Day #144

Sermon - Audio
2 Samuel 24, 1 Chronicles 21-22, Psalm 30 - Daily Audio
2 Sameul 24, 1 Chronicles 21-22, Psalm 30 - Daily Reading

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2 Samuel 24, 1 Chronicles 21-22, Psalm 30

2 Samuel 24 (with side notes from 1 Chronicles 21)

v. 1 – Verse 1 states, “The Lord…incited David, while Chronicles 21:1 “Satan…incited David.” God himself never does evil, but sometimes He uses evil moral agents to accomplish His purpose.

v. 3 – By taking this census, David apparently showed lack of trust in God to supply the necessary men when needed. Joab is the one who recognizes David’s wrongdoing.

v. 9 – Numbers in scripture often have an important significance. However, between these to books we come across a discrepancy. In 2 Sam. 24 there are a total of 1.3 million men and in 1 Chron. 21 they speak of a total of 1.1 million men. A possible theory is that in Chronicles, they did not include the tribes of Levi and Benjamin.

v. 13 – Of the three choices the number people who would die would be about equal. Plague kills faster in three days than famine in three years.

v. 16-17 – “The angel stretched with his hand toward Jerusalem.” 1 Chron. 21:16, the writer describes “a drawn sword stretched out over Jerusalem.” The angel with the drawn sword over Jerusalem makes us think of Abraham with his knife over Isaac in “the land of Moriah”. Mount Moriah was the site of the future temple. “Please let your hand be against me.” David offers to bear the punishment for this sin, but God does not accept this offer. This is a worthy gesture on David’s part and sets the pattern for his ultimate descendant, Jesus, who will bear the punishment for his people. (ESV)

v. 23-25 – There seems to be another discrepancy in numbers. In 2 Sam. account David pays 50 shekels of silver for the threshing floor and the oxen. 1 Chron. 21:25 says that he paid 600 shekels of gold by weight for the site. Probably the site mentioned there is the larger piece of land on Mount Moriah, which is where Solomon will build the future temple.

1 Chronicles 22 – The purpose of the narrative is not only to recount David’s purchase of the temple site, but also to explain the meaning of the temple itself as the place of God’s mercy and forgiveness.

v. 6-16 – David’s reign was a time of warfare and destruction of enemies. In contrast Solomon’s reign was promised to be a time of peace and quiet which allowed him to focus on building the temple.

v. 14 – 100,000 talents of gold is equal to 3750 tons and would translate into over $50 billion dollars

Food for Thought: David prepared Solomon to build God’s temple, which would become a symbol of God’s faithfulness to Israel. These financial, emotional, political, social, and personal preparations were crucial elements in Solomon’s temple-building project. David built a bridge through Solomon for centuries beyond his own lifetime. What are you building in those who will follow you in your family, business or ministry?

Psalm 30

According to the title, David composed Psalm 30 for the dedication of the temple (an event that took place after David died.) The temple does not figure much in the psalm itself, except for the address to the fellow worshipers in Psalm 30:4. The theme of the whole psalm is one of personal thanksgiving for God’s repeated care and deliverance over the course of a life; the title makes the concrete situation of David’s experience the background, and the worshipers can liken their own experiences to his. (ESV)

v. 1-3 – These are David’s praise of God for delivering him from a life threatening illness.

v. 4-5 – David asks the community of believers to praise God.

v. 6-7 – David recalls his misplaced self-confidence.

v. 8-10 – David asks God to save him.

v. 11-12 – David praises God for deliverance.