2 Samuel 5:4 - Printer Friendly

ESV: David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.

NIV: David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned forty years.

NASB: David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned for forty years.

CSB: David was thirty years old when he began his reign; he reigned forty years.

NLT: David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in all.

KJV: David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.

NKJV: David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.

David has finally been anointed by all the tribes of Israel as their king. This fulfills God's promise made when David was a young man (1 Samuel 16:13). David's long and storied reign as king of Israel begins when he is thirty and continues until he is seventy years old. Throughout the account of David's reign, the count of years always begins when he is made king of the tribe of Judah (2 Samuel 2:4), seven years before he became king of the united Israel.

It's important to remember that David became the king over Israel at exactly the right time, not too early and not too late. The Lord allowed David to spend his twenties developing his leadership skills and growing more dependent on God while protecting 600 men and their families and running from Saul. He then spent seven-and-a-half years ruling one tribe filled with familiar, loyal people in a smaller geographic area. Those valuable experiences will serve David well as he leads Israel for the rest of his life.

Thirty is an important age in Israel. It was the age at which a Levite man could begin service at the temple (Numbers 4:3), the age Joseph was when he started serving Pharaoh (Genesis 41:46), and the approximate age of Jesus when He began his ministry (Luke 3:23). David's son, Solomon, will also reign for forty years (1 Kings 11:42).

Second Samuel 5:1–5 records the moment when David finally becomes king of all Israel. Jacob had prophesied that the tribe of Judah would carry the scepter (Genesis 49:10). Samuel had first anointed David years earlier when he was still a shepherd (1 Samuel 16:12–13). David has been king of the tribe of Judah for seven years. As king of Israel, he will establish his capital, Jerusalem (2 Samuel 5:6–10). David's inauguration is also recorded in 1 Chronicles 11:1–3.

Second Samuel 5 is a series of vignettes describing how God blesses David after his inauguration as king over the nation. David took Jerusalem from the Jebusites and made the city the nation's capital (2 Samuel 5:6–9). His first international ally, Hiram, king of Tyre, built his palace (2 Samuel 5:11). His family grew: exponentially (2 Samuel 5:13–16)! And he soundly beat his enemies (2 Samuel 5:17–25). David did all this because of God's favor, to bless the nation, not through his own skill or because of any good in him (2 Samuel 5:10, 12). First Chronicles 11:1–9 and 14:1–17 also record these events.

Second Samuel 5 is a pivot point for all of Israel's history. After Saul's son Ish-bosheth is killed, no opposition remains to David's kingship (2 Samuel 4:5–6). Convinced by Abner before his death to follow David (2 Samuel 3:17–19), the elders of Israel gather at Hebron to anoint David king over the entire nation. David moves his capital to Jerusalem and defends the nation against the Philistines. Now, he has enough security to bring the ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6:1–15). The following chapters seem to collectively describe David's accomplishments (2 Samuel 5:9—10:19) and his mistakes (2 Samuel 11—20).

Second Samuel continues the story of David, who will become king over Judah. The other tribes of Israel are resistant, eventually sparking a civil war. David wins and makes Jerusalem his capital. Early success is followed by moral failure and controversy in David's house. The book of 1 Kings will begin by detailing David's decline and death.