II Samuel 1:1-27 – David Laments
The Living Word With Chuck Davis
II Samuel 1:1-27 – David Laments
"Welcome to the Living Word with Chuck Davis." 2 Samuel 1, 1-27, David Lomens. After the death of Saul, when David had returned from striking down the Amalekites, David remained two days in Ziklag, and on the third day, behold, a man came from Saul's camp with his closed turn and dirt on his head. When he came to David, he fell to the ground and paid homage. David said to him, "Where do you come from?" And he said to him, "I have escaped from the camp of Israel." David said to him, "How did it go? Tell me." And he answered, "The people fled from the battle, and also many of the people have fallen and are dead." And Saul and his son Jonathan are also dead. Then David said to the young man who told him, "How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?" The young man who told him said, "By chance I happened to be on Mount Gilboa, and there was Saul leaning on his spear and behold, the chariots and the horsemen were close upon him. And when he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me, and I answered him, "Here I am." And he said to me, "Who are you?" And I answered, "I am an Amalekite." And he said to me, "Stand beside me and kill me for anguish has seized me, and yet my life stole lingers." So I stood beside him and I killed him because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. And I took the crown that was on his head and the armlet that was on his arm, and I brought them here to my Lord. Then David took hold of his clothes and tore them, and so did all the men who were with him. And they mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the people of the Lord, and for the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword. And David said to the young man who told him, "Where do you come from?" And he answered, "I am a son of a soldier and an Amalekite." David said to him, "How is it you are not afraid to put out your hand to destroy the Lord's anointed?" Then David called one of the young men and said to him, "Go execute him." And he struck him down so that he died, and David said to him, "Your blood be on your own head, for your own mouth is testified against you, saying I have killed the Lord's anointed." And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and Jonathan his son, and he said it, "Should be taught to the people of Judah, behold, it is written in the Book of Joshua." He said, "Your glory, O Israel, slain on your high places, how the mighty have fallen, tell it not in geth, publish it not in the streets of Ashkelon, lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised exalt. You mountains of Gilbah, let there be no dew or rain upon you, nor fields or of offerings. For there the shield of the mighty was defiled, and the shield of Saul not anointed with oil. From the blood of the slain, from the fad of the mighty, the bow of Jonathan turned not back, and the sword of Saul returned not empty. All in Jonathan beloved and lovely, in life and in death, they were not divided, they were swifted than eagles, they were stronger than lions. You daughters of Israel weep over Saul. You clothed, who clothed you with luxurious scarlet, and who put ornaments of gold on your apparel. How the mighty have fallen in the midst of the battle, Jonathan lies slain on your high places. I am distressed from you, my brother Jonathan, very pleasant have you been to me. Your love to me was extraordinary, surpassing the love of women. How the mighty have fallen, and the weapons of war perished. A man comes from Saul's camp, and he lies to gain David's favor, actually turns against him. David mourns hearing this news, tears his clothes, he wept and he fasted. You see, emotionally in the story, we've been getting prepared to celebrate or cheer. If not for the demise of Saul, but for the ascension to the throne of David, but David laments. Lament is a gospel of the kingdom act. It sees the brokenness of this world for what it is, it's a result of the dark kingdom. David challenges this man, how would you take your hand to the lords anointed? You get to see the pathos of David in his lament. We've seen David have the ethos to rally the troops, but now there's a passion about him as well. See, the king ship in Israel doesn't pass through a lot of good hands. It's not a good picture. If we go on after 2 Samuel into 1 and 2 Kings, it's disappointing how most of the Kings act. But David is different. Eugene Peterson, "The David story is told in such a way as to accustom us to the human condition as it is, not as it might be glamorized in the glossy brochures, and to develop the spiritual character commensurate with our humanity." Character consisting of humility and adoration, sacrifice and courage, repentance and obedience, loyalty in the community and love of God. David's life is intensely moral, but there is no moral bullying. David's life is pervasively supernatural, but there are no miraculous interventions. There's a reason that David gets mentioned 800 times in the Old Testament and 60 times in the New Testament. He's a man of valor, and valor is still important. I guess that's the so what of this passage. The now what is that for those of us, especially who have leadership positions, I think we all have leadership opportunity. You can bring influence to every sphere that we walk in. But for those of us who have been given a unique opportunity to lead, ethos is developed in people watching our character, but there are moments of pathos where we get to lead the people in acknowledging and grieving the losses that have come our way, and all of it to remain leaders with great valor. And so Lord today, help us to grieve well, what has been lost. Help us to even grieve the loss of our enemies, recognizing that it's a sign of the brokenness of the world in which we live. Lamenting is our opportunity to embrace the reality that you've come to overcome the darkness. We pray this in Jesus' name, amen.