Praising God for his Faithfulness to David 2
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Last time we looked at the first part of . We saw that God is a faithful God. Though he is not obligated to do anything for us, yet he delights in making eternal covenants with people. A Covenant is a legally binding promise where one or both parties take a sacred oath to do something for each other. God has made covenants with Noah, Abraham, Moses as leader of Israel, and David. All of them spill over to impact the entire world. Why would God do this? The mighty angels of heaven stand in awe of Him, yet he stoops to our aid! The raging sea obeys his command, yet he ordains blessing for us! He defeated the Devil at the beginning in the garden of Eden, yet he uses his great power to protect us. He rules from heaven in perfect righteousness and justice. If he had chosen to measure out what our sins deserve, we would all be doomed. But he offers his grace, his unmerited favor to us instead. Anyone can become part of his people simply by faith. When we trust Jesus to forgive our sins, we become a part of the church. As His people, we partake of his righteousness instead of suffering under it. As his people, his glory, strength, and grace become our possession. What a wonder, that we should participate in the majesty, power, and favor of God!
God made a covenant with David that concerns the whole world, for the Son of David has been appointed to rule the world.
I will tell of the decree: The Lord said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”
God told David
from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover, the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
:11-
Turn with me to
David and his son Solomon, God started to do exactly what he promised.
Since God is the kind of God that faithfully keeps his Covenants, we ought to expect him to do what he says. Because of the Davidic Covenant, we should expect the kingship of Israel to prosper. During the reign of David and Solomon, that is exactly what started happening. Not everything, mind you, but it was certainly very promising.
God is Faithful to his Covenant - Trust Him
God is Faithful to his Covenant - Trust Him
Versus 19-37 are a commentary on this Davidic Covenant. But why should we go over this ancient covenant? Two reasons. Jesus is the One who fulfills this Covenant completely. We will understand Jesus better if we understand how he fulfills the Davidic Covenant. Also, it is one thing to talk about God being faithful in the abstract, and another thing to see God’s faithfulness in action. Why do you trust your closest friends? Because you have seen them being trustworthy to you time and time again. Your experience with them gives you reason to believe they will be trustworthy in the future. It is the same with God. When we see how God has been faithful in the past, it will be easier for us to trust him in our present for our future.
1. The Lord Chose Him
1. The Lord Chose Him
Of old you spoke in a vision to your godly one, and said: “I have granted help to one who is mighty; I have exalted one chosen from the people. I have found David, my servant; with my holy oil I have anointed him,
Look at verses 19-21
Of old you spoke in a vision to your godly one, and said: “I have granted help to one who is mighty; I have exalted one chosen from the people. I have found David, my servant; with my holy oil I have anointed him, so that my hand shall be established with him; my arm also shall strengthen him.
We can find the story of God’s choice of David in . It was not David’s idea to become King. Instead
We can find the story of God’s choice of David in . It was not David’s idea to become King. Instead
The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.”
1 Sam
God did not choose the tallest and most impressive man to be Israel’s next King. Instead it was Jesse’s youngest son, someone so invisible that Jesse had left him at home. David was chosen by God from the people exactly because of how unimpressive he was. David was indeed mighty, not because he was special, but because God anointed him.
Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah.
This anointing meant divine help to become King. It is no accident that soon after this David secured a position as a musician in Saul’s court. This began his rise to political power as well as taught him how to be King. And who can forget that tremendous victory that David won against Goliath? But why choose an insignificant boy to be King? Because that’s just who God is.
And David said, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!”
Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.
David beat Goliath because he recognized that God was faithful to deliver him. But why choose an insignificant boy to be King? Because that’s just who God is.
But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are,
But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;
2. The Lord Protected Him
2. The Lord Protected Him
so that my hand shall be established with him; my arm also shall strengthen him. The enemy shall not outwit him; the wicked shall not humble him. I will crush his foes before him and strike down those who hate him.
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God’s choice meant that David had the help of God almighty to become King. But this help did not stop with him becoming King. God protected him from his many enemies throughout his life.
God’s choice meant that David had the help of God almighty to become King. But this help did not stop with him becoming King. God protected him from his many enemies throughout his life.
God’s choice meant that David had the help of God almighty to become King. But this help did not stop with him becoming King. God protected him from his many enemies throughout his life.
Look at verses 22-24
The enemy shall not outwit him; the wicked shall not humble him. I will crush his foes before him and strike down those who hate him. My faithfulness and my steadfast love shall be with him, and in my name shall his horn be exalted.
David was in danger many times throughout his life. Before his very first battle with Goliath, he told Saul that this was not the first time he had been in danger
David was in danger many times throughout his life. Before his very first battle with Goliath, he told Saul that this was not the first time he had been in danger
And David said, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!”
After David defeated Goliath Saul made him captain of his army. David was always victorious, so much so that
And the women sang to one another as they celebrated, “Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands.”
Saul became jealous because of this, and tried to put David in places where he would be killed in battle. When this did not work he tried to kill David himself. This failed too, and David fled into the wilderness. For the next ten years, Saul used the army of Israel to hunt David down to kill him. But it never happened.
After Saul died, David was still in danger. It took him seven years before the house of Saul was defeated and he was King over all Israel. In all that time no one was able to defeat him. Once he was king over all Israel, he was still in danger. The Philistines had heard that David was king, and he had to fight a final battle with them again. He won, of course.
After David’s sin with Bathsheba, God sent war into his family. Absalom tried to kill him and seize the throne, but was killed himself. At the very end of his life Adonijah tried to take the throne from his father David, but he too was defeated. And these are only a sample of the number of times David escaped death. The only way anyone cheats death that many times is if God helps him.
Christians too have been promised victory. A victory so complete that even death cannot stop it.
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
God is the sort who chooses the weak and makes them strong; to those he loves he gives victory. This is why he chose David and gave him the victory throughout his life. God’s faithfulness to his Covenant not only explains why he helped and protected him, it also explains why he exalted him.
3. The Lord Exalted Him
3. The Lord Exalted Him
My faithfulness and my steadfast love shall be with him, and in my name shall his horn be exalted. I will set his hand on the sea and his right hand on the rivers. He shall cry to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.’ And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.
At this point Ethan begins to describe just how high the Davidic Covenant promised to exalt David. God had promised to exalt David’s descendant to the highest possible degree. So high, in fact, that only Jesus is capable of the tremendous greatness that the Davidic Covenant requires.
A. By Giving him control of land and sea
A. By Giving him control of land and sea
I will set his hand on the sea and his right hand on the rivers. He shall cry to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.’ And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.
My faithfulness and my steadfast love shall be with him, and in my name shall his horn be exalted. I will set his hand on the sea and his right hand on the rivers. He shall cry to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.’ And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.
I will set his hand on the sea and his right hand on the rivers.
Look at verse 25
At this point Ethan begins to describe just how high the Davidic Covenant promised to exalt David. God had promised to exalt David’s descendant to the highest possible degree. So high, in fact, that only Jesus is capable of the tremendous greatness that the Davidic Covenant requires.
The sea here is the Mediterranean sea, and the rivers form the boundaries of the land of Israel.
And I have been with you wherever you went and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth.
I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men,
,
And I will set your border from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the wilderness to the Euphrates, for I will give the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you shall drive them out before you.
Gen 15:
On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates,
If God is to exalt David and his sons to rule over all Israel, then the borders of his kingdom must be the borders of the entire country. No rival kings or countries can oppose his rule in any part of the promised borders of the Land of Israel.
But it is possible that Ethan intents even more than this. Look back at . God rules over the sea itself, not just the borders between them. In Hebrew something in your hand was in your control. So to have your hand on the sea and the rivers means to be in control of them. No historical king of Israel ever wielded that much power. But Jesus did. Jesus calmed a storm in . He walked on water in . He orchestrated a miraculous catch of fish in ; ; .
B. By Being his Father
B. By Being his Father
He shall cry to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.’
look at verse 26
David did declare that God was the rock of his salvation, because of all the times God delivered him
Psalm 18
The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation—
The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
“The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be my God, the rock of my salvation,
To call God “my father” recalls the promise of the Covenant
I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men,
This new relationship implies not only fatherly discipline, but it also implies an inheritance.
I will tell of the decree: The Lord said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”
Today we are used the idea that God is our father. But in the Old Testament, very rarely does any individual call God their father. It was an unusual relationship as the author of Hebrews reminds us
For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”? Or again, “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son”?
With weeping they shall come, and with pleas for mercy I will lead them back, I will make them walk by brooks of water, in a straight path in which they shall not stumble, for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn.
Even the Angels do not get to call God their Father. But we are used the idea of God as our Father because Jesus taught us to call him that in the Lord’s Prayer.
Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
God exalted David by more than giving him control of the whole land of Israel, over the sea, and being his Father. The Son of David enjoys the highest authority on earth
C. By making him the Highest King of Earth
C. By making him the Highest King of Earth
And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.
look as verse 27
It meant something to be the firstborn in an Ancient Israelite Family. It meant getting a double portion of the family inheritance. But more than that, it also meant having authority over your brothers. David was not literally the firstborn, for he was the youngest. But the authority God promised him was to be the firstborn of earth, the highest of all kings. The greatest of Israel’s historical kings was Solomon. He was a great king, but even Solomon could not claim a title this big. Solomon was perhaps the richest king of his generation, and he was great, but not the most powerful king on earth. There were many nations larger than Israel.
Yet that is what God had promised David
And I have been with you wherever you went and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth.
The fulfillment of this promise would have to wait for Jesus, the last and greatest royal Son of David. He is truly the firstborn of the earth
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.
“firstborn” here means being the highest, not the first one born. As the Son of God, Jesus has always existed. And he is the highest of all
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
Rev 19:
On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.
In Revelation John sees a vision of the Second Coming
They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”
On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.
God chose David and protected him because he delights in strengthening the weak and giving them the victory. He takes the low and makes them great. God promised such greatness for David’s descendants that only Jesus can meet the requirement. Indeed, only the Son of God could fulfill the Davidic Covenant, for the line of David must last forever.
4. The Lord Established Him
4. The Lord Established Him
look at verses 28 and 29; 35-37
My steadfast love I will keep for him forever, and my covenant will stand firm for him. I will establish his offspring forever and his throne as the days of the heavens.
Once for all I have sworn by my holiness; I will not lie to David. His offspring shall endure forever, his throne as long as the sun before me. Like the moon it shall be established forever, a faithful witness in the skies.” Selah
It is very difficult to keep a dynasty going for many centuries. Unrest may overthrow a current monarch, or the country may be defeated and end completely. Even if everything is going well, it may be that there simply are no more descendants. England’s House of Tudor ended in 1603 because Henry VIII could not produce a male heir, despite all the evil things he did to get one. Currently the longest surviving dynasty is the Yamato dynasty of Japan, traditionally dated as beginning in 660 BC, or about three hundred years after David. But God promised David an eternal line.
but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’ ” In accordance with all these words, and in accordance with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David.
but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’ ”
But Ethan emphasizes just how secure this “forever” was supposed to be. He uses the word “forever” no less than four times [3x עוֹלָם, once עַד]. David’s throne will last as long as the sun and moon, as many days as the sky itself. If we only had God’s Word that he would do this, it would be enough. God is faithful. But God took a sacred vow by his faithfulness, and put his credibility on the line - if the line of David ever ended, God would be lying to David.
There is only one way this is possible, because the dynasty of David did in fact end. It ended in 587 BC when Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem and brought the Kingdom of Judah to a close. But crucially, there were still always descendants of David, until AD 70 when the Temple was destroyed and all records were lost. So the only way for God to still keep his word would be if one of David’s descendants lived forever. That is exactly what happened. Jesus is the last and final Son of David. He rose from the dead never to die again
We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.
So Jesus will live forever as the firstborn of all creation. God chose to bring the Messiah through the line of David, so he could bless an ordinary man to an extraordinary degree. He gave David victory, protection, and incredible blessings because he is just that kind of God. But not all of David’s sons were as pure and upright as Jesus. What happens if one of David’s Sons disobeys God?
5. The Lord Corrects Them
5. The Lord Corrects Them
If his children forsake my law and do not walk according to my rules, if they violate my statutes and do not keep my commandments, then I will punish their transgression with the rod and their iniquity with stripes, but I will not remove from him my steadfast love or be false to my faithfulness. I will not violate my covenant or alter the word that went forth from my lips.
This emphasizes just how inviolable the Davidic Covenant was. No matter how badly David’s descendants acted, God would never finally disown them. If they wanted to enjoy the blessings of the Davidic Covenant, they needed to live a God-honoring life. But they could not make God abandon his promises.
Contrast this with Saul. Saul was given plenty of chances to do what is right, but he consistently followed God - almost. That “almost” is what cost him the kingdom. He was told to wait until Samuel came to offer sacrifices, but offered them himself to get his army back . He was told to destroy the Amalekites, but spared the best cattle and king Agag because he wanted his people’s approval too much . God removed Saul and his descendants from being king, even though his son Jonathan was a fine man of God. If he had followed God completely, he could have received an eternal kingdom. But God had not promised him anything more than victory during his lifetime, so he was under no obligation to save Saul from his own foolishness.
He was told to destroy the Amalekites, but spared the best cattle and king Agag because it was convenient. God removed Saul and his descendants from being king, even though his son Jonathan was a fine man of God.
Many of David’s Descendants did much worse than Saul. Solomon served idols, and Ahaz trusted in Assyria instead of trusting God. Manasseh desecrated the temple by putting idols in it, and even offered his sons as human sacrifices. And when they did these evil things, the nation suffered. They were overrun by foreign invaders and defeated in battle. They had to pay huge amounts of silver and gold as tribute to prevent the nation from being dissolved. Uzziah suffered from leprosy. At one point the line of David was reduced to an eight-year old boy because a ruthless queen tried to destroy the line. But despite all this, God kept his Covenant and did not end the line of David until after Jesus, the final Son of David came.
God is still faithful in correction. He does not abandon his promises when he lovingly chastens his children. The difference between God as Judge and God’s fatherly correction is why he does it. As Judge God gives people what they deserve. He rights wrongs by making sure sinners get what is coming to them. The purpose is not reform, it is justice. But as loving Father God corrects his children to bring them to repentance and change. He is not aiming at justice. He is trying to correct the wrong attitudes, thinking, and actions that still remains unchanged within us.
Why did God do all these great things for David? Because that is the kind of God he is. He could have chosen an important noble, but he chose an insignificant shepherd from the people. He did that because he delights in choosing a weak person so his strength can be evident through them. He protected David throughout his life and gave him the victory, because God is the kind of God who gives victory to the powerless. He exalted David because he is the kind of God who delights in making the lowly great. Only Jesus can truly fulfill the Davidic Covenant. He alone is the firstborn, the highest of the Kings of the Earth. Only Jesus lives forever as the Final Son of David. Even when God corrects his children, he remains faithful to his promises no matter how badly they may behave.