2 Samuel 4 – 2 Samuel 7
2 Samuel 8 – 2 Samuel 12

Its been long over due! Long over due for David. Long over due for God. By the time we reach 2 Samuel chapter 6, I think we could all admit that a time of celebration is long over due!

For David, his oppressors seem to be behind him. The long drawn out time of transition and bitterness from King Saul is over, and Jerusalem is captured and made into the capital city. David now has a palace. David now has a throne. David’s rule now has a sense of prominence among God’s people.

For God, the Ark comes home. What was once a the most important image and dwelling of God during their time in the Wilderness seems to be nearly forgotten. What happened to the tent and tabernacle? Did is waste away? Was it destroyed? Where did it go? And the Ark? It’s been captured, changed hands and returned to Shiloh. But it’s prominence among the people, seems to imply it wasn’t that respected at all.

That is until today . . . as the Ark makes it way to Jerusalem. As it does, the trumpets sound, the people rejoice and David dances. It’s a time of celebration that was long over due. The stress the people have been under are all set aside. For today is a day to dance!

Reminds me of a song, you probably know. Sung by Leigh Ann Womack, written by Mark Sanders and Tia Sillers: “I hope you dance”

I hope you never lose your sense of wonder
You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger
May you never take one single breath for granted
God forbid love ever leave you empty handed
I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens
Promise me that you’ll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance
I hope you dance

I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance
Never settle for the path of least resistance
Livin’ might mean takin’ chances, but they’re worth takin’
Lovin’ might be a mistake, but it’s worth makin’
Don’t let some Hellbent heart leave you bitter
When you come close to sellin’ out, reconsider
Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance
I hope you dance

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens
Promise me that you’ll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance

As hard as life was for David he still took the time to dance. So I hope and pray that you might be able to dance as well!

Peace,
Pastor Bailey

Our next reading: 2 Samuel 13 – 15

2 Samuel 1 – 2 Samuel 3

The long awaited throne is now David’s. However things still don’t come easy do they? Those loyal to Saul, try to secure the throne for Saul’s son Ishbaal. He rules to some of Israel . . . while David rules to the others.

Strive and warfare continue, but now it is within the nation of Israel, rather than with the nations surrounding Israel. In many ways this is a foreshadowing of what is to come as Israel is split after King Solomon. Sadly, these are not pretty times for the people of God. Sadly, David’s long awaited accent to the throne begins with a dark shadow upon it. Yet one glimmer of hope, even in David’s trying times he continues to turn to God!

Peace,
Pastor Bailey

Our next reading: 2 Samuel 4 – 7

1 Samuel 28 – 1 Samuel 31

1 Samuel comes to a close with the death of King Saul. The long awaited King of Israel is anointed, reigns, and comes to a tragic ending. What can we say of the first King of Israel.

Did Saul leave a legacy?
Did he built a mighty palace?
Did he make a name for Israel?
Did he secure peace and freedom for God’s people?
Did he he restore the people’s faith in God?
Did he do anything?

The simple answer to all of those questions is NO!

Looking back on Saul’s reign, he battled day in and day out with the Philistines. He had limited success in taking down this mighty oppressor. Limited only because he was distracted by David who was promised to take the throne from him. He was so distracted, he left no legacy, he established no peace, and he did more to tear apart the Israelites than he ever did to build it up.

Let us hope, that as we turn the page on a new book in the Bible, and as a new king takes the throne, that David will become the king the Israelites need and deserve.

Peace,
Pastor Bailey

Our next reading: 2 Samuel 1-3

1 Samuel 21 – 1 Samuel 24
1 Samuel 25 – 1 Samuel 27

David lives in fear & David learns to love. If I was asked to summarize these two days of reading (sorry I missed one day on the blog) I would have to give them these titles.

David lives in fear:
Our newly appointed king, although not yet on the throne, is on the run. His life is in jeopardy as the current King seeks to destroy David and secure is throne. Needless to say its not going well for either one of them. There are threats. There is danger. There is living in hiding deep in a cave. There are several chances to seek life and death.

Within these few chapters David has two different moments where he could have ended the hardship. In chapter 24, David sneaks out of the cave, and carefully cuts off the corner of Saul’s robe. Then, in chapter 26, David approaches Saul’s tent in the dark of night and steals his spear and water jar. At either moment, Saul’s life could have been taken. Yet, David later approaches Saul, reveals the fragment of material , the spear or water jar, and shows him just how close he was to loosing his life. Saul always response with thanksgiving, yet the hunt goes on.

An interesting note to highlight, while David fears for his life he writes many of the Psalms, which we’ll get to in July. Take for instance Psalm 34: “I sought the LORD and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.” Or Psalm 27: “The LORD is the stronghold of my life, of whom shall I be afraid.” In these darker times, David always seems to return to the LORD in song, pouring out his heart, seeking strength and protection in his time of need. If only we could be so bold as well!

David learns to love:
I should add to that title . . . again! It wasn’t too long ago that Saul was going to give David his daughter Merab, but instead David married another daughter Michal. Michal, if we remember offered David some much needed aid while initially on the run. Yet we read in Chapter 27, David’s heart is taken with Abigail, to whom he later marries, and then with Ahinoam, whom he marries as well. So enter wives 2 & 3. Oh, and exit wife 1, As Saul has now given Michal to someone else to marry.

If you are following all of this, you realize that David and his love life is a bit complicated. Friends its only going to get worse. In the end, its going to cause trouble. Then we’ll realize, like father like son, as the next generation takes the throne. At least it keeps things interesting.

On to finish 1 Samuel tonight. Our next reading 1 Samuel 28 – 31.

Peace,
Pastor Bailey

1 Samuel 18 – 1 Samuel 20

And so the story of David continues, as we hear of David’s love. We won’t go into a lot of details, but it is important for us to remember that David’s ability to love eventually gets him in trouble. I’ll say no more than mention the name “Bathsheba.”

For now, we can celebrate the gift of God’s love that David finds in Jonathan, Meraba, and Michal. Each has a story of their own, and their stories will continue to weave in and out of the rest of David’s story as they offering guidance and protection. Certainly their assistance is needed Saul becomes relentless in his attacks against David. In fear, David lives on the run, seeking help along the way from Samuel and Jonathan until the time will come that David can inherit the throne now held by Saul.

Peace,
Pastor Bailey

Our next reading: 1 Samuel 21 – 24

1 Samuel 15 – 1 Samuel 17

These three chapters are packed with good things.

• The future of the kingship is torn away from Saul
• David is anointed as the future king
• David ends up as Saul’s servant
• Goliath threatens the Israelites
• And David takes on the giant

Each and every one of these could deserve a blog in and of themselves. Yet, I’m going to go in a totally different direction. Not because it’s April Fool’s Day, but because it is worthy of a few minutes to reflect on the version (translation) of the Bible you are reading.

Personally, for our Year of Scripture, I’ve been relying on the NIV. However, from time to time I’ve been flipping back and forth to the NRSV and the Message. Each as their own merit and adjust the language to best suit their intended reader. Sometimes, these changes make things a bit interesting.

Take for instance, Saul’s health and well being in Chapter 16:14-23. I found it troubling to read in the NIV, “an evil spirit from the LORD.” I asked, does God send evil spirits? So then out of curiosity, I turned to some other sources. The Message, calls it a “Dark Mood” (my personal favorite). The NRSV states “an evil spirit from God” and the NKJV calls it a “distressing spirit.” Either way things weren’t well for Saul as he turned from God, but to call the spirit of God evil, I had to turn the page and look else where.

Another instance came with the death of Goliath. How did the giant actually die? As youth we always think it is with the stone that David slung, yet as we read we hear things a bit differently. The NIV tells us after David killed him, he drew his sword and cut off his head. The NRSV says, he drew his sword, killed him, and then cut of his head. The NKJV, David took Goliath’s sword, killed him, and then cut off his dead. Lastly the Message says, David finished off the job by cutting off his head.

Details I know, but still details that tell the story. Did David kill Goliath with his stone, stab him after he was knocked out with the giant’s sword, or was death achieved by cutting off his head? Guess we might never know, but how did you read the story?

Peace,
Pastor Bailey

Our next reading: 1 Samuel 18 – 20

1 Samuel 13 – 1 Samuel 14

“What have you done?”
“You have acted foolishly!”
“You have not kept the commandant of the LORD your God!”

Just a few days after being anointed as king, Saul finds a way to get in trouble. In the thick of battle, Saul offers a sacrifice to win God’s favor and to seek God’s guidance in overcoming the Philistines. Seems like a good thing to do, right? So we might ask what went wrong? Why is Samuel so upset? Why is the linage of Saul’s throne now in jeopardy?

Two things help to bring some clarification.

1. Samuel gave specific instructions that Saul wait seven days for his return. While we are on day seven, Saul didn’t wait long enough. He got a bit anxious, and took matters into his own hands.
2. His own hands weren’t the right hands. Who is it that is to offer a sacrifice? The Priest and Levites. Saul is from the tribe of Benjamin. He is not a priest. He is not a Levite. Sacrifices are not his to preform.

So here we are, just a few days into Saul’s reign and things aren’t looking so good.
Power hungry? Not really.
Naive? Absolutely.
Faithful follower of God? That one we might question.
Seven days in for our newly appointed king . . . way to go King Saul!

Peace,
Pastor Bailey

Our next reading: 1 Samuel 15 – 17

1 Samuel 9 – 1 Samuel 12

Israel now has a king!
All hail King Saul!
All hail King Saul!

As we continue to read, we will find out more about King Saul’s personality. For now, we have to go with the information which tells us Saul’s father was “a man of standing” (1 Samuel 9:1). I’ll take that to mean “good standing” and if dad is a man of good standing then the implication is that the son is of good standing as well. Guess we’ll have to await and find out whether or not that is true.

For now, we can rest knowing that Israel has a King, and can now be “like the other nations” as the people have been repeatedly of asking Samuel. While that happens, here’s a great observation to be made. It’s about the character of God. Simply put, God knows all.

• Tomorrow at this time you will meet a man.
• He will be from the tribe of Benjamin
• He will be out looking for a lost donkey

On and on the list could go. Here is the amazing thing, God knows the details. God is in the details. Just as it was then, the same is for us today. God knows, our every thought, our every action, long before we make them. I find that comforting, amazing, and somewhat eerie all at the same time.

So remember, God is watching you, and very well might be calling you, like Saul, to something you never anticipated. Certainly the case with me!

Peace,
Pastor Bailey

Our next reading: 1 Samuel 13 – 14

1 Samuel 4 – 1 Samuel 8

The Ark of God . . .
We’d have to turn back to Exodus 25:10-22 to remember all the details, as God spoke to Moses:

Have them make an ark of acacia wood—two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. Overlay it with pure gold, both inside and out, and make a gold molding around it. . . . . (25:10-11)

You get the idea. Putting it simply, it was a big gold box that served as the dwelling place of God. Where it went, the people went. Where it stopped, the people stopped. It lead the way through the River Jordan, and it circled Jericho before the walls came tumbling down. The Ark was everything to those who revered the LORD. Yet, it was captured by the Philistines! What are we doing to do!

We aren’t going to do anything. The Ark is going to take care of itself!

Captured and in the hands of the Philistines, the Ark finds its way to the temple of Dagon. Rather than me tell the story, I’m going to turn things over to TheBrickTestament for their version. Click on the link below, then use the arrows to navigate through the rest of the story.

http://www.thebricktestament.com/king_saul/god_tortures_the_philistines/1s05_01-02.html

Needless to say, the Ark was returned, and glory was restored to Israel. Now new troubles arise, a king is about to be anointed. Keep reading on!

Peace,
Pastor Bailey

Our next reading: 1 Samuel 9 – 12

1 Samuel 1 – 1 Samuel 3

We turn the page to read a new Book of the Bible, or at least part of it. I say that because our reading through 1 Samuel is one part of what was once a single writing that included 1 & 2 Samuel and 1 & 2 Kings. Historically speaking, it’s length was much too long to contain on one scroll, so you guess it, it was split up into four different scrolls, and later labeled as we know them . . . 1 & 2 Samuel and 1 & 2 Kings. As we will find out, its a great story of the rise and fall of Israel under the leadership of the various Kings.

To start off our story, we journey to the Tabernacle located in Shiloh. It’s a place we haven’t been lately, yet as we read in these first few chapters, the practices instilled by God throughout Leviticus and Numbers are still being upheld under the guidance of Eli and his family. I do have to make one observation, and I’m curious on your take . . . what did you make of Eli’s response to Hannah (1:14)?

Here we find a grieving Hannah. Kneeling outside the Tabernacle, she is pouring her heart out to God and with it the tears flow. Eli, observing from a distance, proclaims, “How long will you make a drunken spectacle of yourself? Put away your wine.” How pastoral! Where is the compassion? Where is the empathy? For being priest of our Most High God, I certainly think he lacked the skills needed to walk faithful with the people in their time of need. So to Hannah, we say sorry for the callous encounter you received at the house of God.

Then to Hannah, we also owe you our praise acclamation for your faithful devotion. After all those years she waited to have a child. When motherhood was the one thing she desired and longed for in life. Then, to realize the gift that came from God in giving birth to Samuel, and to give him back as a servant to God. Wow! What an amazing witness! If only we could be so bold!!

Peace,
Pastor Bailey

Our next reading: 1 Samuel 4-8