A Covenant of Grace

As we return to 2 Samuel, we come to what are described as “the last words of David.” If these are truly the final words David utters, they must be spoken after the events of 2 Samuel 24, and 1 Kings 1 and 2:1–12. But they may be, as Matthew Henry proposes, David’s last will and testament, a final manifesto designed to summarize his life’s story, perhaps for his benefit alone. “Those words especially in v. 5, though recorded before, we may suppose he often repeated for his own consolation, even to his last breath, and therefore they are called his last words,” Henry writes in his commentary.

David begins by summarizing God’s work in his life. He was “the son of Jesse,” a simple keeper of sheep, but God “raised [him] up on high” to be the king and the “sweet psalmist of Israel,” her leader in national affairs and in the worship of Yahweh. Then follows what Henry calls “an account of [David’s] communion with God.” David notes that God used him as a prophet, for the Spirit of God spoke by him (especially in the psalms). But he also declares that God spoke to him, instructing him in the way God’s king must rule. According to this revelation, above all else a ruler must be just—he must protect his people’s rights and correct wrongs. Another way of saying this is that the king must rule in the fear of God, reigning as one who is himself under authority and who will be called to account. The king who does this, David says, will be a blessing to his country, like the light of morning after the darkness of night or like grass springing up after a gentle rain. In this vivid description, we find a clear perspective on the blessed rule of David’s future descendant, the Lord Jesus Christ.

In verse 5, David freely confesses that he has not been, in and of himself, the kind of king God desires. He has failed to maintain perfect justice, falling into selfish sins all too often. And yet, God by His grace has made with him an eternal covenant, “ordered…and secure.” He has given David a great hope—that one of his descendants will sit on his throne for eternity. This is David’s desire, and he is confident God will bring it to pass. But as David is quick to remind himself, the wicked, the “sons of rebellion,” are not so blessed. They will be “thrust away” as thorns, doomed to be burned. This will be true even for those descendants of David who walk not in God’s ways.