King David

Back Story

Written accounts of someones life

I don’t know about you, but I truly love biographies. That suspense that comes with learning where and how they were raised, what influenced them as they went through a certain phase in their life.

In reading the bible we read often about true life characters, and we see a little into each of their upbringinging, and maybe even what brought them to where they are.

Today I want to look at the life of a young boy, a boy who worked hard as a sheep herder

1 Samuel 16:10–13 ESV

And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen these.” Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said, “There remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and get him, for we will not sit down till he comes here.” And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the Lord said, “Arise, anoint him, for this is he.” Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah.

1 samuel 16

1 Samuel 16:1–13 ESV

The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.” And Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me.” And the Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ And invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do. And you shall anoint for me him whom I declare to you.” Samuel did what the Lord commanded and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling and said, “Do you come peaceably?” And he said, “Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Consecrate yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice.” And he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before him.” But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” Then Jesse called Abinadab and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.” Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.” And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen these.” Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said, “There remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and get him, for we will not sit down till he comes here.” And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the Lord said, “Arise, anoint him, for this is he.” Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah.

1 samuel 16:10

Jesse brought forth his sons, one of which would surely be chosen as the next king, yet Samuel tells him, NOPE, none of these, Jesse never brought his youngest, after all he was but a sheepherder, yet as we read, he is the very one that God wanted to become the next king. Can you imagine, they did not yet know it, but the future King Jesus would come from this very lineage. Yet even after David is annointed as the future king, his dad and brothers just go about their life as usual, as if nothing happened. the story we all know well comes next.

David and Goliath.

In this battle, the Philistines were gathered to battle Israel. And a huge man named Goliath threw down the challenge, he knew there was not a man around that was of his size, this should be a easy battle. for 40 days this goes on. Finally after bringing is brother food, and being chasticed for not being in the field taking care of the sheep, yet David stands strong!! He reminds the brothers that he kept the sheep safe from lions and bears, and the same Lord who kept him safe from those, would also help him in this battle with this giant. No other man was standing up to this man, so he might as well let this young boy go. They gear young David up with all the battle gear, yet David doesnt want to wear them. for he had not tested them prior, so he grabs his staff and 5 smooth stones, and of course his sling. We know that he does kill Goliath and save his people from becoming slaves. Saul was happy that the problem was dealt with, but he became Jealous, so much so that he wanted to kill him. He knows the Lord is with David and initally puts him as commander of the army, but as time goes on and that jealousy rages, he decides to Kill David, BUT Jonathon Sauls son and Davids best friend warns David.

David becomes king

2 Samuel 5:1–5 ESV

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. 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.

2 samuel 5:1-

David now at 30, is king, lots have happened since he was chosen by God to be the next king, he got discouraged at one point and even tried to joining the other side, the philistines didnt want him. This shows his impatience in waiting for the LORD. I often tell the story of taking the keys from God and telling him that you got this great idea, and hitting that same brick wall that youve hit many times.

Romans 8:24–29 ESV

For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

Romans 8:24–25 ESV

For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Romans 89

Being patient is something we learn, not something that is just handed to us and we all of a sudden have. I will attest, this is the hardest thing to learn and practice in my life, I want it now, I want to pass through the valleys and get to the top, preferably as quick as possible.

David and Bathsheba

As King David has done well, they have won lots of battles. Some have speculated that the beginning of Davids sin here was that he was home in the afternoon, as his army was at war with the Ammonites. Of course David sees Bathsheba, ends up sleeping with her, getting her pregnant and then trying to cover it up by having Bathsheba husband come home and sleep with her and think he was the one who impregnated her. As it goes the cover up doesn’t work, so David resorts to having him put on the front line of battle and have the rest of his men withdraw and then he would be killed.

JUST LIKE THAT HE HAS MURDERED. What started as but a quick walk on his rooftop, he becomes an adulterer, and a murderer.

We know that he does repent, but the child does not live, however the next child Solomon would continue on the lineage.

God being all knowing, knew when he chose David as the next king, that indeed he would commit these sins, yet he choose him anyway. WHY??? The easy answer would be that whoever he choose would probably have a character flaw as were all sinners, right? But being all knowing God, also knew that David would be very repentful, and that would show the readers that indeed, we are sinners, but he loves a repentive sinner.

Davids biography should teach us that God is so graceful with us, he shows great mercy and this story and all stories in the bible shows his love for the world, one needs only to repent and trust in him. In writing many psalms you can indeed see that David changed his ways and loves God with all of his heart

says, “After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.‘”The following words describe the heart of David as seen in his own writings: (All verses New International Version)

Humble – Lowborn men are but a breath, the highborn are but a lie; if weighed on a balance, they are nothing; together they are only a breath.

Reverent – I call to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies.

Respectful – Be merciful to me, O Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and my body with grief.

Trusting – The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?

Loving – I love you, O Lord, my strength.

Devoted – You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound.

Recognition – I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders.

Faithful – Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Obedient – Give me understanding, and I will keep your law and obey it with all my heart.

Repentant – For the sake of your name, O Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.

To understand why David was a man after God’s own heart, we need to see what characteristics he had to qualify for such an exalted description. In the book of Acts, the apostle Paul speaks of God’s feelings about King David: “After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do’” (). The answer to why David was considered a man after God’s own heart is found right in the verse: David did whatever God wanted him to do. An obvious question is how could God still call David a man after His own heart when David committed such terrible sins, including adultery and murder?

We learn much of David’s character in the book of Psalms as he opened up his life for all to examine. David’s life was a portrait of success and failure, and the biblical record highlights the fact that David was far from perfect. But what made David a cut above the rest was that his heart was pointed toward God. He had a deep desire to follow God’s will and do “everything” God wanted him to do. He was a man after God’s own heart. Let’s look at some characteristics of David’s life to discover what that entails:

Part of why David is called a man after God’s own heart is that he had absolute faith in God. Nowhere in Scripture is this point better illustrated than in where David as a young shepherd boy fearlessly slew the Philistine, Goliath. Shortly before the duel, we see direct evidence of David’s faith when David says, “‘The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.’ And Saul said to David, ‘Go, and the LORD be with you!’” (verse 37). David was fully aware that God was in control of his life, and he had faith that God would deliver him from impending danger. How else would one venture into a potentially fatal situation with such calm and confidence? David knew early on in life that God was to be trusted and obeyed. As we see in Scripture, David’s faith pleased God, and God rewards David for his faithfulness.

Another reason David was a man after God’s own heart is that he absolutely loved God’s Law. Of the 150 psalms in the Bible, David is credited for writing over half of them. Writing at various and often troubling times in his life, David repeatedly mentioned how much he loved God’s perfect Word. We find a beautiful example of this in : “For I delight in your commands because I love them. I lift up my hands to your commands, which I love, and I meditate on your decrees.” It is not hard to see his complete adoration for God’s Word. Also notice how David “meditates” on God’s statutes. God granted David understanding and wisdom through daily meditation. We would do well to not only read God’s Word but also think about it throughout the day, for God loves us to think about Him. “Blessed are they who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart. They do nothing wrong; they walk in his ways” ().

David was a man after God’s own heart in that he was truly thankful. “I wash my hands in innocence, and go about your altar, O LORD, proclaiming aloud your praise and telling of all your wonderful deeds” (). David’s life was marked by seasons of great peace and prosperity as well as times of fear and despair. But through all of the seasons in his life, he never forgot to thank the Lord for everything that he had. It is truly one of David’s finest characteristics. “Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!” (, ESV). As followers of Jesus Christ, we would do well to follow David’s lead of offering praise through thanksgiving to our Lord.

After he sinned, David was truly repentant. David’s sin with Bathsheba is recorded in . The mighty fall hard, and David’s fall included adultery, lying, and murder. He had sinned against God, and he admits it in : “David said to Nathan, ‘I have sinned against the LORD.’ And Nathan said to David, ‘The LORD also has put away your sin; you shall not die.’” But admitting our sin and asking for forgiveness is only half of the equation. The other half is repentance, and David did that as well. is David’s prayer of repentance to God: “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!" ().

In conclusion, David was a man after God’s own heart because he demonstrated his faith and was committed to following the Lord. Yes, his faith was tested on a grand scale, and he failed at times. But after his sin he sought and received the Lord’s forgiveness. In the final analysis, David loved God’s Law and sought to follow it exactly. As a man after God’s own heart, David is a role model for all of us.

So where do we go from here? This character study of David truly shows that our heavenly father is so gracious to each of us, and if we indeed hide his words in our heart we shall be able to go through anything.

We each have a great story and God is preparing each one of us in his own way for his glory.