Regarding King David
Mr. Piper, well at least this time you have not taken things out of context.
You did in your last letter. All of it, which just shows people like you have no idea what the Bible says or the meaning of the scriptures. I guess you think you have pulled off some kind of coup with the scriptures about King David. Any adult that has read the scriptures knows all about David.
You left out some of the first scriptures about him. First David being anointed by Samuel to be king because God said it would be. Second David defeating Goliath with one stone. But that would put David in a good light, wouldn't it? So no you refused to put those down.
Yes, David had an affair with Bathsheba and had her husband killed. Not good at all. But the reason you are upset is that God didn't kill David and Bathsheba. First David repented. He was more than just sorry it happened. He prayed that the son would be spared. He fasted and prayed for the seven days. His servants were scared that he would really do something drastic, so they refused to tell him about the child. He spared David and Bathsheba because He was going to use both later on. King Solomon. He is sovereign and can do as he likes. Take a life or forgive sins that go against what he has spoken. He is the creator of all things. Like a potter making a clay pot, he can use it for anything the potter wants. He can also destroy it to be remade any way he likes. He sent His Son Jesus to be our Savior from our sins. Sins we have committed, sins you have committed. He did that because He loves us. He has always loved us. That is what both testaments point to.
Ben Calvert
Siloam Springs
What Psalms 33:5 really means
Oren Piper, March 13, used Psalms 33:5 to challenge the idea that God was righteous and just in dealing with King David and the Israelites. The text says, "The Lord loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of His unfailing love." Yes, the Lord loves righteousness and justice. But, He hates unrighteousness and injustice. Therefore, when Israel rebelled against God and practiced unrighteousness and injustice, God's anger burned against them.
Because of Israel's wickedness, the Lord orchestrated a clever plan to bring judgment on the people. I Chronicles 21:1 reads, "Satan rose up against Israel to incite David to take a census of Israel." II Samuel 24:1, speaking of the same event, says, "Again the anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and He incited David against them saying, 'Go take a census of Israel and Judah.'" Interesting. So, who incited David, the Lord or Satan? Well, both!
As a result of the census, an angel of the Lord, a really frightening being, went out and began killing the people of Israel with a plague. God's righteous judgment, actually tempered with mercy, resulted in the death of 70,000 Israelites.
The Lord's team is always heavily favored in these judgments against unrighteousness and injustice.
BOX SCORE RESULTS:
Angel of the Lord -- 70,000
Israel -- 0
Unrighteousness and injustice won't prevail against Him. Three thousand years later, the earth is still full of His unfailing love and His anger still burns.
John Littlejohn
Siloam Springs
Editorial on 03/20/2019