Tag: David

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Strong words about serious victory

Posted on by William Douthwaite

A “through the bible” devotion from 2 Samuel 22.

When David writes that God his hands for battle, he isn’t kidding (2 Samuel 22:35). David uses vivid and violent words to describe the outcome of the fight.

  • I pursued my enemies and eliminated them (v38).
  • I have devoured and smashed them (v39).
  • I destroyed those who hate me (v41).
  • I pulverized them as the dust of the earth; I crushed and trampled them like the mud of the streets (v43).

When we’re watching crime series on TV, we often wonder why the police or FBI agents don’t just shoot the legs out from underneath a bad guy, or shoot the gun out of his hand. Those who do more shooting than I do have told me that if you are going to use a gun, you don’t fool around. You shoot to kill. At the shooting range, the person-shaped target has a bull’s eye in the middle of the torso.

David didn’t just chase bears and lions away from the flocks he was tending. He killed them (1 Samuel 17:34). He didn’t just knock Goliath out with a stone. He lopped off his head (1 Samuel 17:51). Victory means you’ve killed the enemy.

Rarely do I characterize my Christian life with ruthless words like pulverize, crush, and trample. But maybe I should.

Maybe that’s why Paul writes that “those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Galatians 5:24). You can’t mess around. The only way to victory is death, which Christ endured for me.

And that’s why I can worship and praise God along with David.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Here…catch!

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Erik Mclean on pexels

A “through the bible” devotion from 2 Samuel 20.

After Absalom’s death, David has a lot of loose ends to tie up when he returns to Jerusalem. One of them is Sheba who hails from the tribe of Benjamin. He doesn’t support David and rallies others to revolt, too.

Joab, David’s general, leads the search for Sheba and finally besieges the city of Abel Beth-maacah where he’s hiding. With assault ramps in place, they are ready to topple the wall and destroy the city to get to Sheba.

A wise woman speaks to Joab and asks if there might be a peaceful solution. Joab says, “Sure. Just give us Sheba.”

The woman promises, “We’ll throw his head over the wall.” Sure enough, she gets the people to cut off Sheba’s head and toss it to Joab (2 Samuel 20:22).

I’ve thrown pumpkins off the top of a fraternity house. Please don’t ask me why we did this. It must have been after the annual pumpkin patch raid and a lot of beer. It was fun. And it was a mess.

A human head hitting the ground? Not fun. Bloody. Disgusting. A city escapes destruction. Joab and David win a victory. And someone gets to take home a head!

I don’t remember coloring a page about this in Sunday School. We would have needed some extra red crayons!

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

I just can’t wait to be king!

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Christian Chen on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from 2 Samuel 15.

The light turned green, but I waited for a moment. In that moment, a car sped through the intersection. If I hadn’t hesitated, I might have died in the collision.

I’m very glad I waited.

If Absalom had just waited, he would have ascended to the throne when his father David died. But he can’t wait. He just can’t wait to be king.

So Absalom starts acting like he’s running for office.

  • He rides around in a chariot with fifty attendants, as if he were the king (2 Samuel 15:1). Optics are important, right?
  • He’s got time for people who can’t get an audience with the king. He makes campaign promises like, “If I were appointed judge in the land…everyone who has a complaint or case could come to me and I would see that they receive justice.” (15:4)
  • He treats everyone like a friend. “Whenever anyone approached him to bow down before him, Absalom would reach out his hand, take hold of him and kiss him” (15:5). 

Absalom did this for four years and “stole the hearts of the people of Israel” (15:6). His popularity soars and the people are willing to declare him to be king. David wisely flees before any violence breaks out.

There will be plenty of violence. But when the dust settles, Absalom dies. David retains the throne.

If only Absalom had waited.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Acting out

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Jure Širić on pexels

A “through the bible” devotion from 2 Samuel 14.

I can tell when my dogs feel like they aren’t getting enough attention. They go out of their way to find a grandkid’s toy to chew on, one of my socks to drag into the backyard, or a stick to bring into the house from the backyard. One of the dogs will “spite pee” on a bathroom rug if he’s feeling ignored. They know how to get our attention!

They’re just like kids, only furrier. Children know they’ll get plenty of attention if they misbehave, make a mess, or ignore you when you are talking to them.

It’s a tale as old as time.

David and his son Absalom are estranged after some family drama. David’s oldest son Amnon rapes his half-sister Tamar. Two years later, Absalom, her brother, avenges her by having a drunk Amnon murdered at a feast. It is three years before David summons Absalom back to Jerusalem. But they don’t actually meet face-to-face. Guess what message that sends?

Two years later, Absalom wants Joab, David’s general, to arrange a meeting. Joab ignores him twice, so Absalom sets fire to Joab’s barley field. That gets his attention and an audience with his father, the king.

I know, that is extreme. But it makes me wonder, what have I done because I wanted or needed attention? Complain? Say a long, long prayer? Ignore someone? Say something inflammatory? Speak loudly? Or proudly?

In those moments, I need to remember that God always pays attention. As soon as I begin to pray, he’s listening. Sometimes he’ll say, “Cut it out!” (Repent!). Other times he’ll say, “Sounds good. Here you go.” Still other times He’ll just listen. My prayer goes on and on. He just listens.

He doesn’t notice me because I act out or accomplish something. He’s my God. He’s my Father. And I will always be his dearly loved child.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

David’s most shameful moment

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Mick Haupt on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from 2 Samuel 11 and 12.

Imagine having the account of your most shameful behavior published in the best selling book of all time. Peter’s denial of Jesus is recorded in scripture. Paul’s persecution of Christians is documented. Moses has to explain why he can’t go into the promised land in the Pentetuech. (He hit the rock to get water instead of speaking to it.) Noah gets drunk and naked after the floodwaters recede. Judah sleeps with his daughter-in-law Tamar.

I never like reading about David’s affair with Bathsheba and his attempt to cover it up, ultimately leading to the death of Uriah (2 Samuel 11). Everything is going so well for David, and suddenly, it all falls apart. Not only will his child die, but there will be conflict among his other children.

My heart breaks when I read David’s words, “I have sinned against the Lord” (2 Samuel 11:13). David hasn’t just hurt other people. He has turned against God himself. Any sin affects our relationship with God. David offers no excuses. He simply confesses.

I wonder how the author of 1 Samuel knew of this moment? I doubt that the prophet Nathan said anything. David must have talked about it. Perhaps he told the story when asked why he wrote Psalm 51.

When you think about it, all of our most shameful moments become Jesus most shameful moments. “The Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6). “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree” (1 Peter 2:24). In exchange, we put on Christ and his best moments, his righteousness.

All the people God uses have issues. They are broken. But it’s about the people God uses. It’s about the God who uses them. It’s about the gracious God who uses you and me.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Comfortable in a tent

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Birk Enwald on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from 2 Samuel 7.

Whenever we’ve gone camping, we’ve taken time to walk through the grounds to see the variety of trailers and coaches set up for the night or for a long stay. We were always the smallest kid on the team, setting up camp in a tent, pop-up camper, or small trailer next to the behemoth rigs. With five slide outs, some of those forty-plus-foot vehicles had almost as much living space as the first house we bought.

Dwarfed by huge coaches at an RV park, I struck up a conversation with one owner who was grilling supper. He told me they had to stay put for a while because he really couldn’t afford the fuel to drive anywhere. That didn’t sound like much fun to me.

One day King David decides that God needs something better than a tent. If he’s living in a nice cedar-walled house, God should have a nice place, too (2 Samuel 7:2).

That’s not God’s style. The Lord says, “Would you build me a house to dwell in? I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent for my dwelling” (2 Samuel 7:5,6).

God’s never had a house. His place was a tabernacle, set up wherever his people happened to be. The almighty creator of the universe was comfortable in a tent.

One day a descendant of David would build a house for the Lord. But for now, God has a better idea. “I will build you a house'” (2 Samuel 7:27). Someone from the house and lineage of David will always be on the throne of Israel, a promise that finds ultimate fulfillment in Jesus.

There’s nothing wrong with wanting to do something for the Lord. The magi bring gifts. A woman anoints him with expensive perfume. Tearful friends wrap his body in line and lay him in a tomb. His followers offer themselves up as living sacrifices.

I just need to remember that God’s greatest desire is to do something for me. He wants to give me abundant, eternal life.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Don’t touch that!

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from 2 Samuel 6.

There are many things you do not want to touch. The following is not a complete list, just a few things that come to mind.

  • Wet paint
  • Cactus
  • Porcupine
  • Hot stovetop burner
  • Fire
  • Jellyfish
  • Poison Ivy
  • Superglue
  • The ark of the covenant

The ark of the covenant? Yes, God’s law is clear. Only Levites can touch the holy things of God, especially the ark. Mishandle it, and you die. Period (Numbers 4:15).

This isn’t like your big brother threatening, “If you touch my stuff, I’ll kill you!” It’s about a holy God and impure, sinful people. Putting them together is like dropping a match into a bucket of gasoline. Just like camping at the base of Mt. Sinai, you better keep your distance.

Anyway, in 2 Samuel 6, David wants to bring the ark of the covenant back to Jerusalem. Twenty years ago, the Philistines captured the ark. When they suffered all kinds of health problems, they quickly got rid of it. They put it on a cart, hitched up a couple of cows, and sent it down the road to Israel. It was stored at the house of a man named Abinadab.

David had secured the throne of a united Judah and Israel. It’s time to bring the ark home. Unfortunately, they got sloppy. When the oxen pulling the cart stumbled, Uzzah kept the ark from falling with his hand and died on the spot. David is angry, and “David was afraid of the Lord that day,” too (2 Samuel 6:9). Rather than bringing the ark into the city, they store it in another person’s home.

When do we take God’s holiness for granted? Most of the time. We forget that Jesus had to die a terrible death on the cross to atone for our sins and make a relationship with God possible. We get sloppy. Rather than following his clear instructions, we figure he’ll let us slide. Rather than being grateful, we’ll get impatient and demanding. We’ll even get angry with God. What does it take before you fear the Lord?

Three months later, David tries again. This time he takes his time and does it right. He saturates the journey to Jerusalem with reverence, worship, sacrifice, praise, and joy (6:13-15).

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Who abandoned who?

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by cottonbro studio on pexels

A “through the bible” devotion from 1 Samuel 28.

In the middle of a phone conversation, I realize I’m talking to myself. Either my phone has dropped the connection. I take connectivity for granted until I drive through a dead zone with little or no cell service.

King Saul experienced the same thing. When the enemy gathers for attack, Saul is shaking in his boots. It gets worse. “Saul inquired of the Lord, but the Lord did not answer him” (1 Samuel 28:6). The prophet Samuel has died, so Saul tries everything he can think of, from prophets to dreams. Nothing. Crickets.

Saul turns to the occult. He finds a medium. When she conjures up the spirit of Samuel, the prophet wants to know, “Why are you bothering me?”

Saul replies, “God has abandoned me and no longer answers me” (18:15).

What did you expect, Saul? Samuel reminds him, “The Lord has done just as He spoke through me” (28:17). Remember, Saul? “You have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel” (15:26).

You never listened to God before. And you’re not going to hear from him now, either. You got exactly what you wanted.

What hinders our prayers? Here’s a few things:

Insincere worship. “Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with a wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high” (Isaiah 58:4).

Unconfessed sin. “If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened” (Psalm 66:18).

Wrong motives. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions” (James 4:3).

Ignoring God’s word. If one turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination” (Proverbs 28:9).

Saul’s experience reminds me that if I feel like God has abandoned me, I need to consider how I’ve abandoned him.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Delivered from evil

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Marina Abrosimova on pexels

A “through the bible” devotion from 1 Samuel 25.

I figure I’ve prayed, “Deliver us from evil” over 20,000 times in my lifetime. And I know God answers that prayer by protecting me from harm, getting me through difficult times, and eventually getting me out of here to be with him in eternity. David’s experience in 1 Samuel 25 reminds me that God sometimes accomplishes this through other people.

David is upset with Nabal, who won’t cough up some food and drink for David’s men who have provided protection during a sheep shearing season. David is so upset that he intends to slaughter the whole bunch of them!

Nabal’s wife, Abigail, gets wind of this, gets a huge gift basket together for David, and begs for forgiveness. Her intercession defuses the situation.

“David said to Abigail, ‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me, and blessed be your discernment, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodshed and from avenging myself by my own hand'” (1 Samuel 25:32,33).

Thank God for family and friends who pull me aside before I do or say something I’ll regret. My reaction will probably make things worse. Do I really want to add to the evil in this world? In that moment, yes! But not really. It’s good to have a few folks around to calm me down.

David was right to relent. Nabal gets drunk, has a heart attack (?), and dies. God takes care of the whole situation, as he typically does.