Bird's-eye view
In this brief but potent scene, David is in full flight from his traitorous son, Absalom. The kingdom is in turmoil, and loyalties are being tested to the breaking point. As David makes his sorrowful exit from Jerusalem, he encounters Ittai, a Philistine commander from Gath who had only recently entered his service. David, in a display of kingly magnanimity, offers to release Ittai from any obligation to follow him into exile, arguing that Ittai is a foreigner and his allegiance should be to the sitting king, whoever that might be. But Ittai refuses. He responds with one of the great oaths of loyalty in all of Scripture, binding himself to David and to David's God, Yahweh, for life or for death. David accepts his fealty, and Ittai crosses the Kidron brook with the king, a poignant foreshadowing of the greater David's own journey of sorrow.
Outline
- 1. The King's Gracious Offer (2 Sam. 15:19-20)
- a. A Question of Loyalty (v. 19)
- b. A Release from Obligation (v. 20)
- 2. The Foreigner's Covenant Oath (2 Sam. 15:21)
- a. An Oath by Yahweh (v. 21a)
- b. An Unconditional Allegiance (v. 21b)
- 3. The Sorrowful Procession (2 Sam. 15:22-23)
- a. The King's Acceptance (v. 22)
- b. The Crossing of the Kidron (v. 23)
Context In 2 Samuel
This passage is situated at the absolute nadir of David's reign. The consequences of his sin with Bathsheba, prophesied by Nathan, are now cascading upon his house. His son Absalom has successfully stolen the hearts of the men of Israel and has been declared king in Hebron. David, caught by surprise and unwilling to subject Jerusalem to a bloody civil war, has chosen to flee. This is not a strategic retreat; it is a desperate evacuation. The people with him are those whose loyalty is to him personally, not just to the institution of the monarchy. It is in this crucible of betrayal and chaos that the startling faithfulness of a Gentile mercenary shines forth, providing a stark contrast to the treachery of David's own son and his counselor, Ahithophel.
Key Issues
- The Nature of True Loyalty
- Gentiles in the Covenant Community
- David as a Type of Christ
- Lovingkindness and Truth (Hesed we Emet)
- The Significance of the Kidron Valley
A Loyalty That Crosses the Brook
19 Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite, “Why will you also go with us? Return and remain with the king, for you are a foreigner and also an exile; return to your own place.
David is now a king on the run. As he is leaving the city, he takes note of who is with him. He spots Ittai, who was a Gittite, meaning he was from the Philistine city of Gath. This is the hometown of Goliath. Ittai was a mercenary commander with 600 of his own men who had recently sworn allegiance to David. David, even in his own profound distress, shows his character as a true shepherd king. He is thinking of the welfare of his men. His argument to Ittai is entirely logical and gracious. He tells him to return and "remain with the king," by which he means Absalom, the de facto king now occupying the palace. David's reasoning is twofold. First, Ittai is a "foreigner" and an "exile." His loyalty is a professional one, not a native one. He has no patriotic duty to the man David, but rather to the throne of Israel. David releases him from his personal oath. Why should a Philistine get caught up in an Israelite civil war?
20 You came only yesterday, and shall I today make you wander with us, going about, while I go where I go? Return and cause your brothers to return; lovingkindness and truth be with you.”
David presses the point. Ittai's commitment was recent, made "only yesterday." How could David, in good conscience, drag him into this mess? David himself doesn't even know his own destination; he is going "where I go," into the wilderness, into uncertainty. This is not a recruiting speech; it is an honest appraisal of a desperate situation. David is not trying to guilt Ittai into staying; he is giving him every good reason to leave. And then he blesses him. The blessing is significant: "lovingkindness and truth be with you." This is the great covenantal phrase, hesed we emet. It is the steadfast love and faithfulness that characterize God Himself. David is wishing upon this Philistine the very best thing in the universe, the covenant blessing of Yahweh. He is a true king, seeking the good of his subjects even at his own expense.
21 But Ittai answered the king and said, “As Yahweh lives, and as my lord the king lives, surely wherever my lord the king may be, whether for death or for life, there also your servant will be.”
Ittai's response is breathtaking. It is not a calculation of odds. It is a sworn oath, a covenant vow. And notice how he frames it. First, "As Yahweh lives." This Philistine swears by the God of Israel. He is not just loyal to David the man; he has thrown his lot in with David's God. His faith has followed his allegiance. Second, he swears "as my lord the king lives." His loyalty is personal, bound up with David's very life. This is the heart of feudal, covenantal loyalty. It is not loyalty to an idea or an institution, but to a person. And the scope of the oath is absolute: "whether for death or for life, there also your servant will be." This is the blank check of faithfulness. It is Ruth's pledge to Naomi (Ruth 1:16-17) on the lips of a battle-hardened warrior. Ittai understands that true loyalty is not a fair-weather commitment. He is signing up for the duration, for better or for worse.
22 So David said to Ittai, “Go and pass over.” So Ittai the Gittite passed over with all his men and all the little ones who were with him.
David hears the integrity in this oath and accepts it. He doesn't argue further. He simply says, "Go and pass over." The command is given, and the loyal servant obeys. And it is not just Ittai. He brings his whole contingent with him, "all his men and all the little ones who were with him." This is a picture of household faith. The commitment of the head of the house extends to all who are under his authority. These families are leaving the security of Jerusalem to follow a fugitive king into the wilderness, all on the strength of their commander's word. This is a Gentile contingent, a foreshadowing of the day when the nations would stream to the Son of David.
23 While all the country was weeping with a loud voice, all the people passed over. The king also passed over the brook Kidron, and all the people passed over toward the way of the wilderness.
The scene is one of great pathos. All the loyalists remaining in the land are weeping loudly. Their king, the Lord's anointed, is being driven from his throne. The nation is fractured. And in the midst of this sea of sorrow, David himself passes over the brook Kidron. This is a detail pregnant with theological meaning. The Kidron Valley is what separates Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. A thousand years later, the greater David, the Lord Jesus Christ, would cross this same brook on the night He was betrayed, heading for the Garden of Gethsemane to pray (John 18:1). David is fleeing the betrayal of his son Absalom and his friend Ahithophel. Jesus was going to face the betrayal of his disciple Judas. David is heading into the wilderness to save his life. Jesus was heading to the cross to lay down His life. The weeping of the people for David is a faint echo of the weeping of the daughters of Jerusalem for Christ. This moment is a type, a pattern, pointing to the ultimate King and His ultimate sorrow and victory.
Application
The loyalty of Ittai the Gittite is a standing rebuke to all forms of nominal, fair-weather, and calculated Christianity. Our allegiance is not to a system, a denomination, or a political platform. Our allegiance is to a person, the Lord Jesus Christ. And like Ittai, we must swear our oath to Him.
Like Ittai, we are foreigners and exiles. This world is not our home. Our citizenship is in heaven, and we should not be surprised when the powers of this world are hostile to our true King. The question is, when our King's cause seems to be losing, when following Him means heading into the wilderness of cultural disapproval and personal cost, will we give our own version of Ittai's oath? Will we say, "As the Lord lives, wherever my King is, whether it leads to death or to life, that is where I will be"?
This kind of loyalty is not based on our feelings or on the current prospects for success. It is a covenant commitment, a sworn vow. It is a decision to follow Jesus across the Kidron, out of the comfortable city and into the wilderness with Him. It is to bind ourselves to Him, for better or for worse, until He comes again in glory.