We saw last time that after David slew Goliath, King Saul grew both jealous and suspicious of him, because the Israelites glorified David more than he. (See God Covered David with His Spirit, Removing It from Saul.)
David is staying at Saul’s home. Saul is troubled once more, even as David plays the harp. In fact, he chucks a spear at him twice, telling himself that he only wants to pin David to the wall.
He escaped both times. Why is Saul acting this way?
Saul was then afraid of David, for the Lord was with David and had turned away from Saul. Finally, Saul sent him away and appointed him commander over 1,000 men, and David faithfully led his troops into battle. 1 Sm. 18:12, 13. NLT
David is successful in everything that he does. This makes Saul even angrier. As a matter of fact, look at the previous Scripture. Saul gives David 1000 men. That is dramatically reduced in number from a normal battalion. The king is trying to send David undermanned against the Philistines, hoping that he will get killed.
This takes place after Saul marries his daughter Michal off to David. Yet, David returns victorious. Now, Saul gets serious:
Saul now urged his servants and his son Jonathan to assassinate David. But Jonathan, because of his strong affection for David, told him what his father was planning. 1 Sm. 19:1, 2. NLT
Furthermore, Saul hurled another spear at David (and missed), and sent troops to David’s house to kill him, but Michal hid him. Then, David escaped to see the prophet Samuel and told him of Saul’s doings.
After that, David found Jonathan and asked him why his father was so bent on killing him. Jonathan pledges his fealty to David. However, Saul gets angry at his son for not killing David. In fact, he even tried to kill Johnathan.
He in turn, tells David that Saul is hell-bent on killing him and to flee from the king.
David escapes first to a priest, Ahimelech, high priest in the town of Nob, who gave him the sacrificial ‘show bread’ from the tabernacle and armed him with the sword of Goliath.
Saul gets wind of this and has Ahimelech and 85 other priests put to death, as well as all the townspeople. David wrote a psalm describing this atrocity.[1]
David runs to the Philistine King Achish for refuge, feigning insanity.
The king’s underlings aren’t convinced and remained wary of his presence.
Meanwhile, Saul is pursuing David like a madman:
Saul chose 3,000 elite troops from all Israel and went to search for David and his men near the rocks of the wild goats. 1 Sm. 24:2 NLT
David and his 600 men are hiding in a cave. Saul chose this very cave to relieve himself. David’s men wanted to kill Saul, but he stayed their hands, remaining hidden. While Saul was doing his business, David stealthily cut off a piece of Saul’s robe:
After Saul had left the cave and gone on his way, David came out and shouted after him, “My lord the king!” And when Saul looked around, David bowed low before him.
Then he shouted to Saul, “Why do you listen to the people who say I am trying to harm you? This very day you can see with your own eyes it isn’t true. For the Lord placed you at my mercy back there in the cave. Some of my men told me to kill you, but I spared you. For I said, ‘I will never harm the king—he is the Lord’s anointed one.’Look, my father, at what I have in my hand. It is a piece of the hem of your robe! I cut it off, but I didn’t kill you. This proves that I am not trying to harm you and that I have not sinned against you, even though you have been hunting for me to kill me. 1 Sm. 24:7 – 11. NLT
Saul replies:
“Is that really you, my son David?” Then he began to cry. And he said to David, “You are a better man than I am, for you have repaid me good for evil.” 1 Sm. 24:16, 17. NLT
Saul then admits to David that he knows he will become the new king, and they each go their separate ways…
Samuel died, and all Israel assembled to mourn for him, and they buried him by his home in Ramah. 1 Sm. 25:1 CSB
David picks up a new wife, Abigail, in addition to Ahinoam and Michal.
Saul goes after David again, despite his promise to do him no harm.
Accompanied by two men, David scouts out Saul’s whereabouts and sneaks right into Saul’s encampment and removes the sleeping king’s spear and water jug. At a safe distance, David chastises the king’s soldiers for not protecting him, and displays the spear and jug.
Saul responds:
Saul responded, “I have sinned. Come back, my son David, I will never harm you again because today you considered my life precious. I have been a fool! I’ve committed a grave error.” 1 Sm. 26:21 CSB
And they went their separate ways once more. David returned to King Achish of the Philistines and convinced him that he and his men were making war on the Israelites, when in truth he was attacking Philistine outposts.
Saul’s grave error:
The Philistines gathered a large army to attack Israel. Saul panics, seeing their number. Normally, he would have turned to the prophet Samuel to get advice from God with how to proceed in battle.
Being that Samuel is dead, Saul seeks out a medium (highly proscribed by Jehovah) to call of the spirit of Samuel from the dead. She screamed when he appeared! Most of the mediums’ claims were false; so, she was beside herself to see it actually work.
Samuel’s spirit speaks:
“Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” 1 Sm. 28:15 AMP
Saul answered that he didn’t know what else to do. Samuel’s spirit render’s God’s final judgment upon him:
“Why then do you ask me, since the Lord has left you and has become your enemy?The Lord has done [to you] just as He said through me [when I was with you]; for the Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, to David. Because you did not obey the voice of the Lord…Moreover, the Lord will also put Israel along with you into the hands of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me [among the dead]. Indeed, the Lord will put the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.” 1 Sm. 28:19 AMP
Indeed, the Philistines beheaded King Saul and killed his three sons the very next day…
Stay tuned for KING David.
Goodnight and God bless.
[1] Ps. 52