1 Samuel 27:1 – 12 “David, however, said to himself, “One of these days now I will be swept away by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than to escape to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will stop searching for me all over Israel, and I will slip out of his hand.”
So, David set out with his six hundred men and went to Achish son of Maoch, the king of Gath. David and his men settled in Gath with Achish, and each man had his family with him. David had his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail of Carmel, the widow of Nabal. And when Saul learned that David had fled to Gath, he no longer searched for him.
Then David said to Achish, “If I have found favor in your eyes, let me be assigned a place in one of the outlying towns, so I can live there. For why should your servant live in the royal city with you?”
That day Achish gave him Ziklag, and to this day it still belongs to the kings of Judah. And the time that David lived in Philistine territory amounted to a year and four months.
Now David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. (From ancient times these people had inhabited the land extending to Shur and Egypt.) Whenever David attacked a territory, he did not leave a man or woman alive, but he took the flocks and herds, the donkeys, camels, and clothing.
Then he would return to Achish, who would ask him, “What have you raided today?” And David would reply, “The Negev of Judah,” or “The Negev of Jerami,” or “The Negev of the Kenites.”
David did not leave a man or woman alive to be brought to Gath, for he said, “Otherwise they will report us, saying, ‘This is what David did.’” And this was David’s custom the whole time he lived in Philistine territory.
So Achish trusted David, thinking, “Since he has made himself repugnant to his people Israel, he will be my servant forever.”
David is getting fed up with Saul chasing him. Even though David has spared Saul’s life on two separate occasions and Saul has made great – sounding promises, David realizes Saul’s promises are worthless. Exhausted and discouraged, David makes a terrible decision: he takes his family and his men and their families and goes to live with the Philistines in Gath for sixteen months.
Has David consulted God on this decision? Almost certainly not! Despite the fact that God has consistently delivered David from Saul’s attacks, David has chosen to take matters into his own hands and work out his own deliverance amongst the idol – worshiping Philistines. David’s faith is lower than a ditch digger’s boot soles, and as a consequence, he is making a bad decision. The only good part of this situation is that Achish, the king of Gath, gives David the city of Ziklag as a separate city in which to live, essentially helping David and his men remain separate from the Philistines.
David goes out on raids against the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites, wiping out all the people so that nobody is left to report to Achish. David then lies to Achish, telling him that he has been raiding in various parts of the Israelite Negev, leaving Achish to think that David has totally alienated himself from the Israelites. But why has David gone to the Philistines in the first place?
APPLICATION: David is indulging in “awfulizing,” that is, projecting his fears so that they appear much bigger and more frightening than actual reality. Early on, David has already sent his parents to the king of Moab, who is evidently a friend. All this time, God has protected David’s wives and children. But David is giving way to his fears, not remembering all the ways God has delivered his family and him. God says in His Word that David is a man after His own heart; yet, here David is giving way to fear and acting as if he has to be his own providence.
It is always wise to realize that nobody in the human race is exempt from temptation. Even Jesus Christ faced temptations of various kinds on a daily basis. Think about the soldier’s taunts to Jesus when they were scourging him. “Tell us who struck you!” Right then, had Jesus chosen to do so, he could have named the soldiers and all the previous generations in their families back to Adam and Eve. When Jesus spoke the words “I AM,” in the Garden of Gethsemane, the soldiers collapsed under the power of God.
Here David is facing the temptation to become his own amateur providence, and he does so because he has allowed fear to overwhelm him. The same man who has sung of God’s mercy and grace and provision in so many songs is now giving way to panic for the safety of his family. Graciously, God allows David and his men to occupy the city of Ziklag, so that they continue to dwell separately from the Philistines. (What the people of Ziklag had to say about this is never recorded!)
Perhaps you too are facing the same temptations as David. One problem believers commonly face is the question of whether or not to tithe. When your salary or your fixed social security income is so small, it is tempting to feel that you need to keep it for yourself. Surely others with more money will make up the difference. But that thinking is wrong. Money is actually a useless commodity; you can’t wear it or eat it. What you need are the things money will buy. Countless numbers of people have testified that when they have begun tithing, suddenly the money that is left stretches far further.
Many years ago, I faced a financial crisis through no fault of my own. I had been tithing and even supporting an orphan through a Christian charity. But now, I was sitting in church on a Wednesday night with $1.37 left in my checking account. That’s when God spoke to my heart, asking me how much I thought that $1.37 would do? I chuckled as I answered, “Not much!” and wrote a check, emptying my bank account. That’s when the miracles started. Friends who had never invited me to supper before suddenly were giving me invitations. Other friends left vegetables on my door step. I was working in a hospital across the street from my apartment, so I had little need for fuel and I had a nearly full tank of gas. I lived for three weeks on God’s miraculous provision until my next pay check arrived. I could have awfulized and kept that $1.37 for myself; however, that’s all I would have had – no invitations to share meals and no free veggies.
Learn from David! God cared for David, even when David made a foolish decision to hide among the Philistines. But God would have cared for David in other ways, had David not given way to his fears. Whatever you are facing today, God already has a solution. Refuse to awfulize! Trust God to deliver you, but be ready for the unexpected.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, there are many of us who feel frightened, threatened, and in despair. Help us to trust that You have perfect solutions for all our problems and help us not to awfulize, making things seem worse than they really are. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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