David, the shepherd king

After Moses, David is the most important figure in the Old Testament. He was shepherd, musician, poet, warrior, fugitive, king, repentant sinner and ancestor of the Messiah. The Bible calls him “a man after God’s own heart”, and at the same time narrates his worst failures with complete honesty. He wrote many of the Psalms, which have accompanied the prayers of millions for three thousand years. And Jesus would be called “Son of David”. His story fills much of 1 and 2 Samuel, the beginning of 1 Kings and 1 Chronicles.

The shepherd of Bethlehem

David was the youngest of the eight sons of Jesse of Bethlehem, of the tribe of Judah, and great-grandson of Ruth and Boaz. While his older brothers were soldiers, he looked after his father’s sheep. As we saw in the episode on Samuel, when the prophet came to anoint the new king, David had not even been called in: he was in the field. But God looks on the heart. Samuel anointed him in the midst of his brothers, “and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward”.

As a shepherd, David learned to defend his sheep: he killed a lion and a bear that attacked the flock. He also learned to play the harp and compose songs. The best-known psalm in the world springs from that experience:

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”

Psalm 23:1-4

David and Goliath

The Philistines and the Israelites faced each other in the valley of Elah. Every day a giant called Goliath of Gath, six cubits and a span tall and wearing bronze armour, came out of the Philistine camp and challenged Israel: let one man fight him, and the result would decide the war. For forty days no one dared, not even King Saul.

David came to the camp to bring food to his brothers and heard the challenge. He was indignant: “who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” He offered to fight. Saul gave him his armour, but David could not walk in it. He took his staff, chose five smooth stones from the brook, and with his sling approached the giant. Goliath despised him. David answered:

“Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.”

1 Samuel 17:45

David slung a stone, it sank into the Philistine’s forehead, and Goliath fell on his face to the earth. Israel won a great victory. Ever since, “David and Goliath” has become a universal expression for the victory of the small over the mighty.

Years of persecution

David’s success stirred Saul’s jealousy, and David had to flee. For years he lived as a fugitive in caves and deserts: the cave of Adullam, the wilderness of Ziph, En-gedi. Around him gathered men who were in distress, in debt and discontented, and David became their captain. Many psalms were born in those years of anguish, such as Psalm 57, composed “when he fled from Saul in the cave”.

Twice he had Saul at his mercy and spared him, because he would not raise his hand against God’s anointed. David waited for God’s timing instead of seizing the throne by force.

King in Hebron and Jerusalem

After Saul’s death, David was anointed king of Judah in Hebron, where he reigned seven and a half years. Then all the tribes of Israel recognised him as king. David captured the stronghold of Zion, held by the Jebusites, and made it his capital: Jerusalem, “the city of David”. There he brought the ark of the covenant amid great celebration, and David danced before the Lord with all his might.

The promise of an eternal kingdom

David wanted to build a house for God. But God, through the prophet Nathan, answered with an astonishing promise: it would not be David who built God a house, but God who would build David a “house”, that is, a dynasty:

“And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.”

2 Samuel 7:16

This covenant with David is one of the pillars of messianic hope. The prophets would announce that the Messiah would be a descendant of David and would reign for ever.

The great fall: Bathsheba

At the height of his power, David fell gravely. One evening, instead of being with his army at war, he walked on the roof of his palace and saw a woman bathing. She was Bathsheba, wife of Uriah, one of his mighty men. David took her, and she became pregnant. To cover his sin, David had Uriah brought home, hoping he would sleep with his wife; but Uriah, out of loyalty to his comrades at war, refused. Then David ordered him to be placed in the fiercest part of the battle, and Uriah died.

God sent the prophet Nathan, who told David the story of a rich man who took a poor man’s only ewe lamb. David, outraged, said that man deserved to die. Nathan answered: “Thou art the man” (2 Samuel 12:7). David did not justify himself: “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan told him that God had put away his sin, but that there would be serious consequences. From this repentance came Psalm 51, one of the deepest prayers in the Bible: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.”

Grief in the family

The consequences were painful. Bathsheba’s child died. Then came violence and division among David’s sons. His son Absalom rebelled, conspired against him and forced him to flee Jerusalem. In the battle Absalom died, and David wept bitterly: “O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee” (2 Samuel 18:33). The Bible shows a mighty king broken as a father.

His last days

Before he died, David gathered materials for the temple his son Solomon would build, organised the Levites and musicians for worship, and proclaimed Solomon his successor. He counselled his son: “be thou strong therefore, and shew thyself a man; and keep the charge of the Lord thy God” (1 Kings 2:2-3). David died after reigning forty years and was buried in the city of David.

Places in the story

Interesting facts

Lessons for our lives

God prepares in hidden places: the sheepfold was David’s school. With God, giants fall. Waiting for God’s timing is better than forcing it. No one is immune from falling: David fell when he was where he should not have been. Sincere repentance brings forgiveness, even when there are consequences. Worship with all your heart: David danced and sang unashamedly before God.

On the road to Jesus

The promise made to David is fully fulfilled in Jesus Christ. The angel Gabriel told Mary: “the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end” (Luke 1:32-33). Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the city of David. The crowds acclaimed him: “Hosanna to the Son of David!” Jesus is the Good Shepherd who gives his life for the sheep, the King who defeated the giant of sin and death. And Psalm 22, written by David, describes the sufferings of the cross with astonishing precision: “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”

In the next episode we will meet Solomon, David’s son, the wise king who built the temple in Jerusalem.

Prayer

Lord, my Shepherd, I shall not want. Give me David’s faith to face giants in your name. When I fall, give me a humble heart to acknowledge my sin, as he did. Create in me a clean heart. Thank you for Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the King whose kingdom will have no end. Amen.