Day 1 (Monday)
2 Kingdoms 8 – 10 (summary) 11:1-27 (David’s Wars, Adultery with Bathsheba)
We left David having gained the kingship over all Israel, living in Jerusalem, and planning to build a house for the Lord. But God told him no, that he was not to build a Temple, but promised instead that David’s seed would build a Temple and a Kingdom that would last forever. In this confidence, we will see that David proceeded to make war against all the enemies of Israel, with great success against them all. And then we will see what comes next for David when he has succeeded in everything he has decided to do. We will summarize much of the detail of chapters 8-10, and those summaries will be shown in italics.
David’s Wars
Chapter 8 Some time afterward, David attacked the Philistines and subdued them; David took Metheg-ammah out of the hand of the Philistines.
2 He also defeated the Moabites and, making them lie down on the ground, measured them off with a cord; he measured two lengths of cord for those who were to be put to death, and one length for those who were to be spared. And the Moabites became servants to David and brought tribute.
He also fought against many others, against the Edomites, the Amalekites, and any others that came against him.
13 David won a name for himself. When he returned, he killed eighteen thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt. 14 He put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom he put garrisons, and all the Edomites became David’s servants. And the Lord gave victory to David wherever he went.
David’s Officers
15 So David reigned over all Israel; and David administered justice and equity to all his people. 16 Joab son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was recorder; 17 Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Seraiah was secretary; 18 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were priests.
In Chapter 9, we see David seek out the son of Jonathan, Mephibosheth, and he gives him all the possessions that had belonged to Saul, and makes him a favored friend of the king; in this, he fulfills his promise to Jonathan.
In Chapter 10, we see David find himself at war with the Ammonites; he sends an embassy of peace to the new king, and the new king instead cuts off half the clothing and half the beard of each emissary to shame them, and David, and sends them home. This becomes the cause of war, and brings us to the beginning of chapter 11.
David Commits Adultery with Bathsheba
11 In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab with his officers and all Israel with him; they ravaged the Ammonites, and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.
2 It happened, late one afternoon, when David rose from his couch and was walking about on the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; the woman was very beautiful. 3 David sent someone to inquire about the woman. It was reported, “This is Bathsheba daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” 4 So David sent messengers to get her, and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now she was purifying herself after her period.) Then she returned to her house. 5 The woman conceived; and she sent and told David, “I am pregnant.”
6 So David sent word to Joab, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent Uriah to David. 7 When Uriah came to him, David asked how Joab and the people fared, and how the war was going. 8 Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house, and wash your feet.” Uriah went out of the king’s house, and there followed him a present from the king. 9 But Uriah slept at the entrance of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. 10 When they told David, “Uriah did not go down to his house,”
David said to Uriah, “You have just come from a journey. Why did you not go down to your house?” 11 Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah remain in booths; and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field; shall I then go to my house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do such a thing.” 12 Then David said to Uriah, “Remain here today also, and tomorrow I will send you back.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day. On the next day, 13 David invited him to eat and drink in his presence and made him drunk; and in the evening he went out to lie on his couch with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house.
David Has Uriah Killed
14 In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15 In the letter he wrote, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, so that he may be struck down and die.” 16 As Joab was besieging the city, he assigned Uriah to the place where he knew there were valiant warriors. 17 The men of the city came out and fought with Joab; and some of the servants of David among the people fell. Uriah the Hittite was killed as well.
18 Then Joab sent and told David all the news about the fighting; 19 and he instructed the messenger, “When you have finished telling the king all the news about the fighting, 20 then, if the king’s anger rises, and if he says to you, ‘Why did you go so near the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall? 21 Who killed Abimelech son of Jerubbaal? Did not a woman throw an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died at Thebez? Why did you go so near the wall?’ then you shall say, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead too.’”
22 So the messenger went, and came and told David all that Joab had sent him to tell. 23 The messenger said to David, “The men gained an advantage over us, and came out against us in the field; but we drove them back to the entrance of the gate. 24 Then the archers shot at your servants from the wall; some of the king’s servants are dead; and your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.” 25 David said to the messenger, “Thus you shall say to Joab, ‘Do not let this matter trouble you, for the sword devours now one and now another; press your attack on the city, and overthrow it.’ And encourage him.”
26 When the wife of Uriah heard that her husband was dead, she made lamentation for him. 27 When the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife, and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord,
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should point out a few important points. First, in chapter 8:18, it says that David’s sons are serving as priests. This is contrary to the Torah; only the Levites are to serve as priests. This is a continuation of the troubled practices during Saul’s rule, but it is not a good thing. Second, if we remember when David asked for bread from Abiathar, we learned that David was observing the Torah regarding sexual purity and abstinence for those at war. Uriah, then, is continuing to observe this requirement, and shows forth his piety and faithfulness, in stark contrast to David, who has not even gone out to war, and has not only failed to keep himself from his own wives, but has not even kept himself from his servant’s wife. Third, despite David’s direction, it proves unrealistic to have only Uriah killed in the fighting; David’s command to see him killed results in the death of other fighting men. David’s sin, and the cover-up that accompanies it, is resulting in the death of many of his people; there is the accompanying indication that it’s not a secret either. Everyone knows what is happening, and why. David has fallen VERY far.)
2) What do we learn about God in this reading?
3) What do we learn about human beings in this reading?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?
Day 2 (Wednesday)
The Repentance of St. Constantine
On May 21st, we celebrate the feast of Sts. Constantine and Helen. This week, then, we will do something unusual, and read something from a living author, not because the author is a saint, but because his words reflect the Church’s perspective on the sanctity of kings, and their repentance. It is especially fitting that we read this as we are also considering the life and the sins of King David.
The Repentance of Constantine the Great
By Archimandrite Meletios Stathis
The very name of Constantine is enough to move the heart of any Greek Christian, not only today, but for very many years now, because it is associated with the legends of the nation, with “once again, with the passing of years and in good time, it will be ours again.”[1] It moves us because the first to bear the name Constantine, was not merely one of the greatest men in world history, but he was something more besides: a saint.
And when they hear the word “saint”, the trumpeters of atheism and unbelief start to sound off. Is he a King and Emperor? Yes. Great? Yes. But saint? "No, he’s not a saint," they say. Because, they say, Constantine the Great committed crimes: he killed his son Crispus; he killed his second wife Fausta; and so shouldn’t be considered a saint.*
What can we say in response to those who are against Constantine the Great for no other reason than that he was a Christian? Had he not been a Christian, but an idolater like Julian the Apostate, who betrayed the Church, then they would be praising him. But, no. Constantine, who supported the Orthodox faith and established firm foundations, is slandered and hated by the enemies of Christ.
We would answer: they either forget or do not know that, in our faith, there is a great thing called repentance. One tear from a sinner, whatever act they’ve committed, one tear at the sacrament of confession, redeems any fault. Were there no repentance, paradise would be empty, we wouldn’t have a calendar of feasts nor any saints, because there isn’t a saint who hasn’t wept and hasn’t repented of sins. There’s no other way to Paradise, beloved, than the door of repentance. Constantine wasn’t born a saint, he became one. He made mistakes, but he repented. Let’s not forget that he was brought up in the inhuman surroundings of the courts of Diocletian and Galerius, yet he disagreed with people like them.
He’s a saint because his presence in the world is the light of Christ. This light is also shown in his call, which is remarkably like that of Saint Paul and which is why it is mentioned in his Dismissal hymn. Saint Paul was called by Christ in a vision when he was walking along the road to Damascus; he saw a shining light and heard a voice saying: “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” In the same way, Saint Constantine was called in a vision. A historic vision which is reported by contemporary historians.[2] What was the vision?
When he arrived outside Rome on 28 October, in the year 312 A.D., the army of his rival was three times larger and defeat stared him in the face. As he sat there pondering, in broad daylight, he saw a great sign: the stars in the heavens formed a cross and below the cross he saw the words: “In this conquer” (In hoc vinca). And from that moment on, he was convinced that the future of humanity rested with Christ. He then adopted the banner which proceeded his troops and, with this sign, “In this conquer”, he defeated Maxentius, entered Rome and proclaimed to the whole city that this victory did not belong to his legions but to the Honorable Cross.
His edicts are light. The first edict, in February 313, was for the persecutions to cease. Just imagine. The persecution of Christians had lasted 300 years. It was forbidden to be Christian. The very word “Christian” was cause enough for conviction, nothing else needed to be investigated: “Are you Christian?” That was it. Possessions confiscated, incredible sufferings, horrifying tortures. How many martyrs? 12 million. For 300 years, Christians begged: “Lord, give us peace”. And He did. Peace came into the world through the chosen vessel of divine providence,[3] Constantine the Great.
How, then, can we not honor him? We ought to do so if for nothing other than that edict which he signed with his holy hands. His nobility of soul and forgiving nature were also light. They say that some idolater enemies once decapitated a statue of him. When the news was brought to him he raised his hands, took hold of his real head and said: “This is my head here. There’s nothing missing. Don’t punish them.” On another occasion he said that if he saw a cleric sinning, he would cover him with his robes, so as to prevent other people seeing his sins. This showed his intense concern that the Church should not be subjected to scandals.
He abolished the worship of the Roman emperors, who were considered gods on earth.
His legislation was also light. For the first time, Christian legislation was introduced. His vision was rare. What vision? To make a Christian state, on a global scale, and offer it to Christ for sanctification and deification. This is why he’s depicted holding an orb. And just as the Patriarch Abraham heard the voice of God telling him to leave his homeland and settle in a land that God would show him (Gen. 12:1), so, too, Saint Constantine left Old Rome, the city stained with the blood of innocent Christians criminally killed, and built a New Rome on the Bosphorus, which, after his repose, was quite rightly called Constantinople. And from here he took measures aimed at raising the spiritual state and sanctity of the people.
What measures? He closed all the night-time places of corrupt pleasure. There were places of entertainment where women gathered under the protection of disgusting divinities, Aphrodite centers, Bacchus centers, and he closed them all. He closed the oracles and got rid of the magicians who were exploiting people and deceiving them. He forbade blasphemy. He said he would forgive anything, except blasphemy. If anyone blasphemed the name of Christ, they were immediately arrested and exiled.
He honored Sunday by edict. He declared it a great and splendid day and forbade any shops to open. Horse races, places of relaxation, everything closed.
He supported small land-holders and workers and took measures against usury and every of other form of injustice. He was the first to support human rights, he protected widows and orphans, and showed particular concern for social welfare.
He protected the Orthodox faith. When Arius, the leader of the heresy named after him, came along and opened his dirty mouth against our Lord Jesus Christ, and said that He was not really God and of the same substance as the Father, Constantine convened the First Ecumenical Synod in Nicaea, Bithynia, to write the Creed. He himself went to the gathering, not as emperor and ruler of the inhabited world, but in humility and kissed the hands of the holy bishops, many of whom still had the marks of their mistreatment from the tortures of the persecution fresh on their bodies. Not being a theologian, when he was asked for his opinion, he replied: “I respect what I do not know.”
He supported missionary work. It was during his time as emperor that the Armenians and Georgians became Christians, and the light of Christ reached as far as India.
It was at his command that the Honorable Cross was found and the first churches were built in Jerusalem. He was the initiator and founder of a Christian Empire that lasted one thousand one hundred years.
Finally, beloved, when he realized that his earthly end was approaching, he surrounded himself with bishops and confessed his sins and wept. He was then baptized, at the age of about 63, and never again put on the royal robes, the splendid imperial vestments, but wore only his white baptismal robes, telling people that he now really did feel like an emperor. He took communion, the Body and Blood of Christ, and, pure and clean, rejoicing and praying, departed for the heavenly kingdom.
Beloved, even if we ignore all the above, there are two criteria for the Church regarding his sanctity: a) the vision of God and the grace which the saint enjoyed; b) his miracles after death.
After his departure from this life, his sacred relics were buried with imperial honors in the narthex of the Church of the Holy Apostles, where they gave off a powerful fragrance and myrrh and performed many miracles. It may be that some people wonder whether what the Christians say is really the truth. Beloved, even if some people don’t believe, there are two criteria for his sanctity and only two. It is with the seal of God that Constantine is a saint and Equal to the Apostles. History has shown him to be great and the Church has shown him to be a saint.
Notes:
* The truth of the matter is as follows: when Constantine the Great was Caesar in the West, Rome proclaimed the cruel, anti-Christian Maxentius as emperor, who wishing to cover his back in the west, since he feared Constantine, forced him to divorce his wife, Minervina and marry Fausta, a very ambitious and cunning woman who was also Maxentius’ sister, in order to control him. When she saw Constantine’s eldest son, Crispus, distinguishing himself in battles and being groomed for the succession, she wanted to destroy him at all costs, in order to promote her own three sons to positions of power. So she slandered Crispus by saying that he had tried to rape her and kill his father in order to seize power, like a new Absalom. Unfortunately, Fausta’s plot was so convincing and her lies so persuasive that Constantine and the generals fell into the demonic trap. And they allowed Crispus to be put to death, in accordance with the law. When the queen mother, Saint Helen, who was many miles away, learned what had happened she rebuked her son severely for his decision. Constantine instituted exhaustive inquiries, from which it became clear that he was the victim of a criminal conspiracy on the part of his wife, Fausta, and her supporters. So he ordered that she, too, be put to death. These two murders of people of his own family greatly distressed Constantine, who regretted them bitterly to the end of his days and sought God’s forgiveness. And in order to show his repentance publicly he had a statue erected to Crispus, with the inscription “To my much-wronged son.”
[1] Words attributed to Constantine XI Palaiologos in a poem about the Fall of Constantinople, in which he hopes for the return of the City one day in the future to the Orthodox.
[2] Lactantius (On the Deaths of the Persecutors, 44), Eusebius (Eccl. Hist. IX, 9.1-11, Socrates (Eccl. Hist. I, 2.5-10), Sozomenos (Eccl. Hist. I 1) et al.
[3] In his book The Ecumenical Synods, Saint Nektarios writes that Saints Constantine and Helen were the hands of divine providence.
The above is sourced from the following website: https://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2018/05/the-repentance-of-constantine-great.html
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should point out the similarities between St. Constantine and King David, that both of them have substantial and publicly known sins, and yet both are profoundly important to the Orthodox Christian Faith. It is essential that all of us come to terms with the fact that sin does not disqualify one from salvation, even as we affirm that unrepentant sin is incompatible with communion with God. To confront this truth in the lives of the saints is more challenging, yet perhaps more important. God does not come to call the righteous to glory, but to call sinners to repentance. We do not rejoice in the sins of St. Constantine, or King David, but we glorify God for the salvation and transformation that He has accomplished in them, and in all of us.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?
Day 3 (Friday)
John 21:15-25 (Jesus & Peter, Jesus & the Beloved Disciple)
Last time we saw Jesus appear to the Disciples while they went fishing. Although they had caught nothing, he granted them a great catch of fish, and then He shared a meal with them, the first after His Resurrection. This time, we will see Him speak with Simon Peter, in a conversation that is profoundly difficult, but vitally important, for St. Peter.
Jesus and Peter
15 When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 16 A second time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Tend my sheep.” 17 He said to him the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?”
And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. 18 Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.” 19 (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, “Follow me.”
Jesus and the Beloved Disciple
20 Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them; he was the one who had reclined next to Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?” 21 When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about him?” 22 Jesus said to him, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? Follow me!” 23 So the rumor spread in the community that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?”
24 This is the disciple who is testifying to these things and has written them, and we know that his testimony is true. 25 But there are also many other things that Jesus did; if every one of them were written down, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.
Discussion Questions
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should note that this reading also connects with this week’s (accidental) theme, that of sin and repentance. What we see in the Lord’s conversation with Peter is that He is restoring Peter, by giving him three opportunities to confess faithfulness and love for the Lord, as a mirror image of Peter’s threefold denial a few chapters ago. This is the Lord walking Peter through a process of repentance, and if we can recognize that this is what’s happening, there is a deep beauty to the Lord’s gentle reinstatement of Peter. He does not pretend that the denials did not happen, but He guides Peter through a renunciation of those denials and a restoration of his faithfulness. And at the end, He assures them that the time will come when Peter will indeed bear witness to Him through death, even as Peter had promised to do at the Mystical Supper. And with this, we come to the end of the Gospel according to John. Next week, we’ll go back to where we left off during Great Lent, and pick up the story with the death of Lazarus.)
2) What do we learn about God in this story?
3) What do we learn about human beings in this story?
4) What do you find difficult about this story? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always.).
5) Does this story make you think that you need to change anything in your life?