After His Own Heart - Part 1
“The LORD hath sought Him a man after his own heart”
by Walter Gidding
November 20, 2022
Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 13:10-14.
Greetings Kindred, and fellow sheep, and outright Rescues of Our Heavenly Father through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour I am your classmate in God’s Classroom. I am also for this moment your pedagogue. My job is to lead you to our Real Teacher, the Master, Jesus Christ.
(Mark 1 Samuel 13:10-14). Who, in The Bible, is known as the Man after God’s own heart? Where in The Bible do we turn to confirm that: [stand]
c 10 And it came to pass, that as soon
as he had made an end of offering
the burnt offering, behold, Samuel
came; and Saul went out to meet
him that he might salute him.
p 11 And Samuel said, What hast thou
done? And Saul said, Because I saw
that the people were scattered from
me, and that thou camest not within
the days appointed, and that the Phi-
listines gathered themselves together
at Michmash;
c 12 Therefore said I, The Philistines
will come down now upon me to Gil-
gal, and I have not made supplication
unto the LORD: I forced myself
therefore, and offered a burnt offer-
ing.
p 13 And Samuel said to Saul, Thou
hast done foolishly: thou hast not
kept the commandment of the LORD
thy God, which he commanded thee:
for now would the LORD have estab-
lished thy kingdom upon Israel for
ever.
c 14 But now thy kingdom shall not
continue: the LORD hath sought
him a man after his own heart, and
the LORD hath commanded him to
be captain over his people, because
thou hast not kept that which the
LORD commanded thee.
First Samuel chapter thirteen.
“Thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.” (Genesis 2:15-17). Did Adam keep that which the LORD commanded him?
c 15 And the LORD God took the man
and put him into the garden of Eden
to dress it and to keep it.
p 16 And the LORD commanded the
man, saying, Of every tree of the gar-
den thou mayest freely eat:
c 17 But of the tree of the knowledge
of good and evil thou shalt not eat of
it: for in the day that thou eatest
thereof thou shalt surely die.
Genesis chapter two.
“In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Could the Commandment and the Warning be any clearer? Has anyone here forgotten what Adam chose to do in Genesis 3? Verse 6 reads in pertinent part, (she) “gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.” In previous Lessons we discovered Adam was not with her when she ate, but Adam was with her when he did eat. He found her “in the transgression” (1 Timothy 2). Did that bankrupt the Race of Adam with a sin problem? Did Adam in eating the forbidden fruit cause “the foundation of the World”? Did we cover that in our Lessons titled Foundation? Does that bankruptcy mean we cannot save ourselves? (Psalm the 32nd). Does being Saved mean we are Rescues? Does being Saved mean The Sin Debt is Paid, and we are Solvent, not Bankrupt?
p Blessed is he whose transgression
is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
c 2 Blessed is the man unto whom
the LORD imputeth not iniquity,
and in whose spirit there is no guile.
Psalms chapter thirty two.
Does “justification” mean we hold the Greatest Pardon in the Universe? (1 John 3:4). Is there a built-in Dictionary in The Bible? Does God define His Terms?
4 Whosoever committeth sin trans-
gresseth also the law: for sin is the
transgression of the law.
First John chapter three.
“For sin is the transgression of the law.” Are God’s Commandments Law?
(1 Samuel 13:13). Did Samuel say: “Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God, which he commanded thee.”?
What did the LORD God command Saul? (1 Samuel 10:1). When did the LORD God command Saul? Was it before, or after, Samuel anointed Saul to be King?
Then Samuel took a vial of oil, and
poured it upon his head, and kissed
him, and said, Is it not because the
LORD hath anointed thee to be cap-
tain over his inheritance?
How did the LORD command Saul? (10:8).
8 And thou shalt go down before
me to Gilgal; and behold, I will
come down unto thee, to offer burnt
offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices
of peace offerings: seven days shalt
thou tarry, till I come to thee, and
shew thee what thou shalt do.
First Samuel chapter ten.
What was the excuse Saul gave for disobeying God? Did we read that at the beginning? (Back to 1 Samuel 13). Saul had reigned for 2 years as King. (v 3). “Jonathan”, King Saul’s son, “smote the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, Let the Hebrews hear.” (v 4). “And all Israel heard say that Saul had smitten a garrison of the Philistines, and that Israel also was had in abomination with the Philistines. And the people were called together after Saul to Gilgal.” (v 5). The Philistines were 30,000 chariots, 6,000 cavalry, and “people as the sand which is on the seashore in multitude.” (v 6-7). The men of Israel hid themselves in caves, thickets, rocks, high places, pits, and over Jordan to Gad, Gilead, and those who followed Saul were trembling (v 8). Saul tarried 7 days. After 7 days Samuel came not to Gilead, and the people were scattered. (verse 10).
10 And it came to pass, that as soon
as he had made an end of offering
the burnt offering, behold, Samuel
came, and Saul went out to meet him,
that he might salute him.
Busted What were Saul’s Instructions in Chapter 10? Did Samuel say, “Till I come to thee, and shew thee what thou shalt do.”? Did Samuel say that he would offer the burnt offering and sacrifices? (v.v. 11-12). What excuse did Saul give?
p 11 And Samuel said, What hast thou
done? And Saul said, Because I saw
that the people were scattered from
me, and that thou camest not within
the days appointed, and that the Phil-
istines gathered themselves together
at Michmash;
c 12 Therefore said I, the Philistines
will come down now upon me to Gil-
gal, and I have not made supplication
unto the LORD: I forced myself there-
fore and offered a burnt offering.
First Samuel chapter thirteen.
What was important to Saul? What was more important than obeying The Commandment of God Samuel gave him? What was Saul’s first “because”? Was Saul’s 1st “because”, Verse 11, more important than obeying “the LORD’s commandment”?
“Because I saw that the people were scattered from me.”
(1 Samuel 15:17). Who knows which one of us, or our sons, in Tribulation will become God’s Anointed and do “Exploits”? Or will we be like Saul?
17 And Samuel said, When thou
wast little in thine own sight, wast
thou not made the head of the tribes
of Israel, and the LORD anointed
thee king over Israel?
First Samuel chapter fifteen.
(Daniel 11:32). Will it be we, or our children, or our grandchildren that will face a titanic struggle in the endtime Tribulation?
32 And such as do wickedly against
the covenant shall he corrupt by flat-
teries: but the people that do know
their God shall be strong, and do ex-
ploits.
Daniel chapter eleven.
(1 Samuel 13:15). Samuel told Saul: “thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart.”
15 And Samuel arose, and gat him
up from Gilgal unto Gibeah of Ben-
jamin. And Saul numbered the peo-
ple that were present with him,
about six hundred men.
“Six hundred men”. Is that down from 2000 with Saul in Michmash and Mount Bethel, and 1000 with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin? (Verse 5). Now it is the Philistines in Michmash with 30,000 chariots, 6,000 cavalry, “and people as the sand which is on the seashore in multitude” (verse 17). And the Philistines came out of camp in three companies of marauding plunderers to spoil unarmed Israel Can this get any dicier ? (Verse 15). Did Saul forget Gideon’s 300? Saul numbered with him 600, twice as many as Gideon had. Even with Saul’s Failure, God gave the victory [chapter 14] to the Hebrews.
How many in our land remember little of the Old Testament Scriptures, but for some reason remember King David was “a man after [God’s] own heart”? That sticks even with those who believe the Old Testament is done away
What was in David’s heart that caused God to have the Prophet Samuel say, “the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart”? This is said once in 1 Samuel 13:15 Why does this stick in many people’s minds? What was in David’s heart that caused God to call him “a man after his own heart”? Why is David the only member of Adam’s Race to be called of God “a man after his own heart”?
(1 Samuel 16:1-2). Can we find a clue in David’s Anointing? God’s rejection of Saul as King was a great grief to Samuel:
c And the LORD said unto Samuel,
How long wilt thou mourn for Saul
seeing I have rejected him from reign-
ing over Israel? fill thine horn with
oil, and go. I will send thee to Jesse
the Bethlehemite: for I have provided
me a king among his sons.
p 2 And Samuel said, How can I go?
If Saul hear it, he will kill me. And
the LORD said, Take an heifer with
thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to
the LORD.
How did Samuel intuit that Saul would kill him for anointing another to be King? Up to now Saul had never committed murder. There is no record the LORD warned Samuel that Saul would kill him. How Samuel understood that Saul would commit murder is not crucial to the Question of what was in David’s Heart. That Study is for another time. (16:3). It is the LORD who gives Samuel an assignment of Sacrifice in Bethlehem to cover Samuel’s secret errand.
3 And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and
I will shew thee what thou shalt do:
and thou shalt anoint unto me him
whom I name unto thee.
(16:4). Samuel’s appearance at Bethlehem created quite the stir.
4 And Samuel did that which the
LORD spake, and came to Bethlehem.
And the elders of the town trembled
at his coming, and said, Comest thou
peaceably?
Samuel sanctified Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. Samuel thought surely Eliab, Jesse’s 1st born, was God’s anointed. But the LORD said, I have refused him. “For the LORD seeth not as man seeth ; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.” [v. 5] When the LORD refused all the sons, Samuel asked Jesse, “Are here all thy children?” Jesse replied, “the youngest ... keepeth the sheep.”
p 12 And he sent, and brought him in.
Now he was ruddy and withal of a
beautiful countenance, and goodly to
look to. And the LORD said, Arise,
anoint him: for this is he.
c 13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil,
and anointed him in the midst of his
brethren: and the Spirit of the LORD
came upon David from that day for-
ward. So Samuel rose up, and went to
Ramah.
First Samuel chapter sixteen.
From the time of David’s Anointing, the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul. God sent an evil spirit that troubled him. Saul, not knowing David had been anointed King, drafted David to play the harp in his presence to comfort him when the evil spirit troubled him. The Philistines mustered their armies to battle. (1 Samuel 17:15) Jesse’s 3 oldest sons, Eliab, the 1st born, Abinadab, and Shammah followed Saul to the battle.
15 But David went and returned
from Saul to feed his father’s sheep
at Bethlehem.
First Samuel chapter seventeen.
Where do we find The Scriptures that evidence what was in David’s heart to cause The Great I Am God of Israel to call David a man “after his own heart”?
David refused to slay Saul in the cave in the wilderness of Engedi. He told the King that he was his lord and the LORD’s anointed. David said, “I have not sinned against thee; yet thou huntest my soul to take it.”
Later the Ziphites told Saul that David was hiding in the hill of Hachilah before Jeshimon. David’s spies told him Saul and 3000 chosen men were hunting him and had pitched in the hill of Hachilah. David and Abishai came into their camp by night and took Saul’s spear and cruse of water. On the hill opposite Saul’s camp, a great space between them, David cried to the people and scolded them for failing to guard the King. Saul knew David’s voice. David said to Saul, that, if the sons of Adam have stirred him up to pursue him, “Cursed be they before the LORD; for they have driven me out this day from abiding in the inheritance of the LORD, saying, Go, serve other gods.” On 2 occasions David refused to slay the LORD’s anointed.
The Holy Spirit sums up the life of David. (1 Kings 15:3-5). Abijam, son of Rehoboam, David’s great grandson, reigned 3 years in Jerusalem. He died.
c 3 And he walked in all the sins of
his father, which he had done before
him: and his heart was not perfect
with the LORD his God, as the heart
of David his father.
p 4 Nevertheless for David’s sake did
the LORD his God give him a lamp
in Jerusalem, to set up his son after
him, and to establish Jerusalem.
c 5 Because David did that which was
right in the eyes of the LORD, and
turned not aside from any thing that
he commanded him all the days of
his life, save only in the matter of
Uriah the Hittite.
First Kings chapter fifteen.
God said of Moses, [Exodus 33:11], “And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face as a man speaketh unto his friend”, and [Deuteronomy 34:10] “And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face.” God said of Abraham [Isaiah 41:8], “But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.” And [James 2:23] James explains, when Abraham had offered his son Isaac on the altar, “And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.” We are told in The Scriptures why God spoke with Moses face to face, and why Abraham was called “the Friend of God”. Do The Scriptures tell us why God called David “a man after his own heart”? What was in David’s heart?
(Psalms 89:20). Is there a clue in The Book of Psalms? From where did God choose David?
20 I have found David my servant;
with my holy oil have I anointed him.
Psalms chapter eighty nine.
(Psalms 78:70-72). From where did God take David?
c 70 He chose David also his servant,
and took him from the sheepfolds:
p 71 From following the ewes great
with young he brought him to feed
Jacob his people, and Israel his in-
heritance.
c 72 So he fed them according to the
integrity of his heart; and guided
them by the skilfullness of his hands.
Psalms chapter seventy eight.
Did God take David “from the sheepfolds”? Is that important? (Genesis 46:31-34). Were David’s ancestors shepherds?
p 31 And Joseph said unto his brethren,
and unto his father’s house, I will go
up, and shew Pharaoh, and say unto
him, My brethren and my father’s
house which were in the land of Can-
aan, are come unto me:
c 32 And the men are shepherds, for
their trade hath been to feed cattle;
and they have brought their flocks,
and their herds, and all that they have.
p 33 And it shall come to pass, when Pha-
raoh shall call you, and shall say, What
is your occupation?
c 34 That ye shall say, Thy servants trade
hath been about cattle from our youth
even until now, both we and also our fa-
thers: that ye may dwell in the land of
Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomi-
nation unto the Egyptians.
Genesis chapter forty six.
“Every shepherd is an abomintion unto the Egyptians.” What is an abomination?
How many here watch old Cowboy Movies? How many here are addicted to Westerns? Is there just something classic about the white hats and black hats? The old Westerns that feature cowboys and cattle drives, and the feuding tension between sheepherders, and nestors with the free ranging cowboys show the cowboys consider sheepherders and nesters filth under their feet The movie “The Sheepman” with Glen Ford is a classic.
The word abomination means utterly filthy disgusting. Sheep smell. That smell is called Stink. Sheep are complainers. If the Flock is moving they all bleat when in their estimation they have been on the move too long. They complain about lying down in green pasture or being beside still waters. They are easily bored. When they spot wolves they mill about bleating. When easily outrun by wolves they roll on their backs, give up, and bare their necks so the wolves can tear their throats out. They resist the Shepherd and the Sheepdog. They are easily confused. They fight the very thing that would Save them. They are the weakest, most helpless creatures in all Creation. They are fleeced annually. Does that sound like Americans?
Years ago a family man visited me long distance from rural Hancock County. He told me his family raised cattle, 3rd generation. His Grandfather was not always a cattleman. He used to have sheep. He was down under the cliff working on equipment when he noticed a stray sheep peering over the cliff edge out of curiosity. He realized instantly he was going to lose a prize sheep. He hollered to distract the sheep from his purpose. He began to run around the cliff and up the draw with the sheep dog quickly out distancing him. When he reached the top, the Sheepdog was helplessly circling the sheep at the cliff edge. Just before he could reach the animal, the sheep figured out the Sheepdog could not do anything except circle him. The Sheep turned around and began to peer over the edge to satisfy his curiosity. Just before Grandfather could reach him, the Sheep lost his footing, and tumbled over the edge to his death. Grandpa lost his temper He sold the flock and the Sheepdog to finance his entrance into the cattle business. The man told me Grandpa still hates sheep today, and that is how he became 3rd generation cattleman. Grandpa says they are unlovable And he still warns everybody that will listen not to have anything to do with them
David was the youngest of 8 sons. He drew the dirtiest job. Samuel had David brought from keeping the sheep. (1 Samuel 17:32-33). David offered to defeat the Philistine champion Goliath.
p 32 And David said to Saul, Let no
man’s heart fail because of him; thy
servant will go and fight with this
Philistine.
c 33 And Saul said to David, Thou art
not able to go against this Philistine
to fight with him: for thou art but a
youth, and he a man of war from his
youth.
Who remembers how David persuaded King Saul to let him fight the 6 fingered, 6 toed Giant? (vv 34-37). [stand].
p 34 And David said unto Saul, Thy
servant kept his father’s sheep, and
there came a lion, and a bear, and
took a lamb out of the flock:
c 35 And I went out after him, and
smote him, and delivered it out of
his mouth: and when he arose again-
st me, I caught him by his beard, and
smote him, and slew him.
p 36 Thy servant slew both the lion
and the bear: and this uncircumcized
Philistine shall be as one of them, see-
ing he hath defied the armies of the
living God.
c 37 David said moreover, The LORD
that delivered me out of the paw of
the lion, and out of the paw of the
bear, he will deliver me out of the
hand of this Philistine. And Saul said
unto David, Go, and the LORD be
with thee.
First Samuel chapter seventeen.
David’s stone came out of his sling at the speed of a musket ball. Goliath brought a sword and spear to a gunfight. “Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear.”
Contrast 1 Samuel 17 with John 10:12-13. Notice the difference in the behaviour of David, the Shepherd boy, and the hireling.
p 12 But he that is an hireling and not
the shepherd whose own the sheep are
not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth
the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf
catcheth them and scattereth the sheep.
c 13 The hireling fleeth, because he is an
hireling, and careth not for the sheep.
John chapter ten.
“The hireling ... careth not for the sheep.” The Sheep are abandoned to wolves (The 23rd Psalm). Does David identify who the sheep are? What did David sing?
The LORD is my shepherd.
Psalms chapter twenty three.
To be continued, God Willing, on the next occasion. What was in David’s heart?
Bibliography
1 Samuel 13:10-14. “after his own heart”.
Genesis 2:16-17. “the commandment”.
Psalms 32:1-2. “imputeth not iniquity”.
1 John 3:4. “sin is”.
[1 Samuel 13:13]. “Thou hast done foolishly”.
1 Samuel 10:1. “the LORD hath anointed thee”.
1 Samuel 10:8. “till I … shew thee”.
Back to 1 Samuel 13.
1 Samuel 13:3,4,5,6-7,8,10.
1 Samuel 13:11-12). “the people were scattered from me”.
1 Samuel 15:17. “when thou wast little”.
Daniel 11:32. “do exploits”.
1 Samuel 13:15. 600 men.
1 Samuel 16:1-2. “I have rejected him”.
1 Samuel 16:3-4. “the elders of the town trembled”.
1 Samuel 16:12-13. Samuel anoints David.
1 Samuel 17:15. “his father’s sheep”.
1 Kings 15:3-5. “for David’s sake”.
[Exodus 3:11 and Deuteronomy 34:10] Moses.
[Isaiah 41:8 and James 2:23] Abraham.
Psalms 89:20. “anointed”.,
Psalms 78:70-72. “from the sheepfolds”.
Genesis 46:31-34. “an abomination”.
1 Samuel 17:32-33. “a man of war”.
1 Samuel 17:34-37. “the lion and the bear”.
John 10:12-13. “the hireling”.
The 23rd Psalm.
