Dear friend,

 

Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward.
 

- 1 Samuel 16:13 -

 

 

Not every adaptation of the Bible to screen is done well. I think we've all seen the cheesy cartoons from the 90s or had a debate about The Chosen with someone who disagrees with it. Now there is a new adaptation on the market, this one produced by Amazon: House of David.

 

I will be honest: I'm skeptical of anything new and popular. Given that the prevailing opinion of society is not always… trustworthy, a new, seemingly-secularly produced depiction of David's life gave me pause. But we've been watching it as a family for a few weeks now and here are my honest thoughts. 

The first episode leads us to the aftermath of Saul's battle with the Amalekites and his disobedience to the Lord's command. I loved how this scene was depicted because it brought to life the well-known passage teaching that “obedience is better than sacrifice”. But it also highlighted how much Samuel loved Saul, and how much it broke his heart to hand him over to his own depraved mind. Other parts of the episode and season depict things that are not recorded (Eliab being shot by the Philistines) but that don't affect the overarching story.

 

Some people may be surprised to see David depicted as an illegitimate son of Jesse, but this is not a plot invented by Amazon. I learned this theory three years ago in a Messianic Jewish study of the Old Testament! This theory (because it is a theory, albeit an ancient one) explains why David was not called by Jesse when Samuel came to anoint his sons. It's also a parallel between David and Jesus, the Son of David, who was also called “illegitimate".

 

We watched several of the episodes with our kids, fast forwarding the most violent parts. This is a violent portion of the Bible because it was a violent time in history; that's part of the story. Our kids are accustomed to watching live-action content, so with a few skips here and there they have thoroughly enjoyed seeing the accounts they've heard read to them depicted on screen!

 

My most significant concern with this show is that they will play upon the erroneous (and heretical) idea that David and Jonathan were lovers. If this theme is insinuated, I will stop watching. I think House of David is a great resource if it continues along the lines it's followed so far. 

I often say to Christians: You might not like shows similar to the Chosen or House of David, but I guarantee that the seekers and young believers DO. They are watching this content and building their view of the Bible upon it. It would behoove more mature Christians to watch what they are watching and form a solid opinion and discernment-based approach to it so conversations with these individuals are productive and well-informed!

 

More Old Testament Resources:

 

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We hope this new schedule is a blessing to you!

This week marks the beginning of “Crazy May", the busiest month of our year. April and May are the height of conference season and we are busy with many amazing events! Maybe I will see you at one of the events we're doing this month and in early June!