In this second half of the book of Samuel, we read about the reign of king David. What starts out as a success story of a humble king for the Israelites, soon plummets down after a massive moral failure. In the end, David reflects back on his life with a poem that links back to the poetry of Hannah we read at the beginning of this book (1 Samuel).

For a broader view of this book of the Bible, we encourage you to watch this video:

HINT: If your Bible does not have wide margins for making notes, you can add other pages by cutting them to be the same size and just putting a little bit of glue along one end. Another option is to use sticky notes. Do not let limited space keep you from Bible journaling! And of course, if you're using JournalOwl's eReader - you can highlight scripture & inject audio, video, photos, or write comments.

LOOK UP:
(information)  -  encounter God through the Scripture 

Author:

It is disputed who helped Samuel with composing this book. Most scholars agree that he had help from the prophets Gad and Nathan.

Audience:

The Israelites kept this book as a reminder of the reign of king David. Since David is the author of Psalms, 1 and 2 Samuel are also valuable resources for us today because we can get to know the author of the Psalms. Some of what is written in the Psalms would be interpreted as metaphors if you didn’t know the life story of David. 

An example from Psalm 57. Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy on me, for in you I take refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed. When David wrote this, he was literally hiding in a cave from king Saul who wanted to kill him. 

History:

Our story picks up after the death of king Saul whom we read about at the end of 1 Samuel. David responds with remarkable humility in a song of lament even though Saul tried to kill him more than once. We continue to read about how David is anointed as king and how he rules. 

Genre:

The genre of this book is a historical narrative like much of the books we have journaled about so far. See if you can mark with a star in the margins where this story is pointing back to the big story between God and his people. Can you find a reference to God’s promise to Abraham? Can you find a place where the Exodus is mentioned? What about the promised land?

LOOK IN:
(revelation)  -  contemplate / reflect on our own lives

Key verse:

2 Samuel 7:12-14

When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son.

Inspiration:

Through the prophet Nathan, God told king David that there would be another kingdom that would last forever. Can you identify who is being spoken about? Who is the Son of God that is also from David’s bloodline?

LOOK OUT:
(transformation)  -  respond with creative worship action  

Drawing prompt:

In chapters 23 and 24 we read two poems that David wrote, reflecting on all his successes and failures as king. Note the words that he used to describe who God is. God is described with vivid imagery: rock, fortress, shield, smoke, fire, arrows, lamp, morning light, and more. 

Now, paint some of these on a page that can be used as a bookmark in your Bible. 

Bible Journey with JournalOwl:

Here are some questions / prompts provided by the JournalOwl community. 

• What had Saul done for the daughters of Israel – 1:24? So what should they do now?
• What expression is repeated in 1:25,27? Where else had it been used earlier?

Follow this link to dive into this book with an online Bible Study group.

Writing prompt:

In the books of 1 and 2 Samuel we read about the following themes: 

• despite human evil and failures, God continues working
• God opposes the prideful and exalts the humble
• There will be a different king whose kingdom will last forever

Write down these themes as headings on three separate pages. Now, read the books again and try to find places where this is mentioned. You will see that sometimes it is explicitly said (like Hannah’s poem in 1 Samuel 2), but other times it is shown through actions (David’s moral failure). Under each heading, make a list of how this is shown throughout the two books of Samuel. 

Prayer:

God, I want to thank you for this second half of the book of Samuel. Thank you for giving me such wisdom and revelation. I marvel at the beauty of your Word. Let my response to this text be worship unto you!