The below is a discussion forum post I completed in my undergraduate studies. We find typology throughout the Bible. One example is Ruth, who has a kinsman redeemer, a typology of Christ, the ultimate redeemer. The post below discusses King David as a typology of the coming Christ.
David as a Christ Typology
We see one type or typologies for Christ in King David. David provides a preview of some characteristics of the coming Christ. The Church father Luther saw a prediction of Christ in 2 Samuel 23 where “the one who rules justly over men is not David but Christ.”[1] Calvin also called to attention the parallels of historical figures, particularly David to Christ, “for what is David but a type of Christ?”[2] The promises that God made to David also form the repetitious symbolism necessary for typology.
As a psalmist, David references the Messiah, considering Psalms 72, 100, and 110. God also anoints David in 1 Samuel 16:13-14, then David represents Israel through killing the giant Goliath and the provision of his heir in King Solomon. Goldsworthy provides that “God promises to make David’s name great and to give his people rest in their land. He will not allow David to build the house of God (a temple) but will himself make for David a house (a dynasty).”[3] Goldsworthy also notes that the covenants that God provides are cumulative to the time of King David’s rule and looking forward to his descendants.[4]
We find additional parallel attributes in David and Christ, symbolic of David’s type, as further clarifications. Some examples include; “The kingship of David recalls the rule or dominion that God gave to Adam in Eden,”[5] both David and Jesus are Kings, Shepherds, born in Bethlehem and conquering God’s enemies of his people(1 Sam 17:50-51, Col 2:15 ESV). David serves as perhaps the best example of the coming type of Christ, but we also observed the typology in other persons in biblical history, such as Boaz or Joshua.
See also: The Bible’s Answer to Loss and Trauma
[1] Greidanus, Sidney. Preaching Christ from the Old Testament: A Contemporary Hermeneutical Method. (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1999.), 122.
[2] Ibid, 144.
[3] Graeme Goldsworthy, According to Plan: The Unfolding Revelation of God in the Bible (WORDsearch, 2015), 167.
[4] Ibid, 168.
[5] Ibid, 187.
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