Accomplishments of David

·         David is named anointed King over Judah.

·         Gains rule over all of Israel after 7 ½ years.

·         Establishes Ark in tabernacle house of the Lord.

·         Takes it to the city of David.

·         Victorious over the Philistines.

·         Moabites become his servants.

·         Syrians become his servants.

·         His posterity and kingdom will be established forever.

David, after being blessed and strengthened by the Lord, desires to build the Lord a house. David’s home would have been much larger and grander in comparison physically than the tabernacle which by now was several hundred years old. The Lord in David’s request, answers him through Nathan the prophet and is told that he is not to build him a house. The Lord declares that he has not commanded him to do so, and that he is not prepared to do so because he was a man of blood, or had seen much conflict and violence.

However, David is promised great blessings and that his kingdom will be established forever. The Lord promises David that his son will have the blessing to build a temple. He is promised that the Lords mercy will not depart from his son. This proved to be a messianic prophecy as well for the savior when born into mortality was a descendant of David and would have been next in line to the throne if they royal family had been recognized at the time. In this way Jesus was rightful heir of the Kingdom on earth as well as in Heaven.

If I were in David’s shoes, I would have been overwhelmed by the wonderful blessings that were bestowed on me as well as my posterity. To be promised that my family name would be that which the Savior of mankind would come through would be humbling. I would also be saddened of not being able to help in the building of the temple, while at the same time being over joyed that my son would be established and have the responsibility to do so.

Week 9 Joshua's Farewell

Did the sun really stand still? Did God create Heaven and Earth and set forth the laws in which they are governed? We can find evidence from the Book of Mormon for other accounts of such heavenly phenomenon happening.  The earth, according to Helaman in these events, was made to stand still rather than the sun. The altering rotation of the earth could and would explain the sun standing still. A critic might say that it cannot happen because science cannot explain it. This argument is very weak seeing as there are still many things which science cannot explain with certainty; gravity for example is a known force on earth, but science cannot explain how it occurs.

Choose Ye this Day..

Israel's Successes 

•Israel defeats Ai after Achan and his household is destroyed 

•Israel defeats Amorites and their allies.

•Conquer the whole land 

•Israel is given rest.

Israel's Failures 

•Israel is defeated by Ai because of disobedience.

•Israel fails to destroy all inhabitants of Canaanites and some continue to live among them.                

         Many prophets in their final addresses to their people are filled with concern for their people and their well being. It seems they try to address those areas that easily beset the people. Joshua’s address to the Israelites is not different. As the Israelites began to overtake the land they did not keep the commandments of the Lord and spared some of the Canaanites, which proved to be a stumbling block for them ever after. I think the theme of his final words is mainly stay with the Lord God Jehovah and quit; do not pursue after other Gods. This was a continual problem for Israel. It but continued to plague them throughout the ages and resulted in their destruction and scattering. Joshua wanted to spare his people from themselves and yearned, as I am sure all prophets do, for the people to take head and live his counsel.

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Israel Commanded to Destroy the Wicked!

Nations the Lord commanded the Israelites to destroy: Amorites, Canaanites Hittites, Hivites and the Jebusites. Why would God command this?

The Lord commanded Israel as they went forth among these people and as they were delivered into their hands, that they were to destroy them. They were to spare none of the Canaanites, but were to completely destroy from off the earth. There were also commanded to destroy all remnants of them, particularly their places of worship, their alters and their graven images. The depravity of these nations was so terrible and infectious that Israel would have been polluted and destroyed.

These same types of sins can be found everywhere in the world today, we are not immune from them and must be cautious in our own lives. We can be sure that similar judgments will be poured out upon this world from time to time as the lord again prepares the earth for his return. Immoral sexually explicit behavior is the worst kind of behavior accepted by a people. The Canaanites had adopted prostitution and homosexuality as a form of worship and were proud of it. We need to be careful as a people that we do not embrace this trend that is creeping into our modern world with widespread acceptance.  

We can protect ourselves and our families by standing in holy places and honoring the covenants we have made with God. Giving ear to his counsel through his prophets and putting our faith into motion will keep us aloof and apart from the depravity of the world that would threaten our own destruction.