Week 308 · about 45 minutes
2 Samuel 2
2 Samuel 2 · Memory verse 2 Samuel 2:5
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Queues the lesson plan, this story’s coloring page (2 Samuel 2), the matching word search and answer key (2 Samuel 2 word search), the memory-verse tracer, and a parent slip.
Five-minute object lesson
Prop: a seed
Hold a seed. Read 2 Samuel 2 in about four minutes, stopping at 2 Samuel 2:5: “David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead, and said to them, “Blessed are you by Yahweh, that you have shown this kindness to your lord, even to Saul, and have buried him.” Ask, “What does this prop have to do with 2 Samuel 2?” Let two children answer, then say the memory verse together.
Story script
2 Samuel 2 is a real chapter from the Old Testament. It starts, “After this, David inquired of Yahweh, saying, “Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah?” Yahweh said to him, “Go up.” David said, “Where shall I go up?” He said, “To Hebron.”” That is not a motto invented for a poster. It is the first sentence a family hears when this page is opened at night.
Keep going a little further. The chapter also says, “The battle was very severe that day; and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before David’s servants.” 2 Samuel 2 opens with these words: “After this, David inquired of Yahweh, saying, “Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah?” Yahweh said to him, “Go up.” David said,…” The line to keep is 2 Samuel 2:5: “David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead, and said to them, “Blessed are you by Yahweh, that you have shown this kindness to your lord, even to Saul,…” Carry the word “david” from that verse into the rest of the day.
The line worth learning out loud is 2 Samuel 2:5: “David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead, and said to them, “Blessed are you by Yahweh, that you have shown this kindness to your lord, even to Saul, and have buried him.” If the rest of the chapter feels crowded, hold that one sentence until the room is quiet.
What happens first in 2 Samuel 2? Then try this: Read “David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead, and said to them, “Blessed are you by Yahweh, that you…” once more. What does it show you about God? You do not have to finish every verse. You can close the book after the memory verse and still have read the Bible together.
Group game
Walk the room as if you are moving through 2 Samuel 2. Every time you freeze, a child says one word from 2 Samuel 2:5. The last child says the whole verse.
Craft
On a US Letter sheet, draw one picture from 2 Samuel 2 and write 2 Samuel 2:5 under it. Send it home as tonight’s reminder, not as a decoration contest.
Memory verse
2 Samuel 2:5
“David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead, and said to them, “Blessed are you by Yahweh, that you have shown this kindness to your lord, even to Saul, and have buried him.”
Take-home prayer
Father, thank you for 2 Samuel 2. Help us remember 2 Samuel 2:5 when we wake up, and teach us to notice you in an ordinary night. Amen.