Bible study

[Nancy_Brandon]

What is the best way to explain 2 Samuel 24 to 8th graders?

 

[Myqyl]

From the NAB footnotes :
NABfootnotes:

The narrative supposes that since the people belonged to the Lord rather than to the king, only the Lord should know their exact number. Further, since such an exact numbering of the people would make it possible for the king to exercise centralized power, imposing taxation, conscription, and expropriation upon Israel, the story shares the view of monarchy found in 1 Sm 8:4–18. See also Nm 3:44–51, where census taking requires an apotropaic offering.

David sinned in counting the people. He had been told not to. God punishes sin, and forgives sin that has been repented…

At least that’s my take

God bless

 

[DianaCC]

What is the best way to explain 2 Samuel 24 to 8th graders?

Make it look like what God did was the right thing to do under the circumstances, and that David knew exactly what he was doing but did it anyway. Emphasize that David’s motivation was fundamentally prideful and ultimately unnecessary, and besides it was against Exodus 30, which was put in place so that future kings wouldn’t turn Israel into a military superpower, because that’s not why God formed that nation.

Point out that Joab gave David a heads-up about the issue, plus it took nearly 10 months to finish the census, so not only was David warned by a counsellor, but also the length of time proves David was doing it deliberately and not in the heat of the moment. So the buck stops on David’s desk for this one.

Sin hurts everyone, and David’s sin hurt the people who died of plague, so he bears responsibility for their deaths. But just as importantly, David was sorry for what he did even before the plague happened - yet the plague happened anyway, no matter how sorry he was. So just being sorry is not enough. We still have a penance to carry out after we’re forgiven.

David is also responsible for his choice of the three punishments. Think about why he chose plague over famine or military weakness. What does that say about the kind of man David was becoming? Why did David want to take the census in the first place? How about, because he had dreams of becoming a military superpower? If there were famine, his military would be weak; if military weakness, he would be the laughing stock of the middle east. People would tease him, “O David the Musician, because these days you’re more of a limp-wristed harpist than a king, tell us, what rhymes with ‘retreat’?” “O Great King, why don’t you throw a few rocks at your enemies; it worked for you last time!” But if he chose plague, it would be over and done with and David’s page in the history books would be somewhat less embarrassing. Or, looked at another way, he chose the one option that left himself as a possible victim. The king can’t actually go to war, so he could have chosen military weakness; he was rich, so famine wouldn’t have been a problem; instead he chose plague because he knew he could die of it himself. So maybe David had more integrity than we thought.

God is not a mean god, like those of the surrounding nations. He relents, and allows us to participate in stemming the tide of destruction that our sins unleash, and so he told David the plague could end if David made sacrifice, and so it did. But you can’t just slap eminent domain on a citizen’s property even for the public good, so David actually bought Araunah’s venue fair and square. What does this say about today’s tendency to redistribute wealth via taxation? Think about it. At any rate, David lost the privilege of having the temple built during his administration (compare the parallel story in Chronicles).

How’s that for starters?

 

[Nancy_Brandon]

Thank you myqyl and DianaCC. I teach 5/6 grade religion and 7/8 grade religion at a Catholic Homeschool Coop. I love what I do and there are some pretty sharp kids in my classes. It is so important to me to teach them only truth. The catechetical program I am using is superior so I have a lot of help. But my weakness is the Old Testament and many times I cannot see the whole picture. You helped very much.
God bless,
Nancy Brandon