1 Samuel 23:19-29
At the end of last week’s message, Jonathan had sought out
to David to encourage him. That was a bold
move on his part. Saul was willing to murder
anyone associated with David. He had
just allowed an entire town of priests to be destroyed and had even thrown a
spear at Jonathan when he stood up for David.
Let’s pick up back in I Samuel 23:16 and 17.
And Jonathan, Saul's
son, arose and went to David at Horesh, and encouraged him in God. Thus he said to him, "Do not be afraid, because
the hand of Saul my father will not find you, and you will be king over Israel
and I will be next to you; and Saul my father knows that also."—1 Samuel
23:16-17 NASB
David, I’m sure, was overjoyed to see his friend. This probably gave his spirit a much needed
boost. But that relief was short-lived.
I don’t know if David became careless after this or not, but the
Ziphites found out that David was hiding in the wilderness near them. Ziph was on a hill overlooking a valley, so
it was possible that they could see David and his men moving about in the area
around them. Perhaps out of fear of what happened to the town of Nob, they ran
to Saul with this information. They
didn’t want to be accused of helping him and having their entire town
destroyed.
Then Ziphites came up
to Saul at Gibeah, saying, "Is David not hiding with us in the strongholds
at Horesh, on the hill of Hachilah, which is on the south of Jeshimon? "Now then, O king, come down according to
all the desire of your soul to do so; and our part shall be to surrender him
into the king's hand."—1 Samuel 23:19-20 NASB
Notice how they worded that.
“Come down according to all the desire of your soul?!” They knew exactly what was going to happen,
and they were willing to turn an innocent man over to be killed. Sound familiar? Remember, David was a shadow or “type” of
Jesus, and the Jews did the same thing to Him.
But Saul’s response to their treachery is even more sickening.
Saul said, "May
you be blessed of the LORD, for you have had compassion on me.—1 Samuel 23:21 NASB
He uses the name of God to “bless” those who assist him in
his efforts to murder an innocent man. He
tried to associate God with something that God had no part of. He sends them back to find out for sure where
David is hiding.
Saul said, "May
you be blessed of the LORD, for you have had compassion on me. "Go now, make more sure, and investigate
and see his place where his haunt is, and who has seen him there; for I am told
that he is very cunning. "So look,
and learn about all the hiding places where he hides himself and return to me
with certainty, and I will go with you; and if he is in the land, I will search
him out among all the thousands of Judah."—1 Samuel 23:21-23 NASB
Saul must have been getting pretty excited. He’s sure he has David cornered and sends the
Ziphites back to find all of David’s hiding places. Saul recognizes David’s cunning ability at
evading capture, although his rejection of God won’t allow him to see that it
was really God protecting David. Saul
promises to come and search him out if he is for sure where they say he is.
Then they arose and
went to Ziph before Saul. Now David and his men were in the wilderness of Maon,
in the Arabah to the south of Jeshimon. When Saul and his men went to seek him,
they told David, and he came down to the rock and stayed in the wilderness of
Maon. And when Saul heard it, he pursued David in the wilderness of Maon.—1 Samuel
23:24-25 NASB
So the Ziphites have narrowed David down to the area around
Maon. Jeshimon just means “ the
desert.” The Arabah was a desolate
region between the Dead Sea and the finger of the Red Sea called the Gulf of
Aqaba and was characterized by a large valley.
The area only received about 1 inch of rainfall annually. David was getting pretty desperate and hiding
in a region that was not known to be very hospitable. There may have been a few Bedouins here, but
that was about it. Saul rushes into the
area thinking he has David cornered.
Saul went on one side
of the mountain, and David and his men on the other side of the mountain; and
David was hurrying to get away from Saul, for Saul and his men were surrounding
David and his men to seize them.—1 Samuel 23:26 NASB
Saul was getting too close for comfort. David and his men were running around one
side while Saul was going around the other.
Saul almost had David in his grasp, but David got some much needed
relief from an unlikely source.
But a messenger came
to Saul, saying, "Hurry and come, for the Philistines have made a raid on
the land." So Saul returned from pursuing David and went to meet the
Philistines; therefore they called that place the Rock of Escape. David went up
from there and stayed in the strongholds of Engedi.—1 Samuel 23:27-29 NASB
Saved by the Philistines.
Seems like an unlikely way for God to spare David, but as Proverbs 21:1
reminds us:
The king's heart is
like channels of water in the hand of the LORD; He turns it wherever He wishes.
–Proverbs 21:1 NASB
God can use anything or anyone to accomplish His purposes,
even unbelievers. Saul retreated to
fight off the Philistines, allowing David to go to the oasis and limestone
caves at Engedi on the West Bank of the Dead Sea.
David, as we’ve seen repeatedly, turns to writing poetry to
express himself shortly after this event.
Psalm 54 is a Psalm of deliverance, starting with his prayer for
deliverance.
For the choir director; on stringed instruments. A Maskil of David,
when the Ziphites came and said to Saul, "Is not David hiding himself
among us?"
Save me, O God, by Your name, and vindicate
me by Your power. Hear my prayer, O God;
give ear to the words of my mouth. For strangers have risen against me and
violent men have sought my life; they have not set God before them. Selah. –Psalm
54:1-3 NASB
David is relying on God to resolve the situation, not his
own strength. Secondly, David anticipates
deliverance.
Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the
sustainer of my soul. He will recompense the evil to my foes; destroy them in
Your faithfulness.—Psalm 54:4-5 NASB
Here David is confident that God will protect him and
deliver him from evil. Finally, we see
his thankfulness for deliverance.
Willingly I will sacrifice to You; I will
give thanks to Your name, O LORD, for it is good. For He has delivered me from
all trouble, and my eye has looked with satisfaction upon my enemies.—Psalm 54:6-7
NASB
David made sure to give thanks to God, recognizing where his
deliverance came from. From David’s
example we are reminded of these important truths:
1) God is the God of circumstances
2) God is a deliverer – from sin and oppression
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