The Bible takes a unique turn in the book of 1 Samuel, Israel requests the appointment of an earthly king. The prophet Samuel warned them against trading their Divine King for an earthy one. In Matthew 7:13 Jesus told us, “..For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction..,” cautioning believers not to long to be like everyone else.
First Samuel 8:5; 19-20 records Israel’s request for a king developed out their desire to be like the nations around them, thus placing them on the “broad road.” They desired a king to fight their battles, to establish a government, and to rule over them. During the time of the Judges, there was no central government, no one to fight for them, except God of course. To make matters worse the
David did not do everything right just as Saul did not do everything wrong. David is a study in the human condition. As Peterson points out, King David is a “character consisting of humility and adoration, sacrifice and courage, repentance and obedience, loyalty in the community, and love of God.” The story of David shows people that when they use the things that God places in your life He is preparing people for their service to Him. He prayed to God, consulted God in prayer, and unified the northern and southern kingdoms in obedience to
He was obedient, wise and just (1 Kings 4:29-34). He is credited with building the great temple of worship to God (1 Kings 6:2). Finally Israel had a permanent place to offer sacrifice, worship and receive atonement. In 1 Kings 3:13-14, God promised Solomon wealth and honor, he would have no equal. And if he kept God’s decrees and commands as his father David, God promised long life. King Solomon is known as the wisest and wealthiest king in ancient times (1 Kings 4:31). Nevertheless, he did not walk as his father David or God walked. His sin not only caused his downfall but led to the divided kingdom, the kingdom that David had unified only decades ago. Solomon sinned against God by having foreign wives. In his video lesson Hindson points out that, out of Solomon’s allegiance and love for his foreign wives he allowed foreign gods to be worshiped in his kingdom. The worship of the false gods led to materialism which eventually devoured the heart and soul of the people. Solomon’s sin was more grievous that David’s because Solomon did not repent, out of his abundance he failed to give the glory to
Loving God and hating his own mother kept David strong. David loved God, he prayed every night to God. He hated his mother so much he wanted to outthink her tricks, he did. He used different tactics like over exaggerating his pain when he got beat, putting a wet cloth over his mouth when his mother put cleaning products in a room with him. David kept counting time in his head in order to make the time pass faster.
David was a hero to the Israelites because he was able to kill Goliath, who had
...hard to understand fully because of its comprehensive metaphoric language and the difference in culture from present day. It is also sometimes hard for us to understand God's actions because we think of him simply loving and caring rather than ruthless and violent. We need to understand that the creation of mankind is taking place in the recordings of these scriptures and so things may not be as customary as we would like to think. I believe that God has a plan for everyone. And, in the case of Saul, he had a plan to take away his kingdom in order to pass it on to David so the formation of history could continue. I also think this passage, like many other passages from the Bible, has a message linked to it, a lesson to the story if you will. The lesson is to prove that God's unlimited power must never be taken for granted or there surely will be hell to pay.
Firstly, David believed that he needed to get his butt kicked and do things he didn’t want to do. David wanted to do this because he was proving to himself and others that he was not that same little boy anymore. For example, Picasso Basquiat, YouTube contributor, discovered in David’s interview that one day when David came home from work that he saw Navy Seals on the TV. This inspired him to join the Navy. Therefore, even though David hated running, jumping out of air planes and shooting guns he still joined to better himself. Secondly, David was always brutally honest with himself. For instance, Basquiat explained that David had struggled with obesity and many times he weighted over three hundred pounds, but before David joined the Navy he lost over 100 pounds in two months. Thus, David told himself he was fat and decided he was going to change that. Thirdly, David never forgot all his struggles or let them hold him back. For example, Basquiat found out that David created what he called a cookie jar in his mind. This cookie jar consists of all David’s struggles and achievements. So when David is struggling he just stops for a second, looks in his cookie jar and this motivates him. For all these reasons, David is truly a master of self-improvement as well as pushing his
And Solomon said, Thou hast showed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou has t kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
The role of “king” was created and specially chosen by God to watch over and govern the people of his nation. He had to “minister justice and judgment to the people” but at the same time expected unconditional loyalty (2). No matter what actions the king performs and how he governs his people, every individual is expected to obey and accept the acts whole heartily because the word of the king is the word of God. The king is “God on earth, and loving father” who should have “loving and obedient subjects” that are blessed to have him as a king
And eventually, David took and married Bathsheba. Yet, Ahithophel never did let David know about his apoplectic indignation; extreme cynicism and righteous anger. One could also, declare that the Scripture did not indicate that Bathsheba ever resisted or refused David in this outrageous betrayal and adultery on the account of her marriage to Uriah the Hittite. She appeared to have gone along smoothly with the unfaithful and treacherous arrangement. Yet, in due judgment, the LORD God was silent regarding her duplicitous and double-crossing
the things beyond his surrounding. He also gave David the confidence he needed to accept his
God creates laws for His children not because he wants to restrict us, but because he desires a relationship with us so that we may be able to draw nearer to Him. He also gives us laws to protect us from the harmful repercussions of sin. Therefore, if David had followed God’s laws, he would not have been faced with such turmoil towards the end of his kingship.
the things beyond his surrounding. He also gave David the confidence he needed to accept his
...lf and of knowing who they were and to feel like a whole but then he ruined his very own kingdom also by not sticking to his own teachings and acclaiming himself a higher power then the deity’s that they worshipped.
though he was king he had to convince people that he was the true and
Herod the Great ruled in Israel after he was appointed by Romans in 37-4 BC to rule over the area. While Herod ruled he accomplished many things such as building many fortresses, aqueducts, theatres, and other public buildings. Also during his rule he raised the prosperity of his land and he created a better life for most Israelite during most of his rule. However in his later years Herod became a more strict and harsh leader to the Israelites. In the New Testament, he is shown as a tyrant and a vicious and ruthless leader who ruled over the land that Jesus was born.
They count their flock and provide them with safe pastures where they can lay their heads in rest. Number 27:17 Israel was in need of a king someone to guide the people of God. Instead of the Israelites waiting for the Lord to send them someone responsible they chose Saul to be a ruler. Saul was not a good ruler in the sense that he did not rely fully on the Lord to be his shepherd. He did not fully follow the words of the prophet Samuel when asked by God to commit certain tasks. It was not until David, God’s chosen king, did Israel really have a true leader dedicated to the treatment and care of God’s flock. He led and guided the Israelites with leadership through many battles and troubles. God was always the frontrunner and
...f the divine world but the kings were in charge of vocalizing god’s wishes on earth. The most famous of these law codes was Hammurabi’s law code. The Hebrews tried to establish order by using Yahweh’s Ten Commandments and the Torah. Mesopotamian deities were hard to please and easily angered. The Mesopotamians constantly felt they were letting their gods down and usually didn’t even know the reason behind it. Hebrews had a much more forgiving god. Through texts like “The Book of Job”, it is apparent that Yahweh was a tough god but always forgiving and fair in the end. He had few demands of his people and all of them were ethical and easy to adhere to. As long as his devotees followed Yahweh’s laws, they were all capable of receiving his blessings. Through it all, it seemed that God and religion was at the center of every aspect of life in the ancient civilization.