King James Bible Study – [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. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Thursday, May 01, 2025
Chapters: I Chronicles 10, II Samuel 4-5
Message: I Chronicles, II Samuel: David Becomes King
Hello My Friend,
As we return to the reading of 1 Chronicles and 2 Samuel, we learn that no one can force God’s timing and if they attempt to do so it will be to their own peril. Nevertheless, everything that God promises will come to pass in due time, [Hebrews 10:35-38 Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. 36 For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. 37 For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. 38 Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.]
Patience is not something that comes easily for most people, nevertheless, it is something that God uses to not only prepare us to receive His promises, but also see if we are going to trust Him to see it through. The heart is fickle sometimes, which is why God searches it to see whether or not we are true to our faith or just true in the moment. When God told David that he was going to be the next king of Israel, I am sure that he did not anticipate a jealous king trying to kill him to prevent that from happening and at one point he did believe that he was going to die under the hand of Saul, [1 Samuel 20:3 And David sware moreover, and said, Thy father certainly knoweth that I have found grace in thine eyes; and he saith, Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved: but truly as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is but a step between me and death.] which is why he ended up in Hebron.
Now, the wait was finally over, the entire congregation was about to go to David and ask him to be their king. First, a recap is given of Saul and three of his sons who died in the battle with a few more details given to give us a little more insight into what took place that day.
[1 Chronicles 10:1-5 Now the Philistines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in mount Gilboa. 2 And the Philistines followed hard after Saul, and after his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchi-shua, the sons of Saul. 3 And the battle went sore against Saul, and the archers hit him, and he was wounded of the archers. 4 Then said Saul to his armourbearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith; lest these uncircumcised come and abuse me. But his armourbearer would not; for he was sore afraid. So Saul took a sword, and fell upon it. 5 And when his armourbearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise on the sword, and died.]
Saul, reigned eighteen years while Samuel was alive, and twenty two after he died, his three sons died honorably in the field of battle, but Saul severely wounded, killed himself fearing that the Philistines would torture him before they killed him while his armourbearer killed himself out of fear. Needless to say, Saul’s greatest fears came anyway as all of their bodies were treated horribly when the Philistines found them.
[1 Chronicles 10:7-9,13-14 And when all the men of Israel that were in the valley saw that they fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, then they forsook their cities, and fled: and the Philistines came and dwelt in them. 8 And it came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his sons fallen in mount Gilboa. 9 And when they had stripped him, they took his head, and his armour, and sent into the land of the Philistines round about, to carry tidings unto their idols, and to the people. 13 So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the LORD, even against the word of the LORD, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to enquire of it; 14 And enquired not of the LORD: therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse.]
Do you see what this was all about? Remember, Saul did try to get help from God, [1 Samuel 28:5-6 And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart greatly trembled. 6 And when Saul enquired of the LORD, the LORD answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets.] What Saul did not do was go to the priest with an offering, confess His sin and repent. Had Saul truly repented, then his life would not have ended so tragically or humiliatingly. Millions of people die and end up in hell, not because they did not believe in God, but because they never honestly called upon the name of the LORD.
[Romans 10:9-12 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. 12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.] If we need an Old Testament passage to see that God is always the same, here is one, [Psalms 145:18-20 The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth. 19 He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them. 20 The LORD preserveth all them that love him: but all the wicked will he destroy.]
With Saul gone, it would have been easy for David to take the throne as king, but he chose to remain in Hebron and serve as king over Judah for seven years. There was a purpose for this as Saul’s only living son, Ishbosheth was made king under the direction of Abner, who we learned recently lost his life in an attempt to increase his position. Now, after the death of Abner, two men, Rechab and Baanah, not only killed Ishbosheth they cut his head off his body and brought it to David.
[2 Samuel 4:2,7-8 And Saul’s son had two men that were captains of bands: the name of the one was Baanah, and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Rimmon a Beerothite, of the children of Benjamin: (for Beeroth also was reckoned to Benjamin: 7 For when they came into the house, he lay on his bed in his bedchamber, and they smote him, and slew him, and beheaded him, and took his head, and gat them away through the plain all night. 8 And they brought the head of Ish-bosheth unto David to Hebron, and said to the king, Behold the head of Ish-bosheth the son of Saul thine enemy, which sought thy life; and the LORD hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul, and of his seed.]
What is it with these men chopping off people’s heads? I suppose that was the way they were executed back then, but this was done after the fact. This is just inhumane treatment of the dead, and we can say that this was God’s will, but how the man lost the throne was not God’s will. David, knew right away what this was all about when these men showed up.
[2 Samuel 4:9-12 And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said unto them, As the LORD liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity, 10 When one told me, saying, Behold, Saul is dead, thinking to have brought good tidings, I took hold of him, and slew him in Ziklag, who thought that I would have given him a reward for his tidings: 11 How much more, when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon his bed? shall I not therefore now require his blood of your hand, and take you away from the earth? 12 And David commanded his young men, and they slew them, and cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them up over the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-bosheth, and buried it in the sepulchre of Abner in Hebron.]
The civil war that took place between Abner and Joab had nothing to do with Ishbosheth, which is why David said that he was a righteous person. David, knew that God was with him, and that He would make him king of all Israel when the time was right. If there was one thing he learned through all his troubles with Saul was that it was God who was preparing him for that role and all that adversity was a part of it, [1 Peter 5:10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.]
David, never took things into his own hands and left it up to God to decided Saul’s fate, and about thirteen years later, twenty actually, God’s promise came true, and David became king, for the entire nation of Israel. Now, most of the other tribes of Israel realized that David had no part in what happened to Saul and his sons, and asked him to be their king, [2 Samuel 5:1-4 Then came all the tribes of Israel to David unto Hebron, and spake, saying, Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh. 2 Also in time past, when Saul was king over us, thou wast he that leddest out and broughtest in Israel: and the LORD said to thee, Thou shalt feed my people Israel, and thou shalt be a captain over Israel. 3 So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and king David made a league with them in Hebron before the LORD: and they anointed David king over Israel. 4 David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.]
Now, came his first challenge as king, the Jebusites took over land that was inherited to the Benjamites, so what better way to win their trust than to get the land back for them. David, went to Jerusalem to confront the Jebusites, who convinced themselves that their fortress was so strong that even the blind and lame were sufficient enough to guard the walls and therefore challenged them remove them if they dare tried.
[2 Samuel 5:6-9 And the king and his men went to Jerusalem unto the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land: which spake unto David, saying, Except thou take away the blind and the lame, thou shalt not come in hither: thinking, David cannot come in hither. 7 Nevertheless David took the strong hold of Zion: the same is the city of David. 8 And David said on that day, Whosoever getteth up to the gutter, and smiteth the Jebusites, and the lame and the blind, that are hated of David’s soul, he shall be chief and captain. Wherefore they said, The blind and the lame shall not come into the house. 9 So David dwelt in the fort, and called it the city of David. And David built round about from Millo and inward.]
David, was being sarcastic when he said this, not literal. This was proven when Jonathan’s son who was lame, which was why he was actually mentioned before this happened, [2 Samuel 4:4 And Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel, and his nurse took him up, and fled: and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.]
The true blind and lame are ignorant fools, such as the Jebusites, who’s hearts are crippled to the fact that they are dying and headed straight for hell because they refuse to accept that Christ is the only way to God. The gutter is the supposed place for those whom are crippled. Nevertheless, God, always has a place every person since He is their Creator, [Luke 14:12-14 Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompence be made thee. 13 But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind: 14 And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.]
The truth is that Israel did have a fortress so strong around it that it could not be taken by force and that was God Himself, and unless God allowed it no one could take it. David, finally understood that once he became content with what he was given at the time, looking forward to what will come, that was when the promise was fulfilled, [2 Samuel 5:10-12 And David went on, and grew great, and the LORD God of hosts was with him. 11 And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters, and masons: and they built David an house. 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.]
Now, since all of Israel finally made David king, and they finally took all of Jerusalem back, you would perceive that everything would be smooth sailing from there. Well, it was not, when the Philistines heard that David was made king, they were not happy and vowed to put an end to it quickly.
[2 Samuel 5:17-20 But when the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, all the Philistines came up to seek David; and David heard of it, and went down to the hold. 18 The Philistines also came and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. 19 And David enquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I go up to the Philistines? wilt thou deliver them into mine hand? And the LORD said unto David, Go up: for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into thine hand. 20 And David came to Baal-perazim, and David smote them there, and said, The LORD hath broken forth upon mine enemies before me, as the breach of waters. Therefore he called the name of that place Baal-perazim.]
And here is the key to David’s success that set him apart from Saul, he not only inquired of God he also did as God commanded. How long did it take for God to answer David? We do not know, but we do know that in every decision that David made he first inquired of God before he did anything. The Philistines did not stop then they tried it again, but this time God had given them the heads up.
[2 Samuel 5:22-25 And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. 23 And when David enquired of the LORD, he said, Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees. 24 And let it be, when thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself: for then shall the LORD go out before thee, to smite the host of the Philistines. 25 And David did so, as the LORD had commanded him; and smote the Philistines from Geba until thou come to Gazer.]
David, was not perfect, he did not do everything right, but he was faithful to God and for the most part was never too proud to call out to God for counsel or repentance and for that reason he had God’s respect. Let me tell you, integrity and a Godly testimony go a long way, but in an instant it can be shattered and actually take a lifetime to mend the broken pieces. However, there is one thing that we can count on, even if we mess up, when we repent, God will mend the pieces.
[2 Corinthians 7:10-11 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. 11 For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.]
Today’s Prayer: God, On any given day we should be able to stop, look at the life we have now and see how far we have come since we came to know Your Son as our Saviour. It is not so easy to see the blessings when we are facing difficulties or have not had a chance to get to know You like we should. With a little prayer, some faith, patience, and perseverance, we know that You will always follow through with Your promises. Lord, Lead us and guide us, help us to see beyond the challenges we face and stand up to the mockers, and trust that You have already established us in Your kingdom. Let us not walk into anything that will cause us to lose sight of our integrity or ruin our testimony. Should we fall, pick us back up and get us moving forward again through our repentance. I ask these things in Your name Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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