Day 141 – 2 Samuel 15:15-22
Scripture Review
2 Samuel 15:15-22
"And the king's servants said unto the king, Behold, thy servants are ready to do whatsoever my lord the king shall appoint."
(2 Samuel 15:15)
David's servants do not debate his command. They tell the him they are ready to do whatever he appoints. That is a faithful spirit. Absalom may have stolen hearts with smiles and promises, but these servants stand with David when it costs something.
"And the king went forth, and all his household after him. And the king left ten women, which were concubines, to keep the house."
(2 Samuel 15:16)
David leaves the city he once captured and made the center of his kingdom. He leaves ten concubines to keep the house. A child of God sometimes has to walk away from a place it loves to spare others from greater harm.
"And the king went forth, and all the people after him, and tarried in a place that was far off."
(2 Samuel 15:17)
David and the people following him stop at a place far off, away from the immediate danger of Jerusalem. David is not trying to prove his pride. He is trying to preserve life.
"And all his servants passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men which came after him from Gath, passed on before the king."
(2 Samuel 15:18)
I see David's servants passing beside him, and then I see these groups of loyal soldiers, the Cherethites, the Pelethites, and the Gittites. The six hundred men from Gath pass before the king. These Gittites were connected with Gath, a Philistine city. David once fled among the Philistines during his years of trouble with Saul, and now men from that region are loyal to him in his trouble with Absalom.
"Then said the king to Ittai the Gittite, Wherefore goest thou also with us? return to thy place, and abide with the king: for thou art a stranger, and also an exile."
(2 Samuel 15:19)
Here David is speaking kindly to Ittai the Gittite. David asks him why he is going with them. He tells him to return and abide with the king, meaning the one now rising in power. David calls Ittai "a stranger, and also an exile." In other words, Ittai is not bound to share David's sorrow. He is not from Israel. He has already had a hard road. David gives him a gracious way out.
"Whereas thou camest but yesterday, should I this day make thee go up and down with us? seeing I go whither I may, return thou, and take back thy brethren: mercy and truth be with thee."
(2 Samuel 15:20)
David reminds Ittai that he only came recently. He says, "You have not been with me long enough for me to make you wander in this trouble." David is hurting, but he still thinks about Ittai's burden. He tells him to take his brethren back and blesses him with "mercy and truth."
"And Ittai answered the king, and said, As the LORD liveth, and as my lord the king liveth, surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also will thy servant be."
(2 Samuel 15:21)
Now I see Ittai's heart. He answers David with one of the strongest statements. He swears by the living LORD and by the life of the king that wherever David goes, whether in death or life, he will be there also. Ittai has been given permission to leave, but he chooses to stay. He is not following David because everything looks successful. He is following him while David is fleeing. This reminds me of the spirit of covenant loyalty we saw in Jonathan. Jonathan loved David when it cost him something. Ittai stands with David when there is no obvious earthly gain.
"And David said to Ittai, Go and pass over. And Ittai the Gittite passed over, and all his men, and all the little ones that were with him."
(2 Samuel 15:22)
David accepts Ittai's loyalty. He says, "Go and pass over." Ittai passes over, and not only he, but all his men and all the little ones with him. That means this loyalty included families. This was not just soldiers making a brave speech. Children and households were moving into uncertainty with David. They were choosing the rejected king over the side that looked safe.