Teaching Notes

II SAMUEL

Last time we saw the nation of Israel divided into 2 kingdoms. David reigned over Judah, and Ishbosheth, king Saul's youngest and only surviving son, reigned over the 11 other tribes of Israel. But Ishbosheth was more of a puppet king, he had no real power himself. In fact the power behind his kingdom came from Abner, his military leader. As we move into II Samuel chapter 4, we see that Abner has been killed by David's military leader, Joab. And Joab acted on his own, an act of retaliation for Abner killing his brother, Asahel. But David did not condone Joab's actions nor was David aware of what Joab was going to do. David had just made a peace treaty with Abner but now Joab put a stop to that by killing Abner. And this could have driven a wedge deeper between David and the rest of the nation. But instead, they see David's heart in the matter, that he was totally unaware of what Joab was doing, and thus they rally around David. God used something that was meant for evil to elevate David in the eyes of the people. And now David is being strengthened while Ishbosheth is getting weaker and weaker.

II SAMUEL 4

VERSE 1

1. When Ishbosheth gets word that Abner is dead, he knows that he is in trouble. He is powerless now. And not only did Ishbosheth recognize this fact, but so did the nation of Israel. People will rise or sink to the level of their leaders and you really can't fool them. They recognized the real power behind the reign of Ishbosheth, it was Abner, and now that he is dead, so was the power!

VERSES 2-3

1. These two brothers, Baanah and Rechab, were Benjamites. And they are going to take advantage of the situation in which Ishbosheth found himself in, powerless with the death of Abner.

VERSE 4

1. Jonathan's son, Mephibosheth, was only 5 years old when news came back that Saul and Jonathan were dead. And as his nurse picks him up to flee, she drops him on the ground probably breaking both his legs. And most likely the bones in his legs never set right and it caused him to be crippled in his legs. We will deal more with Mephibosheth when we come to II Samuel chapter 9 as David seeks to fulfill the promise he made to his friend Jonathan.

VERSES 5-8

1. These two brothers come on the scene and kill Ishbosheth, behead him, and then take his head to David for a reward. They too must have recognized that David was now going to beking over all Israel and they wanted a piece of the action. They figured if they killed the enemy of David, they then would be rewarded. They will be rewarded, but not the way they think!

VERSES 9-12

1. David tells these two brothers that God has preserved him from his enemies in the past and He is able and will continue to do so. He does not need anyone to fight His battles for Him. Ishbosheth was recognized as king by the 11 of the 12 tribes of Israel and yet these guys feel very comfortable in killing him. Wrong solution to the problem.

2. David goes on to recount what he had done to the young Amalekite that boasted in killing king Saul. He too thought he was going to receive a reward from David but instead David had him put to death for killing the "Lord's anointed." And so David has these two brothers executed for their actions upon an innocent man who was sleeping in his bed.

3. As you read through the Old Testament it is filled with violence, murder, sexual promiscuity and-so-on. And many today feel the Bible is to violent for us to read. Or some come against us for reading the Bible and then shunning the violence that is in the movies. They feel that the Bible is just as violent or sometimes more violent than the movies. First of all God tells it like it is, and as He does it isn't pretty. We get a clear picture of the wickedness of man's heart, how depraved it really is. And we come to the conclusion that there is no solution to the problem except for redemption. You see, if God altered the story and made us look better than we really are, we would have no need for a Savior. But because we see ourselves come flowing through these pages, and all we can do is cry out for forgiveness before our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The Bible is a story of redemption, the redemption of man, and that is history which should not be altered. Many people do see themselves better than they are and thus feel they don't need a Savior, but they are tragically wrong. All of us are sinners and all of our righteousness is as filthy rags. (Romans 3:23, Isaiah 64:6). Don't ever forget that fact. We are no better than the men and women that are spoken of in the Bible, we too are in need of a Savior, Jesus Christ. We must also understand that what is portrayed in the Bible is history and what is portrayed in the movies is random acts of violence that we call entertainment.

II SAMUEL 5

VERSES 1-2

1. David is going to be anointed king over all of Israel. The people have seen David's heart over the years and even when Saul was king, David was the one leading them in battle against their enemies. And that is what they wanted a king to do, lead the nation, as David had done.

VERSES 3-5

1. It may have been some 15 years earlier that David was anointed king over Israel by Samuel, and now that promise has become a reality. Don't ever give up on God or become inpatient with Him. He has a plan for your life and what He has promised you, He is able to perform.

VERSE 6 1. The Jebusites had control over the city of Jebus, which will become the city of David, or Jerusalem. The Jebusites had control over this city ever since the time of Joshua (Joshua 15:63). The children of Israel had not completely driven out the enemy from the land. And as you read through the books of Joshua and Judges you still see pockets of enemy resistance throughout the land. Thus, the Jebusites had control over the city of Jebus and felt very secure, that their city was impregnable.

2. The city of Jebus sat on a hill which had the Kiddron valley to the east. To the south was the valley of Hinnom. To the west was the Tyropoeon valley. The only side where there was no natural protection was the north side. But the city walls were made of heavy stone and from the top of this hill you had a clear picture of what the enemy was up to. You could throw down stones, shoot arrows at them with ease as they tried to advance towards you. Thus, they felt very secure with-in the walls of the city, for this city had been in their possession for years. Israel, up to this point, was never able to capture this city.

3. These Jebusites feel so secure about their city that they taunted and ridiculed David and his men. They are so comfortable with their fortress that they feel even the handicapped of their city could defeat David and his men. The Bible says "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." (Proverbs 16:18) and that is exactly what we are seeing here.

VERSE 7

1. At this time the city of David was small, only some 2 city blocks long, and a 1/2 of a city block wide. But after David took the city he enlarged it and in 67 A.D. it reached its largest growth.

VERSE 8

1. Now just having a mighty, secure fortress would be meaningless if you did not have a fresh water supply to draw from. The problem was that this water supply was usually outside the city gates and thus, if you were under attack, you could not go out to get fresh water. And with out water the enemy could just wait until you got so thirsty that you opened the city gates to get to the water, and they would attack you.

2. The Jebusites had dealt with this issue and done so very effectively. They had made a shaft or a tunnel from inside the city leading outside the city to the water supply. This shaft lead down a stair-case, made into the rock, to a platform. This led to a horizontal, semi-circular tunnel that was located about half-way down to the spring. At the end of this tunnel is another shaft that goes even farther into the mountain and it is at the bottom of this shaft where there is a water-filled channel that leads to the spring of Gihon. They would lower a bucket down into thischannel and bring up fresh water for the city and yet to climb up these walls would be an almost impossible feat, and then attack the inhabitants of the city, impossible. You see, this last shaft was 45 feet straight up, and you had to climb it just to get to the passage ways leading into the city.

3. David offers to anyone who can enter the city by this shaft, to be captain over his army. And according to what is recorded in I Chronicles 11:6, we are told that Joab accomplished this feat. Thus, as Joab entered the city through this shaft, he was able to open the city gates and allow David and his men to capture the city.

VERSES 9-10

1. David fortifies the city of David and enlarges it.

VERSES 11-12

1. David makes an alliance with Hiram, king of Tyre, who builds David a beautiful palace to live in. Tyre was known for its Cedar trees and craftsman.

2. Through David's actions the people of Israel were blessed. Through Saul's actions they weren't. You see, Saul saw the people as instruments from which he was going to be blessed by instead of being the one who blessed the people by his actions. We see that in ministry today, where pastor's and leaders are there to be blessed by the people instead of them blessing the people. They want the church to care for him instead of him caring for the church, which leads to disaster.

Pastor's are to feed and care for the sheep that God has entrusted to them. They are to love the sheep. Now I do have to say this, that as I do this, I truly am blessed by the people here, it is just one of those gracious gifts of God. But that is not my focus, I am not here so you can take care of me, I am here to feed you the word of God and to love you and help you to grow and mature in the Lord.

VERSES 13-16

1. David once again is going against what God has said in Deuteronomy 17:17, and is multiplying wives unto himself. And in the end this is going to hurt David.

2. Now two of these names are of importance to us, Nathan and Solomon. Both are sons born to David and Bathsheba through which Jesus would eventually come from. In Luke you will see that Mary is a descendant of Nathan, a blood descendant of David. And in Matthew we see that Joseph is a blood descendant of David through David's son Solomon. But there is a problem, for God placed a curse upon Jeconiah, a descendant of Solomon. (Jeremiah 22:30). Thus, Jesus could not be born from this line for it was cursed. But Jesus was of the linage of Nathan and thus was from David, and yet he still has access to the throne through his adopted father Joseph. You see, an adopted son had all the rights of his father, but the curse did not pass through because it was not a blood line. Thus, Jesus is heir to the throne of David. VERSES 17-21 1. Remember how Achish, king of Gath, thought David was on their side, the side of the Philistines. Now David's true allegiance is seen and it is with Israel as they make him king. And so the Philistines attack David and his kingdom before he could gain power. But the Philistines are defeated along with their gods they brought into battle.

2. Once again we see David inquire of the Lord in what he should do before he even takes one step. Now to us it would seem obvious what should be done, go and fight against the enemy who is gathering to fight against us. But David sought the Lord to see what the Lord wanted him to do, David did not assume anything!

VERSES 22-25

1. God had already told David to go and fight, and they were victorious. So why did David have to ask God again what he should do? Because it was a different situation. Now don't think that God had to change His tactics to be victorious. God wanted David to bring everything to Him in prayer. If David did not do this, they he would have been defeated.

2. This lesson can be applied to our lives also. Don't ever think that just because God did something one way in the past that He is going to continue to do it that way. If that is the way we are walking we will fail. God has a specific plan for each situation and you must seek Him daily for direction. God does not have to alter His plans to be victorious, but He does so so that we can bring our requests to him and trust in Him in everything. Never assume anything, but bring it before God and you will be victorious in your walk with Him.

II SAMUEL 6

VERSES 1-2

1. David is a man of worship and thus, after he captures the city of Jerusalem, he goes after the ark of the covenant. The ark was located in Kirjath Jearim, also called Baale Judah, (Joshua 15:9). Kirjath Jearim was located about 8 miles from Jerusalem, and for 20 years the ark remained there.

Remember during the time of Samuel the Philistines came against Israel and they defeated Israel soundly. And during the second assault Israel called for the ark to be brought into battle. It was the sons of Eli, who was the high priest, who called for and brought the ark into battle. They saw the ark as a good-luck charm and it gave Israel great hope for victory. But it also fired up the Philistines to fight and they defeated Israel once again and took the ark into their possession. But after a series of judgments against the Philistines that occurred over a 7 month period, they decided to send the ark back to Israel. They sent the ark back on a cart that was carried by two milk cows who were never yoked, and they took their calves away from them. If these cows would head straight for Israel, then this judgment was of God and if they don't, then these judgments where just a chance occurrence. The cart carrying the ark heads straight for Beth Shemesh, but the men of Beth Shemesh look into the ark and many of them fall dead because of their actions. Now they don't want to keep the ark either so they send it to KirjathJearim, to the house of Abinadab, and his son Eleazer was to watch over it for the next 20 years. Now Saul was not a man of worship and thus did not go after the ark. But David was a man of worship and he goes to bring the ark back, which represented the presence of God. (Exodus 25:22).

VERSES 3-5

1. A real celebration was taking place as the ark was being brought to Jerusalem. And what David was doing was right, the ark needed to be brought back to the land, to be the center of worship, but he was doing it in the wrong way as we shall see.

VERSES 6-11

1. As this celebration continues the cart which the ark was resting upon hits this rock outcropping and it looks like the ark is going to tumble off the cart. So Uzzah puts his hand upon the ark to steady it and immediately he is struck dead. This, to say the least, put a real damper on the celebration. In fact David is "terrified" of God! David could not understand why God would do this!

2. David was carrying the ark the way the world did, the way the Philistines had done, on a cart. But God had instructed his people that the ark was to be carried with poles and these poles were to rest on the shoulders of the Levites. Uzzah was Koathite, a Levite, and should have known better. Yes the Philistines got away with it, but they were ignorant of what God wanted. But to those who have become instructed in the things of God, there is the greater responsibility.

3. Don't man handle God or try to carry God the way the world does. God gives us explicit instructions on how we are to come to Him and to worship Him. The worlds way of reaching God are foolishness and lead to death. God's way is that He reached down to sinful man and saved us. Worship Him as He deserves to be worshiped.

4. So David sends the ark to the house of Obed-Edom, where it remained for 3 months.

VERSE 12

1. In I Chronicles chapter 15 we are told that David spent these 3 months searching the scriptures to see how the ark was to be transported. His fear has now turned to joy as he got a right perspective on the character of God.

VERSES 13-15

1. This was almost an 8 mile journey to Jerusalem and can you imagine how long it took and the number of sacrifices that were made. But now the ark is being brought according to God's word and not man's worldly wisdom.

2. And David takes off his royal robe and dances before the Lord. When we come before the Lord we are all equal. God is not a respecter of persons, no matter if you are a king or a common person, we are all seen the same. Thus David is showing us here that fact as he worships the Lord.

VERSES 16-19

1. David was rejoicing in the Lord. What a high he must have felt. But then David heads home.

VERSE 20

1. Michal never really loved David and now she is just one of his many wives. No special treatment. And she despised him.

2. Satan is always ready to try to bring you down after you have just had a spiritual high in the Lord. I am sure you all have witnessed that in your own lives.

VERSES 21-23

1. Because of her actions, David has no further sexual relations with her, and thus, she is barren, which was a big disgrace in that part of the world.

2. If you look at worship as being boring, humiliating, useless, then you too will be barren, you will find yourself in spiritual bareness. As we worship the Lord our focus comes off self and then is placed upon Him. And as we then are focused on Him, then God speaks to us through His word.

3. God calls us to worship Him, thus, it doesn't matter if you are in to it or not, we are to worship Him. Don't tell God what you want to do and what you don't want to do in regards to worship. If you do, you will find yourself in the place of spiritual bareness just as Michal found herself in physical bareness.