2 Samuel 22

Intro

reflecting on your life, sometimes with rose colored glasses.

You might even come to believe that you are the hero of your own story.

Example of Nebuchadnezzar

Author of 2 Samuel shows us the example of David at the end of His life.

As he reflects he praises the Lord because God has delivered him from all his enemies.

Pray

I won’t read text in entirety all at once, but walk through it.

A Son to Me: An Exposition of 1 & 2 Samuel Song of Deliverance, 2 Samuel 22:1–51

A Praise of Yahweh, vv. 2–3

B The Lord delivers David, vv. 4–20

Praise of Yahweh, vv. 2–3

David grounds his praise of the Lord in God’s character.

imagery of Rocky fortress drawn from David on the run from Saul in the wilderness.

Passively a place of safety, actively one who delivers.

Experiential

The Lord delivers David (Directly), vv. 4–20

Read v. 4-7

The problem: Enemies surround him, death seems imminent.

Not a singular “call” but “called” many times on the Lord to deliver him.

God intervened directly to save him from his enemies.

Often God brings you to the end of yourself and your resources, so that you cry out to Him and learn, through prayer, to rely on Him.

Read 8-20

The imagery is drawn from the Exodus, God directly intervening to deliver Israel from Egypt.

David is a new Moses “drawn out of many waters” as God delivers him from the nations all around.

Think of 2 Samuel 5:17-25

Even the creation is no match for the power of God when he comes, much less David’s enemies.

God is much bigger than your problems.

You think they are insurmountable, but for God they are play things.

The God who spoke the world into existence still speaks and brings deliverance to His people.

What is regeneration if not God’s direct intervention to save you from death.

When you were ensnared by death’s cords God came directly to rescue by sending His Son.

Jesus is the greater new Moses, leading his people out of death in a new exodus.

Bringing them to the promised rest of the new creation, (a broad place).

Why, because he delights in His people.

Romans 8:35–39 “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

David’s “cleanness” and the Lord’s faithfulness, vv. 21–28

Read 21-28

Is this self-righteous boasting? Who is innocent?

No, this is situational righteousness, faithfulness to God’s gracious covenant.

Those who obey the law, have a right to the Lord’s covenant blessings, including protection.

With regards to innocence think in terms of Saul (two times he could have killed Saul, but didn’t.

Not intrinsic righteousness, but faithful to the covenant righteousness, including God’s gracious means to be restored through sacrifice when David sinned (Ps. 51).

vv. 26-28 show God’s covenant faithfulness.

To the wicked God makes himself seem tortuous.

The Lord delivers strength to David to crush his enemies (indirectly), vv. 29–46

Read 29-46

God also delivers David by empowering him to defeat his enemies.

Sometimes directly (no help from David), sometimes indirectly by enabling David to overcome his enemies.

Here David is a new Joshua completing the conquest of the land by beating back the enemies of God.

David did the work, but God was behind the success.

Not only divine empowerment against enemies, but also to rule his people well (44) and over foreigners (45-46).

Philippians 2:12–13 “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

1 Corinthians 15:10 “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.”

Romans 16:20 “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.”

God often uses you to deliver you from your enemies, by empowering you for the task.

But with careful acknowledgment that God is the one at work in you—no grounds for boasting.

Praise of Yahweh, vv. 47–51

Read v. 47-51

Returns to praise the character of God.

Jesus

Hebrews 5:7–9 ESV

In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him,

Since the Lord delivers you from your enemies, you must give Him praise.