So David and Abishai came to the people by night; and there Saul lay sleeping within the camp, with his spear stuck in the ground by his head. And Abner and the people lay all around him.Then Abishai said to David, “God has delivered your enemy into your hand this day. Now therefore, please, let me strike him at once with the spear, right to the earth; and I will not have to strike him a second time!” But David said to Abishai, “Do not destroy him; for who can stretch out his hand against the LORD’s anointed, and be guiltless?” David said furthermore, “As the LORD lives, the LORD shall strike him, or his day shall come to die, or he shall go out to battle and perish. The LORD forbid that I should stretch out my hand against the LORD’s anointed. But please, take now the spear and the jug of water that are by his head, and let us go.” 1 Samuel 26: 7-11, NKJV.
God of love and mercy, we long to learn the lesson of how to leave things in Your hand. We need to be convinced that there is no better place to leave our loved ones, our enemies, and our problems. Please teach us how, and why, as we study Your Word today. In the blessed name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The story of Saul and David is familiar to many of us. We know the story and we tend to take sides. Some of us are convinced that Saul was a victim, and that David was God’s favorite. I do not share any of these view points, because that would make the Good News, just another fable. God’s uttermost desire is to save us (John 3 16). And He is no “respecter of persons” (Acts 10: 34). Let us leave our minds open to these truths as we enter the study of His Word today.
Saul had forfeited his right to the throne, by his disobedience to the clear, direct, instructions of God (1 Samuel 15: 18, 19). Therefore God had rejected him from being king over the people of Israel, and had chosen David to occupy his place. Both David and Saul knew this because, “Surely the Lord GOD does nothing, unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets” (Amos 3: 7). The prophet Samuel had informed Saul of God’s decision, “But Samuel said to Saul, ‘ “I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD has rejected you from being king over Israel” ‘ ” (1 Samuel 15: 26-28, NKJV).
He had also anointed David, by God’s command, “Now the LORD said to Samuel, ‘ “How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I am sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemite. For I have provided Myself a king among his sons.” ‘ . . . Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah” (1 Samuel 16: 1, 13).
Now David was on the run. Saul was seeking him to take his life. To many of us that would have been reason enough to kill Saul at the first opportunity. After all, he is trying to kill me! If I know this, and do nothing about it, wouldn’t that be the same as committing suicide? It is quite likely we would have found every reason to justify our action. But thank God, David was willing to let God vindicate him.
Many have a hard time reconciling God’s description of David as, “a man after His own heart” (1 Samuel 13: 14), with some of David’s actions – he was an adulterer, and a murderer (See 2 Samuel 13). But thank God, the picture of us, that God keeps before Him, is not when we are at our lowest, but when by His grace, we do our best, for His glory! We overlook the fact that these words were spoken of David by the only One who sees not only what we do, but who we really are, because He “sees the heart” (1 Samuel 16: 7), the place where our intentions and actions originate. He also sees what triggers them. They were spoken of David before he had committed these sins. God never justifies our wrong doings, but neither does He overlook the good we allow Him to do through us. This was not the first time that David had had an opportunity to kill Saul, and had not done it (see 1 Samuel 24: 1-13).
David had learned a lesson that can only be learned by sitting at the feet of Jesus, and beholding His sinlessness, and becoming changed into His likeness and beauty. He had learned to love his enemy. He had also learned to, let God take care of his enemies. This was only possible, because David loved the LORD his God, with all his “heart,” with all his “soul,” and with all his “mind.”
May God help us to do the same!