In
these verses we are introduced to Hiram, the king of Tyre. He extended his
friendship to David by showing kind gestures. He not only provided David with
building material but also the services of his carpenters and masons to build
his house. Hiram adopted a good principle in life. It is always better to
have a friend rather than an enemy. He seemed to know that. So He chose to be
an ally of David and Israel as opposed to the Philistines who preferred to go
to war with them.
Verse
12 tells us something about David’s discerning perspective when he saw the
house. He recognized the hand of the Lord behind all that he had. He knew that
he would not be where he was if not for God. Two things became clear to him.
Firstly, that God was establishing him as king over Israel. Secondly, God made
his kingdom great for the sake of Israel. This verse also assures us that God
keeps promises that He has made and that He will always fulfill what He has
promised. Here in this verse, we see the fulfillment of God’s promise not only to
David but also to Israel. God indeed keeps covenants and is worthy of all honor
and praise.
Verse
12 also shows us that David was a deeply discerning person. In life, it is easy for one to look at all of one’s
achievements and think that everything he or she has attained comes about
because of his or her own capability and ingenuity. But David was not such a person.
He could see the hand of God behind all that he had and appreciated Him as the One who
had made it possible. Like him. we need to recognize that all that we are and
all that we can potentially become, come from God. If not for Him, we can
neither attain nor achieve anything. To think that by ourselves we can achieve
something great will put us at risk with pride. Remember that pride always
comes before a fall and a haughty spirit before
destruction.
If
there was anything that could eventually weaken David’s life it was the fact that
he had one wife and one concubine too many. While more wives and concubines and
children might have added to his social status and standing, they became his
Achilles heel. It was a lifestyle of danger that he was slowly but surely being
acclimatized. We need to know that a great man has weaknesses too. He had
failed to heed the warning of God concerning a king acquiring wives.
Deuteronomy 17:17 says specifically that, “And he (the king) shall not acquire
many wives for himself, lest his heart turn away.…” No indulgent man can see
the danger when he is thick in his indulgences. Yet, no one can deny that a
person’s heart could be turned away from God through careless indulgence. While
verses 13-15 serve to talk about David’s expanding harem, it is not something
to be emulated. If anything, let us see it as God's call to avoid careless
indulgence. Let us take heed lest our hearts be turned away from God because we
choose to gratify our carnal nature.
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