King David

The Bible is filled with strong personalities, but none leads David in the parade.  His life was a whirlwind, from which striking images flash.  We see him playing his harp, writing poems, fighting battles, faking insanity, dancing jubilantly in praise of God.  We watch his tear-streaked face when he learns of his closest friend’s death.  We see him on his rooftop, gazing down lustfully on Bathsheba’s bath.  We see Nathan point his finger at him, accusing him of adultery and murder.  We hear David’s guilty, anguished voice crying to God for the life of his infant child.  We see David’s bowed head as he stumbles out of Jerusalem, pursued by his murderous son.

David survived the crises of a dozen lives.  Somehow he always bounced back.  Somehow he maintained a passionate trust in God.  The books of 1st and 2nd Samuel don’t paint him as a flawless character, nor as a perfect model of strength and courage.  David had striking weaknesses.  Yet he appeals to us as he did to the Israelites:  he was completely, passionately alive.  Whatever he did, right or wrong, he did with his whole heart.  In his love for God, he held nothing back.

While 1st Samuel tells of David’s youth and his long exile, 2 Samuel focuses on David as king, leading, uniting, inspiring his people.  His time in the desert was over.  Different qualities of leadership were required in a king.

David inherited a country in ruins.  His fellow Southerners recognized him as the new king.  But Saul’s son, backed by a powerful general, launched a civil war for the throne.  Ugly infighting followed:  intrigue, murder and treachery.

Even after David’s rivals were eliminated, peace was uneasy.  Unless David could heal the wounds of war, resentment might smolder in the hearts of the Northerners.  David’s decisive action showed wisdom and firmness.  He justly punished murderers who expected his gratitude.  He showed respect for his enemies by mourning their deaths.  From his first day in office David behaved as the king of all the people, not just his loyal followers.  The Northern tribes soon came over to him, submitting to his leadership.

David’s next move was to capture Jerusalem.  People said it couldn’t be done; mountainous Jerusalem was impregnable.  David did it, and made Jerusalem his new political and religious capital.  Located on the border between North and South, Jerusalem symbolized a new national unity based on trust in God.

That was just the beginning.  David led the unified tribes to do what they had barely dreamed of:  they defeated the dreaded Philistines once and for all.  Almost overnight the tiny threatened nation of Israel became safe.  Secure borders opened expanded trade, and Israel boomed.  (David’s son Solomon reaped most of the wealth from this.)  Naturally, David’s popularity increased.

But David’s reign held ironic tragedies, too.  Second Samuel makes no effort to hide them.  David could lead a nation but not his own children.  His ineffective parenting nearly destroyed all he had done when his heartless son Absalom led a rebellion.  Second Samuel portrays David without retouching his blemishes: he was a murderer and adulterer and a leader capable of cruelty.

Nevertheless, he was Israel’s greatest king.  Even at his lowest points, his great strength of character showed.  He was never vengeful with his enemies.  He took full responsibility for his mistakes.  He managed to remember that he had started out as a mere shepherd.  He held power only by the grace of God – and he believed that God had every right to take power away.

Through his love for God and his sense of astonished gratefulness for what God had done for him, David became a living embodiment of the Israel God wanted.  Like all truly great leaders, he made his country thrive not just by what he did, but by who he was.

(From The Devotional Study Bible of The Bible League)