2 Samuel: ‘And there’s more!’

 

The offer was full of promise—‘buy our CD rack and we will throw in a set of tumblers, and there’s more we will also give you a set of high quality stake-knives’.  Sounded great, until the stuff arrived!  The CD rack was a load of junk, you hadn’t wanted the tumblers, and the stake-knives were blunt with dodgy handles.  The whole lot simply adds to the cluster that is your kitchen.  What a disappointment, you were promised so much and you were let down.[1]

God’s promises, however, never disappoint.  Remember his promises to Abraham (people, place and blessing)? He has been acting in line with these.[2]   Now in 2 Samuel God not only keeps his promise to Abraham, there’s more, he adds on new promises—to add blessing upon blessing

Chapters 1-5—‘David king of Judah’ 

In 1 Samuel we saw the anointing of Saul as king and witnessed his persistent disobedience.  The people are not blessed during his reign.  At the end of 1 Samuel King Saul died.  The scene is now set for David to be recognised as king.  But things do not go smoothly—there is division among the Israelites.  While the tribe of Judah appoint David as their king (2:1-4), the remaining tribes support the claim of one of Saul’s sons, Ish-Bosheth to be ruler.  However, when Ish-Bosheth is murdered by two of his generals all the tribes rally behind David and anoint him as king (5:1-3).

Chapters 5-9—‘David king of Israel’ 

At last Israel has the sort of king God wants,[3] ‘a man after his own heart’ (1 Sam. 13:14).  In chapters 5 to 7 we see David, the LORD’s anointed, moving from victory to victory.  He captures Jerusalem from the Jebusites and establishes it as his capital.  At the Lord’s command he launches a successful campaign against the Philistines—securing the borders of Israel and so bringing peace to the land.

David brings the Ark—God’s earthly throne to Jerusalem.  David does not rule independently but under God.  Jerusalem is not only David’s city—it is the city of God.[4]  However David is uneasy at the contrast he sees between his palace and the tent that is used to house the ark of God.  It seems inappropriate that the earthly dwelling of the LORD—the divine king should appear inferior to his own royal residence.  So David hints to Nathan, the prophet, that he would like to build a more permanent dwelling place for the ark.

While Nathan’s initial response is favourable, that very night the LORD comes to Nathan with a message for David (7:5-16).  God has amazing plans for David’s family:[5] David’s line will rule God’s people forever, while David will not build the temple his son will, and most remarkably of all there will be a special bond between God and Israel’s king—‘I will be his father and he will be my son’ (7:14).[6]

Like many Old Testament prophesies, this prophesy is fulfilled at more than one level.  It is partially fulfilled by great King Solomon, who was to build the temple.  But it is finally fulfilled in the Lord Jesus, great King David’s greater son, the one who puts Solomon’s reign into the shadows (Luke 11:31).[7]

One line of this prophesy fits in awkwardly—when he does wrong I will punish him, God already anticipates more sin and failure and when it happens there will be consequences.

David responds to God’s promises with an outpouring of gratitude and praise (7:18-19).  Chapter 8, which condenses many years of David’s reign, tells us of more victories—which bring the conquest to conclusion.

Then, because the narrator is not only concerned with David’s kingly exploits but also his character, we have in ch. 9 a story of an act of kindness by David towards the house of Saul.  Ch. 9 gives us a wonderful picture of grace.

David wants to know if there is anyone left in the house of Saul to whom he can show kindness for the sake of his friend Jonathan (9:1).  There is, a son of Jonathan, Mephibosheth, who has been crippled in both feet from the age of five.  Mephibosheth is unable to care for himself and is living in someone else’s house.  David has him brought to the palace and we read that Mephibosheth ate at the kings table like one of the kings sons (9:11, NIV).

It is no wonder that many Christians see a parallel between the grace shown to Mephibosheth and that shown to us.

In that society Mephibosheth’s disability left him helpless, when Jesus rescues us we were crippled in our sin and unable to save ourselves.  David showed kindness to Mephibosheth ‘for Jonathan’s sake’, the Father has shown kindness to us ‘for Jesus’ sake’.  ‘And just as being seated at the kings table involved not only food but other privileges as well, so God’s salvation for Christ’s sake carries with it all the provisions we need, not only for eternity but for this life as well.’[8]  

Chapters 11-20—‘David’s sin and its consequences: The second part of David’s reign is not so happy.  In chapter 11 we read of his adultery with Bathsheba and his setting up of her husband Uriah to be killed—a serious abuse of royal power.  David’s sin has terrible consequences.

The LORD sends Nathan to confront David.  Nathan tells him of the consequences of his actions, ‘now, therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own (NIV).’  A spiral of death and violence now spreads from David’s household through Israel.  In chapter 15 this is seen in the revolt of David’s son Absolem.  David and his followers leave Jerusalem, preventing the destruction of the city (15:14), nevertheless, many Israelites are killed in the battle between David’s and Absolem’s supporters (18:7).  Absolem himself is killed much to David’s grief (18:15-33).

David’s return to Jerusalem is full of a sense of what has been lost (19:8-20:3).[9]     

Chapters 21-24—Summary of David’s reign: In the closing two chapters we see both the positive and the negative side of David’s reign represented.

On the one hand there are two poems which show David at his best—‘In these poems he represents the ideal ruler of Israel; it is an ideal which he has often fulfilled.’[10]

On the other hand the reference to Uriah at the very end of the list of David’s warriors (23:39) reminds us of how David had acted with brutal injustice.  Also, in the final chapter, there is a census, fuelled by royal pride, that results in a plague in Israel.

When we look back at David’s life it is no wonder that David has been described as ‘one of the most complex characters in the Bible, one of the most colourful and loveable—and one of the most exasperating.’[11]

Conclusion: You know the phrase ‘all roads lead to Rome’, in the Old Testament ‘all roads lead to Jesus’.

1. an ideal king:

In first and second Samuel we have seen the movement from rule under judges to rule under monarchy.  We might ask the question of this—‘has monarchy been good for Israel?’

The answer is both yes and no!

Yes, if the king is like obedient David; but no if he is like the disobedient Saul or David when he abuses his power.

Last week we looked at some of the characteristics we would expect to find in God’s ideal king, at the end of 2 Samuel we are still waiting for that king!

b. a promise to David

We have been looking at the promises to Abraham in these sermon, now there’s more.  God adds to those promises in 2 Samuel (look at the similarity between the promises in Geneses 12:1-3 and 2 Samuel 7).  God is adding blessing upon blessing.  All of which find their ultimate fulfilment in Jesus (2 Cor.1:20).

c. A king from Judah

In Genesis Jacob (also called Israel) blessed his twelve sons.  Over Judah he gave the following prophetic words: ‘the sceptre will not depart from Judah, nor the rulers staff from between his feet, until it comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his.’ (NIV) 

A great king will come from the tribe of Judah—what tribe is David from? Judah!

While David fulfils this prophesy in Genesis 49, its ultimate fulfilment is found in another king, a descendant of David, King David’s greater son—Jesus. 

Note: 2 Samuel 7 is part of a line that leads from Genesis to Jesus: in Genesis 3:15 we have the promise of the one who will crush the serpent’s head; we then followed a line through Genesis searching for the serpent-crusher; that line led us through Abraham (who receives the promises) and to his grandson Jacob.  Jacob prophesies over Judah (49:10) so we follow that line.  Of Judah’s children Perez is given special attention (Genesis 38).  Ruth fills in the line from Perez to David.  From David we a promised a royal dynasty.  Matthew 1 informs us that the royal line from David has led to Jesus.   

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[1] Illustration adapted from Full of Promise.

[2] For example: he delivered Abraham’s descendants from Egypt and formed them into a unified distinct nation—in line with the people part of his promise; he then gave them the Law at Sinai, showing them how to live (in the Bible to live under God’s rule is to know his blessing) and the tabernacle as the focus of his presence among them—in line with blessing part of the promise; and they have been brought into the promised land—in line with the place part of the promise. 

[3] This is not to suggest that David is perfect.  We will see later that he commits adultery with Bathsheba and has her husband killed.  Even in these chapters David is not without his flaws as can be seen in his treatment of Michal (e.g. 6:20-23).

[4] ‘The coming of Jesus, his death and resurrection in Jerusalem, result in a new theology of Jerusalem, with the city’s losing its distinctive theological status as the ‘holy city’ or ‘city of God’.  In part this is because of divine judgement (see e.g. Like 13:33-35 . . .), but it is also because in the economy of salvation the city need no longer serve the same function within God’s purposes.  Christ is now in his own person the locus of God’s presence on earth, and his death the fulfilment of the temple sacrifices; the temple’s ‘dividing wall’ between Jew and Gentile is now broken down in Christ (Eph. 2:14), and by the Spirit God can be present with his people throughout the world: true worshippers need not ‘worship the Father . . . in Jerusalem’, but ‘worship in spirit an truth’ (John 4:21,24).  This is a foretaste of the heavenly worship in the New Jerusalem, where there is no temple (Rev. 21:22).  Just as the temple, according to Hebrews, was a shadow of the heavenly reality, so too the city of Jerusalem points forward to that which lies ahead.’ (New Dictionary of Biblical Theology, p.592).

[5] ‘David’s wish to build a temple for God and the Lord’s promise to establish David’s family as a royal dynasty complement each other.  This is reflected in the use of the Hebrew work bayit, which means ‘house’ and, as in the English, can refer to either a building or a family (as in ‘the house of Windsor’).  Thus David’s desire to build a house for God results in God building a house for David’. Alexander, Full of Promise, p.76.

[6] “The continuity of this covenant with the covenant to Abraham can be seen in their respective summaries.  ‘I will be their God, they will be my people’ sums up God’s purpose in the covenant with Abraham and after him, with Israel (Gn. 17:7-8; 26:12; Je. 7:23; 11:4; 30:22).  Now the promise concerning David’s son, the one who will represent the many, is given, ‘I will be his father, and he shall be my son’ (2 Sa. 7:14).  Thus, David’s son is also the son of God, and his house, throne and kingdom are established forever (2 Sa. 7:16).” Goldsworthy, According to Plan, 216. 

[7] See Roberts, The Big Picture, p. 82.

[8] Jerry Bridges, Transforming Grace.

[9] The tribal hostilities revealed in chapters 19-20 give us a hint of the coming division of the kingdom.

[10] New Dictionary of Theology, p.182.

[11] Alec Motyer, The Story of the Old Testament, p. 63.