THE SPEAR EPISODE - 1 SAMUEL 26

David Gets Sneaky

26:1-12

The men of Ziph decided to betray David to Saul again. They went to Saul in Gibeah and told him where David was hiding out.

So Saul gathered his 3,000 chosen men again and set out after David. But David remained hidden in the wilderness. He found out where Saul was camped. Then he went there and saw Saul sleeping in the midst of his army. Abner, the commander of the army, slept next to him.

David had two men with him, Ahimelech, a Hittite, and Abishai, the brother of Joab, who later would become commander of the army of Israel after killing Abner. David wanted to sneak into Saul’s camp and Abishai agreed to go with him. This was a very bold move. 

When David and Abishai came upon Saul, Abishai volunteered to kill him with his spear. His arguments were similar to those of David’s men in the previous encounter. And it would have made a great point: Saul would be killed by his own spear, which was his symbol of authority, taken away by David. But David again refused.

David again made the point that he would not strike Saul because he was the Lord’s anointed. It would be the Lord who took care of Saul (“will strike him”). Either the Lord would strike him, he would die of natural causes, or he would die in battle. David seems to have learned a lesson from his encounter with Nabal: David can leave the matter in God’s hands and God will take care of him. 

David was demonstrating faith in God. He did not know how or when God would act. But he believed God would act and carry out his will for David to be king. 

David did take Saul’s spear and jar of water when he left. It was proof to Saul that David was in the camp and over Saul’s body.

The writer gives credit to the Lord for giving a deep sleep to all of Saul’s men. Saul was helpless because God made him that way. 

David Taunts Abner

26:13-16

After David left the camp, he taunted Abner and the army of Saul. He acused them of failing to keep watch over the king. He said they deserved to die because of their failure. As proof, he showed them Saul’s spear and jar of water. 

The passage does not tell us why David did this, but it appears it was to get Saul’s attention and again show him that David is able to harm him, but will not. 

David Addresses Saul

26:17-20

When Saul recognized David’s voice, David questioned Saul’s pursuit of him. It is similar to his speech in chapter 24. David asked Saul what evil did Saul think David had done. 

David said, if the Lord had stirred Saul up against him, he would make an offering to atone for his wrongs. But, if men had stirred up Saul, they should be cursed. It appears, though, that Saul’s own troubled spirit was to blame. 

David went on to tell Saul the effect of his pursuit. David was robbed out of his share in the heritage of the Lord.  He has been told to go serve other gods. (19) If he is run out of the country, he will lose his identity as an Israelite, as one of God’s people. He will be cut off from his families allotment of land, his access to the Tabernacle, and his participation in the feasts. He will lose the ability to worship God as he is supposed to and will lose the fellowship of God’s people. 

David again emphasized his insignificance compared to Saul, calling himself a flea. 

Saul Repents 

26:21-25

Upon hearing David’s speech, Saul repented. He acknowledged his sin and vowed to quit trying to harm David. It is interesting to see Saul do wrong, seemingly repent, and return to doing wrong. 

In response to Saul’s repentance, David returned Saul’s spear. He also acknowledged that the Lord rewards those who act in righteousness and faithfulness, and claims to have done so by sparing Saul’s life. He added a prayer, though, asking God to hold his life as precious and he held Saul’s. He asked God to deliver him from all of his tribulations.

In response, Saul blessed David for future success. Then they parted. They would never see each other again. 

Take Aways

David continues to grow in faith as he refuses to strike Saul and relies on God’s providence. Sometimes Satan presents opportunities to us that seem good. But, if they require actions that we know are contrary to God’s will, we must reject them even if they would seem to make life easier. 

David does not rely on Saul’s apparent repentance. He did not join Saul, but went his own way.

GOD'S PROVIDENCE ON DISPLAY - 1 SAMUEL 25 (ABIGAIL SAVES DAVID FROM HIMSELF)

 

David Seeks Food

25:1-8

After the confrontation with Saul, David went south into the wilderness of Paran. He became aware of a very rich man who was shearing sheep in the village of Carmel. His name was Nabal, but we are not told his name first. Instead, we are told of his possessions.  He had a large herd of sheep and goats. It is fitting to introduce him this way because he is all about his possessions. We meet him defending his possessions and he dies enjoying his possessions.  

In addition to being rich, he was a descendant of Caleb, one of the two spies who urged Israel to go into Canaan. Thus, he had a great family pedigree in addition to great wealth. 

The writer sets up the story by telling us that Nabal was harsh and badly behaved. His name means “foolish”. But his wife, Abigail, was discerning and beautiful. (3) She had good looks and good sense. 

David sent ten men to Nabal with a polite request for food. His request was based on the fact that his men had not bothered Nabal or his livestock and had provided security for them.  Normally, a person of wealth would express gratitude or such services with a gift. In addition, there was a feast scheduled, likely to celebrate the shearing of the sheep, which would lead to commerce in wool. 

Nabal Being Nabal

25:9-11

Nabal refused David’s request. In addition, he belittled David, saying he was a servant who broke away from his master and implying that David was insignificant by asking who he was. He said he would not take meat meant for his shearers and give it to men that he did not know. 

Notice the emphasis on ownership and possessiveness: Nabal says my water, my bread, my meat. 

David’s Rage

25:12-13

When David heard of Nabal’s refusal, he went into a rage. He received Nabal’s words as Nabal intended: they were insults and David was insulted. He ordered his men to put on their swords, as he did. As Nabal says “my” three times, David says “sword” three times. He took 400 men to go and attack Naval, meaning to wipe him out. 

In a way, David was on the verge of committing the same sin as Saul when he killed everyone in Nob for helping David. Now David means to kill everyone in Carmel because Nabal refused to help him. 

We also see a bit of irony here. David was willing to apply the principle of refraining from vengeance where Saul was concerned. Yet, he wanted to take vengeance on Nabal. Saul had sought David’s death. Nabal only refused to share his goods with David. 

A Wise And Helpful Servant

25:14-17

One of Nabal’s men went to Abigail and told her what Nabal did. He also vouched for the truth of David’s story, that his men had been protecting them. He advised Abigail to think this over and decide what to do, because David was coming to harm them and because no one could give advice to Nabal. 

Abigail Makes Amends

25:18-31

Abigail quickly put together a bunch of food and took it to David. She did not tell Nabal she was doing this. 

She presented the gifts and herself as Jacob had done with Esau. The gifts would appear first, then herself. It is a way to make the receiving person look at the giver more favorably. 

Much like David had done with Saul, Abigail paid respect to David by dismounting and bowing to the ground before him. She admitted Nabal’s folly, but said she did not see what happened, implying that she would have done it differently.

But Abigail also told David that God had restrained him from bloodguilt by denying his attack on the man and his family. She asked for forgiveness and appealed to David’s good character. She said God would protect him from his enemies. And, when he took office as king, he would have nothing bad on his conscience if he spared them. 

Finally she asked David to remember her when he received what the Lord had promised him and became king. (31) It sounds a bit like what the thief on the cross said to Jesus. 

David Responds Positively

25:32-35

David recognized the wisdom of Abigail’s words. He said she was sent by the Lord. He blessed the Lord and he blessed her and her discretion. He realized that the Lord had indeed kept him from bloodguilt by sending Abigail. 

We again see the principle David is operating under: he is not to avenge himself, but is to leave Saul to God. God has given him the kingdom, but not the right to take it by force. David is now reminded of that through God’s servant, Abigail. 

David accepted Abigail’s gifts and sent her home in peace. He acknowledged her wisdom, saying he had obeyed her voice. 

Nabal Dies

25:36-38

Abigail returned home to find Nabal partying and drunk. When he sobered up in the morning, she told him. He had some kind of catastrophic health event, went into a coma and died 10 days later. So, the Lord avenged David.

David blessed the Lord for avenging him, and for keeping him from doing wrong and avenging himself. He sent servants to Abigail with the message that he wanted to marry her. His wife, Saul’s daughter, had been given to someone else. 

Abigail again acted humbly, bowing and stating her insignificance (only being worth washing the feet of David’s servants). 

David also took another wife, technically his third, a woman named Ahinoam. 

Takeaways

The doctrine of Providence is on display here. Providence is God providing for the needs of his servants, often in mysterious and unexpected ways. David and is anger needed to be restrained. Here God used Abigail to provide this restraint. God’s restraining action is mentioned four times in the passage (verses 26, 33, 34, 39).

Since most Bible stories involve men, she is an unlikely hero. But, God can use anyone, from the least to the greatest, to accomplish his will. 

Sometimes God saves us from ourselves. He frustrates our plans.  Or he sends someone to tell us what we need to hear. 

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.