The Son of David: Christ as the Fulfillment of Davidic Promises

King Henry VIII’s (1491–1597) insatiable desire to have a son to be heir of his kingdom serves as the basis for one of the great accounts of church history. When Catherine of Aragon, Henry’s first wife, could not bear him a son, he sought to have the marriage annulled by the Roman Catholic Church. When Pope Leo X refused an annulment, the king broke from the church of Rome. In God’s providence, Henry’s zeal for the perpetuation of his dynasty ultimately led to the English Reformation, as members of Parliament appointed Henry to be the head of the Church of England. The divine hand of providence overruled Henry’s fleshly attempts to procure an heir and brought about good for the church. There is, however, a far more significant record of how the divine hand of providence established a dynasty through a son for the good of His church—namely, in the fulfillment of God’s covenant with David.

In 2 Samuel 7:1–17, the Lord promised David that He would establish an everlasting kingdom, raising up a son who would reign on his throne forever (2 Sam. 7:8–16). God’s dealings with David in redemptive history form the climax of Old Testament revelation. Scripture reveals that Christ is the promised son of David (Matt. 9:27; 15:22; 20:30; 21:9; 22:42). He is the new David, the King who rules as covenant head of His people (Ezek. 34:23–24). One cannot fully understand the message of Scripture without recognizing that Jesus is the promised son of David who fulfills the covenant promises (2 Cor. 1:20–21; Rom. 1:3; 2 Tim. 2:8). Much of who Jesus is and what He did is directly related to the person of David and the promises God gave him. To establish the relationship between David and Christ, the Scriptures reveal the typological identification that exists between them.

David is arguably the most developed type of Christ in the Old Testament. The typological connection between him and Christ is first understood by his name. The prophets expressly refer to the promised messiah as “David” (Ezek. 34:23–24; 37:24–25), as well as “the righteous Branch of David” (Jer. 23:5). This association is rooted in the seed promise God made to David in the Davidic covenant (2 Sam. 7:17–23). David’s name carries a typical relation to the person of Christ, as David’s name is expressly connected to the Hebrew word translated “beloved.” Jesus is God’s beloved Son, the antitype of the beloved David (Isa. 5:1; Matt. 3:17; 12:19; 17:5; 2 Peter 1:17).

The typological relationship is next discerned by their birthplace. Both David and Christ came out of Bethlehem. This is no insignificant typical association. The prophet Micah specifically foretold the eternal (from everlasting) and the temporal (Bethlehem) origin of the Redeemer (Mic. 5:2; Matt. 2:1–6). The eternal Son of David was born in Bethlehem, the city of David.

There is a close connection between the calling of David and Jesus. David was a shepherd when the Lord called him to rule over Israel (1 Sam. 16:19; 2 Sam. 7:8). The Lord chose and anointed David to shepherd His people (2 Sam. 5:1–2). Jesus is the Good Shepherd, the chosen and Anointed One appointed by God to shepherd His people, the true Israel (Isa. 42:1; Mic. 5:2; John 10).

David was a warrior who conquered God’s enemies in battle. Jesus is the eschatological, divine warrior who conquers all God’s enemies in battle on the cross (Ps. 45:3; Col. 2:15; 1 John 3:8). David typifies Christ by engaging in representative warfare with Goliath. The one who won this battle won it for his people (1 Sam. 17:9). David represented God’s people, ultimately defeating the Philistines in battle. Jesus faced off in representative warfare against Satan, ultimately defeating him and the spiritual forces of darkness on the cross (Col. 2:15). As David defeated Goliath with his own weapon, so Christ defeated Satan with His own weapon—namely, the cross. Jonathan Edwards helpfully observed,

God preserved [David] from [Goliath], and gave him the victory over him—so that he cut off his head with his own sword and made him therein the deliverer of his people—as Christ slew the spiritual Goliath with his own weapon, the cross, and so delivered his people.

As David had a group of mighty men with him in his sufferings, Jesus had His disciples with Him through His humiliation and suffering. David’s mighty men were with him when he ate the showbread in the tabernacle (1 Sam. 21:1–6). Jesus’ disciples were with Him when they walked through the grain fields on the Sabbath (Matt. 12:1–8). It was Christ Himself who drew out this redemptive-historical connection (Mark 2:25–26).

Among the great suffering David endured were the attacks of Saul on account of his jealousy. The Son of David was maliciously treated from infancy, when King Herod sought to destroy Him out of jealousy. Just as David was derided by his brothers, so the Son of David was derided by His brethren. David was despised and rejected by the king, by his people, and by his own family. Jesus was rejected by His people, sentenced and executed by the Romans, denied by Peter, abandoned in His hour of trial by His disciples, tortured, attacked by Satan and demons, and forsaken by God when bearing the sin of the world. David crossed over the Brook Kidron as he was being betrayed by Ahithophel (2 Sam. 15:13–37). When his plot was uncovered, Ahithophel hung himself (2 Sam. 17:23). Jesus crossed over the Brook Kidron when being betrayed by Judas (John 18:1). After his betrayal, Judas went and hanged himself (Matt. 27:5).

The entire life of David was a series of typological deaths and resurrections until he was delivered and exalted. The whole of Christ’s life was one of suffering followed by resurrection glory. Jesus is “the root and the descendant of David” (Rev. 22:16), the One “who has the key of David” (Rev. 3:7). Christ has been exalted to the right hand of God to rule on the throne of David (Luke 1:32). The crucified, risen, and exalted son of David rules forever over the kingdom of God in righteousness, truth, and grace as the new David.