There are many notable men and women of the Bible, both Old and New Testament, that are worthy of mention in their own right. We know the big names, Abraham, Moses, Debra, Ruth, Naomi, Esther, John the Baptist, Peter, Paul, John, the author of Revelation. But, other than Jesus Himself, I, personally think there is no one more taught about, preached about and written about than David, a shepherd boy turned warrior, turned King. A man who was called “a man after God’s own Heart”
So, what is it about this shepherd boy that has kept people coming back to his story, time and time again? We often hear the quoted, “and David was a man after God’s own heart”, but I would like to start here, in 2nd Samuel 7:5-13 NIV:
"Go and tell my servant David, `This is what the LORD says: Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in? I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day. I have been moving from place to place with a tent as my dwelling.
Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their rulers whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, "Why have you not built me a house of cedar?"'
"Now then, tell my servant David, `This is what the LORD Almighty says: I took you from the pasture and from following the flock to be ruler over my people Israel. I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men of the earth. And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders [1] over my people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies. "`The LORD declares to you that the LORD himself will establish a house for you: When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
What was it about David that God chose to establish His Kingdom through Him? That Jesus, the Messiah, would come as a result of David’s lineage. To answer these questions, one must look past the warrior and king, and learn about who David was before he was “David”, before he was on “the map” he was in the field.
In 1st Samuel 16, we are introduced to the youngest of Jesse’s sons. Samuel is told by God to anoint the next king of Israel from amongst the tribe of Jesse. Jesse touts all of the obvious choices, and doesn’t even bother to mention David as being among them. Yet, God knew where David was. David was focused on being a faithful and diligent steward of what He was given charge over, sheep. David was the first type and shadow of Jesus as the Great Shepherd who would leave the 99 to go after the one. David, a man’s after God’s own heart. He was a man who was faithful. diligent, loyal and humble. Even after being anointed as king, in front of his father and his brothers, David didn’t lose sight of his responsibilities, nor did he become arrogant or haughty in spirit. He went right back to being a shepherd. His position didn’t change his posture. His position didn’t deter him from his purpose. David was a shepherd and one that could be trusted to return to his sheep. God knew that, despite his human proclivities and flaws, David’s heart was towards Him. David, in his truest self, was a worshiper who drew his strength from God. We see this all throughout the Psalms. “I will praise the LORD all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.” – Psalm 146:2, NLT, “The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy.” – Psalm 65:8, NLT. These are just 2 of the plethora of Psalms written as reflections of David’s posture of praise and worship to God. But, one cannot focus on this one facet of David without also acknowledging his human frailty.
David’s position did not change his posture or deter him from his purpose
Recently, my son had the privilege of being part of the set up crew for Brandon Lake’s concert at Bayside Church where he is a worship intern with THRIVE College. The song that really launched him to popularity is the song “Graves into Gardens” from his “House Of Miracles” album. There is a line in this anthem that says “my failures and flaws, you’ve seen them all and You still call me friend.” I believe that this line could sum up David’s relationship with God. Most people like to delineate David's life into pre Bathsheba and post Bathsheba. They use the story of the field and the giant to shine light on how God can take you from obscurity and use you to defeat the giants in your life and then turn around label him as an adulterer and murderer who “gets what he deserves” when his son dies as a result of his sin. But, in doing this, we fail to see the beauty in the deeply rooted relationship between David and his God.
One could postulate that the story of David, while it is a story of how God can raise up those who are “forgotten in the field” to do great things, and how God redeems and restores even when we knowingly and willingly sin, more so, it is a beautiful tapestry woven together with strands of grace denoting the many facets of human complexity and the consistent nature of God. David’s story is, in my opinion, so popular because it is relational. And when we think about the Bible as a whole, when we pause and ponder the words that have been penned, from Genesis to Revelation, we can’t refute the fact that The Bible, the greatest love story ever told, is all about God wanting to have relationship with humanity and sparing no expense, not even His son, to restore relationship with us.
Is it even possible to do the story of David justice in just a few paragraphs? Is it even possible to pen all of the revelation and hidden treasures throughout his story? One of my favorite songs says it most eloquently,
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.
(The Love of God Is Greater Far)
When I think of David's life and all that God used him for and did in and through him, I am certain it would take a lifetime to unpack all that is hidden, in text and subtext, in the pages of David’s life on paper.
Having said that, I will do my best to summarize why I believe God chose David to bring forth the Messiah and to build His Kingdom through his lineage.
I will end where the story began, In 1st Samuel 7.
But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have [a]refused him. For[b] the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7
God knew David’s heart from the very beginning. Jeremiah 1:5 tells us this.
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” David’s story, if nothing else, should bring hope and confidence in the fact that, even though God already knows where we will miss the mark in our lives, He knows our true heart and chooses us based on the truth He knows about us in the spirit, not the truth He knows about us in our flawed humanity. Noone is discounted based on what God already knows. What made David a man after God’s own heart was not all the warfare wins. What made David a man after God’s own heart was his posture of worship and dependence on Him. This is what turned a shepherd boy into a warrior and king with whom we are still relating to today. It is David’s humanity that makes him relatable and inspires us to lay ourselves bare before the Lord and dance in His presence. It is David’s example of running to His Father when he failed knowing that his Father's heart was tender toward him. This is what made David a great king.