David Bahn – Reflections

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These devotions are part of the Follow the Word Bible reading program at St. John Lutheran Church in Cypress, Texas. This year we are reading through the Scriptures together, listening for how God speaks through his Word day by day. I hope you will join me on this journey.

Today’s readings are 1 Chronicles 25-27, Psalm 126.

1 Chronicles 25:1, 7-8

David and the chiefs of the service also set apart for the service the sons of Asaph, and of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who prophesied with lyres, with harps, and with cymbals. The list of those who did the work and of their duties was… ⁷ The number of them along with their brothers, who were trained in singing to the Lord, all who were skillful, was 288. ⁸ And they cast lots for their duties, small and great, teacher and pupil alike.

Years ago I read Romans 16 as the New Testament Reading in a Sunday service at the church where I was then serving. I wanted to highlight how important people are to the mission of God. One member challenged me afterward: “Why in the world did you read all those names?!?” I tried to explain, but he clearly did not share my enthusiasm for long lists of names.

But here we are in 1 Chronicles reading bunches and bunches of names. Name after name, with their brothers – “12 in all,” repeated time after time. As I read, I thought the list would finally end after twelve groups of twelve. If you’ve read today’s readings, you know it does not. The Chronicler goes on to list twenty-four groups of twelve.

Last Sunday – Mother’s Day – there was a printout at St. John listing those who donated flowers to decorate the chancel. Name after name. Row after row. Column after column. I scanned the list not to see who had donated and who had not, but to look for our names. When I saw our names and my mother’s name, I kept scanning, happy to find Diane’s mother listed there as well.

We think little of lists of names unless we hope to find our own.

But the purpose of these names in 1 Chronicles is to show how many people were needed to support the worship life of God’s people.

We once counted how many people were actively involved in making Sunday morning happen at St. John. At that time it was more than 100. Sunday school teachers, worship welcome team members, altar guild, choir, praise team, AV team, ushers, elders, security team, hospitality volunteers (read donut servers!), prayer team, pastors, musicians – the list went on and on, and I hope I haven’t left anyone out.

The mission of God – beginning with the gathering of God’s people for worship – is not a solo act. Jesus sent out his disciples two-by-two. Barnabas and Saul took others with them on their missionary journeys. Paul describes the church as the Body of Christ, with each member doing its part. And in Romans 16 he greets 26 individuals by name, along with several unnamed groups of believers.

God does not hang speakers from the clouds to announce the Good News of Jesus. He does not rely even on the most remarkable technology to carry out his work. He works through people – you and me, and all our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Christ delights to carry out his work through his people together, each member serving in his or her place. And the shared life of Christ’s kingdom – worshiping, serving, and living together – is too precious to neglect.

Behind every congregation, every act of worship, and every ministry of the Gospel are countless names of people known and treasured by God.

Click here for an audio version of this blog post.

These devotions are part of the Follow the Word Bible reading program at St. John Lutheran Church in Cypress, Texas. This year we are reading through the Scriptures together, listening for how God speaks through his Word day by day. I hope you will join me on this journey.

Today’s readings are 1 Chronicles 22-24, Psalm 125.

1 Chronicles 22:6-16

Then [David] called for Solomon his son and charged him to build a house for the Lord, the God of Israel. ⁷ David said to Solomon, “My son, I had it in my heart to build a house to the name of the Lord my God. ⁸ But the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘You have shed much blood and have waged great wars. You shall not build a house to my name, because you have shed so much blood before me on the earth. ⁹ Behold, a son shall be born to you who shall be a man of rest. I will give him rest from all his surrounding enemies. For his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quiet to Israel in his days. ¹⁰ He shall build a house for my name. He shall be my son, and I will be his father, and I will establish his royal throne in Israel forever.’

¹¹ “Now, my son, the Lord be with you, so that you may succeed in building the house of the Lord your God, as he has spoken concerning you. ¹² Only, may the Lord grant you discretion and understanding, that when he gives you charge over Israel you may keep the law of the Lord your God. ¹³ Then you will prosper if you are careful to observe the statutes and the rules that the Lord commanded Moses for Israel. Be strong and courageous. Fear not; do not be dismayed. ¹⁴ With great pains I have provided for the house of the Lord 100,000 talents of gold, a million talents of silver, and bronze and iron beyond weighing, for there is so much of it; timber and stone, too, I have provided. To these you must add. ¹⁵ You have an abundance of workmen: stonecutters, masons, carpenters, and all kinds of craftsmen without number, skilled in working ¹⁶ gold, silver, bronze, and iron. Arise and work! The Lord be with you!”

I can certainly identify with David’s desire for Solomon to succeed. We dads want to give our sons every opportunity to do well in life. Multiply that by 1,000 if we are wishing for their success in the things of God. This is where David is with his son Solomon as he nears the end of his life and realizes that the task before his son is greater than his son’s resources.

David had desired to build a temple for the LORD; to give the LORD a dwelling befitting God’s honor and glory. He thought that the tabernacle was insufficient. It was temporary and mobile. A permanent building – glorious and majestic – seemed to him to be much more appropriate. David, however, was a man of bloodshed and war. He was not to build the temple. That task was to be given to Solomon, David’s son.

David was deeply committed to seeing the temple take shape. Though he would not build it himself, he did everything he could to prepare Solomon for the task. He gathered gold and silver in abundance, along with iron, bronze, timber, and stone. He also assembled skilled craftsmen of every kind – stonecutters, masons, carpenters, and artisans who would help bring the project to completion.

In other words, David provided resources of every kind for his son: financial resources, building materials, skilled workers, and wise counsel. Solomon himself would later ask the LORD for wisdom to lead the people and carry out the work entrusted to him.

Yet David understood that the most important resource was not gold, labor, or even wisdom itself. The greatest need was for the LORD to be with his son.

So David prays. He asks the LORD to grant Solomon success, discretion, understanding, courage, and faithfulness. David knew that unless the LORD prospered the work, all the preparations in the world would not be enough.

That remains true for us as well. God gives us many resources for our daily vocations and for the work of his kingdom – abilities, relationships, material blessings, opportunities, and knowledge. But above all, he gives spiritual gifts: his word, prayer, faith, and the promises of Christ. These are the gifts that sustain us, guide us, and strengthen us for the work God places before us.

Thanks be to God for all his gifts – and especially for those spiritual gifts through which he continues to build his people into a living temple of praise.

Click on the graphic below to watch the Bible Project video summary of the book of 2 Samuel.

Click here for an audio version of this blog post.

These devotions are part of the Follow the Word Bible reading program at St. John Lutheran Church in Cypress, Texas. This year we are reading through the Scriptures together, listening for how God speaks through his Word day by day. I hope you will join me on this journey.

Today’s readings are 2 Samuel 17-19, Psalm 122.

2 Samuel 18:29-33

And the king said, “Is it well with the young man Absalom?” Ahimaaz answered, “When Joab sent the king’s servant, your servant, I saw a great commotion, but I do not know what it was.” ³⁰ And the king said, “Turn aside and stand here.” So he turned aside and stood still.

³¹ And behold, the Cushite came, and the Cushite said, “Good news for my lord the king! For the Lord has delivered you this day from the hand of all who rose up against you.” ³² The king said to the Cushite, “Is it well with the young man Absalom?” And the Cushite answered, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up against you for evil be like that young man.” ³³  And the king was deeply moved and went up to the chamber over the gate and wept. And as he went, he said, “O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!”

2 Samuel 19:41-43

Then all the men of Israel came to the king and said to the king, “Why have our brothers the men of Judah stolen you away and brought the king and his household over the Jordan, and all David’s men with him?” ⁴² All the men of Judah answered the men of Israel, “Because the king is our close relative. Why then are you angry over this matter? Have we eaten at all at the king’s expense? Or has he given us any gift?” ⁴³ And the men of Israel answered the men of Judah, “We have ten shares in the king, and in David also we have more than you. Why then did you despise us? Were we not the first to speak of bringing back our king?” But the words of the men of Judah were fiercer than the words of the men of Israel.

My summary of 2 Samuel 17–19: The rebellion ends, but not the unraveling. David is preserved, yet his kingdom is not restored to what it was. He grieves, unity is sought, but division takes hold, and the long-standing tension between Israel and Judah begins to surface – another sign that the kingdom, though preserved by the Lord, is no longer held together as it once was.

The roots of that division go back to the beginning of David’s reign, when he was made king over Judah before all Israel. Now, in the aftermath of Absalom’s rebellion, those tensions come into the open. When Absalom dies, David’s grief overwhelms him. His lament – “O my son Absalom… would I had died instead of you” – is as moving an expression of a father’s love as one will find. But it also overtakes him as king. Joab has to call him back to his responsibilities. Leadership gives way, for a time, to sorrow.

That stands in contrast to David’s earlier response to the death of Bathsheba’s child. Then, he rose, washed, and confessed a quiet hope: “I shall go to him” (2 Samuel 12:23). Here, that note is not heard. The text gives no confession of hope, but a cry of loss. The father overwhelms the king.

The result is telling. As David returns, Israel and Judah argue over their claim to him – over honor, standing, and voice in the kingdom. What had been held together now strains and begins to fracture.

David cannot hold his kingdom together. His grief exposes that. The unity of God’s people does not finally rest on a king like this. It rests on a greater Son of David – one who does not collapse under the weight of sin and sorrow, but bears it. In him, mercy is given, and what is divided is drawn together. All things are united in him – all things in heaven and on earth.

Click on the graphic below to watch the Bible Project video summary of the book of 2 Samuel.

Click here for an audio version of this blog post.

These devotions are part of the Follow the Word Bible reading program at St. John Lutheran Church in Cypress, Texas. This year we are reading through the Scriptures together, listening for how God speaks through his Word day by day. I hope you will join me on this journey.

Today’s readings are 2 Samuel 12, 1 Chronicles 20, 2 Samuel 13, Psalm 120.

2 Samuel 12:1-9, 13-15

And the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him and said to him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. ² The rich man had very many flocks and herds, ³ but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. And he brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children. It used to eat of his morsel and drink from his cup and lie in his arms, and it was like a daughter to him. ⁴ Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was unwilling to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the guest who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.” ⁵ Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die, ⁶ and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.”

⁷ Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul. ⁸ And I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your arms and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. And if this were too little, I would add to you as much more. ⁹ Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight? …¹³ David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. ¹⁴ Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child who is born to you shall die.” ¹⁵ Then Nathan went to his house.

Ugh! It’s the second move in a theory of sermon writing — the point where you get down to the root of the issue. It’s the “Houston, we have a problem” moment, when it becomes clear that we cannot wriggle out of the mess we’ve made. We’ve dug a hole so deep that the only option is to stop digging. It’s the turning point — when we move from the problem toward the possibility of a solution. Aha! Maybe there is a way out.

But David has to get there.

He has to hear the story of the poor man with a ewe lamb — a lamb he loved like a daughter — taken from him by a wealthy neighbor. David is incensed: “The man who has done this deserves to die!”

Funny how our anger can be stirred by someone else’s sin. We can get outraged at reckless drivers weaving through traffic, while we casually cut off someone going too slowly for our liking. We can be offended by those who skirt the law, while we quietly fudge on our own taxes. We all do it. We overlook the log in our own eye while pointing out the speck in our brother’s.

Sometimes we need to hear it plainly:
“You are the man. You are the woman.”

We all sin and fall short of God’s glory.

We regularly say the words from 1 John in worship:
“If we say we are without sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”

But how quickly do we move on?
“But if we confess our sins, God who is faithful and just will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Too quickly?
Too casually?

Thankfully, God’s forgiveness does not depend on the depth of our awareness. Jesus said of those crucifying him, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” That word reaches us as well.

And just as David confessed his sin and received the assurance of forgiveness, so we are given that same gift of grace.

There are still consequences. The child dies. Absalom rebels. David lives with the sorrow his sin has unleashed — at least in this life. And yet we hear his confession after the child’s death:
“He cannot come to me, but I will go to him” (2 Samuel 12:23).

For one day a Son of David would come — to redeem a lost and broken world, to bear the sin of many, and to open the way to eternal life.

So the next time you hear those words,
“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves,”
pause.

Acknowledge it.

And then say with joy:
“But if we confess our sins, God who is faithful and just will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Click on the graphic below to watch the Bible Project video summary of the book of 2 Samuel.

Click here for an audio version of this blog post.

These devotions are part of the Follow the Word Bible reading program at St. John Lutheran Church in Cypress, Texas. This year we are reading through the Scriptures together, listening for how God speaks through his Word day by day. I hope you will join me on this journey.

Today’s readings are 2 Samuel 10, 1 Chronicles 19, 2 Samuel 11, Psalm 119:145-176.

Psalm 119:176

I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek your servant,
    for I do not forget your commandments.

2 Samuel 11:1-5

In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel. And they ravaged the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.

² It happened, late one afternoon, when David arose from his couch and was walking on the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful. ³ And David sent and inquired about the woman. And one said, “Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?” ⁴ So David sent messengers and took her, and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now she had been purifying herself from her uncleanness.) Then she returned to her house. ⁵ And the woman conceived, and she sent and told David, “I am pregnant.”

This is one of those biblical accounts that troubles us from more than one direction. We all know people who were unable to resist temptation and ended up damaging marriages and families. And we also know of situations where, at least outwardly, life seems to have been pieced back together — even appearing better than before. But as a good friend of mine says, divorce is the gift that keeps on giving. She says that from experience, having lived through the pain of a fractured family and the challenges of a blended one.

I also know of pastors who have fallen into sexual sin and made a shipwreck of their ministry and marriage — and others who have recovered, at least in part. But sexual sin carries deep and lasting consequences. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 6:18, “Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.”

In David’s case, this begins in part because he does not go out to war at the time when kings normally do. In the ancient Near East, kings typically went to battle in the spring, when the winter rains had passed, roads were dry, and armies could move and be supplied more easily.

David, however, did not go out. He stayed home. With time on his hands, he walked on the roof of his palace — with a clear view toward Uriah’s house. Whether this was the idle wandering of a bored man or something more, the text does not say. It does show, however, that David was not seeking the Lord in that moment.

David did not go out. He walked on the roof. He saw Bathsheba. He brought her into his palace. He committed adultery. And we know how the story unfolds — the murder of her husband and, eventually, the death of the child.

When we neglect our calling and lose focus in our daily walk, something begins to shift. God has given us a purpose — to declare the glories of him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light. When we drift from that purpose, we are not simply idle; we are exposed. And in that space, temptation often finds its opportunity.

We can thank God that our Savior — Jesus, the Son of David — faced every temptation known to man and yet remained faithful. He then offered himself on the cross as the atoning sacrifice for the sins of the world — for us, who like sheep have gone astray. This is never an excuse to let our guard down, but it is a deep comfort for those who have fallen.

Perhaps that is why we find such deep meaning in the words of Psalm 51 and sing, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me…” This was David’s song of repentance — and it remains an invitation for each of us to return daily to God in repentance and faith.

Click on the graphic below to watch the Bible Project video summary of the book of 2 Samuel.

Click here for an audio version of this blog post.

These devotions are part of the Follow the Word Bible reading program at St. John Lutheran Church in Cypress, Texas. This year we are reading through the Scriptures together, listening for how God speaks through his Word day by day. I hope you will join me on this journey.

Today’s readings are 2 Samuel 8-9, 1 Chronicles 18, Psalm 119:121-144.

2 Samuel 9:2-12

(Selected Verses)

Now there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba, and they called him to David. And the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?” And he said, “I am your servant.” ³ And the king said, “Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God to him?” Ziba said to the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in his feet.” ⁵ Then King David sent and brought him from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar. ⁶ And Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, son of Saul, came to David and fell on his face and paid homage. And David said, “Mephibosheth!” And he answered, “Behold, I am your servant.” ⁷ And David said to him, “Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father, and you shall eat at my table always.” ⁸ And he paid homage and said, “What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog such as I?”

⁹ Then the king called Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, “All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s grandson. ¹⁰ And you and your sons and your servants shall till the land for him and shall bring in the produce, that your master’s grandson may have bread to eat. But Mephibosheth your master’s grandson shall always eat at my table.” So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table, like one of the king’s sons. And all who lived in Ziba’s house became Mephibosheth’s servants. ¹³ So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for he ate always at the king’s table. Now he was lame in both his feet.

King David was ruthless in battle — hamstringing the horses of conquered enemies, lining men up to be executed, and overcoming thousands by the sword. He was a man of war. In the coming days we will read that he was not permitted to build a temple to the Lord for that reason. “You have shed much blood and have waged great wars. You shall not build a house to my name, because you have shed so much blood before me on the earth” (1 Chronicles 22:7–8).

Even so, however, there is a kind facet to David’s character that shows up in a striking way in the reading for today. When he discovers that Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth is alive – crippled in his feet, as we read earlier (2 Samuel 4:4) – we see a very different side of David.

I wonder what Mephibosheth’s life was like before David sent for him and provided so graciously for his welfare? Perhaps the family at Lo-debar were very kind to him. Maybe they cared for him as their own son. But it is likely that their resources were not nearly as expansive as what David could offer. What’s more, David had him eat at the king’s table. What care and compassion he was shown.

I cannot help but think of the widow of Nain whose son Jesus raised as they were on the way to bury him. I think of the man at the pool of Bethesda, who could not get into the water until Jesus told him to rise, take up his mat, and walk. I love thinking of the man who was let down through the roof where Jesus was teaching and who was healed because of their faith – the faith of the man and his friends. The woman with the 12 year issue of blood. The 12 year old girl. The blind man on the side of the road. Each were touched by the kindness of Jesus.

David is a type of Jesus. Jesus is called the Son of David. That title speaks to Jesus’ kingly authority — and also points us to the kind of mercy and compassion we see reflected, however imperfectly, in David.

I’ll be looking for opportunities to reflect the kindness of God to the people I encounter, and I encourage you to do the same. After all, we have seen the kindness of God in Jesus, as it says in Titus 3:4-5, “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us…” And when we experience such kindness from others, we remember that “God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance” (Romans 2:4). It leads us to faith, to thanksgiving, and to lives that reflect that same kindness toward others, whether they are weak or strong.

Click on the graphic below to watch the Bible Project video summary of the book of 1 Chronicles (we’ll get to 2 Samuel later this May in our reading program).

Click here for an audio version of this blog post.

These devotions are part of the Follow the Word Bible reading program at St. John Lutheran Church in Cypress, Texas. This year we are reading through the Scriptures together, listening for how God speaks through his Word day by day. I hope you will join me on this journey.

Today’s readings are 1 Chronicles 11-12, 2 Samuel 5, Psalm 119:49-72.

1 Chronicles 11:1-10

Then all Israel gathered together to David at Hebron and said, “Behold, we are your bone and flesh. ² In times past, even when Saul was king, it was you who led out and brought in Israel. And the LORD your God said to you, ‘You shall be shepherd of my people Israel, and you shall be prince over my people Israel.’” ³ So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the LORD. And they anointed David king over Israel, according to the word of the LORD by Samuel.

⁴ And David and all Israel went to Jerusalem, that is, Jebus, where the Jebusites were, the inhabitants of the land. ⁵ The inhabitants of Jebus said to David, “You will not come in here.” Nevertheless, David took the stronghold of Zion, that is, the city of David. ⁶ David said, “Whoever strikes the Jebusites first shall be chief and commander.” And Joab … went up first, so he became chief. ⁷ And David lived in the stronghold; therefore it was called the city of David. ⁸ And he built the city all around from the Millo in complete circuit, and Joab repaired the rest of the city. ⁹ And David became greater and greater, for the LORD of hosts was with him.

¹⁰ Now these are the chiefs of David’s mighty men, who gave him strong support in his kingdom, together with all Israel, to make him king, according to the word of the LORD concerning Israel.

There is clear overlap between 1 Chronicles 11 and 2 Samuel 5, especially in David’s anointing as king and his capture of Jerusalem. Chronicles retells these events briefly, but then expands the picture. Chapter 11 turns to David’s mighty men, and chapter 12 adds what Samuel does not – a wide-ranging account of people from all the tribes who came to support him. Where Samuel tells the story, Chronicles highlights the unity of God’s people and the Lord’s hand at work.

The benefit of having both accounts is the perspective they provide. Samuel shows David as he was – both faithful and flawed. Chronicles shows David as the Lord used him – as part of his larger saving purposes.

And that broader picture is especially evident in the way each account speaks of David’s mighty men.

Even here the emphasis differs. Samuel reports their deeds; Chronicles highlights their role in God’s larger work through David. And I have to admit, I have a special place in my heart for David’s mighty men – because that’s what I called the elders at St. John, where I served as senior pastor for the last 16 years of my full-time ministry.

Over time, that group of men changed significantly. They moved from being a board to whom I was accountable to a group marked by prayer, encouragement, and mutual conversation and support. When we shifted to a policy-based governance model, the Board of Elders – as a board – went away. But the elders themselves did not. In fact, God allowed us to recruit many more, until there were about 40 men serving in that role. And yes, I called them David’s Mighty Men.

I do not presume to place myself on the level of King David. And these men were not called to go to war – except perhaps in the spiritual sense. But their support and encouragement meant more than I can say. One of the greatest gifts was our time together in prayer. Often the first 20 to 40 minutes of our meetings were spent almost entirely in prayer. As a pastor, I knew I could count on them – to stand in the gap, to lift me up, and to pray for the people of our congregation. They were a great blessing.

And in truth, we all need that. We need mighty men or wise women to walk with us in faith. God never intended us to be alone. From the beginning, he said, “It is not good for the man to be alone.” We need one another. And in his grace, God gives us a community of people – redeemed by Christ, called to love and support one another in life and in faith.

Whoever those people are for you – mighty men or wise women – receive them as the gifts of God they are. Listen to them. Join them in prayer. Seek their guidance. Receive their support. Who says only King David can have such people in his life? Not God; that’s for sure!

Click on the graphic below to watch the Bible Project video summary of the book of 1 Chronicles (we’ll get to 2 Samuel later this May in our reading program).

Click here for an audio version of this blog post.

These devotions are part of the Follow the Word Bible reading program at St. John Lutheran Church in Cypress, Texas. This year we are reading through the Scriptures together, listening for how God speaks through his Word day by day. I hope you will join me on this journey.

Today’s readings are 1 Chronicles 9-10, Psalm 119:25-48.

1 Chronicles 10:13-14

So Saul diedfor his breach of faith. He broke faith with theLordin that he did not keep the command of theLord, and alsoconsulted a medium, seeking guidance.¹⁴Hedid not seek guidance from theLord. Therefore theLordput him to death andturned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.

Psalm 119:29-32

Put false ways far from me
    and graciously teach me your law!
³⁰ I have chosen the way of faithfulness;
    I set your rules before me.
³¹ I cling to your testimonies, O Lord;
    let me not be put to shame!
³² I will run in the way of your commandments
    when you enlarge my heart!

If you’re looking for an object lesson in what it means to drift from God’s word — and a reason to pray Psalm 119 with some urgency — the life and death of Saul would be near the top of the list.

The Chronicler puts it very simply: Saul died for his breach of faith.

And when you step back and look at his life, it really does read like a tragedy. Here is a man who had everything — stature, strength, the Lord’s anointing, early success as a leader. And yet, over time, it all unravels. He turns away from the Lord, gives himself over to fear and pride, and loses the very thing that had made him king.

There are moments where it almost seems like he’s trying to set things right — casting out mediums, tearing down what is false. But even that feels more like desperation than repentance. Because in the end, when the Lord no longer answers him, Saul turns to the very thing he once condemned — seeking out a medium at Endor, grasping for a word from anywhere.

And that final battle? It becomes the last chapter of the story — defeat, a shameful death, and even in death, a kind of lingering disgrace.

I used to struggle with Psalm 119. Verse after verse about how great God’s laws are — not his promises of grace and blessing, but his laws, commands, and statutes.

And — good Lutheran pastor that I am — I think, “The law always condemns.” It accuses. It shows our sin. It reveals how far we fall short of what God demands. It creates a hunger for grace, to be sure. But its work is what we call an alien work. The law does not produce the faith and love God desires.

But then I started asking a different question: Whose laws do I love?

I can appreciate the laws of our country — the ones that protect us and give order to life. I’m grateful for good rules that let me drive safely and secure what I’ve been given.

But I also know there are other “laws” I’m drawn to — the ones that serve me. The eat-what-you-want, take-care-of-yourself, don’t-worry-about-others kind of laws. The ones where I decide what is good and what is not.

Those aren’t good laws. They’re certainly not worth loving. And they don’t lead to life.

God’s laws, however, are different. They are good. They do lead to life. And here’s the tension: while they guide us in the way of life, they do not save us. That has already been done.

So now, when I consider God’s law, I see it as a gift — good for me, and good for my neighbor. God doesn’t need my good works, but my neighbor does. God’s law shows me what love looks like in real life. It does not create faith, but where faith in Christ is alive, it begins to show itself — and the law helps give that life a visible form.

Click on the graphic below to watch the Bible Project video summary of the book of 1 Chronicles (we’ll get to 2 Samuel later this May in our reading program).