2 Samuel Questions

Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.

  1. Why does God love David?
  2. Does David deserve God's love, or is it a kind of unmerited grace? What makes you say so?
  3. Is Absalom justified in revolting against David? What are his reasons?
  4. Why does David's wife, Michal, criticize him for dancing in front of the Ark? What does dancing in front of the Ark say about David's relationship with God?
  5. What do you think about David killing the Amalekite who helped Saul finish committing suicide? Is this just or unjust?
  6. What's wrong with conducting a census? Why does David do it—and, moreover, why does God inspire him to do something that winds up being wrong?
  7. How sincere is David's sadness over Saul's death? … Over Jonathan's?
  8. What's the significance of Absalom sleeping with his father's concubines?
  9. Do you think the book might protest too much when it insists David had nothing to do with killing Abner?
  10. How are women treated in the story? (Consider the way David treats Bathsheba, the way Amnon treats Tamar, the way Absalom treats his father's concubines, and the way Abner and Ishbaal treat Saul's concubine.)
  11. Do the narrators of 2 Samuel give any insight into the psychology and characters of the women in the story? What about Bathsheba? What about the woman of Tekoa?
  12. How does David differ from Saul as a king? Does God's favor make David a better person than Saul?