1 Chronicles 11:1 – 17 “Then all Israel came together to David at Hebron and said, “Here we are, your own flesh and blood. Even in times past, while Saul was king, you were the one who led Israel out and brought them back. And the LORD your God said, ‘You will shepherd My people Israel, and you will be ruler over them.’ ” So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, where David made a covenant with them before the LORD. And they anointed him king over Israel, according to the word of the LORD through Samuel.
David Conquers Jerusalem (2 Samuel 5:6–11)
Then David and all the Israelites marched to Jerusalem (that is, Jebus), where the Jebusites inhabited the land. The people of Jebus said to David, “You will never get in here.” Nevertheless, David captured the fortress of Zion (that is, the City of David). Now David had said, “Whoever is the first to strike down a Jebusite will become chief commander.” And Joab son of Zeruiah went up first, and he became the chief. So David took up residence in the fortress; that is why it was called the City of David. He built up the city around it, from the supporting terraces to the surrounding wall, while Joab restored the rest of the city. And David became greater and greater, for the LORD of Hosts was with him.”
King David did not begin his reign in Jerusalem, but in Hebron, a city of refuge and one of the cities given to the priests. Hebron was also the city that old Caleb at age 85 took by slaughtering the giants who lived there. All of Israel came to David and proclaimed him as king, citing God’s promises to David. But Hebron was in the south of Israel, and God wanted the capital to be in Jerusalem, which was more centrally located.
The original name of Jerusalem was Jebus and the Jebusites lived there. You have to pity the Jebusites at least a little! The Jebusites were so certain that their city was impregnable that they issued a foolish challenge to David. 2 Samuel 5:6 – 10 tells the story. “Now the king and his men marched to Jerusalem against the Jebusites who inhabited the land. The Jebusites said to David: “You will never get in here. Even the blind and lame can repel you.” For they thought, “David cannot get in here.”
Nevertheless, David captured the fortress of Zion (that is, the City of David). On that day he said, “Whoever attacks the Jebusites must use the water shaft to reach the lame and blind who are despised by David.” That is why it is said, “The blind and the lame will never enter the palace.”
So David took up residence in the fortress and called it the City of David. He built it up all the way around, from the supporting terraces inward. And David became greater and greater, for the LORD God of Hosts was with him.”
Although we are more familiar with the famous water tunnel built by King Hezekiah, years later, the Jebusites already had a water shaft that brought water, perhaps from the Gihon spring, into their city. This water shaft gave the Jebusites confidence that they could easily out – last any siege as long as they had sufficient food stores to match their water supply. But the Jebusites failed to realize that their secret water shaft was well known to others, and it was the very thing on which the Jebusites were relying that led to the capture of their city.
Did David really despise the blind and the lame? Absolutely not! Remember that later on, David sought out Jonathan’s lame son Mephibosheth and took special care of him for Jonathan’s sake. But when the Jebusites issued such a taunting challenge, David felt honor – bound to meet it.
Once in Jerusalem, David wasted no time in improving the fortifications and building up walls. The original city of David was on the east slopes of Mount Moriah, so supporting terraces were definitely necessary. But the key to David’s success was not his battle strategies but the fact that God was with him in everything he was doing.
APPLICATION: This part of David’s story is very appealing because it is early in David’s reign and he is still relying completely on God. It was God who directed David to begin his reign in the city of Hebron and it is now God who has given David and his men victory over the Jebusites. Strictly speaking, the Jebusites should never have existed at this point. When Joshua and his men were conquering Canaan, the Jebusites were one of the groups marked for destruction. The day the sun stood still for Joshua the king of Jerusalem was one of the five kings against whom Joshua was fighting. Allegedly Joshua and his men conquered the Jebusites…. However, no mention is ever made of their having conquered Jerusalem itself. Now Jerusalem has fallen to David and his forces, and this city that God has chosen since time began will now become the heart of Israel.
Those of us familiar with the rest of David’s story might read these words and sigh! We know that once David has established himself, his success goes to his head and that success serves to separate him from God. But as we are musing over David’s story, we should be careful to look at ourselves.
In the beginning, David was the neglected runt in a family of big strong handsome sons. David’s father Jesse thought so little of David that he sent David out to guard sheep and goats, exposing him to attack by lions and bears. Little did anyone realize that it was that very isolation that would cause David to turn to God in the stillness of the wilderness. It was the challenges from wild animals that forced David to learn how to fight well and to become strong. If you aren’t very big, you become an expert with a slingshot, and David was an expert! Little did David realize that every time he was aiming a stone at a lion or a bear, he was practicing for the day when he would take on Goliath and win!
The difference between King Saul and King David was that of entitlement. Saul felt entitled to his kingship, while David did not. David fully realized that only God could have chosen him, while Saul somehow believed that he deserved to be king. God tells us that David was a man after God’s own heart. Saul was not.
Entitlement does nothing good for anybody! For those who feel entitled, sooner or later, life will hand them some horrible shocks. The worst form of entitlement is the fixed belief that if one is a “good person,” one will somehow automatically be accepted into heaven. St. Paul tells us in Romans 3:23 that “all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God.” All of us have a sin problem; this is why Jesus Christ had to live as a man and die a shameful death, shedding His innocent blood for the sins of the world. But forgiveness of sins is not automatic; we must truly believe that we are sinners and that we need that sacrifice for our salvation.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, thank You for sending Jesus Christ to live as a sinless man and to shed His Blood to pay for our sins. Help us to realize that none of us is entitled to anything apart from the salvation that Jesus has purchased for us. Help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. In the matchless Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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