How did King David die?
David's death is recorded twice — briefly at the end of his reign in 1 Kings, and again at the close of his story in Chronicles — and both accounts are strikingly plain. He was not killed in battle or struck down in judgment; he died old, in his own city, with his son already on the throne and his affairs settled.
Old Age, Not Violence
David's death came at the end of a long reign, and the numbers themselves tell the story. One writer works out his age from the record of his years as king:
Leslie M. Grant2 Samuel 5:4 tells us that David was 30 years old when he began to reign, and reigned 40 years over Israel. So he died at 70 years of age and was buried in Jerusalem. For seven years he reigned in Hebron and for 33 years in Jerusalem (v.11). By the time David died, Solomon was already reigning and his kingdom was firmly established.
A Body Worn Out Before Its Time
Seventy is not extreme old age, yet the opening of 1 Kings shows a man who could no longer keep warm. One commentator traces that weakness back through the whole shape of David's life:
Arno Clemens GaebeleinDavid was about 70 years old and extremely feeble. The strenuous life he had led, the exposures and hardships of his youth, the cares and anxieties of his reign, and the chastenings through which he passed on account of his great sin, and much else were responsible for this enfeebled condition. It is but another illustration of that rigid law, what a man sows he shall reap. It was a premature decay with the complete loss of natural heat.
His attendants tried a remedy of their own — a young woman, Abishag, to lie beside him and warm him. A commentator sees the wrong instinct behind it: "She ministered to the king's needs, but he did not cohabit with her (v.4). Men will employ any available means of dealing with problems instead of committing the problem to the Lord." (Leslie M. Grant)
He Died With His Affairs in Order
David's dying was not passive. Knowing his end was near, he called Solomon and gave him a charge, and the concern behind it was not personal:
Leslie M. GrantAs David was about to die, his words to Solomon have serious significance. Just as Paul (2 Tim. 4:1-6) and Peter (2 Pet. 1:12-15) were concerned about the testimony of the Lord after their death, so was David, for they were not moved by selfish motives, but by concern for God's glory among His people.
The core of that charge was to be strong and to keep God's word — "his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies." One writer explains what David was doing in that moment: "Solomon at the dawn of his reign must first of all be armed against that which could hinder or ruin it." (H. L. Rossier)
The Debts He Left to Settle
Part of David's deathbed instruction was that Solomon should deal with Joab and Shimei. Some have read this as spite from a dying man. One commentator answers that charge directly:
Arno Clemens GaebeleinThe charge to Solomon to execute vengeance upon these two men is not a stain upon King David. The punishment was well deserved. Joab had killed Abner and Amasa. Shimei had in great vileness cursed God's king. Both were wicked men. David's own guilt had no doubt compelled him to neglect the solemn duty demanded by justice.
Two Accounts, Two Tones
Chronicles closes David's life with words Kings does not use — that he died at a good age, full of days, riches and honour. The difference is deliberate:
H. L. RossierThe last verses of our chapter (1 Chron. 29:26-30) repeat 1 Kings 2:10-12 in view of at last closing David's history. The Holy Spirit mentions his old age "full of days, riches, and honor" in harmony with the purpose of this book, and in contrast with his end as it is recorded for us in 2 Samuel 23:1-6 and in 1 Kings 1.
A Grave That Stayed Occupied
David was buried in the city he had captured from the Jebusites — the stronghold of Zion, which took his name. Centuries later Peter used that grave as an argument. When David wrote in Psalm 16 that God would not let His Holy One see corruption, he could not have meant himself:
J. T. Mawson"Men and brothers," he said to the assembled Jews, "let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Therefore being a prophet... he foresaw and spoke of the resurrection of Christ, that His soul was not left in hades, neither His flesh saw corruption."
Another writer puts the contrast in one line: David "after he had in his own generation served the will of God, died and saw corruption" — but David's Son "saw no corruption." (Leslie M. Grant)
Summary
- Cause — no violence and no judgment; a worn-out body at about seventy, after forty years of reign, seven in Hebron and thirty-three in Jerusalem.
- Reaping — commentators trace his early feebleness to the hardships, cares and chastening of his life, an illustration of sowing and reaping.
- Order — he did not simply fade out; he charged Solomon to be strong and keep God's word, concerned for God's glory after he was gone.
- Justice — his dying instructions about Joab and Shimei settled a debt of justice he had let slide, not a private grudge.
- Corruption — his tomb was still pointed to on the day of Pentecost, proving Psalm 16 spoke of Another; David saw corruption, his Son did not.