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: Friday, May 22, 2026
Chapters: II Samuel 23-24, Psalms 97-99
Message: II Samuel: The Threshing Floor
Hello My Friend,
I read this from Charles Spurgeon, “Oh, think not, believer, that your sorrows are out of God’s plan; they are necessary parts of it. “We must, through much tribulation, enter the kingdom.” Learn, then, even to “count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations.” and it just turned on so many light bulbs. I even said to God, “Just once I would like something to go my way. I can see the disappointment coming but I still have hope that if I do not get what I want then You have something better for me.”
Then again, is what we want really what we need? Our wants do not always line up with God’s will for us. So, when we are at a crossroad what do we do? We have no choice but to be patient and wait for God to tell us which way to turn. As we continue in the reading of Psalms, we are reminded that our salvation alone is enough to sing out to God no matter where we are.
[Psalms 98:1-4 A Psalm. O sing unto the LORD a new song; for he hath done marvellous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory. 2 The LORD hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen. 3 He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. 4 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.]
I know it is not always easy to make a joyful noise to God. In fact, what we often end up doing is crying out to Him because while we know that God’s mercies are great and what He has saved us from, we are still hurting. Think about it though, when we listen to and start singing those songs of mercy, grace, and hope they touch us and we start singing a new song. God, does not care if we are out of tune, He just wants to hear that we are trusting in Him, even when we are hurting, [Psalms 98:6-9 With trumpets and sound of cornet make a joyful noise before the LORD, the King. 7 Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. 8 Let the floods clap their hands: let the hills be joyful together 9 Before the LORD; for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity.]
Righteous judgment is not about God standing over us to expose every failure; it is about Him patiently teaching us the difference between right and wrong, and our choosing to walk in the way that pleases Him. It is the loving discipline of a Father who desires His children to grow in wisdom, holiness, and obedience. Now, as we come to the end of the reading of II Samuel, David is looking back over the years and recognizing how faithfully God has carried him through His righteous judgment.
[II Samuel 23:1-4 Now these be the last words of David. David the son of Jesse said, and the man who was raised up on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel, said, 2 The Spirit of the LORD spake by me, and his word was in my tongue. 3 The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me, He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God. 4 And he shall be as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds; as the tender grass springing out of the earth by clear shining after rain.]
Technically these were not the last words David spoke, this just means that it was the last of the psalms that he had spoke. David, understood that through every triumph, every failure, every sorrow, and every moment of chastening, God had never left him. David’s heart is awakening again to the truth that God’s righteous judgment was never meant to destroy him, but to shape him into a man after God’s own heart. He even comes to terms with the fact that his own family did not fear God.
[II Samuel 23:5-7 Although my house be not so with God; yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things, and sure: for this is all my salvation, and all my desire, although he make it not to grow. 6 But the sons of Belial shall be all of them as thorns thrust away, because they cannot be taken with hands: 7 But the man that shall touch them must be fenced with iron and the staff of a spear; and they shall be utterly burned with fire in the same place.]
David, felt that he was partially to blame for Absalom and Amnon turning out the way they did. David knew that he was the greatest spiritual influence in their lives. That realization must have grieved him tremendously. But David also understood something essential: salvation is not a group effort. Each soul must choose God for themselves. Even his own sons, surrounded by the worship of God, were still driven under the influence of Satan. It may seem strange to us, but part of God’s righteous judgment involves His allowing Satan to operate for a time, which is why he is still present in the world. God uses him as an instrument to afflict those who have fallen, and at times to test the faithfulness of His people.
[Romans 9:21-23 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? 22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: 23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,]
Wow! Those are some powerful words and quite eye opening. This sort of explains all the evil we are seeing all over the world today. God is allowing the fullness of human rebellion to make His riches known to the few who will call upon the name of His Son. It truly feels as though Satan has unleashed his demons across half the world, stirring violence, deception, confusion, and spiritual blindness. This is why the evil we see is not evidence that God has lost control, it is evidence that He reigns and His Word is unfolding exactly as He said it would.
[Psalms 99:1-5 The LORD reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be moved. 2 The LORD is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people. 3 Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy. 4 The king’s strength also loveth judgment; thou dost establish equity, thou executest judgment and righteousness in Jacob. 5 Exalt ye the LORD our God, and worship at his footstool; for he is holy.]
While we can easily understand blessings that come from obedience, and even the chastening that follows disobedience, it is far more difficult to comprehend the blessings that come through sorrow. Yet those are often the blessings that shape us the most deeply. If there is one thing that I have learned, it is this: no matter how many times I fail to follow His will, He remains merciful and patient. He does not cast me aside. Instead, He leads me back into the right path, again and again, with a love that refuses to let me go.
[Psalms 99:6-9 Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among them that call upon his name; they called upon the LORD, and he answered them. 7 He spake unto them in the cloudy pillar: they kept his testimonies, and the ordinance that he gave them. 8 Thou answeredst them, O LORD our God: thou wast a God that forgavest them, though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions. 9 Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy.]
Yes, salvation was granted by God through grace in their faith in the LORD even before Christ’s passion. How was this possible? They believed in the same promise that we do. They looked forward to the Redeemer who was to come, just as we look back to the Redeemer who has already come, [Romans 4:13-14,20-22 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect: 20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; 21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. 22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.]
David understood that he did not build a godly and prosperous kingdom by his own strength. Though he was the king, he knew that it took many faithful and God‑fearing men and women to uphold the work God had entrusted to him. His victories, his stability, and even his survival were often tied to the courage, loyalty, and righteousness of those whom the Lord placed around him. And now, as he reflects near the end of his life, he begins to recall his mighty men, which is actually the second account given.
[II Samuel 23:8-10 These be the names of the mighty men whom David had: The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite: he lift up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time. 9 And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away: 10 He arose, and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clave unto the sword: and the LORD wrought a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to spoil.]
These men were not merely soldiers or leaders in His army; they were men of valor whose hearts feared God. They fought with him, protected him, encouraged him, and helped carry out the purposes of God in Israel. Their devotion was not only to David, but to the Lord who had anointed him. David goes on to recollect the three men who were the greatest encouragement to him, men whose courage, loyalty, and devotion strengthened his heart.
[II Samuel 23:13,15-17 And three of the thirty chief went down, and came to David in the harvest time unto the cave of Adullam: and the troop of the Philistines pitched in the valley of Rephaim. 15 And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Beth-lehem, which is by the gate! 16 And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Beth-lehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the LORD. 17 And he said, Be it far from me, O LORD, that I should do this: is not this the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives? therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mighty men.]
David’s heroes were the men who risked their lives simply to bring him water from that well. Their devotion moved him so deeply that he refused to drink it, recognizing that their lives were far more valuable than his momentary desire. When we come to understand that the souls of people are far more important than anything we desire, that is when we begin to count every earthly loss as nothing more than dung, [Philippians 3:8-9 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, 9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:]
This was David’s last recorded speech, and he wanted to make certain that he left no man unmentioned. There were thirty‑seven in all, so he simply begins naming them one by one. And then, at the very end of the list, you notice the final name: Uriah the Hittite, the husband of Bathsheba.
[II Samuel 23:18-20,23,39 And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief among three. And he lifted up his spear against three hundred, and slew them, and had the name among three. 19 Was he not most honourable of three? therefore he was their captain: howbeit he attained not unto the first three. 20 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man, of Kabzeel, who had done many acts, he slew two lionlike men of Moab: he went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow: 23 He was more honourable than the thirty, but he attained not to the first three. And David set him over his guard. 39 Uriah the Hittite: thirty and seven in all.]
What a sobering reminder. Even in David’s closing words, the Spirit of God ensures that Uriah’s name is honored. It stands as a quiet testimony to the cost of David’s sin, the faithfulness of a loyal soldier, and the mercy of God who redeems even the darkest chapters of a man’s life. David remembered his mighty men, and God made sure that Uriah would never be forgotten, no doubt because we was a very honorable man. We can rejoice in God’s righteous judgments because they are what renew are fear in Him, [II Corinthians 7:11 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.]
David had his share of judgments placed upon him, yet he knew he was still loved by God because of the covenant God had made with him. Perhaps one of the greatest testimonies that salvation has always been by grace and not by works is found in the moment when David was required to choose the form of righteous judgment that would fall upon Israel. It all began when David decided to call for a census of Israel and Judah.
[II Samuel 24:1-3 And again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he moved David against them to say, Go, number Israel and Judah. 2 For the king said to Joab the captain of the host, which was with him, Go now through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, and number ye the people, that I may know the number of the people. 3 And Joab said unto the king, Now the LORD thy God add unto the people, how many soever they be, an hundredfold, and that the eyes of my lord the king may see it: but why doth my lord the king delight in this thing?]
We can speculate as to what it was that angered God, but I imagine that part of it was connected to Israel’s earlier revolt against David. Their hearts had not been fully settled, and pride had begun to rise in the nation just as it had in their king. According to the Law, when a census was taken, every man was required to give a ransom for his soul unto the LORD, so that no plague would come upon the people.
[Exodus 30:12-13 When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the LORD, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them. 13 This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the LORD.]
And as we see, the judgment appointed for such a breach was a plague or disease that would spread among the people. Yet for nearly ten months the census continued, it was only then, that David realized the magnitude of what he had done. But when he did, he did not hide, excuse, or justify. He confessed. He humbled himself. And he cast himself upon the mercy of the LORD.
[II Samuel 24:8-10 So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. 9 And Joab gave up the sum of the number of the people unto the king: and there were in Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men that drew the sword; and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men. 10 And David’s heart smote him after that he had numbered the people. And David said unto the LORD, I have sinned greatly in that I have done: and now, I beseech thee, O LORD, take away the iniquity of thy servant; for I have done very foolishly.]
Since David broke that Law by failing to require the people to pay the ransom owed, judgment had to fall. But in an act of both mercy and severity, God gave David a choice. The king himself would have to decide which form of judgment would come upon the nation. Nevertheless, imagine being placed in such a position. How would you like to decide what the punishment would be? David was given one of three choices.
[II Samuel 24:11-13 For when David was up in the morning, the word of the LORD came unto the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying, 12 Go and say unto David, Thus saith the LORD, I offer thee three things; choose thee one of them, that I may do it unto thee. 13 So Gad came to David, and told him, and said unto him, Shall seven years of famine come unto thee in thy land? or wilt thou flee three months before thine enemies, while they pursue thee? or that there be three days’ pestilence in thy land? now advise, and see what answer I shall return to him that sent me.]
This was not a light matter. It was a moment that exposed the weight of leadership, the seriousness of sin, and the holiness of God. David, stood before the LORD knowing that whatever he chose would affect the entire nation. Yet even in this, God was teaching him something profound: that His mercy is woven even into His judgments, and that falling into the hands of God is always safer than falling into the hands of men.
[II Samuel 24:14-16 And David said unto Gad, I am in a great strait: let us fall now into the hand of the LORD; for his mercies are great: and let me not fall into the hand of man. 15 So the LORD sent a pestilence upon Israel from the morning even to the time appointed: and there died of the people from Dan even to Beer-sheba seventy thousand men. 16 And when the angel stretched out his hand upon Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed the people, It is enough: stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD was by the threshingplace of Araunah the Jebusite.]
What David did not anticipate was how many would die in those three days. In fact, within only a single day, seventy thousand men fell. The swiftness and severity of the judgment were staggering. David had known that consequences would come, but he never imagined the depth of the loss or the speed with which the plague would sweep through the land. It was a sobering reminder that sin always reaches farther than we expect and affects more lives than we ever intend. Can you imagine just how many would have died if the disease continued for three days? At that point, seeing that angel about to strike more people David, begged God to put the judgment upon him and his family, but spare the people, whom he considered as being innocent.
[II Samuel 24:17-20 And David spake unto the LORD when he saw the angel that smote the people, and said, Lo, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly: but these sheep, what have they done? let thine hand, I pray thee, be against me, and against my father’s house. 18 And Gad came that day to David, and said unto him, Go up, rear an altar unto the LORD in the threshingfloor of Araunah the Jebusite. 19 And David, according to the saying of Gad, went up as the LORD commanded. 20 And Araunah looked, and saw the king and his servants coming on toward him: and Araunah went out, and bowed himself before the king on his face upon the ground.]
Gad told him exactly what he needed to do. Since David had sinned, he had broken that one‑on‑one connection with God, and therefore God sent Gad to make that reality known to him. And can you imagine what Araunah must have been thinking when he saw the king and all those people coming toward him. It must have startled him. And perhaps it even caused a moment of fear, for kings did not usually arrive unannounced unless something serious was taking place.
[II Samuel 24:21-23 And Araunah said, Wherefore is my lord the king come to his servant? And David said, To buy the threshingfloor of thee, to build an altar unto the LORD, that the plague may be stayed from the people. 22 And Araunah said unto David, Let my lord the king take and offer up what seemeth good unto him: behold, here be oxen for burnt sacrifice, and threshing instruments and other instruments of the oxen for wood. 23 All these things did Araunah, as a king, give unto the king. And Araunah said unto the king, The LORD thy God accept thee.]
When he discovered what David wanted, Araunah eagerly offered him everything he needed. He was willing to give the oxen, the wood, and even the threshing floor itself. But David refused to accept it as a gift. He understood that an offering to God must cost something.
[II Samuel 24:24-25 And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshingfloor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. 25 And David built there an altar unto the LORD, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the LORD was intreated for the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel.]
Salvation is never free; it is always bought with a blood sacrifice. The animal sacrifices never made salvation permanent because they never actually removed the sin, but they did remove God’s anger toward the sinner and provided redemption through the sinner’s admission of guilt. We could question God’s methods, but what good would that accomplish. All it would reveal is the uncomfortable truth that perhaps we did not believe with all our heart that Jesus is the only way. David, did not need to know the name Jesus Christ to understand that the it is the LORD who reigns.
[Psalms 97:1-6,11-12 The LORD reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof. 2 Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne. 3 A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about. 4 His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled. 5 The hills melted like wax at the presence of the LORD, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth. 6 The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory. 11 Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart. 12 Rejoice in the LORD, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Every day I am amazed that no matter how many mistakes I make You still love me, You have not forsaken me, and I still have a place in heaven with You. Your judgments are righteous and we should rejoice in them because they are what conform us into an image that resembles Your Son. Lord, continue to lead me and guide me, keep me in Your Word, learning, understanding, and conforming to Your Son until You bring me home. Let my life be an example of not only Your mercies and grace, but of Your righteous judgments that keep me out of Satan’s sights and in Your will. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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