14:33

Dear RTB’ers,

Joab is looking good. (That won’t always be so…!) Yesterday we saw him bringing David to the fight against Rabbah so that David would get credit for the victory, not himself (II Samuel 12:26-28). And today Joab is all about reconciliation between David and Absalom, first enlisting the woman of Tekoa to fabricate a story, then getting David to bring Absalom to Jerusalem, and then finally urging David to meet with and forgive his son (after Absalom has burned his field!). Admittedly Joab is deceitful in bringing in the woman from Tekoa, but in so doing he is only following Nathan’s example of the two men and one small lamb. So yeah, Joab is looking good.

Not so with Absalom. He has murdered his half-brother, the crown prince Amnon, and escaped to his father-in-law’s house. David brings him to Jerusalem, but does not meet up with him – which angers Absalom enough to burn Joab’s field and demand an audience with his father, knowing full well that he will either receive forgiveness or a death sentence: Now therefore let me go into the presence of the king, and if there is guilt in me, let him put me to death. (v. 14:32b) Absalom sees his murder of Amnon as revenge, setting aside the Law’s mandate that revenge belongs to the Lord. (Deuteronomy 32:35, Psalm 94:1) So in the end we see reconciliation between father and son, but no mention of either repentance or forgiveness: So he came to the king and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king, and the king kissed Absalom. (v. 14:33b) And they lived happily ever after…??

Blessings!

II Samuel 12:1-13:37

Dear RTB’ers,

I really liked Sean’s comment from yesterday, essentially “DON’T GO THERE!!” After that first wrong step, the next steps are even harder to avoid. Just skip that first step! Sounds easy, huh…??!!

What a sad couple of chapters! First, adultery and its aftermath, then rape and its consequences. As for the adultery, I would invite you to reread John’s post from July 30 on Psalm 51, then also where he refers to his earlier post from 2023. In our text today we read of David’s confession as just one line: David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” (v. 12:31a) But further reading of Psalm 51 reveals the depth of that confession. We simply cannot read chapter 12 without rereading Psalm 51. Go there. Reread Psalm 51.

As for the rape… Our heart goes out to Tamar. Her life has been ruined. The rapist, Amnon now hates her; her brother, Absalom silences her; and her father does nothing. No longer a virgin, she is left to a life of desolation and loneliness. And Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the long robe that she wore. And she laid her hand on her head and went away, crying aloud as she went. … So Tamar lived, a desolate woman, in her brother Absalom’s house. (vv. 13:19, 20b)

What a sad couple of chapters…

Blessings!

---

See also: April 13 (2023) / II Samuel 12:15b-14:33.

II Samuel 10-11

Dear RTB’ers,

Yesterday I noted that in II Samuel 8 we saw the height of David’s geographic power to the north as far as Damascus and to the east as far as the Euphrates River. Today’s battle does not dispute that statement. The Ammonites lived to the east of the Jordan River, along with the Moabites. Evidently David (Israel) had been at peace with the leaders of the Ammonites and David’s goodwill gesture (II Samuel 10:2) was rejected by Hanun, their new leader. Essentially Hanun’s aggression against David was a minor uprising with no change to David’s power – except that the Syrians (Arameans) no longer chose to fight against him! According to my Study Bible, “These events represent David’s last major campaign against combined foreign powers.”

David and Bathsheba, the well-known story of David’s adultery. My Study Bible, however, took it one step further, claiming the David had broken not only the seventh commandment (Exodus 20:14, adultery), but the sixth, ninth and tenth as well (Exodus 20:13, 16, 17 – murder, deception, and covetousness). Today’s closing verse says it all: But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD. (v. 11:27b)

Blessings!

---

See also: April 12 (2023) / I Chronicles 17; II Samuel 8-12:15a; Psalm 51.

II Samuel 8-9

Dear RTB’ers,

Today we see two sides of David’s life – his military prowess and his compassion. First, his military victories: And the LORD gave victory to David wherever he went. (v. 8:6b, repeated verbatim in 14b) In chapter 8 we see the height of David’s geographic power, to the north, with victories and garrisons in Damascus (II Samuel 8:6) and to the east as far as the Euphrates River, with garrisons in Edom (II Samuel 8:14). We also see David’s recognition of the Lord’s hand in all this and his thankfulness for all that the Lord has done for him: And Joram brought with him articles of silver, of gold, and of bronze. These also King David dedicated to the Lord, together with the silver and gold that he dedicated from all the nations he subdued… (vv. 10b-11) Recall that we read yesterday of David’s desire to build a “house” for the Lord. Today we see him stockpiling precious silver and gold to adorn that later temple that Solomon will build.

Second, David’s compassion, reflected in his treatment of Mephibosheth. And the king said, “Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God to him?” And David said to him (Mephibosheth), “Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father, and you shall eat at my table always.” (vv. 9:3a, 7) Notice that initially David asks to show kindness to the “house of Saul”, then later accents that kindness with reference to his love for Jonathan. We see here that David never had enmity toward Saul – it was Saul’s pursuit of David that had David as Saul’s enemy. We will see in later chapters that David remains faithful to his promise to Mephibosheth, in spite of twists and turns in Mephibosheth’s behavior toward David.

Blessings!

II Samuel 7

Dear RTB’ers,

King David is living in his cedar house and he looks over and sees the Ark of God residing in a tent. So he resolves to build a “house” for a dwelling place for the Ark. A nice thought. He even has his prophet’s approval. However, God is not interested in a house for Himself. His “house” is all of creation, and more! He “resides” wherever He will! God is interested in His people and in David, their shepherd. So, we have this play on the word “house”. For David, it’s a building, a dwelling place for the Ark; for the Lord, the “house” is David’s familial lineage, his enduring line of succession – all the way down to Jesus, born some thousand years later.

When Nathan spoke God’s words to David, his reply acknowledged God’s plan: And Your name will be magnified forever, saying, ‘The LORD of hosts is God over Israel,’ and the house of Your servant David will be established before You. (v. 26) I like David’s dual perspective, that God is overseeing both Israel and his own “house”, his lineage. He shows full confidence in God’s ability to act accordingly: And now, O Lord GOD, You are God, and Your words are true, and You have promised this good thing to Your servant. (v. 28)

Would that we could see with David’s eyes, that God is true and the He has promised His good things to us – whatever they are!

Blessings!

---

See also: April 3 (2023) / II Samuel 5-7.

II Samuel 5:17-6:23

For David’s bringing of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem and why the first attempt was fatally flawed but not the second, I refer you to the parallel passage in I Chronicles 13,15 and my corresponding commentary from April 5, 2023.

Today I’d like to briefly consider Michal and her relationship with David.

As the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, and she despised him in her heart.

2 Samuel 6:16

Once upon a time, Michal had loved David. (I Samuel 18:20,27,28) In those days she had saved David’s life, helping him to escape from Saul. (I Samuel 19:11-17) Then Saul gave her as wife to another man, Palti (I Samuel 25:44), but David took her back. (II Samuel 3:13-16) Now, as David worships the LORD, Michal despises him. She claims that it is because David’s actions are vulgar, being half-dressed in front of other women:

And David returned to bless his household. But Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David and said, “How the king of Israel honored himself today, uncovering himself today before the eyes of his servants’ female servants, as one of the vulgar fellows shamelessly uncovers himself!”

2 Samuel 6:20

But is that really the issue? I doubt it. I bet there is a lot more going on there, with deep emotional roots. Perhaps Michal sees David as a usurper, taking the throne first from her father, Saul, and then from her brother, Ish-bosheth. Or perhaps she prefers her “interim” husband, Palti, over David. Or perhaps she is jealous of David’s other wives who have already borne him children. Or perhaps she has a wide array of perceived grievances. We do not really know. But one thing is clear: Michal’s love for David has grown cold, and so she does not share his heart of worship for the LORD. And David’s response is also clear: the LORD takes precedence over Michal.

So how about us? Are we, like David, ready to worship the Lord with our whole heart, regardless of what others think? Or do we, like Michal, allow our love to grow cold and focus so much on grievances that we can no longer join in worship? If there is some relational conflict holding you back from the Lord, it’s time to deal with that problem. It’s time to let it go. It’s time to worship.

II Samuel 4:1-5:16

Remember the Amalekite that delivered the news of Saul’s death to David in II Samuel 1, which we looked at two days ago? It should not take much insight to see the parallels between that Amalekite and the two sons of Rimmon who assassinate Ish-bosheth, Saul’s son. Like the Amalekite, these two assassins misjudge David, thinking they can curry favor with him by handing him Ish-bosheth’s head. David himself even spells it out for us:

But David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, “As the LORD lives, who has redeemed my life out of every adversity, when one told me, ‘Behold, Saul is dead,’ and thought he was bringing good news, I seized him and killed him at Ziklag, which was the reward I gave him for his news. How much more, when wicked men have killed a righteous man in his own house on his bed, shall I not now require his blood at your hand and destroy you from the earth?”

2 Samuel 4:9–11

We can, of course, simply read these stories as basic history, a chronicle of the events leading up to David’s ascension to the throne of Israel. But we are meant to see more. We should see the difference between vice and virtue, between wickedness and righteousness, between disgrace and honor. We should see that David does not come to the throne by grasping for it or scheming for it. He ascends to the throne because the LORD brings him to it, even when the path is paved by wicked actors.

And, indeed, that is what we read:

And David became greater and greater, for the LORD, the God of hosts, was with him. … And David knew that the LORD had established him king over Israel, and that He had exalted his kingdom for the sake of His people Israel.

2 Samuel 5:10,12

Let’s learn from David here. Let’s not seek our own advantage by dishonorable means. Let’s trust the Lord to fulfill His purposes in His time and in His way. He is, after all, God Almighty. And He is good.

II Samuel 2-3

I don’t know about you, but I tend to think of Israel’s “United Monarchy” as passing from Saul to David and on to Solomon fairly smoothly, and that it is only with Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, that the kingdom divides. I tend to forget this relatively brief period after Saul’s death when David rules over Judah but not yet over the whole house of Israel. Here also we have a divided kingdom, with the tribe of Judah by itself under David and the rest of Israel under Saul’s son, Ish-bosheth. The real power behind Ish-bosheth, though, is the military leader, Abner, who remains loyal to Saul’s house — until a rift develops between Abner and Ish-bosheth. But you don’t need me to retell the details; you have them all right there in Scripture. Let’s just say it isn’t all pretty.

Yet David is the LORD’s anointed king, right? (See I Samuel 16:1-13.) David, aware of his anointing (of course), has already been waiting to step into the fullness of that position as King of Israel for years and years, most of that time hounded by Saul. And now that Saul is out of the way, one might easily think that the throne would simply be handed to David straightaway. But it isn’t. It’s a mess. There’s conflict. It’s bloody. It’s brutal. And in the process a very capable and honorable leader, Abner, is murdered by David’s nephew, Joab.

Where is God in all of that? That’s a bit hard to say as we are not explicitly told. Yet — somehow — God is working out His purposes, not just for David, but for everyone.

And so it is for us today. We may face circumstances that are confusing, disappointing, painful, or otherwise difficult, but that does not mean that God’s plans are failing or going awry. God is still on His “Plan A.” There is no “Plan B.” He does not need one.

---

See also: April 2 (2023) / II Samuel 2-4.

II Samuel 1

Today we return to our march through Old Testament history, picking up where we left off before we diverted into Job. Recall the history up to this point:

• The stories of the Patriarchs (Genesis)
• The Exodus, the giving of the Law through Moses, the Tabernacle, and the Wandering in the Wilderness (Exodus-Deuteronomy)
• The period of the Judges (Judges-Ruth), culminating in the last judge, Samuel (I Samuel 1-7)
• The initiation of the Monarchy under King Saul, but then the rejection of Saul, the anointing of David, and Saul’s chasing of David (I Samuel 8-27)
• Saul’s demise (I Samuel 28-31)

That is where we left off on June 25. So Saul is dead, along with his son, Jonathan, and David receives the news from an Amalekite, who expects David to consider all this to be good news. After all, Saul, the man responsible for making David’s life miserable for years is now permanently out of the way and no longer a threat to David’s life. The Amalekite is so confident of David’s positive response that he falsely claims to have killed Saul himself, probably hoping for a hefty reward. Well, he gets a reward, all right!

Some may object to David’s execution of the Amalekite, but it serves to illustrate the genuineness of David’s lament over Saul. David grieves over Saul. He does not rejoice over the death of this man who made himself David’s enemy, though David never treated Saul as such. As I said in my 2023 post on this passage, there is much to consider in David’s posture here, and much for us to think about in our own lives. How do we respond when our rivals or enemies fail? Or how do we present ourselves before others when their enemies fail? Are we like the Amalekite, seeking to win favor from the victor? Or do we follow David’s example?