1 Chronicles 20:1: “And it happened, in the spring of the year, at the time kings go out to battle, that Joab led out the armed forces and ravaged the country of the people of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem. And Joab defeated Rabbah and overthrew it.”

September 8th, 2023 by Pastor Ed in devotional

This chapter in 1 Chronicles focuses mainly on how the Lord’s blessing was on David’s military leadership. But it includes the infamous words, “in the spring of the year,” to remind the reader of the detailed record of David’s spiritual life found in 2 Samuel 11. The words are so well known to many readers that the Holy Spirit doesn’t have to tell the rest of the story of David, Bathsheba, and Uriah here. In spite of David’s external victories, his spiritual life was filled with disaster and defeat at this time. David was a man who lived life to the fullest and didn’t seem to do anything half way. He was either worshiping the Lord like no one else around him, fighting on the battlefield with all his might, or falling into the worse kind of public sin a person could imagine.

We all will have big problems whenever we allow our flesh to takeover control of our lives. When we’re not looking through the corrective lens of faith, our vision becomes faulty; we are blinded to spiritual power, truths and discernment. Even if we’ve just had some recent victory over the things of the flesh, but if we then slip away and get our eyes off God, we will fall flat on our faces. Our victories over the flesh last just as long as we continue walking with Jesus Christ and not a moment longer. We must guard ourselves from believing that once we have ‘conquered’ any habitual sin that has gripped us that we can then start walking around in our own strength and survive spiritually. Jesus told the man at the pool of Bethesda, “Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you” (John 5:14). By taking our eyes off God, we invite the sinful habits of the flesh to return, and they WILL come back full force, as recorded here in David’s life.

“LORD, You tell us that You are able to keep us from falling (Jude 1: 24-25), so remind us today to lean on You and You alone this day, in Jesus’ name.”

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1 Chronicles 20 KJV

¹ And it came to pass, that after the year was expired, at the time that kings go out to battle , Joab led forth the power of the army, and wasted the country of the children of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried at Jerusalem. And Joab smote Rabbah, and destroyed it.  ²And David took the crown of their king from off his head, and found it to weigh a talent of gold, and there wereprecious stones in it; and it was set upon David’s head: and he brought also exceeding much spoil out of the city.  ³ And he brought out the people that were in it, and cut themwith saws, and with harrows of iron, and with axes. Even so dealt David with all the cities of the children of Ammon. And David and all the people returned to Jerusalem. ⁴ And it came to pass after this, that there arose war at Gezer with the Philistines; at which time Sibbechai the Hushathite slew Sippai, that was of the children of the giant: and they were subdued.  ⁵ And there was war again with the Philistines; and Elhanan the son of Jair slew Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, whose spear staff was like a weaver’s beam.  ⁶ And yet again there was war at Gath, where was a man of great stature, whose fingers and toes were four and twenty, six on each hand , and six on each foot: and he also was the son of the giant.   ⁷ But when he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea David’s brother slew him.   ⁸ These were born unto the giant in Gath; and they fell by the hand of David, and by the hand of his servants.