Tag Archives: Kingdom of God

David’s Mighty Men: Foreshadowing Faithful Believers

One of my favorite things to learn about in Scripture is the symbolism scattered throughout. There’s something about seeing a pattern repeated from the Old to the New Testament that helps me really grasp biblical concepts and that reminds me of God’s creativity in organizing the path of history the way that He has. 

Recently, I spent some time learning about the lives of David and Saul through this lens. I’ll summarize that here!

As we know, Saul was the first king over Israel. God had given him that position of authority, but ultimately he squandered it due to his pride, rebelling against the Lord. Because of this, God rejected him from being king, and anointed David in his place. 

However, David did not take possession of the kingdom right away. He waited until the right time, until Saul had died.

It’s important to note that as David waited, he wasn’t idle. He began gathering a group of “mighty men”, men who swore allegiance to him rather than to Saul and who would support him as he prepared to take the kingdom. And when David eventually ascended the throne, these mighty men were given positions of authority in his new kingdom. 

So, now let’s take a look at what all this symbolizes. 

We know that Satan, or Lucifer, was originally an angel of the Lord who had been given a level of dominion and rulership over the earth (though still under God’s sovereign rule). Satan is referred to in several verses as the temporary ruler or prince of this world (John 12:31, John 14:30, Ephesians 2:1-2, Luke 4:5-8).

But, due to his pride, he sought to exalt himself and rebelled against the Lord, resulting in his being rejected by God (Isaiah 14:12-15).

We also know that in the future, Jesus will set up His thousand-year Kingdom. But, that time has not come just yet. Following the pattern we see in the Saul/David relationship, God anoints a ruler (Jesus) who will ascend the throne after the previous one (Satan) has been done away with. 

But just as in David’s story, this waiting period is not an idle one. Like David, Jesus is gathering His group of “mighty men”: believers who faithfully follow Him and swear their allegiance to Him rather than to the current and temporary ruler. And all of this is with a view to the end goal – to being rewarded with a position in His Kingdom. 

Earlier this week I was reading 1 Chronicles 12, and I came across a list of these mighty men of David. What struck me about it was not just that their names were listed, but that they had qualifiers alongside them. Noted were the attributes that set them apart as worthy of being in David’s entourage. These characteristics were things like: being skilled with a shield and spear, being prepared for the task at hand, being knowledgeable and understanding of the times, and being undivided in heart and loyalty to David. 

In reading this I noticed the implications for us. As believers, we are called to be skilled with weapons of spiritual warfare. We are called to be equipped for good works, prepared at any moment to give an account for the hope in us and for the second coming of our Lord. We are called to be shrewd and discerning. And we are called to be undivided in loyalty to our King, serving Him alone. 

And why is this important to us? Because it’s all done with a view to being rewarded and to reigning alongside Jesus in His Kingdom (Colossians 3:23-25, Revelation 22:12, Revelation 5:10, Revelation 3:21). We must be faithful to our King, just as David’s men were faithful to him (Matthew 24:45-47, 1 Corinthians 3:12-15).

This is convicting – how often am I more preoccupied with the things of this present, broken kingdom than with the coming one? But it’s also encouraging – the Lord wants us to prove ourselves faithful to Him, and is actively at work preparing us for His Kingdom. Just as David’s men could look forward to the time when he replaced Saul as ruler and when their faithfulness would be rewarded, there’s something amazing and worthwhile for us to look forward to at the end of all of this as well!

Related Scripture 

1 Chronicles 12:23-38

Now these are the numbers of the divisions equipped for war, who came to David at Hebron, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of the Lord. The sons of Judah who bore shield and spear were 6,800, equipped for war. Of the sons of Simeon, mighty men of valor for war, 7,100. Of the sons of Levi 4,600. Now Jehoiada was the leader of the house of Aaron, and with him were 3,700, also Zadok, a young man mighty of valor, and of his father’s house twenty-two captains. Of the sons of Benjamin, Saul’s kinsmen, 3,000; for until now the greatest part of them had kept their allegiance to the house of Saul. Of the sons of Ephraim 20,800, mighty men of valor, famous men in their fathers’ households. Of the half-tribe of Manasseh 18,000, who were designated by name to come and make David king. Of the sons of Issachar, men who understood the times, with knowledge of what Israel should do, their chiefs were two hundred; and all their kinsmen were at their command. Of Zebulun, there were 50,000 who went out in the army, who could draw up in battle formation with all kinds of weapons of war and helped David with an undivided heart. Of Naphtali there were 1,000 captains, and with them 37,000 with shield and spear. Of the Danites who could draw up in battle formation, there were 28,600. Of Asher there were 40,000 who went out in the army to draw up in battle formation. From the other side of the Jordan, of the Reubenites and the Gadites and of the half-tribe of Manasseh, there were 120,000 with all kinds of weapons of war for the battle. All these, being men of war who could draw up in battle formation, came to Hebron with a perfect heart to make David king over all Israel; and all the rest also of Israel were of one mind to make David king.

Where Are We?

If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him. (John 12:26)

When I read this verse, it often makes me wonder if I’m where I’m supposed to be. Jesus says that whoever serves Him must be where He is. Am I where Jesus is? Or am I somewhere else, living out my own desires?

So, I’d like to start this post by asking, Where are we, the believers?

Are we caught up in the middle of strife with those around us, forgetting that our struggle is not against flesh and blood? Are our days filled with anger, division, bitterness? Do we feel so exhausted and burnt out by our frustration with the ways others let us down?

Or maybe we’re living a life centered solely on the here and now. Are we so focused on our earthly comforts and pursuits that we forget to love others well? Do we remember that our kingdom is not of this world, that the things of this earth are but small and temporary?

Are we simply trying to make it through life unscathed? Are we concentrated on avoiding the things that are outside of our comfort zone, to the point that we leave no room to let God work in our lives?

Or are we stuck in a place of insecurity, constantly striving to prove our worth to those around us? Are we spending all of our energy simply trying to stay on top of our responsibilities, our plans, our hopes for the future, yet still falling behind?

Or are we somewhere else? Somewhere that was well-intended, but that ultimately has pulled us further from God’s will?

I have certainly found myself in each of these places, found myself losing sight of Who I serve. In John 12:26, Jesus says, “where I am, there My servant will be also”. So, this leads us to ask not only where are we? But where should we be? Jesus wants us to be where He is, but what does that mean?

Looking throughout Scripture, I’ve pinpointed just a few of the places where we see Jesus consistently place Himself.

We see Him caring for the less fortunate, extending His promise of rest and peace to the poor and the oppressed, the widows and the orphans. We see Him offering grace to those that society and religion had rejected. He tells the woman caught in adultery to Go, and sin no more and the thief on the cross Today you will be with Me in Paradise. He dines with the sinners, unashamed of the love He has for them.

We see Him serving those around Him in deep humility and grace. As the Son of God, Jesus had every right to wield His power and authority over His disciples. And yet, He humbled Himself and took a position of servanthood towards them all, washing their feet and dying for them. This great sacrifice is extended toward the rest of humanity as well; He is patient with us and offers us so much love, despite our unworthiness.

We see Him showing powerful forgiveness. In the midst of His crucifixion, He prayed for His accusers – Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. And His work doesn’t end with grace. Over and over He calls His followers towards holiness – a holiness that is empowered by the forgiveness we’ve received in Him. He does not condone our sin, but instead guides us into a higher calling.

We also see Jesus spending time in the presence of God. Throughout the Gospels He consistently makes time to be alone with God, to pray and seek His will. And His constant focus is on carrying out this will; it is not pulled away by others’ misperceptions or demands, the temptations of Satan, or the agony of the cross. He doesn’t shy away from the truth, but preaches the word of God with boldness, unapologetically drawing attention to the message of the kingdom. We see Him in perfect obedience to the Father, willing to lay down His very life for the world while we were yet sinners.

So, let’s ask ourselves again, Where should we be?

We must be where the Lord was, caring for those in need as the hands and feet of Christ. We must show mercy and grace to those who are lost and wrestling with sin. We must be willing to love others with a servant’s heart – not putting our own desires above theirs, but seeking their welfare, bearing their burdens. We must forgive one another and encourage each other to live lives of holiness, empowered by God’s grace. And most of all we must spend intentional, prayerful time with God, seeking His will. We must not be carried away by the expectations of those around us, but must step confidently and obediently into the plans that God has set for us.

At the end of John 12:26, Jesus says that whoever follows and serves Him in this way will be honored by the Father. So let’s be faithful to God’s call, intentionally placing ourselves where we know that our Savior is.

Related Scripture

John 17:24

“Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.”

Luke 12:34

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also”

Matthew 7:16-20

“You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits.”

John 13:35

“By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”