David: King of Israel

00:00:00 Speaker 1: Previously on the chosen people. 00:00:03 Speaker 2: It's not enough that half my kingdom bends ane to a peasant shepherd. But now I found my father's concubines taking his horse by his commanders. Risper was mine by right. You shame yourself, Abner, have you no respect for the throne? 00:00:21 Speaker 3: Listen well, boy, may the Lord strike me dead if I do not take this kingdom from your trembling hands and place it into the hands of the ones who earned it. From Dan to Beersheva, David Shell, who he was chosen you are placed. 00:00:42 Speaker 1: David hosted a great feast for Abner and his men. 00:00:46 Speaker 2: Why the change of heart, Haner, which made your hatred for me and Tudor grow cold. 00:00:53 Speaker 3: I love my country, my people. My loyalty is to the good of Israel. Intercept Abner before he leaves Abron, He writes east toward man, I'm tell him the king has met us yet unsettled. Tell him to meet me at the cisterns of how he must come alone. 00:01:17 Speaker 1: Joab was upon him in a breath, the dagger sinking deep beneath the ribs. Abner gasped, blood rushing to his throat. Joab leaned into Abner's ear. 00:01:31 Speaker 3: I told you this day would come Unlike you. 00:01:34 Speaker 4: I keep my word. 00:01:39 Speaker 5: We do not build thrones with the daggers. Shello my friends. From here in the holy land of Israel, I'm l Exstein with international Fellowship of Christians and Jews, and welcome to the Chosen People. Have you ever wondered what kind of person power turns you into, whether it reveals your deepest integrity or exposes your darkest corners. Today, in Second Samuel chapters four and five, we find ourselves asking such a question. David is not yet king over all of Israel, but he is close. He is very close. The path to the throne has been long marked by wilderness, years and blood stained oaths, marked by shattered friendships and promises kept at a great cost. Prepare yourselves. This story is not soft, it's not sanitized, but it's holy. 00:02:39 Speaker 1: A smothering sheet of cloud veiled the night sky of a Gibea. Shadows ruled the alleyways, and not even the patrols of souls. Once sproud watchmen stirred from their posts through that darkness. Two shapes moved, fluid and silent as wrayss drawn close, they glided past the palace gates without challenge, Slipping between cracks in the walls and creeping low through the gardens, The two intruders climbed the trellises as nimble as cats, up the lattice to King Ishbocheth's chambers. Inside, the glow of dying embers painted the walls red like old blood. King ishbo Sheth lay curled beneath layers of silk and linen. The figures stepped closer, their breath shallow daggers drawn from the folds of their cloaks. Barner moved to the left and Wreckaed to the right. Neither man hesitated. Their blades struck true, slipping through flesh and bone, finding the lungs burying deep in the warmth of life. Ishbo Sheth gasped a soft, pitiful sound, and excit hailed into the night, his blood soaking his sheets in a wide, spreading stain. The room stank of iron and smoke. Banna lit a torch and pulled down his hood. Rekkab followed suit. Both were sons of Rimen, of the tribe of Benjamin. Once captain's beneath saw loyal dogs, who now turned on the house they once served, Ah. 00:04:28 Speaker 4: It is done. The last of Salsan's is dead, and the crown of Israel belongs to David. 00:04:35 Speaker 1: Now, Rekkob nodded, grim and cold. 00:04:39 Speaker 6: With Sal's air gone, the north will surely follow. 00:04:43 Speaker 4: David, and no doubt we'll receive a rich reward for handing David his enemy's head. 00:04:53 Speaker 1: He stepped forward and drew his sword again. With a single swing, he severed ishboshe Death's head. The body twitched once, then stilled. Recub wrapped the head in coarse burlap, tying the neck with a length of leather. The blood dripped freely as they climbed back through the window and vanished into the night. They laughed at the thought of David welcoming them with silver, new positions in his ranks and land. By the time the sun rose above the valley they had reached, Hebron blood still seeped through the sacks slung across Rekub's saddle. They stood before the gates of David's stronghold, beaming with pride and ready to receive their reward. Recab grinned and Barner shifted on his heels, eager for glory. But the king was not in his hall. David warped the grounds beyond Hebron's gait, as he often did in the early hours. The brothers found him beneath the almond trees, bathed in the gray gold of morning light. They bowed low, but there was arrogance in the way. Their spines bent and deceit in the smiles. 00:06:09 Speaker 4: They bore, O, King of Judah, may you live forever. The son of Saul is dead. We bring you peace and proof. 00:06:21 Speaker 1: He unfilled the sack and rolled out the head of isbau Chef onto the roots of the tree. The face was pale and twisted in fear. Lips parted in a breath never finished. Blood still wept from the neck. David's face betrayed nothing. His stare was impassive, unreadable. He looked down at Barna and recab faces, eager for praise. 00:06:48 Speaker 2: You did this. 00:06:50 Speaker 3: Ugh, We did my king for you, for israel. 00:06:55 Speaker 2: I see Benaiyah. Are you close by? 00:07:02 Speaker 1: David's friend and captain of the guard emerged from around the corner. He was always close, always watching, yes, looking. 00:07:13 Speaker 2: These men have just handed me the head of King Ishbushev, Saul's last living. 00:07:19 Speaker 1: Son, Benaiah's eyes darted quickly to the men, then back at David. The captain nodded knowingly and left to fetch your Ayah and Jashubine. David turned back to the brothers, then bent low and wrapped the sack again, tying it with reverence. His voice was quiet but cold. 00:07:41 Speaker 2: There was an Amalekite once who found me in ziklag. 00:07:47 Speaker 1: David set the head gently on a stone underneath a large tree. He looked up at the tree, retrieving a memory. 00:07:57 Speaker 2: This amalakite him to bring good news that saw the anointed of the Lord was dead by his hand. He grinned as you grinned. Now he spoke with the same glee that you speak with, and I gave him a reward. 00:08:18 Speaker 1: Recab shifted in place with excitement. Barner's smile split his face into David stepped closer, and his voice rang sharper. 00:08:29 Speaker 2: Now that reward was a swift death for killing the Lord's anointed. 00:08:35 Speaker 1: In an instant, the brothers were seized from behind by Berniah and Uriah. David's gaze burned into them, bright and merciless. 00:08:46 Speaker 7: Tell me, sons of reward, what should your reward be for killing a man in his sleep, a king in his bed, a brother to. 00:08:55 Speaker 2: The one I loved more than life itself. 00:08:58 Speaker 1: Neither man had time to answer. Benaiah and Joshavin dragged them toward the city gates like pigs to slaughter. By the time they reached the pools, the people had gathered. Merchants and soldiers, wives and elders all come in curiosity. David's garment billowed behind him as he stepped onto the stones. He spoke not to the condemned, but to the crowd. 00:09:26 Speaker 7: Hear me, people of Judah, we are not like the nations around us. We did not build thrones with daggers. We did not crown kings with treachery. 00:09:36 Speaker 1: David pointed to the bound brothers, stripped to their tunics. 00:09:42 Speaker 7: These men murdered Ishmushef, son of Saul, heir to the throne, and they thought they would earn my favor. 00:09:50 Speaker 2: But I do not rule by murder. 00:09:54 Speaker 7: I did not wear a royal robe stitched by the needles of cowards. My robe was given by the prince itself, because of loyalty, because of brotherhood. 00:10:06 Speaker 1: David's voice bellowed to the people, using this event as a reminder of where they came from and where they were going as a nation a people. 00:10:17 Speaker 8: When God most High called Abram out of her and into the wilderness, he left with a promise that he would be established into a great nation, a nation set apart as a blessing, distinctly different from the warmongering, blood sucking, infant, sacrificing nations that surround us. 00:10:40 Speaker 2: We do not play their gags, we don't sing their songs. 00:10:45 Speaker 1: David turned to the brothers and knelt beside them, his voice dropped low. 00:10:52 Speaker 2: I don't play the game of thrones. 00:10:55 Speaker 1: Berniah drew his sword, and without ceremony, locked their hands, then their feet, and finally, with ropes soaked in blood and vengeance, the two sons of women were strung high above the poor, their bodies twisted in the rising sun, a grim warning carved in flesh. David turned and walked away, the morning wind catching the edge. 00:11:25 Speaker 9: Of his robe. 00:11:26 Speaker 1: The people did not cheer. They watched in silence, solemn, and still at that moment they knew what kind of king they had. A man of honor, yes, but also of iron. And yet even those who walk in the light cast long shadows the streets of Hebron overflowed with men and women, their voices rising like a tide. The city swelled with song and praise, banners fluttering in the morning wind, Incense curled in the air above rooftops, and the smell of crushed muhr and cedar bark lingered like a sacred omen. From every tribe they had come, farmers and princes, blacksmiths and priests, filling the hill country with the noise of celebration. But within David's house there was quiet. He stood at the doorway, in the robes of royalty, the very same garment once handed to him by the son of Sor. He traced his hands over the stitchings and remembered his friend, Jonathan, his beloved brother in arms and heart. He remembered Jonathan's words etched into his mind and heart, like a brand. 00:12:52 Speaker 10: Is yours now a royal armor and robe. Take care of them as you would your flock. 00:12:57 Speaker 2: Why are you giving me? 00:12:59 Speaker 4: Are you leave? 00:13:01 Speaker 10: I sure, hope not. I would stand beside you and battle into my last breath. But a warrior's armor is his life, and I give mine to you freely, not because I must, because I love you as my own soul. 00:13:13 Speaker 2: This rub is not armor. Why give it to me along with the. 00:13:19 Speaker 10: Rest, because it belongs to the future king. You will sit on Israel's throne, David, not I not saul you. The Lord raises the humble. My brother may be a shepherd now, but the hand of God is upon you. 00:13:35 Speaker 4: I see it as clearly as I see the stars. 00:13:38 Speaker 1: Those words rang in his mind like a prophecy fulfilled. But for all his wars and victories, his heart beat harder now than it ever had. With a sword in hand, David was reluctant to exit and face the crowd. David heard footsteps from behind. It was Nathan, the prophet of Jude. Nathan had become a voice of calm and reason to David as the noise and clamor of kingship raged in his mind. Nathan's presence was soothing and reassuring. He stood beside the king, much shorter, but somehow speaking to him as a father would to a child. 00:14:22 Speaker 6: You're afraid, I am, Why do you think that is? 00:14:30 Speaker 4: Good? 00:14:30 Speaker 6: Men have a healthy fear of power. They fear what it will do to them. This is why the courts of kings and nobles seemed to be filled with evil men. 00:14:43 Speaker 2: Why would the Lord call me into such a position? There was such potential for corruption. 00:14:48 Speaker 6: For the same reason he called you into the lions den to save the sheep. 00:14:56 Speaker 2: I see. 00:14:58 Speaker 1: David drew a deep bread. He wasn't ready, but he had to move regardless. He stepped forward. Nathan remained behind, watching him as he swung open the palace doors. The bright light burst through, revealing a roaring crowd waiting. A line of priests and elders were at the steps. They bowed low and stepped aside, parting the way. David passed between them, and the crowd roared at the sight of him. Hands clapped, voices rose in song, and petals rained from windows above like blessings. David's trusted men were at the bottom of the steps, waiting to escort him through Jashabine, Abeshi, Baniah, Uriah, and Joab. David's eyes scanned the people, his people now Their faces bore hope and hunger, longing for peace and deliverance. They reached the center of Hebrew, a great stun platform ringed with towering columns. The elders of the tribe stood there in ceremonial robes, faces grave beneath the sun. The crowd hushed as David ascended the steps, the sound of his sandals echoing like thunder across the stone. At the top he knelt. Abiathar, the high priest, approached with an alabaster horn filled with oil. Another elder, voice strong despite his age, turned to the people and declared. 00:16:39 Speaker 9: Behow we are your king, your blood and your bone. When Saul was king, it was you who led us to walk, you who slew giants, you who delivered us from the Philistines. It was not sau spear we followed. 00:17:04 Speaker 11: But your voice, your courage. And now the Lord has spoke. You shall be shepherd of my people Israel. You shall be prince over this nation. 00:17:21 Speaker 1: The horn tilted and warm oil flowed over David's head. It dripped into his hair, down his cheeks, and onto the robe once worn by Jonathan. He did not wipe it away. A golden circlet was placed upon his brow, its weight pressing into his temples. The moment held, the wind held its breath, and all of Israel saw a boy become king. He rose to his feet as the shout broke over Hebrew long Live killed David. David's eyes were closed for a long moment. But when he opened them, he saw not just the people, but the burden, the crown, the anointing, the cries of celebration. These were not trophies. They were a yoke. He was thirty years old, now, the same age another here would be when his coronation came, not with a crown of gold, but with thorns. But that was still to come. For now, David of Bethleo stood in the shadow of giants and kings and prophets, a warrior king, crowned in oil and hope his reign had begun. 00:18:51 Speaker 5: What makes a leader worthy of a crown? Is it victory in battle? Political shrewdness, bloodline. In this world it can seem these are the tools of trade. But the Bible teaches us something different, something quieter, something simpler. In the Torah Deuterotomy seventeen gives us a surprising vision of kingship. It reads, he must not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites, and must not turn from the law to the right or to the left. That's it. It's not military night, it's not cunning, but it's humility and holding to God's law, to the Torah. That's it, and that is the kind of king that God had in mind. David for all of his faults, and yes, we will continue to see that David was a very flawed man. David seemed to understand this what the scriptures want from a king. This story teaches us something else about David too. The assassins thought that their act would ingratiate themselves before David, since they had eliminated the final possibility of any rivalry between the House of Saul in the House of David. They probably hoped that they would receive David's praise and maybe even be named advisors to the new king. But that means that they didn't understand David, did they. David wasn't about to be swayed by false claims of others having helped him become a strong and stable king of Israel. It didn't matter to David that these killers eliminated his rival, because David knew that he was anointed by God and he didn't need acts of violence to assist him in reaching or enhancing his majestic position. This Bible story demonstrates he had another aspect of the Chosen People's most celebrated king. Now, let's talk about those two men, Rahab and Banna from a human point of view. They're pragmatis. They removed arrival, they secured the throne. They did what needed to be done. But Jewish tradition teaches otherwise. In the Talmwood, we read that if someone says kill so and so, or I will kill you, you must refuse who says your blood is redder than theirs. This is Jewish ethics. You can say Judeo Christian values in one sentence, this sanctity of life. And David knew that and remembered it. David remembered that even his enemies bear the image of God. He knew that power does not give license to rewrite the commandments, and that the crown of Israel cannot sit atop a severed head. Rechab and Banna wanted to impress David by acting like the world, like the others, cutting out anything that would get in David's way to the throne. But the Chosen People weren't called to be like the other nations. We are called to be different. We're called to be holy. Righteousness is not passive and it's not soft. Righteousness is a fierce faithfulness to the ways of God, even when every voice around us says to take a shortcut. In these daily Bible studies, we have seen again and again that God isn't interested in the most powerful, the most gifted, or the most qualified. God is drawn to those who know that their own capacity is one that could hold failure, and yet they choose to cling to him. Maybe you're not standing at the gates of Hebron this morning, but perhaps you're facing a decision that feels just as heavy, a conflict, a temptation to cut corners, a desire to win no matter the cost. Well, remember, David, Remember the hesitation before the throne, the silence before the cheers, the restraint in the face of an easy victory. God's way is rarely the fast way. It's often the long road, the hard road. But it is the right road. And you don't walk that road alone. And when you feel tired, when you feel like no one notices that you chose righteousness instead of revenge, Well, God sees it, I promise you he sees it. 00:23:13 Speaker 1: You can listen to the Chosen People with Isle Eckstein Ad free by downloading and subscribing to the prey dot Com app today. This Prey dog comproduction is only made possible by our dedicated team of creative talents. Steve Katina, Max Bard, Zach Shellabarger and Ben Gammon are the executive producers of The Chosen People with Yile Eckstein. Edited by Alberto Avilla, narrated by Paul Coltofianu. Characters are voiced by Jonathan Cotton, Aaron Salvado, Sarah Seltz, Mike Reagan, Stephen Ringwold, Sylvia Zaradoc, Thomas Copeland Junior, Rosanna Pilcher, and the opening prayer is voiced by John Moore. Music by Andrew Morgan Smith, written by Aaron Salvato, bre Roslie and Chris Baige. Special thanks to Bishop Paulinier, Robin van Ettin, Kayleb Burrows, Jocelyn Fuller, and the team at International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. You can hear more Prey dot Com productions on the Prey dot Com app, available on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. If you enjoyed The Chosen People with Yile Eckstein, please rate and leave a review,