1 Samuel 24:1-6 After Saul’s return from his battle with the Philistines, he was told that David had gone into the wilderness of Engedi; so he took three thousand special troops and went to search for him among the rocks and wild goats of the desert. At the place where the road passes some sheepfolds, Saul went into a cave to go to the bathroom, but as it happened, David and his men were hiding in the cave!
“Now’s your time!” David’s men whispered to him. “Today is the day the Lord was talking about when he said, ‘I will certainly put Saul into your power, to do with as you wish’!” Then David crept forward and quietly slit off the bottom of Saul’s robe! But then his conscience began bothering him.
“I shouldn’t have done it,” he said to his men. “It is a serious sin to attack God’s chosen king in any way.”
Well! If ever someone deserved punishment, that man is King Saul. After driving David out of his home and wiping out eighty-five priests and their entire village for helping David, now Saul is hunting David among the rocks and caves of Engedi near the Dead Sea. When Saul enters a large cave to defecate, he has no idea that David and his men are hiding in the back of the cave. Although David’s men are urging him to kill Saul, David settles for cutting off a small piece of Saul’s robe as he is squatting-just enough to prove to Saul that David could have done something far worse. And David also warns his men so that they also do not attack Saul. But David is fed up with being a fugitive and chooses to confront Saul verbally.
7-8 These words of David persuaded his men not to kill Saul.
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.
9-15 Then he shouted to Saul, “Why do you listen to the people who say I am trying to harm you? This very day you have seen it isn’t true. For the Lord placed you at my mercy back there in the cave, and some of my men told me to kill you, but I spared you. For I said, ‘I will never harm him—he is the Lord’s chosen king.’ See what I have in my hand? It is the hem of your robe! I cut it off, but I didn’t kill you! Doesn’t this convince you that I am not trying to harm you and that I have not sinned against you, even though you have been hunting for my life?
“The Lord will decide between us. Perhaps he will kill you for what you are trying to do to me, but I will never harm you. As that old proverb says, ‘Wicked is as wicked does,’ but despite your wickedness, I’ll not touch you. And who is the king of Israel trying to catch, anyway? Should he spend his time chasing one who is as worthless as a dead dog or a flea? May the Lord judge as to which of us is right and punish whichever one of us is guilty. He is my lawyer and defender, and he will rescue me from your power!”
Saul can scarcely believe it when he hears David calling to him from the cave, waving a piece of Saul’s robe in his hand. Saul has spent entire nights planning how he will torture David if he catches him; now David has had Saul in his power and has refused to harm him.
16-21 Saul called back, “Is it 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. Yes, you have been wonderfully kind to me today, for when the Lord delivered me into your hand, you didn’t kill me. Who else in all the world would let his enemy get away when he had him in his power? May the Lord reward you well for the kindness you have shown me today. And now I realize that you are surely going to be king, and Israel shall be yours to rule. Oh, swear to me by the Lord that when that happens you will not kill my family and destroy my line of descendants!”
22 So David promised, and Saul went home, but David and his men went back to their cave.
Saul might be demonically influenced, but he still has some shreds of decency left. Now Saul is blown away by the realization that David, the same man Saul has hunted throughout Israel has spared Saul’s life. Such an act is contrary to everything Saul has ever thought, for Saul is not a believer and David is. Note something else: Saul has 3,000 special troops while David only has 600 men, and David and his men are trapped in a large cave. Were Saul to continue attacking David, he could wipe out David and his ragtag band of soldiers right now. Saul knows David’s exact location, so what is preventing Saul from proceeding to eliminate David?
Saul’s statements indicate that God has sent the convicting power of the Holy Spirit on Saul and Saul is having a moment of spiritual clarity. Saul finally accepts the fact that David will become king over Israel and begs David to be kind to Saul’s family. David promises, and Saul leaves. You might think that this is the last time Saul will ever pursue David, but no. Later, Saul will renew his pursuit, even though he has acknowledged to David that David will eventually become king.
David’s actions demonstrate how God wants us to behave toward those who have hurt us and persecuted us. Deuteronomy 32:35 says, “Vengeance is mine, and I decree the punishment of all her (Israel’s) enemies: Their doom is sealed.” How many times has God spoken those words to David while David is out herding sheep in rain, in wind, in biting cold, or in heat and dust? Certainly, David might have thought angry thoughts about his mocking older brothers lying safely in the house, or about his father, who has treated him as being expendable. And what about David’s mother? Why hasn’t she tried to protect David?
One of the miracles of David’s early life is that he has not allowed the hardships he has borne to embitter him. Long before David ever encountered Saul or killed Goliath, David endured enough suffering to cause him to hate his family had not God shown him a better way. David’s constant dialogue with God has protected him from self-pity.
Centuries later, Saint Paul will quote that same verse from Deuteronomy as he advises the Roman Christians. Romans 12:17-19 tells us, “Never pay back evil for evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honest clear through. Don’t quarrel with anyone. Be at peace with everyone, just as much as possible.
Dear friends, never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God, for he has said that he will repay those who deserve it. Don’t take the law into your own hands. Instead, feed your enemy if he is hungry. If he is thirsty give him something to drink and you will be “heaping coals of fire on his head.” In other words, he will feel ashamed of himself for what he has done to you. Don’t let evil get the upper hand, but conquer evil by doing good.”
Workplace conflicts can hurt us severely, for many of us spend far more time at work than we do at home. Such pain is particularly true for those in helping professions such as the ministry or health care, for there are no limits on the amount of time such professions may demand. For years, I served as the only doctor in two different Ghanaian mission hospitals, and I learned to sleep in clothing that allowed me to answer calls from the night watchman. Later, when cell phones became available, I made sure that my phone was always charged and within an arm’s reach when I was sleeping. Before cell phones, I could get a little rest by traveling out of town; however, once cell phones became prevalent, I could receive calls from anywhere as long as I was still in the country. My standing joke was that my adrenal glands were so exhausted, they were panting with their tongues hanging out.
In such circumstances, it’s tempting to descend into pettiness to pay someone back for misunderstanding or slighting us. But God doesn’t have two sets of rules, one for times when people treat us well and the other when people mistreat us. Read Ephesians 4 and you will realize that the church at Ephesus was being torn apart by petty wrangling. Paul begins that chapter by saying, “I beg you—I, a prisoner here in jail for serving the Lord—to live and act in a way worthy of those who have been chosen for such wonderful blessings as these. Be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Try always to be led along together by the Holy Spirit and so be at peace with one another.” (Ephesians 4:1-3) Ephesians 4:31 tells us, “Stop being mean, bad-tempered, and angry. Quarreling, harsh words, and dislike of others should have no place in your lives. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God has forgiven you because you belong to Christ.”
Once we have committed our lives to God, we must play by His rules and not by ours. Remember, God is the One who forgives us our sins when we confess them to Him. If we desire forgiveness from God, we must freely offer forgiveness to those who hurt us. Jesus has ordered us to do so. Matthew 5:44 says, “But I say: Love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! “May God help us so that we will take David as our example and extend mercy to the merciless!
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives and to forgive those who have hurt us, praying for them. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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