The Contentment of a Great Man: Barzillai's Reward Text: 2 Samuel 19:31-39
Introduction: Two Kinds of Wealth
We live in an age that is obsessed with the fleeting. Our culture chases after the vapor of celebrity, the pretense of political power, and the illusion of a comfortable retirement in a world that is groaning for its own redemption. Men spend their lives accumulating what will rust, what moths will eat, and what thieves will steal, and they call this success. They build their houses on the sand of the Jerusalem stock market, on the shifting loyalties of political parties, and on the promise that the next pleasure will finally be the one that satisfies.
But the Scriptures consistently set before us a different standard of greatness. It is a greatness measured not by accumulation but by distribution. It is a wealth defined not by what you can keep, but by what you can faithfully give away. It is a legacy built not on the marble monuments of this world, but on the enduring realities of covenant faithfulness. In our story today, we meet a man who embodies this true and lasting greatness. His name is Barzillai the Gileadite, and in his brief interaction with King David, we are given a master class in godly contentment, wise old age, and the nature of a well-lived life.
The context is critical. David is returning to his throne after the bloody and heartbreaking rebellion of his son Absalom. The kingdom is fractured, the loyalties are strained, and the political landscape is a minefield of resentments and ambitions. David, the Lord's anointed, had been driven from his capital, humiliated and betrayed. In his hour of desperate need, when he was weary, hungry, and thirsty in the wilderness, certain men stood with him. And Barzillai was chief among them. He was, as the text tells us, "a very great man." But his greatness was not in his title or his office. His greatness was demonstrated by his loyalty and his open-handed generosity to his fugitive king.
Now, as David returns in victory, the time has come to settle accounts. Favors are to be returned. Loyalty is to be rewarded. And in the exchange between David and Barzillai, we see a profound contrast between the economy of this world and the economy of the kingdom of God. We see a man who understands what truly matters, who knows his season of life, and who is more concerned with his eternal home than with a temporary place at the king's table.
The Text
Now Barzillai the Gileadite had come down from Rogelim; and he passed over the Jordan with the king in order to send him off over the Jordan. Now Barzillai was very old, being eighty years old; and he had sustained the king while he stayed at Mahanaim, for he was a very great man. And the king said to Barzillai, “You pass over with me and I will sustain you in Jerusalem with me.” But Barzillai said to the king, “How long have I yet to live, that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem? I am now eighty years old. Can I know between good and bad? Or can your servant taste what I eat or what I drink? Or can I hear anymore the voice of singing men and women? Why then should your servant be an added burden to my lord the king? Your servant would merely pass over the Jordan with the king. Why should the king compensate me with this reward? Please let your servant return, that I may die in my own city near the grave of my father and my mother. However, here is your servant Chimham, let him pass over with my lord the king, and do for him what is good in your sight.” So the king answered, “Chimham shall pass over with me, and I will do for him what is good in your sight; and whatever you require of me, I will do for you.” Then all the people passed over the Jordan and the king passed over too. The king then kissed Barzillai and blessed him, and he returned to his place.
(2 Samuel 19:31-39 LSB)
Loyalty Remembered and Rewarded (vv. 31-33)
We begin with the character of Barzillai and the king's gratitude.
"Now Barzillai the Gileadite had come down from Rogelim; and he passed over the Jordan with the king in order to send him off over the Jordan. Now Barzillai was very old, being eighty years old; and he had sustained the king while he stayed at Mahanaim, for he was a very great man. And the king said to Barzillai, 'You pass over with me and I will sustain you in Jerusalem with me.'" (2 Samuel 19:31-33)
Barzillai's loyalty is active. He doesn't just send a note of congratulations. He comes down personally to see the king safely across the Jordan. This is a man of honor. The text reminds us of his past actions: he "had sustained the king." When David was at his lowest, Barzillai, a man of great wealth, opened his storehouses and provided for the king and his men. He did this not because it was safe, but because it was right. He recognized the Lord's anointed and risked his fortune and his life to support him against the usurper. This is covenant faithfulness in shoe leather.
The text says he was "a very great man." In our world, greatness is attached to power, fame, or influence. In the Bible, greatness is almost always attached to service, faithfulness, and generosity. Barzillai was great because he used his God-given wealth to serve God's chosen king in his moment of need. He understood that his wealth was not his own; it was a stewardship, a tool to be deployed for the cause of righteousness.
David, to his credit, is a grateful king. He does not forget this loyalty. He offers Barzillai the highest honor he can bestow: a permanent place at the royal court in Jerusalem. "I will sustain you in Jerusalem with me." This was the ancient equivalent of a lifetime pension, a seat in the House of Lords, and a permanent pass to every state dinner. It was an offer of honor, comfort, and provision. For most men, this would be the culmination of a life's ambition. To be a friend of the king, to live in the capital, to be sustained by the royal treasury, this is the pinnacle of worldly success.
The Wisdom of a Contented Heart (vv. 34-37a)
Barzillai's response is a masterwork of gracious refusal, rooted in a profound self-awareness and a proper valuation of earthly pleasures.
"But Barzillai said to the king, 'How long have I yet to live, that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem? I am now eighty years old. Can I know between good and bad? Or can your servant taste what I eat or what I drink? Or can I hear anymore the voice of singing men and women? Why then should your servant be an added burden to my lord the king?'" (2 Samuel 19:34-35)
Barzillai begins with a sober assessment of his mortality. "How long have I yet to live?" At eighty years old, he knows his days are numbered. He is not living in denial. He is facing the end of his life with clear-eyed realism. This is not morbidity; it is wisdom. The Psalmist teaches us to number our days, that we may get a heart of wisdom (Psalm 90:12). Barzillai has learned this lesson well. He knows that the brief time he has left is too precious to spend on the trivialities of court life.
He then lists the pleasures of the court and explains why they no longer hold any appeal for him. His senses are fading. He cannot distinguish between good and bad, likely referring to the complex political intrigues of the court. His palate is dull; the finest royal cuisine would be wasted on him. His hearing is gone; the beautiful music of the court singers would be lost to him. He is saying, with profound humility, "I am past the age for these things."
This is a powerful rebuke to our youth-obsessed culture, which tells us to cling to the pleasures of the flesh for as long as we can. Barzillai shows us the grace of accepting one's season. There is a time for everything, and the time for the sensual pleasures of the court has passed for him. He does not resent this; he accepts it. More than that, he sees that trying to live in a season that is not his own would make him "an added burden" to the king. He would be taking up a seat that a younger, more capable man could fill. This is humility. This is the wisdom of a man whose treasures are not in this world.
He concludes his refusal by stating his simple, humble desire: "Please let your servant return, that I may die in my own city near the grave of my father and my mother." Barzillai is not seeking a new adventure. He wants to go home. He wants to be buried with his people, in the land God had given his family. This is the desire of a man rooted in his place, his family, and his history. His identity is not found in the glamour of Jerusalem but in the soil of Gilead. He is a patriarch who wants to be gathered to his fathers, a beautiful Old Testament picture of faith in the resurrection and the life to come.
A Legacy of Faithfulness (vv. 37b-39)
Though Barzillai refuses the reward for himself, he does not refuse it for his house. This is where his patriarchal vision shines.
"However, here is your servant Chimham, let him pass over with my lord the king, and do for him what is good in your sight... So the king answered, 'Chimham shall pass over with me, and I will do for him what is good in your sight; and whatever you require of me, I will do for you.' Then all the people passed over the Jordan and the king passed over too. The king then kissed Barzillai and blessed him, and he returned to his place." (2 Samuel 19:37-39)
Barzillai is thinking generationally. He is not just concerned with his own comfort or honor; he is concerned with the future of his family. He leverages the goodwill he has earned with the king for the benefit of his son, Chimham. He asks David to take Chimham to court and provide for him. He is securing a future and a place for his posterity in the kingdom.
This is the heart of a true patriarch. He works not for himself, but for his children and his children's children. He understands that his life is one link in a long covenantal chain. His faithfulness in one generation is meant to provide a platform for the next generation. He doesn't want the reward for himself, but he gladly accepts it on behalf of his son. This is the opposite of the selfish individualism that plagues our modern world. Barzillai is building a household, not just a life.
David's response is gracious and expansive. He accepts Chimham and promises to do for him whatever Barzillai requires. The king's gratitude extends to the next generation. And so, the transaction is complete. The king kisses Barzillai, a sign of deep affection and respect, and blesses him. A blessing from the Lord's anointed is no small thing. Barzillai then returns to his own place, a man content in his God, his family, and his home. He sought no earthly reward and received the blessing of his king and the honor of God.
Conclusion: The Greater Barzillai and the True King
The story of Barzillai is a beautiful portrait of godly character, but like all Old Testament stories, it points beyond itself to a greater reality. It is a story that finds its ultimate fulfillment in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
We, like David, were exiles. We were driven out of the garden by our rebellion, fugitives from the kingdom of God. In our sin, we were weary, hungry, and thirsty in a spiritual wilderness, with a usurper, Satan, on the throne of our hearts. And in this desperate state, our Lord Jesus Christ, the greater Barzillai, came to us. He is the truly "great man" who, though He was rich, yet for our sakes became poor, that we by His poverty might become rich (2 Corinthians 8:9).
He did not just provide for us from His storehouses; He gave us Himself. He sustained us with His own body and blood. He risked everything, not for a righteous king, but for rebels and traitors, to bring us back to God. He is the one who saw us in our lowest state and showed us covenant faithfulness.
And now our King, the Lord Jesus, has returned to His throne in victory. He has crossed the Jordan of death and ascended to the heavenly Jerusalem. And He turns to us, those He has sustained, and makes an offer far greater than David's. He says, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world" (Matthew 25:34). He offers us a permanent place at His table, in His city, sustained by His infinite grace for all eternity.
And what should our response be? It should be the response of Barzillai, but with a gospel difference. We should have Barzillai's humility, recognizing that we are unworthy of such an honor. We should have his contentment, knowing that the fleeting pleasures of this world are nothing compared to the joy of our true home. But unlike Barzillai, we must not say no. His senses were fading, but in Christ, our spiritual senses are being renewed day by day. His time was short, but our time is eternal. He would have been a burden, but we are called to cast our burdens upon the Lord.
Barzillai wanted to die and be buried near the grave of his father. But our King has conquered the grave. We do not look to an earthly tomb, but to an empty one. And so we accept the King's offer with joy. We look forward to the day when we will cross that final Jordan, not to return to our earthly place, but to go and be with our King in the New Jerusalem. There, we will not be a burden, but a bride. There, our senses will not be dull, but will be sharp enough to taste the joys of the marriage supper of the Lamb and to hear the voices of the heavenly choirs forever. And there, we will see that the loyalty of our great Barzillai has secured a place for us, His children, in the house of the King for all eternity.