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2 Samuel 7:101NIV New International Version Translations
And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning.

img170Background2http://www.easyenglish.info/bible-commentary/2samuel-lbw.htm

The book of 2 Samuel records the life of David as king. There are several accounts of events in 2 Samuel that are also in 1 Chronicles. Some of the accounts are very similar. But some of the accounts are different. The authors wrote these accounts for different reasons. The author of 1 and 2 Samuel wrote about the main events in the lives of Samuel, Saul and David. The author wrote this to record the history of the Israelites at that time. However, the author of 1 and 2 Chronicles wanted to emphasize how God had always helped the Israelites. In general, this author wrote only about the good things that happened. He wrote his account a long time after the events of 1 and 2 Samuel. He may have used different records. Sometimes the names of people and places are different. Some people had more than one name. Also, the names of places often changed over many years.

The books of 1 and 2 Samuel used to be one book. The writer wrote the book in the Hebrew language. The name of the book comes from the first important person in 1 Samuel. He was Samuel the prophet. But Samuel did not write the book. He died before the end of the book.

We do not know who wrote the book. The author lived after King Solomon had died in about 930 BC (930 years Before Christ). After Solomon died, the country of Israel divided into two countries. These two countries were Israel and Judah. The country of Judah included the tribes of Judah and Benjamin (see 1 Kings 12:1-24). In 1 and 2 Samuel the author often refers to Judah as a country.

In those days, the kings and leaders employed writers to write accounts of events in their country. The prophets also wrote accounts of events. 2 Samuel 1:18; 1 Kings 11:41; 14:19, 29; 1 Chronicles 27:24; 29:29 all refer to these writers and their books. The writer of 1 and 2 Samuel probably got most of his information from these accounts.

Biblical Truths3http://www.easyenglish.info/bible-commentary/2samuel-lbw.htm

The events of this chapter may have happened a long time after David became king. But the subject follows on from chapter 6 about the ark of the Lord. The writer uses the Hebrew word for ‘house’ in this chapter. This word has three different meanings. It refers to a building where people live. It also refers to a person’s family, in the present time and in the future. And it is another word for the temple.

In verse 1, David lived in his house (palace). In verse 2 and 4 he wanted to build a house (temple) for the Lord. But in verses 11 and 16 the Lord said that he would establish David’s house (royal family) to last always. David wanted to give honour to the *Lord. Instead, the *Lord gave honour, which would last always, to David and his family.

Items for Discussion

  • The Hebrew word used for house had three meanings: where we live, our home; our family; and our Church. How is your family similar to the physical place you call home?
  • With all of the turmoil found in our world, especially the Middle East, how would you interpret the meaning of this verse?
  • How is a person’s home like the Christian Church?
  • What are the common attributes of the perfect home?
  • How are these attributes common in where we live, in our families and in our Church?
  • If a home is filled with turmoil, how do you think the family is affected? The family’s faith?
  • Why would the stories of what a home is be found in a history of David?

 

Hebrews 10:25
25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Background4http://www.christnotes.org/commentary.php?com=mhc&b=58&c=0

Hebrews shows Christ as the end, foundation, body, and truth of the figures of the law, which of themselves were no virtue for the soul. The great truth set forth in this epistle is that Jesus of Nazareth is the true God. The unconverted Jews used many arguments to draw their converted brethren from the Christian faith. They represented the law of Moses as superior to the Christian dispensation, and spoke against everything connected with the Savior. The apostle, therefore, shows the superiority of Jesus of Nazareth, as the Son of God, and the benefits from his sufferings and death as the sacrifice for sin, so that the Christian religion is much more excellent and perfect than that of Moses. And the principal design seems to be, to bring the converted Hebrews forward in the knowledge of the gospel, and thus to establish them in the Christian faith, and to prevent their turning from it, against which they are earnestly warned. But while it contains many things suitable to the Hebrews of early times, it also contains many which can never cease to interest the church of God; for the knowledge of Jesus Christ is the very marrow and kernel of all the Scriptures. The ceremonial law is full of Christ, and all the gospel is full of Christ; the blessed lines of both Testaments meet in Him; and how they both agree and sweetly unite in Jesus Christ, is the chief object of the epistle to the Hebrews to discover.

Chapter 10: The insufficiency of sacrifices for taking away sin, The necessity and power of the sacrifice of Christ for that purpose. (1-18) An argument for holy boldness in the believer’s access to God through Jesus Christ, And for steadfastness in faith, and mutual love and duty. (19-25) The danger of apostasy. (26-31) The sufferings of believers, and encouragement to maintain their holy profession. (32-39)

Bible Truths

Matthew Henry writes that Christians ought to have a tender consideration and concern for one another; they should affectionately consider what their several wants, weaknesses, and temptations are; and they should do this, not to reproach one another, to provoke one another not to anger, but to love and good works, calling upon themselves and one another to love God and Christ more, to love duty and holiness more, to love their brethren in Christ more, and to do all the good offices of Christian affection both to the bodies and the souls of each other. A good example given to others is the best and most effectual provocation to love and good works.

Items for Discussion

  • What benefits are gained when a body of believers meets together?
  • Why is personal growth so much faster and better when others are present?
  • How is the average home different than the Church? Should there be any differences?
  • How does a home influence the faith of the family?
  • What are the rolls of the family members: mother, father and children in making a home a home?
  • What is the work involved in making sure a home is a place for faith to flourish?
  • Can peaceful homes and families result from a community or church filled with turmoil?

Discussion Challenge

  • How, in a world of turmoil, can the Church become the “home” that Samuel believes God wants for all of us?