The People in David s Life and in Yours An Adult Bible Study by Robert J. Koester Leader s Guide Lesson One Samuel David s Mentor.......................... 5 Lesson Two Goliath The Person Who Made David Famous...... 11 Lesson Three Saul God s Tool of Affliction.................... 15 Lesson Four Jonathan David s True Friend in Christ............ 20 Lesson Five Abigail The Friend Who Saved David From Himself....................................... 25 Lesson Six Uriah The Friend David Murdered................. 29 Lesson Seven Nathan David s Pastor........................ 34 Lesson Eight Absalom God s Tool for Chastening.............. 38 Lesson Nine Friends for Hard Times.......................... 43 Lesson Ten Joab The Most Complex Person in David s Life (Part One).......................................... 47 Lesson Eleven Joab The Most Complex Person in David s Life (Part Two).......................................... 52
The People in David s Life and in Yours Leader s Guide Page 2 All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved. This publication may not be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, or converted to any electronic or machine-readable form in whole or in part, except for brief quotations, without prior written approval from the publisher. Northwestern Publishing House 1250 N. 113th St., Milwaukee, WI 53226-3284 www.nph.net 2014 Northwestern Publishing House Published 2014 ISBN 978-0-8100-2540-0
The People in David s Life and in Yours Leader s Guide Page 3 Leader s Notes The purpose of the course This course looks at David s life in a different way than it is usually presented. It is structured around the people the Lord brought into David s life. There are four goals for this course: To review the life of David, one of the most important people in the Old Testament. To learn about the people whom the Lord brought into David s life. To see how the Lord used these people as his tools to shape David s spiritual growth. To focus on the people God brings into our lives for the same purpose. Planning the course This 11-week course can be customized to your time frame. Essential: Samuel, Saul, Jonathan, Uriah, Nathan Very important: Goliath, Abigail Important: Absalom Very helpful: Friends for Hard Times, Joab (2 lessons) If you have only nine weeks, I suggest you omit Joab. If you have seven weeks, you might also omit Absalom and Friends for Hard Times. If you have only six weeks, I suggest omitting Abigail (but omit her only if you absolutely must). These omissions do the least harm to the continuity of David s life. Another idea is to make this into a two-part study, taking the first half one year and the second half the next year. This causes continuity to suffer but is not out of the question. As you consider your time frame, don t be afraid of going 11 weeks. Since you are not teaching the life of one person, namely, David, but are introducing the class to a variety of people in David s life, each lesson is a new topic. And don t just teach the material. Let the class take part in developing a sense of the relationships between David and the people in his life. There are many nuances here, and you will find the class responding well. The application is quite natural. Regardless of how much discussion time is left at the end of the lesson (where the class is asked to consider similar people in their own lives), class members will find themselves viewing the people around them in a new and refreshing light. Explanation of the psalms Thirteen psalms contain headings that identify when David wrote them. The Worship section uses psalms from this group. In general, they fit the lesson (although other psalms might have been chosen that fit better). The trade-off is to get the class familiar with the idea that psalms were often written against the backdrop of certain events in the psalmist s life. Prayer and benediction Each lesson contains an opening prayer. However, it can be used as either an opening or a closing prayer. The lesson s Summary section suggests that you use the benediction or an ex-corde prayer suitable to end the lesson. (For lay teachers, the benediction is from Numbers 6:24-26: The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace. )
The People in David s Life and in Yours Leader s Guide Page 4 Arrangement of the study In general, the beginning of each study follows the life of David in chronological order. However, since we are treating the people in David s life and since they sometimes appear at various times in David s life, some lessons take episodes from different parts of David s life. The Introduction will help you orient the class to the period or periods of David s life when a particular person enters. The people in your class members lives If you have only a single class session per lesson, it is easy to cut yourself short on time to help the class reflect on the people in their lives. Some of David s people are easier to see as being in our lives, and some are more difficult. Leave enough time to discuss those who are easy to see, and prepare to leave the class with a thought or two concerning the more difficult ones. Also, help the class learn to be sensitive to the fact that they have an impact on the lives of others. Encourage them to ask God to help them be positive influences on their fellow Christians. Those people will look back on and thank the Lord for bringing the class members into their lives. Suggestion for home reading The Home study will help class members understand David s life as a whole and will help the class jump around in David s life, which is necessary in some of the lessons. The story of David s life goes from 1 Samuel chapter 16 to 1 Kings 2:11 and includes 42 chapters. Accordingly, a reading section will include four or five chapters per week. If you do all 11 lessons and the class reads all the material, they will not meet people they have not already been introduced to in their home reading. If you omit lessons, however, be sure to let the people know which additional chapters to read. The book Agents of Grace You are encouraged to make class members aware of the book Agents of Grace that complements this study. It might be wise to make the class aware of this book after you have taught the course. That way there won t be some members who know all the answers and the book will serve as a good review. There is a devotion at the end of each chapter of the book that will help the class members apply the chapter to their lives. In-class reading The lessons are structured around sections of Scripture. One idea is to break longer reading sections into smaller pieces. Then write the reading assignments on sticky notes and lay them out for class members to pick up when they enter the class. This can save time assigning readings in class and assure that only those who want to read will be called on. In some lessons you will see suggestions for reading without comment. These reading assignments are intended to fill in the gaps between the main sections you will read and discuss. These readings are optional, and the references are only located in the leader s guide and not in the student lessons. Robert Koester
The People in David s Life and in Yours Leader s Guide Page 5 Lesson 1 Samuel David s Mentor Worship Read responsively Psalm 30:1-12. (Note: The responsive readings are all taken from psalms that contain a heading explaining when or why David wrote the psalm. This will illustrate what David was thinking at various times of his life and the lessons God was teaching him through the people he brought into his life.) Heading: A psalm. A song. For the dedication of the temple. Of David. (The account is found in 1 Kings chapter 8.) Leader: I will exalt you, O LORD, Group: for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me. L: O LORD my God, I called to you for help G: and you healed me. L: O LORD, you brought me up from the grave; G: you spared me from going down into the pit. L: Sing to the LORD, you saints of his; G: praise his holy name. L: For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; G: weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. L: When I felt secure, G: I said, I will never be shaken. L: O LORD, when you favored me, you made my mountain stand firm; G: but when you hid your face, I was dismayed. L: To you, O LORD, I called; G: to the Lord I cried for mercy: L: What gain is there in my destruction, in my going down into the pit? G: Will the dust praise you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness? L: Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me; G: O LORD, be my help. L: You turned my wailing into dancing; G: you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
The People in David s Life and in Yours Leader s Guide Page 6 L: that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. G: O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever. Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for sending us your Holy Spirit, who, through your Word, leads us into all truth. Thank you for giving to our churches people who have the gifts of knowledge and understanding, who can lead us into your Word and teach us. Give all our teachers zeal for the truth. Enable them to present your Word for what it is, namely, a clear and faithful witness to all you have done for us through your Son, Jesus, in whose name we pray. Amen. Introduction King David is one of the most well-known figures in the Old Testament. David and Goliath and David and Bathsheba are stories many know from their youth. This Bible study will cover the life of King David with a focus on the people the Lord brought into David s life. Each of these people played a role in how God shaped David s spiritual life so he could serve as Israel s king, a prophet who wrote many psalms, and a priest who led the people in their worship life. As such, David became a picture of Jesus and David s kingdom became a picture of the kingdom of God. The struggles David went through, his continual reliance on his heavenly Father, and the joys he experienced when God delivered him all picture Jesus struggles and joys. As we watch how the Lord used the people in David s life, we are encouraged to think about the people Jesus has brought into our lives and how he has blessed us through them. We are also led to consider the roles we play in the lives of those around us, especially our fellow believers. The first person the Lord brought into David s life, as we are considering them, was the prophet Samuel. There was no better person to provide David with the foundation he needed to do God s work. Bible study Samuel was the last of the judges, or informal leaders, God used to help his people, the Israelites. While still a little boy, he was brought by his mother to the tabernacle to help the high priest Eli. Samuel grew to be a great prophet and even led Israel in some of its battles against the Philistines. In time, the Israelites grew tired of not having a designated king like the other nations. They asked for a king, and God gave them one. Their first king was Saul. Saul was a powerful man who started out well but then forsook the Lord. God told Samuel to anoint another king to replace Saul. Read 1 Samuel 16:6-13. 1. What did Samuel learn about David even before he met him? (verse 7) The Lord had already looked into David s heart and found someone who would serve well.
The People in David s Life and in Yours Leader s Guide Page 7 2. The Lord had sent Samuel to Bethlehem, to the house of Jesse, to anoint one of his sons as king. How many of Jesse s sons did Samuel have to see before God showed him the right one? Seven of Jesse s sons passed by Samuel, but none of them was the Lord s anointed. 3. What did the Lord do to David after Samuel anointed him? The Spirit of the Lord came to him in a powerful way. In a sense, David was raw material in God s hands. The Holy Spirit worked on David as David was called on to show his faith in the midst of the trials and struggles the Lord brought into his life through various people. He was also given a chance to see how the Lord used people to comfort him, direct his actions, and teach him. This is the focus of this course. Read 1 Samuel 19:18-24. 4. David went into Saul s court as a musician. His job was to play his harp when an evil spirit came on Saul. After a while David became a great warrior and led Israel in its battles against the Philistines. Saul became jealous of David and tried to kill him. To whom did David flee? David fled to Samuel. 5. How did the Lord stop Saul from killing David? He had Saul s men and then Saul himself prophesy. He forced them to speak the truth, which in this context meant testifying to Saul s rebellion and how God would make David the next king. 6. What might David and Samuel have talked about during the time David was with Samuel? Read the following passages. Glean insights into Samuel from these passages, and use your insights to offer some ideas of what Samuel and David may have talked about. There is speculation involved in deciding what the two talked about during the time David was staying with Samuel. However, the following passages show us clearly that David and Samuel shared many of the same abilities and interests. They shared the same zeal for worship, the same desire to bring God s Word to the people, and the same courage in fighting the Lord s battles. Teaching suggestion: Put three words on a white board with a space to write under each one. The words are Prophet, Priest, and King. These three offices summarize the work Jesus did, and they summarize the work David did as one who pictured Jesus. Then as you discover ways Samuel and David were the same or did similar tasks, write those insights under the appropriate word. For example, when we hear that Samuel wrote the history of Israel and that he was a prophet, you can note that David was also a prophet and one who wrote many of the psalms. Note that David did this under Prophet and that the two might have talked about the work of prophecy and teaching the older man instructing the younger. 1 Chronicles 29:27-30 He [David] ruled over Israel forty years seven in Hebron and thirty-three in Jerusalem. He died at a good old age, having enjoyed long life, wealth and honor. His son Solomon succeeded him as king. As for the events of King David s reign, from beginning to end, they are written in the records
The People in David s Life and in Yours Leader s Guide Page 8 of Samuel the seer, the records of Nathan the prophet and the records of Gad the seer, together with the details of his reign and power, and the circumstances that surrounded him and Israel and the kingdoms of all the other lands. 7. What work did Samuel do in addition to leading Israel? If Samuel had already started his record of David s life, what impression would this have had on David? Samuel kept a record of David s reign, probably up to the time Samuel died. This record was supplemented by that of Nathan the prophet and Gad the seer. No doubt these formed the foundation of 1 and 2 Samuel. Samuel would die not long after his visit with David. If he was in the process of writing his record of David s reign, which is very likely, his work must have been very encouraging for David, who was about to enter one of the most difficult periods in his life. David would have seen how important he was in the Lord s plan for Israel. And the very fact that a record of his life had been started implied that it would end with his being king over Israel as God had promised. 1 Chronicles 6:33,34 Here are the men who served, together with their sons: From the Kohathites: Heman, the musician, the son of Joel, the son of Samuel, the son of Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Eliel, the son of Toah. 8. What ability did one of Samuel s descendants, Heman, possess? (Hint: See the heading of Psalm 88. Also see 1 Chronicles 16:41,42.) What does this suggest about Samuel? How might Samuel have helped David? We often focus on David s musical ability both as a harpist and as a writer of psalms. We get a glimpse into Samuel s likely interest in these abilities. The mention of Heman is the key. He is the grandson of Samuel. Heman was one of the key worship leaders in Solomon s temple. We read in 1 Chronicles 15:16,17: David told the leaders of the Levites to appoint their brothers as singers to sing joyful songs, accompanied by musical instruments: lyres, harps and cymbals. So the Levites appointed Heman son of Joel; from his brothers, Asaph son of Berekiah. It is likely that Samuel shared these gifts with his grandson. He certainly shared an interest in the worship of the Lord. As we see from David s later life, David was intensely interested in providing a temple for the Lord. Even though God gave the actual task of building the temple to Solomon, already in his lifetime David stored up materials to build the temple and drew up the plans. Perhaps he and Samuel discussed issues relating to the future temple and worship there. 1 Chronicles 9:22 Altogether, those chosen to be gatekeepers at the thresholds numbered 212. They were registered by genealogy in their villages. The gatekeepers had been assigned to their positions of trust by David and Samuel the seer. 9. The writer of Chronicles told his Levite readers about the importance of gatekeepers in the work of the temple. He pointed them back to work David and Samuel did in their day. How might this have factored into David s conversation with Samuel? Remember, Samuel did not have long to live after David left him. They may have discussed the organization of the tabernacle and the future temple, planning out administrative details even down to who would serve as gatekeepers.
The People in David s Life and in Yours Leader s Guide Page 9 2 Chronicles 35:17-19 The Israelites who were present celebrated the Passover at that time and observed the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days. The Passover had not been observed like this in Israel since the days of the prophet Samuel; and none of the kings of Israel had ever celebrated such a Passover as did Josiah, with the priests, the Levites and all Judah and Israel who were there with the people of Jerusalem. This Passover was celebrated in the eighteenth year of Josiah s reign. 10. How did Samuel help in the Israelites worship service? How might this have come up in David and Samuel s conversations? The reference is to a Passover celebration in the time of Josiah, king of Judah. The writer says that not since the days of Samuel was such a Passover celebrated. Samuel s intense interest in keeping God s law must have rubbed off on David and influenced him to produce material that would help his people worship the Lord. Jeremiah 15:1 Then the LORD said to me: Even if Moses and Samuel were to stand before me, my heart would not go out to this people. Send them away from my presence! Let them go! 11. In the days of Jeremiah (who lived during the days when Judah was taken into captivity), the Lord was angry with his people, the Israelites. What role must Samuel have played in the life of God s people to be mentioned alongside Moses? How might this have helped David? Samuel s greatness must have contributed to David s confidence that God was with him. God would not fail to fulfill the promises he had made to David through Samuel. Hebrews 11:32-34 What more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 12. David and Samuel are mentioned in the great chapter on heroes of faith (Hebrews chapter 11). Based on his experience, what encouragement might Samuel have given David? No doubt Samuel encouraged David to remain faithful and endure the coming difficulties in a patient and God-pleasing way. Acts 3:22-25 Moses said, The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you. Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from among his people. Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken, have foretold these days. And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed. 13. What was the heart of Samuel s prophecies? How might this have shaped Samuel and David s conversation? At the heart of David s and Samuel s lives was God s promise of a Savior. Peter specifically mentions Samuel when he talks of people in the past who had foretold
The People in David s Life and in Yours Leader s Guide Page 10 the days when the Savior would appear. No doubt Samuel talked with David about God s promises and strengthened his faith. 14. How was David s work as God s prophet, priest, and king blessed through Samuel? David had a chance to witness a valiant leader who bravely fought Israel s battles. He had a chance to learn from Samuel about the nature of true prophecy that it must be centered on the coming Savior. Samuel helped David plan and organize for the time when God would bless Israel with a permanent temple. The people God has put in your life 15. Do you have any Christian teachers God has brought into your life who have been a special blessing to you? What do you remember or appreciate about them the most? Reflect on how they have helped you in your life of faith. Don t just think about formal teachers you may have had in a classroom setting but informal teachers Christians whom God brought into your life who taught you many things about life under God. Summary Answers will vary. Samuel had many spiritual gifts. He was a truly great man who was a great blessing to God s people. Later on David shared many of Samuel s characteristics. No doubt Samuel taught David many things of a spiritual nature that were foundational to David s work as a prophet, a priest, and a king. Home study Close with the benediction or a prayer asking God to provide us with Christian teachers. Read the following chapters that tell the story of David s life: 1 Samuel 16:14 19:24.