This week we
will continue the study of the Book of 2 Samuel in the Old Testament.
(1) As the sons of the sister of David, Joab, Abishai and Asahel were naturally loyal to David, however, they were differently gifted:
a. What was the particular gift of Asahel?
b. How useful was it in battle?
c. It appeared that he was pursuing Abner on his own. What might prompt him to do so, ignoring the limit of his gift?
(2) Why did Abner try to avoid a direct confrontation with Asahel? (v. 22)
(3) What lesson might we learn from Asahel’s death?
(4) What reason did Abner give in urging Joab and Abishai to stop pursuing him? (v. 26) If it was a valid reason, why did he bring his fighting men to Gibeon which was very close to Jerusalem in the first place? (v. 12)
(5) Apparently Joab returned the blame to Abner, blaming him for instigating the bloody combat between the young men in the first place (2:14), and yet he ordered his troop to retreat. What at least did Joab acknowledge with his action?
(6) In this “brothers-against-brothers” battle, who was the winner? Was there really a winner? Why or why not?
(7) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) All of a sudden we are being introduced to the six sons born to David in Hebron, or rather, the fact that David, as the king of Judah, had a total of six wives at this stage of his life — at least one of them could be a marriage for political expediency (Maacah, daughter of the king of Geshur):
a. What kind of an image did David project as a “godly” king to his people?
b. What kind of an image did he project to the rulers of the surrounding nations?
c. Without reading the rest of David’s life, what do you think might the likely impact be on his family and on his reign as God’s anointed king over Israel?
(2) Abner was confronted by his king, Ish-Bosheth, about his adulterous relationship with one of the concubines of his father. From the words spoken by Abner in vv. 8-10:
a. How did his own words convict him of his sin in siding with Ish-Bosheth against David?
b. What was Abner’s true intent in setting up Ish-Bosheth against David? (See v. 6 in particular)
c. How did he treat his sin of adultery? (v. 8)
(3) David, of course, had every right to reclaim Michal as his wife, but why would it be the first thing he demanded from Abner/Ish-Bosheth once he had the opportunity, especially when he had six wives already?:
a. What do you think was David’s motive in taking her back?
b. What did his action do to Michal’s present husband who presumably had only Michal as his wife?
c. Do you think David did the right thing? Why or why not?
(4) Abner said to the elders of Israel, “For some time you have wanted to make David your king” (v. 17):
a. What might be their reason?
b. Why did they not take action to make David king then?
(5) As much as David welcomed the defection of Abner, should he be wary of such a person? Why or why not?
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(2) What kind of a sin/crime did Joab commit against Abner? Was such revenge justified? Why or why not?
(3) How David reacted to the murder of Abner by Joab:
a. Why did he react to the news with such seriousness? (See Exod. 21:14)
b. Why did he even curse Joab and his family?
c. Why did he conduct an official burial for Abner forcing Joab and all the people (of Hebron) to walk in front of the bier?
d. What was the message of his lament for Abner?
e. What did all these actions of David result in? (v. 37)
(4) How did David’s words to his men (i.e. his confidants) explain why he did not punish Joab and Abishai according to the Law of Moses right away? (v. 39)
(5) What is the main message to you today and how can you apply it to your life?
(1) News of Abner’s death reached Ish-Bosheth and he was obviously alarmed and discouraged, because without Abner, he really could not hold Israel together. What could he have done?
(2) The Scripture explains that both Recab and Baanah were in essence Benjaminites, although they might have come as aliens hundreds of years ago (See Joshua 9:17):
a. What motivated them to assassinate Ish-Bosheth?
b. Even if they wished to pledge allegiance to David, what could they have done?
c. By killing Ish-Bosheth this way, what sins had they committed?
d. Did they deserve the punishment given by David? Why or why not?
(3) What was the message conveyed by David to all of his people by his treatment of both these two men and the young man who brought the news of Saul’s death? (2 Samuel 1)
(4) Do you agree with David’s treatment of Saul, Abner and Ish-Bosheth upon their death? Why or why not?
(5) What kind of a king did David seek to be?
(6) The chapter also tells us that with the death of Ish-Bosheth, Saul still had a descendant in Mephibosheth, Jonathan’s son. However, he was crippled. Do you think it was a curse or a blessing for him? Why?
(7) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) It is perhaps a little too early to assess the life of David, but here we are given a synopsis of the longevity of his reign: Having come to be king of Judah at age 30; having been enthroned over all Israel at age 37; and then dying at age 70 — a total reign of 40 years — it was quite a long time. But the following questions might be meaningful:
a. According to your estimation, how long had David waited since his anointing by Samuel before God’s promise came true?
b. What did he have to do to finally become king over all Israel?
c. What marked the period between his first anointing and his being enthroned over all Israel?
d. What lesson(s) can we learn from this?
e. What should he be watching out for if he is truly to be a king after God’s own heart for the remainder of his life?
(2) David with his increased and impressive army still had to face mockery from the Jebusites, but he conquered their city, Jerusalem, just the same. (See note below.)
a. To what does the biblical author attribute his success even though he now had a united and powerful army? (v. 10)
b. Did David recognize this truth? (v. 12)
c. Given this humbleness, in what ways was David getting to be more and more like the kings of the other nations? (vv. 11-16)?
d. Did he really have to have a palace? Why or why not?
e. Did he really have to have many wives, concubines and children?
(3) Now the Philistines gathered to attack David’s newly united kingdom, obviously hoping to prevent it from taking hold. From reading the two successive battles, can you point out their uniqueness in the following terms?
a. How David prepared for warfare in both casee
b. How God intervened differently in each battle and why
c. What the results were (Note that 1 Chr. 14:12 clarifies that David had the idols burned.)
(4) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
One of David’s first campaigns as the king of Israel was to recapture Jerusalem. It is believed that he captured Jerusalem for the sake of making it his capital because it was a place closer to his home town, Bethlehem, and it was a more northerly city than Hebron and thus more central in relation to the other 11 tribes. The historian Josephus called it, “the navel of the earth” (JFB, 227).
(1) One of the first things David did after uniting the nation was to bring the ark of the Lord back to Jerusalem.
a. What was the significance of the Ark? (v. 2)
b. Why did David gather so many men to go and fetch the ark? (You may also wish to consult 1 Chr. 13:1-5)
c. What was its significance especially to David?
(2) Obviously, the return of the ark had to be a very joyous moment, given the love of David for God. However:
a. According to Numbers 4:4-6, 12, 15, and 20, how should the ark be transported and by whom?
b. Whose fault was it that the ark was not transported according to the instructions in Numbers 4?
c. Do you think the oxen stumbled by accident?
d. Do you think the striking of Uzzah (Abinadab was not a priest or Levite and none of his sons were) was an accident? (See Note below)
e. Why was David angry at the wrath of God?
f. What important truth was demonstrated by God, even at this supposedly joyous occasion?
(3) Why did David change his mind and send the ark to another place?
(4) How did the Lord help David overcome his misunderstanding toward the ark and the will of God?
(5) Now, how was the ark being carried into Jerusalem?
(6) Turn to Psalm 24 and read the psalm; it was likely composed by David upon the entrance of the ark into the city of Jerusalem. See if you can share the excitement of David.
(7) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
When the ark was returned to Israel, Kiriath Jearim was chosen, probably because “it was the nearest large town on the road from Beth Shemesh (where God struck down irreverent peepers of the ark) to Shiloh”. However Kiriath Jearim “was neither a priestly nor Levitical city” (K&D, 408), therefore it was unlikely to find any family of Levite origin. Therefore the Bible does not mention that Abinadab (Uzzah’s father) was a Levite, and of all the genealogies in I Chronicles concerning the Levites, nowhere was Abinadab and his family listed. So, it was quite unlikely that Abinadab was a priest or Levite.
(1) At the entrance of the ark of God, shouldn’t Michal rejoice along with all Israelites and especially her husband? What did her scorn of David indicate in the following aspects?
a. Her relationship with David and why
b. Her relationship with God and why
c. Was her despise justified in some way? Why or why not?
(2) What was the main reason for bringing the ark back to Jerusalem according to 1 Chronicles 13:3?
(3) What was the deeper meaning of sacrificing burnt offerings and fellowship offerings at this point in time of the return of the ark?
(4) How meaningful was David’s blessing of the people in the name of the Lord Almighty before the presence of the ark?
(5) What might be the meaning of giving a small gift (a loaf of bread, a cake of dates and cake of raisins — likely after what was sacrificed on the altar; see Exod. 29:23, Lev. 8:26) to each person in the crowd to bring home?
(6) How important was it for David to bless not only his people, but his own household? What might be the lesson we need to learn from David?
(7) Instead of receiving the blessing from God’s anointed, the head of her household, Michal mocked David. What kind of a curse did she turn the blessing into according to v. 23?
(8) As much as this incident reflected
the broken relationship he had with his first wife, how did the reply of David
reveal his humility before the Lord? Consider the following:
a. To whom did he dance?
b. Why did he dance?
c. Was his dance undignified? Why or why not?
d. Why would his “undignified” dance bring him honor before the slave girls instead?
e. What can we learn from his humility?
(9) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?