*2 Samuel 5-6
*Psalm 53
*Romans 13
-Devotion by Jeremy Martin (TN)
In our reading of Psalms today, we are reminded as the “sons of men” that we ALL have fallen short. In Ps 53:2-3 we see that, “God looks down from heaven…to see if there is anyone who has insight, anyone who seeks after God.” and that “Every one of them has turned back: together they have become worthless; There is no one who does good, not even one.” This is pretty harsh but if we are being completely honest, which one of us comes even close to accurately reflecting the merciful, loving character of our God? David notes this communal shortcoming on our part and laments (and prophecises) in Ps 52:6 “oh that the salvation of Israel would come…!”. At our very, very best we all don’t even hold a tiny sputtering candle to the blazing glory of God’s love and mercy.
Well, I say “all” but there was one son of man that did a pretty good job of it later. Here’s just one more of those really, really cool bits of foreshadowing in scripture that you don’t even see unless you’re digging a little. “The salvation” here in Ps 52:6 is literally יְשֻׁע֪וֹת (yeshuot), a variant of Yeshua. There are all kinds of hidden subtleties in scripture just like this one. David is lamenting that the salvation of God, Yeshua, hasn’t come yet; but when Jesus (Yeshua) came there was one son of man who did NOT fall short, the man whom God sent and would anoint as our King later in scripture, the Christ (Christ means simply “The Anointed One”, ie, anointed by God). Our role model Jesus (who self-identified as the “son of man” 72+ times in the scriptures) lived as an example to all of us other sons of men (ie, us human beings).
When the son of man came, Yeshua (Jesus) of Nazareth, he completely submitted to the will of God. When his will and God’s will differed (and they did at times, see Mt 26:39), he sacrificed his own desires and submitted to the Most High God. As our role model and as our anointed King, it’s our job to strive to imitate that humility before God. In our Romans reading today, it speaks at length of submitting to the governing authorities. I suggest that additionally our governing authority should be our King, Jesus, who represents perfectly the will of God who sent him. “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Mt 6:33), and “make no provision for the flesh in regards to it’s lusts” (Rom 13:14, one of my favorite self correction verses).
In 2 Sam 5-6 today we see David is coming in to power and is made king, and eventually the split kingdoms of Judah and Israel are once again reunited (@1004 BC) under his monarchy. In chapter 5 it details the elders coming to David and asking him to be king, his initial victories and accumulation of power, gathering more wives and concubines, and battling the Philistines. Then in the beginning of chapter 6 we see David gathering up a large group of men and going to recover the Ark of the Covenant from Abinadab’s house, where it had been sitting for 40-60 years. Wait a minute, why has the most precious relic of Israel been sitting at some guy’s house for the last half century-ish!? Well, to find that answer we’ll have to dig a little, and flip back over to 1 Sam. To really get the full flavor of the story I recommend starting about 1 Sam 2:12 and reading (slowly and carefully) through about 1 Sam 7:2 (this is a great story).
In 1 Sam 2:12-17 it details some of the sins of Eli’s children (priests, sons of the High Priest) against God, and the High Priest fails to honor God over his sons. This provokes a dire promise from Yahweh to Samuel in 1 Sam 3:11 that “Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which both ears of everyone who hears it will tingle“. The only time this specific verbage was used later (2 Ki 21:12, Jer 19:3) was just before the temple was destroyed and the Babylonian exile commenced, so you know that this was going to be a really big deal, and really bad. As a culmination of this particular warning, Eli and his sons die, and the Ark of the Covenant (the most holy relic) was captured by the Philistines (1 Sam 4). This was bad.
Speaking of bad, the Philistines soon learned to their dismay that taking the Ark of the Covenant and keeping it were two very different propositions. God struck them with confusion, plagues, and tumors (*the afflictions seem to be in the form of confusion, desolation causing/crop eating mice, and tumors based on their proposed solution in 1 Sam 6:1-18). They brought it initially to Ashdod and set it up in the temple of Dagon (a pagan ‘deity’, ie, idol), and it broke their “god” (repeatedly) and then “made them desolate and struck them with tumors, both Ashdod and it’s territories.” (1 Sam5:1-6). So, in terror, they sent the Ark to Gath (where Goliath was from), and they too were struck with confusion, tumors, and plagues (1 Sam 5:8-9). The Gath lads had enough and sent it to Ekron, where the Ekronites cried out “They have brought the Ark of the God of Israel around to us to put us and our people to death!“, were similarly afflicted, and then they all decided to get rid of it by sending it back off to Israel (1 Sam 5 10-12).
When it arrived in Beth-Shemesh over 50,000 men were “struck down” because they foolishly looked into the Ark (1 Sam 16-21). They asked the folks at Kiriath-jearim to come take it please, and there it sat in Abinadab’s house (who took special precautions) for the next 40-60 years. Please recall God’s warning (and the cautionary tale of Nadab and Abihu) in Lev 10:3; God will be treated as holy by those who come near Him. Brian Froehlich did a great devotional on this on 5/3.
So now back in 2 Samuel, David has become king, and sets out to retrieve this most holy relic for the nation of Israel. So, he got a new cart to carry it on and set out with much pomp and celebration (2 Sam 6:1-5). Then, the new cart almost tips over so Uzzah (Abinadab’s son) reaches out to steady it and is struck dead (2 Sam 6: 6-8) and “David was afraid of Yahweh that day” (2 Sam 6:9), and decides to leave the cart (and the Ark) there nearby along the route in the house of Obed-edom (2 Sam 6:9-11). When David later hears that Obed-edom is being blessed, on account of the Ark, David decides maybe he should go get it after all (2 Sam 6:11-12). Thus begins Operation Retrieve The Ark, take 2.
The second attempt, they had the celebration music again as before, but this time whenever those who were carrying the Ark took six paces he sacrificed an ox and a fatling (2 Sam 6:13). Think about that a moment: step, step, step, step, step, step: stop, sacrifice. Repeat, all the way to Jerusalem. How far was it from Obed-edom’s house to Jerusalem? I’m not sure, but I’d wager “too far” if you were an ox or a fatling. Do you think they’d learned their lesson, and began to treat God as holy? It rather sounds like it to me, and the whole time this was going on, David was dancing with all his might in an ephod (his underwear) before Yahweh (2 Sam 14). Almost manically as if his very life depended on it, you might say (and you would be correct). Clearly David thought so, at the very least. “…“It is what Yahweh spoke, saying, ‘By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy, And before all the people I will be glorified.’” (Lev 10:3). Dance, with all your might!
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
- We know that we have all fallen short. How can we stand, and get closer to God? (list or think of 3 actions that will personally assist you in getting closer to God)
- At times, do you “make provision for the flesh”, and how can you instead make provision for heavenly matters? (list or think of a couple specific personal changes in behavior)
- When you come near God, do you treat Him as holy? How can you do better?
PRAYER
Lord God, Most Holy God, I know that I have fallen short of your will for me so many times and I am so sorry. Forgive me, Father. Please help me to draw nearer to you, to humbly seek to do your will at all times, and to listen and obey when you speak to me. Please guide me, instruct me, and discipline me when needed. Help me to reflect your character to all of my brothers and sisters, to honor You, and to be a servant that pleases You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Seek Grow Love 