Yet when the time came, Israel wanted a king “like all the other nations” (1 Sam 8:5). It was always God’s intention for Israel to have a king (cf. In other words, Yahweh has sought a man in accordance with his own choice (i.e., instead of the choice of the people). The pertinent phrase from 1 Samuel 13:14 is actually “after his own heart” which grammatically could modify the word man, or it could also modify the verb “Yahweh has sought out.” Many modern commentators understand 1 Samuel 13:14 with regard to the latter. An Alternative Understanding of aĪ different interpretation for “a man after God’s own heart” is likely more appropriate in the context of 1 Samuel. There seem to be individuals in Scripture who are godlier than David and moreĬommitted to God’s Law than David. Individuals who have a better track record in living faithfully for God thanĭavid. Yet, neither of them are declared a man after God’s own heart. Both Hezekiah and Josiah put away the high places and reformed worship practice to align with the Law. However, there are a couple other kings who seem to match David in regard to this-namely Hezekiah and Josiah. To get around this potential problem, some people will say that David never engaged in direct idolatry and that is the explanation for saying David was a man after God’s own heart. Can we say David was uniquely a man after God’s own heart when his actions seem to communicate otherwise? He killed Uriah the Hittite, and committed adultery with Bathsheba, Uriah’s wife. On the one hand, David was far from morally pure. However, this viewpoint has a couple difficulties. As such, David was a man after God’s own heart in that he was committed to God’s ways and demonstrated fidelity to God’s Law. Most people want to take this phrase as a reference to the moral character of David. The Bible says David was a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam 13:14 Acts 13:22).
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