1 Chronicles 14 (ESV)✞: David’s Wives and Children, Philistines Defeated
Passage
At this point in Chronicles we’re going through a few chapters that discuss David bringing the Ark of the LORD to Jerusalem. The author(s) of Chronicles aren’t following the actual timeline of the events (as presented in 2 Samuel), but the same events are being discussed.
In the last chapter we read about his first attempt to bring the Ark to Jerusalem, which failed with the death of Uzzah, and in the next chapter we’ll read about the successful mission to bring the Ark to David’s city. In this chapter we backtrack a bit. (If you’re getting lost between the events in Chronicles vs. the depiction of the same events in Samuel and Kings, I’ve been linking to a chart provided by ESV.org that compares the storylines.)
But let’s get into the passage at hand.
In verses 1–7✞ we’re told about some more wives David took once he was established in Jerusalem, along with more children born to him. (The list of sons includes Solomon, which reminds me that the book of Chronicles is going to skip over the adultery and murder of the Bathsheba incident.)
Then verses 8–17✞ outline some defeats the Philistines suffered at the hands of David:
8 When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. But David heard of it and went out against them. 9 Now the Philistines had come and made a raid in the Valley of Rephaim. 10 And David inquired of God, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand?” And the LORD said to him, “Go up, and I will give them into your hand.” 11 And he went up to Baal-perazim, and David struck them down there. And David said, “God has broken through my enemies by my hand, like a bursting flood.” Therefore the name of that place is called Baal-perazim. 12 And they left their gods there, and David gave command, and they were burned.
13 And the Philistines yet again made a raid in the valley. 14 And when David again inquired of God, God said to him, “You shall not go up after them; go around and come against them opposite the balsam trees. 15 And when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then go out to battle, for God has gone out before you to strike down the army of the Philistines.” 16 And David did as God commanded him, and they struck down the Philistine army from Gibeon to Gezer. 17 And the fame of David went out into all lands, and the LORD brought the fear of him upon all nations.
Thoughts
Something I’ve been struggling with over chapters 13–15 is why the author(s) are telling the events out of order; why, in the middle of the story of David bringing the Ark to Jerusalem, do they backtrack in this chapter to talk about David’s growing family and his defeat of the Philistines? The ESV Study Bible posits that, “The point of this repositioning of material is to show where David’s true priorities lie,” and the Global Study Bible says, “[The author] changes the order of these events to show that David’s true priority is his commitment to God.” but… I’m not sure how presenting things in this order actually does that.
In my mind, the author(s) are essentially doing this:
- They tell the story of David’s first, failed attempt to bring the Ark to Jerusalem,
- They have an aside to say to the reader, “remember, this is the same David who expanded his family when he got to Jerusalem and defeated the Philistines through the power of God,” and then,
- They finish the story of bringing the Ark to Jerusalem
I’m sure there’s a cultural element I’m missing here! Maybe the answer is given in a note by the ESV Reformation Study Bible, which says, “This account illustrates that despite David’s failure (ch. 13), God established and blessed him.” So perhaps the author(s) are saying to the reader, “Even though David failed, don’t think he was a bad king – he wasn’t! Look at the way God expanded his family and gave him success against his enemies!”
It’s the best I’ve been able to come up with so far.
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