Covenant – Lesson 8

  • How faithful is God in His covenants that He makes with men?
  • We need to know this because God has made a covenant with you, if you come to Jesus Christ.
  • If you are going to appreciate that covenant and if you are going to walk within its limits and its bounds – you need to know how faithful God is to His covenants.

1 Samuel 20

David and Jonathan have made a covenant

In 1 Samuel 18 it was just between the two men, but in 1 Samuel 20, they make a covenant – between their descendants

1 Samuel 20:13-17

13"If it please my father to do you harm, may the LORD do so to Jonathan and more also, if I do not make it known to you and send you away, that you may go in safety And may the LORD be with you as He has been with my father. 14"If I am still alive, will you not show me the lovingkindness of the LORD, that I may not die? 15"You shall not cut off your lovingkindness from my house forever, not even when the LORD cuts off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth." 16So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, "May the LORD require it at the hands of David's enemies." 17Jonathan made David vow again because of his love for him, because he loved him as he loved his own life.

  • Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David

1 Samuel 20:23, 42

23"As for the agreement of which you and I have spoken, behold, the LORD is between you and me forever."

42Jonathan said to David, "Go in safety, inasmuch as we have sworn to each other in the name of the LORD, saying, 'The LORD will be between me and you, and between my descendants and your descendants forever.'" Then he rose and departed, while Jonathan went into the city.

  • They said it over and over again
  • This was a covenant that was to continue forever

2 Samuel 1

  • You studied last week how Saul was pursuing David and wanted to kill him
  • Jonathan said to David that he knew David would be king and Jonathan wanted to sit with David
  • Saul was furious that Jonathan made a covenant with David because he realized that the covenant superseded any other human relationship
  • David did not kill Saul when he had the chance because he trusted God to be faithful to His word

1 Samuel 31:1-6

1Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel, and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines and fell slain on Mount Gilboa. 2The Philistines overtook Saul and his sons; and the Philistines killed Jonathan and Abinadab and Malchi-shua the sons of Saul. 3The battle went heavily against Saul, and the archers hit him; and he was badly wounded by the archers. 4Then Saul said to his armor bearer, "Draw your sword and pierce me through with it, otherwise these uncircumcised will come and pierce me through and make sport of me " But his armor bearer would not, for he was greatly afraid So Saul took his sword and fell on it. 5When his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword and died with him. 6Thus Saul died with his three sons, his armor bearer, and all his men on that day together.

  • Saul died and David is unaware of this
  • David was occupied in another battle

2 Samuel 1:2-10

2On the third day, behold, a man came out of the camp from Saul, with his clothes torn and dust on his head And it came about when he came to David that he fell to the ground and prostrated himself. 3Then David said to him, "From where do you come?" And he said to him, "I have escaped from the camp of Israel." 4David said to him, "How did things go? Please tell me." And he said, "The people have fled from the battle, and also many of the people have fallen and are dead; and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also." 5So David said to the young man who told him, "How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?" 6The young man who told him said, "By chance I happened to be on Mount Gilboa, and behold, Saul was leaning on his spear. And behold, the chariots and the horsemen pursued him closely. 7"When he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. And I said, 'Here I am.' 8"He said to me, 'Who are you?' And I answered him, 'I am an Amalekite.' 9"Then he said to me, 'Please stand beside me and kill me, for agony has seized me because my life still lingers in me.' 10"So I stood beside him and killed him, because I knew that he could not live after he had fallen And I took the crown which was on his head and the bracelet which was on his arm, and I have brought them here to my lord."

2 Samuel 1:26-27

26"I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan;

You have been very pleasant to me.

Your love to me was more wonderful

Than the love of women.

27"How have the mighty fallen,

And the weapons of war perished!"

  • Some men have said – see David and Jonathan had a homosexual relationship. Oh no, you can love a member of your own sex with all the purity and with all the holiness with love. You can love a person of the same sex and their love can be more precious than the love of a husband or wife relationship if it is a covenant type relationship.
  • David loved Jonathan dearly and wanted him to sit on the throne with him
  • On that day there was another runner who ran to the house of Jonathan to tell that Saul and Jonathan were dead. The nurse took Jonathan’s son and ran. The nurse fell and he became a cripple. Kay wonders if they whispered to Mephibosheth that he should be the next king.
  • He grew up in hiding and in fear of David
  • The rumor spread that David hated cripples and would not allow any to be in Jerusalem

2 Samuel 4:4

4Now Jonathan, Saul's son, had a son crippled in his feet He was five years old when the report of Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel, and his nurse took him up and fled And it happened that in her hurry to flee, he fell and became lame And his name was Mephibosheth.

  • Saul is dead and we know David is to rule in his place
  • The natural descendant would be any son left that belonged to Saul

2 Samuel 2:10

10Ish-bosheth, Saul's son, was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he was king for two years. The house of Judah, however, followed David.

  • Why would the house of Judah follow David? Because David was of the tribe of Judah

2 Samuel 3:1

1Now there was a long war between the house of Saul and the house of David; and David grew steadily stronger, but the house of Saul grew weaker continually.

  • We know Ish-bosheth was going to be king for two years
  • The war must have been going on for two years between the two houses

2 Samuel 4:5-8

5So the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, departed and came to the house of Ish-bosheth in the heat of the day while he was taking his midday rest. 6They came to the middle of the house as if to get wheat, and they struck him in the belly; and Rechab and Baanah his brother escaped. 7Now when they came into the house, as he was lying on his bed in his bedroom, they struck him and killed him and beheaded him. And they took his head and traveled by way of the Arabah all night. 8Then they brought the head of Ish-bosheth to David at Hebron and said to the king, "Behold, the head of Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, your enemy, who sought your life; thus the LORD has given my lord the king vengeance this day on Saul and his descendants."

  • They thought that killing Ish-bosheth would be pleasing to David
  • They forgot what kind of a man David was – that David loved God; and who believed God; and who trusted in God; and who was faithful to God

2 Samuel 4:9-12

9David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said to them, "As the LORD lives, who has redeemed my life from all distress, 10when one told me, saying, 'Behold, Saul is dead,' and thought he was bringing good news, I seized him and killed him in Ziklag, which was the reward I gave him for his news. 11"How much more, when wicked men have killed a righteous man in his own house on his bed, shall I not now require his blood from your hand and destroy you from the earth?" 12Then David commanded the young men, and they killed them and cut off their hands and feet and hung them up beside the pool in Hebron But they took the head of Ish-bosheth and buried it in the grave of Abner in Hebron.

  • At this point, the have no king so Israel comes over to David

2 Samuel 5:3-4

3So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David made a covenant with them before the LORD at Hebron; then they anointed David king over Israel. 4David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned forty years.

  • David is in power and God comes to him in 2 Samuel 7 and God makes a covenant with David.
  • The Davidic covenant
  • God promises David that he will have an heir on his throne forever

2 Samuel 9:1

1Then David said, "Is there yet anyone left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake?"

  • We aren’t yet sure, but because of this statement you may assume that the reason that David delivered Saul was not just because he was God’s anointed but because he was Jonathan’s father also
  • David is looking for the house of Saul so that he may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake (kindness is a covenant term)

2 Samuel 9:2-5

2Now 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." 3The king said, "Is there not yet anyone of the house of Saul to whom I may show the kindness of God?" And Ziba said to the king, "There is still a son of Jonathan who is crippled in both feet." 4So the king said to him, "Where is he?" And Ziba said to the king, "Behold, he is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel in Lo-debar." 5Then King David sent and brought him from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar.

  • Notice how many times it says that Jonathan’s son is crippled in both feet
  • David is the king – it’s known over all of Israel
  • Mephibosheth knows nothing about the covenant that David cut with Jonathan
  • All these years Mephibosheth was in hiding. Mephibosheth doesn’t know why David is calling him

2 Samuel 9:6-8

6Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, came to David and fell on his face and prostrated himself. And David said, "Mephibosheth." And he said, "Here is your servant!" 7David said to him, "Do not fear, for I will surely show kindness to you for the sake of your father Jonathan, and will restore to you all the land of your grandfather Saul; and you shall eat at my table regularly." 8Again he prostrated himself and said, "What is your servant, that you should regard a dead dog like me?"

  • A dead dog was a Hebrewism for a piece of garbage. This is how Mephibosheth saw himself

2 Samuel 9:9-10

9Then the king called Saul's servant Ziba and said to him, "All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master's grandson. 10"You and your sons and your servants shall cultivate the land for him, and you shall bring in the produce so that your master's grandson may have food; nevertheless Mephibosheth your master's grandson shall eat at my table regularly." Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

2 Samuel 9:11-13

11Then Ziba said to the king, "According to all that my lord the king commands his servant so your servant will do." So Mephibosheth ate at David's table as one of the king's sons. 12Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Mica. And all who lived in the house of Ziba were servants to Mephibosheth. 13So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for he ate at the king's table regularly Now he was lame in both feet.

  • He was lame in both feet. Why does God tell us that he was crippled in both feet?
  • Kay thinks God has a story here – something that He wants you to see.
  • Mephibosheth became lame when he ran away from the covenant.
  • He became lame when they ran in fear – because they were afraid of David because they did not know that a covenant was cut between David and Jonathan
  • What about you?
  • When Kay walks into the throne room of the king of kings, she walked in crippled in both feet.
  • She had run away from God because she knew nothing about the covenant that was cut for her.
  • She ran away and lived in a place as bad as Lo-debar
  • She lived far away from God, ignorant, thinking she should be ruling her own life
  • She ran, in a sense afraid of God
  • So many people are afraid of God so they run away from God
  • When they run away from God, they become lame in both feet.
  • Then the call comes to appear before the throne of the King of kings
  • They are afraid when they come in because they feel they are nothing more than a piece of garbage, like they have no worth whatsoever
  • In feeling this way, they tremble in His presence

1 Corinthians 1

  • We feel: “God want me? God call me as His child? Oh no He would never do that. You don’t know what I am, you don’t know what I did when I ran away from God. God can’t use me, I’m not good enough. I’ve been an alcoholic, I’ve been disobedient, I’ve been a religious hypocrite, etc.
  • God does want you

1 Corinthians 1:26-31

26For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; 27but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, 28and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, 29so that no man may boast before God. 30But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, 31so that, just as it is written, "LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD."

  • By God’s doing you are in Christ Jesus
  • Everything that you and I need is given to us through our covenant partner just as everything Mephibosheth needed was given to him through Jonathan’s covenant partner – David.
  • Did you hear him out in the wilderness? Crying “behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world”
  • He said, “except you eat my flesh and drink my blood you have no part in Me”
  • Come to the king’s table and eat the king’s food
  • What is the king’s food? It’s the bread of heaven. It’s the blood of the eternal covenant of Jesus Christ
  • Even as Mephibosheth was called by David, you can feast at Jesus’ table at any time.
  • He who fed the multitude, changed the water into wine, bids His hungry children “come and dine”
  • This is what happened when David called Mephibosheth come and eat at the king’s table regularly
  • We ran away, we became lame in both feet, we felt ourselves nothing but a piece of garbage, but God bid us because of a covenant to come into His presence and to dine regularly at His table

2 Samuel 21:1

1Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David sought the presence of the LORD. And the LORD said, "It is for Saul and his bloody house, because he put the Gibeonites to death."

  • He wanted to know why the famine was going on
  • Do you remember our lesson on the Gibeonites? They were the men that heard that Joshua and the children of Israel had come into their land. They came to Joshua and the men and made a covenant with them. Joshua didn’t ask God about it. He made a covenant with them because he thought they had come from a far off land.
  • Because covenant is a solemn, binding agreement put the Gibeonites under the protection of the nation of Israel.
  • When the Cananites got mad and they were going to take the Gibeonites.
  • Joshua had to come and had to keep the covenant – because in covenant you are responsible to take on your covenant partner’s enemies
  • Now there’s a famine in the land. David says God why the famine? God says because covenant is a solemn, binding agreement. You are having this problem now because Saul did not honor covenant and he put the Gibeonites to death.

2 Samuel 21:2-6