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Bibles to the book of 2 Samuel. 
We were there last week. We're going to be there tonight. 
2 Samuel chapter 22. 2 Samuel 22. I'll read verses 1 
to 31. So 2 Samuel 22, beginning in 
verse 1. Then David spoke to the Lord 
the words of this song on the day when the Lord had delivered 
him from the hand of all his enemies. and from the hand of 
Saul. And he said, the Lord is my rock and my fortress and my 
deliverer, the God of my strength and whom I will trust, my shield 
and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge, 
my savior, you save me from violence. I will call upon the Lord who 
is worthy to be praised. So shall I be saved from my enemies. 
When the waves of death surrounded me, the floods of ungodliness 
made me afraid. The sorrows of shield surrounded 
me. The snares of death confronted me. In my distress, I called 
upon the Lord and cried out to my God. He heard my voice from 
his temple, and my cry entered his ears. Then the earth shook 
and trembled. The foundations of heaven quaked 
and were shaken because he was angry. Smoke went up from his 
nostrils and devouring fire from his mouth. Coals were kindled 
by it. He bowed the heavens also and 
came down with darkness under his feet. He rode upon a cherub 
and flew. and he was seen upon the wings 
of the wind. He made darkness canopies around him, dark waters 
and thick clouds of the skies. From the brightness before him, 
coals of fire were kindled. The Lord thundered from heaven, 
and the Most High uttered his voice. He sent out arrows and 
scattered them, lightning bolts, and he vanquished them. Then 
the channels of the sea were seen. The foundations of the 
world were uncovered at the rebuke of the Lord, at the blast of 
the breath of his nostrils. He sent from above. He took me. 
He drew me out of many waters. He delivered me from my strong 
enemy, from those who hated me, for they were too strong for 
me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord 
was my support. He also brought me out into a 
broad place. He delivered me because he delighted 
in me. The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness, according 
to the cleanness of my hands. He has recompensed me, for I 
have kept the ways of the Lord. and have not wickedly departed 
from my God. For all his judgments were before 
me, and as for his statutes, I did not depart from them. I 
was also blameless before him, and I kept myself from my iniquity. 
Therefore, the Lord has recompensed me according to my righteousness, 
according to my cleanness in his eyes. With the merciful, 
you will show yourself merciful. With a blameless man, you will 
show yourself blameless. With the pure, you will show 
yourself pure. And with the devious, you will 
show yourself shrewd. You will save the humble people, 
but your eyes are on the haughty, that you may bring them down. 
For you are my lamp, O Lord. The Lord shall enlighten my darkness. 
For by you, I can run against a troop. By my God, I can leap 
over a wall. As for God, his way is perfect. 
The word of the Lord is proven. He is a shield to all who trust 
in him. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our 
gracious God and Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you 
for these Psalms of David. We pray that you would guide 
us now by the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit to understand 
what is spoken of in terms of his righteousness. We thank you 
for the grace of God in our Lord Jesus Christ. We thank you for 
your mercy and your loving kindness. We thank you that you have been 
so kind in saving us from all of our transgressions and iniquities. 
And we even confess remaining corruption now, asking that you 
would wash us in the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. And we 
pray in his wonderful name. Amen. Well, our focus this evening 
is going to be specifically on verses 21 to 25. Last week, we 
considered the riches of God's grace in the case of David in 
2 Samuel 11 and 12. Remember in 2 Samuel chapter 
11, David commits great sin. He commits the sins of adultery. 
He commits the sin of adultery and then he covers it up by way 
of conspiracy to commit murder. And so when we consider that, 
and when we consider 1 Samuel chapter 13, specifically at verse 
14, where David is identified as a man after God's own heart 
by God himself, it might be a difficult thing for some to reckon verse 
21 with those gross sins committed by David. Notice in chapter 22 
verse 21, The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness, 
according to the cleanness of my hands, He has recompensed 
me. For I have kept the ways of the 
Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God. For all His judgments 
were before me, and as for His statutes, I did not depart from 
them. I was also blameless before Him, and I kept myself from my 
iniquity. Therefore the Lord has recompensed 
me according to my righteousness, according to my cleanness in 
his eyes." Now there's a few chapters, obviously separating 
chapters 12 and 22, but in that section we see the consequences 
of David's sin, and there we see him compound his sin. So 
tonight I want to try to reckon with this fact that David was 
a man after God's own heart, David was rewarded by God according 
to his righteousness, and yet he had engaged in this kind of 
sin. Now, when we look at this chapter, it is substantially 
the same as Psalm 18. A few differences in wording, 
but it's the same exact thing. And the psalm was likely sung 
by David during his life, and here we see that it was sung 
at the end of his life. And it was prepared according 
to the subscript in Psalm 18 for the chief musician to be 
included in the Psalter, to be utilized by all of God's people 
in all successive ages. And when David comes to engage 
in this song of praise, he's not praising himself. Now he 
does allude to his righteousness, but I think by the end of the 
sermon tonight, we'll understand what he's talking about there. 
And spoiler alert, it's the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ 
received by faith alone. So just so you know where we're 
going with this. But in terms of this song of 
praise, notice that he's not praising himself. He's not saying, 
my military savvy, my ability on the battlefield, my ability 
to evade Saul, my ability to evade the Philistines. That's 
what brought me to this place of a hoary head as I muse on 
my life. No, he ascribes power to God, 
deliverance to God, praise to God for what God had in fact 
done in terms of David in his life. So basically, just an outline 
of the chapter of the psalm, we see the object of his praise 
in verses 1 to 4. Secondly, we see the desperation 
of his condition in verses 5 to 7. Then the manner of God's deliverance 
in verses 8 to 20. the faithfulness of David in 
verses 21 to 31 and then finally the psalm ends with the invincibility 
of his kingdom according to God's power in verses 32 to 51. So that's kind of an overview 
of the psalm or of the chapter and as I said I want to look 
first of all at the righteousness of David and then secondly at 
the theology of David because I think that will help explain 
why he says what he says in this particular section. But in terms 
of the righteousness of David, note the declaration again. The 
Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness. I've already 
alluded to the Bathsheba and Uriah incident, but turn back 
to 2 Samuel chapter 13. This is one of the consequences 
of David's sin as he had committed with Bathsheba and Uriah. Remember God said the sword would 
not depart from his house. There would be consequences, 
temporal consequences for his having gone into Bathsheba and 
then covering it up by way of murder. 2 Samuel 13 is a very 
unsavory chapter of Holy Scripture. It's the rape of Tamar. When 
David learns of the rape of Tamar, notice what it says according 
to 2 Samuel 13 at verse 21. But when King David heard of 
all these things, he was very angry. Now that's a legitimate 
response. If you had heard that your daughter 
was raped, there would certainly be an anger. There would certainly 
be a rage. There would certainly be a desire 
perhaps to requite or to engage in vengeance. But that's all 
that the text says. David didn't do anything. David 
didn't engage in that. David didn't recompense. David 
didn't go after this offender. Davis makes this point. He says, 
of course, legions of expositors say that David himself found 
himself a prisoner of his own folly. After all, how could he 
call Amnon to account when he himself had violated Bathsheba 
and eliminated her husband? In other words, he had no moral 
authority upon which to stand in order to address this crime 
that he obtained in his own house. He set hardly a solid basis for 
exercising moral authority, and yet such an argument does not 
negate David's responsibility. He holds nevertheless the office 
of a magistrate, one might say, both in his kingdom and in his 
family. As both father and king, he is charged with maintaining 
justice. whether he is personally compromised or not. One may understand 
David's failure to act. One may not, however, excuse 
it. So Amnon remains an unpunished felon, Tamar languishes his damaged 
goods, and Absalom becomes a seething vigilante. I'm not helping the 
case. We've already seen adultery with 
Bathsheba, murder with reference to Uriah, and now sort of a complicitness 
with reference to the rape of his own daughter. So how do we 
vindicate David? Well, there's been several attempts 
to try and explain 2 Samuel 22 away. Some have suggested that 
this song was not composed by David, that it was inserted by 
an editor. Some suggest that this song was 
composed prior to the events recorded in 2 Samuel chapter 
11. So that is one way of trying 
to evade the perhaps tension that we see in terms of his criminal 
activity, his sinful activity, and his own declaration here 
concerning his own righteousness. And some suggest it was written 
later, after the life of David, and inserted here by an editor. 
Now, I opt for the fourth position. This is God-breathed scripture. 
It is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, 
and for instruction in righteousness. David, under the inspiration 
of the Holy Spirit, wrote what he wrote, and with reference 
to the theology of David, we see how it squares. We see how 
he can say what he says concerning his righteousness in light of 
the fact that he himself had been a great sinner. So let's 
turn to the theology of David now, secondly. And the first 
line of evidence I want to look at is the example of David in 
Romans chapter 4. You can turn there. Romans chapter 
4. We ought to go to later revelation 
to help us understand previous revelation. And in Romans chapter 
4, the Apostle Paul is explaining justification by faith alone. 
And the Apostle Paul is highlighting that this is not a new thing. 
The only way any sinner has ever entered into the presence of 
God Almighty is through the righteousness of Jesus Christ. It is through 
His blood, it is through His righteousness, whether you're 
in the New Covenant or whether you're in the Old Covenant. The 
way of access to the Father is through the Son by the Spirit. 
And so when Paul comes to defend or argue with reference to the 
doctrine of justification by faith alone, he points to two 
Old Testament examples. He points first to Abraham and 
then he points to David. So notice specifically the example 
of Abraham in verses one to four. The patriarch's background. We 
don't typically ponder this or think about this, but Abraham 
was an idolater. In a few verses down, specifically 
at verse five, notice it says that, to him who does not work, 
but believes on him who justifies the ungodly. I doubt that for 
the most of us, we think of Abraham and David, at least at one point 
in their lives, as having been ungodly. But that's precisely 
what they were. See, the gospel doesn't come 
to righteous men. The gospel doesn't come to accomplished 
men. The gospel comes to sinful men, 
to ungodly men. And this is an encouragement 
tonight for you if you're not in Christ. The gospel is for 
sinners. The gospel is about a righteousness 
imputed by God and received by faith alone. The gospel is about 
forgiveness for even sins like adultery, and conspiracy to murder, 
and even being complicit in the daughter's rape, or at least 
not acting in light of that daughter's rape in a way that is consistent 
with God's law. So the gospel comes to the ungodly, 
and that's precisely what Paul is highlighting here in terms 
of the glory of justification by faith alone. Abraham's background 
was one of idolatry. He wasn't brought up in a Reformed 
Baptist Sunday school. He didn't have his pencil and 
his cassette tape of Al Martin preaching. He didn't have his 
1689 with his wide margin Bible. He didn't have all that. Terah 
was an idolater that served other gods and therefore Abraham, his 
son, would have served those other gods as well. And so when 
Paul comes to deal with justification by faith alone, he points to 
this patriarch and he points to King David. So notice, the 
patriarch's background. He had been an idolater. The 
patriarch's righteousness. There's a negative statement 
and then a positive statement. Notice in verse 1 of chapter 
4. What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found 
according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified 
by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. So negatively, he condemns the 
thought of justification by works. The thought that we as sinners 
can do enough good deeds to find our acceptance with God. If you 
reflect for just a moment on Scripture, you will know that's 
a fool's errand. All we like sheep have gone astray. There is none righteous, no not 
one. There is none of us who seek after God, according to 
Holy Scripture. So justification by works is 
futile. The doctrine of justification 
by works, as well, inevitably leads to pride in man. Notice 
in verse 2, for if Abraham was justified by works, he has something 
to boast about. In other words, he can pat himself 
on the back. He can muse on the fact that 
he contributed to this salvation. But notice how Paul shuts this 
down, but not before God. In other words, justification 
by works is in fact a fool's errand. Nobody will be able to 
do this. You'll never be able to stand before God and say, 
I am here based in large part upon my own performance or upon 
my own conduct. or upon my own law keeping." 
He shuts that down. But then there's a positive statement 
with reference to Abraham's righteousness. So notice in verse 3, 4, what 
does the scripture say? Abraham believed God and it was 
accounted to him for righteousness. In other words, it wasn't his 
acts, it wasn't his performance, it wasn't his doings, it was 
rather the righteousness of Jesus Christ received by faith alone. This is James' argument in James 
chapter 2, when he wants to show that faith justified, that saving 
faith is the lone instrument of justification, but it's not 
alone in the person's justified. He demonstrates that by Genesis 
chapter 22 when Abraham takes Isaac up to Mount Moriah. That's 
the demonstration or the evidence of his justified, of his being 
justified by faith in Genesis 15. So the Apostle handles this 
in light of justification by faith alone and he says that 
that's how Abraham came into the saving presence of God Most 
High. And with reference to this language 
accounted, it sounds kind of legal and technical, doesn't 
it? Absolutely, positively it's legal and it's technical. It's 
not transformational. Transformation happens by the 
power of the Spirit working in us in sanctification. Sanctification 
is the Spirit at work in us. Justification is Christ's work 
for us. And it's faith in that that brings 
us to that place of peace with God, that forgiveness of sins, 
that righteousness that is imputed. This word accounted means literally 
to determine by mathematical process, to reckon, to calculate, 
to count, to take into account. It can also mean to credit, to 
credit to someone as something. The New King James margin on 
verse 3 has imputed, credited, reckoned, counted all very good 
glosses on this particular term and all very much what justification 
by faith consists of. It's not us getting better, it's 
not us engaged in moral reform, it's not us stopping certain 
things and putting on other things, it is rather Christ for us. And belief in Him, that belief 
which is a gift given by God, is what brings us into saving 
union with our blessed Savior. Now notice, he then draws out 
this implication in verse 4. Now to him who works, the wages 
are not counted as grace, but as debt. In other words, if you 
can work your way to heaven, that's not a gracious arrival, 
it's God's indebtedness to you. And again, there is nothing that 
could be farther from from the ability of a sinful man. Now 
notice he then points to the example of David. Notice first 
in verse 5, But to him who does not work, but believes on him 
who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness. 
Now it's not the act of faith that's accounted for righteousness. 
It's the object of faith. It's the Lord Jesus Christ. It's 
not my faith brought to the table and God says, Oh, therefore you 
brought this faith. I'm going to reward you. No, 
faith is the instrument by which we receive the benefits secured 
for sinners by our Lord Jesus Christ. So, but to him who does 
not work but believes on him, now that does not work doesn't 
mean go, you know, lay on your couch and watch TV all day. No, 
it does not work for salvation, does not work for acceptance 
with God, does not work for his his righteousness with God, to 
him who does not work, but rather believes on him who justifies 
the ungodly. See, that's what the gospel is 
all about. It's not working your way unto 
heaven. It's not working your way for 
salvation. It is rather accepting by God's 
grace the gift he has provided, the righteousness of Jesus, the 
forgiveness of sins by Jesus. And that's precisely what the 
apostle is emphasizing in this section. His faith is accounted 
for righteousness. Now notice he points to David. Verses 6 to 8, just as David 
also. Isn't that interesting? Just 
as David also. What should we glean from that? 
We should glean that the way of acceptance, the way to acceptance 
rather by God in the old covenant and the new covenant is by grace 
alone through faith alone in Christ alone. That's clear. It's not two separate ways. The 
Jews were put under the Old Testament law and they must, you know, 
meet that law as best as they can. And then they'll be accepted 
into heaven. Old school dispensationalism. 
That's not it at all. When Paul is demonstrating the 
glory of justification by faith alone, he goes to Abraham and 
he goes to David. So it's the same thing, it's 
the same way, it's the same means by which God accepts sinners. So just as David also describes 
the blessedness of man, of the man to whom God imputes righteousness 
apart from works. Now he cites Psalm 32, blessed 
are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven and whose sins are 
covered. Blessed is the man to whom the 
Lord shall not impute sin. So the justification of sinners 
in the New Covenant is the same as justification of sinners in 
the Old Covenant. And also notice the content or 
the subject matter of the Psalms of David. Salvation by grace 
through faith in Jesus Christ. When we sing the Psalms of David, 
we enter in with David to praise the God of our salvation. We 
enter in with David using the inspired Word of God to glorify 
God for his goodness to us. Our brother referred in part 
to, he alluded to Ephesians 5 and Colossians 3. What happens when 
we sing in public worship? It's an act of prayer, it's an 
act of praise, and it's an act of proclamation. We teach and 
admonish one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. 
We proclaim the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord through 
the psalms of David, through good written hymns. We sing these 
praises to God, acknowledging his goodness. But in this instance, 
again, David says, blessed are those whose lawless deeds are 
forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the 
Lord shall not impute sin. So in other words, David's not 
saying this, blessed is that guy out there who is really undone 
in sin and really gross and wicked and vile. I'm glad that God has 
forgiven him. You don't think that when David 
writes Psalm 32, 1 and 2, he's thinking about David? He's thinking 
about his own sin? He's thinking about the fact 
that he himself had engaged in gross immorality in terms of 
adultery and murder and not acting at his daughter's rape and a 
whole host of other things. Later on in the application, 
I'm going to suggest that a man's life isn't just a snapshot. And 
as well, praise God, there's no second Samuel 11 or 12 about 
us in the most popular book that has ever been penned and the 
most popular book that has been as widely circulated as the Bible. What could be your 2 Samuel 11 
or 12? What could be your complicitness 
or mine? I'm not you wretches. I'm right 
there with y'all. Praise God most high that not 
all of us have a chapter in scripture that describes the most heinous 
act we've ever committed. I mean, that's grace, grace for 
us to be sure, but grace to David as well in terms of the display 
of God's loving kindness and goodness to a man after his own 
heart, who nevertheless was not a perfect man. So as we come 
to consider David, we ought to appreciate that what Paul writes 
here is in fact commentary on the theology of David. You can 
go back to 2 Samuel. 2 Samuel chapter 22. We see the example of David in 
Romans 4 at the hand of the Apostle Paul, specifically in verses 
5 to 8. And then the theology of David. David was a king, wasn't 
he? David had been a shepherd, and then David is anointed by 
Saul in 1 Samuel 16. He's set apart as the one, the 
man after God's own heart. That's announced in 1 Samuel 
13, when Saul just continues to engage in folly. I mean, it's 
a sad and pathetic situation. Who would have been the heir 
apparent? Who was the heir apparent to the throne? It was Jonathan. 
Jonathan suffered for the sins of his father like you know that 
that was pretty wretched So God basically cuts off the Saulide 
house and and brings the Davidic dynasty into play So it's in 
1st Samuel 13 a couple chapters before David's even anointed 
where we find out that he's a man after God's own heart And so 
in 1 Samuel chapter 16, he's anointed by Samuel with reference 
to the kingdom. But prior to that, he was a shepherd. 
And then he was a king. And as well, we know he's a psalmist. 
But he's a theologian, just like Solomon. How do you read the 
description of the dedication of the temple in 1 Kings 8 and 
not realize that Solomon was a very skilled theologian? Well, 
he had good parentage. He had David teaching him. And 
so David's theology is riddled throughout this altar to be sure, 
but we see it also here in this particular psalm, Psalm 18. Notice 
in the first place, David recognized his own sin. He's not suggesting 
he's a sinless man. He's not suggesting, verse 21, 
the Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness because I'm 
perfect and I've never done anything bad, never done anything evil. 
Now I don't take it that this was written later and it was 
inserted by an editor, perhaps David didn't write it. David 
wrote it, David had it inserted, or the author, Samuel perhaps, 
had it put here. So they're realizing we're not 
going to forget 2 Samuel 12 by the time we get to 2 Samuel 22. 
So David's not pretending that he's without sin. Notice what 
he says in verse 24. I was also blameless before him, 
and I kept myself from my iniquity. Again, he's talking about the 
overarching theme of his life, but what does he highlight there? 
My iniquity. He's not professing perfectionism. He's not professing sinlessness. 
He's not suggesting that he is like his greater son will be, 
wholly harmless and undefiled. He knows he's a sinner. Psalm 
51 is a psalm of repentance on the occasion of Nathan's rebuke 
of his hardened heart. The Psalter is filled with allusions 
to David's sinfulness. When I kept silent about my sin, 
my bones ached. There was a weariness that was 
happening to David as a result of his silence concerning his 
sin. So David understood the reality that he was a sinner. 
He's not suggesting perfection. He's not suggesting sinlessness. 
As well, David understood the necessity of atonement. Turn 
back to 2 Samuel 12. 2 Samuel 12, specifically at 
verse 13. If the language isn't used, the 
concept is certainly present. So when David confesses, according 
to 13a, so David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. 
And Nathan said to David, the Lord also, notice, has put away 
your sin. You shall not die. The Lord has 
put away your sin. Isn't that beautiful language? 
So that a few chapters later, we can actually read about a 
man celebrating the fact that God rewarded him according to 
his righteousness. This culture and many professing 
Christians would do well to learn from God. How is it when we forgive 
one another for their sins against us? Do we put them away? Do we 
forget about them? Do we go deep sea fishing with 
them? Because God does. In Micah chapter 7, it says that 
God takes our sins and he casts them into the depths of the sea. 
He doesn't put it into the shallow brook. He doesn't put it in the 
shallow meadows so that they can bubble back up and be used 
against us. Sometimes husbands and wives 
do this. You know, 15 years ago, you said this, and I'm still, 
you know, I've still got an ax to grind. This culture, the cancel 
culture, what does it reflect? It reflects no forgiveness. It 
reflects no recognition that sometimes people do horrible 
things, but that horrible things do not define their lives. David understood the necessity 
of atonement. Turn to 2 Samuel 21. There's 
an instance of atonement wrought by David on behalf of the Gibeonites. Notice in 2 Samuel 21 verse 1, 
now there was a famine in the days of David for three years. 
That's always bad news in Scripture. When you see famine in Scripture, 
it's not like, oh, we got to fix our irrigation system. Better call Southern, get them 
out here and fix the lines. No, typically the announcement 
of famine means God is angry. That's usually the way to proceed 
when there's famine, when there's drought. They didn't, you know, 
think in terms of mechanisms. They didn't think in terms of 
systems. They didn't think in terms of, oh, if we just fix 
this or we dig, you know, deeper ditches. I guess there's a place 
for that. I mean, I think in California 
they divert lots of water because they're trying to save a particular 
fish. I mean, that's just folly. Let the fish die and let the 
people live with water. I mean, that seems, you know, 
like a no-brainer to me. But here, notice. Now, there 
was a famine in the days of David for three years. Year after year. And what does David do? He inquires 
of the Lord. And the Lord answered. It is 
because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house, because he killed the 
Gibeonites. So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. 
Now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of 
the remnant of the Amorites. The children of Israel had sworn 
protection to them, but Saul had sought to kill them in his 
zeal for the children of Israel and Judah. Notice in verse 3, 
Therefore David said to the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? And 
with what shall I make atonement? That you may bless the inheritance 
of the Lord. David understood the necessity 
of atonement. He says in Psalm 65, specifically 
in verse 3, iniquities prevail against me. As for our transgressions, 
you will provide atonement. We see it in 2 Samuel chapter 
24 as well at the threshing floor of Aranah. There is atonement 
wrought for sin committed. David understood atonement. And 
with reference to atonement, what's the presupposition? God's 
holy, we've sinned against him, and his wrath must be satisfied. His justice, rather, must be 
satisfied. David understood all that. David 
knew that. He understood total depravity, 
he understood the necessity of blood atonement, and he understood 
as well the imputed righteousness of Christ. He understood it because 
he celebrates it in Psalm 32. The Apostle appeals to it in 
Romans chapter 4. The Apostle expounds on it in 
2 Corinthians 5 21. He made him who knew no sin to 
be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in him. 
Philippians 3 9 that I might be found in him not having my 
own righteousness which is from the law but that which is from 
God received by faith. So David had a robust, dare I 
say it, Protestant understanding of justification by faith alone. It was grace that taught his 
heart to fear. It was grace that kept him near 
the Lord Most High. When he sinned, he repaired to 
God for forgiveness. He came to God for forgiveness. I dealt with that last week. 
He was caught And we might be suspicious about that. Well, 
you know, he got caught. If he hadn't got caught, he wouldn't 
have come clean. God is the catcher. God catches 
us sometimes so that we'll come clean. It's a mercy. It's a grace. It's a good thing. You've probably 
heard of some person that sinned, and they got caught, and then 
they repented. We're always a bit suspicious 
about that repentance. Repentance is repentance, whether 
you've been caught or not. Praise God that he caught David 
through the snare of Nathan the prophet. And then finally, let's 
just look at the life of David. The life of David. Not, you know, 
exhaustively, but just a few points of doctrine here. First, 
I would suggest the benefit of Christ's atonement. I've already 
made the point that Old Covenant, New Covenant, sinners were saved 
the same way. We're not dispensationalists, brethren. We are covenant theologians 
in this church, and we aspire to be. That's what our documents 
teach. It teaches covenant theology. 
Hebrews 9.15 speaks of the retroactive work of the cross work of our 
Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, it is the case 
that everybody who entered into heaven went by grace alone, through 
faith alone, in Christ alone. Hebrews 9.15, and for this reason, 
he, Christ, is the mediator of the new covenant by means of 
death for the redemption of the transgressions under the first 
covenant. So Christ's blood is the reason 
why Abel is in heaven. Christ's blood is the reason 
why Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are in heaven. Christ's blood 
is the reason Moses is in heaven. Why Isaiah is in heaven. Why 
Nahum is in heaven. Why Jonah's in heaven. I mean, 
Jonah's a curious prophet, isn't he? God says, I want you to go 
to preach and what does he do? He goes the other direction. 
In Chapter 4, what's Jonah upset about? I knew you were kind, 
I knew you were merciful, I knew you were gracious, and I knew 
you'd save these dirty, rotten Ninevites. That's an interesting 
approach to the blessing of God upon needy sinners. The Bible 
is filled with interesting people. The Bible is filled with curious 
people. We've looked at Samson in not 
too distant past. Jephthah, consider that judge 
Jephthah. Now there's a couple of ways 
to interpret the sacrifice, the burnt offering that came out 
of his house. And one of them's pretty hardcore if you contemplate 
it or you ponder it. In other words, God saves sinners. He justifies the ungodly. And it's based on the fact that 
Christ went to that hour. That Christ lived, that Christ 
died, and that Christ was resurrected from the dead. So the benefit 
of Christ's atonement was David. Secondly, the imputation of Christ's 
righteousness. Again, at 2221, the Lord rewarded 
me according to my righteousness. According to the cleanness of 
my hands, He has recompensed me. In Psalm 18, that's verse 
20. And John Gill makes this observation. Though it is best 
of all to apply it to Christ. and understand it of His righteousness, 
which He, as Mediator, has wrought out for His people. This is perfect, 
pure, and spotless, and entirely agreeable to the law of God. 
What will bear the sight of God is satisfying to His justice, 
is well-pleasing to Him, and is what He accepts of and imputes 
to them that believe in Christ, and by which they are justified 
from all things. So the benefit of Christ's atoning 
work, as well the imputation of Christ's righteousness, thirdly, 
the forgiveness of sins as a result of Christ's death. That's Psalm 
32. That's why Nathan can say, the Lord has put away this sin. David knew the blessedness of 
forgiveness. David understood what it was 
to be cleansed from the sin of adultery, to be cleansed from 
the sin of murder. to be cleansed from this failure 
to act with reference to the rape of Tamar. David understood 
all too well that it was by grace alone, through faith alone, in 
Christ alone by which he stood. Fourthly, you have the testimony 
of others in David's life. Jonathan speaks glowingly of 
David. Abigail speaks glowingly of David. But most importantly, you know 
who speaks glowingly of David subsequent to his death? is the 
Most High God. Look at 1 Kings chapter 3. 1 
Kings chapter 3. David becomes, as it were, a 
benchmark for the kings of Israel to walk in his paths, to walk 
in his ways. 1 Kings chapter 3, specifically 
at verse 14. So if you walk in my ways to keep my statutes and 
my commandments as your father David walked, then I will lengthen 
your days. Again, brethren, you see how 
glorious God's forgiveness is. He doesn't always, you know, 
what was the scarlet letter? She had to wear the A for adulterous 
wherever she went. That's not God's way. Blessed 
is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity. Blessed 
is the man whose sins are forgiven. Blessed is the man whose sins 
are cast into the depths of the sea. You probably all have known 
this or have experienced this, where somebody you find out really 
hasn't forgiven you. And a year later, they've confessed 
to being bitter with you about something perhaps you even forgot 
about. I'm not talking about my dear wife here. Just talking 
in general, this happens, right? There is this unwillingness to 
let it be, an unwillingness to extend grace, an unwillingness 
to treat others the way that God has treated us. Aren't we 
called upon in Ephesians and Colossians to forgive one another 
even as God in Christ forgave us? Does that mean we hold on 
to it? We keep a list? We keep it in 
our phone? We got a note there. This person 
sent against me, you know, on August 4th, you know, 2002. And, 
you know, I'm just not going to let that go. I'm just not 
going to be done. 1 Corinthians 13, there's a part 
translated by the NIV. It says that love does not keep 
a record of wrongs. Isn't that beautiful? It doesn't 
keep a record of wrongs. You know, every time you do something, 
there's somebody right there to hit you with your record of 
wrongs. That's not how our God treats us, brethren. It is grace. It is glorious. It is wondrous. He cast those sins into the depths 
of the sea. So the testimony of God, and 
there's another one. You can look at 1 Kings 9.4, 
1 Kings 11.33 and 34, 1 Kings 14.8. You get the point. God 
says to the kings in Israel and Judah, Northern and Southern 
tribes. Well, by this time, the North 
is gone. the Southern Kingdom of Judah, 
those kings are supposed to walk in the righteousness of David. 
Now, the fifth thing is the faithfulness of David as a contrast with Saul. Go back to 2 Samuel 22. 2 Samuel 
22, specifically in our section, and notice what he says in verse 
23. For his judgments were before me, and as for his statutes, 
I did not depart from them." Again, brethren, this is not 
a claim to sinless perfection on David's part. He's already 
acknowledged that he's a sinner. He's already recognized the fact 
that God has provided atonement. But in terms of defection from 
God, David didn't do it. He didn't. He didn't defect. 
He didn't apostatize. Saul did. How does Saul end? We know he ends on the battlefield 
in a very gruesome way, but prior to that, Saul ends in 1 Samuel 
13. That's the beginning of the end 
for Saul. In 1 Samuel 13, Samuel says, 
just wait here, Saul, I'll be back. Samuel's a bit late, so 
what does Saul do? Saul says, I'm gonna sacrifice 
to the Lord. You're not supposed to do that, 
Saul. You're supposed to wait. First 
Samuel chapter 15, they go into battle against the Amalekites. 
What's Saul's instructions? Utterly destroy Agag and the 
Amalekites. Don't take any prisoners. Don't 
keep any livestock. Do the job that God's called 
you to do. So he goes to battle. It comes back to Samuel. Samuel 
says, how'd it go? Oh, it went great. It went wonderful. 
So Samuel says, why am I hearing sheep? Why am I hearing cows? 
The instructions were clear. You're supposed to cease or keep 
everybody from breathing amalekites. And it's there that the kingdom 
is transferred formally to the David dynasty. And then by 1 
Samuel 28, what does Saul do when he wants a word from Anhai? 
Well, God doesn't speak to him anymore, so he consults the witch 
at Endor. David never did that sort of 
thing. Now, again, brethren, I'm not here, you know, go ahead, 
commit adultery, go ahead, you know, commit murder, and go ahead, 
you know, despise your daughter, but still come to church and 
everything's going to be fine. That's not the point. The point 
is defection. The point is apostasy. The point 
is abandoning God. David didn't do that. He never 
did that. In fact, one commentator says 
the distinction between Saul and David, between a rejected 
king and an accepted one, is not that one is a sinner and 
the other is not, for both are sinners. Rather, the distinction 
lies in the very different attitudes to faith and repentance displayed 
by the two. And at a deeper level still, 
in the sovereign election of the one, the man of God's own 
choosing over the other. Matthew Henry said it this way, 
though he had sometimes weakly departed from his duty, he had 
never wickedly departed from his God. Let that simmer, brethren, 
because that's a big statement that we typically don't think 
of. There is a difference when Peter denies the Savior before 
the servant girl. That's horrible. It's wretched. But it wasn't a calculated defection 
or apostasy from the gospel. And there was a bitter repentance 
that we see on the heels of that. Saul didn't repent. Esau doesn't 
repent. The godless don't repent. David 
does. David didn't depart from the 
Lord. And then the last thing I want 
to suggest in terms of this brief sketch of the life of David is 
his pursuit of those things that were pleasing to God. Again, 
read his psalms, read his songs of Zion, read his songs of praise 
and the way that he desired to praise God. One instance is back 
in 1 Samuel chapter 26. I'm going to make a plug here. 
for public worship. You can turn to 1 Samuel chapter 
26. I am not suggesting that allegiance or fidelity to God 
is only seen in public worship. There's more to the Christian 
life than public worship. But there's not less than that. 
In many respects, that's sort of the foray into, that's sort 
of the consistent practice of the people of God, to meet with 
their God in the place where God has promised to meet with 
them. in the New Covenant setting? 
What is it? It's the church! We come to the Father through 
the Son and the power of the Holy Spirit as we gather together 
with the people of God. Psalm 87 makes the statement, 
Yahweh loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwelling places 
of Jacob. Huh. That doesn't mean he hates 
the dwelling places of Jacob. That doesn't mean he's got an 
axe to grind with the families in Jacob. But it means that when 
the saints of God gather together as the people of God, on the 
day of God, in the house of God, God is especially present with 
that. And you see this emphasis in David. Specifically in 1 Samuel 
chapter 26. He had been basically chased, 
once again, by Saul. And now David is in a position 
to bargain with Saul. He could have killed him. He 
could have had him dead. He could have had his throat 
cut while he slept. But David doesn't do that. Touch 
not the Lord's anointed. Now notice specifically in 1 
Samuel 26 at about verse 18. And he said, this is David's 
response to Saul. 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. In other 
words, if this is of God, then can I sacrifice to God and repair 
the breach that exists between us all? David, he's perplexed. Why are you trying to kill me? 
What's happened? I don't get it. I don't understand. Why are you hunting me like a 
dog? Why do you want to rid the world of my presence? So that's 
the point here. So 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. Now notice, for they have driven 
me out this day from sharing in the inheritance of the Lord, 
saying, go serve other gods. Now David's theology proper allowed 
for him to be worshiped outside the confines of Palestine. But 
David's theology proper understood there was special blessing and 
special benefit within the confines of Israel, specifically in the 
tabernacle and later temple. So for David, this was an argument 
as to why he didn't like Saul driving him away from his land. 
He doesn't say, I miss my wife, I miss my kids, I miss my food, 
I miss my this, I miss my that. He says, I miss my God. They're 
telling me essentially get out and go serve the other gods. 
Notice what he says in verse 20. So now do not let my blood 
fall to the earth before the face of the Lord. The face of 
the Lord is present there in the earth where David's blood 
could fall, specifically in the land. He goes on to say, for 
the king of Israel has come out to seek a flea as when one hunts 
a partridge in the mountains. Now two quotes, we're almost 
done. John Gill makes this observation in a more technical theological 
exegetical sense. He says, for they have driven 
me out this day from abiding in the inheritance of the Lord, 
meaning not from his own house and family, nor from the palace 
of Saul, but from the land of Canaan, the Lord had given to 
his people Israel for an inheritance and from the worship of God in 
it, which made it dear and precious to him. Brethren, if we were 
being vacated from our lives, what would it be that would tie 
us to that life? My job, my wife, my kids, my 
grandkids, not bad things at all. In fact, very good things. 
My dog, my lawn, my car, what is it that we don't want to be 
driven from? For David, it was the special 
presence of God when the people of God gathered together to sing 
his praises and to hear his word. Now listen to David's, his isn't 
so exegetical, it's a bit more amplification. He says, didn't 
David know what every enlightened Christian knows? That you can 
pray and commune with God anywhere? You've met them. I don't need 
the church. I mow my lawn, and I have great times with God. 
I go sit on the top of mountains, and I commune with God. Now, 
I'm not suggesting don't commune with God while you mow your lawn. 
It's a great way. Instead of listening to your 
latest podcast, you can pray. You do know that, right? You 
don't have to get on your knees every time you pray and close your 
eyes and fold your hands. You can pray to God. He hears 
you when you're mowing your lawn. When you're sitting on the top 
of a mountain, But he thinks that at times, that's a weaselly 
way out of the church. And then you hear things like, 
well, the church is full of hypocrites. I always think, what better place 
for hypocrites to be than the church? Like saying, you know, 
the hospital is filled with sick people. Well, good. That's where 
they ought to be, because hopefully they'll get healed. Hopefully 
God will heal us of our hypocrisy when we're sitting under the 
preaching of the Word. So he says, didn't David know what 
every enlightened Christian knows, that you can pray and commune 
with God anywhere? Apparently the writer of Psalms 63, 139, 
and 142 was well aware of that. But David was more enlightened 
than many enlightened Christians. He knew that to be cut off from 
Yahweh's inheritance, verse 19, was to be cut off from Yahweh's 
face, verse 20. And when one had left Israel, 
there was no possibility of public worship. This is not the place 
to sketch a biblical theology of worship. Suffice it to say 
that David would have made a poor space-age evangelical. He would 
never have been content with his study Bible, prayer list, 
and a quiet cave. Yahweh's face or presence was 
especially seen in the sanctuary, Psalm 63, 2. Yet David was being 
driven away and cut off from the tabernacle and sacrifice, 
from priest and festival. He was being shut out of the 
land and sanctuary where Yahweh met with his people. To be cut 
off from the ordinances of public worship is David's most severe 
grief. Would that cause me anguish? 
Christians have surpassed David in privileges, but few have approached 
him in appetite." I think he's right. Well, not for you. He's certainly speaking to me 
here. We need to value the public worship of God. This isn't all 
that marks David as one who hadn't defected or apostatized from 
God, but it certainly plays to that. Saul had to seek out a 
witch at Endor. David gets on his face and prays 
to God. David goes and meets with the 
people of God. David has, as it were, aligned with God as 
a result of his faithful walk before God. So two thoughts and 
then we close. God's grace is rich. God's grace 
is glorious. God's grace is able to cover 
the sins of adultery, the sins of murder, and the sins of even 
being an ineffective king and an ineffective father. Again, 
not go thou and do likewise, but understand that when you 
bring great sin to God, You bring great sin to a great Savior. He is in the business of taking 
such people and washing them and cleansing them and justifying 
them and sanctifying them. That bit in 1 Corinthians chapter 
6, when the Apostle Paul says, do you not know that the unrighteous 
will not inherit the kingdom of God? And he lists this list 
of horrific things, bad things, wicked things, horrible things. 
And then he says, and such were some of you. What? You mean these Corinthians weren't 
these perfect, polished people sitting there just getting blessed 
by God? No, they had been homosexuals. They had been idolaters. They 
had been fornicators. They had been all manner of sin. 
And yet, they were that because God had justified them freely 
by His grace. So for the unbeliever, may I 
exhort you to look unto the Lord Jesus Christ in faith and find 
that blessed joy of everlasting life. And for the believer, listen 
to Davis again, he says, as Christians or to Christians today have surpassed 
David in privileges, but few have approached him in appetite. 
You probably do read the Psalms. If you don't, you should. But 
as you read the Psalms, pray to God those Psalms. Pray to 
God that you would have that kind of an appetite, that kind 
of a dependence. He cites Psalm 63. Psalm 63, 
David says, because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips 
shall praise thee." Do we think that way? God's loving kindness 
is better than life itself? Well, that's the way David thought. 
And David is able to muse at the end of his days on the righteousness 
of Jesus Christ imputed to him and God's grace that had kept 
him. Again, for the most part, we 
have our issues, we have our blemishes, nobody has a spotless 
record on this side of our blessed Savior. But the overarching theme 
and trajectory of David's life was one of pursuing God. Well, 
let us pray. Our Father, we thank you for 
your word. We thank you for the Lord's day. We thank you for 
the house of God and the people of God on the day of God. And 
we pray that you would be glorified in our local church. We pray 
that you would go with us now, that you would watch over us 
and keep us and protect us and bless us. As well, Father, we 
pray for the preaching of the gospel throughout the earth, 
that that word would run swiftly and be glorified. For we know 
that you are a great God, a gracious God, a God full of mercy, and 
a God who is purposing to save a multitude that no man can number. 
And we praise you and we bless you in the name of the Lord Jesus 
Christ. Amen. We'll close with a brief time 
of meditation.