His Irreverent Act

2 Samuel 6:3-7 – And they carried the ark of God on a new cart and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. And Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were driving the new cart, with the ark of God, and Ahio went before the ark. And David and all the house of Israel were celebrating before the Lord, with songs and lyres and harps and tambourines and castanets and cymbals. And when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah put out his hand to the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and God struck him down there because of his error, and he died there beside the ark of God.

Leviticus 10:2 – And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord.

Joshua 24:19 – But Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins.

Acts 5:1-3,9 – But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and with his wife's knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles' feet. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land?... But Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.”

Application:

• ·         Although Uzzah’s intent may have been good, he violated the clear instructions the Lord had given for handling the ark.
• ·         The new community (with Nadab and Abihu) had to be made aware that it existed for God, not vice versa.
• ·         Joshua’s words, “You are not able”, were strong words to emphasize the danger of overconfidence.
• ·         Love of praise for generosity and love for money led to the first recorded sin in the life of the church. It is a warning to the readers that “God cannot be mocked”.
• ·         Ananias and Sapphira had a right to keep back whatever they chose, but to make it appear that they had given all when they had not was sinful.
• ·         The Holy Spirit is regarded as God Himself present with His people.
• ·         With Ananias and Sapphira, it was important to set the course properly at the outset in order to leave no doubt that God will not tolerate such hypocrisy and deceit.

All Scripture verses taken from ESV

Ark Of God

2 Samuel 5:21-6:2 – And the Philistines left their idols there, and David and his men carried them away. And the Philistines came up yet again and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim. And when David inquired of the Lord, he said, “You shall not go up; go around to their rear, and come against them opposite the balsam trees. And when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then rouse yourself, for then the Lord has gone out before you to strike down the army of the Philistines.” And David did as the Lord commanded him, and struck down the Philistines from Geba to Gezer. David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Baale-judah to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the name of the Lord of hosts who sits enthroned on the cherubim.

Genesis 3:24 – He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

Exodus 25:10,17 – “They shall make an ark of acacia wood. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height…“You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth.

1 Samuel 4:21 – And she named the child Ichabod, saying, “The glory has departed from Israel!” because the ark of God had been captured and because of her father-in-law and her husband.

Application:

• ·         Only through God’s redemption in Christ do I have access to the tree of life.
• ·         The ark symbolized the throne of the Lord, the great King, who chose to dwell among His people.
• ·         Atonement means reconciliation, the divine act of grace whereby God draws to Himself and makes “at one” with Him those who were once alienated from Him. That God’s symbolic throne was capped with an atonement cover signified His great mercy toward His people—only such a God can be revered.
• ·         Removal of the ark from Israel demonstrated the gravity of their error in thinking that in spite of their wickedness they had the power to coerce God into doing their will simple because they possessed the ark.

All Scripture verses taken from ESV

The Lord Has Broken Out...Baal Perazim

2 Samuel 5:14-20 – And these are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet. When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. But David heard of it and went down to the stronghold. Now the Philistines had come and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim. And David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand?” And the Lord said to David, “Go up, for I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand.” And David came to Baal-perazim, and David defeated them there. And he said, “The Lord has broken through my enemies before me like a breaking flood.” Therefore the name of that place is called Baal-perazim.

1 Samuel 10:18 – And he said to the people of Israel, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.’

1 Samuel 17:45-47 – Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hand.”

Application:

• ·         Although the judges themselves are sometimes referred to as Israel’s deliverers, this was true only in a secondary sense, for they were instruments of the Lord’s deliverance.
• ·         David’s strength was his reliance on the Lord.
• ·         Both the Israelite and the Philistine armies were shown the error of placing trust in human devices for personal or national security.

All Scripture verses taken from ESV

God's Purpose

2 Samuel 5:4-16 – David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. At Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and at Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah thirty-three years. And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who said to David, “You will not come in here, but the blind and the lame will ward you off”—thinking, “David cannot come in here.” Nevertheless, David took the stronghold of Zion, that is, the city of David. And David said on that day, “Whoever would strike the Jebusites, let him get up the water shaft to attack ‘the lame and the blind,’ who are hated by David's soul.” Therefore it is said, “The blind and the lame shall not come into the house.” And David lived in the stronghold and called it the city of David. And David built the city all around from the Millo inward. And David became greater and greater, for the Lord, the God of hosts, was with him. And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, also carpenters and masons who built David a house. And David knew that the Lord had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel. And David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, after he came from Hebron, and more sons and daughters were born to David. And these are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet.

Genesis 37:2 – These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was pasturing the flock with his brothers. He was a boy with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's wives. And Joseph brought a bad report of them to their father.

Application:

• ·         In his generation, Joseph, more than any other, represented Israel—as a people who struggled with God and with men and overcame and as a source of blessing to the nations. The story of God’s dealings with the patriarchs foreshadows the subsequent Biblical account of God’s purpose with Israel. God would deliver Israel out of the nations, eventually to send them on a mission of life to the nations.

All Scripture verses taken from ESV

The King Made A Compact With Them...Before The Lord

2 Samuel 4:9-5:3 – But David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my life out of every adversity, when one told me, ‘Behold, Saul is dead,’ and thought he was bringing good news, I seized him and killed him at Ziklag, which was the reward I gave him for his news. How much more, when wicked men have killed a righteous man in his own house on his bed, shall I not now require his blood at your hand and destroy you from the earth?” And David commanded his young men, and they killed them and cut off their hands and feet and hanged them beside the pool at Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-bosheth and buried it in the tomb of Abner at Hebron. Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and said, “Behold, we are your bone and flesh. In times past, when Saul was king over us, it was you who led out and brought in Israel. And the Lord said to you, ‘You shall be shepherd of my people Israel, and you shall be prince over Israel.’” So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord, and they anointed David king over Israel.

Genesis 4:10 – And the Lord said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground.

1 Samuel 12:12 – And when you saw that Nahash the king of the Ammonites came against you, you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us,’ when the Lord your God was your king.

1 Kings 12:7,15 – And they said to him, “If you will be a servant to this people today and serve them, and speak good words to them when you answer them, then they will be your servants forever.”… So the king did not listen to the people, for it was a turn of affairs brought about by the Lord that he might fulfill his word, which the Lord spoke by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

Application:

• ·         Abel, in one sense a prophet, “still speaks, even though he is dead”, for his spilled blood continues to cry out to God against all those who do violence to their human brothers. But the blood of Christ “speaks a better word”.
• ·         The Israelite desire for and trust in a human leader constituted a rejection of the kingship of the Lord and betrayed a loss of confidence in his care, in spite of his faithfulness during the time of the exodus, conquest and judges.
• ·         Authority in the kingdom of God is for service, not for personal glorification.
• ·         David and Israel entered into a covenant in which both the king and the people obligated themselves before the Lord to carry out their mutual responsibilities.

All Scripture verses taken from ESV

Wept

2 Samuel 3:32-35 – They buried Abner at Hebron. And the king lifted up his voice and wept at the grave of Abner, and all the people wept. And the king lamented for Abner, saying, “Should Abner die as a fool dies? Your hands were not bound; your feet were not fettered; as one falls before the wicked you have fallen.” And all the people wept again over him. Then all the people came to persuade David to eat bread while it was yet day. But David swore, saying, “God do so to me and more also, if I taste bread or anything else till the sun goes down!”

Numbers 14:1 – Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night.

Isaiah 45:14 – Thus says the Lord: “The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush, and the Sabeans, men of stature, shall come over to you and be yours; they shall follow you; they shall come over in chains and bow down to you. They will plead with you, saying: ‘Surely God is in you, and there is no other, no god besides him.’”

Ruth 1:17 – Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.”

Application:

• ·         Because Abner’s murder had the potential of destroying the union of the nation under David’s rule, David did everything possible to demonstrate his innocence to the people.
• ·         One day the nations will acknowledge Israel’s God.
• ·         Ruth, a Gentile, swears her commitment to Naomi in the name of Israel’s God, thus acknowledging Him as her God.

All Scripture verses taken from ESV

Absalom

2 Samuel 2:29-3:7 – And Abner and his men went all that night through the Arabah. They crossed the Jordan, and marching the whole morning, they came to Mahanaim. Joab returned from the pursuit of Abner. And when he had gathered all the people together, there were missing from David's servants nineteen men besides Asahel. But the servants of David had struck down of Benjamin 360 of Abner's men. And they took up Asahel and buried him in the tomb of his father, which was at Bethlehem. And Joab and his men marched all night, and the day broke upon them at Hebron. There was a long war between the house of Saul and the house of David. And David grew stronger and stronger, while the house of Saul became weaker and weaker. And sons were born to David at Hebron: his firstborn was Amnon, of Ahinoam of Jezreel; and his second, Chileab, of Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel; and the third, Absalom the son of Maacah the daughter of Talmai king ofGeshur; and the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith; and the fifth, Shephatiah the son of Abital; and the sixth, Ithream, of Eglah, David's wife. These were born to David in Hebron. While there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, Abner was making himself strong in the house of Saul. Now Saul had a concubine whose name was Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah. And Ish-bosheth said to Abner,“Why have you gone in to my father's concubine?”

2 Samuel 13:28 – Then Absalom commanded his servants, “Mark when Amnon's heart is merry with wine, and when I say to you, ‘Strike Amnon,’ then kill him. Do not fear; have I not commanded you? Be courageous and be valiant.”

Application:

• ·         Absalom arranged for the murder of his half brother in violation of Eastern hospitality. In the wicked acts of Amnon and Absalom, David’s oldest sons become guilty of immorality and murder, as their father had before them. With the murder of Amnon, Absalom not only avenged his sister but also secured for himself the position of successor to the throne.

All Scripture verses taken from ESV