2 Samuel 24:1-10; 1 Chronicles 21:1-8 After David had secured his reign over all Israel and greatly expanded his rule over neighboring nations, he commissioned Joab, the commander of his army, to “count the people of Israel and Judah.” Though Scripture does not explicitly state the reason for this order, the report that Joab provided […]
Category Archives: United Monarchy Period
David Defeats the Ammonites and the Arameans
2 Samuel 8:1-8; 10:1-19; 12:21-31; 1 Chronicles 18:2-11; 19:1-19; 20:1-3 The accounts of David’s greatest military victories stand like bookends around the record of David’s most grievous sins. Sometime after David brought the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem and the Lord promised to establish his dynasty over Israel, David achieved a series of victories […]
David Transports the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem
2 Samuel 6; 1 Chronicles 13 Perhaps no other event in David’s life demonstrates his zealous love for God than his efforts to move the Ark from Kiriath-jearim to Jerusalem. The story takes place about twenty years after the Ark had been captured by the Philistines but was later returned to Israel, where it was […]
David Strengthens Southern Judah
1 Samuel 27-30 The Bible makes it clear that David was specially chosen and raised up by God to be Israel’s next king (1 Samuel 16:1-13), but Scripture also makes it clear that David’s rise to power came about through several shrewd maneuvers on his part. Among these shrewd maneuvers were David’s clandestine attacks on […]
Saul Attacks the Amalekites
1 Samuel 15 Saul’s war against the Amalekites exemplifies many of the key traits–good and bad–of Saul’s leadership over Israel. Immediately before the story is recounted, the author notes that during Saul’s entire reign he fought valiantly against Israel’s enemies on every side (1 Samuel 14:47-52), and he amassed an army of skilled soldiers. Thus, […]