Righteous Leadership (2 Samuel 15:4)

Then Absalom would say, “Oh that I were judge in the land! Then every man with a dispute or cause might come to me, and I would give him justice.”
—2 Samuel 15:4

Now, the context for this verse is a conspiracy by Absalom to take the kingdom from King David. The reason I want to lead us to pray according to this verse in particular is because of the way God set up the king to be a judge among his people—so that people would bring disputes to the king, and the king would rule justly. That is why Absalom says, “Oh, that I were made judge in the land! Then every man with any suit or cause might come to me, and I would give him justice.”

So, put aside for a moment the fact that Absalom wanted to overtake the king—and all that was wrong about that, as well as all that was wrong in King David’s leadership at this point.

2 Samuel 15:4 points us to lead others with wisdom and humility.

See God’s good design, though, for the leader among his people: to be just and righteous, to rule and judge disputes, and to lead the people with justice and righteousness. Now, obviously, things are different today. Even among God’s people in the church, we are not a nation with a king in the same way we see in the Old Testament.

We look around us in the world and see nations led by kings, presidents, dictators, or prime ministers in all kinds of different ways. But one of the places my mind goes when I think about God’s design in his Word for his people—specifically for a king or leader to carry out justice—is that I see so much injustice and unrighteousness in leaders across so many different spheres: in countries, in nations, and sometimes even in the church.

So I want to lead us to pray for justice and righteousness in leaders. And for any one of us who is in a leadership position—whether in a home, a school, on a team, in a workplace, or certainly in a church, a city, or a government—whatever leadership position we might be in as a judge, a leader, a president, or a governor, let’s pray that we would lead well with righteousness, holiness, and justice in a way that is good for everyone we lead and ultimately glorifying to God.

2 Samuel 15:4 encourages leaders to reflect God’s righteous character.

God, we pray for this for all of the leaders in our lives. We think of different leaders in different spheres in each of our lives, and we pray and ask for just and righteous leaders. To the extent possible, we pray that you would help us to work for just leaders with wisdom.

God, we pray for presidents, prime ministers, and leaders in different countries. Please, we pray for your common grace over them. Help them to lead justly and do rightly. And God, we pray for your special grace over them; we pray for your salvation from sin in their lives.

And God, for any and every one of us who is in any leadership position at all, help us not to take any such position lightly. Even if it is a small position, God, help us to steward the leadership you have entrusted to us in ways that are good and right for those we lead—in ways that enable them to flourish as men and women made in your image and loved by you.

God, we pray that you would help us to steward leadership to point them to you as the perfect, just, and righteous leader we need.

Jesus, we praise you as the perfect leader, as the Lord who is righteousness and justice. All glory be to your name. We are so glad you are in charge of the world, and so we pray that you would help us to reflect you. We pray for other leaders who will reflect you and your justice.

A Prayer for the Natioro People

And God, we pray for the spread of the good news that Jesus is Lord and King to all the nations.

For the Natioro people of Burkina Faso, please, O God, may this people group—and every other people group in Burkina Faso—be reached with the good news that Jesus is Lord. He is king over sin, death, Satan, and the grave, and he is the King who is able to give life forever. We pray for that good news to spread to all the nations of the world, even as we rest in the reality, Lord Jesus, that you are King over all and you are perfectly just.

We pray all of this in your name. Amen.