First Chronicles 29:26-28
‘David blessed the Lord…and…said: “Be blessed, Lord God of Israel, our Father, for ever and ever! Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty! For all that is in Heaven and on the Earth, is Yours. Yours is the Kingdom, O Lord, and You are exalted as Head above all! Both riches and honour, come from You. And You reign over all; and in Your hand is power and might; and in Your hand it is to make great…. But who am I?…. For all things come from You…. For we are strangers before You, and sojourners, as were all our fathers. Our days on the Earth are like a shadow, and there is none abiding!”… David…reigned over Israel…forty years. Seven years he reigned in Hebron, and thirty-three years he reigned in Jerusalem. Then he died in a good old age — full of days, riches, and honour.’ First Chronicles 29:10-28.
King David was old, and stricken in years. The king was very old. The days of David drew near that he would die. Then, David fell asleep with his fathers. First Kings 1:1,15 & 2:1,10.
But before he did, David first praised God for His unlimited kingship; for man’s need of help; and for God’s omniscience. ‘When David was old and weary with life, he made his son Solomon king over Israel’ (First Chronicles 23:1). David had already become bed-ridden, and was ‘full of days.’
David gives fitting expression to his joy on the success of the deepest wish of his heart, in a prayer with which he closes the last session of his reign. In this, the pious and grey-haired servant of the Lord saw a special proof of the divine favour — for which he must thank the Lord God. He praises Jehovah, ‘the God of Israel, our Father.’ The Lord God had not only by David made His people great, but He had also awakened in their hearts such love for and trust in their God — that the assembled dignitaries of the kingdom showed themselves perfectly willing to assist in furthering the building of His temple.
But “who am I, and what is my people?,” asked David. “For we are strangers!” (Ps. 39:12). We have no property; no enduring possession here on Earth! Our present life is but a pilgrimage (Hebrews 11:12-14). It is brief. Like a shadow, our days here on Earth swiftly pass away (Psalm 90:9). There is no trust, in the continuance of our present life!
Just like the dying Moses did not step into Canaan, neither did the dying David step into the temple. He died, when his successor Solomon was ready to accept the great task of kingship. But David died when he had acquired a long life, great possessions, the respect of the world, and a son as his successor.
David, the son of Jesse, had been king over all Israel. He had been king at Hebron for seven years, and then king in Jerusalem for a further thirty-three years. King for forty years, altogether.
So, David died. He died in good old age, full of days and riches — on his way to Heaven!
