2 Samuel #27: an exposition of 2 Samuel 23:8-39. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday evening, October 13, 2013.
Intro:
It is not the kind of passage I get excited about. I know there are those who do. Some people love a passage like this. They love to dig into the list of names and try to find the key to unlock some great mystery or a clue that will connect this passage to some other passage which is the one that provides the great insight. I think those kind of people have too much time on their hands! Frankly this is the kind of passage that causes me to doubt Paul when he says, “All Scripture is profitable” (2 Timothy 3:16). Okay I am exaggerating, a bit. I do believe this book to be God-breathed. I believe it is the Word of God. Therefore valuable beyond my ability to express and appreciate. I’m just being honest. When I come to summary passaged like this one in 2 Samuel 23 my natural tendency is to skim it and move on. At first glance there isn’t much here. There is reference to David’s “mighty men” which sounds promising. There are a few interesting facts like a man with a spear slaying 800 in a single battle; a guy standing his ground in a field of beans while the rest of the army flees; the daring raid of three warriors into the enemy camp to retrieve a drink of water. But for the most part it is a list of names. Hard to pronounce names. I also have to add the whole thing is confusing. They are called “the thirty” yet the list ends, “…thirty seven in all.” Even worse, when you read it and count you are left wondering, “where did you get thirty seven?” So why not skim and skip? Because I think there is something important for us in this passage. Our text this evening is found in 2 Samuel chapter 23 and we will begin in verse 8 and look down to the end of the chapter.
Text: 2 Samuel 23:8-39
It seems clear to me that God likes lists.
There are those seemingly endless genealogies in the OT.
We find various lists throughout the historical books and the prophets.
It doesn’t change when we reach the NT.
How does Matthew begin? With a genealogy!
Throughout the Gospels we find the apostles listed multiple times.
Again in Acts we find various lists.
In the letters of Paul, lists sometimes just a name or two but still lists.
That’s important for two reasons. First, it anchors the story in real history. It helps us locate the story in time. Second, and this is encouraging to me, our God takes note of individuals. As the Spirit inspired the biblical writers, it seems our God is fond of recalling the names of His children and telling of their exploits. That’s no small thing.
Now, to our text. This is a difficult passage to work through. There is no “story” here. This is a bit of “house cleaning.” It is a wrapping up of some details before the writer finishes his book. David has been such a focus for a large part of this 2 volume work and the writer wants to include the names of some of David’s most trusted warriors. Some of the names include exploits. Others are just a name and home town. Individually not terribly important but taken together they help us understand some important principles.
I want to share four (4) of them with you related to a divine perspective on things.
- From the divine perspective, behind every success you will find the gracious hand of God. (23:8-12)
- From the divine perspective, the sacrifice and service of the faithful inspires us to worship the true and living God. (23:13-17)
- From the divine perspective, the listing of these valiant warriors is proof that our service to God and His kingdom is valuable and worthy of note. (23:18-39)
- The shocking inclusion of one name and the surprising omission of another serve to remind us of the profound difference between the human and the divine perspective.