VENGEANCE IS THE LORD'S: 1 SAMUEL 24

 1 Samuel 24

David Spares Saul

24:1-7

After Saul left to fight the Philistines, David and his men retreated to Engedi, an oasis on the shore of the Dead Sea. 

Having driven off the Philistines, Saul returned to the hunt for David. Again, people betrayed David by telling Saul where to find him. 

Saul took 3,000 men with him to pursue David. Since David had about 600 men, Saul’s force was 5 times as large. He apparently wanted to make sure he could capture and kill David. 

As Saul approached the area, he went into a cave to relieve himself and maybe to rest. The caves in the area may have been used to shelter sheep. What Saul did not know was that David and his men were hidden in the back of the cave.

David’s men wanted him to attack Saul, saying the Lord had said he would deliver him into his hand to do as he pleased. And it was indeed a great opportunity, making it easy to assume God wanted David to do it. 

David did not do it. But, he did cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. Why is this significant? We can look back to chapter 15 for help. In 1 Samuel 15:27-28, we see that the tearing of the robe signified God’s tearing the kingdom away from Saul. 

When David cut off the corner of Saul’s royal robe, he was making a declaration of revolt against Saul, saying that he was taking Saul’s status away from him. 

Once he had done this, though, he was struck with remorse. Verse 5 says “David’s heart struck him”. So, he lectured his men that they would not harm Saul. 

He still saw Saul as the Lord’s anointed and would not harm him. Once anointed, a person was set apart to God (consecrated). To attack him would be to attack God. Although there is not a specific command to not touch God’s anointed, David might be extrapolating from Exodus 22:28, which says “You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people”. If you cannot curse him, surely you cannot strike or kill him.

The gift of the kingdom was not an invitation from God to take it by force. It had to be done God’s way. We see this again in Matthew 4:8-9. Satan offered Jesus all of the kingdoms of earth in return for Jesus’ worship of him. To accept Satan’s offer would mean avoiding death on the cross. 

The Father had promised kinship to Jesus. Psalm 2:8-9 says: “Ask of me and I will make the nations your heritage and the ends of the earth your possession”. But, the Father’s plan for this included Jesus dying on the cross and being raised after three days. Jesus declined Satan’s offer and accepted God’s will and plan. 

David Confronts Saul

24:8-15

When Saul left the cave, David followed him out and called out to him. Then he bowed, actually putting his face to the ground. It was a sign of honor to Saul as the king. 

But David also questioned Saul’s determination to kill David. He showed the cloth to him to prove he could have killed Saul, but did not. He reiterated his belief that Saul was still God’s anointed. 

David also pointed out his insignificance compared to Saul, calling himself a dead dog and a flea. He means to show that he is too small and insignificant to be a threat to the king of Israel. That is true in human terms, but being anointed by God to be is significant. 

David did call on the Lord to avenge him against Saul, but pledged that any vengeance would not be by his hand.  That is a Biblical approach. Vengeance in the Old Testament usually referred to the re-establishment of justice. God is the rightful agent to bring justice.

In Deuteronomy 32:35, God said “vengeance is mine”. Romans 12:19 cites this verse, saying:

“Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written - Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord”. 

David is truly acting as the “man after God’s own heart” by restraining himself and his men from harming Saul. 

Saul’s Moment of Clarity

24:16-19

Upon hearing David’s speech, Saul seems to have a moment of clarity when he understands. He wept. He proclaimed David more righteous than himself since he had done evil to David, but David repaid it with good. 

Saul was amazed that David did not kill him when the Lord put him into David’s hands, meaning he made Saul vulnerable to David. Saul knows he would not have spared David in similar circumstances. And so asked the Lord to bless David for this. 

Saul acknowledges David’s Anointing

24:20-22

Saul even acknowledged that David would be king. He seemed also to know he would be dead when that happened. So, he asked David to swear that he would not cut off his offspring, meaning not kill his children or grandchildren, wiping out his family line or house. 

We will see that Saul will not continue his benevolent attitude toward David. And we see that David is not lulled into trust. He took his men to the stronghold.