You Can Read the Bible Guided Podcast

“They shall make an ark of acacia wood…[and] you shall overlay it with pure gold…. You shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on the one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it.  You shall make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold.  And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark by them.  The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it.   

There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel.

– Exodus 25:10-22

A line of significance can be drawn between today’s reading and God’s instructions to Moses on Sinai.  The Ark of the Covenant was not a container for the LORD, nor representative of the LORD – as pagan idols were – but it was the evidence of the LORD’s special relationship with His people Israel. 

The Ark was evidence – testimony – of covenant.  It contained the Law tablets, a sample of manna, and Aaron’s staff.  It was where Moses and Joshua had spoken with the LORD in the wilderness.  The Philistines were plagued by it and their idols bowed down to it.  Once ensconced in the Most Holy Place, none could approach it save for the High Priest of Israel. 

Yesterday we saw David crowned king over all Israel and his capital moved to Jerusalem, a defensible stronghold that was strategically both within Judah and near the northern tribes.   Today he requests the Ark be brought up from the house of Abinadab – the lone priest who survived Saul’s slaughter.  A new cart is built for the occasion.  Two Levites, who should have known the law, manage the transit. 

But the trip is marred by tragedy, as the fierce holiness of the LORD is exerted.  The ark is preserved, but it comes at a cost.  A Levite is dead; David is angry, then terrified.  As the LORD remains mute throughout – and David’s not about to approach Him – you’re allowed to speculate on the cause of the LORD’s response.   

Finally, the transit is completed.  And once David, and his house, and the Ark are settled in Jerusalem, David has an idea.  Listen to the LORD’s proclamation in chapter 7 as He offers a better promise – a better house – than David ever could.   

Our verse for this week is Romans 6:23: For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

2 Samuel 6 and 7.  Now let’s read it!

The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.  – Genesis 49:10

Saul’s son Ish-bosheth was presented in chapter 3 as being personally paranoid and politically foolish.  If you’re going to accuse the commander of your army of treachery, you’d better know what you’re doing.  Yet Ish-bosheth could not answer Abner another word, because he feared him. 

Although Abner met an untimely and greatly-mourned demise, his stated purpose to “…accomplish for David what the LORD has sworn to him, to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul and set up the throne of David over Israel and over Judah…” would be realized.  Two of Ish-bosheth’s captains take matters into their own hands and murder Saul’s son in his sleep.  The lack of an armor bearer, a bodyguard, or any follow-through from Ish-bosheth’s militia might point to a larger conspiracy for an army that knew it was over.  Nonetheless, David deals with his murderers the same way he dealt with the Amalakite who bore news of Saul’s death: if David was not going to kill Israel’s king, he wasn’t going to let anyone else do it either.   

So the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the LORD, and they anointed David king over Israel.  Samuel’s oil had long since dried from his forehead, but the LORD’s spirit was still upon him.  And now all Israel would recognize it.  For a coronation party, David captures Jerusalem, and we are introduced for the first time to Zion, that is, the city of David. 

As you read today, pay attention to David’s recognition of the LORD’s hand.  Both in war and in peace David displays a gratitude and reverence that Saul never had.  The trajectory leads us to believe that Israel could, finally, have a prince after God’s own heart. 

Our verse for this week is Romans 6:23: For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

2 Samuel 4 and 5.  Now let’s read it!

Your glory, O Israel, is slain on the high places!
How the mighty have fallen!

At the end of 1 Samuel, the Philistines execute a stunning series of victories that sweep from the Mediterranean coast to the Jordan valley.  King Saul was killed, and along with his sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchi-shua was beheaded and carried triumphantly to Philistia. 

While this illustrated Saul's weakness and Israel's vulnerability, it did not represent a loss of territory that Israel would have to recapture.  Raids such as these were not about expanding territory, but about acquiring spoil.  The Philistines were not interested in governing the areas they raided, but wanted easy targets for regular "shopping trips." 

Constant tension within, and constant threat from without, were hallmarks of the Judges era, when a tenuous confederacy was held together by nothing more than a shared history and a common God.   The central government of Israel's king was to have provided effective protection, but when the LORD's hand left him, and Saul's distractions mounted, his ability to govern his passions, his army, and his territory faltered.  This once-great warrior’s final battle completed his failure: Saul’s forty-year legacy was now completely negated. 

Except, there was David.  2 Samuel opens After the death of Saul, when David had returned from striking down the Amalakites…  David is grief stricken when he learns of the deaths of both his greatest enemy and his greatest friend.  Judah is ready to declare him king, but one of Saul’s remaining sons makes a claim to the throne, and much of the nation follows him.  Judah and Benjamin, again at war.  Nothing has changed. 

Except, there was David.  Consider how he treats the Amalekite messenger in chapter 1, how he handles the divided kingdom in chapter 2, and how he deals with Abner – and Joab – in chapter 3.  Israel’s king was supposed to be different.  It’s now up to David to prove that it’s possible. 

Our verse for this week is Romans 6:23: For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

2 Samuel 1 through 3.  Now let’s read it!