1 Samuel 24:1-22
24:1 David's location compromised and Saul learns that he is in the wilderness of En Gedi.
24:2 Saul takes three thousand chosen men to pursue David. Three thousand men to pursue one man. But as we have discussed in this book of 1 Samuel, the ultimate battle is not against flesh and blood. Saul's obsession with capturing David is actually an internal struggle: he has rejected the principalities of righteousness and it has caused the destruction of his life. The only reason David is poised to become the next king is because Saul refused the role. God set specific qualifications for the role and Saul rejected them, effectively giving his own resignation.
Saul brings a disproportionate amount of men because his battle is not with David but God. Saul still believes that if he is quick enough, clever enough, or powerful enough, he might be able to change God's will; as long as David breathes and escapes him, Saul is reminded that he cannot.
We sometimes go to extremes to justify our actions. To build a platform for ourselves. But we need to understand that the only effort we need to make is an exertion on behalf of righteousness. Through humility alone are we given purpose and justification by God.
24:3 Saul enters a seemingly arbitrary cave, a place to rest and recuperate during a long pursuit. But David and his men are in the depths of that very same cave. Separate from his three thousand men, Saul is unknowingly in a most vulnerable position. As it is, current position is more indicative of his true position, for when we separate ourselves from God we cloak ourselves in vulnerability. Separate from God, we are within range of our enemies and defenseless.
24:4 David and his men realize that God has delivered Saul into David's hands. David now has the chance to kill Saul, who has torn his life apart unfairly and unnecessarily. Saul has already made multiple attempts to take David's life. David reaches out toward Saul. Instead of killing him, he rips off a piece of his rob.
This is an echo of the moment Saul permanently separated himself from God:
1 Samuel 15:27As Samuel turned to leave, Saul caught hold of the hem of his robe,and it tore. Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to one of your neighbors—to one better than you. He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a human being, that he should change his mind.”
24:5-7 David spares Saul's life but is still upset with himself for even reaching out. Remember that David never wanted to oust Saul. He cares about Saul and respects his position as king. Despite what Saul may have convinced himself and despite rumors around the region, David is not Saul's enemy. David does not allow any of his men to harm Saul and therefore he walks away without injury.
24:8-9 As soon as Saul is safely out of the cave, David walks out to meet him. David stoops in respect to his king. Both David's appearance and deference is evidence to Saul that he is loyal and innocent.
24:10 David explains that now Saul knows for himself that David does not seek to betray or kill Saul. If he wanted to, he could have easily done so moments before.
24:11 He even provides evidence: David shows Saul the corner of his robe that he was able to cut off.
24:12 Ultimately, David asks God to settle the matter between himself and Saul.
24:13 David does not believe that any good can come from killing Saul, wickedness proceeds from the wicked. David does not wish to initiate an endless cycle of corruption. God began Saul's journey as well as David's and he trusts God to tie the knots as well. God is a weaver of perfection, when we place a circumstance or decision in His hands, we can be sure that justice prevails.
24:14 "After whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom do you pursue? A dead dog? A flea?" David retains his humility, he is absolutely baffled by Saul's hate and pursuit of him. Simply an innocent an productive servant of Saul, David found himself a hotly pursued target. A near-war started over... nothing. David is not privy to Saul's private thoughts of personal history, to him, this chaos it out of nowhere.
And truly the actions of others rarely, if ever, have to do with us personally. Our internal struggles override our common sense and clarity of mind sometimes. Saul has made David an inadvertent symbol of his regrets and fears to the point where David's presence torments him.
To find clarity, we must find God. Saul is a slave to his struggles and his character deteriorates because of it. Once we pursue God with all of our hearts, He promises that His yoke is easy and His burden is light, Matthew 11:30. He ensures that we never tow or carry anything that will depress or overwhelm us.
24:15 David trusts that God's discernment will identify the guilty party from the innocent. We also can trust that God will be the leveler, the most able to restore balance and fairly.
Many of us in David's position might have taken the opportunity to adopt our enemies tactics and do to them what they sought to do to us. When we have God's defense, we do not need to stoop. Instead, we can remain as David was: baffled by the use of evil, finding it unnecessary and unfair. Let God judge all matters...He will botch the job like we always seems to do.
24:16 Saul is momentarily sobered by David's words. He is able to remember that David is not the villain his mind made him out to be. Saul weeps; his torment is consuming him. In this moment, he sees innocent David juxtaposed every cruel thing he has done to him.
24:17-19 Saul is indeed stunned by David's kindness and restraint. Is this not more rewarding that murder would have been for David? This entire pursuit has culminated in a stark lesson for Saul: he is able to see what pure righteousness looks like against the marred and ugly picture of corruption. Saul knows that David did not have to spare him... Saul also knows that he would not have done the same in David's position. And for the moment, he can see the ugliness in himself and it is not pleasing.
24:20-21 Still, Saul has caused a huge mess and this one moment is not enough to quell his mental battle. Saul admits that he can see that David is God's choice for king, and rightly so. But Saul is still not ready to relinquish the position; his desire for power can taken control of him. Beyond reason, beyond justice, Saul is a slave to his greed. He knows it and David knows it. David promises not to punish Saul's family for Saul's actions.
24:22 They part separately, knowing that their relationship is not restored. David cannot trust Saul. Saul at least has the grace not to pretend that David should.
24:22 They part separately, knowing that their relationship is not restored. David cannot trust Saul. Saul at least has the grace not to pretend that David should.
