1 Chronicles 21

Part I

When do you know that something belongs to you? Instinctively, we would all respond with a “yes” to something that is under your roof, in your bank account, or even has your name scribbled on it. How about your family, do they belong to you? God sees this question of belonging differently. In 1 Chronicles 21, God’s jealousy is on full display and goes to great lengths asserting His claim. God’s view is difficult for modern minds to comprehend.

In chapter 21, King David orders a census to be taken of the nation. David’s number two man, Joab, warns him that guilt would be brought on Israel if he goes through with the census. But as King, his command stands, and he doesn’t back down. Joab takes a census of the people. Almost immediately, David realizes he is in trouble and has acted foolishly. A prophet named Gad comes to him and lays down three options: 1. Famine for three years. 2. Three months running from your enemies. 3. Three days of plague.

(Seriously God! Your going to kill a bunch of people over a census!!??)

In our minds, a king taking a census is a perfectly normal act. But that is not how God sees it. In the second year of the Exodus, it was God Himself who counted the people of Israel (Numbers 1) He did this because they are His. Even this was done with a great amount of trepidation; God instructed the people of Israel to provide a national sacrifice to Him as part of the census (Exodus 31:11). No matter how large the nation of Israel grew, they would always know they are His.

Now how does this relate to King David’s census? David’s act of taking a census claims ownership of something not his! He was not taking a census to honor God. He was taking a census to promote himself. Now, think about your family. If you are in Christ’s Kingdom, your family is not yours. Your family belongs to God and you should treat it as such. It means that as a father, God is entrusting you to teach, love, and care for His people. It is a very high calling God does not take lightly.

To David’s credit, he realizes his mess and chooses the best option available. Famine comes from nature, enemies are men, but plague is from God. He throws himself at the Lord’s mercy and prays for a quick end to the sickness. Like all fathers, our anger can burn hot fast, but the repentance of a child cools it just as quickly.

Nothing fixes a child like an appropriate spanking and God’s spanking fixed David good.

1 Chronicles 20:2 David took the crown of Milcom from the idols head. It was found to weigh a talent of gold with precious stones on it; this crown David wore on his own head.

Sometimes the Bible is a blessing and it just speaks to you other times its a curse. You sit there in oppressive silence. There are times we do not know who the author is writing to, or the world view in their mind. But, it is safe to assume they writing for more than entertainment. So digging is required. This passage did this for me. Luckily, the parallel text in Samuel shows the scandalous context all of Israel was whispering about.

Chapter 20 begins, “At the turn of the year, when kings go out to war, Joab, led the army out in force”. David stays back home to get a little sugar when he should be out with the troops. The writer of chronicles does not mention this, instead he gives us the insight into David’s heart and mind through his actions. David lets his top man, Joab, fight the battle and then arrives to remove the defeated king’s crown off the idol’s head, placing it on his own. You can almost feel tension 2500 years later. David shows up after all the fighting is over, stealing a poor soldiers wife, murdering him, and grabs the fanciest treasure off a pagan idols head. Everyone’s eyes have to be rolling as this guy takes the place of the idol. That’s nerve all right.

You might call this ‘the pride before the fall’, or as Voltaire wrote, “History is filled with the sound of silken slippers going downstairs and wooden shoes coming up.” God is getting ready to drop the hammer on David and we wise to learn from his lesson. No matter how much we achieve in life, a leader can never forget the men who fight beside him. And when your ego grows to the size of a demigod, it’s a good sign it’s too big. There is only one true God and when we make an idol of ourselves his love for us will not tolerate it. David took a crown of gold and is pulled down by God, while Christ took a crown of thorns and is raised up. Which do you seek?

1 Chronicles 19

What does it mean to be “Old School”? The question itself conjures up many great aspects of manhood and in 1 Chronicles 19; David exerts himself in sweet old school fashion. The story begins with David sending out some messengers to congratulate a new king on his assentation to the throne. The new king, fearing that these ambassadors are spies, shaves their beard and returns them with half their garments cut away. And its not the cool ‘Top Gun volley ball’ half that is removed. Now picture this. These are strong warrior men, for whom growing a beard is the symbol of their masculinity. They are sent back shaved with their twigs and berries swinging in the wind for all to see. Dang Bible!

Old school demands respect and old school does not tolerate bullies. How can an old school guy like David, with a heart for God, reassert a mans masculinity. He could send a small army and conduct a long siege slowly wearing down the enemy. He could weakly send out a negotiating party and explain right and wrong telling them to apologize. Or he can send a all his army and act swiftly. Men are going to die either way in war. That is the nature of it. The question a man after God’s own heart must ask is, which one looses the least lives and restores the identity stolen from these men.

We deal with this all the time. Do we face a bully on the playground and punch him hard in the nose or do we slowly try convince him he is wrong? The swift and hard way may look extreme, but if you wait many kids will be hurt in the delay. There is going to be blood either way. Sometimes, a quick bloodbath is exactly what God’s heart wants, because the alternative is even more painful. David is not going to let his men be stripped of their identity and neither should you. God made you with a unique identity and its worth going to war for. Go and fight for it!

(This is a throwback to earlier in our place in the Bible. But it is obscure and the story is weird.)

Genesis 6:1–4 When human beings began to grow numerous on the earth and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw how beautiful the daughters of human beings were, and so they took for their wives whomever they pleased. Then the Lord said: My spirit shall not remain in human beings forever, because they are only flesh. Their days shall comprise one hundred and twenty years. The Nephilim appeared on earth in those days, as well as later, after the sons of God had intercourse with the daughters of human beings, who bore them sons. They were the heroes of old, the men of renown.

The amazing part of the Bible is how weird and wonderful it can be at the same time. Today, we live in our tech world and it’s hard to place parts of the Bible into our modern mind. Do you believe in witches or giants? Of course not. But have you seen Harry Potter or the Lord of the Rings? They certainly exist there don’t they? Yes, yes but that is not the same thing. We separate these in our mind from the fictional to the non-fictional.

But, what if you did not separate them in your mind? What if your culture had no “Enlightenment” and you constantly wondered about stories told around the campfire? How could your God permit these creatures to exist? It does not matter if they are fact or fiction; they are real in your mind. If the battle you are going into is against men of unusual size and skill. How could you possible win if you thought these men had god DNA? Science can not change your mind since fear has a hold of it.

This story is one of context, that forces us to put our minds in our ‘primitive’ state. God is telling the people of Israel that He is Lord of their nightmares too. The stories that keep little children up at night and the fear soldiers feel on the battlefield. He is Lord over these stories and fears as well. He speaks to our irrational fears and says, “Yeah, see those tough guys we are going up against in battle, I made them too. Now win!”. He literally and literarily takes all thoughts captive.