This week we
will continue the study of the entire Book of 1 Samuel in the Old Testament.
As Saul recognized that the Lord had left him, but was with David (18:12), he began his plan to eliminate David after failing to pin him to the wall with his own spear (18:11):
(1) What was Saul’s intention in giving his older daughter in marriage to David?
(2) What does this say about Saul as a father?
(3) What was David’s reply to Saul?
(4) How did David resemble Saul in this matter? (See 9:21)
(5) Did David really have a choice in the matter? Did Saul change his mind? (See the most possible reason in v. 26)
(6) In giving David his other daughter, Michal, Saul said that she might be “a snare” to David. What does it mean?
(7) When Saul offered David his other daughter, what was David’s main concern and how was it alleviated?
(8) In risking his life and killing 200 Philistines, what did David demonstrate beyond bravery?
(9) Compare v. 23 with v. 30. How would you define the key to success in the life of David?
(10) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“David met with more success than the rest of Saul’s officers, and his name became well known.” (1 Sam. 18:30)
The biblical author purposely highlights that David did come from a humble beginning and grew into fame under difficult circumstances.
As David twice hesitated in becoming the son-in-law of the king — a sure fast track to fame, fortune and power — he realized that he was poor, not being able to muster the kind of lavish gifts fit for marrying the daughter of the king. David also said of himself as being “little known” (18:23). However, the same chapter ends with the comment that “his name became well known” (18:30).
Even
in this short pericope, the Bible seeks to impress upon us the following through this
flip-flop betrothing by Saul of his daughters to David:
- As much as Saul meant to harm David, God could and had turned into good.
- David did not aspire to be great, seizing every opportunity to advance; he recognized his own humble state and was content to wait upon God’s provision and timing.
- His victories over the Philistines, time and again, and his eventual rise to fame was totally a result of God being with him (18:12).
As much as these principles of success are very familiar to us, how often do we really live them out “where the rubber meets the road”?
(1) In ordering the killing of David, how would you describe the state of mind of Saul as a king once appointed by the Lord?
(2) As the heir-apparent, what did Jonathan choose to do? Why?
(3) Jonathan chose to “reason” with his father. What reasons did he use to sway his father’s decision to kill David? (vv. 4-5)?
(4) Did it work? Why?
(5) Was Saul serious about not killing David? How can we know? (v. 6)
(6) What caused Saul to breach his oath? (v. 9)
(7) Could Saul really claim that “the devil made me do it”? Why or why not?
(8) Now David really had to run for his life. While this portion of the Scripture does not give us insight into the fear and struggles David had, Psalm 59 does. Turn to this Psalm:
a. Vv. 1-5: What was the basis upon which David appealed to the Lord for help?
b. Vv. 6-8: How did he describe his traitors?
c. Vv. 8-15: What punishment did he wish upon these traitors? Why did he ask the Lord not to kill them?
d. Vv. 16-17: How did he end this psalm?
(9) Whom did God use to answer David’s prayer?
(10) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“But an evil spirit from the Lord came upon Saul as he was sitting in his house with his spear in his hand…” (1 Sam. 19:9)
It appears that given his great success in his campaigns against the Philistines and being the son-in-law of Saul, David still had to play the harp to soothe the spirit of Saul. But when the evil spirit came upon him, Saul did not appear to have control over himself, and he tried to pin David with his spear again. Could Saul then blame his murderous action on the evil spirit?
First of all, it was entirely Saul’s own doing that caused the Spirit of the Lord to depart from him. Had he loved the Lord and obeyed His command, he would continue to be king over Israel, he would continue to have success in his campaigns against all Israel’s enemies and he would have enjoyed the continuous presence of the Lord. With God’s presence, there was not a chance that any evil spirit could come upon him.
Secondly, the desire to kill David was there in his heart in the first place, and the evil spirit was simply drawing out what was in his heart.
Finally, the throwing of the spear at David was certainly a spur-of-the-moment action when he was influenced by the evil spirit; he could not explain away his subsequent actions to pursue David. It was through and through a calculated and conscious choice of his.
The Apostle James does imply that the evil spirit would play a part in tempting us by drawing out the evil desire within us, but he firmly asserts that “Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (Jas. 4:7). The problem with Saul therefore was the fact that he did not even put up a fight with the devil, instead he used the evil spirit conveniently to achieve his evil desire. Saul had no one to blame but himself for his sin.
(1) As David began his life of running away from Saul, he first went to Samuel. What might be the reasons he did that?
(2) Knowing David was with Samuel, how could Saul have the audacity to send men to capture David?
(3) How did God intervene to save the life of David (and of Samuel as well, perhaps)?
(4) Why did Saul, having been told what happened to his men, send other men three times, before he himself went to kill David?
(5) Did he know that it was God’s direct intervention? Why then would he still go?
(6) What happened to Saul at first appeared to be similar to that of his men, but there were some notable differences. What were they? What was their significance?
(7) This experience revived a much earlier saying in 10:11:
a. How different were the two experiences?
b. Why would God allow Saul to have this experience again?
c. How could Saul have responded to this renewed experience?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how can you apply it to your life?
“But the Spirit of God came even upon him, and he walked along prophesying until he came to Naioth. He stripped off his robes and also prophesied in Samuel’s presence.” (1 Sam. 19:23-24)
As much as Saul had rejected God and was determined even to kill God’s anointed, the way God still chose to deal with him shows us that we do have a God who is slow to anger and abounding in love (Ps. 103:8). With such rebelliousness and audacity even to kill David in Samuel’s presence, or even Samuel himself, if I were the Lord, I would have inflicted severe punishment upon Saul, if not outright taking of his life.
As it happened, God chose to overcome his men and then Saul himself with His Spirit. What grace! Saul, whose heart was much hardened as he made his way to Naioth, was overcome by the Spirit of God even before he reached Samuel. The fact that the Spirit had to restrain him for the whole day and made him lay stripped (likely naked) was a further sign that Saul experienced the power of God to a greater extent than his fellow men. All this happened not only to save the lives of David and Samuel, but also to prevent Saul from committing a sin too grave for him to bear, and to understand that he was acting against God and not men.
Keil and Delitszch were right that God did this to Saul in order that, “if it were possible, his hard heart might be broken and subdued by the power of grace” (K&D, 498). Indeed, we have a God who is slow in anger and abounding in love, even to a sinner like Saul!
(1) David knew that even the company of Samuel would not guarantee him safety, and he had no one left to flee to except Jonathan, his best friend. The questions he asked Jonathan were obviously rhetorical, but he had a message for Jonathan. What was it? (v. 3)
(2) Why didn’t David simply run for his life, but instead asked Jonathan to see if his absence at the New Moon festival would enrage Saul?
(3) Now it was David who asked Jonathan for kindness to help save him, but in return Jonathan said something rather interesting in vv. 14-15 to David:
a. Why did he ask David to show him unfailing kindness instead?
b. Why did he ask David not to kill him and his family?
c. With Jonathan’s words at such a time like this, what can we learn about Jonathan’s faith and his relationship with David?
(4) What did Saul assume as the reason for David’s absence? How could he expect David’s presence after what he had just done at Naioth?
(5) What was Jonathan’s excuse for David?
(6) Was it a reasonable one?
(7) If Saul got angry over it, what might be the reasons?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“And Jonathan had David reaffirm his oath out of love for him, because he loved him as he loved himself.” (1 Sam. 20:17)
Allow me to share with you an excerpt from Chuck Swindoll’s reflection on the kind of love Jonathan had for David:
“Shortly before his death, Samuel Taylor Coleridge wrote Youth and Age in which he reflected over his past and the strength of his earlier years. He wrote for example: ‘Nought cared this body for wind or weather, When youth and I lived in it together…’ But, to me, the most moving line in this quaint work is the statement: Friendship is a sheltering tree…
"But of all trees that God placed beside His choice servants, one human redwood looms the largest, in my opinion. David was hunted and haunted by madman Saul. The king’s singular objective was to witness with his own eyes David’s corpse. Between Saul and David, stood a sheltering tree named Jonathan, who neither shook nor shed in that precarious place. No matter how hard he tried, Saul could not chop down that tree! Loyal and dependable. Jonathan assured David, ‘Whatever you say, I will do for you’ (1 Samuel 20:4). No limits. No conditions. No bargains. No reservations. Best of all, when things were at their worst, he ‘went to David… and encouraged him in God' (1 Samuel 23:16). Why? Why would he provide such a refreshment? Because he was committed to the basic principles of a friendship. Because, ‘he loved him as he loved himself’ (1 Samuel 18:1). It was love that knit their hearts together. The kind of love that causes men to lay down their lives for their friends, as Jesus put it (John 15:13). No greater love exists on this globe.
"Beneath whose branches are you refreshed…”
(Seasons of Life, 153,4)
(1) Why did Saul flare up when he realized that David had escaped?
(2) Why was he so angry with Jonathan? (see v. 31 in particular)
(3) On what basis did Jonathan challenge his father? Why? (v. 32)
(4) V. 34 describes two emotions of Jonathan. How were the two related?
(5) Now David knew that he had to run; the Bible describes his action as follows:
a. David bowed down three times before Jonathan: What does it mean?
b. They kissed and wept. What does it show?
c. But David wept the most. Why?
(6) Before they left one another, what did Jonathan seek to reiterate with his words?
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It appears that David knew he had nowhere to hide within Israel, and decided that the safest place was to hide within the territory of the Philistines. On his way to Gath, he stopped by Nob where the tabernacle was. |
(7) Why was the priest so afraid to see David?
(8) Was David right in fabricating a story? Was the consequence of this meeting avoidable? (22:18-19)
(9) Why was the priest reluctant to give the “show bread” to David, although it was obvious that he was very hungry? (Lev. 24:8-9)
(10) Did Jesus think that it was right for the priest to give David the “show bread”? (Matt. 12:4) Why?
(11) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“I don’t have any ordinary bread on hand, however, there is some consecrated bread here — provided the men have kept themselves from women.” (1 Sam. 21:4)
When it comes to whether to continue the keeping of some of the Old Testament law, we still tend to struggle sometimes, for fear that we may offend the Lord. In the early church, we read that Peter, too, struggled with the doing away of all the food law (Acts 10), although Jesus has made it very clear that He has come to fulfill the law and that what goes into a person’s mouth does not make a person unclean. (Matt. 5:17; Mk. 7:15)
However, even in the time of the Old Testament, God has not meant the law to be kept on the outside, but its spirit is far more important. Even Jesus draws on the example of David eating the “show bread” to prove this point:
“Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to the companions.” (Mk. 2:25-26)
Jesus confirms that what the high priest did that day was blatantly against the Law of Moses (Lev. 24:8-9) and yet He condones his action, not because it was David, but because David and his companions “were hungry and in need”.
It appears that mercy does trump the law, and I call it “practical holiness”, because holiness means setting apart for the Lord. Abiathar set himself apart for the Lord that day by identifying with the mercy of God which is the spirit of the Law.
(1) Did David expect the Philistines to recognize him? Why?
(2) Why was he so afraid now that he was recognized?
(3) What did he do to save his life?
(4) Read Psalm 34 to get a glimpse of what David actually went through during this event:
a. Did he simply act on his own wisdom?
b. What was his internal condition?
c. What did he attribute his deliverance to: his acting or…?
d. What had he learned from this experience?
(5) Now David escaped to the cave of Adullam; why did his father’s household decide to join him at this time?
(6) Who were the other people who decided to join him?
(7) What kind of an army did he have then and how large was it?
(8) Why would David see the need to settle his father’s family with the king of Moab?
(9) What did the appearance of the prophet Gad mean to David? (22:3)
(10) What was Gad’s advice to him which went against the original strategy of David?
(11) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
The prophet Gad was eventually called “David’s seer” (1 Chr. 21:9).
“All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their leader. About four hundred men were with him.” (1 Sam. 22:2)
When I first read about David pretending to be insane before the king of Gath, my immediate thought was whether it was right for David to fake his illness. But, as I came across Psalm 34, I have come to understand how judgmental I was even in the reading of the Bible and my failure to see the plight of David — having to flee for his life, having to leave a deep, deep friendship with Jonathan and having put others, including his family in harm’s way. Psalm 34 helps me understand his immense distress — he had many troubles, he was heart-broken and he was crushed in spirit (Ps. 34:18-19).
It was in times like this that the Lord sent David very timely comfort:
1. His brothers and his father’s household went to join him: Yes, they probably sensed that their own lives were in danger because of David, but their arrival gave David comfort, especially in view of their rejection of him in his early days — what great comfort it is when you are with your family especially in times of distress.
2. Some 400 men joined him voluntarily when he needed them most: Sure, they were a bunch of losers — in distress, in debt or discontented. But that was what David was like too. The amazing thing is, as we read the rest of David’s story, this bunch of renegades became the most loyal soldiers of David. I am not surprised at all, because they saw with their own eyes the godly character of David who spared his enemy, Saul, time after time. They learned from David the true meaning of the fear of the Lord.
3. The appearance of the prophet Gad: At a time of distress, David desperately needed “to learn what God will do” for him (1 Sam. 22:3). No sooner had he spoken these words aloud than Gad showed up and gave him much needed advice, although the advice went against his wisdom of hiding among the Philistines.
No wonder David could testify through the psalm that, “I sought the Lord, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears…The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him…” (Ps. 34:4, 7). Yes, his family, the 400 renegades and the prophet Gad were all angels sent by the Lord to him.
(1) In his rant against David and his son Jonathan, what did Saul wish to incite? (vv. 6-8)
(2) Why did Doeg choose to bring up the incident with Ahimelech, the priest?
(3) How did Ahimelech counter the charges laid against him by Saul? (vv. 14-15)
(4) Was Ahimelech’s defense not reasonable? Why was Saul so determined to kill not only him, but his whole family?
(5) Why did all of Saul’s officials refuse to carry out Saul’s order to kill?
(6) Who then was willing to kill the priests and their families?
(7) Read Psalm 52:1-4 to see David’s judgment of Doeg.
(8) Whom do you think had committed a greater sin, Saul or Doeg? Why?
(9) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“Who of all your servants is as loyal as David, the king’s son-in-law, captain of your bodyguard and highly respected in your household?” (1 Sam. 22:14)
Reading the fate of the high priest Ahimelech, I cannot help but compare him with Michal, the wife of David. Both were confronted by Saul for their assisting David in his escape, although Michal did it on purpose, while Ahimelech did so innocently. However, Michal sought to deflect her guilt by blaming David (19:17), while Ahimelech’s answer basically amounted to a righteous rebuke of the king (22:14-15). Of course, he knew the price he would pay for his integrity, but he did it anyway as a true priest of the Lord (22:17). His action reminds me of the hymn, Who is on the Lord’s Side, and I invite you to pause and reflect on its lyrics, asking yourself “Am I on the Lord’s side?”— instead of David, Jesus is our Captain!
1
Who is on the Lord’s side?
Who will serve the King?
Who will be His helpers,
Other lives to bring?
Who will leave the world’s side?
Who will face the foe?
Who is on the Lord’s side?
Who for Him will go?
By Thy grand redemption,
By Thy grace divine,
We are on the Lord’s side;
Savior, we are Thine.2
Not for weight of glory,
Not for crown and palm,
Enter we the army,
Raise the warrior psalm;
But for love that claimeth
Lives for whom He died;
He whom Jesus nameth
Must be on His side.3
Jesus, Thou hast bought us,
Not with gold or gem,
But with Thine own life-blood,
For Thy diadem;
With Thy blessing filling
Each who comes to Thee,
Thou hast made us willing,
Thou hast made us free.4
Fierce may be the conflict,
Strong may be the foe,
But the King’s own army
None can overthrow.
Round His standard ranging
Victory is secure,
For His truth unchanging
Makes the triumph sure.5
Chosen to be soldiers
In an alien land:
Chosen, called, and faithful,
For our Captain’s band;
In the service royal
Let us not grow cold;
Let us be right loyal,
Noble, true, and bold.Francis Havergal (1836-1879)