Tag: 2 Samuel

December 10 – No God Besides Our God

“For this reason You are great, O Lord God; for there is none like You, and there is no God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears.” –  2 Samuel 7:22 (NASB)

David was first a giant killer but he was also God’s anointed to be King of Israel after the death of Saul. As king, David desired and planned to build a house for the Lord in Jerusalem where the people would worship and observe requirements given in the Law of Moses. God had other plans. Today’s verse comes from a prayer David offered after the Lord revealed that a permanent temple would be built by the son who succeeds David to the throne. David accepted what the Lord God had revealed to him. The prayer includes affirmations regarding the attributes of God. David recognized God as doing a great thing in revealing His plans. David declares of God, “You are great;” “there is none like You;” and “there is no God besides You.”  David knew what the Law taught and he believed the Word of God. Some today want to change the meanings of God’s Word. Some today claim culture and time have changed so what God said to David does not apply to us today. But God’s Word has never changed. God’s exact Word is the same today as the day He spoke to David.

196

July 31 – Blessed Forever

“Now, O Lord God, You are God, and Your words are truth, and You have promised this good thing to Your servant. Now therefore, may it please You to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue forever before You. For You, O Lord God, have spoken; and with Your blessing may the house of Your servant be blessed forever.” – 2 Samuel 7:28-29 (NASB)

By this time in the life of David, King of Israel, he has accomplished a great deal. His major accomplishments have been to subdue the enemies of Israel and while he still has more to do in this task, David has secured Jerusalem as the City of David for the People of Israel.  Through the profit Nathan, God has promised again that David’s royal line will be established forever. David turns to a prayer filled with humility and adoration of God. “Who am I, O Lord God,?” David asks. Today we focus again on the significance of how God makes promises to His people. David acknowledges “You have promised (spoken) this good thing…” Then in the next verse, “For You, O Lord God have spoken (promised);” The same original word is used in each instance. David, recognized as we should also that God’s spoken word is a spoken promise, a promise delivered. God made these promises which are promises we can trust. We took can trust that with God’s blessings our own houses, as His servants are blessed forever.”  Forever means eternal and the life God has given to us is just that, an eternal life.

195

August 19 – A Rock We Trust

“This God—His way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.” – 2 Samuel 22:31 (ESV)

“The Rock! His work is perfect, For all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness and without injustice, Righteous and upright is He.” Deuteronomy 32:4 (NASB)

Today we take a verse of promise from David’s “Son of Deliverance” in 2 Samuel 22 and another verse from “The Song of Moses” found in the fifth Book of the Law, Deuteronomy 32. Again, we see God called a Rock, or in this occasion, “The Rock!” This word, represented the stability and permanence of God. It was placed at the beginning of the verse we believe for emphasis and was followed by a series of phrases which elaborated the attributes of God as the Rock of Israel. His work is perfect. All His ways are just. He is a God of faithfulness. He is a God without iniquity. He is righteous and upright. These are the principal themes in this song by Moses. It stresses the unchanging nature of God in contrast with the fickle nature of the people. The description of God in this verse contrasts strongly with the description of the people which follows in the next verse, a perverse and crooked generation (Dt 32:5). Jesus used this phrase in Matthew 17:17 of an unbelieving generation. Let us choose today to trust in the Rock, our perfect shield who is just in all His ways.

197 

August 18 – The Strengths of Righteousness

21 “The Lord dealt with me according to my righteousness;
according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me.”
…
25 “And the Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
according to my cleanness in his sight.” – 2 Samuel 22:21 & 25 (ESV)

Context is important. Referencing God’s strength and might by saying He is our rock and fortress appears frequently in the Psalms of David and others. But this song was written to remember the deliverance God gave him from all his enemies. It could be that David finished this song near the end of his reign. Once they were at war with the Philistines and not ordinary Philistines in this case. David’s army was up against the giants of Gath – the same tribe which Goliath came from. This occasion there were four giants and one in particular is identified in this way; “And there was again war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each hand, and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number, and he also was descended from the giants.” (2 Samuel 21:20) With God’s might and provision, David’s nephew, Johnathan defeated this monster. David’s army prevailed. David was not claiming to be righteous or sinless in any absolute sense. Rather, David believed God, and was considered righteous by faith. He desired to please the Lord and obey His commands. Thus he was blameless when compared with his enemies.

193