A Man After God's Own Heart

A Man After God's Own Heart
A Biography on David
By Matt Stickel 12/5/01

David's Anointing
David, a man after God's own heart, was the greatest king Israel ever had. He was loyal to God almost all his life. This biography will talk about some of the experiences he went through. All of this report will be off data gathered from the Old Testament located in the Bible.
The first time we hear of David is in 1 Samuel 16. Not much is told of David's early life in the Bible. He was a son of Jesse, a shepherd, and had seven brothers, David being the youngest. He liked to play a harp like instrument and sing. He is the author of the majority of the Psalms. One day David was watching his father's sheep when his father called for him. David came to their tent and there stood the chief priest of Israel, Samuel. What happened that day would change David's life. Samuel took out a horn filled with oil and poured it on David's head, the sign of anointing. David was now heir to the throne as king after Saul.
Saul was a king who cared nothing for what the Lord wanted. The Lord was feed up with Saul and replaced him with David, but David couldn't just take the throne, he had to what for Saul's passing away.

David and Goliath
A childhood story almost everyone has heard is the story of David and Goliath. The Philistines, one of Israel's many enemies, gathered at Sochoh, which was fifteen miles away from Bethlehem. The Philistines stood on a mountain on one side and the Israelites on a mountain on the other-side with a valley between them. The Philistines had a soldier nine feet nine inches tall, and his name was Goliath.
Goliath made an arrangement with the Israelites. He wanted the Israelites to choose a man to represent them and the two would battle. If Goliath won Israel had to serve the Philistines, and if the Israelite won the Philistines would have to serve Israel. He presented himself forty days, and still no one Israelite was willing to face him.
David was with his father when all his brothers were following Saul in battle. One day his father, Jesse, asked him to take some food down to the camp for his brothers. David was happy to do so, loving to get some responsibility like all teenagers. David went down to the camp and found his brothers, and talked with them. While they were talking Goliath came out to give his speech for the 80th time, and the Israelites fled from him. David was confused, why should they run from this man when they have God on their side? David asked this question to the people when his brother, Eliab, told David to return home. David then asked, "What have I done now? Is there not a cause?"
David was then sent to Saul, who still didn't know that David would replace his family. David volunteered to fight the giant, but Saul didn't what David to represent all of Israel, because David was still in his youth. David told Saul if he was more than capable of killing a bear and lion, he was more than capable to take out Goliath. David reminded Saul that God would fight with him and protect him. Saul could not argue this and gave David his armor. The armor was one size to big and David decided not to wear any armor.
David always loved to use a sling shot, and he was quite good at it too. He picked out five good-sized rocks from a creek, put them in his bag, and went to face Goliath. When Goliath met David he cracked up with laughter. David had no armor, no shield, and no sword, but he had the most deadly weapon of all, God.
Goliath exclaimed, "Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?"
And David came back by saying, "You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beast of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hands."
After he said this Goliath raced toward him, and David ran towards Goliath. David reached in his pocket, took out a rock and slung it and it struck Goliath right in the forehead, and it hit so hard that it was embedded in the giant's forehead. Goliath couldn't tell what hit him and he fell face first to the ground. David took Goliath's sword out of its sheath and cut his head off.
The Philistines fled but were caught up with by the Israelites. David reminded his nation that they're God's nation, and he would be with.

Saul tries to kill David
After the battle Saul made David a leader in his army. It is not known his rank, but most likely it was a high one. Also David meet his best friend, Jonathan. Jonathan was Saul's son about the same age as David. They grew close together and were always there for each other. After the battle women came out singing with their tambourines:
"Saul has slain his thousands,
And David his ten thousands."
And Saul was jealous of David from that day forth. One day Saul was distressed and wanted David to play some music for him, and as David played Saul threw a spear at him and David fled. After that Saul removed David from his presence and made him captain over a thousand and let him marry his daughter Michal.
Saul was planing on killing David again so Jonathan went out and warned David by shooting an arrow. David came and thanked Jonathan and fled the city.

David spares Saul's life twice
Saul soon found out that David had fled and chased after him in the Wilderness of En Gedi on the Rocks of Wild Goats. While Saul and his 3,000 men were searching Saul had to go to the bathroom. So he went into a cave on the side of the road and attended his needs. Little did Saul now this is where David and his men were. David's men wanted to kill him with his pants down (literally), but David secretly cut off a corner of Saul's robe instead. After a while David regretted cutting off a corner of Saul's robe. And David told his men not to kill Saul. Once Saul was finished with his business he left the cave.
After David saw Saul leave he chased after him and yelled out for him. When Saul turned around David bowed down to him. He told and showed Saul that he could of easily have killed him but he spared him. Saul gave David the title of righteous and thanked David for sparing his life, but it seems he only got caught up in the moment because Saul was soon after to kill him again.
Saul, with 3,000 men, headed to the Wilderness of Ziph, where David was. David found Saul in the hill of Hachilah from spies he sent out. That night David and another man went down to the camp. There they found Saul with his spear lying by him and Abner, the commander of the army. The man with David suggested they kill King Saul, but David spared his life a second time. David grabbed Saul's spear and a jug of water and left, and no one heard them because the Lord put them in a deep sleep. David climbed up a hill a good distance away and yelled to Abner and asked him why he didn't protect his king. He told them to notice the spear and jug were gone.
Saul figured out it was David, and asked "Is that your voice, my son David?"
And David answered, "It is my voice, my lord, O king. Why does my lord thus pursue his servant? For what have I done, or what evil is in my hand? Now therefore, please, let my lord the king hear the words of his servant: If the Lord has stirred you up against me, let Him accept an offering. But if it is the children of men, may they be cursed before the Lord, for they have driven me out this day from sharing in the inheritance of the Lord saying, 'Go, serve other gods.' So now, do not let my blood fall to earth before the face of the Lord. For the king of Israel has come out to seek a flea, as when one hunts a partridge in the mountains."
Then Saul promised to David that he would no longer harm him, because his life was seen precious in David's eyes. So David put down the spear and told Saul to send a man up and get it, and David left once again.

Saul and His Sons Die a Tragic Death
Now it happened that the Philistines attacked Israel again and Saul and his sons went to fight. The Philistines fought against Israel; and the Israelites fled and fell slain on Mount Gilboa. Then they followed Saul and his sons, and they killed Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua. Saul got hit with an arrow and was severely wounded.
Saul told to his armorbearer, "Take your sword, and thrust it into me, lest these uncircumcised men come and torture me."
But his armorbearer would not kill his king. Saul decided that if his armorbearer wouldn't do it he would, so he took his sword and fell right onto the blade. Once the armorbearer saw that his king was dead he killed himself. So that day Saul, his sons, his armorbearer, and all his men died.
The next day, as the Philistines were striping the dead, they noticed Saul and his sons' bodies. They cut off Saul's head and took off his armor. The hanged his body on the wall of Beth Shan and put his armor in the temple of the Ashtoreths.
No some men from Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, so all the brave men went and took Saul and his sons' bodies of the wall of Beth Shan in the middle of the night. They took the bodies back to their camp and burned them, and buried the bones and fasted for seven days.
At the time David had just returned from the slaughter of the Amelekites, and was staying in Ziklag, when a messenger came up and told him the bad news.
David asked him, "How do you know that they're dead?"
The messenger bragged (knowing Saul and David were enemies), "As I happened by chance to be on Mount Gilboa there was Saul, leaning on his spear; and indeed the chariots and horsemen followed hard after him. Now when he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. And I answered, 'Here I am.' And he said to me, 'Who are you?' So I answered him, 'I am an Amalekite.' He said to me again, 'Please stand over me and kill me, for anguish has come upon me, but my life still remains in me.' So I stood over him and killed him, because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. And I took the crown that was on his head and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my lord."
So David tore his clothes (a sign of grief) and mourned and wept over the news and fasted until evening for Saul and Jonathan.
Then David said to the messenger, "Where are you from?"
The man answered, "I am the son of an alien, an Amalekite."
So David asked him, "How was it you were not afraid to put forth your hand to destroy the Lord's anointed?" Then David called to one of the young men and said, "Go near, and execute him!" And he struck him so that he died. So David said to him, "Your blood is on your own head, for your own mouth has testified against you, saying 'I have killed the Lord's anointed.' "

David's Greatest Mistake, Bathsheba
David sent Joab, commander of David's army, and his servants with him, and all of Israel's army to war. David stayed at Jerusalem, a decision that would haunt him for the rest of his life. David one night went up on the roof of his home and saw a girl bathing, Bathsheba. He had her come to his house, and that night David committed adultery, for she was married to Uriah, soldier in David's army. After a while, probably 3-5 months, Bathsheba noticed that she was pregnant and told David.
David knew that if Uriah found out and told the nation he would be ruined. David abused his power as king and put Uriah on the front lines to be murdered. Uriah died in battle and David thought he was off the hook, but he wasn't for God knew what he did and so did the prophet Nathan.
God confronted David through Nathan and told him that this sin could not go unpunished. Nathan told David that the son that Bathsheba had conceived would die because of their sin, and that God would raise up adversity against David from his own house.
Just as God said, David's child became ill and died, and David grieved greatly. His sin with Bathsheba caused the death of two souls. David knew that he and Bathsheba had to marry and they did and they conceived another child Absalom.

Absalom
Absalom was a power thirsty prince. He wanted to be king now, but he had to wait for David, and Solomon. He didn't want to wait, so he revolted against David. David could not attack his own son so he fled from Jerusalem.
One day as Israel was in battle, Absalom, on a mule, met David's servants. He started to run away and his long hair got caught in a terebinth tree. One of the servants went and told Joab that he found Absalom and that he was hanging in a tree. Joab asked him why he did not strike him dead, and that if he did he would have been paid money and given a belt of commission. The servant was confused because David commanded that Absalom not be killed, and told Joab that he wouldn't kill the king's son. Joab took three spears and thrust them all into Absalom's heart while he was still alive hanging from the tree. Then ten of Joab's servants struck Absalom with their swords while he was still alive after the spears were struck into his heart.
Joab knew that if David found out that he killed Absalom, David would have him killed, so he sent messengers to tell David that Absalom had died in battle. David was greatly upset about Absalom's death and the day became a day of national mourning.

David's Death and Influence on History
After ruling for forty years over Israel David passed away, and was buried in the City of David. His "wise" son Solomon took the throne and ruled Israel.
David's life was an important step in the history of mankind. David was a man after God's own heart even after he committed adultery. God promised David that Jesus Christ, our savior, would be his descendant, the greatest honor of all time. David also wrote the first and only worship book, the Psalms.
David's life also brought trouble to Israel, because war would continue between his family, and Israel would be split into many kingdoms causing its fall. That just comes to show you the great consequences of our sins, and that one sin grows to become bigger ones.
For the complete story of David read 1 Samuel through 1 Kings.