Vintage

The Promises to David 

David, a young shepherd boy, was resolute and fearless, having one purpose only in mind, that of service. Two remarkable incidents stand out in his young life: first, his courage in the protection of his father’s sheep from the lion and the bear. Second is his gallant challenge to the great Philistine, Goliath, who had been defying the armies of Israel. His great success in both these victories was due to his implicit faith and trust in the God of Israel. Notice the words David used:

“Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine (Goliath) will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.” Moreover David said, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul (the king) said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!” (1 Samuel 17:36, 37)

With the exception of two faults recorded in his life, David was of an excellent character. He learned to:

Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth (Ecclesiastes 12:1)

God delighted in him and the whole House of Israel loved him also. Notice Gods wonderful commendation:

“I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.” (Acts 13:22)

Chosen by God to be king over the nation of Israel, David justified God’s choice by keeping His laws and ruling in righteousness. Because of his faithfulness God made certain promises to him concerning the kingdom and the royal line of which he was the founder:

When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. …And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever. (2 Samuel 7:12, 13,16)

This promise was really an elaboration of the promise made to Abraham. It reaffirmed that the kingdom would last forever. Its great value as part of Divine revelation is that it shows how certain aspects of God’s promise to Abraham would be accomplished. In particular, it provides the key to the second part of the promise to Abraham:

In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed (Genesis 12:3)

David himself recognised that the promise God had made to him formed part of the divine plan of human redemption, and that its consequences were of far greater significance than the mere perpetuation of his royal line. In the last chapter of the Bible Jesus confirms the fulfilment of this covenant:

“I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.”

David’s son, Solomon, although endowed with wisdom and riches, departed from God towards the end of his reign; while many subsequent kings led the nation into idolatry and wickedness. It was for this reason that God eventually gave them into the hand of the Babylonians in the days of Zedekiah, the last king of Judah.

David acknowledged that this would be so. At the same time he recognised that this was not a failure of God’s promise, for he added:

“He has made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and secure.” (2 Samuel 23:5)

Moreover, he associated the fulfilment of this promise with the rulership of one who would be “just, ruling in the fear of God”: one who would be “like the light of the morning when the sun rises, a morning without clouds.”

It can be seen, then, that both the promise to David and the words addressed to Zedekiah:

I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him (Ezekiel 21:27)

foreshadow the coming of one in the line of David whose mission it would be to rule over men in righteousness and the fear of God.

The angel Gabriel’s words to Mary

The identity of the one thus foreshadowed is given in a way, which leaves no room for doubt. When the angel Gabriel was sent to the virgin Mary with the news that she was to be the mother of the Messiah, he addressed her with these words:

“Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.” (Luke 1:30-33)

Mary’s song of rejoicing

Later in the same chapter Luke records a wonderful song of rejoicing in which Mary praised God for His promises. A remarkable feature of it is that although the angel told Mary that the child would be born to fulfil the promise God made to David, Mary thanked God for the promise that He had made to Abraham. She must have realized by her understanding of the purpose of God that both of these promises would be fulfilled in the same individual.

‘He has helped His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy, as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed forever.’ (Luke 1:54-55)

The mission of Jesus

This is the mission of the Lord Jesus Christ, as declared by the angel Gabriel to his mother before his birth. It is a mission, which is clearly related to the promises made to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and David; and it was recognised as such by his contemporaries and by the inspired apostle Paul. Christ is destined to rule upon the throne of David in righteousness, and by this means, the promise to Abraham will be accomplished:

In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed (Genesis 12:3)

This is why the apostle Paul describes the promise made to Abraham as the “gospel”, or “good news” of the kingdom of God:

And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, “In you all the nations shall be blessed.”  (Galatians 3:8)

The teaching of the prophets

The same teaching is emphasised throughout the Bible. Read the following passage from the book of the prophet Isaiah that is often quoted at Christmas time and see if this is not so:

‘For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. ⁷ Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.’ (Isaiah 9:6-7)

Jesus the saviour

Few will deny that the blessing of all nations is impossible while sin holds sway over mankind. Not only does sin find expression in those aspects of man's character which cause the greatest unhappiness — hatred, greed, selfishness and so on; but so long as man suffers from a sin-stricken constitution, subject to pain, disease and death, no real joy or blessedness can be experienced.

The first part of the work of Jesus, then, is to fulfil the promise made in Eden, i.e. to destroy the power of sin. (This will be covered in a later study)  This was the main purpose of his first advent, which culminated in his death upon the cross:

That through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is …and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. (Hebrews 2:14, 15)

By this means Jesus prepared the way for the eventual abolition of sin and death, and consequently the blessing of all mankind. But having done so, he then went away into heaven, while for 2,000 years the human race has continued to suffer from its sin-stricken plight. How, then, are the promises of God to be fulfilled?

The kingdom

There can be no doubt that the kingdom, which Jesus came to proclaim, was a real kingdom on the earth. He would be the king and his followers would also have positions of rulership. Jesus told his disciples:

When the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. (Matthew 19:28)

It was the purpose of God in the beginning to fill the earth with His glory and with peace:

As truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord. (Numbers 14:21)

This will happen when Jesus returns to the earth as King.

One of the main points that Peter made in his address on the Day of Pentecost was that Jesus was the great descendant of David that God had promised. Peter referred to the Psalm we have already quoted to show that David looked forward to the establishment of the Kingdom with Christ as king:

Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne. (Acts 2:29-30)

The apostle also explained that the resurrection of Jesus was a sure sign that the promise God had made to David would be fulfilled.

This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. (Acts 2:32)

Peter explained that David understood that the time would come when the Almighty would say to the Lord Jesus Christ:

Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ. (Acts 2:34-36)

The blessing of all nations in the Kingdom of God

These promises, offered to all those who are called and baptised, even in this age:

The promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call. (Acts 2:39)

They will be fulfilled in the kingdom of God on earth, of which the following verses tell us more:

Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice. (Isaiah 32:1)

The work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever. (Isaiah 32:17)

He will bring justice to the poor of the people; He will save the children of the needy, and will break in pieces the oppressor. (Psalm 72:4)

And no one shall make them afraid; He shall judge between many peoples, and rebuke strong nations afar off; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. But everyone shall sit under his vine and under his fig tree, for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken. (Micah 4:3-4)

Then the trees of the field shall yield their fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase. They shall be safe in their land; and they shall know that I am the Lord. (Ezekiel 34:27)

But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; For behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing, And her people a joy. I will rejoice in Jerusalem, And joy in My people; The voice of weeping shall no longer be heard in her, Nor the voice of crying. No more shall an infant from there live but a few days, Nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days; For the child shall die one hundred years old, … For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, And My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together The lion shall eat straw like the ox, And dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,” Says the Lord. (Isaiah 65:18-25)

These are the conditions, which will exist when the kingdom of God, ruled over by the Lord Jesus Christ, is established on the earth. This kingdom will last for a thousand years

And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, …and they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. (Revelation 20:4)

It will pave the way for the final abolition of sin and death, and the restoration of man to perfect communion with God. That happy state is described in the following words:

I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:3-4)

Thus the promise in Eden made when sin and death first entered into the world, as well as the promises to Abraham and David will have been fulfilled in their entirety.

God’s guarantee

Paul summed up the wonderful hope, which the Bible offers in speaking to the people of Athens:

He (God) has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead. (Acts 17:31)