“And Ittai answered the king, and said, As the LORD liveth, and as my lord the king liveth, surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also will thy servant be.” (2 Samuel 15:21)
The commitment of this man, Ittai, to King David is a beautiful picture of what should be our own to those with whom we have made a covenant. First and foremost should be the realization that when we committed our souls to God, we committed our lives as well. God takes His own commitments seriously, even to the point of promising, “If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself” (2 Tim. 2:13). All the more reason for you and I to follow His example and His path.
Then, too, does this verse not remind you of the one in the book of Ruth that is so often referred to at weddings, the familiar “whither thou goest” text? The commitment of Ruth to her mother-in-law, Naomi, mirrors the binding covenant between a husband and wife. A covenant that assumes responsible leadership and unqualified following, and one that often affects geography as well as affection!
I have made these two covenants—both of them because of love. One was to the God of my being, and the other to the sweetheart of my life. And wherever they are, is where I will be…whether in death or life.
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