Introduction
I thought I wouldn't spend too much time on the King's messengers. But I feel that it would be a shame to brush over the prophets too quickly. They are doing the King's business after all. Everyone one of them received their orders from the King. They know Him and they are a tremendous help for us as we study the Kingdom. I'll try to be brief, but I hope to capture something important from each one.
Hannah's boy, Samuel is first in a line of God's professional prophets. God used Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, and even Balaam to give us messages that are arguably, if not indisputably, prophetic. But the professional prophets are a rather special group, because they were raised up during a time when the children of Israel were set on following earthly rulers. The priesthood had generally failed to keep the people close to God, and the kings (yet to come until Samuel grows up) are going to fail in that respect too. So with the priesthood failing to do God's business, the LORD raised up messengers.
The King sees far ahead, friends. He knows the beginning and the end of all things. He wasn't surprised when the priests and earthly kings failed to lead. The Messiah is sufficient to be Prophet, Priest, and King. He does all things well (Mark 7:37).
Samuel, Nathan, Shemaiah, & Ahijah
Nathan is the only one of these four prophets to deliver information that pertains directly to the Messiah, who was to come. But Samuel, Shemaiah, and Ahijah delivered messages to the earthly kings of Judah and Israel that are worth our consideration.
Samuel had the privilege of anointing the first two earthly kings of the Jews, Saul and David. He grew up in service to God at Shiloh, witnessing the scandalous moral and liturgical abuses of the sons of Eli, the High Priest. Samuel prophesied the death of the sons of Eli and the cutting-off of Eli's lineage from the priesthood (1Sa 3:11-14). He witnessed the spiritual failure of the priesthood. Samuel also delivered a message for all believers concerning God's requirement of obedience before sacrifice (1Sa 15:22).
Nathan succeeded Samuel as God's messenger to the kings of the Jews. He served as the prophet to David, whereas Samuel delivered prophetic messages chiefly to Saul. Nathan was sent to rebuke David for the 'secret' sins of adultery and murder. In response to David's wish to build the LORD a house, Nathan had the privilege of recording God's eternal covenant with David's progeny. Nathan tells us that the Messiah will be a king in the line of David (2Sa 7:12) with an everlasting kingdom (2Sa 7:13), not only David's 'son' but God's son (2Sa 7:14a). We're also told that the Messiah will be chastened with the rod and stripes of men when guilt is laid upon him (2Sa 7:14b).
Although God refers to David as a man after His own heart, the earthly kings were failures. The tribes of Israel were divided into two kingdoms after the death of David's son and successor, Solomon. Rehoboam, David's grandson, ruled Judah and Benjamin in the south. Jeroboam ruled the other ten tribes as Israel in the north.
Shemaiah was a prophet to the southern kingdom. He had the unenviable task of telling David's grandson, Rehoboam, not to try to reunite the kingdom after God divided it (1Ki 12:22-24). Shemaiah also informed Rehoboam that God was going to use the king of Egypt to punish Judah for idolatry (2Ch 12:15).
Ahijah prophesied to Jeroboam, king of the ten northern tribes. He told Jeroboam of God's plan to take ten tribes away from Solomon (1Ki 11:29-39). When Jeroboam had failed to uphold the name of the LORD as king, Ahijah warned him of God's fierce judgment (1Ki 14:5-16).
What do we learn from Samuel, Nathan, Shemaiah, and Ahijah? We learn that God requires obedience before sacrifice. We're told that the Messiah will be a king in the line of David and His kingdom will be established forever. He'll be the son of God and rule the LORD's house from the LORD's throne (1Ch 17:14). These men teach us that God establishes kingdoms and judges rulers.
The Psalmist
The book of Psalms is chock full of prophecy about the Messiah. Each chapter of Psalms is a hymn of praise. Seventy-three of the songs were written by King David. The authorship thirty-nine of them is not known. The remaining thirty-eight are attributed to various individuals. We'll use the designation of Psalmist to refer to any and all of the authors of prophetic psalms. In the interest of brevity, we'll deal only with the most messianically rich psalms.
Psalm 2 picks up the theme of the Messiah. The song is only twelve verses long, but it speaks of the Son of God who is despised by the kings of the earth. It tells of His judgment of the kingdoms from Zion. He owns the earth and calls wise men to worship and trust in Him.
Psalm 22 is a powerhouse of suffering and faith. It doesn't mention the Messiah specifically, but it speaks of a kingdom established by God and the worship of people from all kindreds and nations. The kingdom and worship spring forth out of affliction. This psalm presents a picture of a faithful servant who faces death at the hands of scoffers while trusting in God's deliverance. This goes beyond David's suffering or claims to greatness. It is a picture of something much bigger. It is David's vision of the Messiah's suffering and vindication.
Psalm 40 is a rather extraordinary because it is a study in contrasts. It starts out as an account of redemption followed by praise. The psalm takes a rather strange turn in verse 6 when it says that the LORD does not require sacrifice or burnt offerings. Those things were the center of Jewish worship in David's time. Verses 7 and 8 says "Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart." It goes on to speak of the righteousness, faith, and praise of the one who is expected to come. The psalm takes a reverse turn again in verse 12 as it speaks of one who has sinned and is in need of redemption. The song concludes with, "But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me: thou art my help and my deliverer; make no tarrying, O my God." The one needing redemption is the author of the psalm, King David. The one bringing redemption is the author of life, the Messiah. One king needs salvation and the other is mighty to save, because He is God.
Psalm 45, written by an unknown author, dovetails nicely with Psalm 21, written by David. Psalm 21 sets forth a king like the one from Hannah's prayer (1Sa 2). Psalm 45 marks the Messiah out as a king who is eternal and far above humanity. He is a man of war, truth, meekness and righteousness. He is God and His throne and scepter are eternal. He is anointed because He loves righteousness and hates iniquity. He is a bridegroom and His people will praise Him forever.
Psalm 69 paints a picture of a man who endures great suffering. This is all about the Messiah, and it shows Him bearing the sins of the world. Where does it say that? Read carefully. His suffering is compared to an overwhelming flood, and it comes at the hands of a multitude who wrongfully hate Him. He bears the earthly shame of those who wait on God and seek Him. The hatred of men toward God is on Him. He is God's servant and finds no pity or comfort among men. He trusts in God to raise Him from the tomb. His sacrifice will far surpasses any sacrifice of oxen or bulls. This is a song of the Savior!
Psalm 72 describes the King's kingdom. This psalm was written by David's lesser son, Solomon. One might think that Solomon aspired to have a kingdom like this for himself, and he probably did. But the king of this kingdom is able to "redeem their soul(s) from deceit and violence". Solomon was wise enough to know that God is the judge and redeemer of men's souls (Ecc 12). It's going to be a kingdom like no other, friends!
To be continued...
