And rightly they should. The days of David are still to this day considered to be the “glory days” of Israelite history. The scriptures have God speaking of David as a man after His own heart. Even in the days of Jesus, people were still looking for the son of David. They were looking for the promised son of David, since the first one didn’t work out so well (more on this later). To quote an idea of Rob Bell's (in Jesus Wants to Save Christians), it’s as if people were looking for David’s “other son.”
So what is it that makes this David character so captivating and one who stands above the typical echelon of biblical characters, with a story that rings throughout history? I wanted to make a few observations about David that may or may not shed some light on who he was.
First of all (and maybe most important), David seemed to have an unusually intimate walk with God. David was a man of spiritual practice. If even half of the Psalms that are attributed to him actually belong to him (and yes, there is a massive debate about that, stemming from a confusing term in the Hebrew we translate “of” [as in “Psalm of David”]), then this man has a very high level of spiritual awareness. I think Brother Lawrence would say that David knew what it was to practice the presence of God. David sings to God with such raw emotion and genuine expression that his heart erupts with worship. He sings of how sweet the Law of the LORD is to him and how he meditates on it day and night. This was a man who knew (at least for a long period of his life) how to set aside time, energy, and resources to pursue intimacy with the Creator of the universe. We, here at Impact, would call that somebody who knows what true success looks like.
Second, David (especially towards the beginning of his life) seems very unconcerned with spreading his own fame. David is here to kiddush haShem; he’s here to spread the fame of the LORD. So that “the whole world would know that there is a God in Israel,” he will say more than once. And while I’m going to have the same problem with David’s thirst for war that I had in the book of Joshua (and I think God has something to say about the blood that’s on David’s hands, no?), David is fighting a different kind of war. He’s not trying to expand his own kingdom and his own name. But he’s here to help God accomplish His greater purposes of restoration and redemption.
Third, David sees the marginalized. David notices the down and out. He’s seeking to bring justice — mishpat — to the world around him. Often, this will be what drives him to the battle lines. It’s not just to enlarge his territory, but it’s in response to the misuse of power. I’m reminded of one story where David sends messengers with the tidings of good will to a neighboring king. When the king abuses the messengers (lack of hospitality) and sends them home humiliated, David sets out to right the wrong. Not because of retribution, but because David has heard the cry. David will share the spoils of victory even with those who don’t contribute — simply because they belong to the community. David will show love to his enemies; so much so that it becomes a fault, with Nathan rebuking David: “You love those who hate you and hate those who love you!” (2 Samuel 19:6) He invites the crippled descendant of his enemy Saul to dine at his table. He repeatedly mourns the death of his enemies.
While I believe the list could go on, what I think we see in David is a man who is here to lay his life down for his sheep. He is the quintessential shepherd — the epitome of the one who is here to lead with his voice. His counter-intuitive, upside-down approach to ruling God’s kingdom, God’s way, is what sets him apart as a different kind of king. A different kind of leader. A different kind of man.
A man after God’s own heart.
At least, until he begins to forget where he comes from.
But now we’re getting ahead of ourselves and I’ll need to jump into a helicopter, fly to 10,000 feet, and build a biblical case for my last statement. And so, onto the chronicles (pun intended) of biblical history…
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