Transcript 2 Samuel/1 Chronicles

2 Samuel/1 Chronicles
David
David
• “God removed Saul and made David their king.
God spoke favorably about David. He said, ‘I
have found that David, son of Jesse, is a man
after my own heart. He will do everything I want
him to do.’” (Acts 13:33 – GOD’S WORD)
David
• Goliath
– “You are coming against me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I
come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God
of the Israelite armies, which you have defied. This very day the
LORD will put you in my power; I will defeat you and cut off
your head. And I will give the bodies of the Philistine soldiers
to the birds and animals to eat. Then the whole world will know
that Israel has a God, and everyone here will see that the LORD
does not need swords or spears to save his people. He is
victorious in battle, and he will put all of you in our power.” (1
Samuel 17:45-47 – GN)
• Marriage to Saul’s daughter
– “All the king wants from you as payment for the bride are the
foreskins of a hundred dead Philistines, as revenge on his
enemies.’ (This was how Saul planned to have David killed by
the Philistines.)” (1 Samuel 18:25 – GN)
• “David and his men went out and struck down
200 Philistines. David brought the foreskins, and
they counted them out for the king so that
David could become the king’s son-in-law.” (1
Samuel 18:27 – God’s Word)
David
• 1 Samuel - Fleeing from Saul
• Refusing to kill Saul despite many opportunities
• “So David left, fleeing from Saul, and went to King
Achish of Gath….he became very much afraid of King
Achish. So whenever David was around them, he
pretended to be insane and acted like a madman when
they tried to restrain him; he would scribble on the city
gates and let spit drool down his beard.” (1 Samuel
21:10,12,13 – GN)
Prophets and Inspiration
• Can a prophet make a mistake?
• Can you absolutely rely on a prophet’s advice on
spiritual matters, all the time?
• Health matters?
• Relational matters?
Prophets and Inspiration
• “King David was settled in his palace, and the LORD
kept him safe from all his enemies. Then the king said
to the prophet Nathan, ‘Here I am living in a house
built of cedar, but God’s Covenant Box is kept in a
tent!’ Nathan answered, ‘Do whatever you have in
mind, because the LORD is with you.’
• But that night the LORD said to Nathan, ‘Go and tell
my servant David that I say to him, ‘You are not the
one to build a temple for me to live in.’” (2 Samuel 7:15 – GN)
• Is Nathan still a prophet?
Prophets and Inspiration
• Jeremiah
– “Then I said, ‘Lord, you understand. Remember me and help
me. Let me have revenge on those who persecute me. Do not be
so patient with them that they succeed in killing me. Remember
that it is for your sake that I am insulted. You spoke to me, and I
listened to every word. I belong to you, Lord God Almighty, and
so your words filled my heart with joy and happiness. I did not
spend my time with other people, laughing and having a good
time. In obedience to your orders I stayed by myself and was
filled with anger. Why do I keep on suffering? Why are my
wounds incurable? Why won’t they heal? Do you intend to
disappoint me like a stream that goes dry in the summer?”
(Jeremiah 15:15-18 – GN)
– “To this the Lord replied, ‘If you return, I will take you back,
and you will be my servant again. If instead of talking nonsense
you proclaim a worthwhile message, you will be my prophet
again.” (Jeremiah 15:19-21)
The Bible writers
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Moses
David
Solomon
Jonah
Peter
Other writers
• Martin Luther
– “King of Hops”
• C.S. Lewis
Prophets and Inspiration
• “What hurts me most is this – that God is no
longer powerful.” (Psalm 77:10 – GN).
• “Babylon, you will be destroyed. Happy are
those who pay you back for what you have done
to us---who take your babies and smash them
against a rock.” (Psalm 137:9,10 – GN)
• “I hate them with a total hatred” (Psalm 139:22
– GN)
Prophets and Inspiration
• “From David to the time when the people of Israel were taken
into exile in Babylon, the following ancestors are listed: David,
Solomon (his mother was the woman who had been Uriah's
wife), Rehoboam, Abijah, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, Uzziah,
Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Amon, Josiah, and
Jehoiachin and his brothers.” (Matthew 1:6-11 – GN)
• “So then, there were fourteen generations from Abraham to
David, and fourteen from David to the exile in Babylon, and
fourteen from then to the birth of the Messiah.” (Matthew 1:17
– GN)
• “Jehoram, Ahaziah, Joash, Amaziah, Uzziah, Jotham…” (1
Chronicles 3:11 – GN)
Prophets and Inspiration
• Joseph and Mary flee with Jesus to Egypt:
– “This was done to make come true what the Lord had said
through the prophet, “I called my Son out of Egypt”
(Matthew 2:15 – GN)
• “The LORD says, ‘When Israel was a child, I loved him
and called him out of Egypt as my son.
• But the more I called to him, the more he turned away
from me. My people sacrificed to Baal; they burned
incense to idols.” (Hosea 11:1,2 – GN)
Prophets and Inspiration
• “As a result, the punishment for the murder of all
innocent people will fall on you, from the murder of
innocent Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of
Berechiah, whom you murdered between the Temple
and the altar.” (Matthew 23:35 – GN)
• “The king (Joash) forgot about the loyal service that
Zechariah’s father Jehoiada had given him, and he had
Zechariah killed. As Zechariah was dying, he called out,
‘May the LORD see what you are doing and punish
you!’” (2 Chronicles 24:22 – GN)
Prophets and Inspiration
• “Then what the prophet Jeremiah had said came
true: ‘They took the thirty silver coins, the
amount the people of Israel had agreed to pay
for him, and used the money to buy the potter's
field, as the Lord had commanded me.’”
(Matthew 27:9 – GN)
• Zechariah 11:13
Prophets and Inspiration
• “I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except
Crispus and Gaius. No one can say, then, that you were
baptized as my disciples. (Oh yes, I also baptized
Stephanas and his family; but I can’t remember whether
I baptized anyone else.)” (1 Corinthians 1:14-16 – GN)
• “Now, concerning what you wrote about unmarried
people: I do not have a command from the Lord, but I
give my opinion as one who by the Lord’s mercy is
worthy of trust….That is my opinion, and I think that I
too have God’s Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 7:25, 40 – GN)
Prophets and Inspiration
• Are prophets perfect people with perfect advice?
– “The writers of the Bible were God’s penmen, not His
pen”
• Is the Bible perfect?
– It is in our language and everything that is human is
imperfect.
– “It is not the words of the Bible that are inspired, but
the men that were inspired. Inspiration acts not on the
man’s words or his expressions but on the man
himself, who, under the influence of the Holy Ghost,
is imbued with thoughts.” (1SM 21.2)
• “The Bible is written by inspired men, but it is
not God’s mode of thought and expression. It is
that of humanity. God, as a writer, is not
represented. Men will often say such an
expression is not like God. But God has not put
Himself in words, in logic, in rhetoric, on trial in
the Bible. The writers of the Bible were God’s
penmen, not His pen. Look at the different
writers.” {1SM 21.1}
David and Bathsheba
• In the spring, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent
Joab, his mercenaries, and Israel’s army to war. They destroyed the
Ammonites and attacked Rabbah, while David stayed in Jerusalem.
Now, when evening came, David got up from his bed and walked
around on the roof of the royal palace. From the roof he saw a
woman bathing, and she was very pretty. David sent someone to
ask about the woman. The man said, ‘She’s Bathsheba, daughter of
Eliam and wife of Uriah the Hittite.’ So David sent messengers
and took her. She came to him, and he went to bed with her. (She
had just cleansed herself after her monthly period.) Then she went
home. The woman had become pregnant. So she sent someone to
tell David that she was pregnant. Then David sent a messenger to
Joab, saying, ‘Send me Uriah the Hittite.’ So Joab sent Uriah to
David. When Uriah arrived, David asked him how Joab and the
troops were and how the war was going. ‘Go home,’ David said to
Uriah, ‘and wash your feet.’
David and Bathsheba
• Uriah left the royal palace, and the king sent a present to him. But
Uriah slept at the entrance of the royal palace among his superior’s
mercenaries. He didn’t go home. When they told David, ‘Uriah
didn’t go home,’ David asked Uriah, ‘Didn’t you just come from a
journey? Why didn’t you go home?’ Uriah answered David, ‘The
ark and the army of Israel and Judah are in temporary shelters, and
my commander Joab and Your Majesty’s mercenaries are living in
the field. Should I then go to my house to eat and drink and go to
bed with my wife? I solemnly swear, as sure as you’re living, I won’t
do this!’ David said to Uriah, ‘Then stay here today, and tomorrow
I’ll send you back.’ So Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day and the
next. David summoned him, ate and drank with him, and got him
drunk. But that evening Uriah went to lie down on his bed among
his superior’s mercenaries. He didn’t go home. In the morning
David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah. In the letter he
wrote, ‘Put Uriah on the front line where the fighting is heaviest.
Then abandon him so that he’ll be struck down and die.’
David and Bathsheba
• Since Joab had kept the city under observation, he put Uriah at
the place where he knew the experienced warriors were. The men
of the city came out and fought Joab. Some of the people,
namely, some of David’s mercenaries, fell and died-including
Uriah the Hittite. Then Joab sent a messenger to report to David
all the details of the battle. And he commanded the messenger,
‘When you finish telling the king about the battle, the king may
become angry. He might ask you, ‘Why did you go so close to the
city to fight? Didn’t you know they would shoot from the wall?
Who killed…Abimelech? Didn’t a woman on the wall…throw a
small millstone at him and kill him? Why did you go so close to
the wall?’ If the king asks this, then say, ‘Your man Uriah the
Hittite is also dead.’ The messenger left, and when he arrived, he
reported to David everything Joab told him to say.
David and Bathsheba
• The messenger said, ‘Their men overpowered us and came to
attack us in the field. Then we forced them back to the entrance
of the city gate. The archers on the wall shot down at your
mercenaries, and some of Your Majesty’s mercenaries died. Your
man Uriah the Hittite also is dead.’ David said to the messenger,
‘This is what you are to say to Joab, ‘Don’t let this thing trouble
you, because a sword can kill one person as easily as another.
Strengthen your attack against the city, and destroy it.’ Say this to
encourage him.’ When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband Uriah
was dead, she mourned for him. When her mourning was over,
David sent for her and brought her to his home, and she became
his wife. Then she gave birth to a son. But the LORD
considered David’s actions evil. (2 Samuel 11:1-27 – GN)
David and Bathsheba
• Uriah
– “This is the list of David’s famous soldiers. Together with the
rest of the people of Israel, they helped him become king, as
the LORD had promised, and they kept his kingdom strong.”
(1 Chronicles 11:10 – GN)
– “….Uriah the Hittite…” (1 Chronicles 11:26-47 – GN)
• How was David looked upon?
– “…the king is like God’s angel and can distinguish good from
evil” (2 Samuel 14:17 – GN)
• What should God do?
David and Bathsheba
• “The LORD sent the prophet Nathan to David. Nathan went to
him and said, ‘There were two men who lived in the same town;
one was rich and the other poor. The rich man had many cattle
and sheep, while the poor man had only one lamb, which he had
bought. He took care of it, and it grew up in his home with his
children. He would feed it some of his own food, let it drink
from his cup, and hold it in his lap. The lamb was like a daughter
to him. One day a visitor arrived at the rich man’s home. The
rich man didn’t want to kill one of his own animals to fix a meal
for him; instead, he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared a
meal for his guest.’ David became very angry at the rich man and
said, ‘I swear by the living LORD that the man who did this
ought to die! For having done such a cruel thing, he must pay
back four times as much as he took.’
David and Bathsheba
• ‘You are that man,’ Nathan said to David. ‘And this is what the LORD God of
Israel says: ‘I made you king of Israel and rescued you from Saul. I gave you his
kingdom and his wives; I made you king over Israel and Judah. If this had not been
enough, I would have given you twice as much. Why, then, have you disobeyed my
commands? Why did you do this evil thing? You had Uriah killed in battle; you let
the Ammonites kill him, and then you took his wife! Now, in every generation
some of your descendants will die a violent death because you have disobeyed me
and have taken Uriah’s wife. I swear to you that I will cause someone from your
own family to bring trouble on you. You will see it when I take your wives from
you and give them to another man; and he will have intercourse with them in broad
daylight. You sinned in secret, but I will make this happen in broad daylight for all
Israel to see.’
• ‘I have sinned against the LORD,’ David said. Nathan replied, ‘The LORD forgives
you; you will not die. But because you have shown such contempt for the LORD in
doing this, your child will die.’ Then Nathan went home. The LORD caused the
child that Uriah’s wife had borne to David to become very sick.” (2 Samuel 12:1-15
– GN)
How have others responded?
• Jeroboam: “Seize that man!” (1 Kings 13:4 –
GN)
• Eli: “He is the LORD. May he do what he thinks
is right” (1 Samuel 3:18 – GN)
David’s response
• “Be merciful to me, O God, because of your constant love.
Because of your great mercy wipe away my sins! Wash away all my
evil and make me clean from my sin! I recognize my faults; I am
always conscious of my sins. I have sinned against you---only
against you--- and done what you consider evil. So you are right in
judging me; you are justified in condemning me. I have been evil
from the day I was born; from the time I was conceived, I have
been sinful. Sincerity and truth are what you require; fill my mind
with your wisdom. Remove my sin, and I will be clean; wash me,
and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear the sounds of joy and
gladness; and though you have crushed me and broken me, I will
be happy once again. Close your eyes to my sins and wipe out all
my evil.
David’s response
• Create a pure heart in me, O God, and put a new and
loyal spirit in me. Do not banish me from your
presence; do not take your holy spirit away from me.
Give me again the joy that comes from your salvation,
and make me willing to obey you. Then I will teach
sinners your commands, and they will turn back to you.
Spare my life, O God, and save me, and I will gladly
proclaim your righteousness. Help me to speak, Lord,
and I will praise you. You do not want sacrifices, or I
would offer them; you are not pleased with burnt
offerings. My sacrifice is a humble spirit, O God; you
will not reject a humble and repentant heart. (Psalms
51:1-17 – GN)
Healed or Pardoned?
• A new heart and a right spirit
• We are infected with the principles of self-centeredness
• We are healed by the punishment he suffered, made whole by the
blows he received” (Isaiah 53:5).
• Jeremiah:
– “Why are my wounds incurable? Why won’t they heal…LORD, heal me
and I will be completely well” (Jeremiah 15:18, 17:14).
• Are we healable?
– “Make these people close-minded. Plug their ears. Shut their eyes.
Otherwise, they may see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand
with their minds, and return and be healed” (Isaiah 6:10, GOD’S
WORD).
The diagnosis of spiritual death
Judah:
– “The LORD God of their ancestors repeatedly sent messages
through his messengers because he wanted to spare his people
and his dwelling place. But they mocked God’s messengers,
despised his words, and made fun of his prophets until the
LORD became angry with his people. He could no longer heal
them” (2 Chronicles 36:15,16, GOD’S WORD).
– “Is there no medicine in Gilead? Are there no doctors there?
Why, then, have my people not been healed? (Jeremiah 8:22).
– “The Lord says to his people, ‘Your wounds are incurable,
your injuries cannot be healed. There is no one to take care of
you, no remedy for your sores, no hope of healing for you’”
(Jeremiah 30:12:13).
The diagnosis of spiritual death
• Assyria
– “There is no remedy for your injuries, and your wounds
cannot be healed” (Nahum 3:19)
• Babylon:
– “Babylon will suddenly fall and be shattered. Cry for it. Bring
medicine for its pain. Maybe it can be healed. We wanted to
heal Babylon, but it couldn’t be healed. Let’s abandon it and
go to our own land. God has judged Babylon. Its judgment is
complete.” (Jeremiah 51:8,9, GOD’S WORD).
• Egypt:
– “People of Egypt, go to Gilead and look for medicine! All
your medicine has proved useless; nothing can heal you.”
(Jeremiah 46:12 – GN)
Healed or Pardoned?
• The rebels who died in the wilderness:
– “The LORD answered, ‘I will forgive them, as you have asked.
But I promise that as surely as I live and as surely as my
presence fills the earth, none of these people will live to enter
that land. They have seen the dazzling light of my presence
and the miracles that I performed in Egypt and in the
wilderness, but they have tried my patience over and over again
and have refused to obey me.’” (Numbers 14:20-22 – GN)
• Stephen
– “Lord! Do not remember this sin against them!” (Acts 7:60 –
GN).
• Jesus
– “Forgive them, Father!” (Luke 23:34 – GN).
Healed
• “Yes, may you come to know his love—although it can
never be fully known—and so be completely filled with
the very nature of God” (Ephesians 3:19 – GN).
• “And all of us have had that veil removed so that we can
be mirrors that brightly reflect the glory of the Lord.
And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we
become more and more like him and reflect his glory
even more” (2 Corinthians 3:18, NLT).
• “This is how we can be sure that we are in union with
God: if we say that we remain in union with God, we
should live just as Jesus Christ did” (1 John 2:5 – GN)
The physician model
• 55 year old man comes to see you
• He has neglected his high blood pressure and diabetes
for years
• His diet has been horrible
• He smokes 3 packs of cigarettes per day.
• He hasn’t taken his medications, and has missed the last
10 doctor visits. Now he is feeling dizzy and has
headaches.
• What would the ideal earthly physician do?
• By contrast, what does our Heavenly Physician do with
someone who comes to him – equally sick in terms of
spiritual deprivation?
Option #1
• Earthly physician:
– “I forgive you for not taking your medications, and for
your lifetime of poor diet, high cholesterol and obesity
which led to this problem. But I forgive you. Go
home. All is well!”
• Heavenly physician:
– “I forgive you for your sins and for not spending time
with me. You are now in good legal standing with me
because you are forgiven and the price for your sins
has been paid by my Son. All is well.”
Option #2
• Earthly Physician:
– “Please trust me and follow my advice. If you don’t, because
of my intolerance for this sort of behavior, it will cause me
to some day find where you live and worsen your underlying
disease.”
• Heavenly Physician:
– “Please trust me and accept what I have done for you. I have
to tell you though, that if you don’t, because of my justice
and hatred of sin, I will one day be forced to punish you.”
Option #3
• Earthly Physician:
– “I’m so glad that you finally came and I won’t hold it against
you for missing all of our appointments together and for not
taking your medications. You are very sick and need my help.
Please trust me this time. If you do, and if you keep your
appointments with me and follow my directions, I can help
you and you will get better. The symptoms you are
experiencing are a natural result of not keeping your
appointments with me and of not following my advice. If you
follow my treatment plan, you will get better. But how can I
impress on you the serious consequences of not trusting me
and following my advice?”
– Patient:
• You mean I have to do something?
Option #3
• Heavenly Physician:
– “I am so glad that you have come – I have been longing for you
to return. Of course I forgive you! I am forgiveness personified
and I would just as soon not have you focus on your past
failures, but instead look to me. You are here with me now – if
you stay, I can absolutely guarantee perfect healing and
restoration. The things you are now experiencing are a natural
result of living apart from me. Please stay with me long enough
to learn the truth. Let me explain the scriptures to you, and see
for yourself how I treated the worst of sinners. I am going to
lose you if you don’t stay with me, and if you are not willing to
listen – and the natural consequences of that are so serious.
The good news is I have never lost one of my patients who
trusts in me and is willing to listen.”
– Us:
• God, please don’t heal me completely please.
• “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is
perfect.” (Matthew 5:48 – NIV)
• “In a word, what I’m saying is, Grow up. You’re
kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your
God-created identity. Live generously and graciously
toward others, the way God lives toward you.”
(Matthew 5:48 – The Message)
• Thief on the cross
God’s case in court
• “Against you, and you alone, have I sinned; I have done
what is evil in your sight. You will be proved right in
what you say, and your judgment against me is just.”
• “True, some of them were unfaithful; but just because
they broke their promises, does that mean God will
break his promises? Of course not! Though everyone
else in the world is a liar, God is true. As the Scriptures
say, ‘He will be proved right in what he says, and he will
win his case in court.’” (Romans 3:4 – NLT)
God’s case in court
• God does not use his superior power to restore trust - - he provides convincing
evidence
– Abraham, Job, Moses, David, the nation Israel, Jesus
• “Wherever they went, they brought disgrace on my holy name, because people
would say, ‘These are the people of the LORD, but they had to leave his land.’
That made me concerned for my holy name, since the Israelites brought disgrace
on it everywhere they went. ‘Now then, give the Israelites the message that I, the
Sovereign LORD, have for them: What I am going to do is not for the sake of you
Israelites, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have disgraced in every
country where you have gone. When I demonstrate to the nations the holiness of
my great name---the name you disgraced among them---then they will know that I
am the LORD. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken. I will use you to show the
nations that I am holy. I will take you from every nation and country and bring
you back to your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you and make you clean
from all your idols and everything else that has defiled you. I will give you a new
heart and a new mind. I will take away your stubborn heart of stone and give you
an obedient heart. I will put my spirit in you and will see to it that you follow my
laws and keep all the commands I have given you. (Ezekiel 36:20-27 – GN)