1 Kings 2:13-27 English Standard Version Solomon's Reign Established 13 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, “Do you come peacefully?” He said, “Peacefully.” 14 Then he said, “I have something to say to you.” She said, “Speak.” 15 He said, “You know that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel fully expected me to reign. However, the kingdom has turned about and become my brother's, for it was his from the LORD. 16 And now I have one request to make of you; do not refuse me.” She said to him, “Speak.” 17 And he said, “Please ask King Solomon—he will not refuse you—to give me Abishag the Shunammite as my wife.” 18 Bathsheba said, “Very well; I will speak for you to the king.” 19 So Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him on behalf of Adonijah. And the king rose to meet her and bowed down to her. Then he sat on his throne and had a seat brought for the king's mother, and she sat on his right. 20 Then she said, “I have one small request to make of you; do not refuse me.” And the king said to her, “Make your request, my mother, for I will not refuse you.” 21 She said, “Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother as his wife.” 22 King Solomon answered his mother, “And why do you ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Ask for him the kingdom also, for he is my older brother, and on his side are Abiathar the priest and Joab the son of Zeruiah.” 23 Then King Solomon swore by the LORD, saying, “God do so to me and more also if this word does not cost Adonijah his life! 24 Now therefore as the LORD lives, who has established me and placed me on the throne of David my father, and who has made me a house, as he promised, Adonijah shall be put to death today.” 25 So King Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he struck him down, and he died. 26 And to Abiathar the priest the king said, “Go to Anathoth, to your estate, for you deserve death. But I will not at this time put you to death, because you carried the ark of the LORD God before David my father, and because you shared in all my father's affliction.” 27 So Solomon expelled Abiathar from being priest to the LORD, thus fulfilling the word of the LORD that he had spoken concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh. Last time we ended by Solomon calling for his brother Adonijah and all those that were with him to make a decision if they would follow after him as the king or not. Their fate would lie in their hands. Adonijah chooses wisely and comes in peace and Adonijah speaks to Bathsheba, Solomon's mother, to say that even though he was the one the people assumed should be king, and he was for a short time, the LORD made it clear that the kingdom belonged to his brother Solomon. All Adonijah asks of Bathsheba is that Solomon would give Adonijah Abishag the Shunammite as a wife. Bathsheba agrees to make the request to King Solomon on behalf of Adonijah.
Though Solomon originally says that he would not refuse anything that Bathsheba would ask for, Solomon is already wise enough to understand that if Adonijah were to have Abishag the Shunammite as a wife, it would only strengthen his position to try to be king of Israel. Solomon decides then and there that Adonijah will never cease to try to take the throne and the only solution is that he must be put to death and it must be done that very day, so Solomon sent word to Benaiah the son of Jehoiada (David's armor-bearer and the head of his special forces) that he might strike down Adonijah and he died that very day. Then a message was sent to Abiathar the priest telling him to go home to his family because he was worthy of death, but the king would not kill him at this time because of the honor that Solomon had for the priesthood--he would let the LORD take care of Abiathar, but the implication is that Abiathar needs to get his house and affairs in order because the LORD's judgment may be coming soon. Solomon also remembered how Abiathar was by David's side during times when David was greatly troubled and afflicted--when he was living in the wilderness strongholds and even having to live among the Philistines for a time. However, Solomon did expel Abiathar from priesthood to the LORD, and since he was the last surviving descendant of Eli the priest from the book of 1st Samuel, the prophecy concerning Eli's family being cut off from the priesthood has now been fulfilled. We'll talk more about the establishment of King Solomon next time (possibly later today or maybe tomorrow) as this is a long section of text and I wanted to break it up into two shorter articles for you to make it a little easier to read and study. 1 Kings 2:1-12 English Standard Version David's Instructions to Solomon 2 When David's time to die drew near, he commanded Solomon his son, saying, 2 “I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, and show yourself a man, 3 and keep the charge of the LORD your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn, 4 that the LORD may establish his word that he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’ 5 “Moreover, you also know what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, how he dealt with the two commanders of the armies of Israel, Abner the son of Ner, and Amasa the son of Jether, whom he killed, avenging in time of peace for blood that had been shed in war, and putting the blood of war on the belt around his waist and on the sandals on his feet. 6 Act therefore according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to Sheol in peace. 7 But deal loyally with the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at your table, for with such loyalty they met me when I fled from Absalom your brother. 8 And there is also with you Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse on the day when I went to Mahanaim. But when he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the LORD, saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’ 9 Now therefore do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man. You will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his gray head down with blood to Sheol.” The Death of David 10 Then David slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David. 11 And the time that David reigned over Israel was forty years. He reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 12 So Solomon sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was firmly established. David knew that his time to die was close at hand, so he came close to Solomon to bless him (as we have seen other patriarchs do with their children before death). We don't see David lining all his children up and trying to bless all of them though like Isaac and Jacob did. Instead, David has an understanding that the blessing (the covenant) and the birthright (kingdom) have both been given to Solomon by God and that Solomon is the only one that he needs to speak with. All the other sons (and daughters) that are left will be required to serve Solomon.
David charges Solomon to be careful to walk in all the ways that the LORD has commanded in His Law, so that Solomon and the people will experience all of the blessings of the Law and none of the curses of the Law. David also tells Solomon that this is not just an issue of outward obedience, but that this obedience must come as a result of the people loving the LORD with all their heart and soul (and mind and strength as David is making reference to a part of the Law here commanding the people to love God with all they are. Jesus quotes this as the first and greatest commandment and says that all other commandments naturally flow from this one). David then askes Solomon to take care of some unfinished business for him. First, that Joab needs to be punished for the murders that he committed, especially against the two commanders of the armies of Israel that he killed in order to get the army to follow after him again. Apparently David didn't feel strong enough to punish Joab, but asks Solomon to use his wisdom to find a just punishment so that it doesn't look like Joab went unpunished. Second, David asks for Solomon to bless those who have been good to him and to punish those that wished evil on him during the time when Absalom seized power. David doesn't specifically ask Solomon to put anyone to death, but knows that Solomon is wise and can figure out a way to punish someone, possibly worse than death, while not executing them that would be just for those that made themselves the enemies of David and the LORD, and Solomon can also pour out blessings that the LORD will bless him with on all those who blessed his father, David. After saying all these things, David was at peace and died. His reign was forty years long--7 years in Hebron just as king of Judah, and 33 years in Jerusalem over all of Israel. Solomon then sat on the throne of his father David, and his throne was firmly established so that no one tried to challenge him for the throne. 1 Kings 1:28-53 English Standard Version Solomon Anointed King 28 Then King David answered, “Call Bathsheba to me.” So she came into the king's presence and stood before the king. 29 And the king swore, saying, “As the LORD lives, who has redeemed my soul out of every adversity, 30 as I swore to you by the LORD, the God of Israel, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,’ even so will I do this day.” 31 Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the ground and paid homage to the king and said, “May my lord King David live forever!” 32 King David said, “Call to me Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada.” So they came before the king. 33 And the king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord and have Solomon my son ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon. 34 And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet there anoint him king over Israel. Then blow the trumpet and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ 35 You shall then come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne, for he shall be king in my place. And I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.” 36 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, “Amen! May the LORD, the God of my lord the king, say so. 37 As the LORD has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.” 38 So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites went down and had Solomon ride on King David's mule and brought him to Gihon. 39 There Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the tent and anointed Solomon. Then they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, “Long live King Solomon!” 40 And all the people went up after him, playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth was split by their noise. 41 Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished feasting. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “What does this uproar in the city mean?” 42 While he was still speaking, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came. And Adonijah said, “Come in, for you are a worthy man and bring good news.” 43 Jonathan answered Adonijah, “No, for our lord King David has made Solomon king, 44 and the king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites. And they had him ride on the king's mule. 45 And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king at Gihon, and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you have heard. 46 Solomon sits on the royal throne. 47 Moreover, the king's servants came to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘May your God make the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater than your throne.’ And the king bowed himself on the bed. 48 And the king also said, ‘Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who has granted someone to sit on my throne this day, my own eyes seeing it.’” 49 Then all the guests of Adonijah trembled and rose, and each went his own way. 50 And Adonijah feared Solomon. So he arose and went and took hold of the horns of the altar. 51 Then it was told Solomon, “Behold, Adonijah fears King Solomon, for behold, he has laid hold of the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.’” 52 And Solomon said, “If he will show himself a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the earth, but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.” 53 So King Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and paid homage to King Solomon, and Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.” It seems that at some point during Nathan's and David's conversation, Bathsheba left the room. Once Nathan and David are done, David calls for Bathsheba to come to come and stand before him. David renews his covenant with Bathsheba concerning Solomon and says that he will take care of it that very day.
David calls for all those who have remained faithful to him, especially Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the head of his elite soldiers who provided protection for the king along with all of the mercenaries that had sword allegiance to David and were part of his special forces. They now would be loyal to Solomon and protect him. David says that Solomon should ride on David's own mule and Nathan and Zadok should anoint Solomon as king over all of Israel, blow the trumpets and announce to all the people "Long live King Solomon." This puts the people in a predicament because two different priests have anointed two different kings. The people will have to chose now which king is the rightful king and therefore which king they will follow. Adonijah gets the bad news delivered to him just as he's finishing his feast. It is reported that even David bowed before Solomon. Adonijah and those with him know they are in big trouble and they fear that David or Solomon will have them executed. The only place they know to run for safety is to the altar in the Temple where they can grab onto the horns of the altar and should be saved, for no human blood is to be shed inside the sanctuary--only blood of innocent sacrifices that are killed on the altar to make atonement. King Solomon will not swear not to put him to death, but swears that he will have mercy on Adonijah if he is found to be a worthy man, but if he is found to be a wicked man, then he will die (according to the Law). When Solomon called for Adonijah and all of the men with him, they all came and paid homage to King Solomon. After they sword their allegiance to Solomon he sent them on their way back to their homes. In general, Solomon's reign will be known as one of peace and not of bloodshed like that of his father David. The rest of the book of 1 Kings will follow the reign and rule of King Solomon. 1 Kings 1:11-27 English Standard Version Nathan and Bathsheba Before David 11 Then Nathan said to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, “Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith has become king and David our lord does not know it? 12 Now therefore come, let me give you advice, that you may save your own life and the life of your son Solomon. 13 Go in at once to King David, and say to him, ‘Did you not, my lord the king, swear to your servant, saying, “Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne”? Why then is Adonijah king?’ 14 Then while you are still speaking with the king, I also will come in after you and confirm your words.” 15 So Bathsheba went to the king in his chamber (now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was attending to the king). 16 Bathsheba bowed and paid homage to the king, and the king said, “What do you desire?” 17 She said to him, “My lord, you swore to your servant by the LORD your God, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.’ 18 And now, behold, Adonijah is king, although you, my lord the king, do not know it. 19 He has sacrificed oxen, fattened cattle, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the sons of the king, Abiathar the priest, and Joab the commander of the army, but Solomon your servant he has not invited. 20 And now, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you, to tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. 21 Otherwise it will come to pass, when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon will be counted offenders.” 22 While she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in. 23 And they told the king, “Here is Nathan the prophet.” And when he came in before the king, he bowed before the king, with his face to the ground. 24 And Nathan said, “My lord the king, have you said, ‘Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne’? 25 For he has gone down this day and has sacrificed oxen, fattened cattle, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the king's sons, the commanders of the army, and Abiathar the priest. And behold, they are eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ 26 But me, your servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon he has not invited. 27 Has this thing been brought about by my lord the king and you have not told your servants who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?” 1 Kings 1:1-10 English Standard Version David in His Old Age 1 Now King David was old and advanced in years. And although they covered him with clothes, he could not get warm. 2 Therefore his servants said to him, “Let a young woman be sought for my lord the king, and let her wait on the king and be in his service. Let her lie in your arms, that my lord the king may be warm.” 3 So they sought for a beautiful young woman throughout all the territory of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4 The young woman was very beautiful, and she was of service to the king and attended to him, but the king knew her not. Adonijah Sets Himself Up as King 5 Now Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king.” And he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. 6 His father had never at any time displeased him by asking, “Why have you done thus and so?” He was also a very handsome man, and he was born next after Absalom. 7 He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest. And they followed Adonijah and helped him. 8 But Zadok the priest and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei and David's mighty men were not with Adonijah. 9 Adonijah sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fattened cattle by the Serpent's Stone, which is beside En-rogel, and he invited all his brothers, the king's sons, and all the royal officials of Judah, 10 but he did not invite Nathan the prophet or Benaiah or the mighty men or Solomon his brother. Some time after the end of 2 Samuel, maybe not that long after, David was now elderly and it seemed he had circulatory issues where his body was cold all the time. Even when they covered him with clothes and blankets, he could not stay warm. The only way they could think of to save his life is that he needed someone to lay next to him so that his body could warm up from their shared body heat (this is done in extreme cases of hypothermia even today where two people will get into a sleeping bag together so that warm person can help warm up the cold person). The servants of David assumed that the best way for the king to get warmed up was for him to have a beautiful young woman laying next to him (this might also invoke physiological responses that would help him warm up) and it would be "only natural" in their minds if he would then have sex with that woman and "know" here in a biblical sense. However, David did not "know" her this way. Maybe it was because he was too old now to be interested in such things, but I want to think that it was his desire to be obedient to the Law of the LORD and to not have sexual relations with a woman who he was not married to (even though his life seems to have been filled with instances where he did just that, since he had many wives and concubines and we know that even with all of them he had relations with Bathsheba when she was neither his wife nor his concubine).
David's sons are looking on all this, especially his oldest living son, Adonijah, and they are seeing that it looks like David is supposed to die. David had not taken care to have a plan of succession in place so that there was a "crown prince" that everyone knew was the one who would take over should anything happen to David. So, the general assumption among the people who think that kingship is something that is simply inherited by the oldest living son is that that Adonijah is the heir-apparent. However, it was not the desire of the LORD for the kingdom to pass to the oldest, for the LORD knew the heart of Adonijah, but instead He wanted it to go to Solomon. We'll see what kind of heart the LORD has given Solomon in order to help him lead the LORD's people shortly, for the book of 1 Kings is mostly about the reign of Solomon. Many of the people that we might call "influencers" were persuaded by the argument made by Adonijah that someone needed to step up and reign in the place of David since he was not well and looked like he was on his deathbed, and that Adonijah as the oldest wanted to be the one to take responsibility for this. He amassed weapons of war so that the nations around them would not try to seize this opportunity of perceived weakness to try to invade Israel, and he sought the help of his father's military advisors like Joab, and the advice of Abiathar the priest (I believe he was serving as high priest at the time). It seemed he was getting all the support of all the right people and the general population for the most part was behind him, but there were a few notable people that didn't support him. The first was Nathan the prophet. That should have been a big sign to everyone involved that something was up. Second, there were many of David's Mighty Men who knew him the best that likely knew that Solomon was supposed to be the next king who did not support Adonijah. David's head of his protection detail who was always at David's side did not support Adonijah's move, and Shemei and Rei. Solomon himself also did not support Adonijah and in fact neither Nathan nor Solomon were invited to the feast that Adonijah prepared for the royal family when he wanted to proclaim himself as king in front of all his brothers. This tells me that although it seems most of the nation was not aware that Solomon was to be king after David, Adonijah knew, but just like his older brothers, he wanted to make a power-grab when he saw an opening and try to claim the kingdom and the promises that he thought came with it (for they did not truly understand the Davidic Covenant) for himself for his own reasons. It will become necessary next time for Nathan to be a "king maker" like Samuel was and to show everyone else that the LORD desired for Solomon to be the one anointed as the next king. David had many years where he could have been working to prepare Solomon to take the throne and teach him many things and let everyone know that when the time came they were to support Solomon, but it seems that didn't happen and it is once again going to fracture David's family and the nation as a whole. Instead of having many years to mentor Solomon, David instead will be left leaving Solomon knowing next-to-nothing about how to be a king and having to entrust the LORD to take care of him and teach him (that will be how we will start chapter 2 when we get there). In all this though, the LORD will continue to be faithful to carry out his covenant with David and his house as well as the covenants he made with Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses. The LORD has a plan that is bigger than just the continuation of royal family or the nation they lead, but instead is planning the way of salvation available to all of humanity that has been pointed to since Genesis 3 when it was promised that the seed of the woman would crush the head of the serpent. We are left wondering now if Solomon might be the one since David was not. We already know the answer to that, but this is probably what's on the minds of the people originally reading the Old Testament. As they "turned the pages" of these books of History, they were full of anticipation that the Deliverer's entrance into the story was immanent. Solomon, though not the Christ, was one of the people in the Old Testament that was a "sign post" along the way that pointed people to Christ and gave them a tiny glimpse of what the coming king, Messiah, would be like. So, as we study the story of Solomon together, let's see how the LORD uses Solomon to accomplish His larger goals and point us towards Christ, even as we have this longing and expectation that we have the advantage of knowing was satisfied by Jesus, but those originally living through these times did not have such knowledge, but only the certainty that the LORD was faithful to bring about everything that He had promised and that He had set His mind and hand to. 2 Samuel 24:18-25 English Standard Version David Builds an Altar 18 And Gad came that day to David and said to him, “Go up, raise an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” 19 So David went up at Gad's word, as the LORD commanded. 20 And when Araunah looked down, he saw the king and his servants coming on toward him. And Araunah went out and paid homage to the king with his face to the ground. 21 And Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you, in order to build an altar to the LORD, that the plague may be averted from the people.” 22 Then Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up what seems good to him. Here are the oxen for the burnt offering and the threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood. 23 All this, O king, Araunah gives to the king.” And Araunah said to the king, “May the LORD your God accept you.” 24 But the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. 25 And David built there an altar to the LORD and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the LORD responded to the plea for the land, and the plague was averted from Israel. Last time we talked about how David chose the consequences that would befall the nation as a consequence of his sin when he took a census of the people against the will of the LORD. While the curse has been satisfied (the LORD told His angel to stop killing people because enough blood had been shed), atonement still needs to be made for David's sin now. Remember there is no Temple, and the entire Tabernacle still has not been rebuilt, so the LORD tells David where to go to make his offering on a stone or earthen altar which had not been cut by any iron tool.
David was to go up to the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite (where we know the angel of the LORD is standing overlooking Jerusalem, for He was ready to attack it next, but the LORD stopped Him),. and David is to build an altar there. David goes to the very place that the prophet Gad has commanded and when he gets there, Araunah came out to pay homage to the king (to bow down before him as a servant would do to his master at that time. The lower you bowed, the more respect you were showing, and Araunah bowed so that his face was on the ground. This man loved, respected and honored king David though he was a Jebusite that should have been completely destroyed in the Conquest). David explains to Araunah that he needs to buy Araunah's threshing floor so that he can set up and altar and make a sacrifice on his threshing floor so that the plague that has come over the nation would be stopped. Araunah not only loved the king, but it seemed like he feared the LORD as well and wanted to offer David (and the LORD) that land and wood and the animals for the sacrifice, but David refused this offer by saying, "No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God that cost me nothing." I think this is one of the most important quotes to remember out of this passage for sure, and maybe out of all of David's life. He has come to a point where he realized that an acceptable and pleasing offering to the LORD is going to be costly. As we spoke of yesterday, one day it will be the LORD who says to us that He will not offer a sacrifice up for our sins which costs Him nothing, and He will offer up His own Son, Jesus, the Christ, in close proximity to where this happened, and probably in the same nearby place where Abraham offered up Isaac on Mount Moriah. David bought the threshing floor, oxen, their yokes and threshing sledges to break up for the wood for the offering for an amount of 50 shekels of silver (assuming this is the measure of weight and not the silver coins by the same name that became popular in Israel in the inter-testemental period, this is roughly 1 pound and 4 ounces of silver). In today's market, that much silver would be worth $429.34 as of the date and time of this article. I would say that Araunah still gave David a great deal, though he honored David's wish of making him pay something. I say it was a great deal, because Araunah likely just lost his entire business by no longer having a threshing floor on which to thresh his grain, no longer having a team of oxen by which to help plow and harvest the fields, and no sledge to help with this labor either. It seems like he was the one making the big sacrifice here and getting almost nothing in return for it, but he understood how important this matter was for the king to make atonement for himself and for the sins of the people so that this plague would stop killing those he loved--even he was a Jebusite, he loved the LORD very much. We should not just automatically judge the people of the Bible or anyone today by their nationality or ethnicity, for we've seen that Uriah the Hittite as one of the most valiant and trusted of David's mighty men who had more honor and integrity than David did. We also know that the LORD used Rahab of Jericho and Ruth the Moabite to be a part of David's family tree (and ultimately Jesus was born from this family). This Jebusite understood a high price needed to be paid for the atonement of all the people--a people that weren't even "his" people by blood, but it seems they were by faith, and he was willing to sacrifice everything to save them. What a great image we get from this Jebusite that was willing at first to give up everything and get nothing in return for it. The LORD responded favorably to the burnt offerings and peace offerings that David offered on behalf of himself and the people of Israel that day, and the plague that would have been as devastating as the plagues that we read about that was against Egypt in the book of Exodus was averted. That probably makes us scratch our heads a bit to try to understand why such severe judgment came on all of Israel over this one act of King David, but the LORD completely knew David's heart at the time and knew both why he wanted to do this and why he refused to listen to the wise council of Joab. Bad decisions by the shepherd end up affecting the sheep, and this was a lesson for David in just how severe of an issue the sin in his life was and that it needed to be dealt with in a very serious way. This concludes the records of King David as told in the books of 1 Samuel and 2 Samuel. We will get more details from the priests when we read 1 Chronicles, but we will continue on into the book of 1 Kings next which will pick up where we left off and talk about the story of Solomon. 2 Kings after that will talk about the divided nations of Israel and Judah and the beginning of all the prophets that LORD needed to send to these kings to instruct them and the people because they were starting to become more and more like the nations around them. I hope you'll continue with me as I seek to continue to read through and study the Old Testament this year. 2 Samuel 24:10-17 English Standard Version The LORD's Judgment of David's Sin 10 But David's heart struck him after he had numbered the people. And David said to the LORD, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O LORD, please take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have done very foolishly.” 11 And when David arose in the morning, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying, 12 “Go and say to David, ‘Thus says the LORD, Three things I offer you. Choose one of them, that I may do it to you.’” 13 So Gad came to David and told him, and said to him, “Shall three years of famine come to you in your land? Or will you flee three months before your foes while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days' pestilence in your land? Now consider, and decide what answer I shall return to him who sent me.” 14 Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the LORD, for his mercy is great; but let me not fall into the hand of man.” 15 So the LORD sent a pestilence on Israel from the morning until the appointed time. And there died of the people from Dan to Beersheba 70,000 men. 16 And when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented from the calamity and said to the angel who was working destruction among the people, “It is enough; now stay your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. 17 Then David spoke to the LORD when he saw the angel who was striking the people, and said, “Behold, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Please let your hand be against me and against my father's house.” Last time we talked about how David wanted a census taken, and how even Joab protested this because he knew it was not good to do this unless the LORD commanded it. Whether the act itself was sinful or simply the motive behind it was sinful doesn't matter, David refused to listen to wise council from Joab (not the person I would expect the LORD to use to give me wise council, if I'm being honest) and the LORD had to send the prophet Gad to David to confront him (much like when the prophet Nathan was sent to confront David after his adultery with Bathsheba). That's where we will pick up the story today. To us this may seem like no big deal, but David seems to be trusting in himself and the numbers of the people of Israel for the kingdom to continue. He's about to die and wants to know if the kingdom is able to survive without him. He might also specifically be concerned about war breaking out between Israel and Judah again, since it seems apparent that he had the northern tribes counted separately from the southern tribes. No matter what David's concern was, he was not trusting in the LORD to be faithful to fulfil his covenant with David and his house.
David realizes this right away as soon as Joab reports the census numbers to him, but at that point it can't be taken back. The deed is done and the dye has been cast. The LORD came to the prophet Gad, David's seer, and told him to offer three choices of punishment to David. The first option was three years of famine, the second was three months of military losses when David would flee before his enemies (which we'd assume would come with heavy loses to both the fighting men and the civilians), or three days of pestilence (a plague) that would be felt throughout the entire land. The number three is consistent here but the duration of each event diminishes probably meaning that the first event is less intense but longer lasting, the second is of both moderate duration and intensity, and the third was likely to be of short duration but high intensity. None of the choices set before David are good choices and David wishes that he himself could be punished for his own sin and the people could be left out of it and not affected by his poor choice, but that wasn't one of the options given to David. David is not afraid for the hand of the LORD to bring judgment Himself, but David is concerned about the LORD using pagan men to accomplish his judgment because David doesn't trust them (this might help reveal to us that David's concern in taking the census was about the strength of the military and keeping the borders of Israel secure). The LORD understood that David was choosing the option of pestilence because a long-term famine would also be an invitation for the foreign armies to attack when Israel was weak. David really wants something that will be quick and painless and that wasn't an option either. The quick option would be very painful for him and the people and the plague that the LORD sent worked its way through the whole land killing 70,000 men. The angel (we'll see in a second that this is not just any angel, but the angel of the LORD, which I hope you recall is one of ways in which the second person of the Trinity is referred to in the Old Testament) sent to administer the plague was reaching his hand out towards Jerusalem to destroy it (assuming this means to completely kill everyone in it, including David and his family), but the LORD stopped, probably for the sake of the Davidic covenant and the other covenants that He made with Israel that needed to be fulfilled through Christ. Even though the LORD has stayed his judgement, the angel of the LORD does not leave and is at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, which would eventually become the location of the Temple. Of note, this is also in fairly close proximity to the location where Abraham was tested by being asked to offer up Isaac, the Child of Promise, in the book of Genesis. God might have intended for the Jews to remember this location and have some connection in their thoughts between that event and this one, for the angel of the LORD appeared to and spoke to Abraham there, and they offered a sacrifice and worshiped the angel of the LORD there. So it would be that David would come and offer and sacrifice and worship there, and the angel of the LORD would accept the sacrifices and worship--something that only God and no ordinary angel should do. We'll talk about that next time as well as something interesting that David says about refusing to offer a sacrifice that costs him nothing. David again pleads for the judgment to come against him and his house, for a shepherd, he sees the people of Israel as his sheep that he is shepherding (there is a strong connection in the Bible between the role of the king and the role of a shepherd). It breaks his heart to see the "sheep" of the people of Israel suffer for his own sin. One day, the Good Shepherd will go beyond this and will plead for the Father to poor out His wrath that was stored up for the true Israel (all the redeemed people that were true children of Abraham from all the nations of the world) not because Jesus had committed any sins that He deserved to pay for and didn't want to see others punished for, but because He had committed no sins and desired to take their punishment upon Himself so that they might have the rewards that belonged to Him for perfectly keeping the Law and fulfilling the covenants that no one else could. That event would again happen either right here in this place where David and the angel of the LORD would meet or in close proximity in the very same mountain range (the hill that we call Golgotha was either here or nearby). The intent is clear though that the LORD intends to teach David one final lesson about being king and that is that he is guilty of sin and cannot suffer in the place of his people. One day however, there would be a better King, the King of Kings, who would be the Suffering Servant of the book of Isaiah. Let's look at just a few of those words as we close today. Isaiah 53:4-6 English Standard Version 4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. |
Daniel WestfallI will mostly use this space for recording my "journal" from my daily devotions as I hope to encourage others to read the Bible along with me and to leave a legacy for others. Archives
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