1 Samuel 22:1-2 David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave Adullam: and when his brethren and all his father’s house heard it, they went down thither to him. And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.
When David was anointed king over Israel, he didn’t take his place at the throne immediately. He had to wait, and bide his time, until Saul was removed from power, before arriving at his destined place as King. Like His father David, Yeshua (Jesus) was received as Israel’s king/messiah at the triumphal entry, (often called “Palm Sunday”), and then, “anointed” King of the Jews, ironically receiving His true title from the Romans, while hanging on a cross. But He is still waiting to reveal His identity as King on earth, during the Millennial reign when His kingdom will replace the kingdoms of this world at His second advent. [Rev. 11:15].
Now, while David was waiting for his kingship to become a reality, he was chased and persecuted by Saul, driven into the wild, outlying places in the Land. There, he found other outcasts who became his followers; men who were in distress, in debt, or discontented in one way or another; those who felt they had no part in this life any longer.
Rather than casting these people away from him, because, after all he was a king, David drew them to himself, by the anointing on his life and the strength of his character; and they, of all people, recognized that he was the chosen King of Israel. David’s true kingly nature embraced these lowly men and transformed them into a mighty army.
Yeshua does exactly the same with us, even while He has been rejected as king of this world. Outcasts, broken, indebted, despised, discontented people [1 Cor. 1:26-28] are chosen out of the world, and transformed by Him into mighty vessels to serve his kingdom purposes while we wait and pray for His kingdom to come.
Perhaps you’ve been in distress, or struggling with debt, or discontented with life…have you met the outcast King of the Jews? Have you decided to follow the One whose own received Him not? Have you recognized that His present kingdom is not of this world, because He’s waiting for His house to be filled, before He returns? If you, an outcast, have recognized the One whom the world has not known, press on, following and serving Him! He has called you to be a mighty man of war, as were the men who surrounded King David. Only remember, your battle is not with flesh and blood.
Psalms 89:3-4 I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant, Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah. [Selah in Hebrew means “pause and ponder this!”]
Matthew 1:1 The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David [in the Hebrew New Testament it’s written – Yeshua HaMashiach ben David], the son of Abraham.
New Testament genealogies of Yeshua Ha Mashiach (Jesus the Christ) all identify Him as the son of king David. It was universally understood from the Tenach (OT) that the messiah would be descended from David and that he would restore the Davidic monarchy to its ultimate and most universal expression, even that this king would reign and sit on the throne forever.
Why was Yeshua’s identification with David so significant? One reason is that David is the only man in the Bible about whom the Lord said, this is “a man after My own heart”. Yet we know well David’s imperfections … adultery and murder — so why would God say this about him? I believe it was David’s lifelong love for and abandoned worship of the Lord, and also his contrite heart (Ps. 51) and the depth of his sorrow and repentance which showed this relationship to be the most important and precious in his life.
God isn’t expecting perfection from us — His Son has provided that. Yeshua alone is the Man whose heart and actions are flawless. But David exemplified a man whose love and respect for his God were constant, if imperfect, a man after God’s own heart. And this is the heart that God is seeking today, contrite, worshipful, and filled with respect and love for our God.
David provides a wonderful example for us who are as imperfect as he was. We may fall and fail miserably – but its how we get up that makes the difference. Our constant desire to preserve this most precious of all relationships will show that we too have a heart after God. I know I want to hear Him say, “Yes, you are truly someone after my own heart!”
Your family in the Lord with much agape love,
George, Baht Rivka, Obadiah and Elianna