King James Bible Study – [Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.]
Date: Tuesday, May 02, 2023
Chapters: I CHRONICLES 11-12, PSALM 133
Study: The Word And Will of God
Hello My Brother/Sister/Friend,
Today is my beloved’s birthday, we will be getting married in sixty-six days, which will be in the blink of an eye. I know it may seem strange to say that you are in the will of God planning a wedding, but it sure does feel like it. God’s will for our lives is not all that hard to figure out, as long as we are taking the biblical approach than we will be in the will of God. That brings me to a question, did you ever make a decision thinking that you could turn someone toward the will of God only get taken out yourself? Trust me, I learned the hard way of what happens when you are not in the will of God, and to be honest I knew I was not going in the right direction. Let me tell you, God’s Word is surely our guide and it is so right to be walking in it.
[Psalms 33:4-9 For the word of the LORD is right; and all his works are done in truth. 5 He loveth righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the LORD. 6 By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. 7 He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: he layeth up the depth in storehouses. 8 Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. 9 For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.]
As we return to the reading of 1 Chronicles, it also gives the account to the entire nation of Israel, all twelve tribes, asking David to become their king. It also gives us a little more insight into what happened when the Jebusites tried to stop David and how he took possession of Jerusalem and Zion.
[1 Chronicles 11:1-6,9 Then all Israel gathered themselves to David unto Hebron, saying, Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh. 2 And moreover in time past, even when Saul was king, thou wast he that leddest out and broughtest in Israel: and the LORD thy God said unto thee, Thou shalt feed my people Israel, and thou shalt be ruler over my people Israel. 3 Therefore came all the elders of Israel to the king to Hebron; and David made a covenant with them in Hebron before the LORD; and they anointed David king over Israel, according to the word of the LORD by Samuel. 4 And David and all Israel went to Jerusalem, which is Jebus; where the Jebusites were, the inhabitants of the land. 5 And the inhabitants of Jebus said to David, Thou shalt not come hither. Nevertheless David took the castle of Zion, which is the city of David. 6 And David said, Whosoever smiteth the Jebusites first shall be chief and captain. So Joab the son of Zeruiah went first up, and was chief. 9 So David waxed greater and greater: for the LORD of hosts was with him.]
[for the LORD of hosts was with him.] A nation is only as strong as the leader’s faithfulness to God is. Just take a look into the history of our most successful presidents in America, and you will find that their faith in God was extraordinary. Because David was a Godly man, he put Godly men in charge of the kingdom.
[1 Chronicles 11:10-14 These also are the chief of the mighty men whom David had, who strengthened themselves with him in his kingdom, and with all Israel, to make him king, according to the word of the LORD concerning Israel. 11 And this is the number of the mighty men whom David had; Jashobeam, an Hachmonite, the chief of the captains: he lifted up his spear against three hundred slain by him at one time. 12 And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo, the Ahohite, who was one of the three mighties. 13 He was with David at Pasdammim, and there the Philistines were gathered together to battle, where was a parcel of ground full of barley; and the people fled from before the Philistines. 14 And they set themselves in the midst of that parcel, and delivered it, and slew the Philistines; and the LORD saved them by a great deliverance.]
[who was one of the three mighties.] The three mighty men this passage is referring to are Jashobeam, Eleazar, and Abishai. In David strengthening himself in the LORD, the three mighty men also strengthened themselves not for their own interests, but for the kings. The only reason why David became a great leader was because of his faithfulness to God, and seeking His will in everything he did. A great leader is not one who dictates our every move by what they believe to be true, it is one who has many helping hands, under God’s authority. Now, we are given the reason why these three men were given the recognition that was given to them. The chapter recalls the time when David, longed to have some water from the well of Bethlehem, and the three soldiers risked their lives to get to the well to bring him water.
[1 Chronicles 11:16-21 And David was then in the hold, and the Philistines’ garrison was then at Bethlehem. 17 And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, that is at the gate! 18 And the three brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: but David would not drink of it, but poured it out to the LORD, 19 And said, My God forbid it me, that I should do this thing: shall I drink the blood of these men that have put their lives in jeopardy? for with the jeopardy of their lives they brought it. Therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mightiest. 20 And Abishai the brother of Joab, he was chief of the three: for lifting up his spear against three hundred, he slew them, and had a name among the three. 21 Of the three, he was more honourable than the two; for he was their captain: howbeit he attained not to the first three.]
[but poured it out to the LORD,] Instead of keeping it for himself, he poured it out to God because he realized that those men risked their lives to get the water for him, and that others lives are more precious than his own selfish needs. Had they gotten the water for all of them, then David would have gladly accepted it, but it was only for him, and he did not want to be selfish and drink it in front of them. Is that not what Jesus did for us, He unselfishly sacrificed His own life to give us His water, and He actually gives it to us freely, [John 4:13-14 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.]
[Of the three, he was more honourable than the two;] When God has work to do, He will not use weapons, He will use the strength of mighty men and women who live according to the Word of the Lord. The honors of Christ’s kingdom are prepared for those who fight the good fight of faith, who labor and suffer, and are willing to sacrifice all, even life itself for Christ and their integrity, [2 Timothy 4:6-8 For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7 I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.]
1 Chronicles, goes into great detail of the army that David put together, people from every tribe and other nations were included as well, and they eagerly served. David, continued to set up Israel in the way God directed him, even if that meant he had to deal with some people who he thought was his friends, but were against him in every way. At first, the House of Israel was against David being king, in fact, they chose Saul’s son to reign over them, while David reigned in Hebron. It was not until all of the House of Saul had been killed before they accepted David as king of all of Israel.
[1 Chronicles 12:1-3,8 Now these are they that came to David to Ziklag, while he yet kept himself close because of Saul the son of Kish: and they were among the mighty men, helpers of the war. 2 They were armed with bows, and could use both the right hand and the left in hurling stones and shooting arrows out of a bow, even of Saul’s brethren of Benjamin. 3 The chief was Ahiezer, then Joash, the sons of Shemaah the Gibeathite; and Jeziel, and Pelet, the sons of Azmaveth; and Berachah, and Jehu the Antothite, 8 And of the Gadites there separated themselves unto David into the hold to the wilderness men of might, and men of war fit for the battle, that could handle shield and buckler, whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as the roes upon the mountains;]
[And of the Gadites there separated themselves] Not only did one tribe have faith in David, they all did, and volunteered to join in with David. David had people working under him from every tribe, including the Benjamites, who were of Saul’s kin.
[1 Chronicles 12:16-18 And there came of the children of Benjamin and Judah to the hold unto David. 17 And David went out to meet them, and answered and said unto them, If ye be come peaceably unto me to help me, mine heart shall be knit unto you: but if ye be come to betray me to mine enemies, seeing there is no wrong in mine hands, the God of our fathers look thereon, and rebuke it. 18 Then the spirit came upon Amasai, who was chief of the captains, and he said, Thine are we, David, and on thy side, thou son of Jesse: peace, peace be unto thee, and peace be to thine helpers; for thy God helpeth thee. Then David received them, and made them captains of the band.]
[mine heart shall be knit unto you:] It really is an interesting fact that when the nation became divided, the Benjamites did stay close to Judah. They were the only tribe that did not run off when Rehoboam messed everything up and every bribe, but Judah walked away from God. Well, it was actually under the direction of God, but the Benjamites stayed right by their side, [2 Chronicles 11:4,12 Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren: return every man to his house: for this thing is done of me. And they obeyed the words of the LORD, and returned from going against Jeroboam. 12 And in every several city he put shields and spears, and made them exceeding strong, having Judah and Benjamin on his side.]
Godly leaders risk their lives for their country and their leader, they do not think about the color of their skin, how much money they have, or what lifestyle they live, they are unbiased and do whatever it takes to protect their nation. Just imagine how powerful of a nation that we will be again if we all came together in unity. During David’s reign, and partially through Solomon’s, and for the first time since Joshua, the entire nation was united as one nation under God.
[1 Chronicles 12:23,38-40 And these are the numbers of the bands that were ready armed to the war, and came to David to Hebron, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of the LORD. 38 All these men of war, that could keep rank, came with a perfect heart to Hebron, to make David king over all Israel: and all the rest also of Israel were of one heart to make David king. 39 And there they were with David three days, eating and drinking: for their brethren had prepared for them. 40 Moreover they that were nigh them, even unto Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, brought bread on asses, and on camels, and on mules, and on oxen, and meat, meal, cakes of figs, and bunches of raisins, and wine, and oil, and oxen, and sheep abundantly: for there was joy in Israel.]
[for there was joy in Israel.] David’s success as king was due to the fact that he set up Israel in the way that God directed him, and when he did sin, he repented. That cannot be said for many of our leaders today, most are like Saul, too proud to admit they did anything wrong, let alone humble themselves to God. We must remember that a nation can only stand if it remains in unity with God, that is the true joy of any nation, [Psalms 33:12, 16-22 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance. 16 There is no king saved by the multitude of an host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength. 17 An horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength. 18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy; 19 To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine. 20 Our soul waiteth for the LORD: he is our help and our shield. 21 For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name. 22 Let thy mercy, O LORD, be upon us, according as we hope in thee.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Thank You for Your Word, while we do not need it to believe in You it is our guide to live our lives in Your will so that we might receive Your promises. What better way to give our thanks than to live according to Your Word. While we can never know everything You want us to know, I pledge to You that I will make Your Word a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path, and hide it in my heart that I might not sin against You. Lord, Lead me and guide me, fill me with Your mercies, grace, love, and the wisdom to do the work You have given me. Keep me walking by faith, trusting in Your Word, and let our nation return to You, and be united as one nation under You one again. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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