This week’s reading has us examining the final years of David’s reign and the end of his life (sniff). I’m often saddened when major Biblical characters die; we spend so much time with them and come to know them so well that it’s like losing a friend. Of course we know King David died, he lived 3,000 years ago and isn’t here anymore. Spending a month reading about him, and then reading about his death, well, it’s a bit of a downer.
Before we get there, though, there is still more story. 2 Samuel 20 tells of a man by the name of Sheba who stages one last revolt against David. There is delay and confusion in the mustering of David’s troops; David goes through three generals in about as many days. It doesn’t help that Joab, one of David’s longest-serving officers, kills one of the new guys.
We also have a famine caused by God because of something Saul had done 40 years ago. God requires the death of seven members of Saul’s family to make restitution, and rain finally falls again.
One of David’s last acts as king is to take a census of the people, specifically to number the military strength of Israel. This was David’s idea, though, and not God’s, and God sent a pestilence to punish David and the nation of Israel for focusing on the power of man instead of the power of God. When the nation repents, the pestilence is over.
David writes one last psalm, recorded in 2 Samuel 23. He then decides to follow up on his earlier idea of building a temple. David knows that he will not build the temple, Solomon will. However, David will do what he can to help. He goes to a man named Araunah/Ornan (one name in 2 Samuel, another in 2 Chronicles) and buys his threshing floor. Ornan tries to donate it to the king, but David refuses to have sacrifices in a place which does not cost him anything. I have heard this story before, and enjoy the powerful message. There is no a sacrifice in giving up something that is not personally important or meaningful. The threshing floor needed to cost David something in order for it to be a proper sacrifice from him, and a proper place to offer sacrifices. What I didn’t know about this story until reading the Bible through is that this particular threshing floor is going to be the site of Solomon’s temple, Mount Moriah, in the city of Jerusalem.
David names the son that sill succeed him as king. Solomon is crowned the last king of the United Kingdom of Israel. Finally, like many other people in the Bible, David is gathered to his fathers. 1 Chronicles 29:28 tells us he “died in a ripe old age, full of days, riches and honor.” (Sniff.)
We will take a break from history for a few weeks to read David’s Psalms, and then we will study the life of King Solomon.
Have a great week!
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