David’s Glory Time

Transcript

GRS 2-79
7/29/2007
David’s Glory Time
2 Samuel 8-10
Gil Rugh

We’re looking at the life of David and we’re in Second Samuel Chapter 8. We’re looking at more than the life of David as we move through the history of the Old Testament, but we’re in that section that deals with David’s life Chapter 7 in Second Samuel. We know it was a very key section of God’s word because it contains what is known as the Davidic Covenant, God’s promises to David that he will establish his house and his line to rule over the nation. The ultimate fulfillment of these promises will go to the son of David as Jesus Christ is known because he is the descendent of David in whom these promises will receive their ultimate fulfillment. The kingdom belongs to the line of David.

God has promised he will never withdraw his presence and his promises from David’s house. He will never reject David or his descendants from being king like he rejected Saul, remember Saul sinned, the line of Saul is done as far as the kingship is concerned. David will sin grievously, but the promises of God to David stand in the line of David as the kingly line of Israel stands as well. They mentioned some of these promises await the ultimate fulfillment obviously of the time when Jesus Christ will rule and reign on the earth. That’s when the kingdom will be established and we will be part of that kingdom, but some of these promises have more direct and immediate fulfillment in David’s time and in David’s son Solomon.

In Chapter 7 verse 9, God promises to make David a great name. We’re going to see in the Chapters we look at that David’s name becomes great. During this glorious time when he is subjugating the enemies around Israel and preparing if you will for that time when the nation will have peace under his son, Solomon and the temple will be constructed.

Chapter 8 records the military conquests of David which establish the boundaries of his empire. And it secures his kingdom and some of these enemies will be familiar to us because they are still residing in those areas even till today. What happens in Chapter 8, we’ll start out with David defeating those to the west of Israel. Then he’ll move to the east and defeat those enemies. Then he’ll go north and defeat those enemies, then he’ll go south and defeat those enemies and so what he does is secure his boundaries. Defeat those on the surrounding areas of Israel who kept coming in and subjugating them, and so he establishes a secure kingdom if you will and as a result of this when we get down to Chapter 8 verse 13, so David made a name for himself because God was giving him these victories and he is becoming well-known throughout the area.

In at all we will be reminded the end of verse of 6 of Chapter 8 “The Lord helped David wherever he went. Verse 14 “And the Lord helped David wherever he went.” So really David made a name for himself that’s not because David was so mighty and powerful, but obviously all the peoples around and the different nations are acknowledging the greatness of David, but the scripture is clear. David is so successful because God is with David. There is a time of difficulty in the sense David is relentlessly battling against the enemies of Israel. But other times I’d be tempted to title these Chapters, Chapters 8, 9, and 10 the glory time because this will be followed by the disaster of David’s adultery and murder of his paramour’s husband and the sword never leave David’s house. So here he’s fighting enemies on the outside of Israel and he’s being victorious, but this will be followed, David will still have some significant victories obviously, but it’s never quite the same after these Chapters.

Look at the Chapter 8 verse 1, now after this it came about that David defeated the Philistines and subdued them. David took control of the chief city from the hand of the Philistines, well-known enemies of Israel. Saul, the first King of Israel battled against the Philistines and he defeated them and then they come back in the battle. There’s this is constant going back and forth. Now David stretches out with his armies and deals a more significant blow against the Philistines. It says, he took their chief city, five cities of the Philistines that are their major cities. The city here is the city of Gath; we know that because First Chronicles Chapter 18 the section that is running parallel in its account to what we have in Second Samuel. First Chronicle 18:1 tells us that the Philistine city here is the city of Gath that David takes. City of Gath is to the west of Jerusalem and a little bit south. But if you go west and just a little bit south towards the Mediterranean you’ll see the city of Gath on your Bible map or Atlas.

Verse 2 then David moves east and defeats the Moabites. We have to cross the Jordan and go in East and the Moabites verse 2 he defeated Moab and he treated them with a vicious harshness. He measured them with the line. Made them lie down on the ground and he measured two lines to be put to death and one full line to keep a life. So after defeating the armies of the Moabites, he has some layout and then they measured out and one out of every three, and it take it to soldiers what we are in view here is paired the other two were put to death. So two thirds are executed here. There’s no reason given why David treated them so harshly. He had previously had good relationship with the Moabites.

Come back to First Samuel Chapter 22.Verse 3 when David is fleeing from Saul and he has a hard time taking his parents with him and he can’t leave them in Israel because they could become hostages taken by Saul and his followers that would put pressure on David they have to surrender so he took them to the Moabites territory outside the boundaries of Israel across the Jordan. Verse 3 he went from there to Mizpah in Moab. He said to the king of Moab please let my father and my mother come and stay with you until I know what God will do with me. Then he left them with the king of Moab. They stayed with him all the times that David was in the stronghold.

So at that point David has good relationship with the Moabites. Something is changed. There’s a Jewish tradition that says the king of Moab betrayed David’s trust and murdered David’s parents. We have no indication of that in scripture but just that is the way Jewish tradition has handled the event of David. Here it was a response of a betrayal. We don’t know what happened or why David marks the Moabites out for such severe treatment. Obviously something is changed from the earlier time when there was the kind of relationship he felt he could deliver his parents there and safe haven but now he’s at war with them and when he does defeat them he doesn’t leave it with the defeat, a serious thing lay out to soldiers on the ground then mark off a measuring line in two out of every three will be executed on the spot and then the rest of the Moabites are put to tribute to be slaves.

Verse 3, David moves now quite a ways north because the city mentioned in verse 3, the king of Zobah, that is north of Damascus we’re familiar with Damascus, Syria. So he’s gone quite a ways north in defeating the king of Zobah here. Verse 3 he defeated Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, king of Zobah and David captured from him 1,700 horsemen, 20,000 foot soldiers. He hamstrung the chariot horses reserved enough to keep a 100 chariots with horses.

In First Chronicle Chapter 18 verse 4 the parallel account says the 1700 horseman not 1700 they were 7000 and most commentators think that is probably the more realistic figure in light of the other numbers here as you can imagine in transcription some numbers. Don’t get carried over quite right, I wrote to check the other day when I that done writing and look at it, I had written two different numbers, where you put in the numerical and then down the bottom you write the number. And well just oh, that was a wrong thing, what was I thinking, tear up that check. So here we have 1700 where as the parallel account in Chronicle says 7000 and in light of the figures here it’s probably 7000. It doesn’t change anything. Why he hamstrings the horses? This is what Joshua was instructed to do. In Joshua 11 when he defeated his enemies in Canaan and he was the hamstring the chariot horses so they wouldn’t be usable for that. In the hilly terrain of Palestine chariots weren’t much of an advantage, I mean the chariots didn’t function well in hill country they were good for the plains. So there’s no particular need here for David to maintain these but he doesn’t want him to be left where they could be taken again. So he reserves enough to maintain a small horse of 100 the rest are dealt with.

We are told down in verse 5 the Arameans of Damascus; we know this area as Syria and the Syrians. And this time in history, Syria was known as Aram and so the people of Aram were the Arameans. And in later history they become known as, the area is known as Syria and they are the Syrians with Damascus as their capital. And you realize here’s 3000 years later what is Israel happening to deal with in the north, the Syrians. And where can the Syrians have the golden heights back and what happens when the Syrians control the golden heights. And they are harassing Israel. And so you can see these enemies don’t go away when you read in Biblical accounts they defeated them you don’t understand they’re not isolated. We’ll see the Aramenites and you cross the Jordan and where are you with the Aramenites, you are in Jordan as we know of modern today. So sometimes the names change but we’re dealing with the same people. So when you read in verse 5 when the Arameans of Damascus came to Hadadezer king of Zobah, they have killed 22,000 Arameans. This is the same people and the same area later known as Syria and the Syrians, and I may refer to it that way because sometimes in my notes I have written in Syria or the Syrians instead of the Arameans so don’t get confused if I start talking about Syrians when I say Arameans. We’re talking about same people just later the name will become Syria and Syrians. Here it’s Aram and the Arameans.

They come to help the king of Zobah, like the joint forces but it’s a disaster for the Arameans because David defeated them as well. And so the enemies of David are being defeated. He put garrisons verse 6 among the Arameans of Damascus. They became servants to David bringing tribute. The Lord helped David wherever he went. Then some of these verses that follow here told what is happening with the spoils of war. Verse 7 He took the shields of gold that were carried by the servants of Hadadezer and so on down through the various enemies defeated down. The verse 11 King David also dedicated these with the silver, the gold that he had taken from all the nations which is subdued, dedicated these to the Lord. What he is doing now is beginning to stock pile the building materials for the temples that Solomon will built. So he conquers these kings and he takes the precious things the silver, the gold, the bronze and so on and he begins to stock pile it because he can’t build the temple remember, but his son Solomon will. So even though he can’t build the temple he could begin to build the treasury and the resources that will enable the temple to be as splendid as it should be.

Over in First Kings Chapter 7 verse 51 we’ll be told that David had built this supply of materials up and now Solomon’s ready to utilize them in the building of the temple. Verse 13 David made a name for himself when he came from killing 18,000 Arameans in the Valley of Salt. And again in the Chronicles account, this doesn’t say he killed the Arameans but the Edomites. And some of these names that you would think we’ve been talking about Arameans earlier and easy to say just like I’ll say sometimes when I am talking I’ll use a different name, I’ll say turn to the book of Genesis earlier this morning my first hour. I said turn to the book of Genesis. Now if you are in Galatians look at verse, and of course in that class they just whole out and tell me I’m wrong. So it’s not Galatians its Genesis. So here in some of these transcriptions it’s not an error in scripture but you realize that we have multitudes to manuscripts that we draw from and probably here in verse 13 he’s talking about the Edomites which were another enemy to the east and south of the Israelites. David is conquering all around. You know it’s in this timeframe work that David writes on Psalm 60 why don’t you turn over there and as we move through the rest of this Chapter you appreciate what David is going through in these events like Chapter 8.

Psalm 60, see something of the Godly character of David when you see these Psalms coming out of these period of time and here he’s battling with his enemies I think he has his hands full may be just to catch a little prayer time, when you are fighting and you are battling and you know you got to deal with enemies on all side you realize he’s gone west and east and north and then he goes south, I mean he writes Psalm expressing something of the troubles and trials that he has is experienced at Israel is experiencing. Verse 1 O God you have rejected us, you’ve broken us, you’ve been angry or restore us. You’ve made the land quake you’ve split it open heal its breaches its cutters. You’ve made your people experience hardship; you’ve given us wine to drink which makes us stagger. You’ve given a banner to those who fear you may be displayed because of the truth. God has spoken in his holiness verse 6. So the midst of the convict in the battle he realizes that God will be their resource and their strength.

In verse 9 “Who will bring me into the beseeched city? Who will lead me to Edom? Have not you yourself O God rejected us”. We are not go forth with armies oh God, finish them we get a summary here of the victory. But it’s not just David just moves out now another victory easy, easy going here. In the summary of the history we get. We don’t get a blow by blow obviously we’ve turn into such a humongous history we couldn’t wait through it. But here you get insight. We read that David defeats the Edomites among since they are mentioned in the title to this Psalm and so on. But understand there was give and take here and at times it look like they’re going to be overwhelmed we see this when we get to Chapter 10 and the commander of Israel’s army Joab thinks that they are on the verge perhaps of the crushing defeat. So as David goes and does these battles there are times when it look like Israel. I mean you’re dealing with armies bringing thousands of chariots, horseman, foot soldiers to do battle with Israel. They are forming alliances and so they had, have said God you rejected us as there, what do we do? O give us help against the advisories deliverance by man is in vain. Through God we will do valiantly. It is he who will tread down our adversaries. It realizes, we’re outnumbered our strength is not sufficient but God will give us a victory. But you see the turmoil that is going on in Israel and even as David wrestles with the Lord pours out his heart, the times it seems like this despair and yes God you have rejected us have you? No but you know man can’t do it but God can and he will tread down our adversaries. But you see the refining process going on in David’s life and realizes that his only hope is depend upon the Lord.

Come back to First Samuel Chapter 8. The Chapter concludes with just a summary of how David has arranged the administration of his government and so on. You come to Chapter 9; David wants to honor the covenant he made with Jonathan, Saul’s son. So he’s going to ask is there any surviving family member of Saul, the house of Saul that could show kindness to and I wanted to do it because of Jonathan's sake. That’s how the Chapter opens up. David said “Is there not yet anyone left in the house of Saul that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake? Remember in First Samuel Chapter 20 verses 14 to 17 David and Jonathan entered into a covenant together and David bound himself to show kindness to the family of Jonathan. Jonathan is clear you are going to be king. And when you are king and all it was customary in those times you kill your enemies, your possible rivals and the house of Saul would be a rival to the house of David. So Jonathan asks David and they entered into covenant and David promises that he will treat the family of Jonathan with kindness and so on.

Many years have gone by since that covenant. We know that because the son who’s going to come up here Mephibosheth, and that will be the last time I get it right was only five years old at the time of that covenant because that’s made an old in the times leading up to Jonathan’s death and we’re told that they and the time when Jonathan dies his son Mephibosheth was five years old. Now, he’s married and has his own son. So 14, 15 years later if he’s 19 or 20 with his own son you can see the years have gone by. David wants to show him kindness verse 1. Some of you have studied some Old Testament prophets and the word said. I can’t quite say anymore in Hebrew class you have to say you got a roll that in the back of your throat said. Like you’re clearing your throat, I could never get it. I’ve been one of those killed at the crossing that’d say, say # kill them.

There are certain sounds that just don’t come natural to us when we have a different languages, our native language, but this is the word has said we’ll just say it like we say it. It means that kindness, that covenant loyalty. There is the whole little book published on the word has said and it’s used if God and his convent loyalty and covenant love with Israel and here David wants to show him kindness, special kindness, special loyalty, special covenant love. There was a servant in the house of Saul so how you’re going to find out who’s survived. When he’s there a lot of Saul’s household is gone into hiding. I think what happens now they’re just you know that has been defeated there’s a new king. Best thing to you to do is just sort of fade away but there is a well known servant.

The house of Saul, verse 2 his name was Ziba and so he’s called. The David says “Are you Ziba?” And he says “Do you know of anybody from the house of Saul that survived? And Ziba says remarkably there is a son of Jonathan all things very person that David would be most interested in the family of Saul. Ziba is a man who’s crippled in his feet, because remember when Saul and the armies of Israel are being defeated and Saul and Jonathan will die in the battle, the nurse maid, the household servant gathers up this young child of Jonathan and as she is trying to run she drops him and his feet are damaged and he’s crippled recorded back in First Samuel.

So the king said to him “Where is he” verse 4 and he’s in the house of Makir, the son of Ammiel in Lo Debar. We’re on the east side of the Jordan so you see where Mephibosheth is gone. He’s left the immediate region of Israel; he has crossed the Jordan he’s living the east side and just sort of lost from view. But the servant knows where he is as; we’ve seen a reason with the events in Iraq and that where you have certain of these key people gone while you have to know the right person to get the right information to know where so and so is. David summons him. Verse 5 “King David had him brought him from the house of Makir Son of Ammiel from Lo Debar”. Lo Debar as I mentioned is across the Jordan to the east. When Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, fell on his face and prostrated himself” because you’ve got to wonder, he’s got to wonder what happens here. I mean this could be David is ready to clean house. Any descendent of Saul, any male descendent is a potential threat. There’s always a danger that there will be some who want to put up a counter rule and Saul does have some claims I mean he was the first king of Israel. So Mephibosheth has come cast himself on his face before David and says here is your servant. David said “Do not fear” verse 7 “I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. “I will restore to you all the land of your grandfathers Saul”. This is a remarkable gesture. I mean Saul was king and when you give you everything that belongs to Saul, all the lands have belonged to Saul, the house of Saul, I give to you. So I mean it’s very generous gesture here on David’s part to honor his covenant with Jonathan goes beyond just taking care of Mephibosheth to give him everything and all the lands in Israel that belong to Saul the King. I mean you’re saying that belongs to David he’s the new king but I give it all to you. And then not only that, not because you need that I give you that you’ll eat at my table regularly. So the provision for you will come from me that you get all this and it will provide income for you. Basically make Mephibosheth a wealthy man but I will see that you are provided for personally. You’ll eat at my table, the kings table. So you move to Jerusalem and you will be treated like one of my sons.

Mephibosheth is humbled “But what is your servant, that you regard a dead dog like me?” He says, he’s totally unworthy undeserving. He had no claims upon David and it is testimony to David’s character 14, 15 years after that agreement with Jonathan, Jonathan’s long dead and some of that David is going to honor that covenant, agreement and go beyond just honoring it. Do more than what the expected.

Verse 12 he tells Ziba the servant of Saul, your responsibility now is to take care of all the lands of Saul and thus you become the servant of Mephibosheth. All the income and all of that then belongs to Mephibosheth verse 10 you and your sons talking to Ziba the servant, your servants call and make the land for him, bring in the produce so that your masters grandson may have food nevertheless Mephibosheth your master’s grandson shall eat at my table. And Ziba is a well-off man, he has 15 sons and 20 servants himself so he’s done well. Now he will serve Mephibosheth and he agrees because nobody disagrees with David, he’s the king.

Verse 12 Mephibosheth has had a young son whose name was Mica and you reminded all of the household of Ziba now are in service to Mephibosheth. Mephibosheth’s son Mica will become the father of four sons and you have this line set out in First Chronicles Chapter 8 verses 34 and 35. We’re not going to turn over there but you realize that the line of Saul is preserved and the line of Saul through Jonathan in particular because of the graciousness of David here and you see how that line multiplies when you read that section in First Chronicle Chapter 18 about the descendants of Mephibosheth through his son Mica and the sons he had and so on.

Chapter 10, and the Ammonites and the Arameans are defeated. So you see in Chapter 8 you’re talking about David defeating the enemies of Israel. Chapter 9 is sort of a break-in that and you focus on a personal matter David honoring the covenant that he entered into with Jonathan back in First Samuel Chapter 20 some 14 or 15 years at least earlier. And now he takes care of Mephibosheth. Mephibosheth will come back into the picture at a later time.

Now we return to the battles of David it became, it happened afterwards that the king of Ammonites died and Hanun, his son became king in his place. So David said “I’ll show kindness to Hanun the son of Naas, just as his father showed kindness to me.” David sent some of his servants to console him concerning his father. When David’s servants came to the land the Ammonites what happens is the servants of the king said you know David hasn’t send his men here to be nice. David sent men here to be spy out. Now that your father is dead he is going to come and dethrone you take over so they humiliate David’s servants. Verse 4 they shave off half their beards and cut off their garments in the middle of their hips exposing their buttocks. Great shame. Their beards are shaven that is the mark you have humiliated them they’re no longer treated like men and shave off half their beards like you’ve made them half women they’re just totally humiliated. Obviously these men were powerless they came as David represented they expected to be well received. They come as an act of kindness from the king. Well, David can’t let this act of humiliation stand so he tells those men to stay at a city outside until their beards grow they’ll stay in Jericho across the Jordan before they come back in to Israel proper and give them a chance to have their beards grow so their humiliation isn’t on display. They have a chance to resume their dignity. Out of that is going to become a war. The sons of Ammon were six all they had become odious to David. The sons of Ammon sent and hired the Arameans. They said if enemies don’t go away they thought everybody is defeated they remember Israel defeats the Syrians what happens, Syrians are gone, no. Israel defeats the Egyptians, the Egyptians are gone, no. Defeat the Jordanians are Jordanians are gone, no. They’re just subjugated until a certain events take place that they can come back and try again. So here you have an alliance again a significant army is assembled David verse 7 sent Joab and all the army of the might men. The sons of Ammon came out drew up in battle array at the entrance of the city, while the Arameans of Zobah and Rehob the men of Tob and Maacah were by themselves in the field.

Joab saw the battle was set against him in front and in the rear; so he selected from all the choice men of Israel and arrayed them against the Arameans. The remainder of the people he put under the control of his brother Abishai in verse 10 and they go against the Ammonites and then he says “If the Arameans are too strong for me you come help me. If the children of Ammonites too strong for you I’ll come to you”. Israel’s going to touch spot here. You can see we read Psalm 60 and these kinds of battles going on. Joab’s out here says I don’t know whether how this is going to come out. Verse 12 “Be strong let assure ourselves courageous for the sake of our people for the cities of our God. May the Lord do what is good in his sight”. He’s not a military commander who’s saying here we’ll crush the dogs they don’t have a chance. He really saying is no matter what let’s show ourselves to be courageous. We’re going to die let’s die like courageous soldiers. We’re not going to turn and run, we’re going to fight. So he really challenges the men to show courage in the face of overwhelming opposition and it’s in the hands of the lord how it comes out and the result will be a great victory.

Verse 13 Joab and the people with him defeat the Arameans, they flee and then when the sons of Ammons sees that Arameans flee and they flee before Abishai, Joab’s brother and so there is a great victory. Then you know as they flee you try to reassemble and so as they flee and get to a place where they can reassemble and may be get some others to join them verse 16 and David gathered all Israel across the Jordan and David now is engaged in the battle here and there is a tremendous battle numbers defeated here, enemies crushed. So you see what’s going on. The boarders of Israel have been secured by the time he get to the end of Chapter 10. He takes repeated battles that’s why that Psalm 60 and we went there, this doesn’t go away there’s battles, there’s fighting when you get to the end of Chapter 10 there’s been some of the decisive boundaries established and the defeats of these enemies in these various wars have been decisive enough that Israel’s territory now is basically secured. And these enemies don’t, they have been on Isolated but they don’t now form the kind of threat and potential threat that they did. That’s significant because I think finally David has peace. And what great victories he’s had and he never dream. If we didn’t know the account that he’s on the verge of the greatest defeat of his life.

I didn’t list all the enemies I am trying to think here but I can’t. The Edomites, the Ammonites, the whatever people Philistines all these the numbers I think are striking as I was thinking through this and I have to go through and almost impossible the way the numbers are recorded and done. But how many thousands and thousands have been fought and defeated and it’s going to be lust for someone else’s wife. Think about it and you say what is the great defeat of David’s life, Goliath? No, David won the war. The armies? No. Bathsheba? Bathsheba was the great – it was the lust of David’s heart for Bathsheba leads him to adultery and murder and for that he will never be the same because the sword will never depart from David’s house. But that’s yet future. Let me just note a couple of things and we’re done from these Chapters.

Number one; remind you service for God involves ongoing battles. David is in the center of God’s will while he’s in the center of the battle. You know what Paul said to Timothy? “Join with me in suffering for the gospel”. What’s the analogy he uses, no soldier on active duty entangles himself in the affairs of this life. That’s it, and so we don’t think David since he is God’s man and since the Lord gives him victory things come easily. Everything we’ve read up to this is battle, battle, battle and when one kind of battle is over another kind of battle is about to be engaged. So service for God involves battles. The difficulties we have in affluence is we get soft. 25 years or more ago Francis Schaeffer said it, in the films he produced, the books he wrote “The guiding principle becomes personal peace and affluency and that’s what we want and it begins to control us.” I just want personal peace, I want to enjoy things, you know, I have to want to serve the Lord more, that’s why Paul’s concerned with Timothy. You just can’t let up. David couldn’t either.

Secondly, we win the battles with the Lords help and that’s why the battles are good for us they remind us we are depended on the Lord. We’ve read Psalm 60, Lord what am I going to do? Have abandon us or I could be overwhelmed here. Have you rejected us? No the Lord will give us victory. It’s not bad from me to beat the point that I despair if the Lord doesn’t get me through. Glory depends on you we can’t do it and he is the source of our victory. I can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me that means I am in situations where I just can’t get through. I can’t make it whatever the situation but Lord you can. I can do all things in your strength.

Chapter 9 I just think is a good reminder to display grace and kindness in our victories. It’s not David has had victories his enemies are being defeated. Saul’s house, the Lord defeated them. He hasn’t forgotten his promises. 14, 15 years ago lot of water unto the damn since then but no, if there’s somebody from Saul’s house I could show kindness to. Doesn’t forget it in the midst of that everything else, good reminder for us. A balance to that you come to Chapter 10 sometimes our Acts and grace and kindness are rejected and David’s attempt to show kindness to the house of the king of the Ammonites is rejected, violently rejected in a way of humiliating not only the servants of David but David who sent his servants. So sometimes we do the acts of kindness doesn’t mean they are always be well received as is one with Mephibosheth’s was.

Down to verse 12 Joab makes a good statement to remind us of things. You know our responsibility is to show courage remember the verse we’ve read from Timothy in our study earlier today, “Timothy God has not given us a spirit of timidity, cowardice.” All Joab can say is be strong, let us show ourselves courageous for the sake of our people for the cities of our God may the Lord do what is good in his sight. I don’t know how this particular bad will come out but I know my responsibility is to stand with courage, to be strong.

In the letter to Timothy Paul is writing to Timothy from a Roman prison where he will be executed. There can be a defeat what’s Paul’s responsibility? Be strong, show courage. There may be what looks like a short-term defeat but we know the outcome. So Timothy, don’t shrink back. So good reminder to us we must be courageous and leave the outcome to God. I know the final Chapter, but I can’t tell you all the details of every Chapter in between. I know Jesus Christ has secured the victory, I know some day we will stand in glory whether we will die as a murderer or not Paul had to die as a murderer but he tell to Timothy you show courage. That spirit of cowardice doesn’t come from the Lord and we need to have that Joab shows it in verse 12.

And then to prepare you for the next chapter which we will now get into for a little while, we must be on guard after great victories. You can never let up. I mean who would think when you get done Chapter 10 we’re not going to read about David’s crushing defeat not at the hands of an army, but with the lust that comes out of his own heart for someone else’s wife. I mean, you think what a way to go? I mean what is wrong with him. I mean surely the man is so tested. If we read Psalm 60 he’s been in situations where he could have gone either way in the battle and he go to die there on the battle field but he didn’t go down but now he’s going to come and sometimes after our greatest victories we think oh, boy the Lord used me so well here, I share the gospel so clearly. Lord used me to lead them to the Lord all of a sudden without expecting just like the devil comes blind sights us and what happened, couldn’t just be. How could that happen, how could I let that happen, how could I just be such a fool but we’re on the verge of David’s great defeat. But up to this point God has honored his promise to David. He’s established David’s power, he’s brought glory to Israel, he’s a covenant keeping God and even David’s unfaithfulness will not change the faithfulness of God for his people of Israel.

Let’s pray together. Thank you Lord for your grace. Thank you Lord for the way you keep your word. Thank you Lord that the affairs of the nations are under your control. It seems that nations are making near decisions, going their ways, doing what they will, but you are the sovereign God and you use even the actions of the nations and the accomplishing of your purposes. Lord we reminded that’s true even down to our very day, and even some of the nations that we read about from 3000 years ago in Israel’s history, filth still plague the nation Israel, and you are the sovereign God working your perfect purposes. Lord may we take the heart, the lessons to be learnt for us as your people in these days may characterize us individually and as a church that we are courageous for our God. And we may not be disheartened in the conflicts, the difficulties and the trials in the battles. Now we have the privilege to stand for you, being on guard at all times knowing that our advisory the devil goes about like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. Use us to bring glory to yourself, we pray in Christ’s name, amen.