Daily Devotional for Saturday, February 10

The Punishment

“And David said unto Gad, I am in a great strait: let us fall now into the hand of the Lord; for his mercies are great: and let me not fall into the hand of man,” 2 Samuel 24:14.

David messed up, and he knew it. He had acted rashly, ignored the advice of Joab and went forward with his census. And it cost him and the people dearly. David had hoped that God would not send any form of judgment, but He did. God laid out three different options for David. As David considered these options, he knew none were good, but he chose to lean upon the discipline that would fall most directly from the hand of the Lord. The duration was brief, but the effect was large.

David’s reasoning for this choice is made clear in the text: “for his mercies are great.” This theme runs throughout Scripture. God is always more merciful than we deserve—always. Adam and Eve did not die immediately in Genesis 3. His mercies are great. Cain was not slain by God, though he deserved it. His mercies are great. Noah did not die in the flood because he found grace in God’s eyes. His mercies are great. Abram failed to trust God when in a foreign land, twice. His mercies are great. Over and over God extends over-abundant mercy considering our sin and rebellion.

This is seen most clearly in the person and work of Jesus. Not only do we receive mercy by hearing of Jesus and being able to trust in Jesus, we see that Jesus Himself did not receive mercy at the hands of His accusers. Even more importantly, we see that the Father extended His wrath rather than His mercy on the cross toward Jesus. God can have mercy on us through the cross because Jesus did not receive mercy on the cross.

REFLECTION
Mercy comes to us at a price that only God could pay. He is worthy of our trust in all He does, even in our discipline.

Jason Rutherford