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Why does God strike Uzzah? When David went to get the ark from the house of Abinadab he did not find out the appropriate way to transport the ark of God which was consider holy and sacred and was only allow around the present of holy men. They were transporting the ark on a cart pulled by oxen and the oxen shook it (maybe because rough road or ride) which cause Uzzah to react and reach out to stabilized it from falling. Uzzah died after putting his hands on the ark. Why is David so angry? David was upset and surprised because he thought he was doing a good thing by recovering the ark and he was probably humiliated because of his plan and leadership was looking bad to the people, so David became of afraid of the Lord and what would happen with the ark in his presence.

Why does Joab slay Abner? Joab wanted to avenge his brother’s death. Is he justified in doing so? No, Joab was angry with Abner for killing his brother Asahela and for going behind him to talk to David about a peace treaty. How does this affect his king's unification plans? The peace treaty was going to take place because David was destining to be king and Ish-bosheth wanted an end to the constant bloodshed. Both David and Ish-bosheth comes to an agreement for peace. According to Abner the elders was also ready for David to become king. How can our spiritual blindness get in the way of God working out His plan in our lives? We bring self or selfishness or pride in our way. We see things or circumstances most of times in natural sense not in the spiritual sense for what they are. So naturally we try to fix it without seeking God. God sometimes allows us to do it our way until we remove self and completely surrender and trust God to take care of it. Take a self check and see what self is standing in the way of then move self out of the way so you can receive your blessing.

1 Chronicles 10:13-14) David is gracious in his memorial psalm. How does he remember Saul's life? David always spoke of Saul as God anointed, David respected and honor Saul as king. David stated; Saul and Jonathan were swifter than an eagle and stronger than a lion. At one point David probably really looked up to Saul because he was strong and skillful. David also tries to remind the people that Saul took care of Israel. David wanted them to remember the good and kind Saul they knew at first. In honor to Saul and Jonathan David asked the people not to talk about his death in the street, and to teach their children how to use a bow. How does the Chronicler remember Saul's life? The writer felt Saul was unfaithful to God and did not keep the word of God which causes of end of his life. The author 1 Samuel talks about how the people of Israel wanted King (despite their rejection as God as their King) and God told Samuel to select to Saul. Saul was a tall attractive young man born from the tribe of Bengimins (men of power and strength). Saul is then anointed by Samuel and the Spirit of Lord was with him. The writer shows Saul was a great soldier and he and his men defeated many battles. He became very powerful and popular. However, Saul’s rebellious nature and disobedient that causes his own path to destruction. The writer tells us that the Spirit of God left Saul and an evil spirit had entered him. What do we learn from this? I learn that we can be our own enemy and let our own stubbornness and/or disobedient be the downfall of blocking our blessings and possibly leading us into a path of destruction. Just as Saul did, Saul to me was his worst enemy. Saul let power and popularity get to his head and it eventually destroy him. How do you think God evaluates Saul's life? God oh God oh God he is such a merciful God he knew Saul's heart and the thing he was going to do, but just like you and me Saul had the choice to do right or wrong and a lot of what he did was wrong ones. God said that he was sorry he made Saul king and He allowed an evil spirit to enter Saul. There always will be consequences for your action bad or good. Was the death of Saul God’s consequence? Only God knows, God will decide Saul’s final judgment.

From the Psalms of David, how does David seem to strengthen himself in the Lord when things are going bad? God is David's Rock and Salvation and his fortress (shield) in time of need. David goes to God and gets comfort and joy from Him. What devotional exercises does he adopt? David is always, praying and giving thanks and praises and glory and honor to God. He always seeks protection from his enemies. What is the focus of his faith? Hope, Trust, and Believed in God. ..David is one of my favorite biblical male people why because he knew he was a man with faults and that may him relatable to me, but he always knew that he can seek God and repent. God is David rock and salvation.

Why do the men blame David? They felt he took all the men and left their home camp unprotected and caused the Amalekites amry to come in and take their women and children and burn their land. Why is the situation so explosive at this point? Although, God intervened and worked it so they did not have to fight against Saul’s and his army, they left their family and went there to help fight with the Philistines who are their enemies. David and his men had been dismissed after just traveling miles there and then having to turn back and travel miles back to find out that their entire family and land is gone, there is no wife of child or love to come home to because your love ones are gone. What does David do in the situation? David turns to God for comfort and encouragement and he also sought council of the Lord about the situation, regarding should he or shouldn’t he go after the men that took their family. What is David feeling? David was sadden and greatly distress by what had happen in verse 4 it said that he wept with his men, because David also had his wives taken too. I also felt that David being the man that he was felt very responsible for what had happen but he knew just who to turn to (v.6). David could've went around continue feeling depressed or retaliated towards the men that were upset and ready to stone him, but instead he sought for encouragement/strength from The Lord. Why doesn't he act immediately? Remember David was also greatly distress and he knew his men were upset and tired from their previous journey and he didn’t want to stir the pot so to speak, so he did what he trusted best he sought the Lord.

Why do you think God condemns occult practices of communicating with the dead and channeling spirits of the dead? Because anything that is not of God is not righteous and about trusting and worshiping God. God said there shall be no other gods before me for, I am the Lord God am a jealous. Therefore if you are dappling into these areas you maybe worshiping evil and demonic practice and God is not please. How might such practices open Christians to victimization and oppression by evil spirits? Christians fall victims to a lot of these practice often times when they in distress from losing a love one or if they are going through very hard times and they need some words of comfort and encouragement. They lose patient and hope and trust in God and seek answer from these sources. What should you do if you've been involved in such practices in the past? I grew up in a church that taught us to fear and respect God so I tried my best to stay far away from any involvement from these practice. However, when I was a teenager before I got save and came into the true knowledge of Jesus Christ as my Savior, I use to buy those monthly roll up horoscope to read to tell what my future hold, so I guess I was naively dappling into astrology practice instead of turning to Jesus for answer. I know now that the horoscope are one of the gateway for falling trap into these other pactices. You might start worshiping the star gods or moon gods etc...seeking answers but they are not of The True God. I have since then turn from my wrong doings and repented and now I look to the true God for answers.

What do we learn about David's character in this incident with Nabal and Abigail? David was emotionally upset and very quick to call judgment and punishment on Nabal. He was going to shed his blood (kill him) without consulting God because he felt he was justified. However, he showed compassion because of Abigail and spared their lives. What do we learn about Abigail's character? Abigail was wise and beautiful wife who saw fit to intervene to save her husband and her family lives. She probably didn’t chose her husband their marriage was most likely prearranged. Nabal's character? The bible stated that Nabal was a churlish and evil man in his doing, which mean he was harsh and unkind. Nabal’s had many sheep that he probably worked hard to obtain, however, he was very mean and did not show any gratitude when David protected his animals from being taken or killed by the enemies. He also talked bad about David. Nabal acted foolishly, it almost cost his entire family and servant men lives. It eventually cost him his life. Why do you think this story was included in 1 Samuel? What important knowledge does it add to our understanding? I believed from the natural aspect the bible wanted to show us some of the resources that David had/ or obtained during the time he and his men were moving from place to place. On the spiritual aspect I think that there several things that it shows us, we are to be faithful and wise, and good stewardmen. (Luke 12:42) Also David was going to take revenge into his own hand and kill (shed blood), and we should allow God to vindicate us. Vengeance belongs to the Lord (Deut. 32:35). When someone does evil against me or my family I need to not get upset and or hold a grudge. I need not to act on it in negative way but go to God and I ask forgiveness for myself and for that person and God will work it out for my good.

How do we apply the principle of not lifting a hand against the Lord's anointed in our day? Show respect and honor to our leaders of the church and do not talk about them in a negative way or slander them. "The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching...What provisions are there in 1 Timothy 5:19-20 for calling leaders to account. Don’t except as true an accusation against an elder unless verified by the two or three witness. “Do not entertain an accusation against an elder unless it is brought by two or three witnesses. Those who sin are to be rebuked publicly, so that the others may take warning." (1 Timothy 5:17, 19-20).” What do you think God will do to those who slander, persecute, and martyr his appointed leaders? God said touch not his anointed, so if they are in “His Will” they will be vindicated by God.

Why doesn't David kill Saul when he has the chance? David knew that Saul was still king and he respected fact that he was once anointed by God and also he made a covenant with his son Jonathan. What motive do David and his men have for killing a king who is trying to kill them? David motive was Saul constantly seeking to kill him and Saul taking the lives of the priests and David may have wanted to protect safety of his family from being on the run. The men’s motives was that they had become fond of David and also most of them was mistreated by Saul therefore they probably dislike him and some was was being hunted for owing him money. What does this tell us about David's character? He was honorable, compassionate, and trusted (strong faith) in God. What does it say about David's leadership ability that he is able to dissuade his men from killing Saul? David was great leader, as a great soldier he lead with integrity and respect for his men so the men honored, respected, and they trusted him and they knew that God spirit was with him.

In these ascriptions to these psalms, how many celebrate happy occasions? I only really saw one, (Ps. 18), however, in all of them David never forgets to give God the praise even in the midst of his struggles. How many arise from struggles? All arises from some type of situation that he was struggling with. What does this tell you about David's relationship with God? David loved God, and in his time of need David lean and depend on God as his confidant, and he continues to praise and give Him the glory and honor in all his circumstances. What does this tell you about his faith during trials? David had strong faith in God while he was going through his struggles, he constantly prayed and consulted with God and he continued to trust and believed in God. Which is your favorite among these psalms? Why? I Choose Psalms 142, the prayer for God to be my refuge in my time of need. Why? At one time I was going through a situation at my workplace where I felt that they tried to snare my integrity and character BUT GOD took what they meant for my evil and turn it into something good. THANK YOU JESUS!

Why does Jonathan visit David in the wilderness? Jonathan wanted to encourage David that even though Saul and his men was definitely pursuing him and would have him killed when they caught him, he however did not have the same intention as his father and he knew David was going to be next king and he after. Jonathan also wanted to say goodbye to David and wish him well. What risk is there for David? David took a risk meeting Jonathan because Saul may have had his son followed or watched because he knew of his friendship with David. Also, David did not want to risk anything to happening to Jonathan because he helped him just like the others. What do you think it meant to David? I think it meant a lot to David to see Jonathan and receive the words of encouragement and make the covenant between eachother before God. This probably gave David more strengthen and hope to continue his journey. Have you ever received a visit from a friend when you needed it most? No. However, I have received words of encouragement a time that I needed it most.

What did Abiathar and the ephod have to do with "inquiring of the Lord?" After Abiathar brought Ephod to David and told him about what had happen David was very sorry about was had happen to his family and felt it was his fault. Abiathar was a Priest and the ephod contained the Urim and Thummim that they used to seek counsel from God. Why did David inquire of the Lord? David felt he needed to consult with God for the safety of himself and his men and to remain in His will. David wanted to know if he should attack the Philistines and God said yes and David and his men defeated them. David also used the ephod to inquired the Lord about leaving Keilah when he heard that Saul found out that he was there. God told him to leave because Saul was coming and the men of Keilah was going to turn him over to him. What huge advantage does the person have who seeks God's will before acting? When you seek the Lord wholeheartedly, God will never steer you wrong. Just trust and obey, you will triumph. How can you find God's will at key points in your life? God wants us to have a deep relationship with him, just like I suspect David did. God said He loved David because he was a man after his own heart. I think this was that David showed the fruits of the Spirits and he often seek God for direction, so he developed a personal relationship with God. We are to inquire of the Lord when we are going through a major situation by reading His word and fasting and prayer.

Why were David's men attracted to him? David led them in victory in battle and they saw him defeated Goliath so they respected him and they saw that Holy Spirit had left Saul and was now with David. What did they have in common? What kind of men were these? According to Saul, rebels, outlaws. Saul had many men who left his army and went with David because they didn’t like him and/or he had a price on their head to have them killed. Most of them like and respected David. What difficulties do you think David probably had in leading them? The difficulties David might have had in his leadership is maintaining loyalty to his men and Saul because he still was king and he did not want to kill him. Also, maintaining all the men's women and children, such as, housing, food, and clothing without getting caught and killed by Saul.

What does it tell us about Saul's faith that he pursues David even when he has sought the sanctuary of the prophet Samuel? Saul has become so jealous and so determines to kill David and feels that because he is king that nothing is above him. Saul has no respect or honor for Samuel and the sanctuary because he now knows his time is coming short and God has anointed David so he feared him. Why do people prophesy when the Holy Spirit comes upon them? When the power of the Holy Spirit causes you to prophesy, it’s the power of a heavenly divine language that is spoken with you and God can understand. What is the relationship between this incident and the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2)? The incident in this chapter with Saul to me was both amusing and confusing. I did not understand why Saul kept sending his messengers and why the Spirit of God caused Saul to strip off his clothes(other than he was going mad and that was all flesh) and why didn’t the author or Samuel explain the reason for this event or/and why the incident took place. I was just left wondering why and assuming just like the people in the bible "what in world". However, in Act 2 the Day of Pentecost clearly states the event and the reason why they were all in the upper room. The only relationship between the two is the power of the Holy Spirit and Spirit was in control and pour out spirit upon all those who were in close proximity and they began to prophesy.

Which of the following is David's chief motive for marrying Michal, in your opinion? I felt “ (2) obedience to Saul’s Desires” was David’s chief motive for marry Michal. Argue for the motivation that makes the most sense to you: David fear God and had high respect for Saul who was still king. David did not felt he or his family was worthy (rich) enough to be a son-in-law to the king, so he felt he had to earn the honor of being son-in-law to the king.