More than Morality, Part 4
This week, I continue my series of articles on how to avoid moralizing OT texts. As a case study, we have been looking at the story of David & Goliath, a text often understood and applied in ways that fall short of its original intent and obscure its Gospel connections. This passage is more than morality—do better, be better, try harder. As we dig deeper, I want share three more tools to help uncover its Gospel core: the author's bulk of material, his calls to action, and timeless truths.
Bulk of Material
How much material does the author devote to certain subjects? Answer this and you are well on your way to finding the author's focus—the core message of a book. A good study Bible's introduction and outline are invaluable for getting an overall sense of a book's main message and how the parts contribute to the whole. With an outline, you can see, at a glance, the major points of emphasis. I personally recommend the ESV Study Bible's introductions for this purpose. If you do not have access to a study Bible, the headings in your Bible can be of some help. Even so, there is no substitute for reading through a whole book to familiarize yourself with its contents.
As for 1st Samuel, it can be broken down into three major divisions:
1. The story of Samuel (chapters 1-7)
2. The story of Saul (chapters 8-15)
3. The story of David and Saul (chapters 16-31)
This narrative focuses on three main characters, relatively few compared to other massive books like Kings or Chronicles. Hannah, Eli, Doeg the Edomite, etc. are all supporting cast who can be understood in relation to Samuel, Saul, and/or David. Samuel also focuses on a relatively small segment of Israel's history. All of 1st & 2nd Samuel occur in David's lifetime, several decades versus the centuries of history recorded in Kings and Chronicles. The author wants us to know this vital period of time in the broad development of Israel's story—the pivotal transition between the Judges and the Monarchy.
David & Goliath comes in chapter 17, at the beginning of the third division, immediately after we are introduced for the first time to David, the unlikely king, the youngest of Jesse, chosen by God and reluctantly anointed by Samuel. What follows is a constant battle of sorts between two kings of Israel, Saul and David. Story after story contrasts these two; one is man's choice, the other is God's. The author of Samuel wants us to encounter the two men in a wide range of scenes and compare them side by side. David & Goliath certainly highlights differences between them. For example, what happened to the LORD-honoring theology of Saul who said in an earlier battle, "for today the LORD has worked salvation in Israel" (1 Sam 12:13)? Unlike David, when Goliath reviles God, Saul is silent in the preaching department.
As Samuel progresses, the contrast between the two men is so stark that David's behavior baffles even those closest to him. At times there is a longing in David's friends for him to be just a little more Saul-esque. Why doesn't David kill Saul in the cave when Saul has been hunting him like an animal (1 Sam 24)? Why does David swipe the sleeping Saul's spear instead of impaling him with it like Abishai desired (1 Sam 26)? Why does David have the man executed who, thinking he was bringing good news, claims to have killed Saul (2 Sam 1)? Why did David dance before the ark in his undershirt (2 Sam 6)? His wife Michal was miffed. Why would David not let Shimei, who had cursed him, be put to death (2 Sam 16)? This vexed the sons of Zeruiah. Why does David pour out the water he was desperate for after his three mighty men risked their lives to get it (2 Sam 23)? Why would David not accept Araunah's gracious gift (2 Sam 24)? In each of these scenes, just like in David & Goliath, David stands out as a man who relates every circumstance back to Yahweh. He is consistently doing the OT equivalent of Colossians 3:2, "[setting his] mind on things above and not on things that are on the earth."
Calls to Action
As we study the bulk of the author's material, we get a sense for what he's driving at. What does he want his readers to think and do? While direct exhortations are rare in narratives like Samuel, unlike the psalms and prophets, we do well to remember that the author is writing to real people for practical and pastoral purposes so that their lives will transform as they look to God and believe his promises. What actions does the author (implicitly or explicitly) call his audience to do? The purpose statements of David & Goliath are good guides here. We are to be jealous for the glory of God and promote his glory before others, "that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel" (1 Sam 17:46). We are to trust the LORD to deliver, often through humble means. Conversely, we are to be warned that looking away from Yahweh brings disaster.
Timeless Truths
As we engage with the theological and pastoral heart of the book, we come face to face with the timeless truths that equally apply to the first audience as well as to us. What kind of king did Israel need? What kind of kingdom would Israel be? Where was their focus and where was their trust? What would give Israel courage in the midst of great opposition? In many ways, Israel, a country without a king, was like a flock of sheep without a shepherd. Sure, Saul was king, but his faithlessness was routinely exposed. They needed a shepherd after God's heart who would do God’s will.
God is more interested in the battle for worship than in battles of brute force. David & Goliath is a worship war. When David comes to the battlefield bringing cheese, he finds himself gripped by the glory of God that is being reviled. We worship God when we, like David, desire that the whole world would know him and worship him—"that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel" (1 Sam 17:46). We worship God when we likewise stand for truth, despite what those in the world (Goliath) or those in our circle (Saul & Israel's army) do. We worship God when our beliefs lead us to act in a way that promotes God's glory despite risk of personal loss. We worship God when we trust him to deliver us.
While a call to be courageous might be an appropriate application in our own situation, the intent of the passage is to illustrate what it looks like to be after the LORD's heart. After all, that was what the LORD himself found in David: a heart that longed for God (1 Sam 13:14). Godly courage can only flow out of a heart that is fixed on the glory of God and a mind that humbly depends upon him to do what only he can do. God's glory (who he is) and God's works (what he does) have always been the basis for faith. Only God is God. Only God can do God-things. The real question implicitly echoing throughout Samuel is who will believe God. To believe God is to worship God. To believe God is to obey God. To believe God is to spread the knowledge of God to others.
In this light we can see how the text speaks not only to the first readers of Samuel but also to us. The heart of the message remains the same; these are timeless truths. So, the story is not so much about courageously overcoming larger-than-life obstacles or being really macho for God, but about David's righteous jealousy for the glory of God and his faith in God to deliver no matter how humble the instrument he employs. In this story, the humble instrument is David! He's young, small, and underwhelming. He was not the king anyone was looking for, except God. And that's part of the point, isn't it? His heart kept longing for God. David was not a worldly kind of king.
Yet David was not perfect. He was not the Lord's ultimate anointed. He was only a type of the Christ to come. For the broader connections to the rest of Scripture and to Christ in particular, we will have to wait until my next installment in this series. For now Beloved, "seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God" (Col 3:1).
