David: An Unlikely Hero of Faith

Introduction

God is the first to be named in the Bible (Gen. 1:1), and our Lord Jesus Christ is the last (Rev. 22:20). The next to the last is David (Rev. 22:16). Among the great heroes of faith listed in Hebrews 11, David is mentioned (in passing) only once in a single verse, shared with five other names and “the prophets.” However, David receives more attention in the rest of the Bible than any of the others. In fact, his name (meaning “beloved”) appears in the biblical record nearly 1,100 times, more than the names of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob combined. Moses is a distant second.

The youngest of eight brothers, David is by far the best remembered. From wielding a shepherd’s staff to a sling to a sword to a scepter, his faith and courage, by the power and providence of God, slew lions and bears, a giant Philistine warrior, and tens of thousands of the brutal enemies of God’s people. He was the greatest king in Israel’s turbulent history, leading them to the height of their national glory and was a pivotal branch in the family tree of the messianic King of kings.

The story of David is recounted in the books of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles. Of the 150 canonical Psalms, seventy-three are attributed to him. In the Synoptic Gospels, Jesus is identified as “the Son of David” no less than eighteen times. Clearly David is a prominent figure throughout the scriptures, having had a critical role in God’s redemptive plan that has greatly impacted all of humanity. So what can we learn from him?

David was Far from Perfect

The many mistakes of David include the following:

o   In 1 Sam. 21:1-6, he lied to the high priest and ate holy bread, “which is not lawful to eat except for the priests ...” (Mark 2:26).

o   In 1 Sam 25:2-35, when Nabal insulted him and refused to provide David and his men much needed supplies, with vengeful anger David was ready to destroy Nabal and every male in his household until Abigail intervened and dissuaded him.

o   In 2 Sam. 11:1-27, David was guilty of intentional lust, adultery, deceit and lies, attempted coverup, and murder.

o   In 2 Sam. 24:1-17 and 1 Chron. 21:1-17, David’s unlawful census (needlessly consuming about 10 months) demonstrated his misplaced trust in numerical strength and his prideful sense of self-achievement and self-exaltation.

Despite these glaring imperfections and more (cf. Psa. 6:1-3; 7:3-5; 19:12; 25:7, 11, 18; 32:5; etc.), God still worked with and through David to accomplish much good in carrying out his divine purpose and redemptive work (Acts 4:25; 13:36).

What David Got Right

Despite his shortcomings, David had a compliant spirit and understood the burden and devastating consequences of sin whenever God and his will are ignored (Psa. 32:1-5; 38:3-8, 18). Acknowledging his mistakes, David was remorseful and penitent and sought God’s forgiveness (Psa. 51:1-19). He was willing to change his mental focus and behavior in compliance with the Lord’s expectations. Accordingly, he “found favor in God’s sight” (Acts 7:45-46; cf. 2 Sam. 24:10; Psa. 30:8-10; Rom. 4:6-8).

The Psalms reveal a distinction between the sins of David’s “youth” (25:7) in contrast to his older years (37:23-25). As he matured, learned from his mistakes, experienced God’s grace and providence, his faith grew stronger and governed his life.

The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; According to the cleanness of my hands He has recompensed me. For I have kept the ways of the Lord, And have not wickedly departed from my God. For all His judgments were before me, And I did not put away His statutes from me. I was also blameless before Him, And I kept myself from my iniquity. Therefore the Lord has recompensed me according to my righteousness, According to the cleanness of my hands in His sight. (Psalm 18:20-24, NKJV)

David loved God’s word and sought to conform his life accordingly.

The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them Your servant is warned, And in keeping them there is great reward. Who can understand his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults. Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, And I shall be innocent of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer. (Psa. 19:7-11, 14)

David faithfully served the Lord all of his life. His predecessor King Saul was rejected by God because he “rejected the word of the Lord” (1 Sam. 13:13-14; 15:26). God chose David instead because David was a man after God’s own heart, willing to submit to God’s will (1 Sam. 13:14; Acts 13:22), serving God’s purpose (Acts 13:36). David desired the same for his son Solomon (1 Kings 2:1-4).

More lessons from David include priorities, the foremost of which is seeking God and his will (Psa. 9:1; 16:1-2; 37:5). We learn about trust in God (Psa. 7:1; 11:1; 16:1; 18:2; 25:1, 2, 20; 28:7; 31:1, 6, 14; 52:8; 55:23; 56:3, 4, 11; 61:4; 71:1; 73:28; 91:2; 143:8). We also see how God hears and answers prayer (Psa. 34:15-16, 18; 38:15; 40:1).

Conclusion

David was imperfect, but God used him for good despite his fallibilities. David was willing to acknowledge and repent of his sins and reform his life according to the righteous ways of God. He loved God’s word and was thereby transformed, spending his entire life in faithful service to the Lord. Let us learn from his mistakes and follow his example as a useful instrument in God’s hands.

--Kevin L. Moore

*Presented to Ripley church of Christ VBS, Ripley, Mississippi 24 June 2025.

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Image credit: https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/king-david/

Haman the Agagite

Rembrandt’s The Fall of Haman (ca. 1660-1666)

The story of Esther is set in the historical period of the Persian king Ahasuerus (Esth. 1:1–8:12; Ezra 4:6), known in secular sources as Xerxes I the Great, who ruled the Persian Empire ca. 486-465 BC.¹ One of the king’s leading officials—the main villain in the story of Esther—was “Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite” (Esth. 3:1)

What is an Agagite?

The term “Agagite” is believed to be a derivative of the name Agag, worn by the king of the Amalekites in the days of Israel’s king Saul (1 Sam. 15:8). Rather than a personal name, this was more likely a dynastic title (like “Pharaoh,” “Herod,” “Caesar”) for the rulers of the Amalekite people. Centuries earlier it was prophesied that Israel’s king would be higher than Agag (Num. 24:7), i.e., “higher than high.”

A Long History of Animosity

The Amalekites were descendants of Esau (Gen. 36:12) and the first heathen nation to attack the Israelites as they journeyed from Egypt to Canaan. They remained enemies of God’s people for generations (Ex. 17:8-16). When Saul was anointed king, he was commanded by God to utterly destroy the Amalekites, but he disobediently spared king Agag while destroying the rest of Agag’s people (1 Sam. 15:1-9); not the entire nation but the inhabitants of the nearby city (v. 5). Even though Agag was later killed by Samuel (1 Sam. 15:33), the Amalekites were not completely annihilated (1 Sam. 30:1-17).

Mordechai and his young cousin Hadassah (Esther) shared the same lineage as king Saul, the son of Kish of the tribe of Benjamin (1 Sam. 9:1-2; Esth. 2:5-7).² If Haman the Agagite was indeed a descendant of king Agag, the historical conflict between the Amalekites and the Jewish people had in fact persisted for generations. Haman’s hatred for Mordechai and plot against the Jews was a natural continuance of this perpetual hostility, which actually predates even Agag and Saul, all the way back to their respective ancestors, Esau and Jacob (Gen. 25:23; 2 Sam. 8:14; 2 Kings 14:7; Mal. 1:1-4; Rom. 9:4-13).

Conclusion

The sordid history from Esau to Agag to Haman is characterized by defiance, rejection of God’s ways and consequent estrangement from God and utter ruin. But one’s family history does not predetermine one’s own decisions and destiny. Nor is it ever too late in one’s lifetime to break this vicious cycle, clearly demonstrated by Saul’s distant relatives, Esther and Mordechai. “The Lord resists the proud; but he gives grace to the humble” (Prov. 3:34, LXX).

--Kevin L. Moore

Endnotes:

     ¹ Xerxes I was the son and successor of Darius I. The Greek version Ξέρξης (Xerxes) is the Persian name Xšayāršā rendered in Babylonian Aḥšiyaršu and borrowed into Hebrew as Ăḥašwêrôš (spelled phonetically according to the unfamiliar sounds of a foreign name), transliterated in Latin Ahasuerus and English Ahasuerus (see W. S. McCullough, “Ahasuerus,” in Encyclopædia Iranica 1.6 [New York: Online Edition, 1996]: 634-35). The Ahasuerus of Daniel 9:1 (father of Darius the Mede), and the Ahasuerus of the apocryphal Tobit 14-15 (in league with Nebuchadnezzar), appear to be different persons.

     ² That Mordechai was “the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish” (Esth. 2:5-6) does not necessarily convey immediate and unbroken lines of descent but more likely remote ancestry with presumed gaps (cf. 1 Sam. 9:1-2; 2 Sam. 16:5). See K. L. Moore, “Alleged Discrepancies,” Moore Perspective (18 Jan. 2023), <Link>.

Related Posts: Chronology of the Post-Exilic Period, Timing of Ezra-Nehemiah 

 

Image credit: https://www.codart.nl/guide/agenda/the-fall-of-haman-rembrandts-picture-in-the-mirror-of-time/  

A Herd of About 2,000 Pigs (Mark 5:13): Historical Relevance

All three Synoptic Gospels record the episode of Jesus casting a legion of demons into a herd of swine (Matt. 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20; Luke 8:26-39). Only Mark gives the herd’s approximate number: “about 2,000.” Why were there so many pigs in this one location, and what’s the relevance?

Geographical-Sociocultural Setting

Jesus and his disciples were on the eastern coast of the Sea of Galilee in the mid-western Decapolis region near the village of Gergesa: predominately Gentile territory.¹ Since the fourth-century-BC conquests of Alexander the Great, the cities of the Decapolis (mainly east of the Jordan) were Greek municipalities that were under Roman control from the first century BC. According to Jewish law, pigs were unclean animals and forbidden as a food source (Lev. 11:7-8; Deut. 14:8), but not among the Greco-Roman population.

Roman Dietary Preferences

Pork was one of the most popular meats in Rome.² The Roman orator Callistratus considered pork to be “the most lawful flesh” (Plutarch, Quaestiones Conviviales 4.5.1). Emperor Caligula found it curious that the Jews did not eat pork and challenged a delegation from Philo to explain why (Philo, Legatio 45.361-62). Juvenal mocked the Jews of Judea for abstaining from pork and for allowing pigs to live to old age (Satire 6.160). Tacitus noted as unusual, “they abstain from swine’s flesh” (Hist. 5.4.2).

The Legio X Fretensis

Roman legions had been stationed in Syria since its establishment as a Roman province in 64 BC, the center of military operations overseeing the entire region, including the Jewish territories of Galilee and Judea. Around 41-40 BC the Legio X Fretensis (“Tenth Legion of the Strait”) was formed by Julius Caesar’s adopted son Octavian, defeating Marc Antony’s forces at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC that led to the founding of the Roman Empire and Octavian’s accession as Emperor Augustus Caesar. The legion was then stationed in Syria by at least AD 6, having engaged in repressing multiple Jewish uprisings and participating in the campaign to Judea led by legate Publius Sulpicius Quirinius (cf. Acts 5:37; Josephus, Ant. 18.1.1; 2.1).³ Documented in Syria in AD 18 (Tacitus, Annals 2.57.2),⁴ they were later involved in the Jewish-Roman War of AD 66-70 and contributed to the defeat of Galilean and Judean cities and the siege and destruction of Jerusalem.

The symbols of Legio X Fretensis were the goddess Venus (Octavian’s mythical ancestress), the bull (perhaps representing Taurus to symbolize the legion’s start around April-May), Neptune (god of the sea), a battleship (signifying victories at sea), and a boar (pictured above). This last symbol is pertinent to our study, seeing that pork was their preferred food.⁵

The Relevance of Mark’s Reference

To feed Roman legions and perhaps countless other pork-consumers who had settled in the general region, a sizeable number of pigs would have been necessary. Moreover, the Greeks regarded pigs to be among the more cost-efficient sacrifices in their cultic rituals, particularly during the annual Thesmophoria festival honoring Demeter (goddess of agriculture/ Roman Ceres) and her daughter Persephone (goddess of spring and queen of the underworld/ Roman Proserpina).⁶

Mark’s seemingly obscure attention to detail makes sense when viewed in its geocultural context. A herd of about 2,000 pigs is not only normal and expected but was probably just a meager fraction of what would have been needed and available for the local economy.

Conclusion

The Roman flavoring of Mark’s Gospel is highlighted by its heavy use of Latinisms,⁷ including the term “legion,” from the Latin legio, descriptive of a division of the Roman army of approx. 3,000–6,000 soldiers. In Mark’s telling of the story of Jesus, there appears to be a subtle anti-Roman sentiment: a “legion” of demons cast into a herd of pigs—the tenth legion’s symbol and favored food source—drowned in the sea. Despite Rome’s apparent dominance, the Son of God has arrived, he is more powerful, and his way is far superior.  

--Kevin L. Moore

Endnotes:

     ¹ See K. L. Moore, “Geographical Confusion: the Land of Demon-Possessed Pigs,” Moore Perspective (6 July 2022), <Link>.

     ² John M. G. Barclay, “‘Do we undermine the Law?’ A Study of Romans 14.1–15.6,” in James D. G. Dunn, ed. Paul and the Mosaic Law (Grand Rapids; Cambridge: Eerdmans, 1996) 294.

     ³ See K. L. Moore, “Luke’s Alleged Historical Blunder Revisited (Part 1),” Moore Perspective (16 Oct. 2019), <Link>.

     ⁴ It has been suggested that they may have comprised the infantry of “two centurions” and “two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen” that commander Claudius Lysias ordered to escort Paul from Jerusalem to Caesarea (Acts 23:23-33). See Randall Niles, “The Roman 10th Legion of the Strait,” Drive Thru History Adventures (19 Oct. 2018), <Link>.

     ⁵ Craig E. Evans and Scott Stripling, “Did the Swine drown at Gergesa? Another Look at Mark 5:1 in Light of Text and Topography,” ETS 76th Annual Meeting (11 Nov. 2024), San Diego, CA.

     ⁶ See Matthew Dillon, Girls and Women in Classical Greek Religion (London: Routledge, 2002) 114-16. Remember also the profane pig sacrifice of Antiochus IV Ephiphanes that led to the Maccabean revolt (Josephus, War 1.1.1-2; 2 Macc. 5:11-14; cf. Dan. 8:9-13; 11:21-39).

     ⁷ See K. L. Moore, “Mark’s Audience,” Moore Perspective (27 Oct. 2012), <Link>.

Additional Sources Consulted: Austin J. Alexander, “The Tenacious Tenth: A Brief History of Rome’s Legio X Fretensis,” Medium (12 July 2023), <Link>; Emil Ritterling, “Legio X Fretensis,” Livius (22 June 2020), <Link>; Donald L. Wasson, “Legio X Fretensis,” World History Encyclopedia (20 Aug. 2021), <Link>.

Related Posts: A Legion of Demons; Beyond the Jordan 

Image credit: https://x-legio.com/en/wiki/legio-x-fretensis

Pictured below are tile fragments with the stamp of LEGX F (the Legio X Fretensis) featuring a battleship and wild boar.

https://www.worldhistory.org/image/14448/stamp-of-legio-x-fretensis/

https://x-legio.com/photo/2233/9.jpg