A PSALM OF DAVID
The impact words have on us depends on who said them; a person’s experience and achievements add weight to what they say. Here is a good quote:
Forgiveness liberates the soul. It removes fear. That is why it is such a powerful weapon.
What is a good quote becomes an inspirational testimony when we realise that it was said by Nelson Mandela, who spent eighteen years in a small cell, without a bed or plumbing. Yet far from becoming bitter, when he was finally released, he worked tirelessly to heal his country’s divisions and bring old enemies together to rebuild his nation.
This is the first in a series of articles about the life of King David. It forms part of a companion to my book:
Psalm 23 was written by King David, and so knowing something about his life deepens the significance of his words for us. David lived about three thousand years ago and is best known for his encounter with Goliath. This inspiring event catapulted David from obscurity to legend and national hero. Defeating Goliath was undoubtedly a high in his life, but David’s life, like your life and mine, is a combination of highs and lows. Whether you are a shepherd or a king, you will experience highs and lows in life. David’s highs may have been extreme, but as we will see, so were his lows.
David Anointed
David was the youngest of eight sons born to Jesse of Bethlehem. We first hear of David when God instructed Samuel the prophet to anoint one of the sons of Jesse to be king of Israel. When Samuel saw Jesse’s oldest Son Eliab, he thought, ‘Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.’ (1 Samuel 16:6 NIV).
But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.’ (1 Samuel 16:7 NIV)
One by one Jesse presented all his sons before Samuel, and the Lord rejected each one. Samuel must have been feeling puzzled at this point, and so he asks Jesse if these were all his sons. Then Jesse remembers his youngest son, David, who is looking after the sheep…
David is eventually brought before Samuel, and when he sees him the Lord says to Samuel, ‘Rise and anoint him; this is the one.’
David’s own father considered David the least of his sons, not even worthy to be presented as his son before the prophet of the Lord. Can you imagine what it must have meant to David to be honoured by Samuel in this way?
Psalm 23 was written by a man who knew what it was to be chosen by the Lord, when no one else gave him a second thought.
After this, Eliab seems to have borne a grudge against David. A little time later we read:
When Eliab, David’s eldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, ‘Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.’ (1 Samuel 17:28 NIV)
In contrast to Eliab’s assessment of David, warped as it was by jealousy…
God testified concerning him: “I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.” (Acts 13:22 NIV)
Which tells us that:
Psalm 23 was written by a man after God’s own heart.
This reminds us that there is only one person’s opinion of you that matters, and that person is the Lord, who is your shepherd. Are you struggling with someone else’s opinion of you other that God? Join the club, I have struggled with fear of what people think of me all my life. But take heart:
If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31 NIV)
Read “The Psalm 23 Life” to make King David’s experience of God’s love your experience too…
You can access the other parts in this series on the life of King David below:
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
