Contents On This Page

1 Samuel Part 75

1 Samuel Part 74

We left off last time and David had spared Saul's life once again having taken his spear while he slept. The two were in the middle of a long distance conversation (probably shouting from quite a distance - see vs 26:13). Saul had finally admitted his great error.

The above passage begins with David showing off Saul's spear to him and saying David will allow one of Saul's attendants to come and get it. Dr. John Gill (1697-1771) remarks that this spear may have been a kind of ancient scepter, a symbol of kingly power. If this is the case then what David is subtly doing here is showing Saul that he is neither going to kill him nor steal his throne, but has put the matter in the hands of the Lord.

He then calls on God to render the proper reward as he has done what is right regarding Saul when God delivered Saul into his hands and would not slay God's anointed. He does not call upon nor rely upon the King's justice, on which David had little confidence, but in the Lord's. In this pronouncement to those in hearing distance, David seeks the Lord's help in any coming tribulation he may encounter. Clearly, he knows this thing is not over yet.

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.
(1 Samuel 26:25 - ASV)

Saul repents yet again and blesses David for saving him. He even acknowledges that David is going to win this whole 'war'. Saul? It's hard to get a fix on him but I think he was suffering from some kind of manic depression (bi-polar) disorder that probably was exploited by the evil spirits that were troubling him. But that is just my own non-medical opinion based on the scant evidence we have. Saul I think had some deep emotional and more importantly, spiritual 'issues' that began when he repeatedly rebelled against the Lord's commandments.

After Saul's remarks, they part company.

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.
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.
(1 Samuel 27:1-2 - ASV)

David had to have seen Saul's emotional state and realized the king may have been on shaky ground regarding his mental state and realized he simply could not rely on Saul's transitory phases of 'repentance' to protect him and his band of men. So he decides to go to Philistia and live there in the hopes that Saul will give up his fits and starts that caused him to go and try to slay David.

David here in my very humble opinion is making pretty much the same mistake he made before, running to the Philistines, the enemy of Israel; this after the Lord had delivered him time and again from Saul. John Gill (1697-1771) in his commentary notes that this may have been inadvisable because earlier on, he was told by the prophet Gad to go back to Judah while he was in exile in Moab (vs 22:5). It is in Judah where he had been protected. Why go back to the place where he had to pretend to be crazy in order to escape with this life?  Why go to the idol worshiping enemies of the Lord? This looks to me almost like a kind of retreat in the face of an important victory.

Achish is the son of Moach. Gath is one of the principle cities of the Philistines. He was probably the same one we saw in chapter 21 and he may also be the same one we find in 1Kings 2:39 and if so, he reigned a very long time. But the name may have been a common one. 

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.
And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath:
and he sought no more again for him.
(1 Samuel 27:3-4 - ASV)

The passage is self explanatory. The key I think is that Saul ceased to bother about David.

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?
Then Achish gave him Ziklag that day:
wherefore Ziklag pertaineth
unto the kings of Judah unto this day.
And the number of the days that David dwelt
in the country of the Philistines was
 a full year and four months.
(1 Samuel 27:5-7 - ASV)

This is rather remarkable and I think shows that even in David's faithlessness, he found favor in the eyes of this Philistine king. He asks for a city to go and dwell in. He does not wish to remain in the capitol and it is not clear why. Perhaps he wanted some space or perhaps he did not want to deal with court intrigue and the many who would question the king about David's presence, which if he lived in the capitol would be a constant reminder. So he asks for a city out in the country. But he may have merely wanted to be out of the King's observation so he could continue his feud with Saul and conduct raids. Zilkag, interestingly was once part of Israel in the times of Joshua (Joshua 19:5).

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.
 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.
(1 Samuel 27:8-9 - ASV)

So David starts his raids. But these raids look like they were designed to eventually increase the Israel's lands and take back land that had been occupied by others and deal with Israel's enemies. For example, the Girzites you can find that this was apportioned to Joseph (Joshua 16:3 see also Deuteronomy 3:14 for the Geshurites). What David seems to be doing is hitting Israel's enemies and apparently trying to reclaim land that was part of the divine heritage.

David spared no one. If you were there, you were going down... six feet under. He took everything that was of value and then came back to the King.

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.
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.
And Achish believed David, saying,
He hath made his people Israel utterly to abhor him;
therefore he shall be my servant for ever.
(1 Samuel 27:10-12 - ASV)

So Achish wanted to know where David raided. Clearly he knew what David was up to and may have been asking because he wanted his 'cut' of the booty.  He leaves the king with the impression that David is raiding his old home country but he isn't. Did he raid south of Judah? Yes. Did he raid Judah? No. David killed everyone because he did not want anyone to know who did this deed, particularly the King. The king may also have wanted some slaves ('to bring them to Gath').

Let's face it, David didn't lie about where he was, but he did not appear to tell the whole truth either. Better to let the King live in his delusions. The King had his own agenda as we can see. The more David raided Israel, the more he would be hated by his own people and thus would never be King, he would be a slave to the Philistines instead who could give him over to Israel to be dealt with for his marauding of his own people. Better to let the King think he was raiding Israel.

This is one of those episodes in the scriptures where men of God fail God. Here, it was not a major failure, but clearly David was losing faith and confidence in God's ability to protect him from Saul. So what did he do? He ran; and not only ran, but in the wrong direction - to the enemies of Israel. It may have very well appeared to Saul and much of Israel that David was not only a coward, but a traitor, for there he was in the Philistia working with Achish. Saul and his men may have figured David ruined his reputation to the point he could never be king.

But let us not be too hard on David. He has been a kind of vagabond for months, hanging out with a bunch of outlaws, being hunted by the king and dealing with all manner of mental and physical hardships, day in and day out. David may have just been wore out. Rather than keeping with his previous successful spiritual and tactical plans, he changes things up and not for the better by heading back to Philistia.

Where did David fail? I think he ceased to put his faith fully in God and began to concentrate on his circumstances, he forgot God's goodness and protection and caved in to worry.

Let none of us make that mistake. I know that it is very easy to do. I almost threw in the towel here at the site many years ago (some of you may remember) I was sooo tired and stressed. But God reminded me how he has kept me and this site going against all odds and the sniping, threats, hatred, negative comments and later break-ins, surveillance, stalking and harassment as well as many other things I went through and made it plain to not give up and that if I take care of his business, he will take care of mine. I may not have asked for this site or this ministry but God has given it to me and I have my orders.

You and I? Let us not go to Philistia; let us not look back at Sodom (like Lot's wife); let us keep our eyes front, moving forward in the path that God has set for each of us to walk in.

We will continue our look at Samuel soon, God willing!


Back To Contents

1 Samuel Part 73

We left off last time with the list of David's wives and what happened to the marriage between him and Saul's daughter. Chapter 28 begins with a new attempt by Saul to get David, this after David spared Saul's life earlier. The Ziphites observed the location of David and ran to report the information to Saul, who frankly should have learned his lesson by now. But hearing the news, chooses to go and pursue David in the wilderness of Ziph.

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.
David therefore sent out spies, and understood
that Saul was come of a certainty.
(1 Samuel 26:3-4 - ASV)

Here we get the basics of the military situation. Saul encamped on the hill and David was in the wilderness. Saul took the high ground which is usually best for battle, but David was in the wilderness (or pasture - Strong's Hebrew Bible Dictionary 4057). Like any good commander, David double checks his information and sends out his intelligence people to find out if these things were so. This is an important thing to do in any kind of warfare. Check and double check your info and your sources.

This can also be a most useful as well to us living today, if only in the news and also in the religion (doctrine) arena, a battle we are all in weather we know it or not. Checking and double checking your information and sources is so very important in the time of the 'viral video', social media and false narratives. You want to keep from making a mistake and getting 'played'? Check everything you read on the internet particularly anything that is suddenly 'hot' in cyberspace or carried far and wide as being the 'truth'. I have found that in these troubled times, those who speak with a forked tongue too often, have the loudest voice. Remember our Bibles warn that deceit is pervasive in the last days (See Matthew 24:24; 2 Thessalonians 2:11; Revelation 12:9; 13:14).

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.
(1 Samuel 26:5 - ASV)

David did not act until he was certain and that he had a plan. The first step here in his tactics was to not avoid battle, he moved towards, rather than away from Saul's encampment.

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.
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.
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.
(1 Samuel 26:6-8 - ASV)

David calls his key men and asks who is going to go down and deal with this problem. We don't know much about Ahimelich the Hittite. According to the Smith Bible Dictionary (1863), Zeruiah was the mother of three of David's warriors, Abishai, Joash and Asahel. She was David's sister so these were his nephews (see 1 Chronicles 2:13ff). While Saul was sleeping they came in and crept into the camp and Abishai thrust a spear near Saul's head - this while others were asleep around him. This is the second time that it seems that Saul did not have adequate sentries posted while he slept. But there is another reason for this that will be later revealed. The same basic thing happened earlier at the cave. Saul clearly has a kind of learning disability. He seems to keep on making the same mistakes over and over again.

Abishai remarks to David that the Lord has delivered Saul into his hand and then asks permission to kill him with Saul's own spear. He says he can Kill Saul with one blow and would not need to hit him a second time to make sure he was dead. Abishai here I think basically is offering to do the deed since David would not do it.

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.
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.
(1 Samuel 26:10-11 - ASV)

No, David was not going to do it; Saul's death may come, but not by his hand. But like last time, he was going to leave a 'message' for Saul that his life could have been taken. The message was the spear that was at his head would be taken as well as his bottle of water. Actually the word cruse signifies a saucer of some kind or perhaps a jug. They take the spear and water to let Saul know 'David was here'.

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.
(1 Samuel 26:12 - ASV)

So here we see the real reason Saul's men would not awaken, God put them into a deep sleep.

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?
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.
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.
(1 Samuel 26:14-16 - ASV)

David calls out to Abner, Saul's top warrior and Abner replies wanting to know who it is that wants to address the King. David does not do what warriors often do, begin to insult or harangue Abner. No, he addresses him with respect by calling him a valiant warrior and acknowledging his well earned reputation. But after he honors him, he then chides him - 'why is that you were not keeping watch over the King? What were you doing sleeping on the job?' Someone crept into the camp to kill the king, what is your excuse?", is the gist of David's words. 'Go and see  - where is the King's spear and his bottle of sparkling mineral water?

David made Abner look pretty bad here.

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. And he said, Wherefore doth my lord
pursue after his servant? for what have I done?
or what evil is in my hand?
(1 Samuel 26:17-18 - ASV)

Saul hears David's voice and speaks. David replies that it's him and wants to know what evil he has done that he has come out against him as though he were some criminal, 'What have I done?'

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. 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.
(1 Samuel 26:19-20 - ASV)

David here is saying that if God is using you to punish me for some sin, then I will make an offering to God with regards to it. But if it be people who are egging you on to come and attack me, David curses them in the name of the Lord because they are standing in the way his divinely appointed inheritance. In so doing, they could wind up forcing David to go and live with the heathen and thus tempt him away from the Holy land and the religion of the Lord. This apparently is what is meant by 'Go, serve other gods' at the end of verse 19. He would be forced outside of the nation where the Lord is worshiped.

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.
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.
(1 Samuel 26:20-21 - ASV)

David here entreats the king like a subject, not a rival to the throne and asks that the King not kill him or perhaps having him die in some distant land. He tells the king he is not worth all the trouble he is going through. Saul repents of the evil he had planned and realizes he made a mistake.

David once again here takes the high road. He refuses to take vengeance nor to do the King wrong, no matter how much wrong the King has done him. David will not stain his sword with the blood of Saul. He has put is fate firmly in the hands of the Lord.

We will continue our look at Samuel soon, God willing!

Back To Contents

1 Samuel Part 72

And David said to Abigail,
Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel,
who sent thee this day to meet me:
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.
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.
(1 Samuel 25:32-34 - ASV)

We left off last time and Nabal's wife, Abigail had wisely entreated David not to go and destroy her husband and household and she also brought David and his men some food after David was coldly rejected by Nabal.

Abigail's entreaty does the trick. David was absolutely incensed over the way Nabal had treated him while he and his men looked out for his sheep. But in his rage he would have committed a grave wrong and horrible evil that he would later certainly have regretted. David here blesses the Lord for sending her to him. He also blesses her discretion (2940 in Strong's Hebrew Bible Dictionary - 1890). David and his men were clearly just about ready to depart to mess the place up. The long and short of it is, that if she had not come, there would have been a serious massacre. Such a massacre would not play well, PR wise for a new, soon to be King. Men would hear about it and it could have proved problematic for David down the road - 'David the slaughterer of herdsmen' may have become his nickname. So David appears to be genuinely grateful for her sage advice in ceasing from this slaughter.

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.
(1 Samuel 25:35 - ASV)

David here shows that he can be entreated and tells Abigail to go in peace, he won't come down and destroy her and Nabal's house.

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.
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.
And it came to pass about ten days after,
that Jehovah smote Nabal,
so that he died.
(1 Samuel 25:36-38 - ASV)

So here we see that Abigail, still was loyal to her husband. She did not hide her meeting with David but did tell him, but had to wait until he was sober to do it. We don't know what is meant exactly that he became as a stone, but to me it seems that he may have become enraged to such a degree that he had a stroke and it was followed by paralysis, which caused his death. The lesson here is that men like Nabal who insult and return evil for good that a man of God shows them will often pay a very hefty price.

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. 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.
(1 Samuel 25:39-40 - ASV)

David here acknowledges the hand of the Lord in Nabal's death and clearly Nabal had a very bad reputation as an evil man. David now wants to make Abigail his wife. So he sends his people to her for this purpose.

Now David already had a wife, King Saul's daughter Michal but what happened here at least in part, will be explained in just a bit. So this would have been the second (recorded) wife of David. Polygamy is not specifically forbidden in the Old Testament and even in the new, it is only an impediment to high Church office (though you will find many who will argue that point). But it is certainly true that monogamy is by far the most acceptable version of marriage, Biblically speaking. Before anyone gets on their high 'moral' horse and condemns how this was done back in the ancient world consider this. Back in the olden days, marriage was a way for a woman to get protection. A woman who had no husband did not have many options to survive and make a living and could easily fall into slavery, prostitution or slip into poverty. Allowing a man to have more than one wife was one way to solve that problem as such women could get protection from a husband who was already married. But as we saw with Solomon, having many wives can be a real snare to a man.

It is not clear what would have happened to Nabal's ranch after he died as far as Abigail is concerned as I am not sure about the law regarding property and a deceased husband.

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. 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.
(1 Samuel 25:41-42 - ASV)

This was truly a humble woman. She gets this news and bows her face to the ground and then says she is willing to perform the most menial jobs for her lord (wash the feet). I think here she shows both humility and gratitude to David, whom she knew would one day be king. She got up with her maidens and traveled to David and they were married. Matthew Henry (1662-1714) in his commentary notes interestingly that this looks like a kind of courtship by proxy, for David's men went to her and made the proposal.

Marriage by proxy (not exactly the same as courting by proxy) was something that did happen in the Middle Ages. I can remember a scene from a rather interesting BBC TV mini-series where there is a scene where Henry VII's son Arthur, is married by proxy to Catherine of Aragon, who would later become Henry VIII's first wife. She was one of his wives that escaped him with her head still attached to her body (!).

David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel;
and they became both of them his wives.
Now Saul had given Michal his daughter,
David's wife, to Palti
the son of Laish,
who was of Gallim.
(1 Samuel 25:43-44 - ASV)

It appears that this was not the first wife David took while in his wanderings. The best evidence is that Ahinoam was the first one (after Michal) and she bore him his firstborn (2 Samuel 3:2). So David had at least two wives, three if you still count Michal. But the last verse seems to indicate that the rupture in relations between David and the current royal family was compete and Saul had given Michal to another. All of these wives and their children... well there is a story that unfolds later that will be told, God willing. I think the lesson here is that while God may allow multiple wives, it's just not a good idea on any level. One spouse can be a headache, two doubles your trouble!

We will continue our look at Samuel, soon, God willing!


Back To Contents

1 Samuel Part 71

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.
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.
(1 Samuel  25:2-3 - ASV)

We left off last time and David had headed off to the wilderness of Paran after having had a conversation with Saul at the cave. David in his wanderings comes to Maon and meets up with Nabal. The author here gives us a little background on this man. He was in short, a nasty piece of work, but he did have a wife who was wise and in today's jargon, was quite a looker. This is all taking place in Judah. The name Nabal actually means fool.

And David heard in the wilderness
that Nabal was shearing his sheep.
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:
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.
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.
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.
(1 Samuel 25:4-8 - ASV)

The long and short of this is that David is saluting Nabal and sends several men to him as a sign of respect, shows him honor by wishing him peace. He relates how he has come into contact with his shepherds and did them no wrong. In fact, David and his men protected them while in their company. He then asks if he can share in what Nabal has as he is shearing. This was according to some commentaries, some kind of festival and this kind of thing was customary. What David here is doing seems to be asking for a little recompense for the service he has rendered to Nabal and his shepherds.

And when David's young men came,
they spake to Nabal according to all those words
in the name of David, and ceased.
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.
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?
(1 Samuel 25:9-11 - ASV)

Nabal in essence, tells David and his men to get lost. While Nabal asks the question who is David, the fact that he calls him the son of Jesse seem to indicate that he knows exactly who David is and probably knows that he is also the Lord's anointed. These things don't concern him. Then he adds insult to injury and implies that David is a run-away slave (vs. 10). He is implying that David and his men are nothing more than a band of renegades. Nabal is not giving them anything. Given the customs of time, this is a deep insult.

So David's young men turned on their way,
and went back, and came and told him
according to all these words.
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.
(1 Samuel 25:12-13 - ASV)

When David gets this report, he is understandably angry... very angry. His men were told to prepare as though going onto battle. This kind of insult was not going to go unrecompensed. Two hundred of his men were going to remain behind at camp to watch over their supplies. The rest were ready for battle. This may seem like a bit of an overreaction, but those were different times and very different customs - customs that basically ran ancient society. Nabal's actions demonstrate a kind of 'law of the jungle' mentality - requiting good with evil. David here is probably making it plain with his preparations, "You want law of the jungle? We can do law of the jungle. We will be the tiger and you will be the prey."

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.
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: they were
a wall unto us both by night and by day,
all the while we were with them
keeping the sheep. 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.
(1 Samuel 25:14-17 - ASV)

Here one of Nabal's servants, whom David and his men were probably with in the wilderness reports the goings on to Nabal's wife. 'Look, that bonehead of a husband you have just sent David's men away with insults after they looked after us in the wilderness. Get ready, because they are coming and mean to do this whole house some very serious mischief', would probably be a was to paraphrase it

How many of you have seen this kind of thing before? A man will all the sense of a piece of granite and a woman who has to keep on stepping in to keep him from 'stepping in it', over and over and over again. One has to feel for such a woman and their travails, year in and year out.

Having dealt with such people in the past let me give you a tip. Don't bother trying to help, inform or instruct such a person and do what you can to keep a safe distance from them. They are a danger to themselves and everyone they come in contact with. In this case, all his house nearly got killed because of his folly.

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.
And she said unto her young men,
Go on before me; behold,
I come after you.
But she told not her husband Nabal.
(1 Samuel 25:18-19 - ASV)

Nabal had a wife he certainly did not deserve. After getting this news she got some victuals together and got them ready for transport to David and his men. This was quite a bit of food she sent ahead and it was wise to send the food ahead before she arrived. It would help to lessen David's anger at the insult he had received at the hand of Nabal. Naturally, she had too much sense to tell her husband what she was up to. This way, they could all be saved. She was trying to save Nabal, herself and his servants from almost certain destruction for David was truly enraged.

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.
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. 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.
(1 Samuel 25:20-22 - ASV)

David is basically saying to his men 'Here I was out in the wilderness protecting his sheep (all that he hath) so that he did not lose a thing and this is how he repays me!'

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.
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.
(1 Samuel 25:23-24 - ASV)

Abigail realized the danger her household is in and David's anger. She comes before David as a suppliant, on her face expressing both deep humility and respect. She asks that the sin of her husband be laid upon her and that David would spare some time and hear what she has to say.

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.
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.
(1 Samuel 25:25-26 - ASV)

Abigail should have been a diplomat! She knew how to appeal to David and lets him know she knows what kind of husband she has. She tells him she did not know of the recent exchange between the two and only just found out. She then carefully lets David know that she is the instrument from keeping David from a very great sin (bloodguiltiness) and subtly reminds David that he should not take vengeance with his own hand, however justified he may think he is.

She then hopes that all of David's enemies are like Nabal, not very bright and impotent to bring any harm to David. Some think that Abigail who was a woman of understanding, was actually issuing a prophecy to David and that what she was really saying is that Nabal is not going to be around long and may all of your enemies suffer the same fate. She seems to be saying, 'don't play the fool by sinning greatly against God because of a fool. He is of no account, Don't bother with him, he ain't worth it.'

And now this present
which thy servant hath brought unto my lord,
let it be given unto the young men
that follow my lord. 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.
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.
 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,
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.
(1 Samuel 25:27-31 - ASV)

Abigail continues with her marvelous entreaty to David which is also a kind of prophecy. She knows exactly who David is and that God is with him. That he, with God's help will take care of his enemies. She is clearly aware of the powerful anointing on David and the future God has in store for him. She confers this blessing/prophecy on him and says that when he comes to the throne, he should not have to look back on this incident with deep regret - having slaughtered so many over an insult made by a person whose name literally means fool. She then asks that David remember her when he comes to the throne.

Abigail's faith is noteworthy. It is also tragic that she was married to a man like Nabal. But she shows herself to be a wise woman and one who clearly honored the Lord. Despite living with a bad husband, she was able to rise above her situation. She may have used her situation and past incidents with Nabal to teach David something she learned over the years. She had dealt with Nabal for a long time and probably had to bite her tongue and hold back her actions against him on more than a few occasions, refused to sin even though she may have been often provoked. She was not going to fight folly with folly. This was in essence the message at least in part she was giving to David.

We will continue our look at the book of Samuel soon, God willing!


Back To Contents

1 Samuel Part 70

After whom is the king of Israel come out?
after whom dost thou pursue?
after a dead dog, after a flea.
Jehovah therefore be judge,
and give sentence between me and thee,
and see,and plead my cause,
 and deliver me out of thy hand.
(1 Samuel 24:14-15 - ASV)

We left off last time with Saul and David having a verbal exchange outside of the cave after David had cut off a part of the King's garment. David here continues his words to the King asking if had come out against a dead dog or a flea. The dead dog metaphor perhaps alludes to the evil things that were said about David - that he was no good. The flea metaphor? Perhaps that he was very lowly and of little account. But David here puts his faith in God and tells the King that he is going to let God handle this one and asks God to deliver him out of the Kings hand. David is learning through adversity to put his trust fully in God, his timing and his justice.

And it came to pass,
when David had made an end
of speaking these words unto Saul,
that Saul said, Is this thy voice, my son David?
And Saul lifted up his voice,
and wept.
(1 Samuel 24:16 - ASV)

Clearly something here changed in Saul and his heart appears to have been genuinely moved by David's words. Perhaps it was just the sound of his voice that reminded him of the past. He refers to him as his son, which in effect he was, for he had married the kings daughter. Saul cried after hearing David speak. What kind of weeping was it? Genuine or like that of Esau?  It was probably genuine, but did it really have that spirit of repentance in it? I think Saul was genuinely moved and perhaps was wondering how he could have thought all of those evil things about David that he did.

And he said to David,
Thou art more righteous than I;
for thou hast rendered unto me good,
whereas I have rendered unto thee evil.
And thou hast declared this day
how that thou hast dealt well with me,
 forasmuch as when Jehovah had
delivered me up into thy hand,
 thou killedst me not.
For if a man find his enemy,
will he let him go well away?
wherefore Jehovah reward thee good
for that which thou hast done
unto me this day.
(1 Samuel 24:17-19 - ASV)

Saul I think realizes he could be quite dead were it not for David's kindness and unwillingness to take his life as he was encouraged to do by his men. No, David was indeed taking the high road and here Saul acknowledges that David had done right and Saul even acknowledges his own evil intentions.

And now, behold,
I know that thou shalt surely be king,
and that the kingdom of Israel
shall be established in thy hand.
Swear now therefore unto me by Jehovah,
that thou wilt not cut off my seed after me,
and that thou wilt not destroy my name
out of my father's house.
And David sware unto Saul.
And Saul went home;
but David and his men
gat them up unto the stronghold.
(1 Samuel 24:20-22 - ASV)

Saul here acknowledges that David is going to be king. He asks that his children, his family will not be killed when he reigns. This was often done to ensure that there is no focus of rebellion by a pretender who has or claims to have the proper lineage. Saul asks David to make an oath he would not kill his children. Saul knew that David would be bound by such an oath, though Saul's word? Well... see 1 Samuel 19:6. This promise is the same thing Jonathan asked of David earlier (1 Samuel 20:15).

The two part ways, but David rather than going back home and to his wife stays with his men in their stronghold. He may have been ready to forgive Saul his malice, but that did not mean he was going to put his trust in him and come back as though everything was OK. No sir, that could very well be the fast lane to an early grave. No, better to stay with the men who had stayed with him through thick and thin than with a king who might very well change his mind and cast another spear at him.

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.
(1 Samuel 25:1 - ASV)

Samuel, God's reliable prophet has died but we cannot be certain when this was from the passage. Some think it happened many months before. We can't really be sure but the fact that it was inserted here makes many believe that this was about when it happened. Dr. John Gill (1697-1771) in his Bible commentary has some comments on this you may find of interest.

Israel owed much to Samuel. It was he that really kept the nation in covenant with God and he could always be depended upon to do what God asked. If we recall, before Saul rose to the throne, he was the de-facto ruler of Israel, the one people went to, for he was the Judge (the last of Israel's Judges) as well as a prophet. This changed only because of the behavior of his sons. He was still deeply respected and loved.

It was to Israel's folly that she chose to have a king instead of the system God had set up. Their choice for a king deeply hurt both the Lord and Samuel.

We are not sure who finished writing this book as the first section is often ascribed to Samuel but many think it was either Nathan, the prophet Gad or both.

David's move to Paran does not seem to be directly connected with Saul's passing. It is associated with part of the desert of the Sinai in ancient times. A city by that name exists today in southern Israel.

What seems clear is that David is continuing his wanderings and is not in any hurry to return to the royal court. Why here? It is hard to say, but David had a few hundred men with him and they needed sustenance. He may have decided the best place to get it was outside of Israel away from Saul and his spies.

We will continue our look at Samuel soon, God willing!

Back To Contents

1 Samuel Part 69

1 Samuel Part 68

[FYI: About the long delay - I took my Summer Break and did not update the site for a couple of weeks. Thank you for your understanding and patience!  - MSW]

1 Samuel Part 67

We left off last time with David and the surviving priest, Abiathar, who had survived Saul's massacre, fled and met up with David. The two make a compact that would last for the rest of David's life. Both men survived assassination attempts by a King who had turned on God.

In the above passage, information comes to David about trouble in Keilah. Who exactly told him of this is not clear, but it may have been those who warned him of the mass murder at Nob. The impression I get here is that there may already be simmering discontent in the Kingdom and those who reported these things to David were slowly beginning to side with the 'David faction'. I say this because they did not go to the King regarding this, but to the man whom the king was trying to get rid of. But in this passage we note a big difference between Saul and David. One was killing God's anointed representatives and the other was seeking guidance from the same. This is an important contrast in the character of these men. David, I think realized after his earlier panic, that he had to put his full faith and confidence in God and seeking his guidance was rule number one.

David then asks the Lord if should he go and deal with the Philistines who were causing so much trouble in Keilah. What the Philistines were doing was no little thing. We should keep in mind that the harvest that they gathered would be brought in to be threshed. If the harvest was stolen or destroyed, it could mean a food shortage.

I think it important to try and figure out why the Philistines chose now to do this. Matthew Henry (1662-1714) in his commentary makes a rather striking observation. Now that Saul and turned on God and the mighty warrior David was no longer in royal favor, this was a perfect time for them to wreck havoc on Israel. Let us keep in mind that the Philistines in the past had reason to fear the God of Israel (remember the incident with Dagon). They may have heard that Saul had killed all the priests of the Lord and so in their minds, this was the time to go in, for the fearsome God of the Israelite's had forsaken their king. If they knew of events in Israel and they probably did, their raid makes military sense.

David gets the divine go-ahead to smite the Philistines and save the city of Keilah.

And David's men said unto him, Behold,
we are afraid here in Judah:
how much more then if we go to Keilah
against the armies of the Philistines?
(1 Samuel 23:3 - ASV)

David here is running into a little resistance. David is prepared to go and deal with the Philistines, but his men, well... they are not so sure. They saw it as leaping out of the frying pan right into the fire. David probably did not have that many men with him, so going against the Philistines would seem like folly. But David now was demonstrating that one key trait that God really honors in men - faith. He has the go ahead from God, and that was enough for him.

Then David inquired of Jehovah yet again.
And Jehovah answered him,
and said, Arise, go down to Keilah;
for I will deliver the Philistines
into thy hand.
(1 Samuel 23:4 - ASV)

David again sought the Lord and got the same answer. We are not certain how this word came about, but probably either from the prophet Gad or perhaps Abiathar had the Urim and Thummim with him which some commentators think Abiathar brought with him after escaping from Saul. However it was accomplished, the answer was the same.

And David and his men went to Keilah,
and fought with the Philistines,
and brought away their cattle,
and slew them with a great slaughter.
So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.
(1 Samuel 23:5 - ASV)

Faith will take you a long way when one is in the Lord's favor. When God gives you a word and a job to do, he will give you victory. Sometimes it's not as quick as what we find here. Joshua was given a job to do, but that one took a long time with many troubles along the way. The key for us is to trust God, do what he tells us to do and keep faith.

And it came to pass,
when Abiathar the son of Ahimelech
fled to David to Keilah,
that he came down with an ephod in his hand.
(1 Samuel 23:6 - ASV)

This passage is why some commentators think David's inquiry of the Lord was with the Urim and Thummim. John Gill (1697-1771) notes in his commentary that this was the ephod that had them on it, the ephod of the High Priest.

And it was told Saul that David was come to Keilah.
And Saul said, God hath delivered him into my hand;
for he is shut in, by entering into a town
that hath gates and bars.
And Saul summoned all the people to war,
to go down to Keilah,
to besiege David and his men.
(1 Samuel 23:7-8 - ASV)

Saul gets word of where David was and continues in his delusional thinking, believing that God was actually going to deliver David into his hands, after he just murdered the Lord's priests! He thinks that he's got David in a trap, in a place that can be besieged. The name Keilah (7084 in Strong's Hebrew Bible Dictionary - 1890) actually means enclosing; it could also mean fortress. Thus, Saul gathers his army and prepares to take David.

Now the nation can be said to be in a state of civil war and Saul's open hostility with David was there for all to see. What had David done wrong? I will tell you in one word - nothing. Saul it seems, just never came to terms with the fact that God had rejected him for his flagrant disregard for God's commandments. All the service David did for Saul and Israel, like getting rid of Goliath was repaid with this kind of dealing from the King. It reminds me of the Psalm...

Put not your trust in princes,
Nor in the son of man,
in whom there is no help.
(Psalms 146:3 - ASV)

Back to the text.

And David knew that Saul
was devising mischief against him;
and he said to Abiathar the priest,
Bring hither the ephod. Then said David,
O Jehovah, the God of Israel,
thy servant hath surely heard that Saul
seeketh to come to Keilah,
to destroy the city for my sake.
Will the men of Keilah deliver me up into his hand?
will Saul come down, as thy servant hath heard?
O Jehovah, the God of Israel,
I beseech thee, tell thy servant.
And Jehovah said, He will come down.
 Then said David, Will the men of Keilah
deliver up me and my men into the hand of Saul?
And Jehovah said, They will deliver thee up.
(1 Samuel 23:9-11 - ASV)

This passage is self explanatory. David wants some guidance from the Lord. Is Saul coming, can he trust the people of the city he is in? The news was not good on either count. Saul was coming and the people of the city would give him up. Think about it, David came down the city to save the people from the Philistines and now they were getting ready to hand David over to his enemies! Don't say David did not know or understand ingratitude and treachery. But David put his trust on the only one that can truly be relied upon in good times and bad, God.

We will continue our look at Samuel in the not too distant future, God willing!

Back To Contents

1 Samuel Part 66

Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said,
And who among all thy servants is so faithful as David,
who is the king's son-in-law, and is taken into thy council,
and is honorable in thy house?
(1 Samuel 22:14 - ASV)

We left off last time and King Saul was ranting against his own tribesmen, Benjamin and later against the priesthood whom it was reported to him, had assisted David in his flight. The above passage are the first words uttered by Ahimelech in response to the Kings accusations. Ahimelech speaks up for David and says the King does not have a more loyal subject than David, at least that is the impression he had of him. Why should he treat him otherwise than he had? Here he is claiming in essence that he was unaware of any trouble between David and the King.

Have I to-day begun to inquire of God for him?
be it far from me: let not the king impute
 anything unto his servant,
nor to all the house of my father;
for thy servant knoweth nothing of all this,
less or more.
(1 Samuel 22:15 - ASV)

Here the Priest seems to be saying, 'look, he often comes and seeks a word from the Lord. What of it? If he seeks the Lord, it's my job to guide him'. He makes it plain that he and his house are innocent of any wrong.

And the king said, Thou shalt surely die,
Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father's house.
And the king said unto the guard that stood about him,
Turn, and slay the priests of Jehovah;
because their hand also is with David,
and because they knew that he fled,
and did not disclose it to me. But the servants
of the king would not put forth their hand
to fall upon the priests of Jehovah.
And the king said to Doeg, Turn thou,
and fall upon the priests. And Doeg the Edomite turned,
and he fell upon the priests,
and he slew on that day fourscore and five persons
that did wear a linen ephod.
(1 Samuel 22:16-18 - ASV)

The passage is self explanatory. Saul had 'lost it' and clearly now was fully working under dark spiritual influences. He demanded that the priests be slain, but his guard would not do it. They would not take such a sin upon their souls. This shows, I think that clearly there was increasing reticence in those whom the king depended on for his power to follow their master's orders.

It seems to me that what is happening here is that they would follow his orders, but not into God's wrath. A king whose orders are not obeyed is not likely to remain king for long. So Saul gets the foreigner to do this dreadful deed, Doeg, the Edomite. But the bloodbath is not finished yet.

And Nob, the city of the priests,
smote he with the edge of the sword,
 both men and women, children and sucklings,
and oxen and asses and sheep,
with the edge of the sword.
(1 Samuel 22:19 - ASV)

When the devil gets into the King's soul, there is not much men can do. I cannot help but recall Tudor England, when Henry VIII cut down priests who would not acknowledge his authority over the Church and his putting away of his wife Catherine, in order to marry Anne Boleyn. Thomas More, Bishop Fisher, the Carthusian Monks, these all suffered under Henry's wrath.

It was pretty sad and some scholars have suggested that Henry's acts may have been incited by syphilis, though there does not appear to be much evidence to back that up. I suspect he had just like Saul, let power go to his head and ceased to think about God, Justice and the overall peace and security of the realm as much as his own personal gratification and petty vengeance.

Both could at one time I think be called men of God (or who genuinely sought him), who once given power, turned on God in favor of base, worldly desires. Both I think, let their passions govern them rather than God and a desire for good government and justice. Once God was no longer the foundation for their rule, something else took its place.

If you did not know, Psalm 52 was written by David about this whole affair.

For the Chief Musician. Maschil of David;
when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul,
and said unto him, David is come
to the house of Ahimelech.
Why boastest thou thyself in mischief,
O mighty man? The lovingkindness of
God endureth continually. Thy tongue deviseth
 very wickedness, Like a sharp razor,
working deceitfully. Thou lovest evil more than good,
And lying rather than to speak righteousness. Selah.
Thou lovest all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.
God will likewise destroy thee for ever;
He will take thee up, and pluck thee out of thy tent,
 And root thee out of the land of the living. Selah.
The righteous also shall see it, and fear,
And shall laugh at him, saying,
Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength,
But trusted in the abundance of his riches,
And strengthened himself in his wickedness.
But as for me, I am like a green olive-tree
in the house of God: I trust in the lovingkindness
of God for ever and ever. I will give thee thanks
for ever, because thou hast done it;
 And I will hope in thy name, for it is good,
in the presence of thy saints.
(Psalms 52:1-9 - ASV)

Back to the text.

And one of the sons of Ahimelech,
the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped,
 and fled after David. And Abiathar
told David that Saul had slain Jehovah's priests.
(1 Samuel 22:20-21 - ASV)

Yet one escaped, Abiathar who would remain with David throughout his reign but later fell out of favor during a succession controversy. He goes to David and gives him this horrible report on the doings of King Saul. Later we find that he was also able to gather some official priestly garments and bring them with him (1 Samuel 23:6).

And David said unto Abiathar,
I knew on that day,
when Doeg the Edomite was there,
that he would surely tell Saul:
I have occasioned the death
of all the persons of thy father's house.
 Abide thou with me, fear not;
for he that seeketh my life seeketh thy life:
for with me thou shalt be in safeguard.
(1 Samuel 22:22-23 - ASV)

David then tells the priest of his fears. He knew Doeg was trouble and now what he feared would happened, has happened. Then he blames himself. Not with deliberately causing their death, but by his actions earlier. Perhaps on one level he was to blame, he did go to Nob and ask for assistance in a rather deceitful fashion. But by his deception he put the Priests in jeopardy (hence the tongue theme in the above Psalm). Deceit is never a good policy. One may start off with decent intentions, but one never knows who will ultimately get hurt when a lie is told. When a person tells lies, he does damage to some part of God's creation. For our God is a God of truth and no lie is of the truth (1 John 2:21).

Speaking and living the truth is always the best long term policy. Sure, a short term benefit may seem to be gained by lying, but the long term effects of lies on many levels can last a very long time and be utterly disastrous. Look at what happened above.

I try and always to speak truth and if the whole truth can really hurt someone or cause unforeseen events, I find that it's often better to keep silent. God loves truth and honors those that behave honorably. I try and make my words few and when I do speak, I endeavor to speak the truth; say what I mean and mean what I say.

So here David offers a compact with the Priest. Both have been targeted by King Saul for death. So from here on, the two should work together. David here offers his protection and tells him not to be afraid. In this we see a simple, but perhaps overlooked contrast between Saul and David. David, was going to protect the priest of the Lord, Saul was out to kill them.

We will continue our look at this book soon, God willing!


Back To Contents

1 Samuel Part 65

And Saul heard that David was discovered,
and the men that were with him:
now Saul was sitting in Gibeah,
under the tamarisk-tree in Ramah,
with his spear in his hand,
and all his servants were standing about him.
And Saul said unto his servants
that stood about him, Hear now,
ye Benjamites; will the son of Jesse
give every one of you fields and vineyards,
will he make you all captains of thousands
and captains of hundreds,
 that all of you have conspired against me,
 and there is none that discloseth to me
when my son maketh a league
with the son of Jesse, and there is none
of you that is sorry for me, or discloseth
unto me that my son hath stirred up
my servant against me, to lie in wait,
as at this day?
(1 Samuel 22:6-8 - ASV)

We left off last time and David had just been given a word by the prophet Gad to not remain in his stronghold but to return to Judah.

David had become one of those men who are mentioned in the great Faith Hall of Fame (Hebrews Chapter 11); those who stuck with God even when the chips were down, they were in deep distress and it seemed that God had forsaken them.

Women received their dead by a resurrection:
and others were tortured,
not accepting their deliverance;
that they might obtain a better resurrection:
and others had trial of mockings and scourgings,
yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:
they were stoned, they were sawn asunder,
they were tempted, they were slain
with the sword: they went about in sheepskins,
 in goatskins; being destitute, afflicted,
ill-treated (of whom the world was not worthy),
wandering in deserts and mountains and caves,
and the holes of the earth.
(Hebrews 11:35-38 - ASV)

The above passage (in Samuel) shows that Saul's intelligence network had located the 'enemy of the state', aka David. Saul was underneath a tree or perhaps in some grove (see 815 in Strong's Hebrew Bible Dictionary). This appears to be some kind of meeting place or perhaps an open air conclave where Saul could meet with key people and consult. It may very well be the same place we find in the book of Judges 4:5, as it was where Deborah, the prophetess and judge met. The fact that he had the spear in his hand has been interpreted, probably correctly, that it may have been a symbol of regal power and authority.

So he starts to harangue those around him and it appears that for the most part, it seems that only those of his own tribe are here, Benjaminites. What seems clear is that the kingdom, was still very much divided along tribal lines. But even here, he is upset with his own tribe and accuses them of conspiring against him and not telling him of the covenant that Jonathan made with David. Somehow, Saul had found out about it.

What seems clear is that Saul's mind is writhing with suspicion, perhaps bordering on paranoia. But I think in the back of his troubled mind he had to recall the word's of the prophet Samuel, that God had rejected him from being king over Israel.

Then answered Doeg the Edomite,
who stood by the servants of Saul,
and said, I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob,
to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub.
And he inquired of Jehovah for him,
and gave him victuals,
and gave him the sword
of Goliath the Philistine.
(1 Samuel 22:9-10 - ASV)

Doeg was not an Israeli, he came from Edom but he was set over at least some of Saul's servants (21:7). He speaks up to show his loyalty to the King by reporting on what he saw when David was in Nob. Doeg's motive for reporting this may have been to avert suspicion from himself and members of Saul's Royal Court onto the Priesthood.

Then the king sent to call Ahimelech the priest,
the son of Ahitub, and all his father's house,
the priests that were in Nob:
and they came all of them to the king.
And Saul said, Hear now, thou son of Ahitub.
And he answered, Here I am, my lord.
And Saul said unto him,
Why have ye conspired against me,
thou and the son of Jesse,
in that thou hast given him bread,
and a sword, and hast inquired of God for him,
that he should rise against me,
to lie in wait, as at this day?
(1 Samuel 22:11-13 - ASV)

Clearly, Saul bought the story and suspicion was diverted onto the priesthood. He sends for the Priests and the passage seems pretty clear that the whole familial house was there, the family of Ahitub, who was the grandson of Eli. Remember him? This was the house God had a controversy with over the conduct of his sons. Ahitub was the brother of Ichabod, son of Phineas.

So they are all now assembled before this king who was clearly operating on the fringes of sanity. Ahimelech is directly accused by the King of conspiring against him and of being in league with the King's enemy; feeding and arming him.

Back in those days, there was no due process of law as we understand it, not when one is directly accused by the King. Were the Priests directly answerable to the King in such matters? It's probably not a legal point to consider in those days, but the idea of ecclesiastical courts that tried Priests and Monks was something that developed much later. It was an important distinction and privilege. This was one key bone of contention between King Henry II of England and Archbishop Thomas Becket, who not totally unlike the events to come, was murdered, probably on orders of that King. FYI, if you have never seen it, there is an old movie staring Richard Burton and Peter O'Toole called Becket that I thought was really quite good and won several awards.

The charges stated. How will the Priest answer these most grave charges? We'll get to that soon, God willing.

Back To Contents

1 Samuel Part 64

We left off last time and David had fled the city of the priests (Nob), to the Philistines. It should have come to no surprise to David that someone of his notoriety was going to be recognized. This is exactly what the above passage is saying. The kings servants said (in my very rough translation), 'wait a minute, ain't that David, the dude they were singing and going on about in Saul's court about killing Philistines? The short answer (not stated in the text) was yes, it sure was. Note that they call him king of the land, so clearly his personal exploits had overshadowed those of Saul to a high degree.

And David laid up these words in his heart,
 and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath.
And he changed his behavior before them,
 and feigned himself mad in their hands,
and scrabbled on the doors of the gate,
and let his spittle fall down upon his beard.
(1 Samuel 21:12-13 - ASV)

David probably is just now figuring out that heading directly to the enemy like this was not a very smart move. He understands now that they know who he is and if they catch him, his life may not be worth a wooden nickel. So he thinks quick and pretends to be a mad man. He starts to scratch at the gate and let's spit run down his beard. He must have been a fairly good actor because...

Then said Achish unto his servants,
Lo, ye see the man is mad;
wherefore then have ye brought him to me?
Do I lack madmen, that ye have brought
this fellow to play the madman in my presence?
shall this fellow come into my house?
(1 Samuel 21:14-15 - ASV)

The King was fooled, he appears to have bought David's ruse and David was at least for the present, safe behind his crazy man facade.

David therefore departed thence,
and escaped to the cave of Adullam:
and when his brethren and all his father's house heard it,
they went down thither to him.
(1 Samuel 22:1 - ASV)

This is a cave that was not far from David's hometown of Bethlehem. Commentators say that this was a strong fortress like place, probably for the Tribe of Benjamin. Commentators have placed this near Beit-Jibrin and Deir-Dubban. When his family heard about what was happening with David, they band together in this place. David needed to rest, get his bearings and be around those who supported him. But probably just as importantly, it is certainly quite possible that Saul's anger and madness could be directed at the whole house of Jesse. This is may be why they all came down to the cave. They realized that because they were of the same house-family as David, they could easily be picked up (perhaps held as hostages) or even killed.

And every one that was in distress,
and every one that was in debt,
and every one that was discontented,
gathered themselves unto him;
and he became captain over them:
and there were with him
about four hundred men.
(1 Samuel 22:2 - ASV)

Along with his family came many who were in distress. They all had problems and each had some kind of a bone to pick with the King and his rule. David's band of men numbered about four hundred and as we can see, they now formed a kind of army - a rebel force against a King who had outstayed his welcome on the throne. These people were probably angry and ready to risk their lives to be free from Saul's oppressive and misguided rule. David was going to be their captain (commander). This was in short, this was an army against a king who had lost his God given anointing (1 Samuel 15:23). It was led by a man whom God had chosen in his stead.

And David went thence to Mizpeh of Moab:
and he said unto the king of Moab,
Let my father and my mother, I pray thee,
come forth, and be with you,
till I know what God will do for me.
And he brought them before the king of Moab:
and they dwelt with him all the while
that David was in the stronghold.
(1 Samuel 22:3-4 - ASV)

So now David goes to the King of Moab and seeks shelter for his mother and father. His brothers are probably part of his army. Let us recall that David's great grandmother was from Moab - Ruth, a book I spent several months with commentary a few years ago. The city he went to was Mizpeh. The name means watchtower (4708 in Strong's Hebrew Bible Dictionary). David was not sure what God was going to do so he felt this was a safe place for his family to be as it was out of the reach of Saul and his henchmen. From verse four we can gather that the place at Adullam was both a cave and a stronghold, probably naturally fortified against attack and easy discovery. But some commentators think this was a different place, perhaps in Moab (John Gill's [1697-1771] Exposition of the Entire Bible). David is clearly making preparations for big trouble ahead with the King.

And the prophet Gad said unto David,
 Abide not in the stronghold;
depart, and get thee into the land of Judah.
Then David departed, and came
into the forest of Hereth.
(1 Samuel 22:5 - ASV)

A prophet now appears to David whose name is Gad. We don't know much about him, but commentators remark that he may have been one of the prophets in the Samuel's school of the prophets and was sent by Samuel to assist David and give him prophetic guidance. In the book of 1 Chronicles, he is called "David's Seer" (1 Chronicles 21:9). He is also one of those who wrote down the events of David's life and probably wrote a book that has now since been lost (1 Chronicles 29:29), though there is a book bearing that name that probably dates back as perhaps far as the first Century that was in the care of the Cochin Jews in India.

The prophet tells David not to remain in the stronghold but to go to the land of Judah. This to the natural mind may be too close to the king, who could command tens of thousands. But a future King should not be living in a foreign land. 

This was the same kind of dilemma that the Catholic princess Mary Tudor (later Queen Mary I; aka Bloody Mary) had to face when she nearly fled the realm under the rule of her brother, Edward VI and his militantly protestant council. If she had fled, she almost certainly would have abdicated her place in the royal succession. David did as he was told, but we don't know exactly where the forest of Hereth was but it may have been just outside of Jerusalem. 

I think the prophet was basically re-directing David to cease to run from his problem but to turn and face it. The first step in doing that was to go back to Israel and begin to make moves to deal with this problem directly. In short, he had to make the move back to Saul's kingdom based upon his faith in God, rather than the fear that sent him to Gath.

Back To Contents

Encouragement

God's grace and peace to each of you who reads this. In these difficult times I always want to make sure that I do my best to encourage each of you who come by the site. I know how hard life can be and this walk of faith can at times be difficult and the last thing I want to be is one of those sites that harp on the negative, the disasters and casting a dark light on everything, as is the habit of some. 

We can often become discouraged and confused when things don't turn out the way we wanted or hoped. In such times we need to remember the proverb.

Trust in Jehovah with all thy heart,
And lean not upon thine own understanding:
In all thy ways acknowledge him,
And he will direct thy paths.
Be not wise in thine own eyes;
Fear Jehovah, and depart from evil:
It will be health to thy navel,
And marrow to thy bones.
(Proverbs 3:5-8 - ASV)

In times when we don't understand why something is happening to us, this is what we need to do. Trust in the Lord - with all of our hearts. It's what David is now having to do (as we go through the Book of Samuel) and it's what Job had to do. Both had to have, at sometime, felt almost betrayed and abandoned by the God in whom they trusted. But each hung in there - through thick and thin and kept faith with God. Job was restored and doubly blessed and David did ascend to the throne, according to God's promise. But they had to wade through a proverbial  swamp full of 'crocodiles' and that burning desert with 'vultures' circling above. But they kept moving forward, did not look back and kept faith with God, despite the dangers.

What? You think its has been easy doing this blog? It's not as hard as it used to be, but there are times it has been exceptionally difficult. But I had my orders from the Lord and I carried them out. I say this to each of you so that you won't get discouraged when the harsh realities of life come crashing in your front door. A major illness in the family, a death, the loss of a job, a major expense you simply cannot pay for, you get very sick or maybe you have to do time for a crime you never even thought about committing - these things happen - they can happen to anyone.

But your job is to not give into despair and bitterness. We must never rail against God and put the blame on him for the troubles in our life. Chances are there is something in our trials he wants to teach us and we won't realize what the lesson is until it's over. It's often that way with me. I had to learn some things the hard way and as the last big trial I had was ending, the Lord just spoke to me and let me know that if I had learned one key lesson, the trial would come to an end. I did and it did. There is no chance I will forget that lesson as I think I will have to go through a 'remedial' course in the school of hard knocks if I ever do.

Such a lesson does not appeal to me!

The key for each of us is this. We all have to go through trials. There is no way around it. So if it happens to you, don't be shocked or dismayed. It goes with God's plan.

fear thou not, for I am with thee;
be not dismayed, for I am thy God;
I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea,
I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
Behold, all they that are incensed
against thee shall be put to shame and confounded:
they that strive with thee shall be as nothing,
and shall perish. Thou shalt seek them,
and shalt not find them, even them that contend with thee:
they that war against thee shall be as nothing,
and as a thing of nought. For I, Jehovah thy God,
will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee,
Fear not; I will help thee.
(Isaiah 41:10-13 - ASV)

Things gone awry? Feel like a hundred boulders just landed right on top of you? Brothers we have a God who loves us and will take care of us if we fully put our trust in him. You got enemies? The passage above makes it plain that they won't be around long. Just hang tough, God see's what they are doing. He has not forgotten about you or their deeds. Let them finish digging their own graves - they may be only 5-and-a half feet down - let them get that extra six inches of digging completed. Save the manual laborers the sweat needed to do it. Your God is indeed looking out for you. But you must - absolutely MUST put your trust in him and do what he tells you.

So no matter what you are going through, keep faith with God. Don't get discouraged and don't whatever you do throw in the towel on your faith. That is exactly what the devil wants you to do. Invariably, he is targeting your faith - the key ingredient in our salvation.

God bless and keep all who love our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Amen.


Back To Contents

1 Samuel Part 63

Back To Contents

1 Samuel Part 62

We left off last time and Saul had deeply insulted Johnathan and he realized that Saul was determined to kill David. The passage above tells us what Jonathan did afterwards. He got up from the table without eating anything. This was the second day of the full moon feast (20:27) so it seems that after the insult, he just got up and left without eating. At such a feast, the whole kings court was almost certainly present and for the king to insult his son like this was a very great wrong and it had to have been noticed by all.

And it came to pass in the morning,
 that Jonathan went out into the field
at the time appointed with David,
 and a little lad with him. And he said unto his lad,
Run, find now the arrows which I shoot.
And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him.
And when the lad was come to the place
of the arrow which Jonathan had shot,
Jonathan cried after the lad, and said,
Is not the arrow beyond thee? And Jonathan
cried after the lad, Make speed, haste, stay not.
And Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrows,
and came to his master. But the lad knew not anything:
only Jonathan and David knew the matter.
(1 Samuel 20:35-39 - ASV)

The long and short of this passage that it was time for them to use the prearranged code that they had set up before Jonathan left for the new moon feast. The boy who went and fetched the arrow and was the unwitting deliverer of the message, was none the wiser.

Jonathan here dismisses his attendant and then meets David who comes out of his hiding place. He does the heir to the throne and his friend great honor by bowing before him. David now was wholly dependent on God and the faithfulness of his friend. They kissed each other and then both wept. It looks here as though David was overcome with grief over what had happened to him, hence the phrase 'until David exceeded' (vs. 41). Then Jonathan delivers the bad news, that David had better go, but strictly charges him to recall the covenant that now exists between them and its eternal nature. He then goes back to the city and the king. Jonathan was still loyal to his father, but I don't think he would ever forget the horrible words he said against him. But he had a duty to the king, the realm and his father.

Survival and Faith Mode

From here on we are going to see David in what can only be termed survival mode. He's going to do some things that will make many of us scratch our heads. So keep that in mind going forward. After having received the prophecy of becoming king, he's now alone, hunted and is on the King's 'kill list'.

But more than going into survival mode, I think it important that we take a moment and see David as a type for we Christians. We too have been promised a throne and to be a king and a priest of God in his kingdom. But none of us just put on those holy robes and fly up to heaven and start to reign with a scepter in our hands. As it has been said before, there is a cross we have to bear before we sit on a throne. David got the promise, but though he did everything right, he now basically is homeless; a vagabond and a wanted man - this after having served the king and kingdom so well, by slaying Goliath and the enemies of the realm.

But David kept faith with God. He trusted in God in all things and the troubles awaited him. But this is true for all of us as well. Christ had to go to the cross before he ascended to heaven, Paul was martyred, so was Peter. Time would fail me to go into Stephen and many of the other men and women who had to suffer, often enormously before they could wear the crown of life (James 1:12; Revelation 2:10) and the other crowns and rewards God plans on giving those who demonstrate that they love him. Do you want to be a friend of God? A true friend of God? Let me tell you what they may one day mean.

Greater love hath no man than this,
that a man lay down his life
for his friends.
(John 15:13 - ASV)

Now Christ used this to show you how much he loved his friends, he laid down his life for them. But if we want to demonstrate our love in return, our lives may one day be required of us. It is the way we can demonstrate just how much we love our Lord.

Many of us are having all kinds of trials and troubles these days. We often wonder where God is in them all. Well, how do you think David felt? Even Christ felt that way on the cross, when he said, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" (Matthew 27:46). The key for all of us is that we are not alone. Such suffering and even seeming 'forsakeness' is something that I think every saint that is going to be of any real use to God must endure for a season.

Now think about Job. How do you think he felt after all the mess the devil put him through? I think it is part of our training and testing. There is something God wants out of us that we may never be certain what that something is while we live down here in the body. Perhaps it is moving us from the role of servant to the role of 'friend' that is at issue (see John 15:15), I don't know. But this I do know, many a saint has gone through this kind of thing and one thing I can tell you this kind of trial does is it tests both your faith-endurance and your character. It will often also tell you who your friends are and who you can and cannot trust in the future. It's a trial of your faith and David was now having his tried.

Wherein ye greatly rejoice,
though now for a little while,
if need be, ye have been put to grief in manifold trials,
that the proof of your faith, being more precious
 than gold that perisheth though it is proved by fire,
may be found unto praise and glory and honor
at the revelation of Jesus Christ:
(1 Peter 1:6-7 - ASV)

Do you feel alone and forsaken in your trial? Wonder where the promise a prophet gave you years ago is and why it has not happened yet? David went through the same thing. David continued to steer his course towards God. Job never lost his faith or confidence in God, but stubbornly (sometimes it comes down to that!) held on to his faith in God. He was not going to forsake God, even if it killed him.

Steel in our souls is what is going to be required. We are going to have to toughen up and be strong in the days ahead. We who genuinely know our God and have not forsaken him, we must not melt like a snowflake when the fires of persecution start to rise. It's going to take faith and an inner toughness to deal with what many of us will have to face and indeed, many believers are even now facing in many parts of the world.

So as we move forward in the last few chapters of Samuel, let us keep these things in mind. David was traveling a very tough road. But for some of us, we understand this because we have traveled such a road ourselves or if we have not yet, will one day.

We will continue out look at Samuel soon, God willing!

Back To Contents

1 Samuel Part 61

Jonathan here reassures his friend that there is no way he is going to leave David in a lurch. He is going to find a way to let David know what Saul determines, one way or another. He does this in the Old Testament way, with an oath that harm would come upon himself if he did not do this. Some commentators see here (the second part of verse 13) that Jonathan must have known the Lord had appointed David to be king one day. I think this very likely. I also think he probably knew that the kingdom right now needed David running things, not his unstable father.

And thou shalt not only while yet I live
show me the lovingkindness of Jehovah,
that I die not; but also thou shalt not cut off
thy kindness from my house for ever; no,
not when Jehovah hath cut off the enemies
of David every one from the face of the earth.
(1 Samuel 20:14-15 - ASV)

Jonathan here makes a covenant with David. Clearly he knows God is with him and that David is going to ascend to the throne. So he asks him that whatever happens in the future, that David will take care of his family. This may seem like an odd request, but Jonathan may have been deeply concerned with this fathers spiritual direction and was afraid the Lord would deal not just with Saul, but the whole bloodline. He did not want David moving against his house because of the sins of his father. I think what Jonathan was trying to do here was prevent a blood feud that could split up their friendship and respective houses. But this is a powerful testimony of faith as well as friendship, that even though David's life was sought by the King and he had to flee, that Jonathan somehow knew David would be victorious over his enemies because of the Lord.

So Jonathan made a covenant
with the house of David, saying,
And Jehovah will require it at the hand of David's enemies.
And Jonathan caused David to swear again,
for the love that he had to him;
 for he loved him as he loved his own soul.
(1 Samuel 20:16-17 - ASV)

So a covenant, a divine 'pact' was sealed between these two young men. He was asking for long term constancy between the two houses. But the last part of verse 16, 'And Jehovah will require it at the hand of David's enemies', could perhaps be rendered "And the Lord required it..." and is something the author of the book wrote after these events and comments upon after it had already been fulfilled. See Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament [1868(?)] - 1Samuel volume on this.

So they set up a secret 'code' to let David know if it was safe to come or not. The stone Ezel is not mentioned anywhere else in scripture. The word means 'departure' (237 in Strong's Hebrew Bible Dictionary - 1890)

Jonathan here once again wants to make sure that this covenant is understood and that God will bear witness. One almost gets the impression that Jonathan may have had some kind of dream or vision of a future where such a promise would be necessary as he is most insistent.

It appears here that David just hid himself and was not going to go to back to his fathers house and the whole story about going there was a ruse. But it may be that he did go back to his fathers house and then returned to the hiding place. The passage is not clear.

The King sits down for his meal and notices that David's place is empty; Abner was there, but no David. At first he says nothing. But the passage shows that he thinks that David perhaps was unclean. This was a religious feast and it would have not been correct to come to it and eat being in a spiritually unclean state, so goes Saul's reasoning.

On the second day, the same thing, David was not present. But this time he asks Jonathan where David is. Jonathan gives his father the prearranged cover story about going to Bethlehem.

Then Saul's anger
was kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him,
Thou son of a perverse rebellious woman,
do not I know that thou hast chosen
the son of Jesse to thine own shame,
and unto the shame of thy mother's nakedness?
For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground,
 thou shalt not be established, nor thy kingdom.
Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me,
for he shall surely die.
(1 Samuel 20:30-31 - ASV)

The King somehow knows Jonathan is not telling him the truth and is absolutely livid with his son, calling him names and dishonoring his mother. This kind of insult is one of the worst in this culture and Saul levels it at his son. On a purely secular political level Saul had a point, he was favoring a rival to the throne over his own father. The crown would ordinarily come to Jonathan after Saul's death, but here he was favoring David. He warns his son that as long as David is alive, his kingdom will not be established. So he asks him to go and fetch him so that he can kill him. It seems to me that Saul is trying to get Jonathan on his side, knowing how close he was to David he seems to be saying - 'you want the throne don't you? Then David's gotta go. Bring him here and we can get rid of him'.

And Jonathan answered Saul his father,
and said unto him, Wherefore should he be put to death?
what hath he done? And Saul cast his spear
at him to smite him; whereby Jonathan
knew that it was determined of his father
to put David to death.
(1 Samuel 20:32-33 - ASV)

Jonathan isn't going for it. A throne purchased on innocent blood and blood that was anointed by God? Jonathan was having no part of it. Saul once again flips out and then tries to kill his own son. Saul had clearly gone 'round the bend. Jonathan left, knowing the King had made up his mind to kill David.

A godly son, a flipped out king and David in hiding. That is where we will leave off today and take up again soon, God willing!


Back To Contents