A Promise Fulfilled

A PROMISE FULFILLED

a prayer to open

My Lord, my God, show me your heart. Ground me in your presence.

Draw me near and hold me close.

After this, David asked the LORD, “Should I move back to one of the towns of Judah?”

“Yes,” the LORD replied.

Then David asked, “Which town should I go to?”

“To Hebron,” the LORD answered. . . .

So David and his wives and his men and their families all moved to Judah, and they settled in the villages near Hebron. Then the men of Judah came to David and anointed him king over the people of Judah.

When David heard that the men of Jabesh-gilead had buried Saul, he sent them this message: “May the LORD bless you for being so loyal to your master Saul and giving him a decent burial. May the LORD be loyal to you in return and reward you with his unfailing love! And I, too, will reward you for what you have done. Now that Saul is dead, I ask you to be my strong and loyal subjects like the people of Judah, who have anointed me as their new king.” . . .

Then all the tribes of Israel went to David at Hebron and told him, “We are your own flesh and blood. In the past, when Saul was our king, you were the one who really led the forces of Israel. And the LORD told you, ‘You will be the shepherd of my people Israel.’” . . .

King David made a covenant before the LORD with all the elders of Israel. And they anointed him king of Israel.

David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in all. He had reigned over Judah from Hebron for seven years and six months, and from Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah for thirty-three years.

David then led his men to Jerusalem to fight against the Jebusites. . . . The Jebusites taunted David, saying, “You’ll never get in here! Even the blind and lame could keep you out!” . . . But David captured the fortress of Zion. . . .

David made the fortress his home, and he called it the City of David. . . . And David became more and more powerful, because the LORD God of Heaven’s Armies was with him.

Then King Hiram of Tyre sent messengers to David, along with cedar timber and carpenters and stonemasons, and they built David a palace. And David realized that the LORD had confirmed him as king over Israel and had blessed his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel. . . .

David married more concubines and wives, and they had more sons and daughters.

When Abraham, the founding father of the nation of Israel, and his wife, Sarah, were in their nineties and childless, God promised them, “I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you” (Genesis 17:6, NIV). When Abraham’s descendant David became king centuries later, God’s promise began to be fulfilled.

• What kind of emotion is stirred in you as you reflect on the fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham?
• Up to this point in the story of David, we see David as a man who seeks God’s will and then obeys his instructions. When have you known God’s will but decided to disobey his direction? What caused you to act as you did? How did your actions affect your relationships with God and with others?
• How do you seek to determine God’s will and guidance for your life?

Father, thank you for keeping your promises. Thank you that you remain faithful even when I am unfaithful to you. I stand in awe of your goodness and love. Create in me a heart that seeks your will, asks for your guidance, and then has the fortitude and courage to obey even in the face of obstacles and fear. Help me stay attuned to your voice and keep my eyes fixed on you. Amen.