Through the Bible - 2 Samuel

And it came to pass after the death of Saul... a man came out of the camp from Saul with his clothes torn and earth upon his head. And so it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the earth and prostrated himself... And David said to him, "How did you know that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?" ... So David said to the young man... "How was it you were not afraid to put forth your hand to destroy the Lord's anointed?" (2 Samuel 1, paraphrased from the teaching)

A man after God's own heart was not a perfect man—what set David apart was faith and a willingness to repent.

One Book, One King

The book of 2 Samuel is really a continuation of 1 Samuel. In a Hebrew Bible there is no distinction between the two; it is one large book. I'm thankful there is a division for us, because it would have been far too long to go through in one sitting.

These are powerful chapters that focus on a character who is a favorite of many—King David. In 1 Samuel we saw David as God's anointed king, yet he was constantly running, never truly taking hold of the throne God desired for him, because Saul—the king the people wanted, the king after the people's own heart—was unwilling to give it up.

That is the picture of 1 Samuel: Saul, the man of the flesh, and David, the man of faith. We all know that struggle. It is the battle Paul describes in Romans 7—"the good that I want to do, I don't do, and the bad I don't want to do, that I practice." There is a throne in every one of our lives, just as there was a throne in Israel. God desires to occupy it, but the flesh fights for it. Saul was that king of the flesh, seeking wealth and pleasure. David was the other king, the man after God's own heart—yet not a perfect man, as 2 Samuel makes very clear.

The Death of Saul and the Amalekite

The book divides into three sections. The first, chapters 1 through 10:19, covers the triumphs of David. But David cannot take the throne until something specific happens: Saul, the man of the flesh, must die. He cannot simply be subdued or sent away. He won't leave on his own. He must die.

The end of 1 Samuel records Saul going out against the Philistines, recognizing defeat, and—after his armor bearer refuses to kill him—falling on his own sword. So we close 1 Samuel thinking Saul died by his own hand. But 2 Samuel 1 shows the death in a different light. A young man comes to David with his clothes torn, claiming he found Saul fallen on his spear but not yet dead, and that Saul begged him to finish him off.

When David asks who he is, the man says, "I am an Amalekite." That is striking, because in 1 Samuel 15 God commanded Saul to utterly destroy the Amalekites, and Saul disobeyed, sparing the best of everything and King Agag. The Amalekites are the people who picked off the weak and weary stragglers when Israel came out of Egypt. In Scripture they are a picture and a type of the flesh—and we are called to utterly destroy the flesh, never letting it live, because if we do, it will ultimately destroy us.

Notice the irony: Saul was told early in his reign to destroy the Amalekites and did not fully obey, and it is an Amalekite who now claims to have taken his life. The man came to David expecting a reward, perhaps a position. Instead David said, "How was it that you were not afraid to stretch forth your hand to destroy the Lord's anointed?" David himself had twice spared Saul, knowing he was not to touch the Lord's anointed. So David ordered the man killed for having no fear in destroying the anointed king.

A Vacant Throne Must Be Filled

So we have two pictures of Saul's death: he takes his own life because he sees no escape from the Philistines he once conquered, and the one who finishes him is an Amalekite, the picture of the flesh. The man of the flesh is gone, and the throne is vacant—and a throne is never left empty.

There will never remain a vacant throne in your life. Someone or something is always dictating how you live. Many people occupy their own throne, captain of their own ship, determiner of their own destiny—but they choose paths that Scripture says end in death. "There is a way that seems right unto a man, but the end thereof is death." That was Saul. Now we are introduced to a new king, and his triumphs flow from one thing: Acts 13:22 calls him a man after God's own heart.

Restoring Worship and the Ark

David's first order of business as king was to reestablish worship in Israel. Remember 1 Samuel 4: Israel lost a battle to the Philistines, decided they had forgotten God, and fetched the Ark from Shiloh as a good-luck charm to save them. But God will not be used by us. Just as the Commander of the Lord's army told Joshua, "I am not for you or your enemies—the question is, are you on my side?" Israel was routed, thousands fell, and the Ark was captured. Though the Ark was eventually returned, it never went back to its rightful place, and worship was not a priority for the man of flesh, Saul. The Ark sat forgotten on the outskirts of the nation for twenty or thirty years.

When David comes to the throne, his first decision is to bring the Ark back to the forefront of the nation. But at first he does it on his own terms—the very way the ungodly Philistines had handled it, on a cart pulled by oxen. That was not how God commanded the Ark be moved. As it traveled, it hit a bump, Uzzah reached out to steady it, and he fell down dead. The anger of the Lord came against him, and David was both afraid and upset.

David left the Ark for a time, then noticed it blessed the household where it stayed. Seeking the Lord, he learned the Ark was to be carried by the Levites. So he brought it into Jerusalem rightly, dancing before it, offering a sacrifice every six steps—surely the slowest parade ever. But David learned that there is a reverence that must surround the things and the worship of God. God is holy. He is to be feared. He is not to be handled flippantly, as the world handles Him.

Establishing the Throne

At this point David is king over only one tribe—Judah, his own tribe—while the rest of Israel still followed Saul's house. He ruled seven years over Judah before all Israel recognized him. There is a lesson there: when we begin to put God on the throne, the flesh still fights, and it takes time. The Lord desires to occupy the whole throne, yet sometimes He occupies only part of our lives because we will not yield all the rest.

In chapter 7, having centered worship, David recognizes something is wrong: he lives in a glorious house while the Ark sits in a tent. He tells Nathan he wants to build God a house. Nathan says, "Do all that is in your heart." But the Lord corrects Nathan—David is a man of war with blood on his hands, so his son will build it. Yet God speaks something beautiful: because David desired to have God at the center of his life, God will establish David's kingdom, and there will not fail to be one from his line upon the throne—ultimately a prophecy of Jesus, the Son of David.

This is the same work God does in us. When we recognize that God must be the central focus and take the throne of our lives, He begins to transform us from the inside out, establishing us in a way we could never establish ourselves. That is a key part of what made David a man after God's own heart.

In chapter 8, David's military victories come—against the Philistines, the Moabites, the Edomites. Why was he triumphant? Because God was at the central focus, on the throne. When God occupies that place in our lives, we experience the same kind of victory.

The Kindness of the King

When God takes that place and we yield to the Spirit, fruit grows. In chapter 9 we see the fruit of kindness. Saul had hunted David for some twenty years, throwing spears at him and chasing him through the wilderness. Yet after Saul and Jonathan are dead, David asks, "Is there yet any left of the household of Saul, that I may show him kindness?"

The one who comes forward is Mephibosheth, Jonathan's son. As a child, fleeing the upheaval, his nurse dropped him, and his legs—not set properly by the medicine of that day—left him lame for life. This lame man is brought before David, surely wondering what the king will do. David extends the kindness of the Lord: "You will eat at my table for the rest of your life." David is here a type of Christ, and we are the lame Mephibosheths the King brings to His table. As we sang from 1 John 3, "Behold what manner of love the Father has given unto us, that we should be called the children of God."

In chapter 10 that kindness reaches beyond Israel. When the king of Ammon dies, David sends ambassadors of kindness to his son Hanun. But the advisors say David is only spying out the land, so they shamefully treat his ambassadors—shaving their beards, cutting off their garments, sending them away exposed. David executes judgment on Ammon for this. Our Lord, the Son of David, extends His kindness to all mankind, not only to Israel. But those who reject the grace of the King will not stand in the day of judgment. God is just. Exodus 34 reveals Him as "merciful and gracious... forgiving iniquity," yet "by no means clearing the guilty." And we are ambassadors of Christ; not everyone will receive the message, and some may shamefully treat us, but God will bring justice.

The Transgression of David

Chapter 11 begins the second division and is one of the hardest passages for believers. At the time when kings went out to battle, David tarried at Jerusalem. From his roof he saw Bathsheba bathing, inquired about her—learning she was the wife of Uriah the Hittite—and took her. She conceived and sent word: "I am with child."

The hero of so many Christians here commits adultery. Trying to cover it, David calls Uriah home from the front, hoping he will go to his wife. When that fails, David sends him back carrying his own death warrant—a letter to Joab to place Uriah at the hottest part of the battle and withdraw, leaving him to die. So David commits adultery, then murder, then lies about it for nearly a year. He even appears to be the hero: when Uriah dies, David graciously takes the widow Bathsheba into his household, and the nation likely praised their kind king—while in truth he was concealing his sin.

How can this be the man after God's own heart? It helps to remember that the Bible, like an unbiased newspaper, reports the facts; it does not endorse them. God is not saying this was acceptable. And I am thankful He includes it, because it shows us something vital: a man or woman after God's own heart is not a perfect person. If we only ever saw David the psalmist, the conqueror, the kind king, we would conclude he was sinless and that we could never be people after God's own heart.

Psalm 51 and the Heart That Repents

So what made David a man after God's own heart? The answer is found in Psalm 51. In chapter 12, the Lord sends Nathan, who tells of a rich man with many flocks who stole a poor man's single beloved lamb. David's anger burns: "As the Lord lives, the man who has done this shall surely die!" Nathan answers, "You are the man." God reminds David of all He had given him and asks why he despised the Lord's commandment, killing Uriah and taking his wife.

Here we see the difference between David and Saul. When Saul's sin was exposed in 1 Samuel 15, he insisted, "I have done what the Lord commanded," holding to his own righteousness. When David's sin was exposed, he repented. Psalm 51 records his heart:

Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; according unto the multitude of Your tender mercies blot out my transgressions... Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight... Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me... The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.

Saul thought his sacrifices could purge his sin. David knew only God could make him clean. He recognized he was wicked in the heart and cried out, "Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." That is what made him a man after God's own heart. He sinned royally—but at the end of his transgression we see a beautiful picture of repentance, and God says, "You are a man after my own heart."

The Troubles of David

The third division runs from chapter 12 through the end of the book: the troubles of David. Nathan declared, "The sword shall never depart from your house... I will raise up evil against you out of your own house." When David said, "I have sinned against the Lord," Nathan answered that the Lord had put away his sin and he would not die—yet because he had given great occasion for the Lord's enemies to blaspheme, the child would die.

Here is a principle of the New Testament illustrated in the Old. Galatians 6: "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." David sowed to the flesh, and though God forgave his sin, he reaped its consequences.

David cried out for the child for seven days, fasting and praying. When the child died, the servants were afraid to tell him—yet on hearing it, David rose, washed, worshiped, and asked for a meal. Puzzled, his servants asked why he mourned while the child lived but rose when it died. David answered, "He shall not return to me, but I shall go to him." There again is the faith of David: he believed in the resurrection. He was a man of faith and a man willing to repent, who knew he was a sinner and came before God for cleansing.

The Sword in His House

The sword did not depart. In chapter 13, Amnon, David's son, deceitfully rapes his half-sister Tamar. The law required Amnon's death, but David would not judge his own son. So Tamar's brother Absalom despised his father, and about a year later killed Amnon, then fled for three years. David should have judged Amnon for the rape and then Absalom for the murder, but he did neither, and the sword continued.

When Absalom returned, he played the politician, standing at the city gates, telling those seeking justice they would find none from the king, offering them handshakes and embraces and stealing the hearts of the people. He mounted a coup, drove David from Jerusalem, and seized the kingdom—only to end up dead himself, leaving David weeping. All of this could have been avoided had David not sinned. He sowed to the flesh, and he reaped corruption.

So in many ways 2 Samuel ends on a low note for Israel. When God was on the throne of David's life, he was triumphant; when he sowed to the flesh, it brought trouble and destruction.

Numbering the People and the Threshing Floor

Near the end, in chapter 24, David decides to number his fighting men. Joab questions it, but David insists, and for nine months they count. David, who had written "some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we will trust in the name of the Lord," had now fixed his trust on his own military strength. Afterward his heart smote him: "I have sinned greatly... I have done very foolishly."

God offered three choices through the prophet Gad—seven years of famine, three months of fleeing before enemies, or three days of pestilence. David answered, "Let us fall now into the hand of the Lord, for His mercies are great; let me not fall into the hand of man." The pestilence killed seventy thousand, but as the angel stretched out his hand over Jerusalem, the Lord said, "It is enough." David cried, "I have sinned... but these sheep, what have they done? Let Your hand be against me and my father's house."

The angel stopped at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite—the place we call today the Temple Mount on Mount Zion. Araunah offered David the land and oxen freely, but David refused: "I will surely buy it of you at a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God of that which costs me nothing." He bought the threshing floor and oxen for fifty shekels of silver, built an altar, offered sacrifices, and the plague was stayed.

Notice that detail: David, the king of the Jews, purchased the very piece of ground over which the whole world contends today. It is rightfully Israel's land, bought and paid for by their king.

The Lesson for Us

Here we see the heart of David. Although he sinned, transgressed, and reaped consequences, he was a man after God's own heart who wanted God on the throne. He knew all sin is ultimately before God—a transgression of His commandment—so he asked God to place judgment on him alone, and he would not sacrifice to the Lord anything that cost him nothing.

The whole book correlates to our lives. When God is on the throne, we experience triumph over our enemies and taste the fruit of the Spirit in abundance. But when we drift and put our focus back on the flesh, we are easily duped into sin. "Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall." The heart of man is desperately wicked, so quickly turned to the world when we are walking where we shouldn't be. Do not be deceived—God is not mocked; whatsoever a man sows, he will reap, and there are real consequences to sin even in this life.

I am thankful for this picture, because it shows that a man after God's own heart was not a perfect man. The only thing that made him so was his faith toward God and his willingness to repent and receive the punishment—even though God would ultimately place that punishment not upon David, but upon the Son of David.

Closing Prayer

God, I thank You for the testimony of David, and for the testimonies throughout the Old Testament of men and women who followed You. Abraham too was not a perfect man; he failed many times, yet what made him the father of faith is that he went where You told him to go, following You without knowing the end. David likewise was not perfect, yet he had faith toward You and recognized that his heart needed You to touch and cleanse and clean it. So I pray that we would be men and women of faith as well, who recognize that the only way we can stand before You is because of the work You did on our behalf. We praise You and thank You for that work, and we ask that You help us be ever mindful of it. In Jesus' name. Amen.