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FIRST SAMUEL 25-31
A Devotional Commentary by Nate Wilson
With the ASV Text
Click here to download a map of cities mentioned in I Samuel.
I Samuel CHAPTER 25
1 And Samuel died; and all Israel gathered themselves together, and lamented him, and buried him in his house at Ramah. And David arose, and went down to the wilderness of Paran.
2 And there was a man in Maon, whose possessions were in Carmel; and the man was very great, and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats: and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. 3 Now the name of the man was Nabal; and the name of his wife Abigail; and the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance: but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was of the house of Caleb. 4 And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep. 5 And David sent ten young men, and David said unto the young men, Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name: 6 and thus shall ye say to him that liveth in prosperity, Peace be unto thee, and peace be to thy house, and peace be unto all that thou hast. 7 And now I have heard that thou hast shearers: thy shepherds have now been with us, and we did them no hurt, neither was there aught missing unto them, all the while they were in Carmel. 8 Ask thy young men, and they will tell thee: wherefore let the young men find favor in thine eyes; for we come in a good day: give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thy hand, unto thy servants, and to thy son David. 9 And when David’s young men came, they spake to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased. 10 And Nabal answered David’s servants, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there are many servants now-a-days that break away every man from his master. 11 Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men of whom I know not whence they are?
12 So David’s young men turned on their way, and went back, and came and told him according to all these words. 13 And David said unto his men, Gird ye on every man his sword. And they girded on every man his sword; and David also girded on his sword: and there went up after David about four hundred men; and two hundred abode by the baggage. 14 But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he railed at them. 15 But the men were very good unto us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we anything, as long as we went with them, when we were in the fields: 16 they were a wall unto us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep. 17 Now therefore know and consider what thou wilt do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his house: for he is such a worthless fellow, that one cannot speak to him.
18 Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched grain, and a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses. 19 And she said unto her young men, Go on before me; behold, I come after you. But she told not her husband Nabal. 20 And it was so, as she rode on her ass, and came down by the covert of the mountain, that, behold, David and his men came down toward her; and she met them. 21 Now David had said, Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow hath in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him: and he hath returned me evil for good. 22 God do so unto the enemies of David, and more also, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light so much as one man-child. 23 And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and alighted from her ass, and fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground. 24 And she fell at his feet, and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me be the iniquity; and let thy handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine ears, and hear thou the words of thy handmaid. 25 Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this worthless fellow, even Nabal; for as his name is, so is he; Nabal is his name, and folly is with him: but I thy handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send. 26 Now therefore, my lord, as Jehovah liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing Jehovah hath withholden thee from bloodguiltiness, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, now therefore let thine enemies, and them that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal. 27 And now this present which thy servant hath brought unto my lord, let it be given unto the young men that follow my lord. 28 Forgive, I pray thee, the trespass of thy handmaid: for Jehovah will certainly make my lord a sure house, because my lord fighteth the battles of Jehovah; and evil shall not be found in thee all thy days. 29 And though men be risen up to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul, yet the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with Jehovah thy God; and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as from the hollow of a sling. 30 And it shall come to pass, when Jehovah shall have done to my lord according to all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee prince over Israel, 31 that this shall be no grief unto thee, nor offence of heart unto my lord, either that thou hast shed blood without cause, or that my lord hath avenged himself. And when Jehovah shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thy handmaid.
32 And David said to Abigail, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel, who sent thee this day to meet me: 33 and blessed be thy discretion, and blessed be thou, that hast kept me this day from bloodguiltiness, and from avenging myself with mine own hand. 34 For in very deed, as Jehovah, the God of Israel, liveth, who hath withholden me from hurting thee, except thou hadst hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light so much as one man-child. 35 So David received of her hand that which she had brought him: and he said unto her, Go up in peace to thy house; see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person.
36 And Abigail came to Nabal; and, behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king; and Nabal’s heart was merry within him, for he was very drunken: wherefore she told him nothing, less or more, until the morning light. 37 And it came to pass in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, that his wife told him these things, and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone. 38 And it came to pass about ten days after, that Jehovah smote Nabal, so that he died. 39 And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, Blessed be Jehovah, that hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept back his servant from evil: and the evil-doing of Nabal hath Jehovah returned upon his own head. And David sent and spake concerning Abigail, to take her to him to wife. 40 And when the servants of David were come to Abigail to Carmel, they spake unto her, saying, David hath sent us unto thee, to take thee to him to wife. 41 And she arose, and bowed herself with her face to the earth, and said, Behold, thy handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord. 42 And Abigail hasted, and arose, and rode upon an ass, with five damsels of hers that followed her; and she went after the messengers of David, and became his wife. 43 David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel; and they became both of them his wives. 44 Now Saul had given Michal his daughter, David’s wife, to Palti the son of Laish, who was of Gallim.
Nabal is typical of wealthy men -- they tend to be rather short with people who are after their possessions, but they usually have gracious wives. That has been my experience, anyway, in my fund-raising work.
Perhaps this was one of the times of an appointed feast, where Jews would invite poor people and Levites to the feast. David may have been asking if Nabal would take them on as a charity for the feast. Nabal was apparently rich enough to feast a few hundred men, so he was a logical person for David to ask.
Now, usually, when there is a band of revolutionaries hiding out in the wilderness, everyone around them is likely to get ripped off. Bandits will steal for a living. but not David. Nabal's shepherds thought it remarkable that David did not steal to provide supplies for his company, and Nabal's shepherds and servants commented on this to Nabal's wife, Abigail. The servants were also afraid that if Nabal were to insult this band of David's, that David would come out for battle against Nabal -- which was precisely what David was doing!
Abigail saved the day by hurrying out to stop David with a generous gift and gracious, humble words. She uses a play on words in v.25, for the word "Nabal" in Hebrew means "fool." She knew just how to butter David up, too, talking of slingshots and of his future kingship.
Since Saul had taken Michal back to give to another man, David asked Abigail to marry him (after Nabal died of a heart attack). That makes for a beautiful story; but what is the application?
I Samuel CHAPTER 26
1 And the Ziphites came unto Saul to Gibeah, saying, Doth not David hide himself in the hill of Hachilah, which is before the desert? 2 Then Saul arose, and went down to the wilderness of Ziph, having three thousand chosen men of Israel with him, to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph. 3 And Saul encamped in the hill of Hachilah, which is before the desert, by the way. But David abode in the wilderness, and he saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness. 4 David therefore sent out spies, and understood that Saul was come of a certainty. 5 And David arose, and came to the place where Saul had encamped; and David beheld the place where Saul lay, and Abner the son of Ner, the captain of his host: and Saul lay within the place of the wagons, and the people were encamped round about him.
6 Then answered David and said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Abishai the son of Zeruiah, brother to Joab, saying, Who will go down with me to Saul to the camp? And Abishai said, I will go down with thee. 7 So David and Abishai came to the people by night: and, behold, Saul lay sleeping within the place of the wagons, with his spear stuck in the ground at his head; and Abner and the people lay round about him. 8 Then said Abishai to David, God hath delivered up thine enemy into thy hand this day: now therefore let me smite him, I pray thee, with the spear to the earth at one stroke, and I will not smite him the second time. 9 And David said to Abishai, Destroy him not; for who can put forth his hand against Jehovah’s anointed, and be guiltless? 10 And David said, As Jehovah liveth, Jehovah will smite him; or his day shall come to die; or he shall go down into battle and perish. 11 Jehovah forbid that I should put forth my hand against Jehovah’s anointed: but now take, I pray thee, the spear that is at his head, and the cruse of water, and let us go. 12 So David took the spear and the cruse of water from Saul’s head; and they gat them away: and no man saw it, nor knew it, neither did any awake; for they were all asleep, because a deep sleep from Jehovah was fallen upon them.
13 Then David went over to the other side, and stood on the top of the mountain afar off; a great space being between them; 14 and David cried to the people, and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, Answerest thou not, Abner? Then Abner answered and said, Who art thou that criest to the king? 15 And David said to Abner, Art not thou a valiant man? and who is like to thee in Israel? wherefore then hast thou not kept watch over thy lord the king? for there came one of the people in to destroy the king thy lord. 16 This thing is not good that thou hast done. As Jehovah liveth, ye are worthy to die, because ye have not kept watch over your lord, Jehovah’s anointed. And now see where the king’s spear is, and the cruse of water that was at his head. 17 And Saul knew David’s voice, and said, Is this thy voice, my son David? And David said, It is my voice, my lord, O king. 18 And he said, Wherefore doth my lord pursue after his servant? for what have I done? or what evil is in my hand? 19 Now therefore, I pray thee, let my lord the king hear the words of his servant. If it be Jehovah that hath stirred thee up against me, let him accept an offering: but if it be the children of men, cursed be they before Jehovah: for they have driven me out this day that I should not cleave unto the inheritance of Jehovah, saying, Go, serve other gods. 20 Now therefore, let not my blood fall to the earth away from the presence of Jehovah: for the king of Israel is come out to seek a flea, as when one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains.
21 Then said Saul, I have sinned: return, my son David; for I will no more do thee harm, because my life was precious in thine eyes this day: behold, I have played the fool, and have erred exceedingly. 22 And David answered and said, Behold the spear, O king! let then one of the young men come over and fetch it. 23 And Jehovah will render to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness; forasmuch as Jehovah delivered thee into my hand to-day, and I would not put forth my hand against Jehovah’s anointed. 24 And, behold, as thy life was much set by this day in mine eyes, so let my life be much set by in the eyes of Jehovah, and let him deliver me out of all tribulation. 25 Then Saul said to David, Blessed be thou, my son David: thou shalt both do mightily, and shalt surely prevail. So David went his way, and Saul returned to his place.
Saul still had a loyal following -- people kept ratting on David -- but David's men were steadily growing, too -- they're up to 600 now! Saul, however, comes down with 3,000 soldiers, outnumbering David five-to-one (sounds familiar!), and camps right near David. Saul's company arranges itself in a big circle with Saul in the center, his commanders around him, and the lower-level soldiers at the outside of the circle. David would have had to pick his way over the heads of scores of men in order to get to the center of the circle! And surely Saul would have posted guards through the night if he knew he was coming up against 600 armed men!
Why did David do something so dangerous? Did he know that God had made the men to sleep more deeply? Did he figure he'd get killed anyway if he stayed in his hide-out, so he might as well be reckless? Anyway, David made off with Saul's spear and water bottle. He didn't kill Saul -- even though he easily could have -- because he still honored Saul as God's appointed and anointed king. Just one stroke of the spear to Saul's brain could have noiselessly eliminated him, but David believed that God Himself would eliminate Saul (and he was right in saying that Saul might bite the dust in a battle).
David's mockery of Abner may have solidified Abner's loyalty to Saul for the rest of his life. He was a thorn in David's side for as long as he lived, trying to reinstate Saul and his descendents as king. )Eventually he died when the commander of David's army took revenge on him for murdering his brother.) Just as the last time when Saul came out for David at Engedi, Saul is overwhelmed to see that David could have killed him, yet honored his life. Again Saul apologizes, blessed David, and leaves.
v.19--It's interesting to note David's reasoning: If GOD has sent Saul to kill him, the David has sinned and can offer a sacrifice for atonement. But if Saul is on a manhunt for David as a result of HUMAN council, then those men should be cursed, for, as a result of his being a fugitive, David has been tempted to forsake God. "Whoso shall cause one of these little ones that believe on me to stumble, it is profitable for him that a great millstone should be hanged about his neck, and that he should be sunk in the depth of the sea" (Matt. 18:6).
It is a serious crime in the eyes of God to prosecute an innocent man!Another point is in order: A case COULD be made that, while Saul was specifically singled out by God Himself, our modern political leaders are simply ALLOWED by God to come to power through human mechanisms, therefore our modern politicians do not have the same anointing and authority from God that Saul and David did, and thus we can disrespect them, whereas David had to respect Saul. However, I'm not sure about that argument. It is a philosophy that leads to revolution to say that if God did not specifically ordain a political leader, then we can overthrow him. Did not God allow the leader to come to power? If so, then that man is at least passively ordained by God, for all authority is from God, and all the steps of men are ordered by God. Secondly, a revolutionary mindset is a chaotic mindset, for revolution brings chaos to the former way of life; it is intrinsically disrespectful of authority. Authority is good and right. God made chains of authority to hold us to righteousness and order. When these chains are broken, God's laws are broken. God is a God of order. We are not to take justice into our own hands. David didn't; he waited for God to do it. We should not initiate revolutions; if our leaders are evil, then GOD will depose them. We must just keep obeying God first and our human authorities second.
Christians historically have been oppressed by governments and have formed communities and have seen Christianity win over governments without bloody revolution, as has been seen in the Roman Empire, many European nations, South Korea, and even some African and S. American countries. The only exception I can think of right now is the War for American Independence in the late 1700's (a.k.a. The Presbyterian Revolution). I don't understand it or why God apparently blessed it, unless it were to be viewed as a case of self-defense. I think that the Confederacy did a little better in peacefully withdrawing from the Union a century later, then fighting for their own self-defense when the Northern armies overran their land, yet God didn't appear to bless that...
In conclusion, let me reiterate that weapons for personal self-defense are in order, but overthrowing or even disrespecting political government is out of line with the Bible, as long as that government does not command you to disobey God.
I Samuel CHAPTER 27
1 And David said in his heart, I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul: there is nothing better for me than that I should escape into the land of the Philistines; and Saul will despair of me, to seek me any more in all the borders of Israel: so shall I escape out of his hand. 2 And David arose, and passed over, he and the six hundred men that were with him, unto Achish the son of Maoch, king of Gath. 3 And David dwelt with Achish at Gath, he and his men, every man with his household, even David with his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the Carmelitess, Nabal’s wife. 4 And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath: and he sought no more again for him. 5 And David said unto Achish, If now I have found favor in thine eyes, let them give me a place in one of the cities in the country, that I may dwell there: for why should thy servant dwell in the royal city with thee? 6 Then Achish gave him Ziklag that day: wherefore Ziklag pertaineth unto the kings of Judah unto this day. 7 And the number of the days that David dwelt in the country of the Philistines was a full year and four months.
8 And David and his men went up, and made a raid upon the Geshurites, and the Girzites, and the Amalekites; for those nations were the inhabitants of the land, who were of old, as thou goest to Shur, even unto the land of Egypt. 9 And David smote the land, and saved neither man nor woman alive, and took away the sheep, and the oxen, and the asses, and the camels, and the apparel; and he returned, and came to Achish. 10 And Achish said, Against whom have ye made a raid to-day? And David said, Against the South of Judah, and against the South of the Jerahmeelites, and against the South of the Kenites. 11 And David saved neither man nor woman alive, to bring them to Gath, saying, Lest they should tell of us, saying, So did David, and so hath been his manner all the while he hath dwelt in the country of the Philistines. 12 And Achish believed David, saying, He hath made his people Israel utterly to abhor him; therefore he shall be my servant for ever.
David goes back to Gath (see Ch. 21), this time, not as a madman, but as a defector! How did he manage to pull the wool over the Philistines' eyes THIS time? I think that the Philistines realized the importance of keeping Israel divided and unstable politically, so they were willing to help a contender to the throne of Israel to foster the political destabilization of their neighboring country. (They later fought against efforts to reconcile Israel and Judah after the kingdom divided.) They gave David his own plot of land and trusted him, thinking he was making raids on the Israelites now.
David was right about Saul leaving him alone in Philistia, but was it right for David to lie to the king of Gath and use him? No! Remember what happened when Abraham lied to the King of Egypt? It is not right to lie, and it doesn't appear that David's influence on the Philistines brought them any nearer to God, as it SHOULD have.
Was it right to kill people in the surrounding area in order to provide livestock and clothes for his men? Unless he had a divine command to clean out those people, he had no right to attack them unless they were at war with him. However, David may have seen his actions as fulfillment of the divine command to the nation of Israel under Joshua to wipe out all the inhabitants of the land. These tribes that David attacked were among the peoples that the Jews under Joshua had failed to conquer (Josh 13:2, 13).
Whatever the case, David made these raids to cover up for his bad decision to defect to the Philistines and for lying to Achish. This wasn't the only time he lied and murdered to cover up his sin -- remember Bathsheba? Rather than risk embarrassment and risk his livelihood and life, David chose to cover up for himself. He had to raid for provisions in Gath, because the Philistines had no system of tithing and generosity to the poor like the Jews did. If he had remained in Israel, he may not have had to make raids to provide for his men.
God, please help me remember from this not to cover up for myself when I make a bad decision or sin, but to openly confess my wrong, no matter how embarrassing or threatening it may be to me, and please guard my tongue from lies!
I Samuel CHAPTER 28
1 And it came to pass in those days, that the Philistines gathered their hosts together for warfare, to fight with Israel. And Achish said unto David, Know thou assuredly, that thou shalt go out with me in the host, thou and thy men. 2 And David said to Achish, Therefore thou shalt know what thy servant will do. And Achish said to David, Therefore will I make thee keeper of my head for ever. 3 Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him, and buried him in Ramah, even in his own city. And Saul had put away those that had familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land. 4 And the Philistines gathered themselves together, and came and encamped in Shunem: and Saul gathered all Israel together, and they encamped in Gilboa. 5 And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. 6 And when Saul inquired of Jehovah, Jehovah answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets.
7 Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and inquire of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at En-dor. 8 And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and went, he and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, Divine unto me, I pray thee, by the familiar spirit, and bring me up whomsoever I shall name unto thee. 9 And the woman said unto him, Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done, how he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land: wherefore then layest thou a snare for my life, to cause me to die? 10 And Saul sware to her by Jehovah, saying, As Jehovah liveth, there shall no punishment happen to thee for this thing. 11 Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel. 12 And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice; and the woman spake to Saul, saying, Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art Saul. 13 And the king said unto her, Be not afraid: for what seest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I see a god coming up out of the earth. 14 And he said unto her, What form is he of? And she said, An old man cometh up; and he is covered with a robe. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground, and did obeisance.
15 And Samuel said to Saul, Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up? And Saul answered, I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams: therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do. 16 And Samuel said, Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing Jehovah is departed from thee, and is become thine adversary? 17 And Jehovah hath done unto thee, as he spake by me: and Jehovah hath rent the kingdom out of thy hand, and given it to thy neighbor, even to David. 18 Because thou obeyedst not the voice of Jehovah, and didst not execute his fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore hath Jehovah done this thing unto thee this day. 19 Moreover Jehovah will deliver Israel also with thee into the hand of the Philistines; and to-morrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me: Jehovah will deliver the host of Israel also into the hand of the Philistines.
20 Then Saul fell straightway his full length upon the earth, and was sore afraid, because of the words of Samuel: and there was no strength in him; for he had eaten no bread all the day, nor all the night. 21 And the woman came unto Saul, and saw that he was sore troubled, and said unto him, Behold, thy handmaid hath hearkened unto thy voice, and I have put my life in my hand, and have hearkened unto thy words which thou spakest unto me. 22 Now therefore, I pray thee, hearken thou also unto the voice of thy handmaid, and let me set a morsel of bread before thee; and eat, that thou mayest have strength, when thou goest on thy way. 23 But he refused, and said, I will not eat. But his servants, together with the woman, constrained him; and he hearkened unto their voice. So he arose from the earth, and sat upon the bed. 24 And the woman had a fatted calf in the house; and she hasted, and killed it; and she took flour, and kneaded it, and did bake unleavened bread thereof: 25 and she brought it before Saul, and before his servants; and they did eat. Then they rose up, and went away that night.
David was now considered a Philistine, so he was drafted when they went to war against Israel. David agreed to it. The king of the Philistines trusted David, but it's hard to tell whether David would have actually fought with the Philistines to kill his fellow Israelites or if he would have caused confusion in the Philistine ranks by killing Philistines himself. So far his policy has been to avoid raiding Jewish cities. But he left his family and supplies in Ziglag. If he was going to turn on the Philistines, you'd think he'd have the foresight to somehow protect his family and belongings in Philistine territory from retaliation!
Saul was big on getting supernatural advice every time he went to war. For that matter, so was David. I guess they realized what a serious thing war is, and they also would be greatly helped if they knew ahead of time whether or not they would win! It could go a long way toward determining their strategy. The difference was that God was with David now, but not with Saul. He sought God's word by all the acceptable ways and got nothing. Rather than be resigned to it, Saul turned to witchcraft to get his omen. According to God's law, he should have been put to death for this.
Witchcraft is very intriguing, and Satan catches many victims by this very hook. All sorts of questions that we have no business asking could come up in out minds if we dwell on this séance, but I don't think it is right to meditate on a satanic ritual. Saul blasphemes God by falling on his face in a worship position before the witch's conjuration of Samuel. Was it really Samuel? Who knows? Elijah and Moses met Jesus at the transfiguration - but that was rather different! Whatever the case, supernatural knowledge of the future was given to Saul, and Saul was told that he would die in battle the next day (the very penalty for witchcraft!). When the conjured spirit says Saul will be "with [him]," it may not necessarily imply that Saul would be in heaven or hell. Jews tended to think more in terms of the living versus the dead and didn't put as much emphasis on whether the dead were in heaven or hell. Samuel reminds Saul of that first disobedient act from Chapter 15 where he did not utterly destroy the Amelikites in battle as God had commanded. That first act of disobedience was the beginning of the end for Saul.
Not only was Saul told that HE would die but that his sons would die too, and Israel would lose the war. Saul's will to live or move or eat just evaporates. The witch is still cautious around him; Saul's anger is legendary and she doesn't want to cross him! She reminds Saul that HE was the one who told her to do it, in hopes that he wouldn't get angry with her on account of Samuel's message. Then she "mothers" him a bit, and Saul eats at the urging of his servants.
David was a political defector, but Saul was a spiritual defector.
Dear God, please protect me and my children from Saul's predicament! May Your Spirit always be with us and never leave us as it did Saul! Let us never turn to any form of Satanism, witchcraft or spirit-worship. We are servants of God; we will not be defectors!
I Samuel CHAPTER 29
1 Now the Philistines gathered together all their hosts to Aphek: and the Israelites encamped by the fountain which is in Jezreel. 2 And the lords of the Philistines passed on by hundreds, and by thousands; and David and his men passed on in the rearward with Achish. 3 Then said the princes of the Philistines, What do these Hebrews here? And Achish said unto the princes of the Philistines, Is not this David, the servant of Saul the king of Israel, who hath been with me these days, or rather these years, and I have found no fault in him since he fell away unto me unto this day? 4 But the princes of the Philistines were wroth with him; and the princes of the Philistines said unto him, Make the man return, that he may go back to his place where thou hast appointed him, and let him not go down with us to battle, lest in the battle he become an adversary to us: for wherewith should this fellow reconcile himself unto his lord? should it not be with the heads of these men? 5 Is not this David, of whom they sang one to another in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands?
6 Then Achish called David, and said unto him, As Jehovah liveth, thou hast been upright, and thy going out and thy coming in with me in the host is good in my sight; for I have not found evil in thee since the day of thy coming unto me unto this day: nevertheless the lords favor thee not. 7 Wherefore now return, and go in peace, that thou displease not the lords of the Philistines. 8 And David said unto Achish, But what have I done? and what hast thou found in thy servant so long as I have been before thee unto this day, that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my lord the king? 9 And Achish answered and said to David, I know that thou art good in my sight, as an angel of God: notwithstanding the princes of the Philistines have said, He shall not go up with us to the battle. 10 Wherefore now rise up early in the morning with the servants of thy lord that are come with thee; and as soon as ye are up early in the morning, and have light, depart. 11 So David rose up early, he and his men, to depart in the morning, to return into the land of the Philistines. And the Philistines went up to Jezreel.
Songs have a way of sticking win people's minds. The Philistines remembered the song the women sang of David when he had killed Goliath: "Saul has killed his thousands, but David his myriads." Achish's advisors remembered the song the first time David sought asylum in Gath (21:11). The other Philistine leaders remember it now as Achish tries to bring David into battle with him. They forbid Achish to do such a thing.
When Achish breaks the news to David, he says an interesting thing, "As Jehovah lives..." Why would this pagan king swear by the true and living God? David must have told him. There must have been a great deal of respect between Achish and David. Achish must have been impressed by David's military prowess (that is probably what won him initially), but when he saw how righteous David was over a period of years living nearby and heard David share about the God he worshipped, this must have left a serious respect in Achish's mind for David and his God! (Not to mention the respect already developed in his mind from the power God displayed through plagues when the Philistines had captured the ark earlier!)
Now, it is possible that Achish offered David a place in his army as a gesture of respect to win David's favor, all the time knowing that the other Philistines would veto it. This would take the heat off his relationship with David and put it on the other Philistine rulers. Did David see this as a chance to fight against Saul in a way the Lord would bless, now that he had changed allegiance to another king? I don't know; but Achish and the Philistine rulers handled it wisely by not risking it.
I Samuel CHAPTER 30
1 And it came to pass, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had made a raid upon the South, and upon Ziklag, and had smitten Ziklag, and burned it with fire, 2 and had taken captive the women and all that were therein, both small and great: they slew not any, but carried them off, and went their way. 3 And when David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captive. 4 Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep. 5 And David’s two wives were taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. 6 And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David strengthened himself in Jehovah his God.
7 And David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, I pray thee, bring me hither the ephod. And Abiathar brought thither the ephod to David. 8 And David inquired of Jehovah, saying, If I pursue after this troop, shall I overtake them? And he answered him, Pursue; for thou shalt surely overtake them, and shalt without fail recover all. 9 So David went, he and the six hundred men that were with him, and came to the brook Besor, where those that were left behind stayed. 10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind, who were so faint that they could not go over the brook Besor. 11 And they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David, and gave him bread, and he did eat; and they gave him water to drink. 12 And they gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins: and when he had eaten, his spirit came again to him; for he had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights. 13 And David said unto him, To whom belongest thou? and whence art thou? And he said, I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an Amalekite; and my master left me, because three days ago I fell sick. 14 We made a raid upon the South of the Cherethites, and upon that which belongeth to Judah, and upon the South of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire. 15 And David said to him, Wilt thou bring me down to this troop? And he said, Swear unto me by God, that thou wilt neither kill me, nor deliver me up into the hands of my master, and I will bring thee down to this troop. 16 And when he had brought him down, behold, they were spread abroad over all the ground, eating and drinking, and dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah. 17 And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day: and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, who rode upon camels and fled. 18 And David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken; and David rescued his two wives. 19 And there was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil, nor anything that they had taken to them: David brought back all. 20 And David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drove before those other cattle, and said, This is David’s spoil.
21 And David came to the two hundred men, who were so faint that they could not follow David, whom also they had made to abide at the brook Besor; and they went forth to meet David, and to meet the people that were with him: and when David came near to the people, he saluted them. 22 Then answered all the wicked men and base fellows, of those that went with David, and said, Because they went not with us, we will not give them aught of the spoil that we have recovered, save to every man his wife and his children, that he may lead them away, and depart. 23 Then said David, Ye shall not do so, my brethren, with that which Jehovah hath given unto us, who hath preserved us, and delivered the troop that came against us into our hand. 24 And who will hearken unto you in this matter? for as his share is that goeth down to the battle, so shall his share be that tarrieth by the baggage: they shall share alike. 25 And it was so from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel unto this day. 26 And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying, Behold, a present for you of the spoil of the enemies of Jehovah: 27 To them that were in Beth-el, and to them that were in Ramoth of the South, and to them that were in Jattir, 28 and to them that were in Aroer, and to them that were in Siphmoth, and to them that were in Eshtemoa, 29 and to them that were in Racal, and to them that were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, and to them that were in the cities of the Kenites, 30 and to them that were in Hormah, and to them that were in Bor-ashan, and to them that were in Athach, 31 and to them that were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men were wont to haunt.
When David returned home from the army camp of the Philistines, he had a terrible surprise waiting for him. Amalekite raiders, knowing that all the Philistine fighting men had gone off to war, had come and plundered the cities, including David's city of Ziglag, and kidnapped their wives and children! The Amalekites were the very people God had instructed Saul to destroy. Perhaps if Saul had obeyed God in that matter, David would have been spared this tragedy. Our sin affects other people; the sin of a leader affects MANY people. Everyone wept. This was right. They loved their wives and children, and they were grieved.
The natural tendency would be either to sit weakly down and throw up your hands in despair or else, with a rush of adrenaline, run off to take vengeance. But David turned to God! He looked to God to revive his strength and to give him orders for his next action. Let us always look first to God in every circumstance!
I find it interesting that David's company grew quickly during their years in Judah, but it appears to have leveled off at 600 for the last few years in Gath. Anyway, God told David through the ephod to go "whup up on" the Amalekites. At the Besor river, David left 200 men who were too tired to go to war, and kept tracking the raiders with the other 400 men. In doing this, David was following instructions God had given to the Israelite army long ago to give men the opportunity to back out of a battle before going in.
When David's men ran across an Egyptian slave, it was obvious the slave was not Jewish, but David showed concern for him anyway. David had a concern for non-Jewish people. That's why he witnessed to the Philistine king Achish; that's why he nursed this Egyptian back to health before he knew that he was of any value in tracking the Amalekites; and that's why David's Psalms are full of exhortations that people of all nations worship the true God. We should share this international concern of David's! (I wonder what happened to the Egyptian: Did he join David's band as the only black member? Did David send him back home to Egypt to start his life over again?)
If the 400 young Amalekite men who escaped are mentioned as a side-note, there must have been thousands of Amalekites outnumbering David's company, but Gad gave David and his 400 men victory over the horde of Amalekites. David took back what was his and also kept all the plunder from the other people the Amalekites had raided.
Upon rejoining the 200 men left behind at the Besor river, David first asks how they are doing before saying anything of his conquest. What a great leader to think of the concerns of others first! Notice that it was the "evil and worthless" men in David's army who did not want to share the loot with their comrades at the river. David reminds the men that:
Now David did a shrewd thing. Rather than being caught by the Philistines or Israelites with plunder from their cities which the Amalekites had stolen, David sent it all to Judean elders. This also put him in the position of benefactor instead of "moocher" with them, and I'm sure this went a long way toward winning their support when King Saul had just died.
Lord, help me to remember these wise leadership principles from David. Help me also remember that all I have comes from You and that I should be generous to share it - even with those who may not be worthy of it.
I Samuel CHAPTER 31
1 Now the Philistines fought against Israel: and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in mount Gilboa. 2 And the Philistines followed hard upon Saul and upon his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchishua, the sons of Saul. 3 And the battle went sore against Saul, and the archers overtook him; and he was greatly distressed by reason of the archers. 4 Then said Saul to his armorbearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith, lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and abuse me. But his armorbearer would not; for he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took his sword, and fell upon it. 5 And when his armorbearer saw that Saul was dead, he likewise fell upon his sword, and died with him. 6 So Saul died, and his three sons, and his armorbearer, and all his men, that same day together. 7 And when the men of Israel that were on the other side of the valley, and they that were beyond the Jordan, saw that the men of Israel fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook the cities, and fled; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them.
8 And it came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his three sons fallen in mount Gilboa. 9 And they cut off his head, and stripped off his armor, and sent into the land of the Philistines round about, to carry the tidings unto the house of their idols, and to the people. 10 And they put his armor in the house of the Ashtaroth; and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan. 11 And when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard concerning him that which the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 all the valiant men arose, and went all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan; and they came to Jabesh, and burnt them there. 13 And they took their bones, and buried them under the tamarisk-tree in Jabesh, and fasted seven days.
For the first time in Saul's life, he was losing badly in a battle. All three of his sons had been killed by the Philistines, and he was badly wounded from arrows. Saul felt it was more honorable to be killed by his armor-bearer or to commit suicide than to be killed by Philistines. I can't agree; it is never right to ASK someone to kill you or to kill yourself purposefully. Life is from God and not to be taken without God's sanction.
Saul probably killed himself because he feared the ridicule and torture the Philistines would mete out to him if they found him alive, but even that was not a good reason. We've been reading stories of Christian martyrs in our family devotional times in the evenings before bed. Those valiant Christian witnesses didn't kill themselves when they knew that torture and death were imminent. Such stories can inspire us not to be afraid of persecution!
The Philistines put Saul's armor on display in one of their idolatrous temples and displayed Saul's dead, naked body on a city wall. Some Israelites heard of the disgrace and snuck into the Philistine city, removed the body, and cremated it. Perhaps they buried the ashes under a tamarisk tree because Saul liked to sit under trees when he was alive (22:6). Fasting was another thing Saul did a lot, and the men fasted for a week in mourning his death.
Thus all God's prophecies were fulfilled for Saul: he lost his kingship with his death and the death of his heirs, and the way was now paved for David to become king. God's word will always be proved true.
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