All I have Needed Thy Hand hath provided

I. The Lord Provides David Food and Weapons

David’s second lie

“it’s top secret”

“my men will meet me there.”

The Bread of the Presence Lev 24:5-9

Leviticus 24:5–9 NKJV

“And you shall take fine flour and bake twelve cakes with it. Two-tenths of an ephah shall be in each cake. You shall set them in two rows, six in a row, on the pure gold table before the Lord. And you shall put pure frankincense on each row, that it may be on the bread for a memorial, an offering made by fire to the Lord. Every Sabbath he shall set it in order before the Lord continually, being taken from the children of Israel by an everlasting covenant. And it shall be for Aaron and his sons, and they shall eat it in a holy place; for it is most holy to him from the offerings of the Lord made by fire, by a perpetual statute.”

2/10 of an Ephah is about 2-5 lbs of flour, so with water approximately a 3-7 lb loaf.

Since it sat for a full week in the open air, it would still be perfectly edible, but not particularly appetizing. It would be quite hard and stale.

The purpose of the Bread of the Presence was to symbolize the reality that God is the real source of our food.

Only the priest and his family may eat holy offerings, and the Bread of the Presence must be eaten in a holy place, as well. (Lev 22:10-15) Not even a boarder with the priest could eat it.

Leviticus 22:10–15 NKJV

‘No outsider shall eat the holy offering; one who dwells with the priest, or a hired servant, shall not eat the holy thing. But if the priest buys a person with his money, he may eat it; and one who is born in his house may eat his food. If the priest’s daughter is married to an outsider, she may not eat of the holy offerings. But if the priest’s daughter is a widow or divorced, and has no child, and has returned to her father’s house as in her youth, she may eat her father’s food; but no outsider shall eat it. ‘And if a man eats the holy offering unintentionally, then he shall restore a holy offering to the priest, and add one-fifth to it. They shall not profane the holy offerings of the children of Israel, which they offer to the Lord,

The fact that there are no actual men with David is irrelevant to their discussion. They are both agreeing to use the Showbread on the understanding of the priest’s conditions.

Various things could make someone ritually unclean. One of those things was sex, even with one’s wife. This uncleanness did not imply sin - Marriage is honorable in all (Heb 13:4) . But uncleanness made one ineligible to appear before God in the temple and to come to formal feasts (such as the New Moon, last weeks’ sermon).

Not all things that ritually defiled could be avoided for men in battle. Touching a corpse also would do it, but that’s not really avoidable in battle. The one provision Ahimelech mentions is the one provision the men could easily have done. The reason for this condition is to avoid profaning God’s worship any more than necessary.

Jesus used this story to defend his disciples from Sabbath-breaking Mark 2:23-28

Mark 2:23–28 NKJV

Now it happened that He went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; and as they went His disciples began to pluck the heads of grain. And the Pharisees said to Him, “Look, why do they do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” But He said to them, “Have you never read what David did when he was in need and hungry, he and those with him: how he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the showbread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and also gave some to those who were with him?” And He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.”

The problem was the disciples were plucking grain. That wasn’t stealing. The Law allowed people to pick grain from a field or whatever with their hands. It wasn’t stealing.

the problem the Pharisees had is that it was technically work. Harvesting is, without question work in an agricultural society. So they were harvesting, threshing.

Jesus has three defenses.

David’s taking of the Showbread. Argument is that it was OK because God prioritizes mercy over Sacrifice

the Sabbath was made for man - The Sabbath was about ceasing to work, yes. But the purpose of the command wasn’t merely for the sake of the command, but to give men a rest. the Disciples are hungry - the Sabbath wasn’t given to deprive people of food, but to grant them rest. It isn’t restful to be starving.

The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath - Just as Ahimelech had the right to interpret the Law, the Son of Man has an even greater right - the right to define new Law. To be Lord of the Sabbath is to declare the right to independently saw what is lawful on the Sabbath.

At times, two principles in God’s Word will seem to collide. The ability to decide the right course of action in that case is the very definition of wisdom. This isn’t situational ethics. This is interpreting God’s Word for your situation in the right way.

II. The Lord Saved David from Escape

I. Setting – David in Danger at Gath 1 Sam 21:10-15

a. Goal was to escape Saul, so he journeyed 23 miles west.

b. His goal of being incognito foiled by the royal servants. They knew the “hit tune” about David being more valiant than Saul, but they thought that this made him the king of the land.

c. Since they thought he was a king, he was in at least as much danger before Achish as before Saul. Later he would be welcomed by Achich and even given the city of Ziklag, but that was after he had an army of misfits. Now he is alone and has nothing to offer

d. His deliverance was accomplished by David’s own clever behavior. He pretended to be a madman by doing things that would make him look crazy in that culture

II. Psalm 34 – From Praise to Fear: A Testimony that leads others to know God

a. Bless the Lord 1-3 Praise God for your deliverance so others may be encouraged to praise the Lord

i. Continually 1 (always be ready to praise the Lord)

ii. Infectiously 2 When we praise God for how he has helped us, it encourages those who are still in the midst of the valley of suffering.

1. To boast in God is great humility Jer 9:23-24

2. “humble” can mean those who are characterized by humility or those who are afflicted (Psalm 22:26). Most likely means “afflicted” given that the same word is used for David himself in v.6.

iii. Corporately 3 how does one magnify the Lord? Ill. You magnify the stars by showing what they really are. Benefit of corporate praise.

iv. Personally 4, 6 David explains the reason for his blessing the Lord on this occasion. His own experience of deliverance. Personal testimony of how God has helped you encourages others.

b. Seek the Lord 4-7

i. For deliverance from fear 4, 6

1. Summary of deliverance

2. How did God deliver David?

3. Examples of how

ii. Because those who seek God for help are never disappointed. 5

1. “They” is the impersonal “they” that no one is quite sure who they are. Thus this is a statement about what God has done in the past.

2. Result of deliverance pictured on the face

3. They are looking to God for help because they are presently in trouble. God does truly help those who ask him, but this does not mean that the righteous never experience difficulty

iii. Because God protects those who fear him 7

1. Angel of the Lord is a pre-incarnate appearance of God the Son (Ex 3:2, 4; also Gen 16:8-11, 13 and Judges 6:11-14. In all cases the Angel of the Lord appears, and is also Yahweh)

2. To camp around is to protect, like a soldier on watch protects the sleeping army he is guarding.

3. To Fear the Lord is another way of describing a believer.

c. Experience the Lord 8-10

i. Taste- to experience his provision

ii. God will provide for your needs better than a young lion provides for his.

iii. To experience is greater than merely to ask - write your congressperson vs. Full trust

iv. David is calling us to fully trust God to meet our every need.

d. Know the Lord 11-22 To Fear the Lord is to respect and serve him. It is the Old Testament description of a true believer.

i. The lifestyle of knowing God 12-16

1. Description 12-14

a. Desire what is good 12

b. Speak what is true 13

c. Pursue what is right 14

2. motivation 15-16 - behind the righteous lifestyle of one who fears God is

a. Not simply doing good for the sake of it

b. Not simply doing good to earn God’s favor - that’s impossible

c. But the basic conviction that despite appearances, God is gracious to the righteous and is against the wicked.

ii. The prayer-life of knowing God 17-22

1. Description 17-18

a. When in trouble the righteous pray for help 17

b. When in trouble the righteous assume God is near 18 both verbs describe one who is emotionally broken by his circumstances. They could also mean one who is repentant of his sins, but in this context it likely rather means someone who is overwhelmed by his troubles.

i. “brokenhearted” Psalm 51:17; 147:3

ii. “Crushed” only used three times, once with the meaning dust (Psalm 90:3), one other time with clearly the meaning “a contrite person, someone who expresses sorrow or pain over sin” Isa 57:15. But equivalent verb used of the sufferings of the Messiah Isa 53:5

2. Motivation 19-22

a. God’s help implies troubles that need it 19

b. God’s help implies eventual deliverance 20

c. God’s justice implies the destruction of the wicked 21-22

III. Application in the New Testament

a. To the Messiah John 19:31-36.

i. May be a quotation about the Passover lamb (Ex 12:46; Num 9:12)

ii. John takes pains to show that Jesus was killed as God’s Passover lamb (John 19:14, 31) day of preparation was the day before the evening when the Passover meal was eaten. The lamb was killed that afternoon.

iii. If this verse is alluded to then it identifies Jesus as a righteous man whose bones God protects

b. To the Persecuted Christian 1 Pet 3:8-14

i. Suffering is a prominent theme in 1 Pet (1:6-9)

ii. Concludes a section on the life of submission

1. Human government 2:13-17

2. Slaves to masters 2:18-25

3. Wives to husbands 3:1-6

4. Husbands (3:7)

iii. Concluding section with general exhortation (3:8-9)

iv. Substantiated with Psalm 34:10-12 quote

1. The presence of persecution makes the need for righteous living all the more acute, since God delivers the righteous.

2. The ultimate vindication and blessing of the believer is guaranteed.

v. Further comment on suffering for righteousness (3:13-17)

III. The Lord Provided David with Security

A. By reassurance from his family

B. By giving him an army

C. By giving safety to his family