The people of israel wanted a king to rule them, but the priest samuel warned them that god wanted no king for his nation. The second book of samuel describes the reign of david around 1010 to 970 bc. David, son of jesse and israels second king, began a family dynasty that ultimately produced the savior of the world, jesus christ. The time will come when david will become king of israel. In our english bible, it is divided into two books, first and second samuel. By the end of his reign, david controlled all of israel, edom, moab, ammon, syria, and zobah. The story of the birth and vocation of samuel at the. The account was considered one book in the earliest hebrew manuscripts, but was divided into two books when the translation of the book into greek occurred. David the conqueror, david the pious man, david the sweet singer, david the shepherd and david the penitent. As soon as the young david came, the lord said to samuel. Every christian is offered a kingdom, just as david was offered a kingdom. The book of 2 samuel is one of the books of history in continue reading bible study. My book of bible stories god chooses david english.
A poem near the start of the book reveals the books key themes. John bright, in his history of israel 1981, takes samuel at face. You may know the story of david and goliath, but theres much more to learn about david. Samuel anoints david the lord said to samuel, how long will you mourn for saul, since i have rejected him as king over israel. During samuel s youth at shiloh the philistines inflicted a decisive defeat against the israelites at ebenezer, placed the land under philistine oppression, and took the sanctuarys ark for. The translators of the septuagint divided the books due to their length when the vowels were added and renamed them 1.
The book of 2 samuel records the rise, fall, and restoration of king david. The book of 1 samuel outlines the birth of samuel, his life as a dedicated man of god, and the outcome of his warnings. However, nathan did far more in the service of god and king david than what is portrayed in this single incident. Esdras and josephus refer to samuel as a single work. Why king david is one of the bibles most compelling characters. The masoretic postscript is at the end of 2 samuel. Acclaimed for its masterful new translation and insightful commentary, the david story is a fresh, vivid rendition of one of the great works in western literature. Samuel the central figure of the first book is at the same time the. The first book of samuel tells the story of israels transition from a theocracy, or state ruled by a religious leader, to a monarchy, or state ruled by a political leader. Robert alters brilliant translation gives us david, the beautiful, musical hero who slays goliath and, through his struggles with saul, advances to the kingship of israel. The books of samuel represent the transition from the time of the judges to the time of the kings.
The men who translated the septuagint from hebrew to greek separated the book into two parts. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. Through it all, david maintains his integrity and his friendship with jonathan. Samuel anoints david as king 1 samuel 1516 david and goliath. Engage with samuel, saul, and david in the book of 1 samuel. The book of 1 samuel ends with the story of sauls death.
The book of 1 samuel ends with the death of saul, which left the nation of israel with a leadership vacuum and under continued threat from the neighboring philistines. His name was david, a word that means darling, and he was a beautiful boy, perhaps fifteen years old, with fresh cheeks and bright eyes. Samuel is the story of samuel the prophet, the rise and fall of king saul, and the reign of king david. The men in judges seem to be ordinary and average, while here the characters are outstanding and above the average. At one time, when david was still with his sheep, a few years after he had been anointed by samuel, the camps of the philistines and the israelites were set against each other on opposite sides of the valley of elah. Book of judges and those in the two books of samuel. Samuel anoints david king after rejecting saul for gross incompetence. Summary of the book of 2 samuel originally the books of 1 and 2 samuel were one book. The book of 2 samuel continues to show us the virtue of humility, the destructiveness of pride, and the faithfulness of gods promise. King david is one of the most wellknown figures in jewish history.
The second book of samuel, commonly called second samuel and written as 2nd samuel or simply 2 samuel is the tenth book of the old testament and also the tenth book of the bible. The first chapter 1 samuel 16 and his first appearance in the bible. Bold faith 1 samuel 17 jonathans friendship, sauls jealousy 1 samuel 1820 david flees from saul 1 samuel 2123 david spares the lords anointed 1 samuel 2428 david strengthens himself in the lord 1 samuel 292 samuel 1. Samuel is the only judge who is a permanent magistrate as well as a military leader, and his conclusive victory over the philistines in chapter 7 cannot be historical, since it is contradicted by the subsequent military exploits of saul and david. Engage with samuel, saul, and david in the book of 1. Its three main characters, samuel the prophet, saul, and david are among the most powerful people in the bible, yet their lives were scarred by farreaching mistakes.
Stedman second samuel is really a continuation of first samuel in the hebrew bible they are not divided and this is the first book of kings and it all centers on one man david. Though nathan may not possess a book in the bible named after him, he was a significant biblical figure who played a major role in the building of. Even though the title of the book suggests otherwise, this story is really about david. In the book of samuel, saul, the first king of israel, failed to reach a decisive. David flees, and so begins an extraordinary period of adventure, intrigue, and romance. Saul, anointed by samuel, became israels first king.
A new story of the spiritual warrior and leader who shaped our inner consciousness. King david was a descendant of judah as well as ruth, and was promised by g. But jonathan had taken a great liking to david 2 and warned him, my father saul is looking for a chance to kill you. David, second king of ancient israel, an important figure in judaism. Second samuel is really a continuation of 1 samuel in the hebrew bible they are not divided and this is the first book of kings and it all centers on one man david. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means for profit, except in brief. Even though the title of the book suggests otherwise, this story is really about. Information and translations of books of samuel in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. Why was nathan the prophet so important to king david.
David tastes triumph and trial in the book of 2 samuel. So, god chose david to be king instead of saul 1 samuel 16. The story of david is a picture for us of what happens in a christians life as he gives it to god a place of dominion and reign. Court history of david or succession narrative 2 samuel 920 and 1 kings 12. In contrast, god raises up david, a humble shepherd who trusts god. His life was filled with much happiness and much pain. This advice is equally true for the david story, the title alter gives to his translation of the two books of samuel. Samuel is the name of the books in the ancient hebrew text, because he was the author and the main character in the early portions in the first book, and because of his role as a prophet of god known from dan to beersheba, who had anointed and had the biggest influence on the lives of king saul and king david. Samuel anoints the young shepherd david as the new king. In the army of israel were the three oldest brothers of david. First samuel is a transitional book from the era of the judges to the kingdom.
We all desire to love god and obey his commandments, but we fall into sin, over and over. While king david had numerous wives,17 only eight are named in the book of samuel. Saul ruled israel but became a wicked man, and david rose up to rule in his place. Arise, anoint him, for this is the one whom i have chosen. That kingdom is the kingdom of your own life and it is exactly like the kingdom of israel. Introduction to book of 1 samuel, israels first king. Then david makes a tragic mistake by committing adultery with bathshebaand having her husband uriah the hittite killed to cover the sin. Story 61 david is made king story 62 trouble in david s house story 63 wise king solomon story 64 solomon builds the temple story. Near the end of the book, samuel has died, and saul is a lost man. In 1 samuel, god commands obedience from israels kings. The book of samuel, or 1 samuel and 2 samuel, form part of the narrative history of israel in the neviim or prophets section of the hebrew bibleold testament, called the deuteronomistic history, a series of books joshua, judges, samuel and kings that constitute a theological history of the israelites and aim to explain gods law for israel under the guidance of the prophets. In 1 samuel, god reluctantly raises up kings to rule the israelites. It is written by the last of the judges for which the book is named, samuel. God withdraws his power from saul, cursing saul with psychological distress in the form of an evil spirit 16.
The first part of the story concludes with sauls death. As the story progresses, we see these two characters in increasingly stark contrast. David has a military victory and gains favor even while running from a jealous king saul. With supernatural aid, david narrowly but consistently eludes the bloodthirsty saul chapters 1926.
The poignancy of the book of 2 samuel is that david s story is our own story. The old testament book of 1 samuel is a record of triumph and tragedy. The book of chronicles, which tells the story from a. Nathan the prophet is best remembered for his dramatic speech to king david, confronting him about his adultery with bathsheba. However, 2 samuel starts by telling the story of how david hebrew beloved began his succession to the throne and in time welded together the looseknit israelite tribes. The novice reader will find the samuel narrative a virtual seamless garment, predating aristotles poetics but adhering to its principles of unity of motion and catharsis. The story of king david in the bible jewish history chabad. David expanded israels borders from sauls smaller territory.
As david conquers the land and unites the jewish people, we see his courage, honesty, compassion, and faithfulness to god. Israel starts out as a nation of loosely affiliated tribes led by priests and religious heroes, but it becomes a nationstate led by a centralized king. David began his reign as king only over the tribe of judah and it was. Summary of the books of samuel the story of the bible. Then samuel poured oil on david s head, in the presence of all his brothers. Michal, ahinoam, abigail, maacah, haggit, avital, eglah and bathsheba. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of bible. David begins his rise to courtly status as a harpplayer for saul during the kings emotional unrest.
In this video i will be doing a story time over the life of king david. Books of samuel, two old testament books that, along with deuteronomy, joshua, judges, and 1 and 2 kings, belong to the tradition of deuteronomic history first committed to writing about 550 bc, during the babylonian exile. We see david succeed and fail, and we see gods promise for a future king at the beginning and end of the story. The story of king david in the bible jewish history. Key personalities include eli, hannah, samuel, saul, jonathan, and david. Samuel anoints jesse s youngest son, david, a shepherd, as king, and god gives divine power to david. The two books, which were originally one, are principally concerned with the. Hannah and elkanah give their son to serve at gods tabernacle. In despair, we realize we cannot save ourselves through our futile attempts at perfect obedience. They are hannah, eli, samuel, saul, jonathan, and david. Samuel was the last of israels judges and the first of its prophets.
1253 827 1550 589 219 1515 1161 559 226 897 828 38 1585 1037 920 211 718 732 1266 1064 1462 634 941 887 741 1429 1214 1153 1075 645 1419 987