1 Samuel 19:1-8 Saul now urged his aides and his son Jonathan to assassinate David. But Jonathan, because of his close friendship with David, told him what his father was planning. “Tomorrow morning,” he warned him, “you must find a hiding place out in the fields. I’ll ask my father to go out there with me, and I’ll talk to him about you; then I’ll tell you everything I can find out.”
The next morning as Jonathan and his father were talking together, he spoke well of David and begged him not to be against David.
“He’s never done anything to harm you,” Jonathan pleaded. “He has always helped you in any way he could. Have you forgotten about the time he risked his life to kill Goliath, and how the Lord brought a great victory to Israel as a result? You were certainly happy about it then. Why should you now murder an innocent man? There is no reason for it at all!”
Finally, Saul agreed and vowed, “As the Lord lives, he shall not be killed.”
Afterwards Jonathan called David and told him what had happened. Then he took David to Saul and everything was as it had been before. War broke out shortly after that, and David led his troops against the Philistines and slaughtered many of them, and put to flight their entire army.
Well, Saul’s son Jonathan has become close friends with David, realizing what a godly man David is. Jonathan is trying to be the voice of reason in his family; however, Saul remains demonically controlled, meaning that he is totally unpredictable and can suddenly change his mind. Jonathan HOPES that he has smoothed things over; unfortunately, he’s wrong.
9-17 But one day as Saul was sitting at home, listening to David playing the harp, suddenly the tormenting spirit from the Lord attacked him. He had his spear in his hand and hurled it at David in an attempt to kill him. But David dodged out of the way and fled into the night, leaving the spear imbedded in the timber of the wall. Saul sent troops to watch David’s house and kill him when he came out in the morning.
“If you don’t get away tonight,” Michal (David’s wife and Saul’s daughter) warned him, “you’ll be dead by morning.”
So she helped him get down to the ground through a window. Then she took an idol and put it in his bed, and covered it with blankets, with its head on a pillow of goat’s hair. When the soldiers came to arrest David and take him to Saul, she told them he was sick and couldn’t get out of bed. Saul said to bring him in his bed, then, so that he could kill him. But when they came to carry him out, they discovered that it was only an idol!
“Why have you deceived me and let my enemy escape?” Saul demanded of Michal.
“I had to,” Michal replied. “He threatened to kill me if I didn’t help him.”
You have to pity Saul’s kids! First, Jonathan tries to reason with Saul and gets a specious promise. Now Michal, David’s wife and Saul’s daughter, helps David escape while an armed guard waits outside their house. What are these poor people to do? Their father is power-drunk and emotionally unbalanced. Will they be the next victims?
18-24 In that way David got away and went to Ramah to see Samuel, and told him all that Saul had done to him. So Samuel took David with him to live at Naioth. When the report reached Saul that David was at Naioth in Ramah, he sent soldiers to capture him; but when they arrived and saw Samuel and the other prophets prophesying, the Spirit of God came upon them and they also began to prophesy. When Saul heard what had happened, he sent other soldiers, but they too prophesied! The same thing happened a third time! Then Saul himself went to Ramah and arrived at the great well in Secu.
“Where are Samuel and David?” he demanded.
Someone told him they were at Naioth. But on the way to Naioth the Spirit of God came upon Saul, and he too began to prophesy! He tore off his clothes and lay naked all day and all night, prophesying with Samuel’s prophets. Saul’s men were incredulous!
“What!” they exclaimed. “Is Saul a prophet too?”
When David escapes to stay with Samuel in the village of Naioth under Ramah, Saul sends soldiers to arrest David, but each time these men approach Samuel, they begin prophesying. Saul decides that if he wants something done right, he should do it himself. Too bad Saul and God are on opposing sides. When Saul approaches Naioth, the Holy Spirit comes upon him, causing him to tear off his clothes, lying naked for 24 hours as he spews forth prophesies. If ever a king was forced to do something embarrassing, this is it!
All this time, David is simply sitting at Samuel’s home in Naioth, the location indicated by the accompanying map. Notice something: All David does in this chapter is to repeatedly escape from Saul, first with the help of Jonathan and Michal, and then Samuel. David’s only “sin” is that he has been godly and successful. But those two qualities are enough for Saul to feel David is a threat.
Sometimes, you might attract the wrath of a supervisor, even though you have done nothing wrong. While honesty and competence would seem to be admirable qualities in an employee, a supervisor bent on any kind of wrong-doing might view you as a threat. The question then is this: Whom are you trying to please? Are you working to please the God who has called you to a particular job, or are you pandering to someone’s ego? The problem with trying to please people is that the more you try to compromise, the more they demand. God never changes, but people do.
Psalm 34:8-10 tells us, “Oh, put God to the test and see how kind he is! See for yourself the way his mercies shower down on all who trust in him. If you belong to the Lord, reverence him; for everyone who does this has everything he needs. Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry, but those of us who reverence the Lord will never lack any good thing.
David had Samuel to run to. Sometimes, we find ourselves isolated; however, God is always there and He never changes. You might have to face difficult times, but you can take comfort in the knowledge that God is always with you. Hebrews 13:5-6 says, “Stay away from the love of money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never, never fail you nor forsake you.”That is why we can say without any doubt or fear, “The Lord is my Helper, and I am not afraid of anything that mere man can do to me.”
God doesn’t promise us easy lives, but He promises to lead us, to guide us, and to help us. Why not trust in the One who never changes or fails?
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, You are our Helper, our Keeper, our Shelter, our Protector. You are the One who can comfort us. Please reach down and comfort all those reading these words, reassuring them that You will never leave them or forsake them. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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