DAVID & SAUL
… based on 1 Samuel 24:1-12,16-22
Did you ever feel like someone was just out to get you?
For some reason, unbeknownst to you, they had it in for you.
You had been singled out. It could have been a direct attack, or maybe it was done behind your back. But either way, you were targeted. Now when a peer has it out for us it’s one thing, that’s bad enough, but when someone possesses authority or control over our lives begins to single us out, that’s something all together different. We feel helpless, defenseless.
I once found myself in a very precarious place, & not because of anything I did wrong. I was working in a hospital as a chaplain & recruiter & discovered that there were some situations occurring in the Human Resources Department that were questionable. So, I began to ask questions … “why are we doing this? I don’t understand; please explain this to me.”
And my supervisor said, “Well, this is just the way we do it.”
But as time went on, I began to discover more & more incompetence, which was going to really tumble down on us sooner or later.
It wasn’t long until my supervisor realized that I was catching on to some of these unethical practices that she was doing, so I was targeted. She made my life really miserable for a # of months; actually, she was looking for an excuse to fire me … & that continued until she was finally removed.
That was my situation. Yours probably was entirely different.
It might have been a boss, a neighbor, a public official, an ex-spouse, etc. Regardless of who it was, there was a person out there who was after you.
But no matter how bad the situation might have been, I’m confident that it didn’t compare with the horrible one David had with his boss, King Saul.
It was extremely volatile. That’s what we’re going to talk about today, & David’s response to those attacks. And with that as an introduction, listen now to Good News, as found in 1 Samuel, to us who have gathered here for worship. Within our hearing comes the Word of the Lord …
When Saul came back from fighting the Philistines, he was told that David was in the wilderness near Engedi. Saul took three thousand of the best soldiers in Israel and went looking for David and his men east of Wild Goat Rocks. He came to a cave close to some sheep pens by the road and went in to relieve himself. It happened to be the very cave in which David and his men were hiding far back in the cave. They said to him, “This is your chance! The LORD has told you that he would put your enemy in your power and you could do to him whatever you wanted to.” David crept over and cut off a piece of Saul’s robe without Saul’s knowing it. But then David’s conscience began to hurt, and he said to his men, “May the LORD keep me from doing any harm to my master, whom the LORD chose as king! I must not harm him in the least, because he is the king chosen by the LORD!” So David convinced his men that they should not attack Saul.
Saul got up, left the cave, and started away. Then David went out after him and called to him, “Your Majesty!” Saul turned around, and David bowed down to the ground in respect and said, “Why do you listen to people who say that I am trying to harm you? You can see for yourself that just now in the cave the LORD put you in my power.
Some of my men told me to kill you, but I felt sorry for you and said that I would not harm you in the least, because you are the one whom the LORD chose to be king. Look, my father, look at the piece of your robe I am holding! I could have killed you, but instead I only cut this off. This should convince you that I have no thought of rebelling against you or of harming you. You are hunting me down to kill me, even though I have not done you any wrong. May the LORD judge which one of us is wrong!” …
When David had finished speaking, Saul said, “Is that really you, David my son?” And he started crying. Then he said to David, “You are right, and I am wrong. You have been so good to me, while I have done such wrong to you! Today you have shown how good you are to me, because you did not kill me, even though the LORD put me in your power.
How often does someone catch an enemy and then let him get away unharmed? The LORD bless you for what you have done to me today. Now I am sure that you will be king of Israel and the kingdom will continue under your rule. But promise me in the LORD’S name that you will spare my descendants, so that my name and my family’s name will not be completely forgotten.” David promised that he would. (1 Samuel 24:1-12,16-22)
The grass withers & flowers fade,
but the word of our God endures forever.” (Isaiah 40:8)
May the Lord grant that we may engage in contemplating the mysteries of His Heavenly wisdom with really increasing devotion, to His glory and to our edification. Amen
Now David had rescued Saul, in fact the entire Israelite army,
from the giant, Goliath. And that wasn’t the only time. Scripture reports of a # of occasions where David’s bravery had saved the Hebrews. (1 Samuel 23:5) David was a loyal military hero. In addition to that, he was the best friend of Jonathan, who was Saul’s son. And then he married Michal, who was Saul’s daughter. David was now part of the family. So, you’d think that since he’s now Saul’s son-in-law, & the best friend of Jonathan, coupled with the fact that he’s covered Saul’s backside on numerous occasions, that there would be a good relationship between David & Saul, but that was not the case at all.
In fact, on 2 separate occasions, when David was playing the harp to soothe Saul’s emotions, Saul picked up a spear & threw it at him. (1 Samuel 18:11)
Saul hated David. He hated him because David was accepted by God, & he had been rejected. (1 Samuell 15:23) He hated David because he had been anointed by Samuel to be king over Israel. And that time was coming, & Saul knew it. So, Saul was consumed by jealousy & hatred.
As we pick up the story, David’s on the run from Saul who is trying to kill him. And he’s on the run with about 600 men. Now these 600 men aren’t particularly fond of King Saul. They have been taxed to the hilt. They had been drafted into the military & had lost their land. They hated King Saul.
On the other side we have King Saul who is jealous of David & is out to kill him. So, he chooses 3,000 of his best soldiers,
(these are the Navy Seals or the Army Rangers) & they go after David.
Are you picturing this? There’s a lot of tension in the air.
David & his men arrive near Wild Goat Rocks. This is an area with lots of hills, rocks, & caves. I picture it like Hocking Hills over in OH where we had our family vacation last month. Lots of hills & rocks & caves. But this cave where David was was huge. Large enough for 600 men to hide in.
So, David & his men are hiding in one cave, & while they’re in it,
King Saul enters by himself. David’s men are in the back of the cave …it’s dark. The light from the mouth of the cave is coming in, & they see a silhouette. And as they look closer, they realize that it's King Saul!
Now Saul is coming in because he has heard the call of nature.
So, he goes in the cave to take care of business. (And I often tell you to sort of visualize what’s taking place as you read the Scriptures. You don’t need to get too specific here.) Well, Saul’s men are excited. “David, this is your chance. There’s Saul, all by himself. Kill him!” So, David begins to slowly move toward Saul, who has his back to them. David sneaks up & pulls out his sword, raises it … but instead of striking Saul down, he cuts off a piece of his robe. But immediately he feels guilty for doing that.
This is David, “the kind of man God likes.” (The Acts 13:23) “What am I doing?
I can’t believe I’m listening to these guys.” So, he slowly returns to the recesses of the cave without being heard or seen by Saul. And then, after Saul eventually leaves, David goes to the mouth of the cave, & when Saul is far enough away, David calls out. When Saul hears David’s voice he turns & looks back at David. David bows to the ground & cries out to Saul, “Why have you chosen to listen to the people who tell you that I’m out to get you? If I had wanted to kill you, I could have done so. If I had listened to those around me, the way that you listened to those around you, you’d be dead now.” Then he holds up the piece of Saul’s robe. “Recognize this?
It’s a piece of your robe. I could have killed you while you were in the cave. But I didn’t because I don’t want to harm you. Why are you after me?”
Sometimes we find ourselves in a similar situation to David.
Someone has wronged us, or is out to harm us, & we really have reason to dislike them. And then an opportunity presents itself where we can take revenge. We can get even. This is the chance we’ve been waiting for.
What we do at that moment defines us. What we do in that moment reveals the true nature of our hearts … just as it revealed the true nature of David’s heart. David had a heart for God. There are some things that we can learn this morning as we look at this situation in which David found himself. And I’m going to warn you up front, what you’re about to hear are not 4 easy steps in dealing with the difficult people in our life.
Everything that’s in this text is so Christlike that in order for us to follow these principles from David’s life will require nothing less than the Spirit of God in us, living out in our lives to those people around us.
It’s not going to happen just by checking off 4 little boxes.
#1 … if we’re going to respond in godly ways to those people
who are out to get us … we need to carefully evaluate the counsel of others.
“David’s men said to him, ‘This is your chance! The LORD has told you that he would put your enemy in your power & you could do to him whatever you wanted to.’ David crept over & cut off a piece of Saul’s robe without Saul’s knowing it. But then David’s conscience began to hurt.”
More often than not, when we’ve been treated unfairly by others, when we have been hurt by others, our loyal friends are going to come to our aid.
They’ll want to support us. They’ll be angry at the individual.
David’s men loved him, but they gave him wrong advice.
They told him what they would do, rather than what Jesus would do.
They were encouraging David to take revenge. “Look, it’s God’s timing.
He’s opened the door for you. He’s given you this perfect opportunity.”
Listen, the timing of a situation or whether a door is open or not, has nothing to do with God’s providence if the action is against what’s taught in Scripture. We mustn’t rationalize our behavior simply because it seems like excellent timing. These men were attributing to God what God never said. But David doesn’t buy into it. And instead of killing Saul, he cuts off a piece of his robe. But he quickly realizes that even this is an act of defiance, & he’s guilt ridden. “I shouldn’t have done this.”
“May the LORD keep me from doing any harm to my master, whom the LORD chose as king! I must not harm him in the least, because he is the king chosen by the LORD!”
David rebuked his men. These guys were already looking for an excuse to get Saul. There’s always going to be negative voices. Don’t listen to them.
We need to be listening to The Holy Spirit’s leading.
#2 … make appropriate appeals.
Now how do we do that? Well, 1st we need to be respectful.
David never lost sight of who he was. Saul was king … he was not.
“David went out after Saul & called to him, Your Majesty!’
Saul turned around, & David bowed down to the ground in respect.”
The result of showing respect to someone almost always gives that person a listening ear. If we want people to listen to us, even if they have it out for us, if we show respect for them, they will, most of the time, at least listen to what we have to say.
The 2nd thing about making appeals is to be honest.
When God gives us an opportunity to talk … speak truthfully.
“Look at the piece of your robe I am holding! I could have killed you, but instead I only cut this off. This should convince you that I have no thought of rebelling against you or of harming you. You are hunting me down to kill me, even though I have not done you any wrong.”
David was honest. He told Saul exactly what he did, & why he was wrong to do it. “I cut off a piece of your robe, & I shouldn’t have done that.”
We also need to stick to the pertinent facts when we’re making appeals. Have you ever noticed that when some people are given the opportunity to speak, they bring up everything that’s ever happened? I saw that all the time when I was counseling people, especially marriage counseling.
David didn’t say, “Hey Saul, 2 times you tried to spear me when I was playing the harp for you. And you’ve taken my wife away from me. And ….” He could have gone on & on … but he didn’t. It doesn’t do any good to totally unload on people. David made an appropriate appeal to Saul.
David understood this very simple truth …
that we are commanded to respect all people. (1 Peter 2:17) David recognized, correctly, that this truth needs to be applied to every person. (Romans 12:10)
The knowledge that each person is made in the image of God, is the object of God’s eternal love, is capable of fellowship with God,
& is one for whom Christ died ought to make each of us approach one another with grace & mercy.
#3 … we need to trust God completely.
David finishes up his appeal to Saul, emphasizing his complete trust in God.
“The LORD will judge, & he will decide which one of us is wrong.
May he look into the matter, defend me, & save me from you.”
Rather than take revenge on Saul, David chose to trust in the sovereignty of God. He wasn’t going to operate independently of God.
That’s a lesson he had learned over a period of years.
Bible scholars suggest that David had been on the run for 10 years.
He had learned the hard way to trust God.
David is in that cave on that day … not so much because he’s running from Saul; he’s in that cave because God has been systemically removing every support system in his life.
He lost his best friend. He lost his wife. He lost his position.
He lost everything he had. And he’s now left only with God.
We’ve got this retaliation mentality today. You hurt me, then I’m going to hurt you. Whatever you do to me, I’m doing to you, only worse.
But the Apostle Paul tells us about a better way.
“Never take revenge, my friends, but instead let God’s anger do it.
For the scripture says, ‘I will take revenge, I will pay back, says the Lord.’” (Romans 12:19)
So, are we willing to let God handle it?
Or are we going to be our own vindicator?
Here’s something to think about … humanity is sinful, so expect to be mistreated. And since mistreatment is inevitable, expect feelings of revenge. And since the desire for revenge is predictable, refuse to give into it. Now this is tough. It’s really difficult. And I’ll be honest with you … sometimes I get this right, sometimes I get this wrong. But I will say when I have chosen to trust God, instead of trying to take care of things on my own, the results have always been perfect.
My conscious is always clear, & God is always glorified.
#4 … when we’re encountering people that are attacking us,
we need to extend mercy graciously.
Saul speaks, & the 1st thing he does is acknowledge.
“David, you are right, & I am wrong.
What was I thinking? I shouldn’t have done this?”
“Now I am sure that you will be king of Israel & the kingdom will continue under your rule.
But promise me in the LORD’S name that you will spare my descendants, so that my name & my family’s name will not be completely forgotten.”
David has just extended to Saul, his life. And then Saul, (the arrogance of this guy is unbelievable), walks up to David & says, “thanks for saving my life, & by the way, I’m concerned that my name lives on in a positive way. So, promise me that you’ll take care of my descendants.”
And bless his heart, “David promised that he would.”
We can’t extend mercy to someone when we’re looking for a way to get even.
When our mind is set on revenge we don’t want to give mercy.
This is how we “defeat” our enemy: when they’re at their weakest,
most vulnerable moment, when they’re helpless & unaware, when we have the opportunity to take revenge, to make them pay … show them mercy.
Spare them; save them; forgive them.
Jesus taught …
“But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, & pray for those who mistreat you.” (Luke 6:27)
When we show mercy to our enemies, we rise
above them, instead of sinking down to their level.
“If you love only the people who love you, why should you receive a blessing? Even sinners love those who love them! … No! Love your enemies & do good to them; … & you will be children of the Most High God. …
Be merciful just as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:32,35-36)
Because we have experienced the mercy of God … we can extend the mercy of God.
We either trust God in His ability to balance the scales, or we have to do it ourselves. But the opposite of this is also true.
If we haven’t experienced the mercy of God, we can’t fully extend mercy.
David shows mercy to Saul not just for Saul’s sake, but for God’s sake. David defeats his enemy not through murder, but through mercy.
Would Saul show mercy to David? No, he wouldn’t.
But that shows the difference between a man after God’s own heart & a man who has turned his back on God.
Now we have no control over how people will treat us. We have no control over what they will say, or what they’ll do. But we do have complete control over how we respond. We’ll never stop people from attacking us.
We’ll ever stop people from breaking their word.
The sad reality is that each of us have Saul’s lurking in the shadows ready to attack us. And there’s nothing we can do about that. But we can concentrate on how we will respond to those attacks, as we rest in the power of God’s Spirit.
What would happen if this week, each one of us would go back into our little world, & begin to respond to others, even those who are ungodly & don’t deserve respect … & we begin to respond to them the way David responded to Saul. What would happen? Ponder that thought for a moment.
Because we have experienced the mercy of God, we now can extend the mercy of God.
Listen again to the words of Jesus. Actually, this is a command of Jesus.
“Be merciful just has your Father is merciful.”
“Let us have confidence, then, & approach God’s throne, where there is grace. There we will receive mercy & find grace
to help us just when we need it.” (Hebrews 4:16)
“Happy/blessed are those who are merciful to others;
God will be merciful to them!” (Matthew 5:7)
MARANA THA
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