WWUTT 349 David Becomes King?

As we read the book of 2 Samuel, we see more and more this unfolding promise of a coming Messiah who is going to save the people of God from their sins. And we get closer to that in today's reading, When We Understand the Text.

Program Introduction and the Messianic Promise in 2 Samuel

You're listening to When We Understand the Text, an online Bible ministry committed to teaching sound doctrine and exposing the faulty. Find videos and more at our website, www .utt .com. Now here's our host, Pastor Gabe Hughes.

Thank you, Becky. We are continuing our Old Testament study today, 2 Samuel 2. If you want to open up your Bible and join with me there. To recap where we were last week, we did our introduction into 2 Samuel and then only got as far as chapter 1.

But there we have David mourning the death of Saul and Jonathan who fell at the hands of the Philistines. David was not going to take matters into his own hand and strike down Saul even though Saul was seeking after his life.

And then David assumed the throne of Israel as he was ordained to do as he had been anointed to become the next king following King Saul. But now that Saul is dead, David is ready to assume the throne and we're going to see David anointed again.

The first anointing was the anointing of God through the prophet Samuel. This anointing will be the people's recognition of David as their king. So 2 Samuel 2 beginning in verse 1. After this, David inquired of the Lord, Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah?

And the Lord said to him, Go up. And David said, To which shall I go up? And God said, To Hebron. So David went up there and his two wives also, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel.

And David brought up his men who were with him, everyone with his household, and they lived in the towns of Hebron. And the men of Judah came and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah.

Now Hebron is a pretty significant city. As a matter of fact, it was the most significant city in Judah. Hebron is where Abraham built an altar to the Lord. I think it's Genesis chapter 13 is where we read about that.

It's where the Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre and told Abraham that he was going to make him the father of many nations. And at this time next year, he was going to have a son. And Sarah laughed about that, of course.

And then the irony was when that son was born, Abraham and Sarah named him Isaac, which meant laughter, not just because this son brought joy into their lives, but because they laughed at God when God said that they were going to have a son.

That very place in Hebron was where Sarah died and was buried, and later Abraham would be buried there as well. So there is significance to this city, Hebron. And as we talked about last week when we were getting into our study of 2 Samuel, we said that the messianic promise takes a turn here in this particular book because God says of David that he is going to establish on his throne his kingdom forever.

And we have the promise of the Messiah, which is coming up in chapter 7. So here, with David going up to Hebron, the stage is being set for that because God made the promise to Abraham that the Messiah was going to come from his line.

And so David is going up to the very place where God had promised Abraham a son, the promised seed. It was not going to be Ishmael. It was going to be Isaac. And that was where that promise was made there at Hebron.

It was where Abraham dwelled. It was where he built an altar to the Lord. It was where he died and was buried. And so all of the significance of that there with David coming up to Hebron. Now, he has not yet conquered Jerusalem.

That doesn't happen until chapter 5. So for the time being, Hebron becomes that place, that locale of the king. And Judah recognizes David as king, but not the rest of Israel. And we've seen even up to this point distinguishing mentions of Israel and Judah.

Every time Israel is mentioned, Judah is mentioned separate. You'll have Saul having gathered his armies against his enemies, and it will say he had gathered so many thousand men of Israel and so many thousand men of Judah were there as well.

So Judah were kind of their own people. They were a conquering people. They were a successful people because they were the first armies to be gathered up against the pagans that lived in the land when we read about it in the book of Judges following the death of Joshua.

So the people of Israel are kind of taking matters into their hands. Well, in a sense, they're fulfilling what God had commanded the people of Israel to do when he said that they were to conquer the rest of the cities that were around them.

So Judah contained the most successful armies in that sense. They were their own people. And so because David was a descendant of the house of Judah, Judah recognizes David first as king. Israel is going to recognize somebody else's king, which we'll get to as we continue on here.

So they told David it was the men of Jebesh-Gilead who buried Saul. David sent messengers to the men of Jebesh-Gilead and said to them, May you be blessed by the Lord because you showed this loyalty to Saul your Lord and buried him.

Now may the Lord show steadfast love and faithfulness to you, and I will do good to you because you have done this thing. Now therefore let your hands be strong and be valiant for Saul your Lord is dead, and the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.

So even though David recognized Saul as God's anointed, apparently that recognition only went as far as Saul's death. Once Saul has died, David is not going to recognize anyone else from the house of Saul as a rightful heir to the throne because he knows, as has been anointed by Samuel, he is to be king and Judah is the first to make him king.

But he doesn't force the rest of Israel to recognize that, but Israel eventually will. So we go on into verse 8 now. But Abner the son of Ner, commander of Saul's army, took Ish-besheth the son of Saul and brought him over to Mahanaim.

And there he made him king over Gilead and the Asherites and Jezreel and Ephraim and Benjamin and all Israel. And all Israel in this sense means all of Israel that's been mentioned there. Ish-besheth Saul's son was 40 years old when he began to reign over Israel and he reigned two years.

But the house of Judah followed David. And the time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months. So it's kind of like even after Ish-besheth was no longer king, it took Israel a little while to recognize David as their king.

Abner the son of Ner and the servants of Ish-besheth the son of Saul went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon. And Joab the son of Zeruiah and the servants of David went out and met them at the pool of Gibeon.

And they sat down, the one on the one side of the pool and the other on the other side of the pool. And Abner said to Joab, let the young men arise and compete before us. And Joab said, let them arise.

Then they arose and passed over number. I'm sorry. And passed over by number 12 for Benjamin and Ish-besheth the son of Saul and 12 of the servants of David. And each caught his opponent by the head and thrust his sword into his opponent's side.

So they fell down together. Therefore, that place was called Helkath Hazarim, which is at Gibeon. And the battle was very fierce that day. And Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.

By the way, they have done an excavation of Gibeon and found that exact pool. Because it was a very significant pool. So it's the only one that it could have been since it's mentioned here in 2 Samuel.

So they found the exact pool where all of this would have taken place. Verse 18. And the three sons of Zeruiah were there, Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Now Asahel was swift of foot as a wild gazelle. And Asahel pursued Abner.

And as he went, he turned neither to the right hand nor to the left from following Abner. Then Abner looked behind him and said, Is it you, Asahel? And he answered, It is I. Abner said to him, Turn aside to your right hand or to your left and seize one of the young men and take his spoil.

But Asahel would not turn aside from following him. And Abner said again to Asahel, Turn aside from following me. Why should I strike you to the ground? How then could I lift up my face to your brother Joab?

But he refused to turn aside. Therefore Abner struck him in the stomach with the butt of his spear so that the spear came out his back. And he fell there and died where he was. And all who came to the place where Asahel had fallen and died stood still.

They didn't all die. It was where Asahel had fallen and died. So anyway, it's pretty gruesome. He runs into the butt of the spear and died. But it was probably because of his pursuit of Abner. And then Abner came to a sudden stop, thrust his spear backward and went right into Asahel.

But Joab and Abishai pursued Abner. And as the sun was going down, they came to the hill of Ammah, which lies before Gaia on the way to the wilderness of Gibeon. And the people of Benjamin gathered themselves together behind Abner and became one group and took their stand on the top of a hill.

Then Abner called to Joab, Shall the sword devour forever? Do you not know that the end will be bitter? How long will it be before you tell your people to turn from the pursuit of their brothers? And Joab said, As God lives, if you had not spoken, surely the men would not have given up the pursuit of the brothers until the morning.

So Joab blew the trumpet and all the men stopped and pursued Israel no more, nor did they fight anymore. And Abner and his men went all that night through the Erebah. They crossed the Jordan and marching the whole morning they came to Mahanaim.

Joab returned from the pursuit of Abner. And when he had gathered all the people together, there were missing from David's servants 19 men besides Asahel. But the servants of David had struck down of Benjamin 360 of Abner's men.

And they took up Asahel and buried him in the tomb of his father, which was at Bethlehem. And Joab and his men marched all night, and the day broke upon them at Hebron. Hebron, by the way, is not far from Bethlehem.

So that was another reason why David would have gone to that place and settled, not just because it was a location that was significant to Abraham and where Abraham and Sarah were buried, but also because it was close to David's family.

So this is not yet the capital city of Israel. That would, of course, become Jerusalem. But for the time being, while David is king over Judah, that has become the kingdom city, Hebron. So as David is continuing to make his march against Abner and will ascend the throne over Israel, Abner is considering taking matters into his own hands.

He's trying to establish a kingdom under Saul rather than recognizing David as king over Israel. One of the reasons for this might very well be because David made an embarrassment of Abner before Saul.

If you'll remember, the second time that David spared Saul's life, Abner was laying right there next to Saul, and Abner was supposed to be protecting Saul, but he was asleep. So David and the man who was with him, they went and took the spear that was resting in the ground at Saul's head and also the water jug that was next to him and fled far away.

And so then David and his man called out to Saul and said to him, you know, I've spared your life. Look at the spear that I have and the jug of water. And as he was calling out to Saul these things, he also embarrassed Abner and said, you should die because you were not protecting Saul, and I could have pinned him to the ground with this spear.

So because David embarrassed Abner in such a way, it's probably why Abner is not ready to concede that David is supposed to be the king over Israel. Instead, taking matters into his own hands and continuing to try to build a kingdom around the name of Saul instead of submitting to David.

Now, that's going to change. Abner's interests are going to change as we go on here. So 2 Samuel 3, beginning in verse 1. There was a long war between the house of Saul and the house of David, and David grew stronger and stronger while the house of Saul became weaker and weaker.

And sons were born to David at Hebron. His firstborn was Abnon of Ahinom of Jezreel, and his second, Chiliab of Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. And the third, Absalom, the son of Mekah, the daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur.

And the fourth, Adonijah, the son of Hagith. And the fifth, Shephetiah, the son of Abatal. And the sixth, Ithrim, the son of Eglah, David's wife. These were born to David in Hebron. While there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, Abner was making himself strong in the house of Saul.

Now Saul had a concubine whose name was Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah. And Ish-bosheth said to Abner, Why have you gone into my father's concubine? Then Abner was very angry over the words of Ish-bosheth and said, Am I a dog's head of Judah?

To this day I keep showing steadfast love to the house of Saul your father, to his brothers and to his friends, and have not given you into the hand of David. And yet you charge me today with a fault concerning a woman?

God do so to Abner and more also if I do not accomplish for David what the Lord has sworn to him, to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul and set up the throne of David over Israel and over Judah, from Dan to Beersheba.

And Ish-bosheth could not answer Abner another word because he feared him. So suddenly Abner is not quite as interested anymore with the house of Saul. He's going to see what he can do for David now.

So verse 12,. And Abner sent messengers to David on his behalf, saying, To whom does the land belong? Make your covenant with me, and behold, my hand shall be with you to bring over all Israel to you.

And he said, Good, I will make a covenant with you, but one thing I require of you, that is, you shall not see my face unless you first bring Michal, Saul's daughter, when you come to see my face. If you'll remember that Michal was David's first wife.

This was the wife that Saul had given to him. Well, I honestly was hoping that David was going to die trying to pay the bridal price for Saul's daughter, but David ended up succeeding, and the men respected him all the more, and then he was married into the house of Saul, having married Saul's daughter.

So verse 14,. Then David sent messengers to Ish-bosheth, Saul's son, saying, Give me my wife Michal, for whom I paid the bridal price of a hundred foreskins of the Philistines. And David actually went above and beyond and paid two hundred foreskins.

I'm sorry, that's gross. And Ish-bosheth sent and took her from her husband Paltiel, the son of Laish, but her husband went with her, weeping after her all the way to Bahurim. Then Abner said to him, Go return, and he returned.

The guy's going, Wait, that's my wife! And she's being taken from him and given to David instead. And Abner conferred with the elders of Israel, saying, For some time past you have been seeking David as king over you.

Now then bring it about, for the Lord has promised David, saying, By the hand of my servant David I will save my people Israel from the hand of the Philistines and from the hand of all their enemies. Abner also spoke to Benjamin, and then Abner went to tell David at Hebron that Israel and the whole house of Benjamin thought good, what they thought good to do.

So Abner realizes the house of Saul is getting weak, he can't succeed at this anymore, so decides, Hey, when you can't beat him, join him. Verse 20, When Abner came with twenty men to David at Hebron, David made a feast for Abner and the men who were with him.

And Abner said to David, I will arise and go, and will gather all Israel to my lord the king, that they may make a covenant with you, and that you may reign over all that your heart desires. So David sent Abner away, and he went in peace.

Just then the servants of David arrived with Joab from a raid, bringing much spoil with them. But Abner was not with David at Hebron, for he had sent him away, and he had gone in peace. When Joab and all the army that was with him came, it was told to Joab, Abner the son of Ner came to the king, and he has let him go, and he has gone in peace.

Then Joab went to the king and said, What have you done? Behold, Abner came to you. Why is it that you have sent him away, so that he is gone? You know that Abner the son of Ner came to deceive you, and to know that you're going out and you're coming in, and to know all that you are doing.

So Joab is convincing David here that Abner came with ill intent. He wanted to learn David's strategy, so that he could come against David and be successful. When Joab came out from David's presence, he sent messengers after Abner, and they brought him back from the cistern of Serah.

But David did not know about it. And when Abner returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside in the midst of the gate to speak with him privately, and there he struck him in the stomach, so that he died for the blood of Asahel his brother.

Afterward, when David heard of it, he said, I and my kingdom are forever guiltless before the Lord for the blood of Abner the son of Ner. May it fall upon the head of Joab, and upon all his father's house.

And may the house of Joab never be without one who has a discharge, or who is leprous, or who holds a spindle, or who falls by the sword, or who lacks bread. That was a curse that David had levied against the house of Joab.

There was always going to be somebody who had some sort of a sickness, or a disease, or dies, or was going to be destitute. This was the curse that David was levying against the house of Joab. So Joab and Abishai his brother killed Abner, because he had put their brother Asahel to death in the battle at Gibeon.

Verse 31,. Then David said to Joab, and to all the people who were with him, Tear your clothes and put on sackcloth, and mourn before Abner. And King David followed the buyer. That was the wagon that was carrying the coffin of Abner, basically.

They buried Abner at Hebron. And the king lifted up his voice and wept at the grave of Abner, and all the people wept. And the king lamented for Abner, saying, Should Abner die as a fool dies? Your hands were not bound, your feet were not fettered.

As one falls before the wicked, you have fallen. And all the people wept again over him. Then all the people came to persuade David to eat bread while it was yet day. But David swore, saying, God, do so to me and more also if I taste bread or anything else till the sun goes down.

And all the people took notice of it, and it pleased them, as everything that the king did pleased all the people. So all the people and all Israel understood that day that it had not been the king's will to put to death Abner the son of Ner.

And the king said to his servants, Do you not know what a prince and a great man has fallen this day in Israel? And I was gentle today, though anointed king. These men, the sons of Zeruiah, are more severe than I.

The Lord repay the evildoer according to his wickedness. So the writer of 2 Samuel is going to great lengths to make sure that the reader understands David was guiltless concerning the death of Abner.

He ascended to the throne as a righteous king. Not that David was a sinless king, because we've seen him sin, and we've seen him make mistakes even all the way up to this point. And we've got things that are coming as well.

The blood that will be on David's hands, his affair with Bathsheba, those events are still coming in 2 Samuel. But as far as his ascension to the throne of Judah, and as he takes over as king of Israel as well, David is considered to be a righteous king, a forerunner to Christ.

He is a man after God's own heart. And it is with David that God is going to make a covenant. The promised Messiah that is going to come through his line. And we're going to see that Davidic covenant coming up here in chapter 7, which I believe we will get to next week.

David's Rise Over Judah and Israel

So let's conclude with prayer. Our wonderful God, we thank you for the promise of your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. As we're reading about these things, the prophecies that concern Christ, and the events that led to some of those prophecies even being made, the line that Christ was going to come from, all of these things being set up in the story that we are reading about.

We know that you are a good God, a merciful God, a God who is faithful to your promises. And as you have promised this Messiah to fallen man, so we see these promises being fulfilled. And we know and have hope all the more that you will be faithful to fulfill your promises in the future.

We know that you are a faithful God. Though we have been faithless, you have been faithful. And so we look forward to the next great promise that you have for us, and that is the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who will reconcile all things to himself, usher in his peaceful kingdom, and there will be no more evil, no more death, no more pain, crying, or suffering, for we will be with our Lord in his perfect kingdom forever.

Even as we read this story here in 2 Samuel, our hearts can be filled with hope all the more for that perfect kingdom that is to come. And we pray and ask for this restored hope in our hearts in the name of Christ.

Amen.

This has been When We Understand the Text with Pastor Gabriel Hughes. For all of our podcasts, episodes, videos, books, and more, visit our website at www .utt .com. If you'd like to submit a question to this broadcast, or just send us a comment, email whenweunderstandthetext at gmail .com.

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